Author Topic: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!  (Read 13155 times)

Offline Echon

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The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« on: March 11, 2014, 04:35:34 PM »
Updating a huge mod from overwriting everything to using 100% pure WeiDU PatchMagic, and then making that new version compatible with three different versions of the game apparently takes 6 years, give or take. Seeing as this is a beta release, a number of things are still on the to-do list, but FotD is certainly playable on Enhanced Edition, Tutu and Trilogy. I have been doing a bit of playtesting myself and everything seems to work. The game never crashed and most of the bugs that I found were minor. This is why I am doing a beta release; I need help finding all the bugs that are bound to have crept into the mod after what is more or less a complete rewrite.

If you want to help test this release, follow these simple steps:

1. Download The Mod
Current version: beta 4 (http://mods.pocketplane.net/FotDv200beta4.zip)

2. Install it on BG:EE, Tutu or BGT
It is not compatible with the original BG

3. Report Any Bugs You Encounter
There will be a separate thread for that (http://forums.pocketplane.net/index.php/topic,29093.0.html)

4. Enjoy
(Hopefully)

If you are unfamiliar with The Fields of the Dead, the site will provide you with all the details: http://www.echon.dk/fotd


Known Issues & To-do

Disabling the party AI prevents Chant, Strength of One and Defensive Harmony from working. Of course, if you do not use any of these spells, you can disable it. If you normally disable the party AI because you want full control over the characters, instead remove the default script they have been assigned and replace it with 'none'.
The world map icon for Battle of Bones does not match the icons in Tutu/BGT
Contents exclusive to BG2 (creatures, classes, kits, half-orcs) have not been updated by FotD
There is currently no BG:EE specific TRA
The new spells are using icons from BG2


Changelog


V2.00 BETA 4

-NEW FEATURES:

Halflings gain +1 to hit with darts, throwing daggers and throwing axes, in addition to their bonus with slings.

Steal from the rich and give to yourself! Commoners, merchants, noblemen and others now have things worth nicking. Hopefully this should make the Pick Pockets skill useful for more than just stealing Algernon's Cloak.

Optional tweaks:
 Set XP cap to 400,000, or remove it completely.
 Move Boo to an inventory slot.
 Remove Edwin's amulet but keep the extra spells.
 Make traps persistent until disarmed.
 Make traps and locks more difficult (+5%, +10%, +15%, or +20%).
 Disable movies.
 
-CHANGES:

Race and class descriptions have been updated with the changes from FotD.

The original Lay On Hands icon has been restored.

Katana, Wakizashi and Ninjato now do piercing/slashing damage.
Wakizashi and Ninjato have become more expensive due to their rarity in the western part of Faerûn.
Ninjato speed factor has been reduced to 3 (was 4).

Priest Spells:

Cure Disease no longer cures Feeblemind. The casting time is 1 round (was 1).

Zone of Sweet Air also belongs to the sphere of Elemental Air and druids have access to it. The casting time is 6 (was 3).

Summon Insects lasts 1 round/level, doing 4 points of damage once per round. The save is vs. spell (unmodified). There is no casting failure. The casting time is 1 round (was 9).

Call Woodland Beings lasts 2 rounds/level (was 3 turns). The casting time is 1 round (was 7). The spell will summon 1d4 dryads (was 1) with a 60% + 1%/level chance (was 100%). The dryads have 3 Charm Person spells only. If any of the party members are evil, each dryad gets a saving throw vs. spell (with a +4 bonus) to escape the call. The spell only works outdoors.

Poison requires a succesful attack. If the save is failed, the target becomes incapacitated and dies in 1 turn. The casting time is 7 (was 4).

Negative Plane Protection lasts 1 turn/level, but only protects against one energy level/strength drain. Druids no longer have access to it. As per the description, its school is abjuration (was alteration). The casting time is 1 round (was 3).

Cause Serious Wounds lasts 1 round (was 2.5). It inflicts 2D8+1 damage (was 17).

Cloak of Fear causes fear for 8 rounds (was 4) in a smaller area of effect. It affects all creatures, including allies. Druids no longer have access to it.

True Seeing lasts 1 round/level (was 1 turn). It may be cast on other recipients now.

