SHS Fanfiction Challenge #17

SHS Fanfiction Challenge is a monthly challenge where everyone can submit their entries related to the challenge genre.

The challenge is open to everyone and there is no limit on the length or number of the entries submitted. It can be any kind of game.

Here's our seventeenth challenge theme:

THEME: Choices Are Changes

New Years begins a time of resolutions and decisions and changes. And there's always something new happening. Throughout the lives of our characters they face important decisions, whether moral dilemmas or whether to let Aerie cook for dinner. Should we romance Casavir or Bishop? Do I really want to go on one more delivery quest? So this month write us a piece of some of the most difficult choices your PC has ever made. Now... to Slayer or not to Slayer?

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Simply create a new topic, titled it with a prefix: "Challenge #17: ", followed by the title of your entry.

Comments, questions or suggestions about the challenges are welcome here.


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SHS Fanfiction Challenge #15

SHS Fanfiction Challenge is a monthly challenge where everyone can submit their entries related to the challenge genre.

The challenge is open to everyone and there is no limit on the length or number of the entries submitted. It can be any kind of game.

Here's our fifteenth challenge theme:

THEME: School

Several characters throughout our games show an excellent intelligence and an even better education. Others seem to only know the pointy end of a stick or sword. Even some of our own PCs begin life with a rich schooling in a library fortress. But how did these characters deal with classes of twenty-odd students, or one-on-one tutoring with a stuffy old monk. Maybe they were entirely self-taught, learning everything they needed to know on their own. And one can't forget their professions. Who taught them to wield a blade or magic, to heed the call of the divine or the lure of music? So for this month spin a tale of your characters at, or avoiding, school.


How to join

Simply create a new topic, titled it with a prefix: "Challenge #15: ", followed by the title of your entry.

Comments, questions or suggestions about the challenges are welcome here.


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Comments are most welcome, preferably directly in the entry topic itself.

Comments? Questions? Discussion of the upcoming expansion should be done in the linked thread.

Permanent Link Here

SHS Fanfiction Challenge #16

SHS Fanfiction Challenge is a monthly challenge where everyone can submit their entries related to the challenge genre.

The challenge is open to everyone and there is no limit on the length or number of the entries submitted. It can be any kind of game.

Here's our sixteenth challenge theme:

THEME: Perspectives

It is inevitable that in any game, rpg or otherwise, there will be minor characters. There are characters who's stories remain untold, who's motivations remain undiscovered, and who's pasts and futures lie in a shaded area beyond our sight. But everyone has a story, whether Marl badgering adventurers because of the loss of his son, or a demon child searching for his dog. So this month your task is to share with us a story, a story untold.


How to join

Simply create a new topic, titled it with a prefix: "Challenge #16: ", followed by the title of your entry.

Comments, questions or suggestions about the challenges are welcome here.


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Short little piece.

I started writing during work, and didn't have the heart to tear it up.

*~*~*~*~*

I am going to die.

Few in this time, in this place, truly understand those words. Death, they say, is so far off. Sickness has not touched our homes in an age. No disease has been known to us. And even as a world falls around us none would dare to raise steel against us. And yet my death rides on swift and silent wings, pressing ever onward , inescapable and undeniable.

I cannot change my fate. Death is around every corner. I see it in the temple?s home, in the quarters of the guards. I?ve seen it during lessons with some of the monks. It even lingers when I speak with Gorion. Imoen too is touched by it, yet differently. It wells within her; I would never have thought she the one to kill me. We have lived for years together, as siblings. Why she seeks my death I cannot imagine.

Death strides forward, and I look up as a knock strikes my door. It is Gorion. I hear it in his breathing. But no, Gorion?s breathing is always deep and steady. This was shallow, covered with fear. And yet still a part of him remained in it. Puzzled I move to the door.

I open the door to a sight I?ve never seen, nor do I wish to again, though to be true worse will come later this day. His hair, usually pulled back so tightly in a ponytail, was spread out behind him like a great mane. I take an involuntary step backward and my foot catches on ? I don?t know what. I fall, and Death and the hair both moved closer.

