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Need help finding an item in an old Neverwinter Nights module
Praetorian Mage
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I've started playing the Bastard of Kosigan series. I've finished the first module, but I somehow missed an important item - specifically, one of the "placeholder for storyline" items that's supposed to unlock dialogue in the later modules. From what I can tell, there are 5 of them, and I have all of them except number 3. Strangely, I also have two copies of number 5 for some reason. I can't find any walkthroughs, and the readme is no help. I was under the impression that this was a pretty popular series, so I was hoping there'd be more information available, but no such luck. I'd really appreciate some help, because I hate missing dialogue in RPGs.
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Was he heavily involved in the NWN community or something?
1. Open the module you're playing
2. Find the item.
3. Copy it, or remake it in your own random empty room module.
4. Import your character into your own module.
5. Pick up the item.
6. Export character.
7. Begin module two with that character.
I've done that to grant character's things like Aribeth's ring when I didn't finish the dialogue in a given story module.
I've never used the toolset before, so I wouldn't know how to go about doing that. I did open it up last night to try to find the item, hoping I could find its item code or something so I could maybe give it to myself with a console command. I didn't know what I was doing, but the Find Instance function seemed to be what I was looking for. The problem was that I kept getting errors whenever I tried to search most of the areas in the module. I'm assuming it's because the module uses a bunch of hakpaks and overrides and stuff and I would have to load them into the toolset along with the module, but I don't know how to do that.
I never did get through that module series, though it cropped up from time to time on my radar and I think I downloaded the first mod or two at some point. I think I have (possibly an old version of) it somewhere on an old hard drive, and I know just enough about the toolset to be dangerous. since the nwvault is no more (that was a sad day for me, finding that out) this might be the best I can offer.
if you can give me some more details I can probably direct you to the right item. otherwise, this gives me an excuse to go replay it and solve the mystery on my own
I'll try to tell you everything I can. The module itself is called Exile of the West. The item I'm looking for should be called "Placeholder for storyline 3" (at least that's what it should be called in the game; I don't know how the toolset would label it). I think it's classified as a "miscellaneous small" or a "miscellaneous thin". Looking at them in my inventory, all but one of these other "placeholder" items looks like a small circular object, like a coin. The other one looks like an egg. They all take up a single square. It should probably have some reference to the words "bastard", "Kosigan", and "dialogue". I'll try to answer any other questions you have, but I don't know how differently things are labeled in the toolset and such, so I'm not sure what kind of information you need.
By the way, there's a new Vault, in case you didn't know. The version of the module that I'm using is here: http://neverwintervault.org/project/nwn1/module/bastard-kosigan-english-version Maybe that will help.
I also missed a quest involving a werewolf. If you could help me find out how to start that quest as well, that would certainly be much appreciated, but I'm mainly concerned with finding that item.
press ` to open the console (also known as the ~ key)
DebugMode 1
point at a spot of open ground with the cursor
dm_spawnitem resref
replace resref with the actual resref. this'll create the item on the ground, and you're golden
if you're a toolset newbie to get to the item resref using the toolset, do this:
go to your nwn main folder on your hard drive
open nwtoolset.exe
when prompted for a module to open, select the module with the item you want
click yes when it asks for .hak files, let it run. back in the day, on contemporary PCs, this could take a few minutes on some modules...
click on the + next to the area in the left menu, then right click on any area name and click View Area
when it's loaded, on the right hand side click the little sword icon (which is the item menu) then click Custom just below that
browse through the menus until you find it. sorry, that's the best I can do there. you'll find it though.
once found, right click the item name and click edit
Blueprint ResRef is toward the bottom right. type that string exactly after your dm_spawnitem command in DebugMode
if you liked Kosigan, I have one or two other recommendations I could pass along. they're mods that floated in the same circles.
(there can't be many other people of this forum with an upload on the old nwvault. it was a fix to PW servers using JenX having the BioWare default heads broken after the 1.66 patch. I hacked it together using a hex editor and I am still entirely astounded that it actually worked and quite elegantly given my total lack of programming background. it's a small point of pride for me, since I was a pretty active NWN player for a very long time. it had... I dunno, a few dozen downloads? mostly people from the server I frequented.)
`
DebugMode_1
dm_spawnitem token3
if that's not the right one it's token1, token2, etc. until you have the right one
(I had the wrong module open. turns out it was the second one in the series, which is notable in that during the introduction area, which is ostensibly OOC, you can not only talk to the NPC who gives you all the backstory, you can do... other things with her. NWN, never change)
also thank you for that new nwvault link. it looks very new! I should maybe help upload some stuff on that, because I have a fairly extensive archive of mods for some PWs that still have players. it's the least I can do to give back to a community that gave me so much enjoyment.
