We the undersigned would like to have the Proving Grounds Arcane Archer reward changed to the Ancient Longbow of Divine Power, instead of the wimpy mage amulet...Especially those of us who didn't use Mage to get to Arcane Archer...

Robert the Bard...

[img]tongue.gif[/img]

Seconded

roddybug

Thirded!

And while we're at it.
Wizard 39 / Fighter 1 is not a fighter.
Fighter 11 / Weapon Master 28 / Rogue 1 is not a rogue.

I forth it, fourth it and, if I could, force it.

I'll take the fifth...

( [img]graemlins/erm.gif[/img] Err somehow that didn't come out as I intended [img]graemlins/blush.gif[/img] )

Anyway I agree with Robert and the others! The reward should be geared to the class where you have the most levels.

Well, more than likely the problem that surrounds this is how the prize is "calculated." Whatever the script is, I would guess it looks at the first class the character chose. If someone could devise an alternate script which would look at both (or all three) classes chosen and then go with the majority, then that would be the most viable option. Something along the lines of:

- get class_A **original/starting class of character
- get class_B **secondary class of character
- get class_C **tertiary class of character

- if class_B = "" then class_B = class_A
- if class_C = "" then class_C = class_B **so that there is no null values to screw things up

- setvalue "PrizeWinnah" = 0
- if levels(class_A) >= levels(class_B) then
- ... if levels(class_A) >= levels(class_C) then "PrizeWinnah" = 0
- ... else
- ... "PrizeWinnah" = 2
- et cetera **finding out which of the three classes has the most levels. tie goes to the earlier class chosen.

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There have been enough items created over the past little while that all the various classes may have personalized new prizes being offered over the next few weeks/months. Remember, Ziroc is working on that new level first, so give him some time to really get into the new collection he's made for himself. For some reason, I have a feeling he'll have a solution for the prizes soon enough.

I have a few monk 38 / rogue 2 characters and they get lousy boots instead of some cool monk gloves [img]tongue.gif[/img]

lets face it if you beat the DPG with a monk you deserve a bloody medal as well [img]graemlins/hehe.gif[/img]

I'd sure like to have a look at the Prize Script. I'll bet it can get pretty extensive to fix. The problem with your theory Moze, is that there are a lot of classes, and if you are going to award a separate prize for all them, you're talking a lot of code. It's going to need to know what classes, how many levels in each class, etc. I think the best solution for that would be to use a GetHighestClass, if there is such a function, and award that way, or maybe go by weapon focus, and have a set item. Where you can run into problems with the latter idea is a char like my latest archer, that's got a secondary focus in mace, along with the focus in long bow for AA. The original purpose of this thread was to suggest making AA's get the same award as the Ranger gets, which would make sense, since most people building an AA will focus in long bow for the extra damage over a short bow.

It seems to make sense that a build that is mostly AA should get a bow as a reward so I will sixth (or whatever it is now) Robert's original post.

As there are so many combinations of build I just wonder whether it might be better to give anyone completing the DPG a choice. In other words they can take one item from the range of rewards on offer. I have no idea how difficult that would be in scripting terms.

BTW if anyone does want a set of Su Lee's gloves just ask one of my characters. They usually have a few spares in their inventory.

How about when you hadn your stones is you get a store front brought up and you can pick 1 prize yourself.

Good thinking.

Can I have the arrows of Mr Warne and shoot round corners?

I'll have a set of those harm arrows, if you please... [img]graemlins/heee.gif[/img]

Makes sense, T-D-C. The question is: would it be easy to implement?

