Robin Mayne
Web Team Manager
Joined: 15 Oct 2001
From: BioWare |
 Posted: Thursday, 21 August 2003 12:26AM |
Maximus from NWVault has announced a new module contest! Shadows of Undrentide and Hordes of the Underdark take the player all the way from fledgling first level character to a grizzled veteran of epic power. Maximus wants to have the talented members of the community create a module that bridges the two expansions and allows a smooth transition from Shadows to Hordes. Modules will be judged, with very fine prizes given from IGN and BioWare to the top creations. Watch for more information over at NWVault in the coming weeks!
Robin
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Robin Mayne
BioWare WebGUY 
+++ Mass Effect +++ |
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Brand
Game Owner
 NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
SW: KotOR PC
Jade Empire
NWN 2
Mass Effect PC
Joined: 17 Oct 2001
From: Salt Lake City |
Posted: Thursday, 21 August 2003 02:55AM |
This sounds like fun!  (Of course, I'd already read 'bout it on the vault). You'll probably notice I'm currently sans SoU, but my birthday is next week and I've just started a new job, so it's just a matter of time...
Anyhow, I would like to request one bit of information to help with continuity: How does HotU start? I don't need specifics, really, but is your character just supposed to be in Waterdeep when the whole thing starts up, or were you summoned by someone to help with the situation? Any little bits of information will help. 
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"I know dragons with feet like rabbits! 'Tis true, I swear!"
"With Baldur's Gate we sparked a RolePlaying renaissance. Now a multiplayer revolution!" |
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Orik
Game Owner
 NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
SW: KotOR Xbox
SW: KotOR PC
Jade Empire
Joined: 17 Oct 2001
From: Cambridge, UK |
Posted: Thursday, 21 August 2003 12:56PM |
As the originator of this idea I am very much pleased to see it get officially adopted!
Quote: Posted 08/21/03 02:55:13 (GMT) by Brand Anyhow, I would like to request one bit of information to help with continuity: How does HotU start? I don't need specifics, really, but is your character just supposed to be in Waterdeep when the whole thing starts up, or were you summoned by someone to help with the situation? Any little bits of information will help.
HotU starts out with your character in Waterdeep... we know no more than that. It should, however, be enough to have your character simply arrive at Waterdeep at the end of the bridging module.
As you've yet to play it I won't spoil with details, but SoU finishes off with you escaping to a very specific place, so we have both a start and an end - it's up to us to work out the in-between  |
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JHD536
Game Owner
 NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
SW: KotOR Xbox
NWN 2
Joined: 07 Jul 2002 |
Posted: Thursday, 21 August 2003 02:34PM |
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I knew I remembered someone starting a topic about this. It is a great idea, sadly I suck at mod-making. |
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NarcissusLair
Game Owner
 NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
NWN 2
Joined: 19 Feb 2003
From: WA |
Posted: Thursday, 21 August 2003 05:00PM |
There is a coupe points I would like to raise here:
1) This is a very good idea to get a module competition going, but I believe most module developers who have spent as much time as I have on my mod (9 months and it hasn't been released yet) would not be willing to give up their trade secrets. But if the challenge is to make a short 3-7 hour (I am estimating 50 hours dev per hour of play) experience then I think more players would be willing to enter this competition.
2) This sounds like a marketing tactic to get players to buy SoU and then HoU. It is a smart tactic on Biowares part. I think Bioware knows that their product is too good and expandable that most developers can add their own content and hakpaks instead of buying newer Bioware expansions. Personally I will still buy Biowares expansions as they are supported. Majority of the hakpaks no longer work whether is due to bad design or deliberate changes on Biowares part to stop players from creating their own world free from future expansions.
3) Hey Bioware I love you guys...so don't take this the wrong way. I wish everyone the best of luck.
Narc, BSCS
IT Consultant
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Brand
Game Owner
NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
SW: KotOR PC
Jade Empire
NWN 2
Mass Effect PC
Joined: 17 Oct 2001
From: Salt Lake City |
Posted: Thursday, 21 August 2003 09:09PM |
Quote: Posted 08/21/03 12:56:30 (GMT) by Orik
HotU starts out with your character in Waterdeep... we know no more than that. It should, however, be enough to have your character simply arrive at Waterdeep at the end of the bridging module.