That worked perfectly. Thanks! Hopefully there isn't some bullshit issue where the item doesn't unlock the dialogue because I didn't get it "legitimately".
I'm sure the people at the Vault would appreciate it if you uploaded your stuff.
I'd definitely be interested in those recommendations.
Edit: One more thing. Would it be possible to track down how to start that werewolf quest? It's not tremendously important to me, but it would be nice nonetheless.
There won't be. NWN doesn't have any sort of "achievement" tracking, so the only way it can track triggers between modules is with items in inventory. Even the official campaign requires this, Aribeth won't talk to you at all if you don't keep her ring.
Good to know. One less thing to worry about.
Edit: And speaking of not worrying about things, the intro area for the second module has a merchant that sells unlimited bags of holding for about a thousand gold each. I've got 130,000 gold. I'm never going to have to worry about encumbrance again. It's enough to make up for the fact that they took away my fast-travel-fairy-in-a-bottle (literally, it's a fairy in a bottle that teleports you around) from the first module.
Did you muck about with anything in the Aurora toolset? You can break saved games if you alter the resources that it uses.
One option is to delete the module and then go download it again, if nothing else works.
I didn't do anything except open the first module to try and find the resref for the item I needed, and I didn't save anything. The only other thing I did was delete a bunch of old savegames, mostly from other modules, because I thought maybe having so many was screwing up the system somehow. That didn't help.
It only happens with this one module, as far as I can tell, and there doesn't seem to be any pattern at all. I just loaded one save that wasn't working last night. Then I made a few more saves in the same map to test things out, and none of them would load, and neither would the save I originally loaded. Then I quit and restarted the game, and the original save was working again. So I made a quicksave and immediately tried to load it, and it didn't work. The whole thing is completely random. I also tried starting the module with a brand new character to test if importing a character was causing problems somehow. The saves for the new character have the same problem.
The "logs" folder has two txt files: nwclientError1.txt and nwclientLog1.txt
The first one is blank. The second one has this:
[Mon Feb 16 22:01:58]Server Starting Up: 10 Second Heartbeat logging has been disabled
[Mon Feb 16 22:01:58]---- Server Options ----
Max Players: 6
Char Levels: (1-40)
Player Password: NO
DM Login Enabled: YES
Server Admin Login Enabled: YES
Post Game To Internet: YES
Game Type: Action
Difficulty: 3
PVP Setting: FULL
Vault: LOCAL
Only One Party: NO
Enforce Legal Characters: NO
Item Level Restrictions: NO
Player pausing: ENABLED
Auto Save: Enabled
Saving Characters in Saved Game
---- End Server Options ----
[Mon Feb 16 22:01:58] Player [] () Joined as Server Admin 1
[Mon Feb 16 22:01:58] Player () Joined as Player 1
[Mon Feb 16 22:01:58] Loading Module: 000737 - bok82\The Bastard of Kosigan
[Mon Feb 16 22:02:15] Loading Module: 000757 - bok83\The Bastard of Kosigan
There's also a file called AR_ERROR.LOG in the main game folder. That file has this:
Names Differ: rwc_dirt_001 rwc_dirt_01
bok82 was a save that wasn't working before, but worked this time. bok83 was a save I made after loading bok82 to test things. When I tried to load bok83, it froze. I don't know what this stuff means, but I hope it helps.
it appears to be an issue with the engine misnaming instances of items in the module. which is bizarre. my instinct is to say it's hak-related (every problem is hak-related, statistically speaking). you could try a fresh download of the hak files for the mod, see if that clears it up.
I hate to ask this, but would you be willing to download it and give it a try yourself? It shouldn't take long to test; all you'd have to do is load up the second module, save in a few slots, and try to load them again. It might at least tell me whether it's a problem with the module or if I screwed something up.
I loaded it up and saved in two slots and they loaded just fine on a few attempts. so you might have an issue on your end
so the standard rule of custom content applies: put the old files in a /backup folder, download them again, and give it another try. your old savegames shouldn't be lost.
- Rename the override and hak folders so I can "delete" them without actually deleting them
- Install the Kosigan files to the appropriate folders
- Copy/paste the stuff from the old override and hak folders and don't overwrite anything to preserve the new Kosigan stuff
Do I have the right idea here?
AresProphet, could you post the version you're using somewhere so I can try it? I'm not convinced we're actually using the same version. It would at least give me something else to try.
