Baldur's Gate III: The Black Hound, EoFF Ressurects It!

[Laddy]

Ok, I love the Baldur's Gate game, a great blend of RPG, strategy, and horror in a truly entertaining game. So, when BGIII was announced, I was up for joy in my 15 year-old self! But, it was canceled, and I was bummed. So, I've decided to make a fan-made BGIII. So, the story will start off when BGII ended, you decided to become a god, but gave it up. So, when it starts, you're in a forest, taking a stroll. Then, news has come, your former allies have been waiting foir you in your home, you start taking the trip back.

I will design the characters and story, mainly. Anybody who can actually put this into reality, please, a fand game would be great. Anyway, I've added some new stuff...

-No more really far away look, you can now zoom in on a face and say, wow, It's Valygar!

-End of identical characters, every character has a unique look.

-Combat is a bit more interactive, now you can set up complex traps, look for weaknesses, etc.

-Monks can be dual-classed with Fighter, Mage, Monk, and Cleric.

-Less race, class and alignment restrictions, you wanna be a Gnome Bard that's Chaotic Evil? Go ahead!

Now, the returining characters: Aerie, Valygar, Edwin, Minsc, Dynaheir (she was revived in Neverwinter Nights), and Jan.

For those who forgot alignments, here we go...

Lawful Good-These guys believe in doing good, but the law must be obeyed, even if bad comes from it...

Neutrel Good- These guys believe in doing good, even if it will bring them harm or against the law...

Chaotic Good- They are good doers, who try to do it alone, and sometimes out of ignorance or vanity.

Lawful Neutrel- They believe to obey the law, but there must be a balnace of good and evil

True Neutrel- Completely independent and believe in balance.

Chaotic Neutrel- They are independent, and take no bnotice of anyhting but the surrondings

Lawful Evil- They believe in law-abiding, and using the law for their own advancement.

Neutrel Evil- Standard evil, basically.

Chaotic Evil- Pure evil, such as serial killers of insane murderers.

Now, I've developed some characters to meet... (if you can develop potraits for them it'll be great)

R'Alise Sromgaht

Age:21
Gender:Male
Class:Monk/Thief
Race:Elf (Drow, remeber, they are detested!)
Alingment: Neutrel Good
Starting Equipment: Katana, leather pants, leather boots, leather jacket, leather bracers, leather hood
Personality: Kind and independent, cares for acceptence, but his possibly rash decisions usually seem opposite to that.

Breach Vail Eiraspah

Age:18
Gender:Female
Class:Mage
Race:Half-Elf
Alingnment:Lawful Evil
Starting Equipment:Entertainer's Clothes, dagger
Personality: Seen by her clothing, Breach Vail is sensual and very romantic. She's sexy, and annoying with her constant flirting. (Male Romance Option)

Jyrelo Haharto

Age:34
Gender:Male
Class: Druid
Race:Half-Orc
Alignment: True Neutrel
Starting Equipment: Chain Mail, Chain Greaves, Chain Shoes, Quarter Staff
Personality: Despite not looking like it, Jyrelo is actually kind and polite. Due to his horrible Orcish father, he became strong, and became a Druis for protecting nature.

Razz'l Zaihai

Age:26
Gender:Female
Class:Monk/Mage
Race:Gnome
Alignment: Lawful Neutrel
Starting Equipment: Shurikens, cloth armor, cloth greaves, cloth boots, cloth bracers, cloth gloves, cloth hood,
Personality: Quiet and angry, she's arrogant and selfish

Shiastao Daskai

Age:31
Gender:Male
Class:Fighter (can become a honorary rank of Samurai at some point)
Race:Human
Alignment:Lawful Good
Starting Equipment: Chain Greaves, Chain Boots, Katana, Medium Shield
Personality: Valiant and brave, but very powerful, he's strong and uses it for good.

Now I need some of these:

Programmers
Portrait Artists
Extra Character Creators
Writers
Gameplay Design

[Araciel]

first of all let me say you've done some very interesting work here and it's cool to see!

a couple of bits of information and critique for you

baldur's gate is based on dungeons and dragons rules...for better AND worse, and a lot of your improvements can be found in newer computer games based on D&D, such as neverwinter nights 2, it has already incorporated a lot of the elements you have suggested to improve the game.

that being said, baldur's gate was based on an older version of the game, the new rules or "ver. 3.5" allows for a lot more customization. you can, as you said before, mix alignments and races and classes however you want, with fewer restrictions...eg. a paladin still must be lawful good, etc.


combat has improved, you can set traps, have spellcasting and movement planned out better, etc.

unfortunately the vampire is already a monster template that adds a lot of character levels and turns the character evil, so it has not yet been incorporated into a computer game for that reason...this is not to say that it can't be done, of course!

if you want info on neverwinter nights, go to www.nwn2.com
and the D&D rules are here http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/whatisdnd

i suggest clicking the 'play the demo' version for a taste of what the tabletop combat is like at low levels

hope this has helped

[Laddy]

Oh duh, then here we go: no vampire, we now have.... Dugo Reisah! (dog people, tough and loyal, very kind and sympathetic) And, Vampires are of two species: Maicare and Filasho (Maicare is usually evil, but not always, same with Filasho, usually good, but not always.)

Some rules still play: A thief can't be lawful good or evil, ranger can't be evil, and druids can't be lawful, etc.

Also, for BG newbies, here's the races and classes:

Human-Balanced, they're very curious and confident.
Elf- Intelligent, they are quite loving of creativity and nature.
Half-Elf-Mix of human and elf
Dwarf-Strong, but very clumsy and greedy
Gnome-Foolish and sometimes insane, they're very into humor.
Halflings-Nimble, and very equal to humans in some ways.
Half-Orc-Mix of orc and human

Classes

Fighter
Mage
Cleric
Ranger
Paladin
Druid
Thief
Bard
Sorceror
Monk
Barbarian

Also, I made another character.

Natsam Chicyle

Age:25
Gender:Male
Class:Ranger
Race: Dugo Reisah
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Starting Equipment: Bow, Arrows, Spear, Studded leather armors: shirt, greaves, headband
Personality:Kind and loyal, very open-minded and brave, he's pretty no-nonsense, but kind of naive.

Also, the land is Shaihasha. A place with deserts, asian and arabic like areas, and some places from other areas, but these are more europeanlike.

Also, with character portraits, it must be like the age, race, class, and description. Also, I don't want an anime pic replacing some real art. I don't care what the style is, it just has to be made by the artist(s).

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Baldur's Gate takes place in Faerun, I suggest using Faerunian creatures as other races. Also, be careful with adding races because each race gives different bonuses and penalties and certain races shouldn't be stronger than others without hefty level adjustments.