Okay, then until I'm told otherwise, I'll just have the character go to Waterdeep for an unrelated issue. Now, to see if I can make a decent module in just a month or less...
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"I know dragons with feet like rabbits! 'Tis true, I swear!"
"With Baldur's Gate we sparked a RolePlaying renaissance. Now a multiplayer revolution!" |
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Jay Watamaniuk
Community Manager
Joined: 19 Nov 2001
From: Edmonton, Alberta |
Posted: Thursday, 21 August 2003 11:00PM |
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Yup- a big thanks to Orik for coming up with the idea to bridge the gap. I think we might have a few more details on things that should be in the module to tie the two together once certain hard working producers get back from meetings in the US... |
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SSH83
Game Owner
 NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
NWN 2
NWN 2: MotB
Mass Effect PC
Joined: 04 Feb 2002
From: Arcadia |
Posted: Friday, 22 August 2003 07:05PM |
I was wondering if the dev can give out some do-don't for the contestants. This is sort of important because for example, if a great module emphasizes on the character being born in Baldur's Gate and HotU says Waterdeep, that wouldn't work very well. Anyways, here are some Qs I thought of for now.
1) Should we avoid dealing with the characters' background (heritage, hometown, etc.)?
2) Should we worry about items/wealth that may cause play-balance problem when the characters start HotU after the contestants' modules?
3) Any NPCs or henchmen from any previous Bioware games that should remain untouched?
4) Any time restraints?
5) Anything else that we should steer clear of.
Replying the answers here or along with the official announcement on NWVault would be great. Thanks!!!
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Timdalos
Game Owner
 NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
Joined: 22 Sep 2002 |
Posted: Friday, 22 August 2003 11:48PM |
Quote: Posted 08/21/03 17:00:38 (GMT) by NarcissusLair
2) This sounds like a marketing tactic to get players to buy SoU and then HoU. It is a smart tactic on Biowares part. I think Bioware knows that their product is too good and expandable that most developers can add their own content and hakpaks instead of buying newer Bioware expansions. Personally I will still buy Biowares expansions as they are supported. Majority of the hakpaks no longer work whether is due to bad design or deliberate changes on Biowares part to stop players from creating their own world free from future expansions.
Narc, BSCS
IT Consultant
Well, since I too am lacking SoU, probably for a while, I doubt I'll be able to enter, but there's a couple very key misunderstandings in this post that could lead to problems in the future if people actually believe them. Mind you Narc, you just happened to mention them, it's not something I'm criticising YOU for, as they're very widely held mistakes in the computer game industry.
The fact is that few if any companies besides Bioware have tried to create and sell a game system BASED on user created material. However, there WAS one company that DID do that, so there are several years of practical sales figues to analyze to get an idea of how long term sales and marketing of such a game. OK, it's a totally different genre, but The Sims had YEARS of emphasis of user made content, with people saying much the same thing: "It's a bad idea to make such an open system where people can make their own stuff instead of buying expansions"... and yet consistently, for years, The Sims outsold everything else in its genre, expansion after expansion... until the latest one... which is marked by Maxis/EA's biggest slap at User Creators, boobytrapping the scripting code and intentionally making it difficult to make new content... no doubt due to someone in marketing stating exactly your argument.
The thing is that user created material ADDS to the value of official product. You can't use new stuff unless you have the expansion it depends on. Creators get inspired TO create by the new potentials and raw source material in new expansions. And from watching Maxis slowly listen to conventional wisdom and lose their sales and edge, I can definately say that at least so far, Bioware isn't doing anything of the sort... every patch/upgrade has expanded the possibilities for creators, not limited them, and while yes, older format stuff can break, that's part of the field... if you allow anyone to add things, not everyone will add things properly, and not everyone will label what their creation needs properly. That's still shaking out in the NWN community, but it seems to be well on the way in terms of setting "standards" in that sense, and Bioware has been MORE than open in terms of detailing and explaining data formats -- the fact that people aren't using the info isn't Bioware's fault  |
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Mpskydog
Game Owner
 NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
SW: KotOR PC
Joined: 24 Oct 2001
From: Michigan |
Posted: Saturday, 23 August 2003 01:12AM |
Quote: Posted 08/21/03 17:00:38 (GMT) by NarcissusLair
There is a coupe points I would like to raise here:
1) This is a very good idea to get a module competition going, but I believe most module developers who have spent as much time as I have on my mod (9 months and it hasn't been released yet) would not be willing to give up their trade secrets. But if the challenge is to make a short 3-7 hour (I am estimating 50 hours dev per hour of play) experience then I think more players would be willing to enter this competition.
