The NWN2 Toolset

A couple posts back when I ruminated on my NWN2 future generated an interesting exchange that I thought I'd just make a whole post on.

nicethugbert started with:

Why did TMGS take so long? What tasks consumed the most time?

I responded:

Sorry, thugbert, didn't see your comment until now.

There are literally over 200,000 words of dialog in TMGS. That's the equivalent of a 400 page book, assuming 500 words per page. Thattakes a long time to write, edit, proofread, and so forth.

There were around 55 maps for the entire campaign, and the majority were exterior maps. Each exterior map can take a good two days of solid work to put together. That's two weekend days, not days where I just work a couple hours after my day job.

Testing and troubleshooting took a good six months. Each complete playthrough takes 20 hours including note-taking, replays to confirm, etc. And then you have to implement changes, do scenario testing, and so forth. Player choices early on really do filter through the rest of the campaign, and I'm not sure a player can really appreciate the extent of this on just one play-through.

nicethugbert responded:

Does NWN2 make any of this difficult? What I'm driving at is the quality of NWN2 as a tool.

Obviously, a 400 page book is a problem in itself and a modern word processor would be more help than obstacle.

I responded:

All I've worked with are the NWN1 and NWN2 toolsets. As far as exteriors go, NWN1 was far easier, but it also allowed far less customization of the area. I actually think the dialog editor is much better in NWN2 and allows for reduced numbers of overall scripts.

I do use a word processor for the first draft of almost everything I write. It's still a laborious process.

To clarify, I like the NWN2 toolset, but I haven't used anything else other than the NWN1 toolset. My general thought is that the NWN2 toolset is much more powerful and of an overall better quality than the one for NWN1. Yes, there were some odd behavioral bugs up front, but those seem to be gone now.

That said, I have no experience with any of the other toolsets, such as the one for DA. What I've read hasn't really inspired me, but I'm still mulling expanding into other directions. For now, I'm interested in any insights or experiences others have in this arena.

I do have a small announcement upcoming, but that comes later.

'Nuf Said

FSU 45, Miami 17

More Entertainment

Ossian News
I know many of you have already heard the news about Ossian's impending release of the Shadow Sun for iDevices. However, the first screenshots of the game were released yesterday, so head on over to the Ossian website for a look. I know that if the Shadow Sun is successful, the plan is to port the entire intellectual property over to the PC. I'm not aware of too many really big CRPGs in the works, so there is certainly the need for another.

TV List
While I continue to mull my NWN2 future, I've been catching up on lots of entertainment I've put off... or in this case, I've rewatched a series I first saw a few years ago. However, my latest guilty pleasure does have at least something to do with TMGS in addition to being a fascinating six hours of viewing.

First, I have an admission. I am a reality TV junkie. Not the truly horrid stuff like Flavor of Love or Megan Wants a Millionaire that literally melt your mind as you watch, but I do like shows like The Amazing Race and Survivor. On occasion, though, reality TV actually reaches a higher level and becomes educational as well as entertaining.

Enter Manor House - although I understand it's called The Edwardian Country House in the UK - in which a modern family and fourteen strangers now playing the role of servants move into an Edwardian-era mansion and return it to the life it had one hundred years ago.

So what's the connection to TMGS? Well, I first viewed this series when my parents gave it to me around 2004. I am forced to admit that the images stuck with me as I turned to my imaginings of the VanGhaunt Mansion and how it must have once worked. Of course, I knew that the mansion had to be largely decayed and empty today, but I wanted there to be the ghosts of something grander, something much more along the lines of what is depicted in Manor House. The layout of the VanGhaunt Mansion, most notably the inclusion of a dance floor, was inspired by the series. Casting Thess LeHugh in the role of a Lady's Maid, Jellica's memories of the grand balls of her youth, and the book outlining the kitchen operation all had their genesis in this series. Most directly, the Rules for Servants book found in one of the lower bedrooms was a direct rip-off of some of the information found on the series' website. Whereas Navatranaasu itself is more reflective of my interest in medieval history, the mansion itself is much more modern in feel, and that is most directly attributable to my memories of this series.

