[SixOfSpades]

Since Weimer seems to be the front-man for a group of coders (who all work individually but whose work is compiled into Weimer's MODs), I've often thought they should call themselves the Weimer Republic.

I hate the spacebar on *this* keyboard, too.

About the Shapeshifter: It was originally a good idea. You can either be a naked Druid casting spells & chucking rocks with your Sling, or when combat got too hairy, you could make yourself even hairier and start bustin' ass as a Werewolf. The problem was that BioWare failed to implement most of the advantages of the WW and GWW forms: They weakened their Magic Resistance, Elemental Resistances, the enchantment level of its melee attack, the fact that it was immune to Normal Weapons, and a few other factors. Also, if you got hit with a Dispel Magic, your "Werewolf Paws" would get Dispelled, allowing you to use your Scimitar & Shield while in GWW form.

Weimer meant well when he designed the Rebalanced Shapeshifter component: He restored the WW and GWW forms' Magic Resistance, strikes as magical weapon, etc. But the way in which he implemented the change is inherently flawed: Instead of actually shapeshifting the character, the Shapeshift button instead creates an item in the Shapeshifter's inventory, which is, essentially, the Big Metal Unit, available in Chapter 2. Shapeshifters can talk to people and cast spells while wearing The Paw. The Paw makes the Shapeshifter regenerate so damn fast that approximately 90% of the enemies in the game simply cannot kill him, because he Regenerates faster than they can hurt him. If you want to regenerate even faster, all you have to do is switch back & forth between The Paw and your other Quick Weapon a few times. The Paw is only +3 enchanted, but you can still hit enemies that require +4 or +5 weapons simply by placing The Paw in your offhand. The Paw renders the "Shift Werewolf x times per day, based on level, and Greater Werewolf once per day" rule completely obsolete--you can take The Paw off and on however many times that you want. But my biggest complaint with the Rebalanced Shapeshifter is that it makes the Shapeshifter's Human form completely redundant: Once Cernd reaches Level 13, there is no reason for him NOT to remain a Greater Wolfwere for the rest of his life.

Also, the Rebalanced Shapeshifter MOD removes the Mountain Bears in the Conjure Animals spell, and replaces them with Greater Bearweres, which were essentially Greater Wolfweres with even more hitpoints. Weimer says he's toned them down to not be overpowered anymore, although I've heard no feedback on the "new" Greater Bearweres yet.

[ADD:] The Paw can also be used by non-Shapeshifters, if they happen to have Use Any Item. Since Shapeshifters can make a new set of Paws every time they Rest (and the original Paws don't get destroyed, or vanish after x period of time), you can make a party of Thieves and Bards, then recruit Cernd for a day, and unleash holy hell. Also, The Paw is a weapon, and therefore does not block Wizard spells like the Big Metal Unit does. Can you imagine Jan, as a Greater Werewolf, casting Time Stop? Talk about abuse.

[ 02-21-2003, 03:34 PM: Message edited by: SixOfSpades ]