Post here if you have any ideas of how this mod may be improved or altered, maybe some more ideas about other spells that need balancing, but as I said, NO overpowered versions. Also post if any bugs detected, but that's unlikely I guess.
In downloads section added optional file with Extended Necromancy and Accurate Bolide merged together, links for description given in first section, can merge with Giant Bolide on request, but not sure if anyone is interested.
For those who want to do this manually, for whatever reasons:
Unpack the wan.arc with arctool and open the "shl_param_07.shl" file in "wan\param"
The line 24445 (dieframe smth) is the tier 1 necromancy duration. Each 1000 frames equals to 30 sec, so changing it to 4000 will extend its duration to 120sec
The line 24892 (dieframe smth) is the tier 2 necromancy duration. Just change its value to 4000 again.
Signette, I love your work with bolide's tweaks and hopefully this too, if I might make a suggestion for future mods, based on the nature of mod adding in DD:DA maybe one day have a single arc.wan that compiles all your tweaks to the sorc spells (or any others really, diff .wan of course). I know the first go to reply to this suggestion is "Why don't you just merge them yourself.", yes well quite, would be easy enough to do so but to what extent before merging breaks more than it should. Only a thought I had.
Thanks, that's good to hear. I already merged Accurate Bolide with this mod, and I can merge any my mods together on request no problem. That's what I'm aiming for in the future, to make spell rebalance complilation, but for that I need IDEAS, see? hah. Many spells seem to work well and I try not to make drastic changes that breaks balance too much, but still since skills are restricted to 6 I have only up to 8 spells in rotation, so have little idea how the rest of spells are working and what to improve. This goes for both Mage and Sorc.
Great work on your new Exequy mod, another skill to possibly look into is Comestion's firewall. Ever felt like tossing a firewall down under a frost dragon to hit them for big dmg only for them to fly up making you miss completely? Comestion's hieght of the spell feels a little lack luster to me. "Conjures a WALL of flame", yeah right... more like a small fence of flame. Haha, well hope this gives ya something to work on.
Yeah, that's original idea heh, since I started using this spell I never swapped it for anything, and it really feels overpowered of a sorts, recommended as must for any caster who can get it and I see why, and honestly I was thinking to nerf it, but the point you raise is actually valid, it won't make this spell more powerfull, but to think of it, you probably know that sometimes wyrms and drakes fly waaay too high, and I don't wanna make it as skyscraper of fire, right? =)
Might get to it sometime soon, gotta see what it would be like...
Edit: http://www.nexusmods.com/dragonsdogma/mods/259/? check it out =)
sup. im interested in tweaking some spells and have found some of some parts of them. is there enough info for a codex reference list by line even?
my first project is high frazil. i have some ideas that i think would improve it.
but mostly i just want to play with the spells and skill and see if i can create some utility spells like a decent light spell, maybe a teleport and just to see if i can come up with something interesting. also had couple of casting augment ideas. my over all plan is to just manipulate in game assets and see what i can do first. then work on creating new stuff. if i get into this i might even try to do a magika style mod! (not even sure if that is a reasonable thought for my skill level.)
im not interested in stat mods other than for finding where things are. once we find all that anyone can change values. i have searched these forums, reddit, and fluffy's place at the resident evil/ MT framework hub. and found a some parts myself.
but anyhow, my biggest problem is finding what i'm looking for. i have found some things on my own. is there a codex we can all contribute to?
any how nice to meet yall im kinda new here, and mostly a part timer/ hobbiest.