Gorion knelt by me and lifted me to my feet. He was not a strong man, but still he could lift me as if I were a child. He set me on my feet and informed my simply that we were leaving. Leaving... Death grinned. The hair left, and when I finally pulled myself together I realized that money was now here and Death was not. Was I safe?

*~*~*

I found Death twice. First in the priest?s quarters and then in the barracks. Twice I was attacked, and twice I escaped his grip. They didn?t. Death had returned to Candlekeep. The monks saw it. Their breathing was as Gorion?s had been this morning. They were afraid. So was I, but none of them feared my death. I think they feared their own.

Imoen?s breath was rushed too, but hers was not fearful; excitement quickened her. She knew something was coming, and anticipation rushed her breath. She knew Death was here. And she knew Death would follow me.

*~*~*

Death came again. As he sought me by a warrior whose breath was deep in his helmet, Gorion intervened. I ran from Death. Gorion did not. Death?s breath quickened as he invited an old mage into his fold, and the victims of his most recent battle, monsters and two lovers, though I believe the lovers to be monsters themselves. Death claimed the battlefield.

I heard two breaths behind me, both rushed, one in fear, one in readiness. Death was behind me. I turned to see, and Imoen stood by me as well. Her breath caught in her throat as I felt a lash of pain through me.

Through pain I listened to two breaths, as one lowered to my ear and another knelt by my side. A hand moved to my chest soft, gentle. ?Tell your keeper,? Imoen whispered, ?I have come to replace him.? The bony hand shrank back, and Death no longer had breath, clawing at his throat. One breath was afraid, and the other was in ecstasy. And my breath... my breath ended.

SHS Fanfiction Challenge #13

SHS Fanfiction Challenge is a monthly challenge where everyone can submit their entries related to the challenge genre.

The challenge is open to everyone and there is no limit on the length or number of the entries submitted. It can be any kind of game.

Here's our thirteenth challenge theme:

THEME: We Are Family

It seems all to often that the family of our characters get overlooked. Sure, we writers are not the only ones at fault, often our companions are just as orphaned. But it seems quite contrary to me. Some of our greatest belong to those we call family. So if it's dear daddy Bhaal, a lonely Ahsdale, or Neeshka's demon ancestor coming for a visit, spin us a tale, a tale of family.


How to join

Simply create a new topic, titled it with a prefix: "Challenge #13: ", followed by the title of your entry.

Comments, questions or suggestions about the challenges are welcome here.


Comments

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(PS: Sorry for being late. I planned to do it at the beginning of the month, but then missed the change.)

SHS Fanfiction Challenge #21

SHS Fanfiction Challenge is a monthly challenge where everyone can submit their entries related to the challenge genre.

The challenge is open to everyone and there is no limit on the length or number of the entries submitted. It can be any kind of game.

Here's our twenty-first challenge theme:

THEME: But I Can't Code

One needs only to look at the Mod Ideas forum to see that there are a ton of good ideas for characters. Yet so many of them never leave the ground for the author's lack of coding knowledge. So this month I give you the opportunity to bring your creations to life, if only for a time. Draw those crazy people out of your head and unleash them in word. And who knows; maybe, with encouragement, coding isn't too hard to learn afterall.

How to join

Simply create a new topic, titled it with a prefix: "Challenge #21: ", followed by the title of your entry.

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First one is really short, and probably the first thing I've done since I last posted in the Fanfic Challenge. So it's drivel. Don't kill me, and don't say I didn't warn you..

~*~

Stone.

Firm, unyielding. Followers of the Way of the Open Palm such as he felt empathy with the earth.

Solid, constant. In the center of a storm of discord the mountain stood unshaken. As did he.

Powerful, majestic. But in the storm of battle he was not unmoving. His swift strikes and matchless speed had earned him the name the arena had bestowed upon him: Raging Dragon.

Calm, focused. Yet this dragon was anything but raging. He knelt before a statue, carved in the likeness of his namesake. His eyes were closed and his face betrayed no notice of the crowd falling silent around the arena. How long had it been; seconds? Minutes? Still the young dragon refused to budge.