Here, check this out: http://www.d20srd.org/indexes/monsters.htm

There are several monsters in here that can be used as races.

Also, classes, since if this is a new BG game it should be off the 3.5 rules like Icewind Dale 2 was (well, 3.0 at the time). These should be your classes:

http://www.d20srd.org/indexes/classes.htm

Class kits don't exist in 3.5 because instead you have skills and feats for further customization:

http://www.d20srd.org/indexes/skills.htm

http://www.d20srd.org/indexes/feats.htm

And, base races and their bonuses are here, as well as other basic rule stuff:

http://www.d20srd.org/indexes/basicsRacesDescription.htm

There are several other classes that exist in supplements, but they aren't OGL (Open Game License) so I can't link to anything that has it. If I do find it though, I'll throw it up.

[Araciel]

it sounds like you're putting a lot of work into this but there are a lot of things about the rules/world that can't be changed and at the same time be called baldur's gate.

the only alignment restrictions in place now, for example, are as follows...according to the D&D rules, i mean

Bard: non-lawful
Barbarian: non-lawful
Druid: first part of alignment must be neutral
Monk: first part of alignment must be lawful
Paladin: must be lawful good

all others can be of any alignment and take no penalty if it changes

EDIT- what yocko said too...also, vampire is a template that can be added to any humanoid (human, elf, etc.) or like creature...including giants and monstrous humanoids like minotaurs, etc

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

To corroborate what Araciel says, Faerun is perhaps the most fleshed-out D&D universe in existence. They have trees named in Waterdeep, to give you the level of the detail that's in it. Making new races is nice and all, and I'm pretty sure Faerun has some kind of race that fits the ones you made, but adding it would make it someplace other than Faerun, which is the essense of what Baldur's Gate is, a Faerun-centric game.

[Laddy]

Ah, I see. SO looks like I need to work on it a bit. Anyway, as far as I know, this is some area that is indeed located in Faerun. So, that's why some of these races are so different. So, do you have any race suggestions? Like, tell me the dog and cat pewoiple, if they do exist. And can I replace Vampire with Half-Vampire like you said?

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Half Vampire doesn't exist as a template. The Vampire Template is extraordinarily powerful, but then you die in sunlight, which is about 75% of the time in the game. Vampire is NOT a good PC template for main characters. Furthermore, Vampires cannot be ressurected, again making it not work at all.

As far as the dog and cat people, just due to the random things that exist I THINK they are in Faerun somewhere. I'll see if I can find a stat block link. It's entirely possible that they don't, though, and wouldn't fit the setting.

Oh, and Druids actually don't need to have the first part of their alignment be neutral (Neutral Good, True Neutral, Neutral Evil). In 3.5 they just need to have Neutral in their alignment somewhere.

Edit: Random luck! Cat person: http://www.sulerin.com/creatures/creatures.asp?op=open&a=20030415193201

I'm looking for more information, hold tight.

[Laddy]

Ah, so how about just Goblin? Anyway, anything that isn't against the 3.5 D+D rules is tossed!

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Goblins can be made to PCs fairly easily, as can Orcs and Kobolds.

There's also the Rakshasa which is a cat-person, but they're extremely powerful. I'm looking for Tabaxi stat blocks right now.

Edit: There's a discussion on catfolk in Faerun here: http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?goto=lastpost&t=601803

[Araciel]

well cat-people are an often lamented idea in dungeons and dragons circles...a lot of players of the pen and paper game find them laughable for some reason i can't comprehend. the closest thing i can think of to cat people in forgotten realms are rakshasas, but they are a nastily powerful monster race of evil, decadent fiends.

as for dog people, the closest thing i can think of there are the hound archons, which are celestial beings (basically angels) that have humanoid shape but the heads of dogs.

half vampires are all but unheard of as far as i've heard, though there are ways to work around that, the vampire spawn is comparitively weak to a true vampire, but then they are enthralled to their master and have their alignments changed to CE upon creation as well as far as i know. if you could find a plausible story-driven way to make a weaker vampire race, it could be done but once again it doesn't seem to jive with the source material (D&D core rules and forgotten realms lore)

EDIT that druid alignment thing messes with me...i used to be a DM so i should know! dangit too much info in D&D!!!

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

On a further search, I've only seen dogfolk in homebrew. Good call on the Hound Archon though, they do have rules for being playable in the Savage Species book, but they're too powerful for a standard PC race.

[Laddy]

Ok, so goblins? Anyway, if you can find a cat-person that'll be great!

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Check the site I mentioned. They talk about catfolk and where in D&D they'd come from. Again, not a lot of people seem to like them, but D&D seems to have entirely too many (insert random animal)folk already. Catfolk are particularily overdone. I do know that there's a stat block for the Lord of Cats in the Epic Level Handbook, who is a Faerun demigod, and I'm pretty sure there are indeed catfolk in Faerun as the thread I linked to suggests.

[Araciel]

yeah most of the monster class/race solutions in savage species are even too powerful to provide a balanced experience since most of their level-dependant benefits include changes to size, ability point increases, spell like abilities, etc.

the best way to incorporate catfolk into FR, as i don't think they exist as far as a basic, playable race, would be to create some cosmic or planar event in which the race migrated to the realms, as many of the others did in ancient history of the setting (elves, dwarves, etc never existed in the realms until they planeshifted or were brought by their respective gods)

i would simply make my own race, but if you don't know a lot about game balance in the 3.5 system, it's pretty hard to do. that and finding a place for these cat people would no doubt be difficult...imagine my small frustration when a player of mine once wanted to play an Avariel, or winged elf....they're supposed to be so rare that they're mythical beings IN a fantasy game hehehe

[Laddy]

Ok, I assign one of you to create a futuristic cat race from another dimension! Just put it simply, make them quick, but weak, for example. Then, we got this underway!

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

I really don't think putting in a cat race as playable is a good idea at all, but if you want one it's something like this:

Catfolk

* +2 dexterity, -2 strength. Catfolk are agile, but aren't very strong.
* Medium: As medium creatures, catfolk have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
* Catfolk base land speed is 30 feet
* Low-Light Vision: A catfolk can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. She retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
* +2 racial bonus on climb, hide, jump and move silently.
* Natural Weapons: Catfolk have two claw attacks, each of which deal 1d4 damage. The catfolk is considered both armed and proficient when attacking with these natural weapons. Claw attacks can be used in conjunction with weapon attacks as part of a full round attack action, and can count as both a light and off-hand weapon for cases of two-weapon fighting.
* Lethargic: Catfolk take a -2 penalty to all saves to resist sleep effects.

