FAQ

[Kulyok]

Important:
- Heart of Winter expansion is required;
- Tales of the Luremaster expansion(free download) is recommended;
- before installing any mods, please, backup your override directory and your dialog.tlk(read more about clean backup here);
- watch out for petrification(traps in Ch 6, for one): revived characters may lose their dialogue files(cured by editing in Near Infinity, but still unpleasant);
- stop often, especially after entering a new area.


Q: What is this mod about?

A: It adds five new original joinable companions to the game of Icewind Dale. You will be able to create your protagonist in the first slot, and import them alongside.


Q: What does this mod include?

A: In general, PC-NPC and NPC-NPC interaction. Banters between the companions, banters with the protagonist, interjections, quest and scenery reactions, player-initiated dialogue. Certain banters (plot-critical and not) involve all party members.


Q: What about friendships?  Romances?

A: There are friendships, both between the NPCs and with the protagonist. Some of these bonds may become something greater. Romances are available to human, elven and half-elven protagonists.


Q: What about player-initiated dialogue?

A: Yes, you will be able to initiate dialogue with your companions. To do this, your protagonist will have to approach the selected NPC in the game and click on him/her.

(Note that you can do it with another party member instead of your PC, but it is NOT supported or recommended.)

Flirting technology, "K-for-fixing-things" key and x# prefix brought to you by jcompton and Ghreyfain in Kelsey. Fortunately, the IE modding community did not allow them to take these wonderful things away.


Q: Will it work with IWD or IWD: Heart of Winter? What about IWD: Trials of the Luremaster, an additional free expansion for IWD: HoW?

A: Heart of Winter is required. The free Trials of the Luremaster expansion is strongly recommended, as well. You can get the Trials of the Luremaster here.  If you download and install TotL, you do not have to patch your game.


Q: How does it work? What should I do to get banters and interactions?

A: Just play the game: enter new areas, slay monsters, complete quests and find quest items.  Due to the engine limitations, you will not get dialogues at rest/at waking/every hour, the way it was done in BG2, so resting excessively will not affect the game. As for the interjections, the character should detect your NPCs presence by hearing or sight, which means they will have to be alive and in the visual range.

In general, keeping your companions alive and close together is recommended.

AND STOP OFTEN, ESPECIALLY AFTER ENTERING A NEW AREA.


Q: Any special recommendations?

A: To see the banter with Player1, your protagonist will have to remain in the first slot.  Also, as you issue movement commands to the party, their override scripts are temporarily suspended, so you will have to stop to hear banter. You will not miss dialogues, but it is STRONGLY recommended to stop for two or three seconds from time to time, especially after entering a new area.


Q: Is the mod compatible with other Icewind Dale mods?

A: Yes, the mod installs using Weidu, it takes extra care not to interfere too much, and it should be compatible with all other mods for Icewind Dale. However, since some mods overwrite things, install other mods BEFORE IWD NPC, for safety reasons, unless the mod's readme says otherwise. The mod also uses some code from IWD Tweak Pack, and has been extensively tested with it.


Q: All right, I have a copy of IWD, HoW and ToTL, installed and working. What will I have to do?

A: You will have to install the mod, start a new game and choose your protagonist for the first slot.  Then import the rest of the companions and start playing.


Q: Does the mod forces a pre-defined background/biography on my protagonist?

A: No, it doesn't. You will be able to roleplay your protagonist however you like.


Q: Can I use two or more custom characters, or characters from other NPC mods(should the latter appear)?

A: Yes, you can. As long as your protagonist is in the first slot, IWD NPCs will banter with him and between themselves. However, you will get significantly fewer banters and interjections this way: taking four companions instead of five will cut the amount of content by about 1/3, and taking only three - by 1/2.


Q: I am not happy with some of the classes and stats, can I use Dale Keeper or another program to change them?

A: Yes, you can. Caution is recommended, so that the script name/override script/dialogue file for the character remains unchanged.

The mod itself also gives you the opportunity to choose these classes:

Holvir, paladin
Korin,  ranger, alternate class: multiclass cleric/ranger
Nella,  fighter, possible dual-class - cleric, druid, alternate class: multiclass fighter/cleric, multiclass fighter/druid
Severn, bard, alternate class: mage, multiclass fighter/mage
Teri,   multiclass fighter/thief, alternate class: thief, multiclass mage/thief, multiclass fighter/mage/thief

Note that these options are here for your convenience only. In terms of roleplaying, Severn's story still implies that he is a bard, and the same is true for other characters.