First, I see on Amazon that the DVDs sell for roughly 40-45 dollars. I wouldn't pay that, but if you have a local library or even NetFlix or a more reasonably priced digital download (legal, of course), it's definitely worth the time, although it isn't perfect. So having said all that, I'll review the series.

Manor House sees a modern family, the Olliff-Coopers move into Manderston House as a newly-lorded Edwardian couple. "Sir" John and the Lady Anna Olliff-Cooper are a businessman and ER doctor in the 21st century, but they are dramatically elevated in class for this series. In addition, their two sons, Jonty and Guy, and Lady Anna's sister, the unmarried Avril, also join in on the experiment. (Incidentally, during my Google Searches for this write-up, I learned that Jonty is now a "senior researcher" with some kind of Progressive Conservative think-tank in England, so he's obviously entered into politics in the nine years since this show. And no, I don't know what a "Progressive Conservative" is either.)

Meanwhile, fourteen others move in to fill the "downstairs" side of the upstairs/downstairs equation and assume every position from the butler at the top of the downstairs ladder to the scullery maid at the bottom. What follows is a intriguing look not only at lifestyles a hundred years ago, but also human psychology. It is both fascinating and horrifying to see how quickly people who are given so much come to both think of it as theirs and justify how they deserve it.

The Olliff-Coopers seem like they are a perfectly nice family and "normal" in almost every way... in the 21st century. Once back in the early 20th, however, they adapt a little too easily to the role of aristocrats. Sir John, of course, is at the very top, and it takes almost no time for him to pompously complain that the staff discipline isn't high enough. When he institutes punishments, the kitchen maid complains, only to then be told that it isn't proper for someone like her to talk to someone like him. In fact it isn't by the conventions of the day, but most of us in the 21st century would (I hope) have a problem actually saying that. Not Sir John, however. A month after becoming a lord for the first time, he is already entrenched in the mindset. In his private diaries, he confesses somewhat high-handedly that he isn't blind to his staff's plight, but what can he do? As he says another time, "if they're not serving him, they don't have jobs." To the end, he remains entirely blind, believing that his staff loves him as he loves them, and is literally in tears as he walks out the final day. Of course, those tears are for the loss of his staff not as people but as his servants. He opines that he alone of all the people in the house will be diminished in status when he leaves whereas all the rest will presumably raise in status when they return to the 21st century. He doesn't make clear as to whether he thinks his own wife will be diminished or raised.

Speaking of the Lady Anna, she is the most fascinating psychological study in the entire show. In the 21st century, she is an ER doctor with a high degree of literally life-and-death responsibility. Upon entering the house, she is reduced to augmenting the prestige of her husband. She spends upwards of five hours per day getting dressed several times, as she must wear different clothing at each meal. She has a Lady's Maid to prep the clothes and help her get in and out of the overbearing outfits (think corsets and endless skirts). Then there's the constant hair pampering, make-up and so on. All this so she can entertain her husband's guests by chatting them up in the parlor and... well, I'm not quite sure what else because the downstairs staff does all the cooking, cleaning, and serving. Her early comments on the absurdity of it all show that she is quite bored. And then...

It isn't long until this ER doctor finds herself entirely entranced by the fairytale. The endless dress-up sessions with a myriad of jewels and new hairstyles, once so tedious, soon become a joy. Whereas early on, she laments the loss of quality time with her youngest son due to the rigid separation of spheres of influence, this seems to stop bothering her later on. She admits as she lays in her bath - drawn for her by an overworked maid - that she has lost track of her youngest son and that she is sure he is with the servants downstairs. But her sole concern is that he will need to put distance between himself and the servants because when he inherits Manderston, he will need to give them orders... Oh, wait. It's all make-believe, and he will never inherit Manderston. Even she temporarily seems bemused at how quickly the fiction has become her reality! At another point, she remarks casually that it really isn't a chore to entertain at Manderston; even a grand ball is no problem... as the downstairs staff of fourteen have their normal workdays of 16 hours increased to 18+ just to get the extra work in. By the end, much like her husband, Lady Olliff-Cooper laments that she will need to return to the 21st century. "I am more at home in this time," she practically sobs. "All these other people will return to the homes when they leave here. I alone will be the one leaving my home." Oy, vey! This 21st-century highly-educated doctor who takes to her new role as a mere bauble on the arm of her husband like a duck to water will almost certainly make modern feminists cringe.