[Araciel]

thats a pretty good job!

of course you could tweak it in any number of ways, which people do all the time, there's no singular race of cat people...gr

man i remember the days of talking about D&D for hours on end...i'm gonna wander over to the wizards boards for a bit

[Laddy]

Ok, so here's the characters I decided to keep or I've edited:

R'Alise
Breach Vail
Razz'l
Shiastao

Anyway, here's two more characters:

Ludea Maxxorx

Age:36
Gender:Female
Class:Fighter
Race: Dwarf
Alignment: Neutel Evil
Starting Equipment: Bastard Sword, plate armor, helmet, plate boots, plate greaves
Personality: Quiet and very rude. She's arrogant and selfish. She's very racist of gnomes and catfolk, or as she calls, "Kitties."

Speaking of cat folk....

Cyle Baharlone

Age:26
Gender:Male
Class:Ranger
Race:Catfolk
Alignment:Chaotic Good
Starting Equipment: Bow, arrows, studded leather objects:hood, armor, greaves, boots, gloves
Personality: Loner, and very depressed, Very good friend for Valygar. (Female Romance Option)


And here's a goblin...

Cacato Muijo

Age:34
Gender:Male
Class:Fighter/Mage
Race:Goblin
Alignment:Chaotic Neutrel (Can become Chaotic Good or Evil)
Starting Equipment: Cloth armor, cloth boots, cloth greaves, Light Sword (Mother's Sword) Dark Sword (Father's Sword)
Personality: Confused with his alignment, Cacato is very bizarre and insane. He may say good or evil lines, because he lacks a decision about his path. He will become sane if placed under good or evil by the player, and his swords will become of that alignment. Also, his mother will be ressurected if he's good, and his father if he's evil.

[Ultima Shadow]

It would be really awesome if this project actually would be successful. I'm a big fan of the BG series as well, and was really excited about a 3th game. So yeah... :cool:

I don't have any experince in programming and stuff like that at all, but if you'd need some suggestions for dungeon-designs or whatever, I wouldn't mind helping out if possible. :greenie:

[Laddy]

Ok, how 'bout character designer or portrait artist?

[Ultima Shadow]

Ok, how 'bout character designer or portrait artist?I wouldn't mind character designer. :cool:

[Laddy]

Um, do you want to create both characters (race,gender,personality,etc.) AND create portraits for some of the characters?

[Laddy]

Ok, I must double post, anyway new jobs:

-Voice Actor

-Music Designer

Also, I plan to have these features...

- I plan to have 30 possible playable NPC's.
- 8 Party Members
- Relationship System, initiating freindship and love between playable characters and important characters that aren't playable.

Also, 8 new characters:

Drahk Stomhargue

Age:41
Gender: Male
Class: Barbarian
Race: Half-Orc
Alignment: Neutrel Evil
Personality: Mad and vengeant. He wants to avenge the death of his parents, and he can be reversed to True Neutrel and learn to stop avenging the dwarf who hates half-breeds.
Equipment: War Hammer, Chain, Chain Leggins, Chain Boots

Tuneless (Unknown Real Name)

Age:28
Gender: Male
Class: Bard
Race: Gnome
Alignment: Chaotic Good

Tuneless is bizarre and horrid as a musician. His nickname is Tuneless, but his real anme Majihoriadais. He can't sing, but isn't a bad warrior, he's ugly, but nice. Good friend for Jan.
Equipment: Short Sword, Leather, Leather Leggins, Leather Boots, Leather Gloves


Twit Groidain

Age: 35
Gender: Male
Class: Mage/Thief
Race: Halfling
Alignment: Lawful Good

Good and very valiant. He's a "steal for the poor" type. Not as vain as Nalia, and valiant. He has much inner demons, and is easily disliked by evil-doers.
Equipment: Lute, Shirt, Hat, Shoes, Pants/Trousers



Braziem Morey

Age: 23
Gender: Male
Class: Paladin/Fallen Paladin
Race: Half-Elf
Alignment: Lawful Good/Lawful Neutrel

Braziem is free spirited, but unwilling as a Paladin. He's unhappy, he constantly breaks rules, but he wants to be free. You can eventually find out he was forced to take this from his abusive father. He can be fallen in love with by female characters, and can quit the Order, and become a Fallen Paladin who's Lwaful Neutrel, but he'll be happier.
Equipment: Rapier, Buckler, Padded Formal Shirt, Padded Formal Pants, Padded Formal Boots

Hariamon Zunon

Age: 20
Gender: Female
Class: Cleric
Race: Human
Alignment: Chaotic Neutrel
Personality: Very kind and helpful, but slightly proud. She's independent and selfish, however.
Equipment: Mace, Mail Armor, Mail Leggins, Mail Boots, Small Shield


Kysahi Mokamura

Age:17
Gender: Female
Class: Thief
Race: Catfolk
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Personality: Very happy and independent, but homesick. She misses her planet and technology. She''s good, but somewhat sinful. Can fall in love with Valygar, Cyle, or Male Characters, Can have a romance square.
Starting Equipment: Bustier, Boots, Dagger

Eilieande Haikal

Age: 34
Gender: Female
Class: Sorceror
Race: Halfling
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Personality: Evil and insane. Very angry, and hates anything under Catfolk and Drow, like most keep it old fashioned people.
Equipment: Staff, Robe, Shoes

Dingar Froiskant

Age:48
Gender: Male
Class: Fighter
Race: Dwarf
Alignment: Neutrel Evil
Personality: Hates Drow, has purple marking on eye, really despising and hates everybody.
Equipment: Bastard Sword, Plate Armor, Plate Leggins, Plate Gauntlets, Plate Bracers, Plate Boots, Large Shield, Plate Helmet, Plate Belt


Now, get to work, people! Make some portraits! Create some gameplay, do something!

[Laddy]

Could I PLEASE get some people to help me? Come on we have jobs for people with voices! Also, here's my weekly update:

-I forgot the class Warlock, so Warlock! Warlocks MUST be any evil, chaotic neutral, or chaotic good.

-I made a warlock and a some guy.

Xerr Mycnum

Age:63
Gender:Male
Class: Warlock
Race: Half-Elf
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Personality: A rude man who believes he will finish his training and rule the world. He has yet to finish training. He's arrogant and very naive of other people's opinions, although he may be quite the pain, his skills in magic is unmatched.... for now.
Starting Equipment: Nothing! You find him in his skivies!


Sharal Bahasarm

Age: 88
Gender: Male
Class: Fighter/Mage/Thief
Race: Gnome
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Personality: Very bizarre and very insane. He's a faded ally, and is now a very wandering soul. He can do a lot, but masters none, he's insane and has lost his touch.
Equipment: Mace, Mace, Studded Leather, Pants, Shoes,


Also, I will allow one more measly cameo: Kivan and Mazzy. Ok, that's two, but I'm done creating characters, I will accept about.... 15 or so more characters. Also, here's the beginning:

AN intro movie shows what you've done the last few months, and it shows you in a forest. You walk around and witness the Catfolk appear, you wonder what happened, and report to a nearby village. THis is where you can find Cyle and outside is Jyrelo. From here on, you can be pretty open-ended.

