NWN Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition - Beamdog's final enhancement - now with new premium modules

[Comte]

So, I finished Shadows of Undrentide a few days ago and honestly I'm struggling to see why people consider it superior to the OC. Was it the smaller stakes, smaller scale story that people liked? The environments? The only other improvement that I noticed was how it seemed to give you a few more options to flex your character's skills to complete quests. Even with this though, the issue I found was that unlike the OC, (And it's sad because there were so few in that game as well) there were zero interesting moral quandaries and really no deeper consequences to any choices you made. At the end of the day, it just felt like another tech demo, showing off slightly more advanced quest structures.

About the only thing that stood out was an Aoist monk having doubts and asking your character for advice and that never went anywhere. Other than that, I guess Tymofarar and Deekin were cool as characters? I don't even remember the main villain's motivations. Is HotU actually better or just more overhype? Seems they'd be in danger of creating a decent game if they took the stakes of the OC and added in all the class flavor of Undrentide.

Different strokes for different folks

 

[KörangarTheMighty]

For one thing it puts you in much more interesting situations than oc. Certainly does away with the "collect 4 creatures to collect four artifacts to collect Quattro keys" pattern of oc.

One step forward, one step back imo. Yes, the quest design was better, no arguing that, however there was never a point where I was trying to figure out who had the right of whatever situation, or who I should side with. It was all obvious, there were no surprises. The difficulty seemed scaled way back as well which I forgot to mention before. Anyway, they seem about on par to me, just for different reasons.

 

[Arthandas]

Is it possible to get to that body (prison cell, 2nd level) ?

Spoiler

 

[d1nolore]

Is it possible to get to that body (prison cell, 2nd level) ?

Spoiler

No not if it’s below the floor like that.

What GUI override are you using?

 

[Arthandas]

What GUI override are you using?

For those of you bothered by the blurry portraits and pixelated icons caused by UI scaling on higher resolutions, there's this awesome high res UI mod:
https://www.nexusmods.com/neverwinter/mods/897

Basically completely new high resolution UI textures and icons + AI scaled inventory. I also strongly advise using the optional 2x portraits pack, the difference is pretty massive.

 

[Gargaune]

All.you guys need is Gunner's body rebuild
https://neverwintervault.org/projec...rebuildretexture-male-female-all-races-phenos

Thanks, didn't know about this one. That's the thing with the Vault, I'm very grateful people are keeping it alive, but the state it's in is more of an archive for the already initiated.

 

[d1nolore]

All.you guys need is Gunner's body rebuild
https://neverwintervault.org/projec...rebuildretexture-male-female-all-races-phenos

Thanks, didn't know about this one. That's the thing with the Vault, I'm very grateful people are keeping it alive, but the state it's in is more of an archive for the already initiated.

Yeah the searching is not the best

 

[KörangarTheMighty]

So concerning HotU, is it better to import your character from the OC or SoU? I heard that former characters from the OC that show up don't recognize you, but Deekin does. Is it the case that we're meant to be the character from SoU? For my part, I'd rather be my character from the OC as I grew more fond of him playing, just don't know if the lack of recognition would be jarring.

 

[mediocrepoet]

So concerning HotU, is it better to import your character from the OC or SoU? I heard that former characters from the OC that show up don't recognize you, but Deekin does. Is it the case that we're meant to be the character from SoU? For my part, I'd rather be my character from the OC as I grew more fond of him playing, just don't know if the lack of recognition would be jarring.

HOTU is meant to follow SU. You can import the OC character, but it'll be super overlevelled.

 

[KörangarTheMighty]

HOTU is meant to follow SU. You can import the OC character, but it'll be super overlevelled.

My OC character is only two, *correction three* levels higher than my SoU character. That being said, my OC character is only one level higher (16) than the recommended for starting HotU (15). SoU character is only Lvl 13.

 

[mediocrepoet]

HOTU is meant to follow SU. You can import the OC character, but it'll be super overlevelled.

My OC character is only two, *correction three* levels higher than my SoU character. That being said, my OC character is only one level higher (16) than the recommended for starting HotU (15). SoU character is only Lvl 13.

Nevermind then. IIRC I reached a pretty high level in the OC.

 

[KörangarTheMighty]

Nevermind then. IIRC I reached a pretty high level in the OC.