Remember, if it is a "store" per se, then ALL the items could easily be purchased by rather rich individuals. Having bought and sold the majority of those things at least thrice over, I am sure any character with over 200Mil gold could run rampant within a store of prizes. The "easiest" way to do it would be for the player to get a "token" which gives them 500Mil gold when "sold" to the store. At that point, the player could also sell anything else they wanted to to the store itself in order to make more regular cash. (It would inspire people to clean up after themselves in the Drow Proving Grounds and other areas.) The items available would then have an artificial "cost" of at LEAST 500Mil gold, in order to make sure the player could technically only afford one. I am sure some enterprising players would find ways to get more than one item from said store, but with the way things are going, not everyone would have the patience to do that. Especially as some of the better items for players are not in the Drow Proving Grounds at all, but on various other levels.

I went looking for scripts that could pull the highest Class information from a character file, but I found nothing. (Then again, I only looked for fifteen minutes.) I did find yet another trash remover file, but that's another issue and another story for another day. That did, however, give me an idea for a shield and a ring, but those would be items found elsewhere inside the module (preferably on Levels Seven and Nine). I've no idea how to even get the Class information to begin with as I've not even dreamed of hunting down the scripting logbook (as I am sure someone has created one by now).

I don't think it would be all that hard; pc chooses an item, create item in pc inventory, close store. The easier way would be to do it in dialog, instead of actually opening a store. You turn in the stones, and instead of the guard saying "Here's your reward", he could say "Choose your reward", and list all the available rewards. It wouldn't change the dialog that much, and wouldn't require a lot more scripting to do. PC chooses one of the listed items, and it creates the item chosen in the pc's inventory and ends dialog, and sets the variable to the PC that the quest has been done, which is already in the dialog.

Yeah that could work as well. My only reasoning for a store front was that you could then see the stats of the items. Could we have it that when you have completed the proving grounds

1. you talk to the guard
2. He brings up a store front.
3. you then use the stones (all 12) as the only currancy that the store accepts, to purchase your weapon. You can't sell abck to the store ether.

Could that be done to change the currancy in the store?

previous links to threads involving the Drow Proving Grounds for reference:

http://www.ironworksforum.com/ubb/cg...=000891#000017

(I will post the link to the other thread whenever I find it. no luck so far tonight.)

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Just trying to find the information about each of the current prizes available after defeating the proving grounds. I have a feeling this entire thread should officially be labeled **SPOILER** just to keep new players from ruining themselves. And yes, I did make a serious attempt to create new longbows AND shortbows that could compare and contest with the Drow Longbow +8 and the bow able to be won through the Drow Proving Grounds.

The store system is hard coded, but I suppose someone could figure a way around that, but not me. I've already tried to do a bank type thing, where you didn't have to have your gold physically in your possession, but I couldn't figure it out.

I think that if it went to an actual store type situation, it would be better to script it so that it only opens if you have the stones, and that when it opens, it removes them. The no selling to it is easy, especially with the "Merchant won't buy that type of item" thing that's already in place. I just hate asking for all that extra work on Z's part. The initial change wouldn't be that bad, since it would only involve changing the actual award to AA's from the current amulet, to the bow.

I'll poke around and see what I can come up with though, and if I fix something that would do one or the other of the suggested changes, I'll present it for consideration.

Hmmm well if its just on the item description we could still ahve it in a dialg box just when you click on Super Sword +20 for example you get another dialog box showing the stats and confirming the buy.

That would work and shouldn't be to hard to do right?

It would work, and it doesn't seem like it would be, the hard part would be recording the stats for each individual weapon. They'd have to be entered in "by hand", I believe. I don't know if there's a GetItemIdentifiedDescription type command or not.

but why oh why does most of this have to center around complicated (for me to understand) scripts? means I can`t do nearly as much to help out as I would prefer to. *sighs somewhat* if we went back to the reassociation possibility, would the Arcane Archer be the only one to be revised? or would there be other items people would want shifted around? I know there was a thread that had a listing of what people got as prizes for the Drow Proving Grounds, but I`ve no clue how to find it again. (and right now that would really help in terms of discovering the easiest way of even doing the basic shifting of the items that was asked for at the beginning of this thread.)