Iron Skins is permanent until the skins have been removed. 1D6 + 1 per 2 levels attacks are blocked. It may be cast on other recipients now. The casting time is 1 (was 9).

Magic Resistance lasts 1 round/level (was 3 + 1/level). It is now an abjuration spell (was alteration), and only affects the caster. Druids no longer have access to it.

Cause Serious Wounds lasts 1 round (was 2.5). It inflicts 3D8+3 damage (was 27).

Slay Living is now a ranged spell and does not require an attack roll. Only PC races are affected. The casting time is 1 round (was 1).

Mass Cure no longer affects the caster. The casting speed is 1 round (was 5).

Pixie Dust lasts 2 rounds/level (was 24 hours). It belongs to the Combat sphere, which means clerics gain access to it and druids lose access to it. It is now an alteration spell (was illusion/phantasm). Detect Invisibility does not work against Pixie Dust. The invisibility is reapplied once per round. The casting speed is 1 round (was 9).

Insect Plague lasts 2 rounds/level (was 6 rounds). It belongs to the Animal sphere and can only be cast outdoors. All creatures in the area of effect receive 1 point of damage/round. Creatures with 2 or fewer HD automatically flee, while creatures with 3-4 HD must check morale or flee. The casting time is 1 round (was 5).

Wizard Spells:

Luck lasts 3 turns. It is now an alteration spell (was enchantment/charm). The casting time is 1 round (was 2). It provides a +1 bonus to all saving throws.

Chaos Shield lasts 5 rounds + 2 rounds/level (was 5 rounds + 1 turn/5 levels).

Glitterdust affects all creatures within the area of effect. The blindness lasts for three rounds. The dust fades after 2 rounds + 1 round/level and does not allow a saving throw. The dust prevents hiding in shadows and becoming invisible. The spell can now be dispelled and does not ignore magic resistance.

Remove Magic has become Dispel Magic.

Invisibility, 10' Radius has a casting time of 3 (was 9).

Dire Charm lasts 2 rounds + 1 round/level (was 5 rounds). It now causes the target to go berserk, attacking anyone within sight.

Protection from Fire lasts 2 rounds/level (was 1 turn/level).

Protection from Cold lasts 2 rounds/level (was 1 turn/level).

Hold Undead lasts 2 rounds + 1 round/level (was 2 rounds/level). The casting time is 5 (was 3). Undead with less than 3 HD do not get a saving throw vs. spell.

Melf's Minute Meteors gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls (was +5). The meteors do 1d4 fire damage (was 1d4+3 piercing + 3 fire damage).

Fire Shield (Blue) lasts 2 rounds + 1 round/level (was 3 rounds + 1 round/level). It now grants 50% fire resistance (was 50% cold resistance).

Icestorm lasts 1 round (was 4 rounds). It does 3d10 points of damage (was 2d8).

Stoneskin lasts for 24 hours (was 12 hours). It can be cast on any target now (was caster only). The number of skins is 1d4 + 1 per three levels (was 1 per two levels).

Contagion reduces the target's attack rolls by 2. It no longer slows the target.

Fire Shield (Red) lasts 2 rounds + 1 round/level (was 3 rounds + 1 round/level). It now grants 50% cold resistance (was 50% fire resistance).

Spider Spawn summons 1 Hit Die of spiders per 2 levels of the caster. The spiders may have from 1+1 HD to 4+4 HD each.

Wizard Eye has a casting time of 1 round (was 9).

Spell Immunity lasts 1 turn/level (was 1 round/level). It may be cast on any target. The spell provides immunity to one specific spell of 4th level or less.

Protection from Electricity lasts 5 rounds/level (was 1 turn/level). It provides 50% electricity resistance (was 100%).

Lower Resistance lasts 1 turn + 1 round/level (was 1 round/level). It lowers the target's resistance by 16% + 1%/level (was 10% + 1%/level). The target's resistance works against the spell now but at 20% lower than normal. It can now be dispelled.

