The mountains and the mastermind masterplan masterbedroom

This weekend I have actually done my homework!

Now the Nether Mountains area is finished! Relatively finished, at least, as I hope to learn better texturing techniques as I progress, so hopefully it can be improved.

Admittedly, this area features certain inconsistencies with the Lore:

- the Nether Mountains are supposed to be "dark". However, I chose a light texture because the PC crosses this part of the mountains from Jalanthar to the Moon Pass Gorge at the very beginning of the mod and has to kill moderately annoying baddies (Tuskers!), so I didn't want it to be excessively foreboding. The darker tones will be used for more dramatic landscapes like the Telkoun Tower, Hellgate Dell (former site of Hellgate Keep) and Dalagar's Daggers / Doomspire where the Morueme's dragon clan dwells (if I have the time, as this would be optional in my plot);

- the flora of the Nether Mountains described in the source books cannot be related to the real life flora supported by the toolset. Therefore, since the maps of this region indicate that south of the range the vegetation is deciduous, I went for it. I just tried to give a very bare and desolated feeling to the poor things.

I post screenies for the experts' advice, and please tell me if it is clear that something is wrong with the water level of the River Rauvin ( a plot devise).

I have also been making my very first interior area! I don't like it as much as making exterior areas ... placeables are a mess! and I never find what I want! I could not find a orizontal pole to hang the tents of the four poster bed, so I had to use the mask exposition rescaled! And I wanted to use some custom content, but it was conflicting with SoZ placeables, and I don't quite feel up to the task of editing 2da numbers, yet, so it will be for another time (pity because that "huge mirror" would have been stunning in the wardrobe/boudoir corner!!! ;-))

Anyway, I am happy with the result as I succeded in making the room as kitch as intended. This will be used for a cutscene hinting at the conceiving of the evil plan setting the plot in motion, and I hope that the obstented lush of the furniture can give an idea of the personality of my villain (definitely NOT an aged austere wizard).

As always, advice appreciated!!!

I really don't feel like working today

Pity I cannot install the NWN2 toolset on the computer at work, but at least the net is full of funny stuff to waste time with.

And tomorrow morning is finally modding time again! :-)

Speaking of which, I am stuck in the same area since July... my production rate is awful. The thing is I just cannot decide what kind of vegetation would grow in the Nether Mountains... the source materials gives conflicting indications!

Then, of course, all the plants I placed on the uneven terrain were floating in mid air (the noob's mark!)

And I hate the mountains, that's it!

Legends, Lore and Etiquette

I am kind of annoyed.

Much to my dismay, on Saturday September 26, while checking the news page of the Vault, my eye fell on the entry concerning a NWN Gamewold, apparently thriving since a number of years, which is called... Legends of Luruar.

Cold shower ensues...

Since I have read enough flares, both on the Vault and on the NWN2 forums, to understand more or less what kind of behaviour is considered polite and compliant with the "community's etiquette", as soon as I recovered from the surprise, I thought I should address the unnamed authors of the page (indicated as "various" authors) with the following message, entered as a comment:

"Hi All,

I do not play PWs so I didn't know the existence of this one until yesterday's new entry on the Vault's home page jumped to my eye.

I am developing a nwn2 single player module. Although I am just at the very beginning (yep, I am a noob!), I was going to title the mod "Lore of Luruar" because it is based on the lore of the Silver Marches, the North and the Savage Frontier D&D books.

Now I am embarassed because I realise that my prospected title is extremely similar to the one of your gameworld... I think it is just correct on my part to inform you about this and to ask you if you mind that I keep the title... the fact is that I grew affectionate to it and that Ihave even opened a blog with this name, so I would be sorry to change it.

Please, kindly let me know whether this is a problem for you! And if this entry is not the correct place to adress my queries, I would be grateful if you could indicate to me the person(s) to contact directly.

Thank you and best regards,

Nacaal"

I honestly hoped to get a pat on the shoulder...

Now more than two weeks have elapsed and I have not yet received any kind sign of acknowledgement. The comment has definitely been seen because in the meantime another of the above mentioned "Vault flare" broke out on that very page: a former player dropped a line of criticism and the current players and DMs replied accordingly... the usual stuff where nobody really makes a point. However, Dms must have seen my note.

So, did I do enough? I mean, should consider myself compliant with the community's etiquette, mind my business and keep LOL as a title? Or should I actively seeking formal blessing from the administrators of the PW, perhaps registering in their forum and reiterating my question?

Any feedback appreciated!

I hate being a noob

I have read on the Bioware forums this post by Eguintir Eligard, who was explaining ho the choice of having 6 party members (PC + 5 companions) necessarily affected area design:

"you have to design your areas accordingly or they will bunch up/be rendered useless at various pinch points. I avoid entrances that are a single tile wide in a building entrance, and you have to avoid combats right inside a door way as there is a good chance your ranged companions will go in first, and then be stuck because the rest rush in behind them, unable to reach with their weapons but still blocking the doorway. Two tile rule for any combats for the most part, or stick to outdoors."

Well, for the life of me I had not thought about it! And I had better do it, since LoL will feature 4 companions. Don't want them to mess up with one another with the caster ending up in front surrounded by foes and the tank stuck at the back of the group without any possibility to move!

Anyway, reading the above made me think and - after a toast to my noobishness - I went and remade the area I am currently working on, a few WIP pics of which are shown herein below. It is supposedly a ugly spot in the Nether Mountains where many baddies dwell. And the PC's got to clean it up! how innovative... please be impressed! Basically I had to make the paths larger because there was no way a party could walk them without jamming. Now it is still narrow but I am confident that at least they will be able to move, albeit cumbersomely.

Of course, if and when LoL is finished this post will be deleted and I will claim that my mountain areas where thoroughly thought out and cleverly designed in order to provide players with a realistic and immersive feeling of barren and inhospitable lands that could also force them to think strategically in order to implement the best tactics to take care of the above-mentioned baddies in their own environment!

p.s. ooops! What happened to the River Rauvin? Why is this major waterway looking so miserable? Strange, it is spring and its waters should be boosted by the melting... There must be something fishy! ;-)

How ugly is this?

Dappled shade... good (at least, I like it)...

Leaf canopy... sucks!

Because it's patently flat and bidimensional, and it doesn't merge at all with the columnar trees!

I have tried to camuflage a bit the 90 digrees merging point with the visual effects of the Ashenwood tree branches, but to no avail, since they are perfectly vertical so they only boost the "squared" effect"!!! :-(

Any advice would be much appreciated...

Crowded airways

The last recorded Flight of Dragons occurred in 1356 DR over the Dalelands and the Moonsea.

Once appeased, the dragons have gone back to attend their usual business, however the skies - and lands - of Luruar remain causeways of troubles, as evinced by the tentative map of the wyrms' overlapping dominions drawn up by Volo.

His pamphlet "A bloodthirsty adventurer's guide to dragons" is sold throughout the North, notwithstanding Elminster's attempts to talk Volo into aborting the project.

Time will be a turning wheel we shove or retard...

...time will be a toy...

...time we will enjoy...

so say Helloween.

However, I haven't enjoied it.
And I haven't been touching the toolset for a month, now. Which makes me think there's a long way to go. I barely remember the keyboard commands to rotate the view :-( !!!!

I will just post some screens of my only almost-but-not-quite completed area to remind myself that there is a whole little world of imagery demanding my attention!