If a fresh mod install didn't fix it, I'm beginning to think you have something wrong with your game install. Try backing up your save games and content and reinstalling NWN? This was a frequent necessity at one point.
I already tried a fresh installation, like I said in my post. I ran GOG's setup program and installed it to another directory on another hard drive, then ran the game from there with only the Kosigan mod installed. Or is that not enough, and I actually have to completely uninstall and then reinstall?
The guy who's helping me on the GOG forum said it looked like a blueprint issue, something that's happening on the toolset level. If that's the case, it doesn't seem like something I could fix by redownloading/reinstalling. I have a thread on the Bioware forums, too, and someone there recommended I try preloading the haks. I've been pointed here for a guide on how to do that: http://www.harvestmoonconsortium.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=56&t=2050
I'd be interested to hear what you think about this.
That thread mentions overrides, though. do you have anything in your override folder? Those are known to cause issues from time to time.
It sucks that you're having so many problems. NWN always was a buggy beast and the amount of jury-rigging I've had to do to get some modules running or some graphical glitch fixed is substantial.
I have some stuff in my override folder, yes. I'm using the Customize Character Override Hak, some fonts, and a sound file for a silent pixie familiar (she's very useful, but her constant "sparkle" sound was getting annoying). I also have a player voiceset I downloaded in an attempt to turn it into a silent player voice by deleting all its sound files. This was before I found out about the Leto character editor, which lets me set my character's voice to "none" like NWN2 lets you do. I also have a few files that start with ls_car. I don't know what those are for. I've used this setup for all the official campaigns, some of the premium modules, and some user-made modules, and this is the first time I've had any problems like this. Just my luck that it had to be one of the more interesting modules, that I really want to continue playing, that has a problem.
I'll admit I know almost nothing about how NWN works, but I'm skeptical about this preloading haks business. I don't see how that could make a difference if the problem is with some basic component of things. I'd really like to ask about it at the Neverwinter Vault, but like I said, I never got my confirmation email. I even tried requesting a new password, hoping that might jumpstart things, but I haven't gotten those emails either.
Well I'll be damned. That actually seems to have worked. I guess now I have to figure out what I can safely add back. I really hope it wasn't the fonts or the Customize Character Override thing. A lot of the outfits are damned ugly without tweaking, and the regular fonts are almost unreadable at a high resolution.
Edit: God damn it, it is Customize Character Override that's fucking things up. That's...actually a pretty big problem for me. I really like customizing my gear. And why the hell is it having some kind of problem with a dirt placeable? That doesn't make sense at all.
This is the first time that hak has actually broken anything. It only worked in one of the four Aielund Saga episodes for some reason, but the game never crashed. That hak was a fucking godsend. The default "crafting" interface can change how items look, but it costs (a LOT of) money, doesn't always succeed, you have to change right and left side parts individually (WHY?) and I can't change colors unless the module includes a dye system (and even then, merchants might not have the dyes I want). I guess I could open the toolset to find the resrefs for the dyes I need, but that still depends on them being in the module in the first place, unless I can figure out a way to add them somehow.
I may end up learning the toolset just so I can play fantasy dress-up.
alternatively you could dig into the .hak, find the offending resource, delete it, repack the .hak and use it in that modified way. the nwhak.exe tool included with the game should let you do this.
I don't know why I didn't think of overrides. pretty much the only thing I use the folder for anymore is portraits. nuking your override folder is, like, step 1 of NWN troubleshooting. I should have suggested it earlier.
I assume by "nuke it for that mod" you mean delete it when playing the Kosigan series and reinstall it later? Sure, I can do that, but it means I can't customize my gear for the entire rest of that series. Like I said, that's kind of a big deal for me.
I've been curious about the toolset anyway, but I'd hoped I'd be able to get into it on my own terms rather than being sort-of forced to do it.
the NWN "toolset" is really just a couple of tools. the Aurora editor is the capital-T Toolset in that it makes mods etc. and is generally what people refer to. nwhak.exe is just a utility that lets you combine multiple resources into a single package; the general concept being that you may have a large array of custom portraits, voices, item models, clothing models, etc. at your disposal and for any given module you have a dedicated hak that combines the specific resources you want while excluding the others. this allows you to broaden the resources at your disposal when designing a module using the Aurora editor. (I would also give Leto an honorary place in the Toolset pantheon because it's a core functionality that for some reason never made it into the official game)
that's the theory, anyway. in practice haks are often used in a very different manner.
the upshot is that you can crack open a hak and surgically add or remove certain pieces of content. adding them does nothing, as you're unlikely to have references to that resource in the module. replacing one resource with another using an identical name is a trick I've used to fix a major glitch in the game. this is probably what will work best for you. or, you could remove a resource and rely on your override folder to replace it for all references within the module. I suspect this may not actually work (because NWN :rotate: ) but it might.
if this is too intimidating just get rid of the override. would it really kill you to put up with some sub-par pretty princess dress-up for the duration of a <10 hour long single player module as long as it means you can actually, you know, play it?
