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I saw Windemere, who created a custom adventure together with Nimue (The Noisy Crypt), is working on making an overworld. By manipulating the camera into a top-down perspective and making a miniature world, he can walk across a world map like in the RPGs of old.
Patch Notes v3.0.150.188 - The demon's in the details...
26 OCTOBER - LARIAN_OCTAAF
Hi everybody!
Our latest update is filled to the brim with updates and fixes reported to us by the community. We want to stress how much we appreciate your feedback. We are doing our best to get as many fixes out you as we possibly can.
We’ve updated the story to include Tarquin’s questline update for existing savegames, and we’ve added many journal updates for the more creative solutions some of you have found. It never ceases to amaze us what some of you can accomplish with system mechanics and a dash of creativity.
Next to a long list of bug fixes, several issues that you reported via our support channels and feedback tool have been fixed.
We’ve also included updates to gameplay, balancing, modding, GM mode, and the Editor (your handy dandy modding tool).
Keep reading for a full list of changes to the game, and follow this link[larian.com] to see what’s new in the Editor.
Some of the highlights for this patch include:
A “Pick up and send to wares” and “Steal and add to wares” option in the context menu of world items.
Several journal entries have been made clearer to the player when the quest is automatically ended for whatever reason.
Added several items and related journal updates to improve links between certain NPCs and story lines.
A bunch of new effects to ensure certain important dialog options stand out more.
You can now examine an enemy, even when it’s not your turn!
Multi-region levels now supported in the GM mode.
The Larian Team
Improvements and changes
Improved several journal entries to be clearer to the player if quests get closed automatically
Added several items and related journal updates to improve links between certain NPCs and story lines
Journal update XP gains are now shown alongside the corresponding update
Improved performance in very specific locations, related to items being equipped by players or NPCs
Added “Pick up and send to wares” and “Steal and add to wares” in context menu of world items
Increased prices of unique weapons sold in Arx
Added missing weapon skills to unique two-handed weapons
Flaming Crescendo should now correctly receive bonus damage from Intelligence
Using the Equalise skill is now a hostile action
Skills from items now correctly respect weapon requirements
Reactive shot no longer deals damage on casting
You can now enter Sneak mode after activating the Play Dead skill
Added several new effects to make important dialog moments stand out more
Adjusted Meistr’s Vault so that it gives a ritual dagger and ritual bowl each time the player opens it, if the player does not have it in his inventory
Improved detection for being able to flee from combat
Skill preview trajectory should now be more accurate when fighting certain enemies
Improved landing position of Backlash skill
Blessing an electrified steam cloud now results in a blessed steam cloud
Blood Totem is now immune to Decaying status
Improved AI behavior that was leading to skipped turns incorrectly
Partial Action Points, after moving a small amount, are now saved correctly
Added several new icons
Framed Frost runes and Framed Thunder runes now have the correct bonuses
Fixed several crafting recipes that incorrectly required very specific items or gave incorrect results
Items dragged from equipment slot to inventory are now placed in the correct slot
You can now examine an enemy, even when it is not your turn
Roses increase Wits when consumed
When stealing a container, cost of its contents should be added to the cost of the container
Demonic Tutelage and Flaming Tongues now attack enemies until their duration runs out instead of only attacking first three enemies
Charm is now cleared when the charmer dies
Charm is now cleared from summons when the owner is uncharmed
Updated several skill tooltips to take into account extra modifiers
Updated several audio effects
Temporarily allied NPCs no longer have crime investigation behaviors about the crimes they helped commit
Henchmen now correctly have Source skills depending on where the player is in the storyline
Gratiana now sells back Soul Jars from other NPCs if the player gave them to her
End game Arena combat was made clearer to the player. Arena combatants are now clearly marked and they will target each other first
Updated Empyreo the Stalwart’s stats and abilities
Outlines now include corpses
Added player feedback when being Enwebbed, Crippled, Entangled or Encumbered
Improved Inner Demon, Demonic Tutelage and Terrify visual effects
Bug Fixes
Fixed Tarquin’s location and dialog after finishing his quest line
Fixed sorting by last picked up
Fixed ghosts spawning in incorrect locations
Fixed auras not correctly reapplying under certain conditions
Fixed forced group formation initializing when using certain spells to initiate combat
Fixed a problem with characters not following the party correctly anymore
Fixed Party Follower NPCs possibly getting stuck in dialog when talking to the wrong Player Character
