NWN Enhanced Edition Notes and Discussion

[Sarmanos]

This will be updated over time as more is learned. Some of this will just be info from the other post. Notes are pulled from multiple sources. I would advise reading my notes even if you read the other official stuff. They mention some details on the streams that may not be elsewhere.

I'll try to keep this post updated as development continues with additional or changed notes. I'll also try to add notes when possible from the boards, but unless it is a very easy to find important post, don't rely on it. As excited as I am, I can't go through every thread looking for official posts without making this into a job unto itself.

Also here's a fancy Neverwinter Vault reveal slideshow if you are interested. https://neverwintervault.org/ee-reveal/

Links

Forums can be found at https://forums.beamdog.com/categories/n ... ter-nights

Current release notes pdf can be found at https://www.beamdog.com/files/nwnee_release_notes.pdf
Current FAQ can be found at https://www.beamdog.com/nwn_faq Info in both of these may change before release. (Thanks Gorgon for both of these)

Announcement Stream Archive: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Catc3uAtRhc
11/24 Stream Archive: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ux2gDtYC9s0

Pre-Ordering Info and Links
Beamdog standard edition pre-order here for $20 US.
Beamdog deluxe edition pre-order here for $40 US. Access to both of these is through a proprietary Beamdog launcher client you'll have to download. (Note: You will be able to request Steam keys for these in the future if you purchase this way.) The headstart beta is now live and info for accessing it once you pre-order is here. All pre-orders get access.

NWN EE Steam Page, pre-order not yet available. Wishlist it and follow if you only plan to buy it through here so you'll know when it is. Will update when pre-ordering or purchasing is available.

Definites

Compatibility and Graphics

• More resolution and UI scaling options up to 4k max.
• More modifiable graphics including shaders, brightness, and contrast in the client. High contrast, vibrancy, and depth of field settings as advanced settings for starters.
• Native Mac and Linux support return for the game client. Purchases will give access to all clients. No need to buy for each type of OS.
• Toolset not planned for porting to Mac and Linux.
• Toolset has been re-compiled for better PC support. Will not be 64-bit as of now. May be updated to be in the future.
• Modules saved in the new toolset version will not be compatible with older versions of NWN.
• New plugin-in for creating MAX graphics content will be released.
• Haks and saves should not break as of now.
• No massive visual overhaul that would be to the extent that it causes old modules to break.
• 64-bit support for the client and handles multicore CPUs better. Will still run off a single core.
• System requirements will go up if only because old hardware and software that was required is no longer available to purchase at large. May increase as new content is added.
• Will require Windows 7 and higher for an OS. You really shouldn't be on XP or lower at this point anyways unless you like to live dangerously.
• Directory structure will be altered in places to better support Windows.
• Engine bugs and bugs that effect persistent worlds are being addressed and fixed. (Too much to cover there. Check the release notes link above!)
• English only at the moment at least for the beta. Full launch will support English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, and Polish in text.
• Enhanced edition will not be compatible with the old NWN client due to a number of changes including the new master server. Old and new clients can't share the same playing space.
• New scripting commands.
• NWNX compatibility is being addressed and they are in contact with the creators of it.
• Ability for players to hide helmets. No detail on if this only applies to the individual or to all.
• New format of support for allowing scalability of NPC models.

Online and Multiplayer

• New master server with new CD keys associated with the new client with persistent worlds in mind. Gamespy replaced entirely.
• Identities will be based on public CD keys. This means old user IDs as we know them will no longer work. There will still be a form of backward compatibility with old server vaults that can somehow be associated with account names. This will probably be the biggest hassle to update if Avlis upgrades.
• Multiplayer server setup will not differ greatly from what you knew.
• Better server optimization to handle online play.
• Haks and tlks will load up fully on joining a server now and not on selecting or creating a character. This means content in haks like heads should be available to use on characters without jumping through hoops and classes like psions can be made into proper base classes.

Other Stuff

• No release date announced yet.
• Limited beta to occur. Beta players will be selected from those who do direct Beamdog pre-orders.
• All content in Diamond edition is included including premium modules and previously unreleased soundtracks. Certain modules such as Wyvern Crown and Infinite Dungeons are part of the deluxe edition version.
• Persistent worlds and experiences playing on them were acknowledged repeatedly. A good sign for support there going forward. Some teams of persistent worlds have been getting contacted for feedback.
• No changes to original campaigns.
• No new expansions announced at this time. Not out of the question in the future.
• New official portrait options for characters in the deluxe edition.
• A number of developers from the original will be on the staff.
• Feedback on Beamdog forums from NWN highly encouraged at here.

