Infamous for being probably the fussiest player around, I've often been accused of never being positive about any mod by people on the receiving end of my criticism. Therefore, without further ado, I present:
Ding0's List of Ownage ModsYou can't really go wrong with anything on this list. Some things, like Virtue, may not be for every player, but above all else, this is quality assurance. My key criteria for mods is that they blend perfectly with the game, and are worthy of being included alongside professional content.
Bear in mind that I've played practically every mod around for varying periods of time, so omissions generally don't stem from me not having tried something out. I've also tried to include some brief explanation next to each mod.
Oh, and forget first-time players. Everything here's professional enough to be included the first time around.
So, here we go:
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BG2 Fixpack (Bugfixes are, I would presume, a good thing. And as far as fixing bugs goes, nothing else compares--the G3 Fixpack greatly supersedes Baldurdash.)
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One Pixel Productions Graphics Alterations (Non-WeiDU, so ensure this is installed first. Ports BG1 graphical content to BG2, so looks rather good.)
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Restored BG1 Casting Sounds (Well I think those BG1 sounds are way better...)
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Detectable & Scriptable Spells (Needed for many other mods. Not a mod in itself.)
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eSeries (Even if you don't use party AI much, what's the harm in having it at your disposal. These are the best AI scripts around.)
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gMinion (And why not have the same advantages for summons' AI as well?)
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Ascension (Makes the endgame more bearable.)
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Kelsey (One of two NPC mods that manage to match Bioware quality. However much you want to argue that voicing doesn't matter, this remains the only one to achieve professional quality of writing, technical implementation, and so on.)
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Keto (The other NPC mod that matches Bioware quality. She's very dialogue heavy, and an interesting character. Sadly no ToB content yet, which means I wouldn't install her just yet.)
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Banter Packs (Banter is a Good Thing, so we want more of it. Especially when it's well-written.)
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Flirt Packs (Many people cry OMG PORN SAVE THE EYES OF OUR CHILDREN at the mention of this. Give it a break. There's already adult material in the game, so introducing some new material to the romances does no harm. Combined with Kelsey, this also means that all romance NPCs flirt, which is, of course, good for consistency.)
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Quest Pack (I guess I should refrain from commenting on my own work. Note that I never make anything I wouldn't play with. Quests are nice, right?)
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Unfinished Business (I don't care about restoring Bioware material. As I often say: "[screw] developer intent". However, it's a well-made quest pack, along with a few other nice things, so what are you waiting for?)
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Ashes of Embers (Selected components only. The new cleric kits don't fit in amazingly with the rest of the game, seeing as they were made for a TC.)
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Refinements (I advise selected components only. Personally, I'm not excited by the HLA revisions. However, it's all professionaly made, so personal choice probably decides which components here get installed.)
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Ding0 Tweak Pack (As above, I refrain from commenting on my own stuff.)
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Ease of Use (Please, please don't just select to install [A]ll the components. There are only about 3 good ones. Things like the Edwina Portrait are nice.)
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Improved Horns of Valhalla (Makes them useful without being overpowered. Yay.)
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G3 Tweak Pack (Most stuff here is worth installing. Read carefully, however, as with Ease of Use.)
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Oversight (Some of this counts as a bugfix. Other components may be less desirable, so read carefully.)
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Item Value Tweaks (This little-known gem improves game balance and realism by altering the values of items to be more sensible.)
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Virtue (If you like roleplaying, this is THE mod to give you feedback, gauge your actions, and so on. If you want to play a chaotic evil character but gain all the good quest rewards, look elsewhere.)
Everything listed here may be found on the PPG modlist at
http://modlist.pocketplane.net/Go. Play.
Topic: What are your recommended mods? (Read 167910 times)