I haven't seen any codex on spells myself, and I don't think it is possible what you are asking for if you aren't advanced coder and can't contact people who've been working and coding Dragon Dogma themselves. Now to clarify for you to understand how modding works here from my own perspective so you have better idea:
Let's say I want to make minor tweaks to certain spell. I open specific file which presumably contains what I'm looking for, every line there is encrypted, no spell names or parameters even remotely coincide with in-game names so I have to start guess work, like I suspect this spell I'm looking at now is what I need, I change lines which MAY or may not have effect I suspect they have, altering them > launching game > see what changed, if nothing or game crashed than I did something wrong > rinse repeat. And that's basically how you mod spells. There are very limited possibilities. What you are suggesting is something like creating new spell with brand new assets, effects and etc to it, but thing is, even tweaking some lines may be unacceptable by game. In one of FluffyQuack's tests he said that when he just tweaked Bolide spell to drop more meteors than it allowed - game crashed, so even such minor things can be impossible.
If you look over mods that are now available for this game, you'll see mostly retextures and parameter tweaks, you won't see any new assets like buildings, towns, NPCs and etc, because game obviously never been made with modding in mind (console origin), so guesswork, decrypting lines and trial/error takes up MUCH more time than actual modding itself. Big thanks to FluffyQuack for his tools but that's still way too limited for modding, nothing even remotely close to GECK or Creation Kit here.
I honestly wanna look in the eye them guys who've been coding this game and ask them, why the hell they encrypted every freaking line in such incomprehensible way?...
to be clear, i wasn't talking about a codex for spells. i was talking about a codex of what we have determined through crash testing about the code and its unnecessarily encrypted self. not just for spell and skills, every-thing.
as for why they kept it encrypted, i think it was a smug challenge, mixed with we don't want to many resources tied up in this product, just one last sale cycle.
a large shared library of discoveries would be the main tool in meeting this challenge. cuts down on the drag of trying to find it all yourself.
There are item id lists and for other stuff, but some of the lists are incomplete and I doubt there is full list of all game assets. I have hard time imagening how much time and effort it will take for someone to decrypt all that, and still, even if that's done it won't drastically improve modding capabilities for this game sadly... Too much restrictions. I'm still happy with what we got tho, heh.
You should deactivate the nmm option, your files are not compatible with nexus modmanager. If you want them to be compatible, you need to add some folder
nativePC/rom/wp/w1/your file here before compressing it.
Necromancy is balanced the way it is. It's nice to be able to precast it but apart from that it is balanced in such a way that you can cast it quickly and then use it as a defensive spell while you cast something bigger. Then while that is going on you go for nuke spells. If you can't get a necromancy off there's the emphasis augment that increases knockback on the air heavy attack, which when combined with hover can be used 2 times in the air. Otherwise charging heavy attack while you run around creates those orbs, which can also create time to cast necromancy.
cast time for sorcerers is long for a reason, the most important being that it's a very predictive and tactical class. While you cast you keep an eye on the battlefield and predict where it will go.
Well, that depends on what type of ecounters we are talking about. In Gransys yes, I agree with you, but in more lategame content like Everfall/BBI - not entirely. Thing is, in combat with low-mid mobs usually Sorcs don't go for nukes at all, maybe just for aesthetics, because clearing out pack of goblins/wolves/saurians with well placed Comestion or Frigor is faster and more effective than casting Bolide/Gicel IMO. In tough boss fight like with 2 Firedrakes, few Condemned Gorecyclops or multiple Liches, Hydra - Necromancy won't serve you as a shield, the only way to win these battles is to find good position and go straight for nukes, while damaging knocked down or stunlocked foe with minor spells, so it's kinda defeats the purpose of Necromancy. Casting it in mid combat is way too risky, considering you are completely immobile and stunlock doesn't start immediately as with Maelstrom for example and you cannot move while casting like with High Gicel/Seism.
To me this spell really felt underpowered in late game, so making it the way I did changed its purpose, now it's more like low-mid mob cleaner rather than tactical protection for nuke casting, plus we have to remember that many late game enemies have resists agains Dark element... It basically advanced version of Magick Agent core skill, which in lategame almost completely useless because of low damage and short duration, good mostly against Gransys low mobs and bats lol.
I completely agree about long cast times being for a good reason and I won't change it.