I figure that there might be a total of thirteen items - one for each of the base classes. Probably less to be honest with you. So the listing would be something along these lines:

Fighter - Barbarian - Paladin

Rogue - Bard

Cleric - Druid

Ranger

Wizard - Sorcerer

Monk

that`s as far as I know. then there`d be the prestige classes associated with those. I think one of the prestige classes gets a prize unto itself, but I forgot which one that was. I am pretty sure it`s neither Assassin nor ShadowDancer. almost positive it wouldn`t be Champion Of Torm either. and for some odd reason, I don`t believe the Red Dragon Disciple gets anything special for their scaly dedications. Dangnabbit. why can`t I recall what the associations are now?

So in the end, the associations would probably be more like this (in terms of what the prizes would be):

Fighter - Barbarian - Weaponmaster - (Dwarven Defender?)

Bard - (Red Dragon Disciple?)

Wizard - Sorcerer - Palemaster

Rogue - Shadow Dancer - Assassin - Harper Scout

Ranger - Arcane Archer

Cleric - Druid - Shifter

Monk (auto override)

Paladin - Champion Of Torm - Blackguard

[ 12-09-2006, 12:42 PM: Message edited by: Mozenwrathe ]

Fighters get the long sword, for sure, Paladins don't get anything, not sure on barbs. Bards get a set of pipes, rogues boots, clerics a robe, not sure about druids, rangers get the bow, wizard/sorcs get the amulet, and monks get the gloves.

There's no way to get every individual char a specific reward, w/out making a custom copy of every single weapon type. In so far as I'm concerned, most of this is ok. However, every arcane archer that I have run through the proving grounds gets the amulet, which is no help to them whatsoever. This includes my builds that go the bard/aa route, or the bard/rdd/aa route. The script sees AA, and gives the amulet. At least, that's been my experience.

We live and learn.

I have run characters with rogue levels through the DPG and never got the boots. What are the their stats?

There must be some hierarchy amongst classes. If you have even one level of a particular class you get the reward for that class if it gets priority over whatever other classes there may be in your build.

Why not simply have the door guard ask what class the character wants to be rewarded for?

More scripts. (Not that there is any other method of doing it, anyway.) It would, however, seem a far easier way to go than try to calculate which item they should be rewarded for. As well, it would allow someone to go through three times with the same character and get all three different prizes. I take it the Drow Proving Grounds Keyholder would only ask the question AFTER you had already beaten all twelve of the grandmasters and had handed in the stones they held. Stormshadow, I do believe yours would be the winning idea if it could be implemented. Keeps it "fair" by only granting items that would be suitable for the character build, but also allows the player to select what they wanted.

The variable that triggers the "Word has been spreading about your successes here" dialog would still trigger. I don't know exactly how the script works, but I would write it so that when it takes the stones, it sets the variable.
On the subject, I decided to go around the AA always gets the amulet, and went ranger/wiz/AA thinking I could get the bow that way...nope. Got the amulet...:crys:

Well, how would you go about making a script that chose the prize to begin with in terms of the player saying "this is the class I want to achieve a prize for?" I am sure by now Ziroc's stockpiles are filled again with new and wondrous items to fill in the cracks with, so making new prizes or at least new associations for prizes wouldn't be that difficult (I think). Now, I don't believe there's any reason for each and every class and prestige class to have it's own prize, but maybe having ten prizes would work out.

This is my revised association listing:

«1» Fighter - Barbarian (use current fighter prize)

«2» Weaponmaster - Dwarven Defender (make new more defense oriented prize or slightly tweak an older prize)

«3» Bard (I think there is a Bard-oriented prize already)

«4» Red Dragon Disciple (I am sure one of the older prizes would be fine)

«5» Wizard - Sorcerer - Palemaster (revised edition of the current amulet)

«6» Rogue - Shadow Dancer - Assassin - Harper Scout (those boots already serve well)

«7» Ranger - Arcane Archer (the current Ranger prize is more than enough)

«8» Cleric - Druid - Shifter (stick with the really awesome robe, no alterations needed)

«9» Monk (the gloves should be more than powerful enough. if not, ask Ziroc to give them a little more hitting power)

«10» Paladin - Champion Of Torm - Blackguard (something suitable for Holy and Unholy warriors. perhaps a new helm just for them? bracers or even a gemstone or tome with new powers for them to use.)

