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This is a tutorial on how to get multiple mods to work with the Main Campaign

Disclaimer: This is for mods that modify existing items/characters only: We don't know enough yet to know whether other things can be modded safely into the campaign)

There are several mods that modify existing items located within the Main campaign. They do so by over-writing an item's 'RootTemplate', which describes everything that the item is capable of doing. For the sake of this tutorial, I will refer to these as RootTemplate mods.

As it is right now (v 1.0.57), only one RootTemplate mod can affect the Main Campaign. If you tried to use both of my mods, the Infinite Use Skillbooks mod and the Unbreakable Lockpicks one, then at least one of them would fail to work.

Moreover, the game is set up to only allow new mods to take effect on new-games; old saves are locked into the mods they start out with.

This tutorial describes how you can get around these restrictions, and use multiple RootTemplate mods together as well as show how they can be installed or uninstalled safely on any game-save.

First, to get multiple RootTemplate mods working together. This is fairly straightforward; all of the different RootTemplate files located within the mods just need to be located within a single mod/place.

I have uploaded an empty mod here:
Download Link
Without any other changes, this mod does absolutely nothing different when activated.

However, if I put in the EnhancedSkillbooks.lsb from my Infinite Use Skillbooks mod and the Tools.lsb from my Unbreakable Lockpicks mod into the Divinity - Original Sin\Data\Public\Modified_Main_9b125d2b-c4a0-4107-bd38-d0d6bdbcbb4b\RootTemplates\ folder, then both of those will have an effect when a new game is made with the Modified Main mod enabled.

Say I start a new game with the Modified Main mod enabled and play through it for several hours. RootTemplates in the mod's RootTemplate folder can be safely added/removed so long as they only modify the properties of existing items. But what if I want to completely uninstall the mod and still have my save (which for this example is named 'ModdedGameSave') work?

To uninstall the mod, deactivate the mod from the Main menu and create a new game. It doesn't matter what the characters are, so long as the new game is unmodded. Once you're in the Cyseal map, go ahead and save the game (for this example, I'll name this one UnmoddedGameSave).

Now comes a bit of game-save manipulation. Go to Documents\Larian Studios\Divinity Original Sin\PlayerProfiles\Profile_Name\Savegames\ where you can see a list of all of your save files. Click the UnmoddedGameSave file. Inside that you will see a file named UnmoddedGameSave.lsb; this contains the meta-data about the game save, which includes which mods are present. Copy this file.

Head on over to the other game file (ModdedGameSave) where you want to uninstall the mod from. There you'll see a file named ModdedGameSave.lsb. Delete that file (or send it somewhere else if you want to back it up), and Paste the UnmoddedGameSave.lsb from earlier. Then you rename the file so that it matches what you just deleted, ModdedGameSave.lsb.

Once that is done, you can reload the game-save, which is now free from all mods.

The process of installing a RootTemplate mod into an existing un-modded game is essentially the reverse process. Just make a new game with the mods enabled, save it, and transfer over the MetaData file and delete the old one.

----

Credit goes to Chriskang for figuring out how to get mods into or out of game-saves without starting the campaign over.

Last edited by Rhidian; 09/07/14 09:38 PM. Reason: Fixed blank mod download
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Well done! Thank you!

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So I extracted your empty mod to C:\Games\Steam\steamapps\common\Divinity - Original Sin\Data\

this created a Mods subfolder with folder Modified_Main_9b125d2b-c4a0-4107-bd38-d0d6bdbcbb4b which contains the meta.lsx and an empty folder like this:

C:\Games\Steam\steamapps\common\Divinity - Original Sin\Data\Public\Modified_Main_9b125d2b-c4a0-4107-bd38-d0d6bdbcbb4b

When I then start Divinity & activate the empty mod (Modified Main 1.0.0.0) in Divinity 1.0.57.0 and try to start a new game (singleplayer(mod) or multiplayer(mod), same result) it loads for a bit (cleaning up session) then the last thing I see is "Server shutting down" and it sends me back to the main menue with a "Loading Failed: Level not found" popup.

What am I doing wrong? :-(

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Originally Posted by akeean
So I extracted your empty mod to C:\Games\Steam\steamapps\common\Divinity - Original Sin\Data\

this created a Mods subfolder with folder Modified_Main_9b125d2b-c4a0-4107-bd38-d0d6bdbcbb4b which contains the meta.lsx and an empty folder like this:

C:\Games\Steam\steamapps\common\Divinity - Original Sin\Data\Public\Modified_Main_9b125d2b-c4a0-4107-bd38-d0d6bdbcbb4b

When I then start Divinity & activate the empty mod (Modified Main 1.0.0.0) in Divinity 1.0.57.0 and try to start a new game (singleplayer(mod) or multiplayer(mod), same result) it loads for a bit (cleaning up session) then the last thing I see is "Server shutting down" and it sends me back to the main menue with a "Loading Failed: Level not found" popup.

What am I doing wrong? :-(


D'oh, that's an error on my part. I forgot to set the Default Start-Scene and Menu screen when making the blank mod. Give me a moment while I fix it...

Edit:
Fixed, with the new link in the opening post and here.

Last edited by Rhidian; 09/07/14 09:39 PM.
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It seems that there might be a glitch when loading a recently-changed game where you are teleported to a random spot on the map located in the MetaData (if your previous map was different). Teleportation via the Rift will work to get you un-stuck.

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Thank you for the fix, it worked like a charm with the new file.

