31 replies to this topic

[Unmei]

This is an idea I have for a romancible npc mod.  Its just me brainstorming, all really quick.  Anyone have any feedback or suggestions?

Khail NPC Mod

Description

This mod introduces Khail, a new romancible NPC for Baldur's Gate 2: SOA.  Khail is a reckless human mercenary who will join with your party as long as you keep him well paid.  He may enjoy your quests and even get friendly with some members of your party, but never forget that he is a sword for hire.  He certainly wont.  

General Information

Profile

-Race:  Human
-Gender:  Male
-Alignment:  Chaotic-Neutral
-Class:  Fighter  
-Stats:  STR 18, DEX 16, CON 16, WIS 10, INT 14, CHA 14, Total 84  
-Special:  Khail charges 500 gold per week to remain with the party.  

-Romancible:  Yes
-Friendship:  Yes
-Banter:  Yes
-Interjections:  Yes
-Quests:  2

Romance Requirements

-Gender: Female  
-Race:  Human, Elf, Half Elf  
-Halfling, Gnomes, and Dwarf with charisma of 18 or more.  
-Class: Any  
-Alignment: Any  
-Stats: Str 10, Int 12  
-Khail only respects women who can take care of themselves
-NPC Romance: No  

Location

Khail can be found at the Copper Coronet (yes, it is becoming overrun by adventurers but it is the best place to find employment).  

Biography

When asked about his past, Khail eyes you up and down as though considering charging you for this information.  Surprisingly he laughs instead, and recounts his tragic journey to manhood.  Khail is the bastard son of a nameless lord from a world far away, and a beautiful elven princess.  Although this union was forbidden by the princess' powerful father, their love could not be denied.  Khail was born and raised as a prince but was cast out by his fearsome grandfather.  Tragically exiled to this world Khail found himself in a land called Amn.  

Determined to make a name for himself as an adventurer, Khail has become renown as a famous dragon slayer and lady killer.  Once he tired of the countless maidens of virtue throwing themselves at his feet he made sport of smoting djinns, purifying liches, and exorcizing foul demons.  Recently he has at last tired of these meager diversions and in order to entertain himself he has decided to woo a goddess with his tender ministrations.  Having been unable to procure such a divine morsel he has considered settling for a lovely bhallspawn instead.  

As his story grows more outrageous and flamboyant you realize that Khail is lying shamelessly with a straight face.  As he finishes his self biography winking suggestively you cannot help but laugh, although you have learned nothing of your strange companion.  

Dialogue

First Meeting:

Khail: "Hello there.  Might I be of assistance?"

1.  I hope so.  I'm looking for a friend of mine; her name is Imoen and she was taken by the cowled wizards."  (Go to Info)
2.  "Yes, I am looking for a wizard named Irenicus.  You may have heard of him, he caused quite a disturbance at the Promenade."  (Go to Info)
3.  "Perhaps...  What did you have in mind?"  (Go to Aid)
4.  "No, I think not."  (Go to Refuse)

(Info)

Khail:  "Ah...  I can see that this information is worth a great deal to you.  It's unfortunate for me that I do not have what you require.  I do hate a missed opportunity.  Still...  I'm sure I could find SOME way to help."

1.  "Is that right?  What do you have in mind?" (Go to Aid)
2.  "I highly doubt it."  (Go to Refuse)
3.  "Get lost."  (Go to Turn Down)

(Aid)

Khail: "Why aid of the elite mercenary variety, of course!"

1.  "I see...  And how much would this cost me?" (Go to Cost)
2.  "Elite huh?  Is that right?"  (Go to Refuse)

(Refuse)

Khail: "Don't be like that!  I'm really quite famous.  Perhaps you've heard of me?  Sir Khail the Magnificent!  Dread Khail the Mighty?"

1.  "You must be joking."  (Go to Serious)
2.  "Neither of your titles ring a bell."  (Go to Fair)
3.  "Really?!  That's amazing!"  (Go to Amazing)
4.  "If you say so.  Either way, I don't think I'm interested."  (Go to Turn Down)

(Serious)

Khail:  "Not at all!  I never lie, and I most certainly never joke."

1.  "I'm not interested in anything you might have to offer me.  Leave me be."  (Go to Turn Down)
2.  "Ok then.  What do want in return for your ...help?"  (Go to Cost)

(Fair)

Khail:  "Haha, fair enough; you are a sharp one indeed.  Be that as it may, I can be quite useful.  I make a most delightful rabbit stew, and I'm not bad with a blade either."

1.  "And how much are your services?"  (Go to Cost)
2.  "I appreciate the offer, but I'm afraid I don't have room for you right now."   (Go to Turn Down)
3.  "I'm not interested."  (Go to Turn Down)

(Amazing)

Khail:  "But of course!  I am nothing short of miraculous.  And just think; my sword can be yours...  For a price."