Fixed triggering the unconsciousness of Dallis or Lucian only once if they are lying on a damaging surface
Fixed rested status blocking dialog with Malady at the end of the game
Fixed Kniles not participating in combat if he's teleported into a closed cage
Disabled trading with companions before recruiting them
Fixed Dallis’ moving closet on the Lady Vengeance
Fixed characters not being reassigned to the correct player after loading a co-op game from main menu
Fixed a dialog issue between Fane and Lohse after visiting the Hall of Echoes with Fane. The correct god is now mentioned in the dialog
Fixed several dialog issues related to gender
Fixed several dialog issues that would result in dialog loops or incorrect flags being set
Fixed several XP reward issues related to quests and certain enemies
Fixed the Red Prince being invisible during the wagon scene with the Red Princess
Fixed flaming pig not being blessed or cursed when talking to a shrine for the first time
Fixed a visual issue with electrified surfaces re-appearing after it wears off
Fixed an audio issue during the Council of Seven Arena, when talking to the embodiments of the gods
Fixed the sewer pipe exit to Fort Joy swamps. It can no longer be destroyed
Fixed the Scroll of Atonement disappearing from inventory
Fixed the Cathedral door being blocked in Arx
Fixed characters becoming stuck after summoning a totem in combat and then running out of combat
Fixed being able to save right before entering the magic mirror
Fixed being able to use the magic mirror with party followers by using context menu
Fixed an issue wherein a player joins the host for the first time and is being assigned the main character when host is controlling a companion
Fixed a crash related to dialog flags not being removed properly
Fixed Higba incorrectly being a party member later in the game due to Charmed status
Fixed a crash related to summoning totems near certain objects
Fixed a crash when transitioning to certain regions or instantly reloading the last savegame twice (runtime error)
Fixed wrong spirit appearing after killing Jonathan
Fixed dialog getting stuck when a charmed character enters the dialog
Fixed dialog history not showing up when a client player joins a dialog
Fixed a blocking issue during the Kraken fight when instantly killing Braccus during the first turn
Fixed turn order issue when characters transform (for example: The Doctor)
Fixed several journal updates triggering incorrectly under certain conditions
Fixed a crash when trying to teleport an item that has been picked up by someone else
Fixed several audio issues with the Kraken combat
Fixed several issues related to multiple tutorial messages popping up
Fixed Malady thinking Gareth is missing when he has left the area correctly
Fixed not being able to re-recruit party members on the Lady Vengeance due to a message saying the party is full
Fixed several issues with end game combat when the main character dies, but the player still defeats Braccus
Fixed Magister Borris not dropping Ifan’s contract
Fixed Ifan having Pet Pal talent regardless of which class you want him to be when recruiting him
Fixed Malady’s attitude dropping lower than intended
Fixed Jahan becoming hostile on the Lady Vengeance if the player frees the demons
Fixed tooltip for Evidence Chest
Fixed not being able to deal any damage to a number of specific NPCs
Fixed bears attacking when player uses Source Skills near them
Fixed not being able to get Infiltration achievement for lockpicking as an undead
Fixed Gareth’s dialog on the Lady Vengeance if he followed the path of light in Reaper’s Coast and spared Alexandar
Fixed several automated dialogs repeating at incorrect times or too frequently
Fixed being able to craft scrolls with important letters, destroying them in the process
Fixed Sallow Man dialog. In certain cases, he would not give out the Capacitor
Fixed Fane incorrectly being placed into a crime dialog after being dismissed
Fixed the Doctor having incorrect stats after transforming
Fixed being able to log in with more than 2 profiles when using controllers
Fixed being able to flee from certain situations when the player is not supposed to
Fixed being able to target corpses correctly when using a controller
Fixed dialog not scrolling anymore after loading while in a dialog
Fixed Avatar character not being assigned to player anymore after specific party death scenario
Fixed alignment issue causing player characters to be neutral after being resurrected
Fixed losing Black Rose status effect during certain story events
Fixed dialog issue with trespassing in Fort Joy near certain Magisters
Fixed Shackles of Pain effect after loading
Fixed Throw Explosive Trap skill in Arena Mode
Fixed barter trader exploit when using a controller
Fixed not being able to disable certain add-ons after campaign creation
Fixed various minor animation issues
Fixed a dialog issue in when fleeing from the fight with Saheila
Fixed Tarquin Skill Book selling issue
Fixed several issues related to destroying Soul Jars
Fixed target picking issues when near Noxious Voidwoken bodies
Fixed an issue with Elemental Affinity not updating the Skillbar correctly in certain cases