You must have been solo for most of it. I did everything with a companion. A completionist run.

 

[Lacrymas]

There is technically a sort of "official" module that links SoU to HotU and you could play that to gain the 2 levels.

 

[Mr. Magniloquent]

I don't think I've ever failed to reach Level 20 in the OC. If you're looking for the "bridge modules" between SoU and HotU, find the links here. They're not official, but were part of a competition on NWN Vault.

https://neverwintervault.org/project/nwn1/module/shadohaunt
https://neverwintervault.org/project/nwn1/module/nether-scrolls-hotu-version
https://neverwintervault.org/project/nwn1/module/shadow-queen-remake?qt-recent=0&qt-top_mods=2

I've listed them in order of review rank. I never played any of them, but know of them.

 

[Lacrymas]

One of them won the competition and I think is considered a semi-official bridge module, but I don't remember which. Shadohaunt maybe?

 

[KörangarTheMighty]

There is technically a sort of "official" module that links SoU to HotU and you could play that to gain the 2 levels.

I doubt it matters much. I did everything there was to do in SoU with the exception of the "Find the White Stag" quest in Act I because I wasn't a Ranger. I also spared Tymofararr and co. I didn't have any trouble with the final boss. Don't know where else I would have made up two levels worth of xp.

I don't think I've ever failed to reach Level 20 in the OC. If you're looking for the "bridge modules" between SoU and HotU, find the links here. They're not official, but were part of a competition on NWN Vault.

Yeah, like I said, I did every quest and cleared every map in the OC and I just hit lvl 16 after killing Morag. I even spent way too long in an area of Luskan until I figured out the enemies were respawning. You guys must have been solo for most of the game. I was a Sorcerer and the only fight that I had a bit of trouble with was the Red Dragon, even then it just took me some RnG and the right spell to get through it.

Anyway, thanks for the advice all. I think I'm just going to import my Paladin from SoU in that case. I doubt the lack of levels will be a big deal.

 

[Cael]

There is technically a sort of "official" module that links SoU to HotU and you could play that to gain the 2 levels.

I doubt it matters much. I did everything there was to do in SoU with the exception of the "Find the White Stag" quest in Act I because I wasn't a Ranger. I also spared Tymofararr and co. I didn't have any trouble with the final boss. Don't know where else I would have made up two levels worth of xp.

I don't think I've ever failed to reach Level 20 in the OC. If you're looking for the "bridge modules" between SoU and HotU, find the links here. They're not official, but were part of a competition on NWN Vault.

Yeah, like I said, I did every quest and cleared every map in the OC and I just hit lvl 16 after killing Morag. I even spent way too long in an area of Luskan until I figured out the enemies were respawning. You guys must have been solo for most of the game. I was a Sorcerer and the only fight that I had a bit of trouble with was the Red Dragon, even then it just took me some RnG and the right spell to get through it.

Anyway, thanks for the advice all. I think I'm just going to import my Paladin from SoU in that case. I doubt the lack of levels will be a big deal.

Part of the reason you are only level 16 at the end of the OC is that you had a henchman, familiar and summon with you. They all leech XP. Play it without them and you will hit 20 easy.

SoU finishes around level 13.

 

[KörangarTheMighty]

Part of the reason you are only level 16 at the end of the OC is that you had a henchman, familiar and summon with you. They all leech XP. Play it without them and you will hit 20 easy.

SoU finishes around level 13.

Yeah, I know. You guys all told me as much before I started. I barely touched the summon though, only used it for two fights early on and to disarm traps occasionally.
Having played now, I can tell everyone, at least for Sorcerer, that it's not necessary to agonize over the lost xp and level-ups from having a henchmen, if you want a henchmen. I assume you guys went solo because you were worried about not being capable of beating the OC if that much xp was leeched. Or perhaps you all just liked being solo. Level 15 was enough to beat the game and all content therein.

Good to know that for SoU though.

 

[Cael]

Part of the reason you are only level 16 at the end of the OC is that you had a henchman, familiar and summon with you. They all leech XP. Play it without them and you will hit 20 easy.

SoU finishes around level 13.

Yeah, I know. You guys all told me as much before I started. I barely touched the summon though, only used it for two fights early on and to disarm traps occasionally.
Having played now, I can tell everyone, at least for Sorcerer, that it's not necessary to agonize over the lost xp and level-ups from having a henchmen, if you want a henchmen. I assume you guys went solo because you were worried about not being capable of beating the OC if that much xp was leeched. Level 15 was enough to beat the game and all content therein.