Smooth, flawless? or perhaps not. Dragon?s eyes snapped open, focused on his ?adversary.? His hand flew to the sword lying beside him and snatched it up in the span of a heartbeat. The next it dove for a small line between two scales where the heart may have been, a crack. It sank half the length of the blade before the crack truly began to spread and dozens marred the beautiful figure. He withdrew his blade as it began to crumble.

Molded, shattered. Over time stone could be shaped to its master?s desire. But if one knew the flaw, one strike could leave it broken, ruined. The same held true for the young warrior now leaving the ring.

Been playing through Jade Empire on the Xbox(found the Limited Edition for $5 at a used game store, and it's well worth that). This thread will hold all my shorts for the game, my two main characters being Furious Ming and Scholar Ling.

And the first post will have links to each short.

Stone ~ Furious Ming

Thanks, Shadowhawke. Been so long since I played BG, and JE has been the center of a good deal of attention recently. So my inspiration came from it. Glad you liked it. The magic part came from the fact that OP (Open Palm) characters got to use earth magic, whereas CF (Closed Fist) characters used the winds. And the shattering with one strike came mostly from a scene from the Sword of Truth series.

I'd definitely recommend you buy it, but if you can help it, don't be inquisitive, or intelligent, until after you leave home. It does spoil some things.

And on time!

I wasn't sure what kind of appropriate way to greet April Fools. So I guess it's got nothing...

SHS Fanfiction Challenge #20

SHS Fanfiction Challenge is a monthly challenge where everyone can submit their entries related to the challenge genre.

The challenge is open to everyone and there is no limit on the length or number of the entries submitted. It can be any kind of game.

Here's our twentieth challenge theme:

THEME: A Coming Of Age

In Baldur's Gate, the player begins at the age of 20. In fact in many other games the protagonist is around that age. It seems 20 is a magical age, no matter what world you're in. It's the age of a second beginning. It's the coming of age. See at that mystical 20th summer your character is finally ready for the adventure of their lives. But what about their first entries to adulthood? Or what about their companions? What was the first thing that Gorion's ward did, that set him apart as a man. When did Aerie finally show that she was fully grown. When did they have their coming of age? And perhaps, what were the results of it?

How to join

Simply create a new topic, titled it with a prefix: "Challenge #20: ", followed by the title of your entry.

Comments, questions or suggestions about the challenges are welcome here.


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A day late, but I honestly thought today was the first...

SHS Fanfiction Challenge #19

SHS Fanfiction Challenge is a monthly challenge where everyone can submit their entries related to the challenge genre.

The challenge is open to everyone and there is no limit on the length or number of the entries submitted. It can be any kind of game.

Here's our nineteenth challenge theme:

THEME: The Little Folk

It seems there is a constant underdog in the games we play. Sometimes it's because of class choices, sometimes romance, or sometimes just because they're not cool enough and often overlooked (figuratively as well as literally). And yet the dour dwarf, the irrepressible halfling, and the, er... some type of gnome (whether absent-minded inventor, prankster, or whatever) are common staples of our imaginations. So this month, whether you wish to choose the cliche` or show us the unusual (as Bioware did with Mazzy or Deekin(yes, monster midgets are allowed)), whip us a tale of the Little Folk, the less remembered. Dazzle us with dwarves, humor us with halflings, and... er, gnag us with gnomes.

How to join

Simply create a new topic, titled it with a prefix: "Challenge #19: ", followed by the title of your entry.

Comments, questions or suggestions about the challenges are welcome here.


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When did you first join the modding community?
I started downloading mods, tools etc. around 2003. My first community was the would-be-SHS, which I joined in Jan 2004. Around May 2004 I released my first mod (Mazzy the Paladin) and joined the Refinements team.

So Mazzy the Paladin was your first mod. What inspired you to do it?
I can't recall any real reason, but I suppose it was the curiosity to see if I was up to the task. With MtP the answer was no (since the end result had really weak dialogues and plot) but I suppose in general the answer is yes, I'm up to the task.