The downstairs staff are too many to go into detail for each, but the star of the entire show is undoubtedly the butler, Hugh Edgar, an international architect in real life whose grandfather was a butler. As the master of the downstairs servants and one of the few who actively engages the upstairs family, his observations are almost invariably the most interesting and the most prescient. One has the sense that he is at least the social equal of the family in the 21st century, but he takes to his new 20th century role with as much gusto as anyone. He seems determined to try to understand his own grandfather's life, and it is the insights he gains that are the most poignant. At one point, he mentions that his grandfather was intensely strict with the motto that children should be "seen and not heard" and "speak only when spoken to." A short while later after handling a disciplinary issue brought about by a 21st-century-inspired slight loosening of the rules, he turns to the camera and laments that he has made a most terrible discovery this day, for he finally understands why his grandfather had to be the way he was. Two sentences in a review don't do justice to the moment's pathos, but it was quite moving.

The other great personality among the staff is the temperamental French chef, Monsieur Dubiard, who creates his own fiefdom in his kitchen by terrorizing the kitchen and scullery maids. Slightly hunched-shouldered and wearing spectacles perched on the tip of his nose, he's almost stereotypical in his ranting and raving as he demands his stove be constantly kept hot or the footmen get the food up to the table before it gets cold. At one point, the egomaniacal chef learns that Sir John is complaining about the unendingly rich food and lack of any roughage - a diet typical of the day but one that is wreaking havoc upon his digestive track - and so Dubiard responds by literally cooking a whole pig in untold sticks of butter and serving it face towards the family at the next dinner. He merrily waves at the face and chimes that he'll "see you soon" as he closes the oven door on it. Sir John, for once unsure the 20th century is for him, complains that it's hard to eat when the beast you're eating is looking at you and promptly sends it back. As the show wraps up, the temperamental chef feels the need to confront Sir John just so he can call him a fraud.

The rest of the staff aren't nearly so interesting. There is a point where the hallboy, Kenny, and the scullery maid, Ellen, begin a romance but have to sneak around to keep it secret. Frankly, the whole thing gets tiring as does the general complaining by most of the servants. Yes, the conditions are horrible and yes, no one in the 21st century would work under them, but this is a one-off experience lasting only three months that I presume they auditioned for. In that case, they need to buck it up and do what's required.

And that, ultimately, is where the weakness of any of these kinds of experiments lies: namely it is very difficult to get modern people - at least those among the downstairs staff - to forget the 21st century. Their arguments about their "rights" and "fair labor practices" are all arguments we would universally accept today, but they'd be utter rot a hundred years ago. No manor of the day would have accepted such complaining and one suspects that virtually all of the junior staff would have been canned and living on the street at the time. The senior staff, including Mr. Edgar and Monsieur Dubiard, generally "get" the uniqueness of the opportunity whereas the junior staff generally does not. To be fair, however, the senior staff all have slightly more interesting jobs than, for example, the maids, who literally work 16-hour days vacuuming (by brush), polishing, mopping, and waxing. Personally, I think it would be interesting being a butler and trying to make a house of that size run smoothly. Being a kitchen maid... not so much.

The six-part series has a set-up and conclusion episode with the middle four episodes each focused on a grand event held at the mansion. A few minutes of each episode is used to explore the events of the day. Theoretically, time "progresses" from 1905 to 1914 during the three months, so the family and staff see papers detailing the death of Edward VII, the sinking of the Titanic, and Emily Davison's tragic demise at the Epsom Derby, among other things. Another few minutes are devoted to various participants' musings on what their lives are like or insights they've had. Most are interesting; a few are whiners that grate on me by the end. Finally, there's the inevitable drama that comes from nineteen people living in close proximity to each other.

The series is narrated by Derek Jacobi, who provides excellent insights into what may or may not have been appropriate or true for the day. Everyone doesn't play by the rules 100% of the time, so this is necessary clarification. I'll also note the main musical theme played mostly as each episode ends is both grandiose and haunting, evincing both the majesty of the house in its prime and also the faded grandeur of the house now one hundred years on. Otherwise, I didn't notice the music very much, and I suspect that large parts of the series had none at all.

