DoddTheSlayer 1.3 (wizardry 8 Mod)

[DoddTheSlayer]

Hello all. I don't know if any of you are familiar with my 1.2 version since i only made reference to it in another thread somewhere here not on the first page now

If you don't allready know about it then go here for a description to bring you up to date:

http://www.rpgwatch.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4203

You will find a description of what version 1.2 contains 12 posts down on that page.
Version 1.3 is built on top of this one and i give a decription of what is added after the following links.


Here are the links for the next version 1.3

Normal Version: http://www.mediafire.com/?jv7dhtdzmnn
Expert Version: http://www.mediafire.com/?v2jvmd1ttzd


Please note that these are not updates or patches to version 1.2. They are the full mod ready to install and play without the need for patches.
If you have played other Wizardry 8 mods then you will notice that thes 2 are considerably larger than any up till now.
Please do not be fooled by this into thinking that there is a ton of new stuff. There isn't.
The largeness of the downloads is due to advancements in the cosmic Forge editor made by MadGod that has enabled me to edit files that take up much more space was possible with version 1.2.

The Changes:
I have added extra storyline to make the Retro Dungeons an integral part of Wizardry 8.
Why would i do that ?

Experienced players will know that there is virtually no chance whatsoever that a first time or reletively new player would ever find these dungeons without needing spoilers and since this mod cannot be completed without going into those dungeons then it is very harsh on players that have never been to the dungeons.
So now there is storyline that will eventually lead you to them.
Although the new quest is tough it is not nearly as hard as discovering the dungeons without spoilers.

Thats it really except to say that just in case anyone trying version 1.3 does not like the
changes then version 1.2 will be staying at Mediafire always. They will never be taken down.
You can find the links for version 1.2 here:

http://vnboards.ign.com/wizardry_8_s...06727440/p1/?0


Let me know if i have not given enough info here.

 

[Relien]

The purpose of this mod is [...] to make the battles challenging right throughout the game even up to level 50 because normally the game becomes too easy after level 20 and there is no longer reason to further develop your party.

When I finished W8 with a party of six they were somewhere around level 20 or 25. I didn't rush the game nor did I stay anywhere longer than was needed. Will it still be possible to play the game like this?

In other words:

Do you adjust the amount of xp points required for leveling up/awarded for battles?
Do you raise the difficulty of the "boss fights"?
Do your changes affect the level scaling only for the high level parties or do you change the overall difficulty of the game?
Can the game be (reasonably) finished with a 20th level party?

 

[DoddTheSlayer]

The xp required for leveling up is unchanged. This is something hard coded and cannot be changed.
Yes there are tougher boss fights especially in the expert version and there is much xp up for grabs all over Dominus rather just AP.

You can finish the game at between level 20-25 and in fact most do just that, but you are likely to finish at a higher level than normal because of the millions of xp's that are up for grabs from the new much tougher monsters in the game.

I have made it so that the monster generators breed tougher opposition all the way up to level 40-45 as the game continues for the purpose that those who like to max out their party rather than taking the fastes route to completion will have a challenge after level 25 which they would not have from most locations in the Vanilla game.

Yes this mod definately increases the overall difficulty of the game it now being very tough even on easy difficulty setting especially with the expert version.
It may take you a few attmpts to finish at level 20, and you most definately will not be able to finish at that level when version 2.0 comes out because there will be so much more to do in the game with the 4 new locations that i am adding.

 

[Relien]

Oh don't get me wrong, I wouldn't deliberately try to finish it at the lowest level possible, I was just worried if there will be a need for xp farming. Well, it seems from your response that there won't, that's good. Thanks for clarification.

 

[Texas Red]

I played Wiz 8 only once and though I didn't finish it, it remained challenging until I quit :-/.

 

[DoddTheSlayer]

The mod was really designed for hardcore Wizardry 8 fans who have found the game too easy either because they have played it so many times or are experienced power trainers that know how to max out their characters well before normal play would permit a full strength party.
Because most of the players in the community i made the mod for are mostly such players then this is how i came up with a way of making the game challenging for them also.

