A new approach to roleplaying in BG2/ToB

Return to Windspear is designed to give a deeper approach to roleplaying your character. All the dialog choices are unique, they dont loop back to the same old responses like in BG2... this is one reason for the high word count.

The choices you make will all be registered behind the scenes with a variable counter... this will determine what happens next. In addition to them affecting the future battles and future choices, they will also determine which ending you get. There are three possible different ending scenarios to the quest. This will be determined by the counter, your final alignment, certain choices outright and if you completed the quest at all.

Since this mod is geared more towards roleplaying, there will be a minimum of new items. The list is small- 1 new paladin sword, two new rings, 1 new wand, 2 new spell scrolls, 1 new armor and a new buckler. You wont find much treasure in the main dungeon either... since it was presumably cleared out by the PC on your earlier visit. The only big treasure will be when you find the treasure room. Don't even ask me to put in more items, there are plenty of other mods out there that will do that for you.

Chimping is also kept to a tight minimum. Dont expect to find stakes in a vampire lair, non-magical weapons near Magic Golems, or your NPC's making suggestions like "hey, I bet this lever over here will open the door". I didnt like that about BG2, so you wont find it here. You have to figure out things for yourself.

There are no right or wrong choices... they will all lead you somewhere. Where you end up is entirely up to how you want to roleplay your character. I do not believe in Neutral... so there are Good and Evil choices. You can attain neutral by simply choosing some of each... and living with the results of those choices. If you stray too far from your alignment, there will be concequences.

Cuv

It is your mod, therefore you and Quitch can develop it any way you see fit. I would not quibble with your decisions regardless, if I find it objectionable enough I will simply uninstall it. That said, your post seems a bit stark and perhaps even dogmatic. But then, it may be that you are creating this mod for yourself, as opposed to as wide a cross-section of the Baldur's Gate community as possible. Nevertheless, I look forward to Return to Windspear, and I believe that I will enjoy the challenges it offers. I do not expect it to be easy, or to be a hack-fest free of tactical and mental trials. At the same time, I also hope that it will employ fewer supercharged antics, that raise the difficulty of some mods by enabling the opponents to cast spell sequencers, triggers, and contingencies (as well as to multi-task within a single round) in a way that is not allowed to the protagonist under the rules of the game. Given what I have seen of Return to Windspear, as well as our limited exchanges, I believe it will be a grand experience. Thanks, and good fortune with your future endeavors.

We intend to keep within the rules laid down by AD&D. If your opponent can do it, you can too. This obviously doesn't include racial powers. The person responsible for our AI is Xyx, the cheese Nazi. We won't be allowed to cheat.

We are also introducing our own difficulty system, so you can experience as much, or as little combat as you like, without changing experience and damage settings.

"We are also introducing our own difficulty system, so you can experience as much, or as little combat as you like, without changing experience and damage settings. "
-One of the best things about RtW, thats for sure. I'm really waiting for this one. Would this 'new' difficulty setting be available in the whole game, or only in RtW?

Only RtW. You'll be asked a question early on that will determine the number of enemies you meet, and in some cases, the powers and items they use.

If you stray too far from your alignment, there will be concequences.

Does this means that one's alignment will be static? or will it change according to one's actions, like in PS:Torment?

We're employing a PST system where your actions decide who you are, rather than your alignment determining your actions.

We intend to keep within the rules laid down by AD&D. If your opponent can do it, you can too. This obviously doesn't include racial powers. The person responsible for our AI is Xyx, the cheese Nazi. We won't be allowed to cheat.

We are also introducing our own difficulty system, so you can experience as much, or as little combat as you like, without changing experience and damage settings.

Concerning the improved AI and the added difficulty system, are they limited to the mod, or will they effect the rest of the game once the mod is installed?

The new difficulty system will be only in RTW and will not affect the rest of the game. Same for the AI... all the monsters will be custom creatures with their own AI.