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Excellent. Using this trick I built a proof of concept for making new crafting recipes. We could also fix broken recipes like Joshua's Spice. This is kind of like what "override" did back on NWN, so while it's a hack it's a really, really useful hack for the community to get started on mods that are intended to work with existing savegames and release them. Cheers! smile

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I'm having trouble getting this to work, probably down to me not knowing what I am doing :\

But anyway, for each of the mods there is a meta.lsx file in the mods folder for each mod.
If I try and copy all of the separate mods into one folder (the empty mod) I need to overwrite the previous mods meta.lsx file which breaks the mods and the game.

Am I doing something wrong here?

My understanding is that you copy everything from the public folder "mod name" into the public folder of the "modified main" and the same with everything from the mod folder "mod name" into the mod folder of the "modified main."

But as mentioned I can't copy all of the seperate mods meta.lsx files because they overwrite each other.

EDIT: Nevermind I realised what I was doing wrong, I was copying over the meta.lsx files from the mods into modified main instead of copying over each folder like this.
Working now anyway, thanks.

[Linked Image]

Last edited by SieB; 12/07/14 12:59 PM.
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Rhidian Offline OP
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Originally Posted by SieB

[Linked Image]


Woah, so copying the other mod folders so that they're inside the Modified Main mod works?

My tutorial was just referring to merging the contents of RootTemplate folders into one like this:
[Linked Image]

But if the entire mod folder could be transferred...

Edit: Wait, are those the Data/Mod folders for the other mods? Or the Data/Public folders located in the Modified Main's Data/Mod section (since that's where the meta file is)?

Last edited by Rhidian; 12/07/14 02:43 PM.
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Originally Posted by Rhidian
Originally Posted by SieB

[Linked Image]


Woah, so copying the other mod folders so that they're inside the Modified Main mod works?

My tutorial was just referring to merging the contents of RootTemplate folders into one like this:
[Linked Image]

But if the entire mod folder could be transferred...

Edit: Wait, are those the Data/Mod folders for the other mods? Or the Data/Public folders located in the Modified Main's Data/Mod section (since that's where the meta file is)?


Each of those folders are from the data/mod folders of each individual mod (e.g speed mod and lockpick mod) placed in the modified main data/mod folder.

The speed and lockpic are working, I haven't been able to test the crafting and skillbooks ones, but seen as the lockpick and speed ones are working i'd assume the other are also.

P.S. I am a noob and know nothing of modding and how it all works, I was just experimenting with this smile

Last edited by SieB; 12/07/14 03:01 PM.
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Originally Posted by SieB

My understanding is that you copy everything from the public folder "mod name" into the public folder of the "modified main" and the same with everything from the mod folder "mod name" into the mod folder of the "modified main."
Working now anyway, thanks.


Well, this is interesting. I wonder how 2 mods changing the same root templates interact

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Originally Posted by SieB

Each of those folders are from the data/mod folders of each individual mod (e.g speed mod and lockpick mod) placed in the modified main data/mod folder.

The speed and lockpic are working, I haven't been able to test the crafting and skillbooks ones, but seen as the lockpick and speed ones are working i'd assume the other are also.

P.S. I am a noob and know nothing of modding and how it all works, I was just experimenting with this smile


What's your Data/Public/%Modified Main%/ looking like?

Is it like this:
[Linked Image]

Or this:
[Linked Image]

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Originally Posted by Rhidian
Originally Posted by SieB

Each of those folders are from the data/mod folders of each individual mod (e.g speed mod and lockpick mod) placed in the modified main data/mod folder.

The speed and lockpic are working, I haven't been able to test the crafting and skillbooks ones, but seen as the lockpick and speed ones are working i'd assume the other are also.

P.S. I am a noob and know nothing of modding and how it all works, I was just experimenting with this smile


What's your Data/Public/%Modified Main%/ looking like?



Like this

[Linked Image]

I merged the files in public because they are separate files and don't overwrite each other.

The reason I copied the folders in mod folder is because they all contain a meta.lsx file and copying them into the same folder causes them to overwrite eachother, deleting the one you are replacing it with.

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Rhidian Offline OP
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Oh, in that case you don't need to copy into the Data/Mods/%Modified Main%/ folder at all. Just having the Public files merged together like that is all that's necessary.

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Originally Posted by Rhidian
Oh, in that case you don't need to copy into the Data/Mods/%Modified Main%/ folder at all. Just having the Public files merged together like that is all that's necessary.


Oh right, So I don't need to copy anything into Data/Mods/%Modified main%. That is where I was going wrong then, I thought I needed to copy the files from data/mod of each mod I am using into Data/Mods/%Modified the same as copying the ones from public.

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New update compresses the save data, I managed to get this to work by unpacking the save data which is now compressed as .lsv with the LS Tools.

After that repeat the process shown above with the save game swap, except you have to upack both saves, delete the .lsv of the save you wish to edit and then copy over the meta.lsb and the sanity .lsb from the save you are copying the mod data from.

That got it to work for me now of the .72 update

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Is the modified main going to be behind in the patch updates, how can I create my own modified main mod, or can someone upload and up to date version of the empty mod (.72).

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has anyone successfully added items/terrain/etc to the campaign and not broken the ability to save and load games?

it seems like when I do this it randomly locks up on "cleaning up session"

Last edited by override367; 17/07/14 01:06 AM.
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I haven't been able to get this to work. Placed the [Modified Main] folder in the public (and mods, for trysies) folder. In there, I placed my modified files, edited companions, so that I could use my own companion builds in the main campaign.
I don't even see the mod to be able to activate it, in-game in the main menu.
Am I missing something?

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Sweet.
Made a new, empty mod for current version and added my files. The empty mod is working, but my own files aren't doing what I want.

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