Future Possibilities

• Potentially may allow for further modification of 3rd edition rules in the future. No plans at this time for any changes. Will remain firmly 3rd edition.
• General goal to open things up a bit more in regards to hard-coded mechanics.
• Art resources may be updated and replaced such as models.
• New content in general may be added.
• Steam Workshop support.
• More graphics options may be added that will be more taxing on computers at player discretion.
• Interested in a mobile port of some form. Nothing to announce.
• More hotbars.
• May explore more UI improvements in the future. No commitment to this idea.
• AI scripts may be updated for new content.
• Module resource limit will likely be increased and tinkered with until they find a limit where things start to break.
• Would just release the master server code if Beamdog went out of business. Expressed a desire to not see another scenario like before when the master server died.

Current System Requirements as Listed on Steam
Windows
OS: Windows 7, 8, or 10
Processor: 1 GHZ
Memory: 512 MB RAM
Graphics: OpenGL 3.0 compatible
Storage: 10 GB available

Mac OS X
OS: Mac OS X 10.9 or newer
Processor: Dual Core Processor
Memory: 512 MB RAM
Graphics: OpenGL 3.0 compatible
Storage: 10 GB available

SteamOS + Linux
OS: Ubuntu 12.04 or later, Fedora 21, Debian 8
Processor: Dual Core Processor
Memory: 512 MB RAM
Graphics: OpenGL 3.0 compatible
Storage: 10 GB available

[Gorgon]

As I mentioned in the other topic, be aware that this will not work on Avlis.

The server and all clients need to be running the new version (meaning all current versions would stop working).

[Sarmanos]

My current take is that there's no reason not to move to the EE version shortly after it is out unless it comes out as and stays a mess. It doesn't look like too much work would have to be done to move Avlis over to it except for the server vault and player authentication methods which could and likely will need massive work. Haks and tlks shouldn't need to be touched. Alpha server functionality doesn't look like it would be broken though it will require work to play nice with everyone's new public CD keys, and I would actually like to keep it going since it means never having to enter passwords to log-in. I did pre-order so I am hoping to get some beta access going so I can give feedback on everything where needed and also provide some notes here on how well the re-compiled toolset works and if add-ons like NWNTX just work with it or if they'll throw a fit.

Also yeah casual older and lapsed players who might just keep the game installed in case they get the urge might get shut out if they have no desire to buy into the new client. I think that is acceptable since there will be a flood of new players all around that we'll have not seen since maybe the peak of NWN. Missing out on that opportunity by not upgrading would be absurd.

[PlasmaJohn]

Online and Multiplayer

• New master server with new CD keys associated with the new client with persistent worlds in mind. Gamespy replaced entirely.
• Identities will be based on public CD keys. This means old user IDs as we know them will no longer work. There will still be a form of backward compatibility with old server vaults that can somehow be associated with account names. This will probably be the biggest hassle to update if Avlis upgrades.
• Multiplayer server setup will not differ greatly from what you knew.
• Better server optimization to handle online play.
• Haks and tlks will load up fully on joining a server now and not on selecting or creating a character. This means content in haks like heads should be available to use on characters without jumping through hoops and classes like psions can be made into proper base classes.

Wow. Guess they still don't have a bloody clue how to manage security. And a new Master Server to boot. *sniff* *sniff* Who let EA in?

We (should) all know the pitfalls of centralized authentication. It's a single point of failure and the occasional outages meant nobody could log into Avlis. When it was taken offline for good we had to scramble. There's only one reason for centralized authentication and that's to make sure that they can squeeze as much money from folks as possible.

[Sarmanos]

I'd wait and see more before passing judgment on security. My notes are only an overall view of things and not all of them have more in depth details yet. However, they do provide a guide for PW migration in the faq.

Are there any changes in the way persistent worlds work in Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition?

In the current Neverwinter Nights 1.69 patch, on persistent worlds, players are generally identified by their public CD key and the player name as a pair of data. Before the Gamespy system went down in 2014, those player names were unique in a global sense, but are now just unique on a per server basis.

In the world of the new patches (NWN:EE), Beamdog has no intention of forcing player names to be unique per server anymore. (Server admins may choose to bind a unique player and dungeon master name to a specific CD key, but it’s not a requirement of any server to do this.) One thing that is unique to each person’s experience is their own unique CD key that is purchased via beamdog.com. If they’ve purchased the game, and launch through the Beamdog Client, they will have their CD key available to them for authentication purposes.

We intend on using the public CD Key as the directory for where someone saves their servervault characters.