Conjure Lesser Fire/Air/Earth Elemental have become one spell, Conjure Elemental. It lasts 5 rounds/level (was 1 turn + 1 round/level). The casting time is 1 round (was 9). The elemental is friendly but the caster must remain concentrated to prevent it from turning hostile. The caster may at any time choose to end the concentration, which will also be broken if the caster is damaged. After the second round there is a 2% chance per round that the elemental breaks free and turns hostile.

Protection from Acid lasts 5 rounds/level (was 1 turn/level). The casting speed is 5 (was 6). It provides 50% resistance to acid damage (was 100%).

Phantom Blade lasts 1 round/level (was 3 rounds + 1 round/level). The sword is considered +2 with regard to what it can hit, but gains no THAC0 or damage bonus (was +3 with bonuses). Versus undead it provides a +4 bonus to hit and does 4d4 damage (was +10 damage).

Minor Spell Turning lasts 5 rounds/level (was 3 rounds/level). It turns 1d4 spell levels (was 4), and can turn spells of 1st-3rd level (was 1st-4th level). It may now be dispelled.

Sunfire has a casting time of 5 (was 3). The maximum damage is 12d6 (was 15d6). It may now be cast at any point within range instead of being centered on the caster.

-FIXES:

Chromatic Orb is broken.
Several merchants in Baldur's Gate crash the game.
Sarevok's coronation does not begin (Tutu).
New FotD swords use the same filenames as existing BG2 items (Tutu and BGT).
Fuller gives no reward for getting the crossbow bolts.
Some diseases are missing a portrait icon and a display string.
All new spell scrolls use the generic scroll icon.
Ramazith does not become hostile if attacked.
The new party NPC CREs do not use the correct scripts and dialogues (Tutu).
The Battle Horror helmet crashes the game (Tutu and BGT).
At certain levels the party NPCs still have their old weapon proficiencies.
All scrolls for the original spells have outdated descriptions and incorrect prices.
Agannazar's Scorcher deals twice the intended damage.
The new spells do not belong to any of the schools of magic.
At certain levels, Ajantis still has access to the old versions of the paladin abilities.


V2.00 BETA 3

-CHANGES:

Poison: onset time implemented
Lock and trap XP are awarded via XPBONUS.2DA instead of scripts
Spears have become Long Spears
Morning stars do blunt/piercing damage
Halberds do piercing/slashing damage (for Tutu and BGT, BG:EE already corrects this)
Gauntlets of Ogre Power, Gauntlets of Dexterity, Heavy Crossbow of Accuracy and Leather Armor +2 are back in the game in their original locations

-FIXES:

Incorrect damage type/amount: Ettercaps, Greater Basilisks and Wyverns
Free Action/Ring of Free Action do not protect against Bands of Sirellyn
Protection from Evil (wizard and priest) have incorrect descriptions
Chromatic Orb does not progress beyond level 7
Hobgoblins attack elves exclusively if present
Summon Shadow does not use the sprite from BG2
Spiritual Hammer crashes the game
Death Dog's dying effect cannot be dispelled (it is now a fatal rotting disease, which can be cured with Cure Disease and the Elixir of Health)


V2.00 BETA 2

-CHANGES:

Gold donation in temples is no longer changed by FotD

-FIXES:

NPCLEVEL.2DA contains illegal references that crash the game at certain levels
Curse displays incorrect string
Creatures do not attack: Sirines, Dopplegangers, Iron Throne leaders in Candlekeep
Creatures are stuck: Doomsayer
"Talos' Gift" boots uses wrong portrait icon
Sirines' Feblemind is missing a portrait icon
Iron Mind uses wrong portrait icon
Claw of Kazgaroth provides an AC penalty instead of bonus
Ray of Fatigue uses wrong portrait icon
Dispel Magic, both priest and wizard versions, does not dispel anything
Viconia receives damage when she levels up instead of getting more magic resistance
Fear's visual effect is not attached to the targets and is displayed regardless of the save
Monster Summoning II summons way too many monsters
Ring of Invulnerability is too cheap (it had no charges)
Ice Island level 1 exit does not lead to level 2
Ice Island level 2 graphics seem to be corrupted on EE
Ghoul Lord's aura missing
Chess Battle begins before all four elemental creatures are dead
Wraith Spiders instantly kill their target
Wraith Spiders are not immune to cold damage
Aec'letec uses his abilities on the wrong targets
Ice Island level 2 is completely missing from Tutu and Trilogy
Some containers provide XP when forced open
Jondalar's class is mage (should be fighter, needs MINHP1 item)
Dreppin's dialogue does not check for racial armours
Neira and Tarnesh use the wrong dialogue
Branwen does not have her spiritual hammer ability
Spider poison does the wrong amount of damage