Also, here's some new jobs:

-Enviroment Designer
-Quest Desginer
-Interface Designer
-Yet more programmers.

Now, get to work! I don't need anyone in particular, just somebody who wants a job, no previous BG experience required!

Here's the character quests for Brech Vail and R'Alise

Brech Vail

Romance- Just be nice to her and follow her perverted ways.

The Master Seductress- Brech Vail always wanted to be the annual Master Seductress. The seductress is a celebrity, who models and becomes a dream for men everywhere, she occasionally perfroms with singing and such, have her anger the current one, and have her sexiness become public, sign her as a candidate, and she wins the title!

Dumping- Her lover is cheating on her, so she'd like to kill him. Go to his house, and kill this Orc barbarian.

R'Alise


Former Friends- His past friend is dead, he wants to get to the bottom line of the crime. It turns out his very good friend killed himself.

Dying Wish- Fill out R'Alise's wish by finding his father, which is living in a small village somewhere.

[Laddy]

WEEKLY UPDATE! The update..........

:( A....quest. Yeah, I'm alone, one developer army, so I sad. I could use someone's VOICE for crying out loud! Help me! :'( I'm sad, I need helpers! Anyway, the quest:

Crimson Blood

If you have a catfolk in your group, a cool disequest ensures. You are attacked by tons of weird people over and over and over. THis triggers your cat person to become angry. However, once you kill the last wave of assasains, you find out a cool hint: The Catfolk's technology is being held under a building. You have the option to tell the police, which is really mean and offesnive to the catfolk, but you can hide the technology, use the technology, or send the technology back, here's ceratin Catfolk's opinions:

Cyle- Give back the technology.
Kyashi-Use the technologyt.

Every catfolk will have a different opion, making this an interesting quest, despite lowering your rep for killing tons of guards, but it's only 2 pts.

[Ender]

If you're serious about the game, I suggest getting ahold of the Dungeons and Dragons material that it's based on.

Player's Handbook
Dungeon Master's Guide
Monster Manual

These are the three core rulebooks, and they're basically an absolute must as they define the stats for classes, weapons, armor, monsters, etc. etc. etc. that the games are based on. You can pick up the complete set for $60 or so. Alternatively, if you are dead-set on re-using the older rules as opposed to the newer 3.5 rules, you should get your hands on those earlier rulebooks.

Pick up the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting book. It contains summaries, timelines, statistics, and important people and places for the entire world in which the Baldur's Gate games take place.

At the very least anyone seriously putting together a fan-made BGIII needs the core rulebooks and the FRCS. If you want to make it good you need substantially more, including more specific books about Faerun's regions, advanced monsters, gods and avatars, etc. If you want to do some planar exploration or use characters from other planes you'll want the planar handbooks, and possibly a deal of information from the Planescape setting.

I'd also suggest reading a number of Forgotten Realms novels for a look at the people and places involved in the Baldur's Gate games. The Avatar cycle: Shadowdale, Tantras, Waterdeep, and the two later ones about Cyric are important to read because they tell the story of the Time of Troubles including detailing Bhaal's death and the people and places involved. Many other FR novels give looks in at Baldur's Gate, Waterdeep, Amn, Calimshan, etc.

Without doing the research beyond just playing the Baldur's Gate (or the few other Bioware) games you might as well not start. Without staying true to the setting, even if the game contains many immensely cool aspects, you'll get wide unacceptance from people who take the BG games and the FR world as "living" storyworlds and not just games.

At any rate, putting together a good story and doing art and music are going to be your biggest challenges. Once you find them a few skilled computer science majors with some spare time, the appropriate software and hardware, and an interest in programming games can build you a game engine IF you can tell them exactly what you want to accomplish (the rulebooks are invaluable here, as they basically lay out how every stat can be incorporated into most typical player actions). I'm not sure, but you may even be able to use the Infinity Engine that BG and BG2 used if you can get ahold of the myriad of editing/hacking programs you need. Alternatively, you may just want to mod NWN2 if it is versatile enough to do most of what you want to accomplish.

I also recommend going around to other fan-made game projects on the net and gathering information on how they approached their projects, where they encountered difficulty, what file formats they used, etc. Hero6 (http://www.hero6.com/new/index.php) is one I spent some time with myself many years back, but there are many others out there.

Finally, anyone can think up some ideas for a story, lay out some characters, sidequests, etc. This is done by thousands of people every day. If you're serious, you really need to take it upon yourself, or you and one or two other people, to be a Project Manager/Director. Determine your vision for every aspect of the game, right down to storyboarding the movie sequences, and then go find the people that can make it happen. Letting a bunch of people into every aspect, or too many aspects, of the decision-making process assures that your game will take the better half of a decade to get made.

If this sounds like a full-time job, that's because it is. An rpg of playable quality is not something that people generally accomplish in their free time...that's why people get paid to do it. This is doubly true for a game like those in the Baldur's Gate series...to maintain anything close to the level of quality you have to maintain the amount of work and information gathering that Bioware/Black Isle put into the games when they made them.

Anyway, I don't mean to discourage you. I'd rather somebody with serious interest know what they're getting into. People with real experience (that doesn't mean scribbling your plot, some character info, and a few game features on the back of a napkin) in making games, particularly true gamers, can only mean better games for all of us in the future, so I wholeheartedly encourage it.

As a final suggestion:

Lay out the entire framework of your story.

Who is the main character?
Who is the main villain?
What is the villain's motive?
What is the main character's motive to stop him?
What locations (in the broad sense) will the player be traveling to?
At each point of the story, what drives the plot forward?

Top down rather than bottom up. Take some time off from the classes/races and related sidequests and develop a cohesive story. Then go back and fill in.

Here's the example from BG1. Until you have the story laid out and "set in stone" you don't really have anything but "some scribbles on the back of a napkin."

Baldur's Gate SPOILERS:

Main character: Child of Bhaal, the Lord of Murder

Main villain: Sarevok, another child of Bhaal, by a different mother

Villain's motive: Sarevok wishes to claim his "birthright" and become the new Lord of Murder. He hopes to accomplish this by causing death on a large a scale as possible.

Main character's motive: Discovering his heritage, avenging the death of his foster father, and in the process foiling the plot to bring war and chaos to the region.