Fixed some cases when Blitz Attack and Backlash would ignore Ruptured Tendons
Fixed several map markers
Fixed being able to break the Kraken’s skill “Fate of the Sworn” by spamming ESC as he is casting it
Fixed having a summon time out in the Hall of Echoes resulting in the camera going to an incorrect location
Fixed empty catacombs pipe puzzle in Arx
UI Fixes
Improved tooltips for runes
Minimap now shows the direction of pings from other players when they are out of range
Fixed tooltips for surfaces not being displayed when using a controller
Added extra feedback for controller mode when not being able to pick something up due to not having enough strength
Fixed refresh issue of tooltips when players send items to each other
Character Creation: players can now edit their name while navigating any tab
Assigning points in Constitution in controller mode character screen should not increase Vitality until the point distribution is confirmed by exiting character screen
Fixed Direct Connect option in controller mode
Fixed being able to see target health bars when it is not your turn in controller mode
Updated the Options menu
Added UI fallback font for Chinese characters
Added turn timer in Arena Mode when using a controller
Fixed action bar getting stuck when skill bar is hidden by other interfaces
Incompatible saves now have a version indicator on the load screen
Fixed an issue in Arena Mode where one player would be unable to select heroes
Fixed a blocking issue at the end of the game when you deny Ifan having his revenge
GM Mode
Updated music tab. Added new music and fixed several playback issues
Added support for multi-region levels in GM mode
You can now drag items with or without snapping to terrain (by pressing the Caps Lock button)
Fixed inconsistency when spawning and dragging an existing item
Fix for characters sometimes not being assigned to anyone when a player disconnects from a GM session
Fixed error 300 and error 302 issues and related crash when trying to load zones that had a global entity removed
Fixed not being able to see custom stats tab when playing with controller
Fixed a crash related to NPCs joining dialog
Fixed a crash related to duplicate characters not being cleared correctly
Fixed a crash when dragging certain items to inventory
Fixed AI type panel and Alignment context menu not closing when GM changes character
Fixed an issue causing the encounter panel to display characters in the wrong order if there is a global character
GMs are now able to change the layout of add-ons for savegames (active sessions), as well as add new add-ons for already ongoing sessions
Fixed player character being teleported incorrectly when GM takes item that player was sitting or lying on
Users no longer lose Action Points when the GM manages their items during combat
Fixed exported characters not having the correct skills memorized
Fixed item use state being broken after GM has moved it to his inventory and back into the world
Fixed peace mode after saving and loading
Fixed cancel button in Level Templates search field
Fixed swapping around items not being synced correctly to clients
Fixed being able to load a pin with a deleted scene
Fixed Character Sheet background after managing a Character
Fixed incorrect tier of items being generated for creatures
Fixed GM not being able to do a GM roll during combat when possessing a character
Modding
Fixed an issue with downloading add-ons from the host when entering a multiplayer game
Fixed a possible global entity duplication issue when downloading an add-on into an existing campaign
New items in mods now get added to an existing savegame if the savegame already contained the mod and the mod is of a newer version than the version in the savegame
Mods now get loaded after the lobby screen in order to avoid players having to download mods just to enter the lobby (for Campaign and Game Master)
Users can now create mods with a name that starts with “Shared”
Fixed mod downloading and uploading errors due to incorrect renaming of mod files
Fixed material editor not saving correctly
Fixed sandbox mode not saving correctly
Players can now load add-ons when loading a savegame
I saw Windemere, who created a custom adventure together with Nimue (The Noisy Crypt), is working on making an overworld. By manipulating the camera into a top-down perspective and making a miniature world, he can walk across a world map like in the RPGs of old.
Actually, it's not an Ultima 5 remake, it's a prequel of sorts where you play as a founding member of the Resistance.
Here is a very early prototype of that dual-mapping system. I've polished it up a bit since then and think I have something that will work (camera is locked to a certain height with no pan or zoom). Someone released a heightmap importer so I have my overland map of Verity Isle, which is where the campaign will take place. I don't think I will actually have any ship travel because it's unnecessary for this mod, but I played around with the idea.
New patch released today, I still got the crash memory load at act 2. I believe that I am stuck in act one forever. Nice way to keep you locked at fort joy.
New patch released today, I still got the crash memory load at act 2. I believe that I am stuck in act one forever. Nice way to keep you locked at fort joy.
