Hearkenwold

Discuss user created adventure modules
cartons
Posts: 73
Joined: Mon Jan 11, 2021 5:38 pm

Re: Hearkenwold

Post by cartons »

SPOILERS

I had an excellent time dungeoneering through the old dwarven halls and mines; great worldbuilding, and I enjoyed the hints of the greater metaphysical threats to come.

I'm back in Skardale and ready to set some sparks, but I feel like I've hit a wall. The nobleman in the bar at Theives' Alley said they'd like to begin using the Courthouse as a base of operations. When I try to go in, however, the text says there's nothing for me to do there and sends me away. What am I missing?
User avatar
Dorateen
Posts: 316
Joined: Thu Jan 16, 2020 3:03 pm

Re: Hearkenwold

Post by Dorateen »

Hey cartons, I am looking in the toolset right now. After the conversation in the tavern with the nobleman, it should set the global int Havan = 2
The response that sets the int value is: "Then we will regroup with you there. Fare well.

When you go to the court house, after seeing the narrative text, there should be a CONTINUE followed by:

But the gates have now been shattered, and you can hear fighting coming from inside the building. Steel on steel, the shouts of men and cries of desperation.

This will then give you option to enter the courthouse, or remain outside. If you did not get this, I hope it doesn't mean the script did not fire at the end of the Tavern conversation. I hate to ask, but do you have a save prior to going into the tavern? What happens if you go back to the tavern? If it is still showing as Havan = 1, then you should get the interaction again.

There is a debug command, hitting the letter "b". If you read the log on the left it should indicate if the scripts are searching for integers and cannot find them.
User avatar
slowdive
Site Admin
Posts: 509
Joined: Wed Jan 15, 2020 4:37 am

Re: Hearkenwold

Post by slowdive »

You can always go into the save file and just change the GlobalInt from 1 to 2 for Havan if needed. Just open the save file (in saves/Hearkenwold/) such as "slot1.json" (or whichever is your last save) in a text editor and search for "moduleGlobalInts".
cartons
Posts: 73
Joined: Mon Jan 11, 2021 5:38 pm

Re: Hearkenwold

Post by cartons »

I've turned on debug and when I trigger the courthouse it gives me:
"Replaced Havan with 1
checkGlobal: Havan = 2
returning false"

Checking the tavern (he is no longer there), I get:
"Replaced Havan with 1
checkGlobal: Havan = 1
foundGlobal: Havan == 1"

It's worth noting, one thing that may have triggered this bug...The first time after speaking with Havan, before going to the courthouse, I went back to speak to the Viceroy, which triggered the first conversation tree where he asked me to seek out Havan again. It did not, however, make him reappear at the Tavern. Further conversations with the Viceroy do not appear to be bugged this way.

I checked a previous save (unfortunately one from a significant number of quests and events ago) and reinitiated the quest with Havan at the Tavern. This time I went straight for the Courthouse and it triggered the continuation just fine. My guess is it was the interval where I went to go speak to the Viceroy that confused things.

--

Thank you for the tip, slowdive. I didn't take you up on your suggestion to alter my party's sad misattributed stats, but I'll do so here!
User avatar
Dorateen
Posts: 316
Joined: Thu Jan 16, 2020 3:03 pm

Re: Hearkenwold

Post by Dorateen »

Thank you very much for hunting down this bug! I found the error. Indeed, when returning to the Viceroy, it only checks for Havan = 1. So after speaking to Havan at the tavern, it would then trigger the initial converation again. Problem is, the conversation at the tavern, I flagged to show only once per game.

I will clean up this sequence of events, so it won't bug if players return to the Viceroy after speaking to Havan.
cartons
Posts: 73
Joined: Mon Jan 11, 2021 5:38 pm

Re: Hearkenwold

Post by cartons »

Just wanted to write again to say how much I enjoyed this module. I'm looking forward to revisiting it again!

I guess I'll leave off on a couple of questions:

SPOILERS

Is it supposed to be obvious when I've run out of narrative road? Skardale is now overrun by goblins and bugbears, and it's not clear what I should be doing next. I chalked it up to [Unfinished], but I may have just missed something. If there *is* more, I'd love an opportunity to dive back in. There are a few quests I've left undone, including the trapped Halfling and the tracking down the beast for the Ranger guild quest.