Locations: Candlekeep - your home and starting point; Beregost - the town caught in the middle of a potential conflict between the great region of Amn and the city of Baldur's Gate; Nashkel - frontier mining town under Amnish control, source of bad iron plaguing the BG regioin; Bandit Camp - hidden camp of the bandits destroying commerce in the region; The Cloakwood - large forest with a secret mining project working for the benefit of the Iron Throne; Baldur's Gate - seat of government for the region, under control of "the Dukes", kept secure by the Flaming Fist mercenary security force, Iron Throne trying to grab power by being sole provider of good iron to the city.

Plot points: Forced to leave Candlekeep by your foster father Gorion-> Gorion's murder leads you to seek help from his friends->iron shortage/plague and bandits causing unrest in the region and his friends want you to investigate->discovering source of the iron problems leads you to conclude that the bandits and the iron problems are being directed behind the scenes by somebody with a larger plan->investigation of the bandit camp leads you to The Cloakwood where the Iron Throne is mining good iron to sell for their own profit->Iron Throne is trying to consolidate power in the city of Baldur's Gate and the bandits and iron shortage were part of that plan->you are framed when you infiltrate the Iron Throne meeting at Candlekeep after the heads of the organization are slaughtered->Sarevok operated behind the scenes to use the Iron Throne to grab power in the city and launch a war on Amn->Sarevok is your half-brother and wants to cause war and chaos to ascend to divinity.

[Laddy]

Ok, so this seems hard, :(. Man, I'm stuck, but I guess I'll make the story thing...

Main Character: Child of Bhaal, rejected power to live a simple life.

Main Villian and Motive: A group of ultra-powerful warriors who plan to destroy you and every connection to you.

Hero's Motive: To protect him/her and all person connected them safe and to find out the origin of the catfolk, these warriors and wizards, and to fiund out why they are out for him/her.

Locations: Not sure yet, workin' on it! :D

Plot Points: See above.

About the rules, I'm clueless, I need help and some support. :( If someone could give me a link to the entire rules, thay would be collioest!


EDIT: You know what, Ender? I don't have $60, I'm Christmas shopping, I don't want to read seven books, and I don't like it when you come in and give me a huge lesson on D+D, I know you didn't mean to be rude, but coming in from nowhere and telling me I can't play something because I don't know the material it's based on is just kinda, :'(. So, I'm not insulting you, but I reassume my role as project leader, I will NOT read $60 worth of books, if you need to give me D+D info, be a bit more polite and don't tell me what I need to do, as you can tell, nobody has really helped me other than the fine people up top and down low, so if you want to give me an argument, PM me, if you don't and are trying to help, PM me anyway, but I started this project, I lead it up to here, and I will assume the leader, so yeah, I will follow D+D 3.5 rules, yeah I don't know exactly what the planes are, but I WILL tell you this, Baldur's Gate is based on D+D rules, and anybody can use it, not just D+D experts, if that did apply, then I would probably be sued by now, and you may not have been trying to be rude, but I surely took it that way, Ender, and coming and destroying my fan project and basically telling me to become a D+D buff is not cool, so no, you aren't goping to lead this project, somebody else, will, Araciel, will you be my D+D source and project leader? Why? Because you didn't come in and tell me how to be who, you gave me what I needed, and you gave it to me well. SO I accpet you as project leader!

P.S. Ender, I'm not trying to be rude, but I took you as rude, so that gives me the idea that having you lead isn't a good idea, so Araciel, accept this job as Project Leader, may your D+D knowledge and good idea of leading the D+D naive become great one day in EoFF fan projhect history, my friend!!!

[Psychokitty]

Drake Yashomerue


Age: 16
Gender: Male
Class: fighter/druid
Race: tiefling
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Personality: Loves to fight, but is really nice for a demon. He also is on a quest to find true love, and get as much money as possible.
Equipment: golden sword, black boots, torn up black shirt, and torn up black pants.
Background: Borm a lowlife whos parents are both dead. He hates the people who killed his parents, and destroyed his home. He loves no one yet, but hopes to soon.

[Laddy]

Not too bad, but here's osm eflwas I sense,

1) There is no half-human half-demon, you CAN be a tiefling though!

2)Personality isn't deep enough, give some back story!

3)It's not called "Warrior" but it's alright, I AM a perfectionist so it's nothing personal!

Anyway, I'll show you the classes and races you want to help!

Fighter-Main fighter, can be improved by dual-classing
Mage-offensive magician and masters many types of mage types
Cleric-healer and undead combatant
Druid-Both offensive and defensive spellcaster
Paladin- healer and fighter, must be lawful good
Ranger- can learn a spell or two, good with bows and such
Monk- unarmed fighter, quick and deadly
Sorceror- spellcaster with different spell types
Thief-deals with locks, traps, and quick fighting
Bard- musician, and jack-of-all-trades
Barbarian- ultra fighter, but lacks everything mental
Warlock- magic user of death

Here's some alignment-class rules,

Paladins must be lawful good
Druids must have neutral in somewhere, like neutral good and such
Monks must have lawful in alignment
Warlocks must be evil or have chaotic in name

other than that, any class can be any alignment! :D

Here are our races:

Human, jack-of-all-trades
Elf, good spellcaster and very smart
Dwarf, strong but not agile, good warriors (they are NOT any dumber than humans!)
Half-Elf, mix of human and elf
Gnome, good with magic and other stuff
Halflings, good thieves, very close to humans
Half-Orcs, mix of human and orc, very strong
Goblins, short but full of heart and thievery :D
Catfolk, agile and athletic, but lacks muscle

Certain race have certain interests, whilw you can't be a tiefling, you can meet some, could someone good with D+D help? Since I only write and create characters, I need help.

Oh, and races do not follow certain alignments, they can be any.

If I came off as rude, I wasn't just giving what very little I know out at ya! :D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:)

[Laddy]

Ah, edited your post, cool! Alright, you can create aout 15 or so more characters. :D

[Psychokitty]

Sasha Song

Age: 14
Gender: Female
Class: Fighter
Race: human
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Personality: Kind loving, and hates to fight. She dosn't know which side to choose
Equipment: white boxing gloves, white dress, white shoes.
Background: Born a princess, but hated it, so she ran away. She loves everything, and hates nothing, but rasions. ((LOL))

[Laddy]

UPDATE: I still need somebody with D+D knowledge to head the project, here's what I'm looking for:

-Somebody who can lead a group.

-Somebody who approves creativity.

-D+D knowledge

-Somebody who is familiar Baldur's Gate's style.

I have decided, the location will be both Amn and the Sword Coast, both will be accesible. I have decided I will start the game in the wilderness in the mountains of Amn and The Sword Coast. :D:D:D:D:D



Furthermore, I guess a mod for NWN 2 will have to do. Since I'm no longer project leader, that can change.

[Psychokitty]

I can lead a group, and Accept creativity!!! :p

[Laddy]

Do you know the 3.5 D+D rules backwards and front?