We have a master server up and operational that will validate that the CD keys are valid, so we no longer need to resort to other authentication methods for NWN:EE servers. However, when it comes to migrating characters from the 1.69 servervault (where characters are stored by player name) to the NWN:EE server vault (where characters are stored by public CD Key), things get a little bit strange.

So, how are server admins going to translate from 1.69 to NWN:EE easily?

The server admin copies their 1.69 servervault to the new NWN:EE user directory ~/nwn/oldservervault.
The server admin creates the “oldservervault.2da” file in ~/nwn/override that contains the player ID / CD Key pairs of their 1.69 users (such as the following):

2DA V2.0

Player CDKey169
0 trilobyte USVE763A
1 trinketpony UCDEFGHJ
2 trottingkrip URERLADE
When a client logs in to a server, we will provide you with the public NWN:EE CD key. But, we will also provide (if the user has moved their nwncdkey.ini into their ~/nwn folder) the 1.69 key to the server, at startup, along with the player’s name.

When nwserver/NWN:EE sees a user log in with a new CD Key (and has no characters built), but matches the player name in the oldservervault list, we will look at their 1.69 Key and verify that it is the same as the one that was passed in. If they are the same, we will copy the files from oldservervault/trottingkrip to servervault/(NWN:EE CDKey), and then disallow those files to be copied ever again.

Example of how this works. Trottingkrip used your server extensively before NWN:EE to create Deekin’s cousin Beekin (trottingkrip is terrible at naming characters), and now you’re running a NWN:EE server alongside the 1.69 server to allow people to migrate as they see fit.

So, trottingkrip logs in to the NWN:EE server (which he can see from the in-game server browser that accesses (yet-to-be-determined-URL-for-master-server). His NWN:EE public CD Key is UKJKHDWE, and 1.69 public CD Key: URERLADE.

We examine the folders:
~/nwn/servervault/UKJKHDWE has no characters.

But there is a character here:
~/nwn/oldservervault/trottingkrip/Beekin.bic

Since trottingkrip is the player’s name, and they’ve given their 1.69 public CD Key, nwserver can copy the .bic characters from oldservervault/trottingkrip to servervault/UKJKHDWE, and then changing the file extension of the oldservervault characters to ensure they can’t be automatically copied again (but we leave the files there, just in case you need to restore a specific user’s copy ability).

~/nwn/servervault/UKJKHDWE/Beekin.bic
~/nwn/oldservervault/trottingkrip/Beekin.xbc
If the PW client has not installed their 1.69 CD Key, they will show up without their servervault characters, and be given the opportunity to make a new one. The server admins (and forum stickys) can then counsel them on how to install the old nwncdkey.ini file into their new working directory to use the PWs they know and love in NWN:EE .

[Nighthawk4]

Now we have our own Alpha Server - and given the amount of work we had to put in to get that - I am not keen on reverting back to a centralised authentication server.

We all remember what happened when Gamespy was shut down

I wonder if there will be any way we can use the new NWN:EE but keep our own authenication method for the Avlis servers?

[PlasmaJohn]

We all remember what happened when Gamespy was shut down

You're killing me Tom GameSpy had nothing to do with authentication. At all. GameSpy was not the Master Server, it was the server listing service.

I wonder if there will be any way we can use the new NWN:EE but keep our own authenication method for the Avlis servers?

It would be vastly better if they'd implement the authentication hooks to be exposed via the API I asked for years ago. Instead of having a single global password (*headdesks*) passwords would be by account. That would be FAR less hassle than the hoops people have to jump through to get Alpha access.

[Sarmanos]

I'd get over to their forums and make your presence and work known. They'd probably be interested in talking to you PJ.

[Nighthawk4]

We all remember what happened when Gamespy was shut down

You're killing me Tom GameSpy had nothing to do with authentication. At all. GameSpy was not the Master Server, it was the server listing service.

I wonder if there will be any way we can use the new NWN:EE but keep our own authenication method for the Avlis servers?

It would be vastly better if they'd implement the authentication hooks to be exposed via the API I asked for years ago. Instead of having a single global password (*headdesks*) passwords would be by account. That would be FAR less hassle than the hoops people have to jump through to get Alpha access.

I stand corrected. Well, I am sitting actually - too old to stand around for long these days

[Nighthawk4]

I'd get over to their forums and make your presence and work known. They'd probably be interested in talking to you PJ.

Good idea. Go for it PJ

[Gorgon]

An FYI for those downloading the head start version with the Beamdog client. It is a peer sharing thing, so you upload to others as fast as you download, and it is pretty slow ATM.