Indeed. You've worked on quite a few things. Which mod are you most proud of?
I'm currently pretty proud of the success of WeiDU, Widescreen and Refinements - however I'm not 100% personally satisfied with any of them, since most of them are based on somebody's else work rather than being my idea, and I can list the weaknesses of each of them.

I see. Speaking of your work with WeiDU, why did you first pick up WeiDU, and what has been your experience maintaining it? What are perhaps some of the weaknesses you've noticed, if you don't mind my asking?
I first decided to dabble with it in late 2005, which was when Weimer started teaching and working for Planewalker Games, thus leaving WeiDU behind. As with modding in general, I decided to take up the challenge of learning OCaml and working on WeiDU.
As for my experience, it has taught a lot of things to me about software development (most of them learned via trial-and-error). In general, WeiDU was not written to be read and edited by somebody not familiar with its internal structure, making it hard to successfully write correct patches that don't alter behavior in seemingly unrelated portions of code, and, unfortunately, this code complexity has leaked into the functionality, making it often confusing and breaking self-consistency in various places. Also, WeiDU was not coded to be fully programmable (with loops, conditionals and whatnot), and all of these features were added without a precise plan, leaving the ending tp2 language pretty difficult to understand for somebody experienced in 'true' programming.

Also on the topic of WeiDU, you've mentioned in the past you wanted to work on a "WeiGUI". Do you still plan to do so, and, if so, could you explain what that is?
Yes, I still plan to work on it. In fact, I made my graduation thesis on WeiGUI/WeiDB, but only designed it, rather than actually implementing it, due to time constraints (AKA too much TF2). WeiGUI is a graphical program that will download an index of available mods, components etc. with their compatibility constraints, and, given a selection of mods made by the user, will compute which additional components will be required, and which is the optimal order of installation, and finally instruct WeiDU to install the components. WeiDB will be a web site where mod authors will be able to add and update their mods, compatibility, etc. and compile this info in the index that will be used by WeiGUI.

Sounds like quite a lot of work. You recently got a First-level Degree, and are working on a Second. That must keep a busy schedule. How do you organize modding and WeiDU time around that?
I am lucky in that I learn very quickly, so I don't have to spend too much time studying, and the same goes for programming, both on WeiDU/IE stuff and study stuff. Besides, an Italian degree is ideally geared towards 1500 hours of work per year, which equates to a part-time job... so it leaves enough free time even to more 'normal' people. As such, I might have a study burst for the exam month, and have lots of free time for the following 2/3 months.

What's the biggest mod you've ever worked on?
Depends on the definition of work; I guess it's either Return to Windspear (permissive definition) or Refinements (restrictive definition). For RTWP, I only coded a tp2 snippet and made a couple of suggestions, whereas for Refinements I (re)coded ample portions of the mod.

More recent mod work includes Stivan. Can you tell us how you first got the idea, and where the mod has come since then?
The idea was "let's add a non-evil Fighter/Thief NPC." I fired up NI and searched for all Fighter/Thieves in the game, and Stivan was the one with the most interesting personality. I coded two banters and got bored with it, but decided to release it anyway (this was in September 2004). After "only" four years of gathering dust, Giuseppe offered to act as a writer for it. So far, he's written about 50% of the SoA content, but unfortunately I haven't done anything of relevance due to the impending graduation (I have read his stuff and offered feedback, but not coded or translated it). However, I plan to start working on it this Christmas break. The first version will be full SoA+ToB and will be both in Italian and English (Giuseppe writes in Italian, and I translate in English).

Not to sound like a rabid fanboy, but any idea on a release date for it?
I've given up on them after discovering the extent of my laziness. However, I think that it should be possible to hope for a mid 2009 release.

Fingers crossed. Do you have any favorite mods, other than you own?
Lots of them. Between the mods that aren't A-level, I usually install Freedom's Reign/Reign of Virtue and Ashes of Embers. Of course, I'm a big fan of SCSII due to its extreme compatibility features

What are mods that you consider A-level?
I mean mods like Fixpack or Tweakpack, that everybody uses. Of course, SCSII, Banterpack, Ascension, Item Upgrade or D0Questpack also fall in the category.