1.  "How much?"  (Go to Cost)
2.  "I appreciate the offer, but I'm afraid I don't have room for you right now."  (Go to Turn Down)
3.  "I'm not interested."  (Go to Turn Down)

(Cost)

Khail: "Right to the point then!  I like that.  I'll accept nothing less than 5000 gold to join your party and 1000 each week thereafter."

1.  "Ridiculous.  I won't pay it."  (Go to Coin)
2.  "I see your sense of humor is as sharp as your blade."  (Go to Coin)
3.  "Unacceptable."  (Go to Coin)

(Coin)

Khail:  "I assure you, I am worth every coin."

1.  "No you're not.  500 now, and 200 weekly."  (Go to Jest)
2.  "Don't make me laugh.  I'll be generous and give you 700 now, and 300 weekly."  (Go to Jest)

(Jest)

Khail:  "Surely you are the one who is jesting.  I am worth at least 3000 up front, and 800 per week."

1.  "Too steep.  800 now, 400 per week."  (Fallen)
2.  "On second thought, I've changed my mind.  You're way too much trouble."  (Turn Down)

(Fallen)

Khail:  "How I have fallen...  I will accept nothing less than 1500 today, and 500 every week."  

1.  "...Very well.  You have a deal." (Go to Accept)
2.  "Then I'm afraid we won?t be doing business with each other."  (Go to Reconsider)

(Reconsider)

Khail:  "That is most unfortunate.  You won?t reconsider?"

1.  "Oh, alright.  You'd better be worth it."  (Go to Accept)
2.  "Very well, I'll accept your offer.  (Go to Accept)
3.  "I'd like to but I just can?t afford it.  Perhaps another time."  (Go to Turn Down)
4.  "No."  (Go to Turn Down)

(Turn Down)

Khail:  "Suit yourself...  You get what you pay for my friend, and in a pinch sometimes a sword is more useful than a bag full of gold."

(Accept)

Khail:  "Excellent! You won't regret it.  I can tell already we will have an excellent partnership."

Edited by Unmei, 14 September 2007 - 03:28 PM.

[Melancholie]

Doing my best to be helpful, I'll give you a quick analysis of what worked for me.
Pro:
-- I like the idea that he will give gnomes etc. a fair chance. It's a nice change.
   (Though I seldom play as a gnome.)
   Quite reasonable  done, too. They just need to be pretty enough.
-- I find his a bit high, but I can live with that.
-- His biography is both funny and witty.

Con:
--I'm not really fond of the weekly fee.
  As he's a mercenary, it makes sense, but while he's in the party he shares it with all members.
  Where should it go? Doesn't it simply vanish, when you use a script?

Neutral:
-- Stats. I find his Intelligence and Charisma to be a bit high, but there might be a reason behind it.
   Even if not I can live with it. Just a comment.
-- Korgan is a mercenary, too. He charges only on party entering.

Overall, I rather like him.
He seems to be funny and a bit more reasonable in his goals, money, than most NPCs.
That I like him is admittedly not all that flattering as I collect NPC like other people artwork, but I am
always happy to get another one for my collection.
But it could be a long way until he's done, when you have really planned two quests for him.
Though, don't let that discourage you. Good luck with it.

PS: This post was written rather late. I'm asking for lenience here. Don't kill me, if I don't make sense.

[theacefes]

I love the idea of a weekly or even biweekly charge.


However, I would prefer him to not be romanceable. Maybe a friendship...but if he's such a hard core mercenary, don't you think perhaps he'd be too self centered to care about another that deeply? (Think Canderous from KOTOR)

[Menelanna]

I like the idea of another romance! It shows even the hardest toughest guy can fall in love!

I do find the idea of a weekly payment. But what would happen if somehow the party did not have enough gold? I also think that if he does fall in love with the PC that he should drop the payment and just stay with her.

[Unmei]

Doing my best to be helpful, I'll give you a quick analysis of what worked for me.
Pro:
-- I like the idea that he will give gnomes etc. a fair chance. It's a nice change.
(Though I seldom play as a gnome.)
Quite reasonable done, too. They just need to be pretty enough.
-- I find his a bit high, but I can live with that.
-- His biography is both funny and witty.

Con:
--I'm not really fond of the weekly fee.
As he's a mercenary, it makes sense, but while he's in the party he shares it with all members.
Where should it go? Doesn't it simply vanish, when you use a script?

Neutral:
-- Stats. I find his Intelligence and Charisma to be a bit high, but there might be a reason behind it.
Even if not I can live with it. Just a comment.
-- Korgan is a mercenary, too. He charges only on party entering.