One of my main bones of contention with the series, however, is the overwhelmingly negative view it takes of the past. Mr. Edgar at one point summed up the overall theme when he said, "[this society] was sick... and it was swept away!" Certainly, things today are better on balance, but it is a tremendous vanity for the modern person to assume there is nothing we can learn from the past. I won't go into my exact thoughts on the merits of 1910 vs. 2010 any further, but suffice it to say I thought it was unbalanced with only the scantest of off-handed comments during the participants' diary sessions in defense of the past.

The series ended with a couple nice touches. First, it posited a likely fate post-1914 for each of the participants given the immediacy of World War I and the enormous social change on the horizon. Although the viewer understands that all of these people are modern, they do help personalize a theoretical 1914-era mansion that would see many of its inhabitants dead on the fields of the Somme in short order. Secondly, as each of the participants leaves, they are transformed back into their modern clothing. It is nice to see these people we've come to know as they actually are in the 21st century, and the effect simultaneously serves as a sort of time machine to further illustrate the now faded history. Given his prominence in the series, it is fitting indeed that it all ends with the modern-day Mr. Edgar pulling the massive gates shut behind him with a forlorn smile, leaving Manderston a relic of the past once more.

Reading List

First , my thanks to the responses to my last post that suggested various projects I might become involved with. I may take up some of those suggestions in the future, but for now I'm having plenty of fun taking it easy, at least regarding NWN2. I do have one small personal idea I might follow up, but I'll have to save revealing that until later.

In the meantime, I've been catching up on some reading. The last book I've finished is the latest offering from one of my favorite authors, Bernard Cornwell. The Burning Land is the fifth in what the author estimates will be a seven or eight-book "Saxon Series." I love these books, and if anyone out there is interested in historical fiction set in the Dark Ages, you should really try them out.

The series centers around a 9th-century warlord, Uhtred of Bebbanburg (modern-day Bamburgh Castle near Newcastle). At this time, there was no "England," but rather four major kingdoms - Wessex, Mercia, East Anglia, and Northumbria - and several smaller autonomous entities. These kingdoms were originally (for this period) ruled by the Saxons, but eventually the Vikings came in droves, began settling in the country, and one-by-one began conquering its kingdoms. Within short order, all but Wessex had fallen, and even Wessex, the eponymous "Last Kingdom" of the series' first book, was beseiged on all sides.

In the first book, Uhtred is taken by his father, also called Uhtred, to aid the Northumbrian Saxons against the Vikings in the seige of Eoforwic (modern day York). During that seige, which finally doomed the northern kingdom of Northumbria, the elder Uhtred is killed and his son is captured by a Viking Jarl named Ragnar. For the next several years, the younger Uhtred grows up a Viking, learning their language, their customs, and their battle tactics. As a childhood friend of the warlord Ragnar's son, also confusingly called Ragnar, Uhtred eventually becomes accepted into Viking society and is a full-blown Viking warrior by the time he is twenty. During this time, both Mercia and East Anglia have fallen to the Vikings, leaving only a single kingdom in the hands of the Saxons. Thus does Uhtred as a young warrior come south to Wessex looking for plunder... an event that changes his life.

For it is there that he meets the last Saxon king, Alfred of Wessex. It is this relationship between an unorthodox king and a Vikinized Saxon that defines the rest of the series, and Uhtred manages to be involved in several of the major events of the day.

Overall, Cornwell manages to blend fact - at least what we know - with fiction amazingly well. He takes mere scraps of sentences or lists of names found in ancient chronicles and weaves an amazing narrative out of them that bring real life to dusty historical figures.

Alfred of Wessex - now called Alfred the Great - is comparatively unknown today, but he is a seminal king that preserved the island as a non-Viking land and was the first to truly have a vision of a united England, one land for all the Saxons. Unlike the other Saxon kings of Northumbria, Mercia, and East Anglia, he understood the nature of the threat, was willing to use as many carrots as he did sticks in his diplomacy, and also instituted a number of military and civil reforms that ended up frustrating the Viking would-be conquerors.