Still if you like to finish at around level 20 then all it means is that you don't get to encounter the new higher level monsters i made which start at level 20 and go to level 45 so you would begin to encounter them somewhere between levels 18-20 with the.

So be aware this mod will appeal more to non purist players whon don't consider power training to be a form of cheating.

 

[Nicolai]

I played Wiz 8 only once and though I didn't finish it, it remained challenging until I quit :-/.

 

[Suchy]

Heh, when I saw this topic, I read it: "ToddTheSlayer"

 

[DoddTheSlayer]

There are some patches. Much need too especially for the expet version. I made a thread for them and i am bumping this one in case people don't have a clue what i am referring to.

 

[MetalCraze]

Heh, when I saw this topic, I read it: "ToddTheSlayer"

you need to go out more

 

[Azrael the cat]

Heh, when I saw this topic, I read it: "ToddTheSlayer"

you need to go out more

and HE needs to go out LESS...

 

[Shannow]

That is nice, since I never found the retro-dungeons even with spoilers

Time to make my faery monk^^

 

[Major_Blackhart]

I've known about them, but never went in (except for one at the graveyard). Is there anything worth grabbing from those places?

 

[cardtrick]

I've known about them, but never went in (except for one at the graveyard). Is there anything worth grabbing from those places?

One of them has some good stuff, including a unique amulet -- I'm pretty sure it's the Mountain Wilderness retro, but don't quote me. You could check Flamestryke's page to be sure.

 

[Texas Red]

and HE needs to go out LESS...

Are you saying that I'm a whore?

 

[Destroid]

So I'm guessing power trainer is another title for xp farmer?

 

[TheLostOne]

Ehm... If I have 1.2 installed right now can I use this to patch over it and then apply the 1.3-1.4, or do I have to use 1.3 on a fresh Wiz8 install?

 

[DoddTheSlayer]

Yes if you have not played yet you can install version 1.3 over the top of version 1.2 and then apply the patch to take it up to 1.4
Even if you have started the game you can do this, but it depends how far you are into a game as to how many of the changes will take.

 

[TheLostOne]

Well I'm not sure if this is directly due to the update in your mod, but my game has become much more unstable.

In the 1.2 version I would occasionally get crashes if I spammed spells too much (like doesn't of rapid casts) when training skills, but I've read that's common to the game.

Now that I have 1.4 the crashes happen much more often. When I have buffs running (usually around 4) and I cast bless I have about a 70 % chance of crashing to desktop. It's pretty fucking annoying. Normal casting of buffs out of combat can crash occasionally too.

Not sure what could be causing this, but I've tried some basic troubleshooting by disabling some graphics options and running in different compatibility modes, but no luck so far.

 

[Depressinator]

I don't suppose you took out the dastardly level scaling. Otherwise, the game is just not any fun.

 

[DoddTheSlayer]

I never get crashes under the circumstances that you mention, and such crashes have never been reported by the team of tester that i have to test all my mods.

Version 2.0 is being tested and everything reported so far has been instantly fixable.


"Level scaling" what do you mean ?

 

[Major_Blackhart]

The level scaling never bothered me, simply because it was actually (I felt) not too out of whack for the particular stage or area you were at. Some places had a random tough monster after you hit the 20's or so with a group of 6, but after a while they just leveled off at a place and didn't rise above that. Never bugged me really.

 

[DoddTheSlayer]

In my mods current and version 2.0 to come the monsters continue spawning up to level 40-45 all over Dominus.

 

[ghostdog]

@TheLostOne

It's better to play the game with win95/98 compatibility. I was experiencing some random crashes , but this fixed it.

 

[TheLostOne]

Ghostdog, tried that already to no avail. If it comes down to it I can just try a complete reinstall then repatch and mod it to see if the problem persists.

Dodd, if you haven't heard any other instances of this I suppose it could be my computer that's at fault, it's just weird that I never ran into this problem in any previous instance of your mod or vanilla Wiz. If I can resolve this I'll post the results here.