V2.00 BETA 1

-CHANGES:

This release is almost a recreation of the mod, moving from overwriting files to patching through WeiDU. It also abandons support for the original version of Baldur's Gate in favour of support for Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition, BG1Tutu and Baldur's Gate Trilogy. Naturally, it also contains a number of changes and lots of fixes, but more importantly, it represents a change of focus. When FotD was first released, it could be broken down into the following components: P&P-related Changes, New Content (also drawn from P&P), Improved AI and Echon's Arbitrary Changes. That last component mainly originated from my desire to renew the gameplay experience and discourage metagaming by relocating magical items and creatures, randomising treasure, and so on. Some changes, however, were simply based on personal preferences. During this update, I decided that while the first three components fit well together, the last one seems random and out of place. Consequently, most of these changes (especially related to areas) have been rolled back, and more of them are likely to follow. However, some of them will be reintroduced as optional components later on for those who would like to add more tweaks to their game.

Low-quality items have been removed
Racial shields have been removed
For some creatures, such as the wyvern, not every attack is poisonous
Spellcasters no longer lose dexterity bonuses to AC when casting spells (it was bugged)
The random treasure system has been expanded and renewed

-FIXES:

No items or spells actually provide an AC bonus vs ranged weapons
Fist of Stone does not prevent spellcasting
Arrows of Dispelling now also remove spell items like Flame Blade, Chill Touch, etc.
Scimitars bought from Taerum will no longer add a THAC0 penalty when attacking dwarves or gnomes
Cult Enforcer is duplicated
Basilisks no longer use their gaze attack when blinded
Resist Fear & Remove Fear now prevent the panic portrait icon from displaying
Sunscorch does not improve at 12th level
It is now possible to help Gerde kill ankhegs again
Most gnolls are missing the penalty to hit gnomes
Blur's duration is 2 rounds too short
Magic Missile now does 1D4+1 instead of 2D3 damage
Strength of One always gives the bonus for str 19 if any party member has str 18 or above, and it also gives no bonus for str 16
Flame Blade now does +2 damage vs. undead
Sanctuary always functions as if cast by a 9th-level priest
Potion of Cold Resistance has incorrect portrait icon
Zargal's weapon is not visible
Jovial Juggler has incorrect room availability
The new world map area is not visible
General Store in BG North-East no longer identifies
Resar uses no spells
Minor Globe Of Invulnerability glow effect from Ring Of Invulnerability does not include weapon, shield and helmet
Trackless Sea Island AI is not working correctly
Priests in the Temple of Umberlee do not turn hostile when attacked
General Store in Flaming Fist Area in Baldur's Gate identifies
Three Old Kegs: only royal room should be available
Helmet Of Defence provided a saving throw bonus twice
« Last Edit: November 20, 2014, 06:27:00 AM by Echon »

Offline Kulyok

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #1 on: March 12, 2014, 12:30:59 AM »
Congrats! :)

Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #2 on: March 12, 2014, 01:54:30 AM »
Thanks. :)

Offline Salk

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #3 on: March 12, 2014, 12:46:02 PM »
I also wish to congratulate you, Echon.

Once you'll be satisfied with the feedback, what will your next objectives/steps be?   ;)

Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #4 on: March 12, 2014, 01:25:30 PM »
I will continue to work on whatever is the highest priority on my to-do list. Of course, within the near future I want to make a full release. Hopefully the mod will be more polished due to some playtesting, but even if it is not, I will release what I have at that point.

Feel free to spread the word if you know someone who might be interested. Also, seeing how you have been one of the most vocal supporters of this mod over the years, are you going to try the beta? :)

Offline jastey

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #5 on: March 12, 2014, 01:45:18 PM »
Congratulations!

Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #6 on: March 12, 2014, 01:49:07 PM »
Thank you. :)

Offline Salk

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #7 on: March 12, 2014, 11:46:24 PM »
Also, seeing how you have been one of the most vocal supporters of this mod over the years, are you going to try the beta? :)

I do like Field of the Dead and I am still a supporter. But honestly, I don't see myself playing Baldur's Gate in the near future.

However, just in case: how about compatibility with other mainstream modifications like Item and Spell Revisions?

Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #8 on: March 13, 2014, 02:07:11 AM »
I am not familiar with those mods so I would need to take a closer look at them, but FotD would likely overwrite everything Spell Revisions does.

Offline Cybersquirt

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #9 on: March 13, 2014, 02:32:19 AM »
"Vocal supporters?" what does that mean?
Stupid is as stupid does.

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #10 on: March 13, 2014, 09:16:18 AM »
Will the readme be updated as well?

Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #11 on: March 13, 2014, 09:22:20 AM »
Yes, eventually. Right now I would rather update the website with the changes in the current release.

Offline Jarin

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #12 on: March 15, 2014, 12:56:27 PM »
"Vocal supporters?" what does that mean?

Something like this:
WOOHOOOO! A new version of FOTD!

Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #13 on: March 21, 2014, 04:58:29 AM »
Beta 2 has been released and fixes most of the bugs found in beta 1. I have updated the first post with a more detailed changelog for both releases.

Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #14 on: April 10, 2014, 04:17:45 PM »
Beta 3 has been released, and features a number of changes and fixes. See the changelog in the first post.

The FotD site was rather outdated but has been updated and given a minor facelift. http://www.echon.dk/fotd

Offline Jarin

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #15 on: April 13, 2014, 08:39:28 AM »
Quote
Spiritual Hammer crashes the game

This was keeping me stuck for days. Great to see it fixed! :D.

Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #16 on: November 20, 2014, 06:30:09 AM »
Beta 4 has been released. Spell changes, tweaks, and more! See the first post for full details.

This is the last beta release for V2.00. I am looking forward to the full release which will feature a lot of great stuff.

Offline Angel

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #17 on: November 20, 2014, 08:29:50 AM »
I downloaded beta4, but the zip file appears to be corrupted:

 bad CRC eb43e05d  (should be 506e302b)
    testing: FotD/TIZ/ar2500.tiz      bad CRC eb43e05d  (should be 506e302b)
 bad CRC 92bed19c  (should be ff1615e7)
    testing: FotD/TIZ/ar2501.tiz      bad CRC 92bed19c  (should be ff1615e7)
 bad CRC 956948d0  (should be 1d553955)
    testing: setup-FotD.tp2           bad CRC 956948d0  (should be 1d553955)

If I do unpack it despite the errors, the mod won't install because of multiple syntax errors in the .tp2 file.


Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #18 on: November 20, 2014, 08:37:46 AM »
Fortunately I did not experience that so I am crossing my fingers and hoping that something else went wrong. What are you using to unpack the zip? Please try to re-download and see if the problem persists.
« Last Edit: November 20, 2014, 08:38:38 AM by Echon »

Offline Angel

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #19 on: November 20, 2014, 09:01:47 AM »
Tried downloading again, same problem.  Unzipper is the standard Linux "unzip" command that works with everything else.

Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #20 on: November 20, 2014, 09:07:36 AM »
This is annoying. I am on Windows 7, creating these archives using 7-zip. There is really no way for me to find the bug here. Does Linux support the .7z format? I might try that.

Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #21 on: November 20, 2014, 11:18:36 AM »
I asked a friend of mine to unzip it on Linux, which he did with no errors.

Offline Galactygon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #22 on: December 07, 2014, 01:56:45 PM »
I've tried installing beta 4 on BG:EE (patch 1.3. and no other mods installed) but the installer fails when it tries to patch thiefskl.2da because of out of bounds. I've commented out that bit of code, and the installer was able to proceed. It then got stuck trying to patch NEMEKLIN.cre, just after PRINT ~Patching CREs~ occurs.

Offline Echon

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Re: The Fields of the Dead v2.00 beta released!
« Reply #23 on: December 08, 2014, 02:05:39 AM »
Thanks. I will have a look at what's wrong.

 

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