Finally, what advice would you give to anyone just starting to mod?
The first thing I'd say is "prepare to do all of the mod by yourself," because most mods (especially NPCs) are made by a single author, that out-sources testing, portrait and soundset, and takes care of all writing and coding (AKA the bulk of the active work). Also, another thing that anybody should be aware of is that getting the first public release (including the  'open beta') right is of paramount importance, since the quality of the first release seen by the mass is what will be remembered by the mass. And, as such, a buggy/poor first public version spells doom for the mod's success in the future (even if V2 comes out after a week and is perfect). Finally, I'd also suggest the would-be modder consider modding a different, more recent game (Oblivion, NWNII, or any UT3 or Source game), because, with those, you actually have a chance of ending up with a job if your mod is of high quality. Whereas, with BG2 modding, you might learn coding, writing, project managing etc., but those skills are applied to an outdated engine

Short-answer questions:
Favourite canon BG/BGII Character? - For NPC, I always take Imoen. For non-NPC, I'd say Irenicus
Favourite Mod Character? - Kelsey
Irenicus or Bodhi? - Irenicus
Vanilla or Modded BGII? - Modded
Favourite Class? - Single class = Sorceror. Multiclass = Fighter/Thief. Dual class = Swashbuckler -> Mage.

Sorry about being late again(and absent). Been suffering some modem troubles, but think I got that all worked out. *Crosses fingers*

EDIT: Network, not modem.

SHS Fanfiction Challenge #14

SHS Fanfiction Challenge is a monthly challenge where everyone can submit their entries related to the challenge genre.

The challenge is open to everyone and there is no limit on the length or number of the entries submitted. It can be any kind of game.

Here's our fourteenth challenge theme:

THEME: Fear

Heroes are often paragons of courage, and rarely do we see them ever truly afraid. Most seem to know no fear, but it's said that true courage can only be shown by overcoming fear. And others are perhaps crippled by panic, and shame and guilt haunt them for one action undone for it. So show us dread, terror, bring out your heroes darkest horrors, and make them all fear.


How to join

Simply create a new topic, titled it with a prefix: "Challenge #14: ", followed by the title of your entry.

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Continuing our 12 Days of Christmas, and our interviews, today we have an interview with the bigg, a hard-working coder and modder on such projects as Refinements, Widescreen mod and now maintainer of WeiDU. See next post for the interview.

~ Kellen

SHS Fanfiction Challenge #18

SHS Fanfiction Challenge is a monthly challenge where everyone can submit their entries related to the challenge genre.

The challenge is open to everyone and there is no limit on the length or number of the entries submitted. It can be any kind of game.

Here's our eighteenth challenge theme:

THEME: Evil

Most of our games lean, or even swerve, towards a good path. Your character is a shining paragon of virtue or justice or somesuch. But some of us, have always wanted to pull through as something else, something darker. Maybe it's a raging CE barbarian. A LE knight who's honor is unflinching as he slaughters all who stand against him. A NE assassin, cold and empty as death itself. Or perhaps not, but this month you have a chance to show us your evil protagonists, and what they do in a game waiting for a hero.

How to join

Simply create a new topic, titled it with a prefix: "Challenge #18: ", followed by the title of your entry.

Comments, questions or suggestions about the challenges are welcome here.


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She's at the far back of the cave. Don't know if you haven't gone back far enough.

In this version of Redemption you don't meet Irenicus until the very end, right at the Throne of Bhaal.

If you're looking for the one that let's you have Irenicus for the entire expansion, see The Longer Road.

Ooh. Could you pm me the pic when it's done, or post it here. I'd rather like to see it too.

Wee. Had a great Christmas, hope everyone else had the same!

Now how many parties left...

Here's our Total Conversions Section.

Epic Endeavors seems to be the only one fully finished, but both CA and RTT have ready to go content. I've played CA a bit, and if you've ever played any of the old DnD modules you'll enjoy it. If you've never played any of the old DnD modules, you'll... probably still enjoy it.

There's also a few on the IE list.