He was also the first intensely-Christian English king, and many of his advisors - much to the chagrin of the pagan Uhtred - were priests and bishops. Further, he demanded that his nobility learn to read and write - another annoyance to Uhtred - but essential for clear communication by letter instead of relying on couriers to relay messages correctly. Finally, he was sick for most of his adult life, and he flirted with death on-and-off for several decades. All-in-all, Alfred was not the image of a king that could withstand the Vikings, but resist them he did, and better than anyone else.

I have some minor quibbles with Cornwell's depiction of Alfred, but overall I think he is fair, and he's certainly a compelling character. Other historical characters fare worse. Cornwell openly admits that he murders the character of Aethelred II, the King/Ealdorman of Mercia and one of Alfred's vassals. Aethelred comes across as weak, conniving, and intensely resentful of Alfred, his overlord and father-in-law. On the other hand, Aethelred's wife - and Alfred's daughter, Aethelflaed, is an amazingly complex character who starts in the shadows but eventually gains strength of purpose. Although she isn't there yet in the books, history tells us that she will rule Mercia alone after her husband's death. We can certainly see Cornwell establishing that strength as the narrative goes on.

Then there are the various real-life Viking warlords, with colorful names such as Guthrum the Old and Ivar the Boneless, that come and go throughout the narrative, and I am constantly surprised how even minor characters, such as a mayor of Lunden (modern day London) or a bishop in Alfred's court, turn out to be real historical figures. Bishop Asser, for example, is one of Uhtred's main antagonists in the novels, despite their ostensibly being on the same side.

Cornwell uses his fictional protagonist, Uhtred, simply to illustrate what would be typical for the era, for he shares many common characteristics with protagonists from some of his other series. He is, I admit,the kind of hero that guys would find more appealing than women - although "hero" might be too loose a term; maybe "antihero" is more apt. Uhtred thinks often of war, glory, treasure, and of leading legions of men. His primary dream is to one day be so rich and powerful and have so many warriors under his command, that he can return to Bebbanburg, storm the impregnable castle, kill his uncle (who took over after Uhtred's father's death), and reclaim his lands. His honor - in the form of oaths - is paramount to him. He curses and fights for the smallest of reasons. He beds down a series of women, most of them beautiful and few of which he cares for. He is an absentee father, although this isn't unusual for the nobility of the era, and he openly despises his eldest son, who he claims is weak and shows no inclination to war. He's a religious hypocrite. He openly mocks the Christian god and occasionally goes out of his way to torment his followers, but when he's in a tight space, he's not above throwing a quick prayer his way "just in case." He kills people in cold blood - even unarmed ones - simply because they lie to him or otherwise get in his way. He does all this and yet, somehow, Uhtred has just enough honor and "goodness" - not to mention a wicked sense of sarcasm - that I like him. Objectively, he sickens me and yet I can't help rooting for him.

Cornwell has really done a lot of research into the era, and never does he shine more than when he depicts battles. Whether the battles are major engagements, such as Ethandun, or smaller skirmishes between a handful of men, you can practically smell the blood, sweat, urine, and fear. If you want to know what it is to stand in a shield wall and stare down a hoard of Vikings, this is about as close as you'll get.

But Cornwell's historical detail extends beyond battles. His is a haunting description of Lunden, a city at this time replete with Roman architecture - the splendors of a bygone era - and thatched huts. There are humorous moments when the Britons admit they can't understand how the old Roman floor heating works... and so they just build a fire in the middle of the marbled hallway. Additionally, Cornwell gives vivid accounts of crossing the seas in a Viking longboat, and it's obvious that he's spent quite a bit of time researching the whys and hows of Norse seamanship. Architecture, agriculture, art, diplomacy... small historical details are thrown off seemingly at will as characters "in the moment" think of them as if they are normal, which for them they are.

Cornwell's writing style is not complex; it'll never be mistaken for Shakespeare, but it gets the job done. It's perfect for brain-candy. Or maybe slightly above; there is some educational value here - actually there's a lot of educational value here if you're the type to pay close attention to the details - but it can be equally enjoyed entirely as an action-hero story set in Dark Age Britain. In that sense, Cornwell's style is masterful.

For the record, the five books thus-far published in this series are (1) The Last Kingdom, (2) The Pale Horseman, (3) Lords of the North, (4) Sword Song, and (5) The Burning Land. Check them out; they really are addicting.