JRPGs usually open up by the end, probably cause half of the game is a glorified tutorial. E.g. Final Fantasy X gives you an airship right before sending you to the final dungeon and you can finally explore optional dungeons, fight bosses etc. You also don't have any cutscenes and voice acting and that's an improvement.
Yeah okay but let's say you have the same content with the old system. Wouldn't you still have gotten burned out? I'm 100% sure I would. There's just nothing to do but endless fighting fighting fighting, the biggest breaks you get are some remote locations with treasure (gee I wonder how to get to that... teleport) or isolated puzzles working from the logic of use element x to trigger y effect. There was so much ingenuity in the original, every area felt it had at least one major puzzle room or environmental idea.
I guess it's weird to hate a fightin' RPG for a guy who thinks Blackguards is the best RPG of the decade but that game was just setup around that concept with fantastically hand-crafted encounters. Blackguards this ain't
This I think echoes a point I was making recently, as a part of a bigger argument - that RPGs nowadays are getting too big for their own good, and too big for the scope that's manageable by their dev teams.
The point I was making in particular was that if the whole of D:OS2 had been the first island, it would have been an all right game. It would have been short enough for the story to not have time to get annoyingly cliched. The leveling wouldn't have scaled enough to expose the problems of the combat system as much as they are exposed now, etc. But mainly - all the little "gigs" the game offers, like elemental interactions, the teleportation, the conversing with animals - would have been used a couple of times throughout the much shorter game and the game would have been over before they started getting repetitive.
To sum up, I don't think D:OS2 has enough creativity to remain interesting throughout all of its content, but it's not the creativity that's at fault, but the struggle to make it a long game, because "it has to be at least as big as D:OS" which itself was already bloated.
My wife keeps playing this but I dropped it about a month ago. The interesting thing was that she also liked D:OS, and I only had the patience to make it through Cyseal. Apparently in our case whoever liked the first one also liked the second.
Thinking of getting this.
Not gonna read the entire thread so just give me some opinions:
A) Combat better than in OS1?
B) Writing better than in OS1?
C) Not too much cringe?
I am probably getting it since it looks a bit like a more boring and linear Ultima 7 but with tactical combat instead of whatever disaster of a combat they had in U7.
Please tell me it's at least okay, I am on ELEX withdrawal...
Thinking of getting this.
Not gonna read the entire thread so just give me some opinions:
A) Combat better than in OS1?
B) Writing better than in OS1?
C) Not too much cringe?
I am probably getting it since it looks a bit like a more boring and linear Ultima 7 but with tactical combat instead of whatever disaster of a combat they had in U7.
Please tell me it's at least okay, I am on ELEX withdrawal...
The general viewpoint of this topic on DOS2 is that Larian didn't improve a single thing from the previous game . Also almost everyone was hooked on the game in the begging but left dissapointed , make of it what you will . But if you ask me , don't bother with this game .
I'm finding the battles pretty hard on tactical mode in the Fort Joy dungeons. Have to resort to cheesing a lot by teleporting single enemies away from the group, setting up labyrinths with objects, and reloading a lot. Does it get easier later on or is that how the entire game plays out? Party is knight/enchanter/wizard/wayfarer. Should I head to the swamp first and return to mop up later? The game said returning to FJ would turn all magisters hostile, I'm worried I might lose out on content by doing that.
Anyone that has updated their GOG game to the latest version (v3.0.150.760) through GOG Galaxy that could throw together a .zip/.rar for me with EoCApp.exe and SupportTool.exe (from /bin/) and patch4_hotfix.pak (from /data/)? GOG still hasn't updated with a standalone patcher, and I'm not going to install Galaxy just because they're a bunch of lazy gits that thinks that weekends are a reason not to work.
I'm finding the battles pretty hard on tactical mode in the Fort Joy dungeons. Have to resort to cheesing a lot by teleporting single enemies away from the group, setting up labyrinths with objects, and reloading a lot. Does it get easier later on or is that how the entire game plays out? Party is knight/enchanter/wizard/wayfarer. Should I head to the swamp first and return to mop up later? The game said returning to FJ would turn all magisters hostile, I'm worried I might lose out on content by doing that.
You shouldn't have that much difficulty already, so it's hard to tell if it's going to get easier for you. You say you have Teleport, so you should be the right level, even higher level than I was (unless you're just using the gloves).
The only fight you should possibly be having some troubles with should be the dogs (if you fight them at all, but you can make it easier by standing by the door) or Kniles (which can be a bit of a hard fight). Everything else should be easily handled by proper positioning.
