52 replies to this topic

[Himself]

Wow double post, first time it ever happens to me xD

Edited by Himself, 02 July 2008 - 03:39 PM.

[Himself]

Let us think of this from a FAQ viewpoint:

-- What (is / is not) BW-version/Expert-version?

BW version is supposed to run without any major bugs. Expert is kinda un-supported due to lack of enough testing/fixing so far (more on that ahead)

-- Can I can change around the install order and still be BWP?

-- Must I play with all 160 mods to be considered BWP? Can I choose which mods, and which components in mods, and still be considered BWP - or is that just a mega-install?

-- If this is still BWP, and I want to use only 117 mods of the current BWP structure, which version is that considered?

Changing the order in which the mods are supposed to be installed can lead to new/undiscovered problems, so I think that is not allowed. As for skipping mods/components.. seems ok so long as you follow the order and aplly the *MUST INSTALL STUFF*, highly unlikely that skipping something else will cause problems.


Following the order and not using expert mods, any amount of mod components can still be consider BWP in a "should run fine" approach, and as such get support for bugs.

I myself don't plan to install BG1 at all on next release (not initially at least, only after I'm through fixing my BG2 part)

-- If I use even just one of the Expert-version mods, am I in Expert-version? (Believe it or not, you are going to get this question.)
-- What kind of support and where will I get if in Expert-version?

For sake of convenience, expert version must imply that "you are familiar with modding and can solve the problems/bugs yourself", beyond that I hope expert does not get supported at all.

-- How long/which criteria will announce a Expert-version mod is now in BW-version?

When expert players (er.. we?) or BWP testers/staff fix supposed bugs in the mod/component or report that apparently the mod/component has no problems with the rest of the current install.


However my word ain't final and Leomar will correct anything that is wrong, I'm just the guy going to clarify the english version.. thats how I would phrase it in there.. anyway

Edited by Himself, 02 July 2008 - 04:11 PM.

[Leomar]

DeusEx, thanks for your informations.

Thanks to Himself, too, so I can try to answer better the questions of Azazello .

-- What (is / is not) BW-version/Expert-version?
This I have answered above, so I think the next answer will give more clarity.

-- Can I can change around the install order and still be BWP?
No, because of the reasons Himself mentioned. Our install order were tested many many times and should not be changed. If you do that, because there exists other stable megamods, you do this of your own. Another reason is, that our fixpack solves some compatibility errors during the installation, also the recommended installation order.

-- Must I play with all 160 mods to be considered BWP? Can I choose which mods, and which components in mods, and still be considered BWP - or is that just a mega-install?
You ask here about the BW-version. This version is exactly that what we do with BWP v5.2. So you can install all of the 160 mods or only your choosen ones. You can install all the recommended components of the mods or only the choosen ones. It's only your decision. That is BWP.

-- If this is still BWP, and I want to use only 117 mods of the current BWP structure, which version is that considered?
The BW-version.
For understanding: We want to reduce our current BWP and therefore BW-version is the main BWP.

-- If I use even just one of the Expert-version mods, am I in Expert-version? (Believe it or not, you are going to get this question.)
Not really. BWP shows you the install order of all the mods (BW and experts). BWP means a functioning installation of all the mods, too. If you choose only a NPC or an item mod I would say you are save. But choose you 5 NPC experts mods, 3 more item mods, one more tactical mod or whatever else, too, yes you are in your own expert-version and therefore Himself described it good:
expert version must imply that "you are familiar with modding and can solve the problems/bugs yourself"

-- What kind of support and where will I get if in Expert-version?
See above.

-- How long/which criteria will announce a Expert-version mod is now in BW-version?
Here is Himself wrong. We have opened this thread, to discuss about the mods. Is there nothing to discuss anymore, so it's final. BW-mods are BW-mods and Expert-mods are Expert-mods (without the mentioned mods, we will include in the BW-version if they got fixed). To clarify (like you can read in the first sentence at the first post), we do not announce a criteria for the mods. It is a recommendation of gamers and users.

Greetings Leomar

[Viller]

I'm playing BG2 again for the first time since 2001 or so. Back then, I played with the Darkest Day installed. When I decided to replay it, I thought it might be fun to see what other mods were out there. Which ultimately led me here. I'd rather not go the BGT route, due to limited hard drive space and no real desire to play BG1 again. I think I have this down a bit, but can someone clarify a few points for me?

1. I'd like to install NeJ. This is listed in the Expert version. If this is the only Expert level mod I install, can I expect it to run more or less stably?
2. It looks like I can skip the BGT install and all of sections 5-10. Is this correct?
3. Currently, I'm planning to install everything in sections 1,3, and 4, then some or all of sections 11 and 13, then maybe something from 16, all of 19, all of 20, maybe parts of 22, and then bits of 23. Can anyone see any issues with this install?

Thank you all in advance for the assist with this. It's all a bit overwhelming, but I do want to have the best experience I can with BG2 on this second play through, and I'd really prefer to not have ctds/restarts ruining that good time.

[Miloch]

1. I'd like to install NeJ. This is listed in the Expert version. If this is the only Expert level mod I install, can I expect it to run more or less stably?

