7 réponses à ce sujet

[HipMaestro]

Howdy NWN2ers!

Finally broke down and bought several copies of NWN2 for the members of our local LAN group (someone made an offer I could not refuse ) but now we all have become official NWN2 newbs needing guidance. On one hand, we are starting from scratch and at the bottom of the learning curve, but on the other, it's something new and shiny for us to play with.   Here are a few of the main questions posed:

First, will the game play without the disc drive when installed as the default version?  How about when after patched to v1.23?

Second, once the game has been updated to the latest patch version, must it be futhere patched if we decide to venture into the 2 expansions? (We only have the basic game atm.)

Third, how easy does NWN2 adapt for LAN play?

Fourth, though I've poked around the NWN2 wiki a bit I seem to be having trouble finding the bare bones, basic information like the max levels (the manual says 20 but I see toon builders making them up to level 30).  Where would I find a list or guide of the "essentials" needed to play without being totally in the dark (the manual, like most of them, sux) ?

Lastly, how close to 3.5 rules is NWN2?  (e.g. NWN, though based on 3.0 rules has loads of exceptions and custom interpretations)

It would really streamline our transition if you folks would help clarify these few issues.  I am not adverse to surf-fishing for other threads but would appreciate any links you may be able to furnish in this one.

TIA,
Hip

Modifié par HipMaestro, 29 décembre 2012 - 01:58 .

[Lugaid of the Red Stripes]

It's kinda odd not to have the expansions, as the game is usually only sold as a bundle, but it'll be fine for LAN play. Eventually you'll want to use community-made content, though, and most of that will need the expansions installed.

The 1.23 patch eliminates the SecuRom disk check, even without the expansions.

The stock game only goes to level 20, SoZ increases the cap to 30.

I don't know a whole lot about PnP rules, but the differences should be similar to what you saw in NWN. Custom content is great for fixing a lot of those issues, and many of the more recent modules released try to capture a PnP feel, with some of the old school rules recreated.

For more info, make sure to go through the stickies on this forum, or just ask here. We actually seem to have more people answering questions than asking them lately, so some new thread might help to let you newcomers feel welcome.

[Arkalezth]

Welcome.

Lugaid of the Red Stripes wrote...

The stock game only goes to level 20, SoZ increases the cap to 30.

It's MotB, actually. I recommend you to get both expansions if you can, as they introduce important gameplay features and most of the modules and custom content require them nowadays.

HipMaestro wrote...
Where would I find a list or guide of the "essentials" needed to play without being totally in the dark (the
manual, like most of them, sux) ?

The manual can work just fine as a coaster for your drinks, or as a firelighter for your barbecues, but it won't help you much with the game.

Check out these links; I don't know if they're exactly what you're looking for, but they're a start:

http://social.biowar...2/index/5688433

http://nwn2db.freefo...klist-t104.html

Modifié par Arkalezth, 29 décembre 2012 - 02:27 .

[HipMaestro]

Ahhh... that's all very helpful, guys!   It clears up most of our concerns for the time being.  Knowing the disc check was eliminated via patch is important.

ATM, NWN2 will be "tasted".  You must understand that the group targeted for "digestion" is comprised of tried and tested NWN1 long-timers but my hope is that if the transition can be made as inconsequential and painless as possible, there will be enthusiasm for a new game like this to be introduced in the future.  I suspect the fact that it is based on ADnD 3.5 is one of the most attractive aspects (the "group" is actually a subset of a larger, well-established and more "mature" PnP community, hence the concern for consistency with the PnP ruleset).

Yes, I have been tracking pricing for the expansions ever since we got the deal on the stock boxes. Once we begin to consider CC, that will naturally come into play.  But thanks for pointing out how they are used as prereqs.  They (the XPs) seem to be fairly inexpensive from my own survey.

Now... the only crucial issue that remains (I should have included this in the OP... doh!) is the DM client.  I've been reading about how this may have been finally integrated into NWN2 but nothing seems conclusive.  So, is there one?  Or perhaps a suitable equivalent?  I am unfamilar with DMFI and not even sure if it even exists anymore. (Having a DM client accessible as part of the stock game is the easiest for obvious reasons.)  I did notice a community-introduced interface that appears to serve this purpose, but is it easy to use for someone with zero scripting aptitude?

In any event, thanks for hunting down the links for me.

Modifié par HipMaestro, 30 décembre 2012 - 10:01 .

[Clyordes]

Hello - well done in trying out NWN2 - personally I'm still in two minds about whether 1 or 2 is 'better' - but showing a complete bias toward being shallow - relatively, NWN2 is just so pretty!

In fact, I've just been getting back to building over christmas & even looking back at my earlier mods, it looked pretty good (and I was sober at the time - honest).

Anyhow - re LAN suitability - I've used NWN1 & 2 via LAN over the years & the only problems I've ever had were router related - mainly firewalls - which mainly were dealt with by finding the right ports to open. If you ever play via internet, there also seems to be a problem with Orange internet (now EE here in the UK) blocking some ports - or doing something similar which blocks people from joining games hosted on another user's computer.

I've never used the DM client - so can't comment on it, but in a completely unrelated shameless plug, I've just about finished reviewing bug reports of two of the old PnP aD&D adventures I converted to NWN2 - which have all been tested in multiplayer & seem to work fine.

With a bit of luck I'll be submitting them to the vault in the next day or two, along with the initial release of the third adventure in the series as part of a four adventure campaign (the next adventure is in development still).

Depending on how old & grizzled your group are, they may bring back some memories :-)

Cly

[SkywingvL]

Yes, a DM client exists. Run nwn2main.exe -dmc to use it. Better yet, use the Client Extension and run NWLauncher.exe -dmc. ( http://social.biowar...1/index/3116438 )

Modifié par SkywingvL, 31 décembre 2012 - 04:05 .

[HipMaestro]

SkywingvL wrote...
Yes, a DM client exists. Run nwn2main.exe -dmc to use it. Better yet, use the Client Extension and run NWLauncher.exe -dmc. ( http://social.biowar...1/index/3116438 )

Sounds great!   Is this available for all versions, with or without expansions installed?  If not, which patch version is needed?  (Still DLing patches atm, need a bunch fer sure) 

From your detailing of the features of your utility, it appears the launcher version is significantly superior in all respects.  (But the same question still applies in regards to version compatibility.)

Incidentally, it is shocking to me that the default Internet Service Browser for NWN2 was discontinued by GameSpy over 2 years ago.  I had assumed this was a more recent administrative decision... in error.

[SkywingvL]

Latest game version (1.0.23.1765). No particular expansion set requirement, although many multiplayer servers require all expansion packs nowadays.

I would install all of the expansion sets that you have before patching up (and install MotB [XP2] before SoZ [XP2]).

Modifié par SkywingvL, 31 décembre 2012 - 09:15 .