The difficulty system is based on variables that will be set at the beginning of the quest via conversation. It would be very difficult and time consuming to apply it to the rest of the game. ie: "RTWMyDifficulty","GLOBAL",1 would be the lowest setting and the fewest monsters possible would show up... these will also be easy monsters. "RTWMyDifficulty","GLOBAL",5 will be the highest setting and will bring in greater numbers of monsters that are higher level and some with exceptional AI. Each setting will see different monsters, and there are also new random monster encounters and numbers so that you could play it many times and never face the exact same enemies (except for the bosses or quest-specific creatures).

Cuv

That sounds rather good actually. I assumed that if Return to Windspear went beyond the standard AI of frequently encountered monsters (such as vampires, beholders, mind flayers, etc...) those changes would be in effect for the entire game, once the mod was installed. Given what you and Quitch have said with regards to the elimination of the cheese factor, I would not have minded a permanent improvement in AI, especially since at this point, I am looking to maximize the challenges of the game.

We're employing a PST system where your actions decide who you are, rather than your alignment determining your actions.

I may be missing something here, but i thought that pally's have to stay LG and if they change they become fallen?

Yes, but they are good people who's lawful good alignment is a reflection of their lawful and good actions. They are not lawful good because this alignment was picked and they shall never stray.

If you play a paladin and start doing non-lawful good things, we will change your alignment, and you will fall.

That's fine as long as the choices are reasonably clear cut. Give any PC a couple of very murky choices and a Good character has fallen even though trying like hell not to. You can defend ambiguity on grounds of realism but please do remember that you are also prescribing the PC's possible responses and such lists are never exhaustive.

Sounds good, but don't forget the neutral alignment dialog responses.

...I do not believe in Neutral... so there are Good and Evil choices. You can attain neutral by simply choosing some of each... and living with the results of those choices. If you stray too far from your alignment, there will be concequences.

Read the whole post carefully next time, or if that was meant as a suggestion for change, it needs rewording.

I don't agree with Cuv's assessment that we don't deal with neutral responses, I think you'll find we have a wide range.

Good to know.

While I certainly appreciate the fact that chimping will not be in RTW, just HOW are we supposed to kill a vampire if there are no stakes nearby, how are we supposed to know to bring non-magical weapons to face a magic golem? The fact is, if you don't guarentee that SOMEWHERE in Windspear there will be the stakes to take out the vampires (it's fine if they're hidden, but not if they're not there at all; I personally never stockpile stakes so I wouldn't be likely to have any spare ones on me), or if you don't guarentee that SOMEWHERE in windspear you could pick up some non-magical weapons to fight magic golems with (although admittedly that one's not so important because you can buy them), you'll end up frustrating the player, without providing that much better a gaming experience.

What I'm trying to say is, while it's certainly very chimpish to place stakes right next to a vampire just screaming PICK ME UP AND STAKE THAT SUCKER, it's downright annoying to realize you need to stake a vampire to continue the quest, yet no stakes exist anywhere in Windspear and no store sells them.

While I certainly appreciate the fact that chimping will not be in RTW, just HOW are we supposed to kill a vampire if there are no stakes nearby, how are we supposed to know to bring non-magical weapons to face a magic golem?  The fact is, if you don't guarentee that SOMEWHERE in Windspear there will be the stakes to take out the vampires (it's fine if they're hidden, but not if they're not there at all; I personally never stockpile stakes so I wouldn't be likely to have any spare ones on me), or if you don't guarentee that SOMEWHERE in windspear you could pick up some non-magical weapons to fight magic golems with (although admittedly that one's not so important because you can buy them), you'll end up frustrating the player, without providing that much better a gaming experience.

What I'm trying to say is, while it's certainly very chimpish to place stakes right next to a vampire just screaming PICK ME UP AND STAKE THAT SUCKER, it's downright annoying to realize you need to stake a vampire to continue the quest, yet no stakes exist anywhere in Windspear and no store sells them.

We won't be expecting any foresight on the players part.

Still, I disagree with the whole "no stakes near a vampire". Maybe not in the den of the Vampire, because that makes sense. However, not making them available in-Windspear will make it unplayable, sicne there are a proportioned amount of stakes-to-stakeable vampires in the game.