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

If you need help with the D&D 3.5 rules, just ask me, I am not the leading authority but I definitely know my way around the PHB.

The problem with using it for BG is that the Faerun setting is so damnably exact, and I don't own (nor do I intend to own) any sourcebooks for it.

[Laddy]

We have a source!!! Um... now what?

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Go here and read up: http://www.d20srd.org/index.htm

[Laddy]

By reading of the 5 minutes I have, I've learned something valuable: I was messing up races' ages, so, I guess that's in human years.

[Araciel]

i can help with D&D source material...i have a lot of 3.5 books and a lot of FR stuff...i've been playing since the days of 2nd edition forgotten realms...read many of the novels, etc.

it's just difficult to help without railroading you and trying to change everything since i'm a crappy/aspiring writer

[Laddy]

Sorry, I was installing FFXI, and I still am. :) Ok, Araciel will lead project, Behold The Void will be second project leader. :D I am character generator and writer, while demon cloud striff also generates. So, we still have plenty of jobs for those who interested.

[Araciel]

wait what...lead?

i want the cushiest job that pays the most :D

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

I'm willing to pop in and help but I have way too many of my own projects to devote any significant time to this, especially as it doesn't appear to have any person in charge of the actual technical part of making the game/mods for it.

[Laddy]

Araciel will lead, and Behold the Void will just give ideas and stuff, basically you both are D+D sources and throw out or in ideas. That'[s about it.

[Araciel]

why's the game called the black hound?? does it feature kezef the chaos hound?? oooooo

[Laddy]

I dunno, it was original subtitle until the game was canceled, so I crafted it to be the assasain group that wants to kill you and your pals... Anyway, does that sound like a good plot?

[Araciel]

well there's a couple of things you should know

there are already many faerunian thieves guilds and a couple of groups of assassins...to introduce something new is kinda pointless unless it's completely different from those that exist.

also, the underlying plot is a group of assassins is hunting the party...why are they doing so? is there a contract out on the party or does the guild just want them dead?

[Laddy]

-It's like, ubersecret and it's completely different.

-They know you are the Child of Bhaal, and they think you try to be murderous against Faerun. So, it's a HUGE misunderstanding.

[Araciel]

so they're...good assassins?? or are they afraid of you taking all the business?

[Laddy]

They are bizarre insane people, but morally good people. And you get to spare their lives or kill them all.

[Araciel]

oh. ok.

i would make it about kezef hehe

[Laddy]

Who's Kezef???

[Araciel]

an extra planar being who kills the faithful after they die and are on their way to the afterlife...he's really scary

[Laddy]

Okay, he's involved somehow, I don't how, but he will be!

[Araciel]

i think his CR in 3.5 is something like 22 but i thought it would be higher...i'll try to find his stats

edit : best i could find in five minutes

Kezef the Chaos Hound

Huge Outsider (Evil, Chaotic, Extraplanar)

Source(s): Champions of Ruin
Also Known As: Ravager of Heavens
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Climate/Terrain: Any
Organization: Solitary
Rarity: Unique
Challenge Rating: 21

a putrid creature made of pure hatred which roams the outer Planes and eats the souls of the faithful before they can reunite with their gods. Thought to be created by the god Jergal to deny other gods the souls of their followers. It is a mastiff of rotted flesh, whose exposed black bones are covered with maggots.

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Kezef would make a good BBEG (Big Bad Evil Guy), he's got a low-epic CR.

The thing to remember with making a Baldur's Gate game is you need to leave pretty much all your creativity at the door. You're working with Faerun, and if you aren't completely accurate to Faerun, you're going to piss off a lot of people.

This, consequently, is why I don't play D&D in Faerun. Greyhawk is much more malleable, albeit wholly unsupported.

[Laddy]

Yeah, that is where you come in. So.... when do we actually start planning? If someone else will erite will be okay since they have a better picture of D+D, I'll attend another duty.

[Araciel]

yeah the campaigns pretty much write themselves, since there's so much source material that you're often FORCED to draw from, or you'll be stoned by the fanboys

it's great for a player or lazy dm...when i used to DM i would have players help me make the world..sometimes it was disastrous but it was a lot of fun...

i wanted to get into game design but i'd just want to be on the concept/storyline side...so i gave up hehehe

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

I can work with Faerun to moderate effectiveness. I've only really read the Drizzt novels and a few of the ones dealing with the Time of Troubles and the Ascension of Midnight and Cyric, but I have at least some kind of a grasp of how the world works.

The major question here is what, exactly, the characters are going to be. If it's supposed to be a jumping-off point from Throne of Bhaal, then the characters should start pretty high epic already, which complicates things a lot.

[Laddy]

Araciel, do you want to write? :D:D:D:D:D Come on, I can write, but I lack D&D knowledge, so I will also design portraits for NPC's, so expect pics ultra soon!

High Epic, what's that?

[Araciel]

faerun is very easy for a dm to work with...a good way to go with a CRPG is to make the player or party special in some way...

it seems to me that throne of bhaal was supposed to be the end of the series, and to make it a true sequel, you'll have to stick with the bhaalspawn thing...

i would want to start fresh because it's easy...

you could do a prequel or a sidestory that happens at the same time as one or both of the other games, but they couldn't be as epic in story

[Laddy]

Yeah, Bhaalspwan.... I like it, so, hmmm..... what do you suggest?

[Araciel]

yeah you might like it...but it's hard to make a sequel based on a climactic event...also you have to make the decision whether or not the throne was destroyed... i never understood how Ao would allow that to happen but i didn't write the first two games

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

High Epic is the level of the gods and abominations.

I can actually write fairly well, but I lack knowledge of the setting. If Araciel wants, I can definitely contribute to a plot.

[Araciel]

i definatly wouldn't mind making a whole new plot and working in the title

[Laddy]

Okay,

Araciel-Will write and will control the plot.

BTV-Helps adds knowledge and ideas, also messes with major conversing.

Me- I will add plot suggestions and will be in charge of NPC opionions and how they will affect the plot.

Araciel, as main writer and leader, will be over us all and can accept or reject suggestions.

:D

[Araciel]

so much responsibility...it's like it's becoming my project
but it sounds like fun and i have no D&D going on in my life right now so i'll bite...be warned i might get fervently dedicated

[Laddy]

It is now on, YOUR project. Dedication will only help with our success.

[Araciel]

okay well to start off i have a seed of an idea to get it rolling anyway...to explain why the character has to start out at 1st level...it's kinda' cliche in a way but i'm thinking reincarnation, to protect from the jaws of kezef...you are the bhaalspawn who ascended or destroyed the throne, but i still have yet to think of which to choose, new bhaal or cosmic unbalance/other god keeping the profile of murder

[Laddy]

Sarevok as Bhaal? I dunno, anyway, I think a new Bhall would be good, Sarevok could be good or evil, it's your choice really, but I like a good Sarevok.