Q: Can I choose alternate colors or portraits for my party members?

A: Yes, you shall be able to customize them in the game.


Q: Can I choose alternate soundsets for my party members?

A: Yes, you shall be able to customize them in the game. As the mod is fully voiced, you will also have to delete all .wav files which start with "o#" from the override directory. Caution is recommended.


Q: I often hear select sounds when the banter begins. Can it be avoided?

A: Unfortunately, the engine prevents that. Just like the "stop often" rule, it is one of the hardcoded limitations.


Q: The game crashed when we talked to character X! A party member stutters!

A: It happened because one of your characters died and "lost" his dialogue file. Reload, select him and press K key. To be safe, select all your party members and press K key on each of them in turn.


Q: I played BG2, but not IWD. What should I expect?

A: IWD does not have sorcerers, monks and barbarians, and spell animations and incantations differ. Other than that, you won't notice the difference, especially if you have the Heart of Winter.


Q: I played Icewind Dale 2, but not Icewind Dale. Will IWD be different?

A: Yes. It is an entirely different story, and it is a very interesting game.


Q: I have a question about the game itself.

A: Download and read Dan Simpson's walthrough.


Q: I like the idea! Is there anything like this for other games?

A: Yes, BG1 NPC Project and IWD2 NPC Project.


Q: Will there be an Icewind Dale NPCs mod for Icewind Dale conversion in Baldur's Gate 2 engine?

A: Yes. Soon.

[jastey]

Will the NPCs be BGII NPCs, like you mentioned before of doing, or completely new ones (If yes, which ones)?

Congrats to the forum! These IWDx-NPC projects are reasons to play those games again.

[Kulyok]

Thank you! It's what I've been doing for the past month; now that de'Arnise Romance SoA and Angelo SoA and ToB has been released, I can do it nearly full time.

These are five completely new NPCs. I will be posting short character profiles and other info shortly; it's just I am at work now, so I am a little pressed for time.

[Amgot]

Considering that we already have IWD2 NPCs and will soon have IWD NPCs, I might finally consider buying a IWD bundle if I find one not too expensive somewhere! Good luck on the project!

[Kulyok]

Thank you!

[the bigg]

These are five completely new NPCs. I will be posting short character profiles and other info shortly; it's just I am at work now, so I am a little pressed for time.

I'd just love to see Xan react to the book mentioning him, though 

NB: possible ultra-minor spoiler, select to read...

An excerpt...

"Tomorrow I will attempt to climb through the mountains near Kuldahar Pass.  In a way, I feel like I should help Hrothgar and the others in their investigation.  After all, they have very little protection should monsters be in the area.  Bah!  Perhaps my brothers are right.  We elves were not meant to interfere in the world of men.  These lands may once have belonged to our people, but that was long ago.  It is the territory of the wild Reghed barbarians and the Ten-Towns now.  Why resist the tide against us?  Those who do often turn to the darkness of war and conquest to reclaim the lands that we once ruled.  It is an endeavor doomed to failure.  Oh, there I go again.  Corellon help me, I'm starting to sound like cousin Xan!"

Of course, most other BG* characters are too young to have lived in the IWD* era, and the others live too far away.

[magrat]

You know, my Icewind Dale boxed set arrived only just last weekend, and I haven't had a chance yet to really get my teeth into it... I now can't decide whether to keep playing, so I know what happens in the beginning, at least, or whether to just hold off and wait for a slightly more conversational experience

Good luck -- though having played so many other things you've worked on, I'm absolutely sure it'll be fantastic, and I know I can't wait

[Kulyok]

Heheh! Oh, I wanted it to happen. But in the end, it seems a totally different story, and I realized I may want to leave BG* characters in BG* series.

(In Xan BG2, Xan speaks about Erevain and his later journey to Icewind Dale, in ToB portion of the mod).

[Kulyok]

I now can't decide whether to keep playing, so I know what happens in the beginning, at least, or whether to just hold off and wait for a slightly more conversational experience

Don't play! I may want to include it into FAQ, later - but, really, when you are playing it for the first time, it's a great experience, so if you can, please, don't spoil it for yourself. (It's just me, though.)

[magrat]

I now can't decide whether to keep playing, so I know what happens in the beginning, at least, or whether to just hold off and wait for a slightly more conversational experience

Don't play! I may want to include it into FAQ, later - but, really, when you are playing it for the first time, it's a great experience, so if you can, please, don't spoil it for yourself. (It's just me, though.)