Well, Maximus has the contest open for new or existing content that fits the guidelines: 12 level to 15th level, and bridges the gap between SoU and HotU. But with the judging taking place end of October/Beginning of November, those writing new modules just for this contest don't have 9 months to spend. I figure for the most part, I'd rather focus on 'Quality' instead of 'Quantity' given the time frame in which to work in.
(quote)2) This sounds like a marketing tactic to get players to buy SoU and then HoU. It is a smart tactic on Biowares part. I think Bioware knows that their product is too good and expandable that most developers can add their own content and hakpaks instead of buying newer Bioware expansions.quote]
True, it might sound like that, but it was a player idea, not Bioware's. Just a member of our community who in effect suggested that if SoU ends at around 12th level, and HotU doesn't start until about 15th level, and there is this gap of levels/story, what if it was bridged by another module?
From there, someone suggested Maximus make it a contest, he took it from there, and here we have it.
Now, as for questions about history of the characters, the way I see it is that if you are trying to -bridge- the SoU game to the HotU game, you might as well continue with the character development from SoU. You were apprenticed to Drogan, etc. You went forth and did this, and that, and some of that other stuff (:-! keeping this a spoiler-free thread despite the fact that those making modules for the contest should familiarize themselves with the SoU story).
Now, sure, a little more info about the -future- (HotU) might help, but isn't completely necessary, since we have a supposed begin point for it (Waterdeep, Area of). And we already have the past (SoU).
Mpskydog~,
who suddenly realizes how much time he's spent writing this instead of working on his entry!Edited By Mpskydog on 08/23/03 01:41 |
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slam9775
Game Owner
 NWN: SoU
Joined: 04 Aug 2003 |
Posted: Tuesday, 26 August 2003 03:04AM |
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now im very young and very in experiened in the mystic art of mod making as a matter of fact all of the details would be apreseated and i will start the long hard road to making my first epic |
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Gideonblack
Game Owner
 NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
Joined: 23 Aug 2003 |
Posted: Tuesday, 26 August 2003 04:24AM |
Well personally I like the idea of this mod contest, but unforantely I'm lacking in in the scripting department, so my ideas for it are not likely to work, I figure to work on it I still have just over two months to make a mod that spans 3 levels even if it is from level 12 to level 15. But I do have another option, I though of tossing the idea out on this site to see if I could find someone better at the technical part of module building at work together on it. You know put two heads together. I've got a storyline figured out, a few of the npcs picked out and meshed and so on.
So that's my proposal, if anyone out there is interested. |
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Lomanoft
Game Owner
 NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
NWN 2
Joined: 25 Feb 2003
From: Missouri |
Posted: Tuesday, 26 August 2003 04:17PM |
I told one of my friends about it Gideon and have yet to get a reply, but I'll get back to you on that.
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There are three kinds of people in this world: People who make things happen, people who watch things happen and people who wonder what the hell just happened. |
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adamant_2001
Game Owner
NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
SW: KotOR PC
NWN 2
NWN 2: MotB
Mass Effect PC
Joined: 02 Jul 2002 |
Posted: Wednesday, 27 August 2003 12:11AM |
If I knew a good scripter, I have an idea for a module already.
Anyway, just an idea for a small module dealing with a few factions fighting over the balance of the planes as well as your ability to return home. (trying not to be overly epic however, a cold war) If anyone good at scripting would be willing to help out, I'm sure this could be a fun idea to make.Edited By adamant_2001 on 08/27/03 00:17 |
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Kayalin
Game Owner
 NWN
NWN: SoU
NWN: HotU
SW: KotOR PC
Jade Empire:SE
NWN 2
NWN 2: MotB
NWN 2: SoZ
Mass Effect
Joined: 24 Jun 2002 |
Posted: Wednesday, 27 August 2003 06:31PM |
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The previews say that you will start with an empty inventory in Hordes of the Underdark, as a drow thief has stolen all of it. I wouldn't worry too much about the power level of items you give the PCs. |
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