19 comments
In downloads section added optional file with Extended Necromancy and Accurate Bolide merged together, links for description given in first section, can merge with Giant Bolide on request, but not sure if anyone is interested.
Have fun!
Unpack the wan.arc with arctool and open the "shl_param_07.shl" file in "wan\param"
The line 24445 (dieframe smth) is the tier 1 necromancy duration. Each 1000 frames equals to 30 sec, so changing it to 4000 will extend its duration to 120sec
The line 24892 (dieframe smth) is the tier 2 necromancy duration. Just change its value to 4000 again.
Save, repack and done.
Many spells seem to work well and I try not to make drastic changes that breaks balance too much, but still since skills are restricted to 6 I have only up to 8 spells in rotation, so have little idea how the rest of spells are working and what to improve. This goes for both Mage and Sorc.
Might get to it sometime soon, gotta see what it would be like...
Edit: http://www.nexusmods.com/dragonsdogma/mods/259/?
check it out =)
my first project is high frazil. i have some ideas that i think would improve it.
but mostly i just want to play with the spells and skill and see if i can create some utility spells like a decent light spell, maybe a teleport and just to see if i can come up with something interesting. also had couple of casting augment ideas. my over all plan is to just manipulate in game assets and see what i can do first. then work on creating new stuff. if i get into this i might even try to do a magika style mod! (not even sure if that is a reasonable thought for my skill level.)
im not interested in stat mods other than for finding where things are. once we find all that anyone can change values. i have searched these forums, reddit, and fluffy's place at the resident evil/ MT framework hub. and found a some parts myself.
but anyhow, my biggest problem is finding what i'm looking for. i have found some things on my own. is there a codex we can all contribute to?
any how nice to meet yall im kinda new here, and mostly a part timer/
hobbiest.
Let's say I want to make minor tweaks to certain spell. I open specific file which presumably contains what I'm looking for, every line there is encrypted, no spell names or parameters even remotely coincide with in-game names so I have to start guess work, like I suspect this spell I'm looking at now is what I need, I change lines which MAY or may not have effect I suspect they have, altering them > launching game > see what changed, if nothing or game crashed than I did something wrong > rinse repeat. And that's basically how you mod spells. There are very limited possibilities. What you are suggesting is something like creating new spell with brand new assets, effects and etc to it, but thing is, even tweaking some lines may be unacceptable by game. In one of FluffyQuack's tests he said that when he just tweaked Bolide spell to drop more meteors than it allowed - game crashed, so even such minor things can be impossible.
If you look over mods that are now available for this game, you'll see mostly retextures and parameter tweaks, you won't see any new assets like buildings, towns, NPCs and etc, because game obviously never been made with modding in mind (console origin), so guesswork, decrypting lines and trial/error takes up MUCH more time than actual modding itself. Big thanks to FluffyQuack for his tools but that's still way too limited for modding, nothing even remotely close to GECK or Creation Kit here.
I honestly wanna look in the eye them guys who've been coding this game and ask them, why the hell they encrypted every freaking line in such incomprehensible way?...
as for why they kept it encrypted, i think it was a smug challenge, mixed with we don't want to many resources tied up in this product, just one last sale cycle.
a large shared library of discoveries would be the main tool in meeting this challenge. cuts down on the drag of trying to find it all yourself.
nativePC/rom/wp/w1/your file here before compressing it.
cast time for sorcerers is long for a reason, the most important being that it's a very predictive and tactical class. While you cast you keep an eye on the battlefield and predict where it will go.
To me this spell really felt underpowered in late game, so making it the way I did changed its purpose, now it's more like low-mid mob cleaner rather than tactical protection for nuke casting, plus we have to remember that many late game enemies have resists agains Dark element... It basically advanced version of Magick Agent core skill, which in lategame almost completely useless because of low damage and short duration, good mostly against Gransys low mobs and bats lol.
I completely agree about long cast times being for a good reason and I won't change it.