I've been fiddling under the hood to see how you got certain things to work, and I was wondering if you could tell me about certain timed elements. For example, how did you get the Fancy Shirt seamstress to work? I noticed there's a 3-state variable, but I'm not sure what moves the variable from a 2 to a 3. Is there a time? And how does the one year timer to pay back the bank load work? Is it something encoded in the Promissory Note?
User avatar
Dorateen
Posts: 316
Joined: Thu Jan 16, 2020 3:03 pm

Re: Hearkenwold

Post by Dorateen »

First, thank you very much for playing the module.

Skardale does end on a To Be Continued cliffhanger, with the situation unresolved. One of the last dialogues with Corwyn Khas back at the castle should mention speaking to Sly, which is a nudge to look into the guild quests. Of course, these can be initiated by the player at any time once a character is third level. But the guild adventures can be considered post-Skardale content. This is because when I pick up the narrative later this year, it will involve having an audience with the King. In order to do that, at least one member of the party must have completed one of the guild quests.

The seamstress is indeed done with different variable states. The first time you agree for her to make the fancy shirt I use a gaSetGlobalInt script "Fancy" and set to 1. Then when you return the next time, I use the same gaSetGlobalInt script to set the Fancy variable to 2. The next time you visit her, and get the shirt, I set the Fancy variable to 3, which is the final state that closes off the exchange. I use global integers to keep track of most of the reactivity. These are placed as an Action on the player response, and then checked as a conditional on a NPC node.

For the loan, there is no special coding involved. I do plan to implement a group of bank representatives approaching the party to demand interest payment somewhere else in the module (with the option to fight them) but I have not decided where to place such an event. As far as paying back the loan, well, with the city overrun by goblins I'm afraid Skardale Savings and Loans is out of business!
User avatar
Dorateen
Posts: 316
Joined: Thu Jan 16, 2020 3:03 pm

Re: Hearkenwold

Post by Dorateen »

March Update

I am trying to finish the conversion of Hearkenwold into the Knights o the Chalice 2 engine this month. I fully expect to be able to release the module in April. That means I plan to once again pick up with the continuation of the adventure in IceBlink. The party has been waiting a long time to meet the King, and they will finally have the opportunity to do so.

In the meantime, I have spent the past few weeks recreating the guild quests. One of the interesting distinctions between the two versions will be how membership into these Orders is recognized. In IceBlink, I added a journal entry for when the party completed a guild's mission, as well as granting a special trait to the appropriate class character. In KotC2, each character sheet has a tab for awards, and I used the function to assign an achievement for the guilds.

Image

Image

Here are a couple of battles that use different terrain features. The first has elevation on part of the map that represents a floor reached by stairs, where the enemy holds the higher ground. The second screenshot adds a couple of pit traps, and with the combat maneuver Bull Rush, it is possible to push the enemy into the pit, making them fall prone and take damage. It requires a lot of patience to get into position and of course the player must succeed the attempt, but it's very satisfying.

Image

Image

And here's is one more screenshot, just an interaction I enjoy for its adventure-y qualities. Always remember to pack a rope.

Image
Pongo
Posts: 156
Joined: Fri Jan 22, 2021 8:39 am

Re: Hearkenwold

Post by Pongo »

Good work Dorateen! Nice to see some KotC2 mods underway, it's a great engine with loads of potential. Have to admit to totally rage quitting the Augery of Chaos mod though, with various failed party compositions :). I'll try again at full release, it's a fun challenge.

Looking forward to giving Hearkenwold a go. The AI Pierre has developed is fantastic, it will be interesting to see what you make of it. Some challenging encounters I imagine! Of course, I'm keeping my dwarf party ready for the next Iceblink update as well.
User avatar
slowdive
Site Admin
Posts: 509
Joined: Wed Jan 15, 2020 4:37 am

Re: Hearkenwold

Post by slowdive »

Looks great! Ready in April sounds like a challenge, but I'm confident you can pull it off :D
Post Reply