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Oh, can anyone at all find that spoiler thread we had months about the various prizes currently found at the end of the Drow Proving Grounds, or will we just have to go with what we each currently have in our inventories?

[ 12-15-2006, 08:06 AM: Message edited by: Mozenwrathe ]

I posted about the dpg rewards months ago and you've already linked to it, just scroll up to the first post on the link.

To 4, RDD's really don't need a special prize, no matter what happens, RDD is usually a means to an end, and as such, you won't see many, if any, epic RDD's.

I currently have a script that will check for the highest level class, and award that way, I just haven't had the patience to make the special items for each class, insert them into the proper spots in the script, and then test it.

To the amulet, it's fine for spell casters, I suppose, but since I rarely run pure spellcasters, wizard/sorc are a means to an end, usually AA...This was the point to the whole thread anyway, not "how much more work can we pile on Z". To that end, I have been working on a prize script, and once I finish it, I'll post it up, with all due credits to the people who have helped me, and if Z wants to tweak the existing with what I will have, cool, if not, that's ok too. I have ranger/assassin combos that can do the grounds fairly easily, and the patience to wait until somebody else is in to get the bow to the chars I want it to get to. My initial suggestion requires substituting one prize in the script, and wouldn't take a lot of work, at least, I don't believe it would.

I'll let you all in on a little secret; building a Plain Jane module is hard work. Building something that can hold people's attention for 4 years is a lot more work, and can be a real pain in the ass, trust me. I do work on another module too, or I did, until it got basically cancelled by NWN 2. It's still up, but there won't be anything new added to it, unless something breaks, I think. So while it's nice to dream, please keep in mind that Z is doing this module solo, and flying by the seat of his pants on some of the script work, and doing an amazing job.

With you on that last paragraph.

But Ranger/Assassin? Not a combination I have ever thought about using. Still, if it can do the DPG it must be OK. I'll have to model one and see how it comes out.

It's a dex build, very high dex on one of them, final was 52...Extremely effective with short swords.

Hey, it takes me about two hours to put together up to ten good weapons, more than that when trying to write up a worthwhile background for them. I could imagine the amount of work that it takes to create everything around it, but I'd probably start crying. I tried just making a miniature module once, just to see some of the tiles in the game. After seven tries I believe I ended up deleting everything I had done and cursed the people who constructed NeverWinter Nights. A lot of what he's done is trial and error - errors that could easily kill the module temporarily. I by no means am knocking that or degrading that. I also know that the mere requests we are making require him to literally go through a lot of scripts just to find the one thing we are asking him to revise. Even with the best of coding, that'll take a while to do.

As I've said many a time: I'm just an idea guy. I could give you descriptions, possibilities, and theories galore off the top of my head. Applications, however, are normally beyond my level of skill. Such as this one, for example.
When do you post up your script, I'll be one of the many reading through it. Of course, I'll have no idea how to put it into a module, so if you know of any good places for someone still getting their fingers dirty to start I'd love to hear them.

While it's limited, Lilacsoul's Script Generator is a good place to start. I have found myself starting scripts with it, and then tweaking them to do what I really want them to do, instead of what it will allow me to do. (Note that I have a scripting guru in my pocket for emergencies, if and when I need him...) Start out with simple stuff, like giving xp and gold. Also, it's easier to go from convos with any script where possible. The script in question for this thread would be in the ActionTaken part of one of the dialog tree's branches. Not hard to find, but some of the revisions suggested...Some may not be so bad, others may require a complete rewrite of the script.