Not really - there are still bug reports with it. Some folks have tried the newer NEJ (6.94 or whatever) but there are issues with that too, as erebusant has informed me.

2. It looks like I can skip the BGT install and all of sections 5-10. Is this correct?

Yes. You can skip almost anything unless it says it's required.

3. Currently, I'm planning to install everything in sections 1,3, and 4, then some or all of sections 11 and 13, then maybe something from 16, all of 19, all of 20, maybe parts of 22, and then bits of 23. Can anyone see any issues with this install?

As described elsewhere (maybe earlier in this thread), 19.05 and .06 overwrite files, so you might want to install them early. They also probably overwrite bits of each other, so you might want to read the mod documentation and see which you want overwriting which (last one wins). Ascension and Tactics (20.03 and .04) do the same, and some folks have reported good results putting all of these before the Fixpack (otherwise they will overwrite fixes and anything else in their way).

[Viller]

1. I'd like to install NeJ. This is listed in the Expert version. If this is the only Expert level mod I install, can I expect it to run more or less stably?

Not really - there are still bug reports with it.  Some folks have tried the newer NEJ (6.94 or whatever) but there are issues with that too, as erebusant has informed me.

OK, no NeJ. I can live with that. I wasn't planning to install any of the other mods you mentioned as problems, so it looks like I'm ready to go. Thank you very much for the help.

[erebusant]

1. I'd like to install NeJ. This is listed in the Expert version. If this is the only Expert level mod I install, can I expect it to run more or less stably?

Not really - there are still bug reports with it. Some folks have tried the newer NEJ (6.94 or whatever) but there are issues with that too, as erebusant has informed me.

OK, no NeJ. I can live with that. I wasn't planning to install any of the other mods you mentioned as problems, so it looks like I'm ready to go. Thank you very much for the help.

Actually, if you install NEJv691 + NEJv694 Patch prior to any of the other big mods you'll probably do OK. The big problems you run into are overwriting portions of BGT, but since you're not going to use BGT, NEJ should work fine for you.

[Discordia]

once again about nej...

do i need all of those 4 files, or will any of them do and where do i find them to download (all i seem find is the bgt compatibility modification)...
one more thing, cant seem to find a baldurdash download either...
although the txt file on the bg2 fixpack says not to combine it with baldurdash...i m getting mixed messages here.

[Jarno Mikkola]

do i need all of those 4 files, or will any of them do and where do i find them to download (all i seem find is the bgt compatibility modification)...

Here a link for the links.

[Discordia]

one more question...how would the installation order change if i were to add level 1 npcs into the mix, i tried that at the end of the complete installation, which appearantly wasnt the best idea...since i cant distribute weapon proficiencies and at every choice i make i fail at life.
and i also guess there isnt a weidu option to uninstall all mods, i mean, since i dont have a backup of the original override folder...

btw, does bgt make any changes to the baldurs gate 1 folder? would i have to reinstall that as well?

Edited by Discordia, 14 November 2008 - 07:03 AM.

[Jarno Mikkola]

one more question...how would the installation order change if i were to add level 1 npcs into the mix, i tried that at the end of the complete installation, which appearantly wasnt the best idea...since i cant distribute weapon proficiencies and at every choice i make i fail at life.

You need to install the rule changes from the Level 1 NPCs (so just install the component 1, 2 and 3) with the other rule changing mods, while you should install the NPCs components(0, 1201, 1202, 1203, ..., 1237) at the end, as long as you don't install the component number #0 during the other parts of the installation... or you just ruin the whole process as the WeiDU needs to uninstall every component before that point.
This is according to my understanding...

btw, does bgt make any changes to the baldurs gate 1 folder? would i have to reinstall that as well?

The BGT doesn't change the original files at all, it just copies the files and puts them to the (BGII)game folder. So that's a no.

[Avatar1138]

Jarno,

Has there been any official testing with Level 1 NPC and the Big World Projekt?  It was the only Mod I installed on my Manual, Mac OS X installation that was not on the official BWP list.  I installed it just before the G3 tweak pack.  No NPC mods were included in the install, and all mods gave a "Successfully Installed" prompt after installation.

The game played perfectly thorough the Chateau, and all areas of the Promenade are accessible.  However, every time I exit the Promenade, I get a CTD. I can Console my party to other areas of the City, but when I try to enter the Copper Coronet, I get an Assumption Failure.  So, I'm wondering if anyone has successfully installed Lv1 NPC with a Mega-Install, and if so, did it cause any of the sort of problems I am having.

I'm considering scrapping my current install, and starting over again with a greatly reduced mod list.  However, I wanted to get some feed back on Lv1 NPC first, as I really want a party that includes all multi-classed NPC's, to go along with my multi-classed Fighter/Mage (Boo, where did I put my spell scroll?)

[Leomar]

Our next step is to include Level-1 NPCs in our BWP. Therefore we have not tested it yet and have no information about that for you. But your CTDs could depends on other things as on Level-1 NPCs. So your idea is fine to start a new install with lesser mods to try it out.

Greetings Leomar