You have a point. I've just gotten so used to that hak being there, and my OCD hates it when things change.
This module is fucked.
so I opened up nwhak and dug into bastard_hak.hak and there are 3 rwc_dirt_0# models inside of it. you could remove those, save this as a copy, then swap this one out for the original and see if this works. wouldn't take more than two minutes.
they're probably bad references in the module. I spent a few minutes looking through it in the toolset and I couldn't find anything that lined up; also the version I have uses French names for placeables, so that's hard mode. when I took out the offending models it loaded just fine in the toolset so you might be ok doing that. give it a shot.
That didn't work, either. I even tried deleting the rwc_dirt entries from two other haks, batardplaceable and batardplaceable2. After I did that, I started the module and made two saves, and they both loaded. Then I got bold and tried to load a save from before I did that, and it didn't work. Then I restarted and tried to load the saves that were just working, and they failed too. Then I went back and started again and made some more new saves, and those don't load either. This is ridiculous. I'm increasingly convinced that this isn't my fault, because this happens even on my alternate, completely untouched NWN installation.
I've been talking to someone on the NWN reddit who's agreed to install my version and test it. Hopefully he'll get back to me soon.
There are a few possible fixes, but it looks like the only surefire solution is to play through the entire module in one sitting. Supposedly it's a relatively short module, so that might be doable, but still very irritating. It would also mean having to have god mode on all the time, because I won't be able to reload and I don't want to risk gimping my character by taking a lot of XP penalties for respawning.
I guess it's good to know it's not my fault, but this is still a bad situation.
sorry to hear you can't seem to solve this. I do appreciate the chance to dig back into the toolset a bit and try to figure all this out. hope you get to play through the module and then get on with the rest of the series (there are others, aren't there?)
if you're looking for some other modules in this vein feel free to PM me. I have a suggestion or two.
It was suggested that I try recompiling the module, so I did that, and my saves worked the first time I tried it. Then I loaded the game up again and my saves didn't work anymore. It looks like all I can do is try to play through it all at once with god mode on just to see the story. I just have to hope that the other modules in the series don't have the same problem, because if they do, I'm done with this series. It's a damn shame, too, because I really like what I've played so far. I also don't understand why nobody brought this up on the series' Neverwinter Vault page. I can't even do it myself because I can't activate an account for God knows what reason.
I actually already tried that, and it didn't help. Unless you think doing it with a recompiled module would make a difference?
I doubt it would do much good, though. I forgot to mention this, but I got quite a few errors when I recompiled the module. Here's a list:
'a_leveluphench.nss' is missing resource mp_henchman.nss
creature 'femme002.utc' is missing resource test2.dlg
creature 'femme004.utc' is missing resource test5.dlg
creature 'femme006.utc' is missing resource test6.dlg
a_leveluphench - compile error
at_339.nss - compile error
at_556.nss - compile error
at_onentergetopc.nss - compile error
nw_c2_defaultd.nss - compile error
opa_004.nss - compile error
oud_01.nss - compile error
returnwaypoint.nss - compile error
sc_151.nss - compile error
sc_charisme12.nss - compile error
sc_freealex.nss - compile error
tutfloat001.nss - compile error
tutfr_float001.nss - compile error
ztutorial005.nss - compile error
ztutorialmove.nss - compile error
area 'factions': Creature 0 missing resource test2.dlg
area 'factions': creature 1 missing resource test2.dlg
area 'factions': creature 3 missing resource test6.dlg
area 'factions': creature 5 missing resource test6.dlg
area 'lodaus's tower': placeable object 3 missing resource nw_02_classhigh.nss
area 'lodaus's tower': placeable object 3 missing resource nw_02_classhigh.nss
area 'test area': creature 0 missing resource test4.dlg
Apparently some of this stuff means that even if I play the module without saving or anything, some things might just plain not work. Some things here might require scripting knowledge to fix. I've made a thread on the Bioware forums about this, thinking maybe someone in the community might be interested in making a fixed version of the module. No replies yet, though.