Ah, I shall stop then.  My fresh-faced band of motley youths have only just survived an avalance and discovered some beetles (and died to some goblins...) so I haven't got very far at all, I don't think.  In fact, I think I've got as far as I managed to get several years ago when we first had the CDs borrowed from a friend (who took them back before I managed to get time to play properly )

I will wait patiently   Ish

[Johnny]

I think I heard that this would be set between Baldur's Gate I & II, with the same CHARNANME protagonist. Is this true, or was I misinformed?

[Kulyok]

I had this idea months ago, on G3 forums, yes. Then some bad stuff happened on BG1 NPC forums, and I decided to take a break from BG1 characters.  And then I thought: "Why use BG1 or BG2 characters at all? It *is* a different game!" So here you go.

[Johnny]

I gather that the characters themselves are different from reading the biographies. Will there be any references to BG1 events in dialogue - such as one of your NPCs asking CHARNAME about his/her past, for example - or is the plan now to make it entirely self contained?

Personally I can well imagine a BG1 protagonist wandering off alone to the north and making new friends after the revelations of BG1, but then I have that kind of melodramatic mindset anyway.

[Kulyok]

If you'd like to imagine your protagonist as a Child of Bhaal and ignore the time difference, sure, you can do so. You won't be able to have talks about Gorion, Imoen and Bhaal heritage in the game, however.

[Johnny]

Shame.

[Kulyok]

I think not.

It would be much worse if the protagonist was restrained to being Gorion's ward/a local lad or lass/a citizen of Neverwinter. Or worse yet, the mod was created for male characters/female characters only. As it is, your protagonist can be the former, the latter, and much more.

[DavidW]

On purely practical grounds, unless you wanted to revise the difficulty of practically the whole game, you'd have a huge balance problem - IWD assumes first-level protagonists, not 7th-9th level ones with respectably good equipment.

[Annatar]

Is there any projected release date?

I suppose you probably can't say even down to the month at this stage, but... Any estimate at all?
Like a poster above I was thinking about starting a new game sometime soon. If this is going to be out in a couple of months or so I'll put it off until then.
If we're looking at much later in the year, perhaps not.

[CORVIS TERRIBLE MOUNTAIN GOD]

Kulyok is a freaky swedish dynamo. I can't imagine you'll have to wait a year.

[Kulyok]

You know, I like "freaky swedish dynamo".

If this is going to be out in a couple of months or so I'll put it off until then.

If you'll be satisfied with a fully working and reliable version without voicing(in-game soundsets only), then it will be much sooner than a couple of months.

With voicing, it will likely take three or four months, but we've a bad practice of establishing deadlines: practically none worked in the past.

And welcome to PPG, Annatar.

[Annatar]

If you'll be satisfied with a fully working and reliable version without voicing(in-game soundsets only), then it will be much sooner than a couple of months.

I certainly will be. I tend not to use voicing wih mods even when it's available.
One can only assume that you were wroking hard on this for a while to have something (presumably) almost ready for release so shorty after it's been announced...

And welcome to PPG, Annatar.

Danke.

[Kulyok]

Good news: player-initiated dialogue works just like it does in Baldur's Gate: click on the character, and talk/flirt however you like.

(There's a small downside: IWD cannot check if it's your protagonist trying to strike a conversation with an NPC, or another party member. So, theoretically, you can make your NPCs click on each other. Don't do that.)

[Lysan Lurraxol]

Will IWD NPC be compatible with other IWD Mods like the IWD Tweak pack and IWD unfinished business?

BTW Congrats on getting this so near to completion after such a short period of time Can't wait for completion, finally a reason to get past the Vale of Shadows

[Kulyok]

As per the FAQ:

Q: Will the mod be compatible with other Icewind Dale mods?

A: Yes, the mod installs using Weidu, it takes extra care not to interfere too much, and it should be compatible with all other mods for Icewind Dale. However, since some mods overwrite things, install other mods BEFORE IWD NPC, for safety reasons, unless the mod's readme says otherwise. The mod also uses some code from IWD Tweak Pack, and has been extensively tested with it.

And thanks.

[Daulmakan]

Is Holvir supposed to react to the party getting Pale Justice? I both CLUAed it in and got it from the corpse (after teleporting the party with the console since the quest in UB for IWD doesn't work very well) and he remained silent in both cases.