Overall, I rather like him.
He seems to be funny and a bit more reasonable in his goals, money, than most NPCs.
That I like him is admittedly not all that flattering as I collect NPC like other people artwork, but I am
always happy to get another one for my collection.
But it could be a long way until he's done, when you have really planned two quests for him.
Though, don't let that discourage you. Good luck with it.

PS: This post was written rather late. I'm asking for lenience here. Don't kill me, if I don't make sense.

Thank you so much for your advice! You make some really good points. Stats are pretty negotiable at this point but I do want him to have a little better than average charisma. Its kind of part of his personality. He is so funny and easy to get along with that you forget how dangerous and unpredictable he can be. He'll definitely throw you some curve balls, and you'll just have to make it work.

I never did use Korgan; I didnt like his attitude lol. So I didnt remember he was a mercenary or what his price is. I kind of want to do the weekly price as part of his story line, but I could lower the price. I wasn't sure how much was reasonable. Also, the money does disappear but its because he's doing something secret with it. Every once and a while he'll buy himself something nice.

I love the idea of a weekly or even biweekly charge.

However, I would prefer him to not be romanceable. Maybe a friendship...but if he's such a hard core mercenary, don't you think perhaps he'd be too self centered to care about another that deeply? (Think Canderous from KOTOR)

He would have a friendship too, so you wouldnt have to pursue the romance if you didnt want to. I wouldn't call him a "Hard Core" mercenary either. He does the same thing the rest of the party does, only he makes sure he gets paid. In fact compaired to charname's conquests he's probably got it easy lol! He is pretty self centered, and thats one of the things that he would struggle with. He might betray you just to prove to himself that he can. (I don't know that, I haven't gotten that far yet lol).

I like the idea of another romance! It shows even the hardest toughest guy can fall in love!

I do find the idea of a weekly payment. But what would happen if somehow the party did not have enough gold? I also think that if he does fall in love with the PC that he should drop the payment and just stay with her.

He will EVENTUALLY drop the price. But that is one thing that he will struggle with the most. The price is more of a symbol to him. It reminds him of where his priorities are, and keeps charname at a distance. He doesnt have any dark and tragic past like many bioware and mod npc's, but he does need the money for something important. Giving that up would mean to put his trust into charname. If the party does not have enough money he will tell a warning, and leave if you dont pay him after a while. You can always go back and pick him back up without breaking the romance. Still, I wouldnt want this to be an issue, so if people think its better, the price can be lower.

I really appreciate everyone's feedback! I would love to hear more, even if you think its a dumb idea. At least then I will know not to do it.

[Jarno Mikkola]

Looks intresting, and I hope you the best! Now, a few remarks;
Ok, the hiring action has only one rote as a one end sum, 1500 now and 500 weekly. I would like to see more options for the end sum, and thus also for the weekly pay. I think it is quite easy to code that by using a result constant. And then using it, to determ the cost every time as he asks for more money.

And the asking money thing has to be implemented, so he needs to ask, not just take. As in when you arrive to an area, or after you rest the timer goes of and then he asks wetter you would like to pay his weekly fee, or him stays there(as long as there is no battle going on and such).

500 steep(+1500 at first)? Not by a long shot, for me. So you could ask even more!

[Simbul]

Not bad, I hope you'll finish the mod in not so far future (at last! we'll have a human fighter without a tragic past or supernatural powers (well, i hope)
On a side note, I'd really love to see a more rough/evil mercenary type NPC, definitely human, maybe even w/o a romance or with a difficult and problematic one. But your character looks okay too, so far

[berelinde]

I like the idea, but my eyes pop out a bit at the idea of a romanceable mercenary. Not that this is much of a big deal, because most parties can afford 500 gp/week, but if my character is paying him, he's an employee, and I don't think many of them would necessarily want to become romantically involved with an employee.

That isn't saying it isn't a good idea. But there are two ways it could go for me.

If he stayed mercenary, but was prepared to sleep with the PC, no strings attached (and was really, *really* worth it), that would be cool.

Or, if he found that his desire to serve the PC was more motivated by affection than greed, that would also be cool. In other words, if he decided that the money wasn't so important, anymore, since he was developing feelings for her.

[Neferit]

I like the idea, but my eyes pop out a bit at the idea of a romanceable mercenary. Not that this is much of a big deal, because most parties can afford 500 gp/week, but if my character is paying him, he's an employee, and I don't think many of them would necessarily want to become romantically involved with an employee.

That isn't saying it isn't a good idea. But there are two ways it could go for me.

If he stayed mercenary, but was prepared to sleep with the PC, no strings attached (and was really, *really* worth it), that would be cool.

Or, if he found that his desire to serve the PC was more motivated by affection than greed, that would also be cool. In other words, if he decided that the money wasn't so important, anymore, since he was developing feelings for her.