What's Next?

That's the question I've been asking myself recently. Since the main focus of this blog the last three years has been released, now what?

In the immediate future, the game's been played and commented on enough for me to have a pretty complete list of the remaining bugs and minor issues, and so I know a version 1.02 is coming. After that I confess I don't know.

I have a four to five page outline for TMGS II, and I spent quite a bit of TMGS I setting up some of the structure for that campaign, but I think I'm at peace with the fact that TMGS II will never see the light of day.

I spent basically three years and hundreds (probably thousands) of hours on TMGS I. That's longer than I took for all five parts of Saleron's Gambit... combined! Looking back on that fact, I have two thoughts. First, if I had known it would take that long, I would have never started. Second, it's painful thinking how much useful stuff I could have done with that time. Maybe that sounds more harsh than I intended it to; it's just that I occasionally get a bit reotrospective on what I'm doing with my life and that represents a lot of time I could have given to my family, friends, dogs, etc. It's a choice I simply will not make again.

So does that mean I'm "retiring" from modding? I'm not prepared to say that. In fact, I enjoy it too much to abandon it anymore than I would abandon any other hobby. It just means my projects - should I choose to engage in them - will be much smaller in nature.

So goodbye TMGS II. It would have been an epic continuation of the saga. Maybe one day I'll post a summary of my thoughts on where part II would have gone. Or maybe not.

So that's what's not next. But what is next?

Well, I'm sure many in the community have heard the news of Ossian's upcoming release. I've known about this for several months, but I now only know probably 1% more of the details of this than the average fan, and that only because I had a brief conversation about the history of certain technologies with Alan Miranda around the beginning of the year. I've no idea if anything we talked about made it into the game. While some fans have expressed disappointment with the game being limited to the iPhone, I am 100% sure that Ossian wants to port the world to a PC format. If they do, I'm willing to help. Indeed, there are some indications that I may have a small project for them in the near future, but everything is still very much up in the air regarding that.

In the absence of Ossian, I've found myself tossing around the idea of another group project - something similar to the Bouncy Rock Holloween module released a couple years ago - if only because that would limit my time commitment. There are a few ideas floating around the community, but all of them are moving in directions that restrict the imagination of the individual modder - as most group projects must do to be successful - but which ultimately dampers my enthusiasm.

So my best idea is to maybe release only very small modules, maybe something akin to a sidequest in one of my larger efforts, but that doesn't entirely satisfy me either. After the massive 15-hour campaign that is TMGS, how could I "settle" for a 1-2 hour module? But that doesn't make sense as a criticism because I started with the notion that I don't want another project the size of TMGS.

Then, of course, comes the nagging thought that there is only a very limited NWN2 community at this point anyway. And while that doesn't negate the enjoyment I get from modding, sharing those creations with others is kind of the point. So I've considered whether it makes more sense to switch to another toolset (say, Dragon Age)? I'm not sure there's much more audience there, although I would have to think that there is if for no other reason than DA2 is in development.

So I guess I'm saying I'm confused which direction to go... but then I've always thought that indecision is a kind of decision in its own right.

TMGS Version 1.01 Goes Live

The tile says it all. All bugs reported to date have been fixed. I think the game should be darn near bug-free now... so if you haven't played it yet, what are you waiting for?

Maimed God Gets to 10+ Votes

Four days to get to 10+ votes. That's the first big milestone because it means TMGS should be in the main module list after tomorrow's update. Thanks to all who have played and left feedback/votes.

A few bugs - about 4-5 common ones - have been reported. It's annoying; not the reports, mind you, but the fact that I missed them. But then I'm forced to admit that even five bugs in a 15-hour campaign isn't attrocious. I've already fixed most of them in my home version, but I'm going to wait to get all the weekend feedback before wrapping it up and releasing the update. I'm also figuring out where the most common sticking points are, so that will help me update the hint sheet.

Thanks again to all.

Edit: And now I see TMGS listed on the right of the Vault screen in the Top 15 list, and the one that got booted off the list (i.e. the #15 module as of yesterday that is now gone) is... Mysteries of Westgate. That's a bummer...