[Araciel]

a good god of murder makes no sense to me...maybe sarevok ascended and found out about kezef...tried to use the hound and ended up getting eaten and now the dog is a godling who is searching other bhaalspawn to increase his power somehow...but then that doesn't sound too good either

[Laddy]

I se both points well taken.... hmm..... :( I guess I will be the god of murder! MUHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Araciel]

ok how about this...the player destroyed the throne but now the portfolio of murder is left out in the cold...this causes a great unbalance in the world and the character is killed somehow...on his/her way to the afterlife, he/she is accosted by the beast and chased to (random plane) where she encounters a god/celestial being who offers an escape from the beast...but the god has some ulterior motive and/or isn't who he/she says they are....the character gets reborn and the game starts

[Laddy]

Aye, that deserves a Pulitzer Prize! :D

[Araciel]

well it's a desperate attempt at best...but thanks!

[Laddy]

Okay, then from then on, what do you do? Where do we start? !:O!

[Araciel]

okay well i'm thinking of using the kir-lanans because they're cool and seem to go along with this plot of gods dying and moving around, etc. but the game can start anywhere...either something small and simple or a big city, a dungeon...don't know...how about a ship going down the sword coast to waterdeep...always a good place to start

[Laddy]

Ah, seems about right and well placed. First, this is a well thought out beginning and make nearly sese, keep it up!

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Actually, I've an idea. How about an entirely new character? With the Throne of Bhaal destroyed and the Portfolio gone, Ao marks a mortal, perhaps a Bhaalspawn, perhaps not, and they start making the journey. The player has the choice of accepting their fell calling or not.

[Araciel]

that actually strikes me as a better idea.

the simpler the better, and this adds a lot of chance for open avenues for the story

also something that always bothers me about CRPGs, though i totally understand the limitations, is that good or evil, you have to follow the same storyline...once again, i know it's a difficult hill to climb, but how about a game whose storyline truly changes based on the choices your character makes?

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Well, the concept I just presented allows for just that, whether to embrace or deny the nature that has been instilled in you. More paths simply means more work both in writing and programming, and this doesn't even have a programmer yet so the less work the better.

[Laddy]

Okay, a new character seem okay... this time we'll have two groups: One programs them evil part, the other good. Neutral is a mix of both. Wait, nevermind. So, new character idea, sounds cool.

[Ender]

Just some brainstorming...

You shouldn't forget Cyric, who "officially" holds Bhaal's portfolio. He's a cool, cunning, crazy villain whose followers could be worked into the story as he, perhaps, tries to reclaim what he "lost" in the mess caused by ToB.

A battle royale over the portfolio...Cyric (and his earthly allies), a small cult devoted to Bhaal, Bhaalspawn, or even the main character from BG1/2/ToB, and the main character of this game who has been "chosen" by Ao to inherit it. Bane would probably love to claim it as well, maybe acting through the Zhentarim. Heck, throw in the Harpers, possibly the Shadovar, and any other group that could have knowledge that the portfolio is "available" and would have a reason to claim it (or prevent somebody else from claiming it).

At the beginning none, or perhaps a select few (maybe tipped off by a few gods "in the know"), know exactly who this mortal Ao chose is, but as the game progresses more find out, and come out of the woodwork as mentors, friends, or allies, but many having their own designs on achieving divinity. As Behold the Void stated, your character can choose to embrace his/her bestowed nature or deny it, but either way the forces now converging have to go through you to get what they want. Even if you deny your nature you've got the "When somebody shoots at you...you shoot back" thing going on. Even worse is that the amount of damage these forces could cause if it comes to direct confrontation between them would make the havoc the Bhaalspawn caused in Amn and Tethyr look like children playing in a sand box.

Those are just some broader plot thoughts. Take or leave what you will.

As for what I'd definitely like to see:

Boareskyr Bridge, the site where Cyric killed Bhaal with Godsbane/Mask. This is one of the major events that got the storyline of the games rolling, so it's only fitting that we would see it at some point.

Here's a map of Faerun (http://culhaven.opencg.org/dnd/campaign/images/faerun.jpg) (Warning...it's huge!)

If everything were to take place on a single "campaign" map you could even fit Darkhold in there without stretching too much, which would totally rock. Scornubel, the trading city along the East/West caravan routes from Cormyr, Sembia, and the Dragon Coast to the Sword Coast/Waterdeep/etc. has almost 80,000 inhabitants during the summer tradings season (compared to BG's 40,000 permanent inhabitants and Athkatla's 120,000) and could function as your main city...particulary because as a trading city you can facilitate the movement of information and your game's non-playables through there. There are two major forests and several small mountain ranges that come into play to vary the topography, plus marshland and a number of smaller towns.

The BG1/2/ToB Bhaalspawn's friend(s). They're too powerful to be playable characters IMO, but you need one or two in the game to pass along direct information from the earlier games. Plus they're bound to have some advice and an opinion or two as to whom you should trust or side with. They also make good pawns for the other player(s) in the story to force you or others into action.

Other Adventuring Parties. BG2 did this to an extent (I suppose BG1 had the Gorpel Hind and their adversaries), there were a number of adventuring parties in Athkatla, but the interaction almost immediately devolved into battle. The nature of Faerun is that there are adventuring parties all over the place. Some are friendly, some not. Some out to do good, others out for greed. You should be able to interact with them in more ways than just them getting ticked off at you and then fighting or sitting in a tavern and sharing a story. I'm not a fan of "timed" game events, but making it a story point that an adventuring party got to something or someone before you, or arrives to steal your glory and/or treasure, adds flavor.

[Laddy]

Wow, Ender that's some good work! I like the adventuring idea, the Bhaalspwan is just fantastic, and I like the location. I love how you set that up, and I can't wait to get this going!

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Oh, and since it's Faerun, Elminster has to show up and meddle in things somehow. Because that's what he DOES.

[Laddy]

Okay, I realized I'm not an artist, so portrait designer is stupid of me. :p

EDIT: I also surfed the net, and they are indeed not giving up on PC Baldur's Gates! :D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

[Araciel]

Oh, and since it's Faerun, Elminster has to show up and meddle in things somehow. Because that's what he DOES.

too bad we couldn't put it at a time where elminster is in hell or something

[Laddy]

I really hope somebosy will come in and help us dedicated few, if somebody knows of someone, give them a shout.

[Araciel]

yeah we have lots of idea people but no one to actually make it happen

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Elminster has "Teleport to the aid of a random Faerunian 1st level party in need of help and/or sage guidance from anywhere on any plane at any time" as a class ability. Or personal ability. It might've come with one of the twenty thousand templates he's acquired over the years. No mere thing like Hell will stop him from popping up.