Nah, Tactician isn't actually that hard, and although there's some bloat unless you mod it out (and I strongly suggest everyone does), the main benefit is that the enemies actually make use of some tactics they don't use otherwise, and actually behave a little bit differnetly, which is neat. It is a problem, though, that people that go Tactician can't turn down their difficulty, but by the time you realize that Tactician may be too difficult for you, you've already sunk a ton of hours into the game.
However, compared to the entirety of the game, if you truly can't hack Tactician, I recommend simply starting over. You can always go up, but if you go Tactician, you can never go down. So until someone has learned the ins and out of the system, it's perfectly reasonable to not play Tactician.
Thinking of getting this.
Not gonna read the entire thread so just give me some opinions:
A) Combat better than in OS1?
B) Writing better than in OS1?
C) Not too much cringe?
I am probably getting it since it looks a bit like a more boring and linear Ultima 7 but with tactical combat instead of whatever disaster of a combat they had in U7.
Please tell me it's at least okay, I am on ELEX withdrawal...
A) No. The change to the armor system isn't necessarily bad, just different. The change to intitiative is bad.
B) Yes. Better main story, better sidequests.
C) Yeah, not too much.
Thinking of getting this.
Not gonna read the entire thread so just give me some opinions:
A) Combat better than in OS1?
B) Writing better than in OS1?
C) Not too much cringe?
I am probably getting it since it looks a bit like a more boring and linear Ultima 7 but with tactical combat instead of whatever disaster of a combat they had in U7.
Please tell me it's at least okay, I am on ELEX withdrawal...
A) Depends. Skill trees are more numerous and better, there are synergistic skills requiring two different trees, there is more and more involved surface/cloud mechanics (which was already excellent in DOS1), and there is elevation mechanics. Those are big improvements no matter how you look at them. However, the way actual damage dealing and statuses work is just shit with massive HP bloat, short status durations and idiotic armor system that shields against statuses until ablated. Awfulness of cooldowns is still in too, so you basically have to pile on a single enemy with basic attacks for large part of a battle because using skills would be wasteful - which saps like 75% of fun from excessive elemental mayhem. There are mods that change how stuff works, mind you, and saving throws mod is probably the single most essential mod for this game (basically % armor left after damage calculation = % chance of stopping status, with some modifiers on top of that) making the ablative armor idea work in at least somewhat sane manner.
B) It's no PS:T but it's massively improved and no longer cringeworthy. YMMV regarding indirect dialogue options - basically describing what you say instead of spelling it out - but I consider them a reasonable compromise between standard dialogue and keyword system. Plus it removes the otherwise inevitable moments where you are given exactly spelled out dialogue options that are all moronic, out of character for YOUR PC or otherwise undesirable. Other than that it's much more serious and less inane than D:OS1, but still retains some Larian's traditional humour - this time actually funny and less overdone (so, yeah, traditional Larian's humour, as opposed to DOS1 one). So far it seems like it might be a well constructed story specifically for coop purpose as well which would be quite an echievement as well.
C) Seems much better than D:OS1 and actually a good game overall, even if someone missed their prescription clue-by-four when designing combat and level progression. I'm having much fun so far.
D) It has playable, vaguely draconic lizardfolk. *Appeals to inner furry*.
Thinking of getting this.
Not gonna read the entire thread so just give me some opinions:
A) Combat better than in OS1?
B) Writing better than in OS1?
C) Not too much cringe?
I am probably getting it since it looks a bit like a more boring and linear Ultima 7 but with tactical combat instead of whatever disaster of a combat they had in U7.
Please tell me it's at least okay, I am on ELEX withdrawal...
A) I would say no. Overall, it's a declline, but your mileage may vary. If you disliked the combat in D:OS1, you'll probably dislike this combat too. Encounter design is (imho) generally better, but it also feels like it matters a lot less.
B) Yes. A lot less fucking derp, but it's a bit hit/miss. Sometimes they went overboard trying to make things depressing, and it shows. If you're an animal lover of any kind, bring Xanax.
C) Most of it I'd say is very un-cringe-y, but then there's some parts that are massively cringy, like everything involving Sebille, and everything involving romance of any kind (and, of course, all (C)NPC:s are Schrödinger's Faggot, for maximum SocJus DoublePlusGood).
If you pick Red Prince origin, chances are parts involving Sebille won't be very cringe-y courtesy of being brief instead (she will likely pick a fight with you - you can avert that, but it requires putting in special effort while Sebille's attitude probably won't inspire it).