Heh, maybe he thinks that if he bed the PC, she will icrease his payment



And I like this idea. Khail seems interesting enough. Hope he won't end as a Orphaned character

[berelinde]

(giggling) My PC doesn't have to pay for sex, dear.

Sorry, will return to being serious now.

The character concept sounds promising. His stats are high, but you get what you pay for.

[Miss Sakaki]

I really like the idea of an employed NPC. It makes a nice change from the myriad "well, I'll travel with you because there's nothing else to do" characters. And I'd like to second Berelinde's no-strings sex idea, I think I'd prefer that than developing a proper 'romance' with a mercenary employee... erm, not that my PCs are huge lechers or anything...

Also? I have a very soft spot for neutrally-aligned NPCs, especially CN ones. This guy sounds a lot of fun.

[Feuille]

I have to second Berelinde and Miss Sakaki on the no-strings idea - it's a lot fresher than romances, I think, and seems to suit the idea more. It could be no-strings at first, maybe...?

Jarno Mikkola raises a good point too: 1500/500 really isn't that much - a party in BGII raises much more than that in a week! It would also be cool to pay him different amounts - perhaps if you bargain him down far enough, he likes you more, thinking you're a canny sort of PC?

[Simbul]

it's a lot fresher than romances, I think, and seems to suit the idea more. It could be no-strings at first, maybe...?

Actually, it could well be a fresh alternative to the classic way of starting romances. After all, it happens in real life, why not make such a romance in the game? It would be very interesting to try something new and original

[Unmei]

This feedback is so helpful lol. I wouldnt have thought of half of these things.

As for the no strings attached, yes that is what Khail is looking for at first. In fact, it might annoy the pc to see him flirt outrageously with any pretty females who join the party. Even Mazzy will get some action, although I doubt she would respond favorably. And because he is no strings attached up until things get really involved, you can kick him out repeatedly to your hearts content without breaking the romance. Really, if you want someone who is faithful and dedicated Khail is not the right guy. Once he admits to himself his feelings for the pc he will be grudgingly faithful, and 100% deddicated to her. But you will have to put up with... A LOT to get to that point lol! Also, charname will be able to have concurrent romances with anyone else, and participate in the Romantic Encounters all the way until the turning point, which will come closer to the end of the game.

As for the stats and money, it looks like I need some help in that department. Advice? What do you think his stats should be? He has to be physically much better than average (a slow mercenary is a dead mercenary) and he has to have at least better than average charisma. He is no mathmetician, but he isnt dumb. Also, for the money, what is a good price? I made it pretty low because I dont want it to interfere with someone useing this mod. Its part of the story, but I dont want it to be a road block.

So far, it sounds like people kind of like this idea of mine lol. I think I might go ahead and try to do it. I have never made a mod before so advice is more than welcome.

Thanks for all the help so far!

[Feuille]

One of the best general things about modding that Miss Sakaki and I have found is to code as you go. Try not to write everything and then end up coding it all at the end - otherwise, unless you have superhuman discipline (which I know I don't!), you'll probably lose interest. Create the appropriate dialogue files and write directly into them, using the great tutorials we have around to help you!

[berelinde]

Absolutely, what she said. Not everyone does this. Some form teams and stuff gets done. But for people who usually work solo, like myself, I'd never have finished if I hadn't coded as I wrote. In my case, that meant I had to learn to code.

[vilkacis]

What do you think his stats should be? He has to be physically much better than average (a slow mercenary is a dead mercenary) and he has to have at least better than average charisma. He is no mathmetician, but he isnt dumb.

They should be whatever suits the character you have in mind. Please see the "ability scores" section on the wiki for more info on what they actually mean.

From your description, I would say STR, DEX and CON all in the range from 14 to 17 (high to exceptional), INT maybe 10 to 12 (average to above average), WIS 9-10 (average), CHA 13-14 (significantly above average).


As for the money... For most people, 500 GP per week is an enormous amount of money. It might be possible for a high-level merc to demand that much, but I really don't think it should be more just because <charname> could pay more. Realistically, I think maybe something like 5 GP per merc's level per day (so, for an 8th level character, 40 GP/day, or 280 GP/week) would be acceptable. However, knowing that <charname> is a high-level adventurer and most likely loaded, it's to be expected that he might try to get more out of it.

...personally, I'd base the actual number on <charname>'s charisma. Go with 500/week as a base number, but modify it after how effective the PC's haggling is.

[Unmei]

Code as you go huh? This is probably a good idea. I think I'll do some more brainstorming, and if I can flesh out my idea enough, I start writing/coding this.

And thanks for the tips vilkacis. Do you think this sounds more reasonable for stats?

STR 14, DEX 16, CON 16, WIS 10, INT 12, CHA 14

[vilkacis]

Looks good to me.

Although, it's more important that they look good to you.

[Unmei]

I think it does. I can always change it later! Looks like its time to do some more writing.