[Araciel]

hahaha yeah this is true...though whenever we play, we leave the NPCs out of it as much as possible...cameos at best...

anyway, there was actually a book entitled elminster in hell, and during the time when the city of shade reappeared, i think they witnessed him being torn out of faerun...been a while since i read those books....took him a while to get back

any of the chosen showing up is just a bit too deus for me, even if it's just to slap somoene in the face

but you have to have some iconic FR characters show up and with a plot as epic as this, the sage of shadowdale is quite likely to poke his hairy nose in

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Plus Drizzt needs to make an appearance to satisfy the collective fanboys :)

But yeah, I've always been a firm advocate of sending Elminster to Ravenloft.

[Laddy]

? What the.....? Ah, um.... okay I give up, what are you talking about?

[Ender]

Roll Call (Identify Yourselves):

Do you sketch or draw (more than just casually)?
Do you have experience with creating art on the computer?
What programming languages can you write simple programs in?
Have you worked with creating or editing sound or music files?
Do you play DnD tabletop games or own DnD and/or Forgotten Realms sourcebooks?
How would you describe your knowledge about the Forgotten Realms setting?
Do you have people in mind you could recruit to work on various aspects of the game?

I'm curious to see what exactly we have here to work with,

ALSO: If this is really a go do you want to find a free forum somewhere so that this isn't clogging up this one with BG3 posts? (I vote yes)

Anyway, here are my answers:

Do you sketch or draw (more than just casually)? YES, better than most people, but I don't consider myself an artist by any means.
Do you have experience with creating art on the computer? YES, mostly photoshop and window's paint. I have done some simple graphical editing of game files for various games.
What programming languages can you write at least simple programs in? C++
Have you worked with creating or editing sound or music files? NO
Do you play DnD tabletop games or own DnD and/or Forgotten Realms sourcebooks? I don't play DnD, but I do own probably over half of the 3.0/3.5 edition books for the Forgotten Realms setting.
How would you describe your knowledge about the Forgotten Realms setting? Decent general knowledge of people, geography, and history, and obviously have a lot of info on hand, but I'm not an expert by any means.
Do you have people in mind you could recruit to work on various aspects of the game? Unfortunately no.

[Laddy]

Q. 1) I'm okay, logos and stuff, but other than that, I suck.
Q. 2) No, not really. I Microsoft Paint and that's it.
Q. 3) None, so F------------------.
Q. 4) No, yet again.
Q. 5) None at all. as you can tell.
Q. 6) Other than some computer and video games, none at all.
Q. 7) Many people on this site can write and draw, but I've asked some and they don't want to.

Okay, it may seem like I'm useless, but I will inform you, if I had D&D knowledge, I would most certainly write.

Also, I might answer another question.

Do you have an appealing voice for a PC RPG?) No, my voice is high-pitched.

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

Do you sketch or draw (more than just casually)? No
Do you have experience with creating art on the computer? No
What programming languages can you write simple programs in? None
Have you worked with creating or editing sound or music files? None
Do you play DnD tabletop games or own DnD and/or Forgotten Realms sourcebooks? Yes I play D&D 3.5, no I do not own Forgotten Realms sourcebooks.
How would you describe your knowledge about the Forgotten Realms setting? Fair.
Do you have people in mind you could recruit to work on various aspects of the game? Nope.

[Laddy]

What we need is somebody who could at least give a tech demo or something. Like a character walking or such.

[Ender]

What we need is somebody who could at least give a tech demo or something. Like a character walking or such.

Red, what did you have in mind for the type of graphical look/engine? 3D or the top-down 2D isometric view of BG1 and BG2?

There is a group of people building what amounts to an emulation of the Infinity Engine that BG1 and BG2 (as well as the Icewind Dale games and Planescape:Torment) ran on. As far as I can tell they've done a lot of work, but I have no idea as to exactly how far they've gotten or how customizable it will be. If you are interested in going for the BG1/2 look/feel, you should contact them:

http://gemrb.sourceforge.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=FAQ&file=index&myfaq=yes&id_cat=3

Let them know you are heading a project to make a fan-based sequel to BG1 and 2 and ask them as to the status of their emulator, if it's ready for use with new/original content, what they still hope to get done with it and in what time frame, etc. You can also ask if anyone involved in that project would be interested in help with the programming/implimentation of this game, since they will know the engine best.

Another option would be to talk to people who own NWN2 about the scenario creation tools. If it is possible to create your own original characters, buildings, monsters, races, classes, etc. (both statistically and graphically), you may want to consider it. You would get the benefit of an engine that already has a lot of the DnD rules, plus the animations, graphical display, the combat engine, etc. built into it. On the downside, this would at best be considered a (albeit good) fan-made scenario for NWN2.

There may be other options for pre-built engines that you could use based on other similar RPGs. You may want to see what's out there. If you can get your hands on something that's already programmed and highly customizable, which requires you to upload the character sprites, GUI (the graphical user interface), backgrounds, etc., then things become significantly easier. Then it becomes a matter of creating the graphical and musical content, punching in stat info, and scripting the dialogue and game events.

The last option of course is to build the game engine from the bottom up. It's the ideal option if you have, or can get together, the people to do it, simply because in the end it'll be more rewarding for the people involved and because you'll be able to get exactly what you want within the bounds of the programmers' ability. Unfortunately, it looks like none of the people presently involved have anywhere near the ability to pull this off. That means some of us are either going to have to teach ourselves how to program, or you need to recruit more people (you'll need to do that anyway). There are plenty of websites devoted to game development. Find forums regarding game development and post a "Help Wanted" request for anyone interested in programming RPG game and graphics engines. There are almost certainly a number of people out there who are building their own game engines that if you approach them with a clear vision of what you want and give them some direction they could make this a lot easier.

[Laddy]

I want to build a custom engine. It's a daring task, but that's my preference, concerning this, I think Araciel should answer it.

[Ender]

I created an ez-board for game discussion if you're interested.

It's currently private and you'll need an ezboard membership.

The title is:

EoFF Baldur's Gate 3 Project

Here's the link:

http://p068.ezboard.com/beoffbaldursgate3project

The password is:

leolives

I haven't done this before, so I'm not sure if/how it will work. I will be out of town for the Christmas holiday, so if you can't get on, don't sweat it, carry on here or wherever. That also means that the board will temporarily be without admins or mods (You guys can take control of the board as needed after I clear who gets what duties with RedXIII13) so behave yourselves.

Invite who you need to for the purposes of the project, but don't bring people over just to "hang out."

If the project takes off I'll look to moving it to a better hosting service.

[Laddy]

Ah, I got it, I will see you there.

[Laddy]

I will like to add if this is to be discussed further, the link is where you will go!