Good to know that for SoU though.

Nah. finishing at the highest level possible is just fun, and sets you up for HotU. The game itself isn't hard. I was playing a Fighter/Bard/RDD and didn't use a single consumable. Rarely even had to pause to "rest" and heal up. You just cut straight through things.

 

[Mr. Magniloquent]

As a spellcaster, XP is more valuable than gold. Higher levels means more spells and more powerful spells. One character level can make a tremendous difference. After some initial roughness, solo actually makes thing easier. Your henchmen, while initially a crunch, become a restraint. This is all the more true since resting in the OC is nearly without restriction.

 

[Cael]

As a spellcaster, XP is more valuable than gold. Higher levels means more spells and more powerful spells. One character level can make a tremendous difference. After some initial roughness, solo actually makes thing easier. Your henchmen, while initially a crunch, become a restraint. This is all the more true since resting in the OC is nearly without restriction.

I went through the magic-dead zone in HotU with a Druid and a Sorcerer. It can be done. Just a bit harder.

That said, I think there is a bug in the OC where you get more XP as Cleric or Druid than any other class. Run through the intro or Chapter 1 with a Cleric and then some other class. You will notice a big difference.

 

[Comte]

As a spellcaster, XP is more valuable than gold. Higher levels means more spells and more powerful spells. One character level can make a tremendous difference. After some initial roughness, solo actually makes thing easier. Your henchmen, while initially a crunch, become a restraint. This is all the more true since resting in the OC is nearly without restriction.

I went through the magic-dead zone in HotU with a Druid and a Sorcerer. It can be done. Just a bit harder.

That said, I think there is a bug in the OC where you get more XP as Cleric or Druid than any other class. Run through the intro or Chapter 1 with a Cleric and then some other class. You will notice a big difference.

In AD&D 2nd edition clerics levelled quicker

 

[Cael]

As a spellcaster, XP is more valuable than gold. Higher levels means more spells and more powerful spells. One character level can make a tremendous difference. After some initial roughness, solo actually makes thing easier. Your henchmen, while initially a crunch, become a restraint. This is all the more true since resting in the OC is nearly without restriction.

I went through the magic-dead zone in HotU with a Druid and a Sorcerer. It can be done. Just a bit harder.

That said, I think there is a bug in the OC where you get more XP as Cleric or Druid than any other class. Run through the intro or Chapter 1 with a Cleric and then some other class. You will notice a big difference.

In AD&D 2nd edition clerics levelled quicker

This is 3.0.

 

[Comte]

As a spellcaster, XP is more valuable than gold. Higher levels means more spells and more powerful spells. One character level can make a tremendous difference. After some initial roughness, solo actually makes thing easier. Your henchmen, while initially a crunch, become a restraint. This is all the more true since resting in the OC is nearly without restriction.

I went through the magic-dead zone in HotU with a Druid and a Sorcerer. It can be done. Just a bit harder.

That said, I think there is a bug in the OC where you get more XP as Cleric or Druid than any other class. Run through the intro or Chapter 1 with a Cleric and then some other class. You will notice a big difference.

In AD&D 2nd edition clerics levelled quicker

This is 3.0.

Yeah I know that maybe its similar quick leveling? Its been ages since I have read 3.0 rule set.

 

[Cael]

As a spellcaster, XP is more valuable than gold. Higher levels means more spells and more powerful spells. One character level can make a tremendous difference. After some initial roughness, solo actually makes thing easier. Your henchmen, while initially a crunch, become a restraint. This is all the more true since resting in the OC is nearly without restriction.

I went through the magic-dead zone in HotU with a Druid and a Sorcerer. It can be done. Just a bit harder.

That said, I think there is a bug in the OC where you get more XP as Cleric or Druid than any other class. Run through the intro or Chapter 1 with a Cleric and then some other class. You will notice a big difference.

In AD&D 2nd edition clerics levelled quicker

This is 3.0.

Yeah I know that maybe its similar quick leveling? Its been ages since I have read 3.0 rule set.

No. 3.x all have the same levelling scheme. Which is why they fucked up the balance between classes so badly.