Block UDP port 6889 out (local and remote) while allowing in for it, and you get faster downloads without the outbound traffic.
*edits* Hmm, might be some timeout check for sharing, since it is dropping to crazy slow 50k speed off and on now with outbound blocked. So much for not wasting 10GB of bandwidth on my mobile. Meh, experiment as you like.

*update* Looks like it is a 3:1 share ratio for DL speed (hard to be certain with it seeming to max around 3-400k down), so if you feel like limiting uploads with an app for it, that does the trick. Only really useful if you are using a net plan that has extra costs with the up and down combined transfer amount (about 10GB for it at 2x the 5GB size), though it does seem to speed up a bit with it limited too. Shouldn't be as much of an issue when a billion people aren't doing it all at the same time.

Oh, and the download is enabled on the site at the headstart page for whichever version you pre-order. Should be a button up top in the pic to click. Then start up the Beamdog client, switch to "English - Head Start" from the pulldown up top for the game, and hit install (remember to install it somewhere different than your usual NWN).

Have fun!

[Sarmanos]

Ok, got the client downloaded. So it's time for Sarm's first impression review of things as they stand. Standard disclaimer that this isn't a final build and a work in progress. I'll change assessments as new versions come. I'm not using any overrides at this time. I'll throw them in tomorrow and add on below how it handles them if they work at all.

Player Game Client
Besides a new logo on the main menu, The main menu is basically the same. All the video options they advertised are present in the menus along with the classic. Sound options appear to be limited right now with EAX and Hardware sound not possible to enable (at least on my PC) and sound balance for voices is a bit off in character creation with the music overpowering. Overall your main menu and options are unchanged. You can't currently choose the UI scaling when on 1080 or below. This might change in the future hopefully for those of us obsessed with controlling UI real estate. Going from full screen to windowed also currently retains the resolution and screen size, but you can make it properly fit and scale to the taskbar with little effort. You won't have to get used to any new features or way of playing. Everything is as it was in layout.

Hak and tlk detection DOES work in the game client for custom modules as of now and I had no problem loading Sarm's Avlis DM Bootcamp which uses the full Avlis hak suite. Also check this out, I had to change nothing to get this nice quality of life improvement!

Psions are now indeed truly a base class with the new hak and tlk loading rules!

Graphic bugs that plague the current client aren't present here and cloaks, robes, and so on all show up with no problems. I would recommend disabling the Depth of Field option. You can't control the intensity right now and it gets bad when you zoom in on your character. The look of "shiny" water has also changed. It still is nice and shiny when turned on and looks good, but it doesn't look the same. Just a minor thing I noticed. Overall the graphics have a better crispness to them and do look better, even if subtlely.

DM Client
You'll need to configure a proper DM client shortcut to access it since there's no launcher to go directly to it yet. It's the DM client. No change.

Multiplayer
Game types are not implemented yet at least for listings. On joining a server you will be asked to enter a player name and an option to save that name as a default. You do not enter a name or a password prior to entering the server browser and it looks like account passwords simply won't be a thing.

NWServer
Right now the layout is unchanged. All options mirror the old NWServer. Nothing to really say there. It's NWServer. Server creation when going through the DM client is also unchanged.

Toolset
Hak and tlk detection for custom modules doesn't appear to be working quite right. It might just be a part of getting used to the new folder structure, but I swear I have the right one here since I could load the module in the game client. Also had to make a new tlk folder, but until I break the hak and tlk barrier. It is hard to say at this time if they had the toolset ready for testing like this. UPDATE: Never mind, it is part of getting used to the new folder setup. The folders for player haks and tlks is now a part of your User folder where there is another NWN folder. I can say that everything appears to work fine here no problem from a quick assessment of resources.

The toolset also doesn't make me wait an eternity to do basic functions unlike the old one. I can toolset once again at full power with this baby! Everything is overall fast or faster in ways I haven't seen in maybe a decade. All the content in the toolset is exactly as it is now if you have no haks. The graphics even look a bit better in toolset mode than before funny enough. Everything also ran well even with the game client open at the same time. Hopefully it also proves to be stable once the haks are thrown into the mix.

Utilties like NWHak are currently not included in this build anywhere I could find.

[Sunscream]

What's your time for opening placeable properties? I still get a good ten seconds. I wouldn't call that full power.

[Gorgon]

I'd blame Windows more for that than the toolset. Possibly from the NTFS 8.3 filename creation on files for old school compatibility, when there are a bunch of files with similar names (the first 6 or more characters the same). 32-bit apps seems to be worse at this than 64-bit too.

With the NWNTX toolset now, I get 8-10 seconds with a full Avlis mod on placeables, but make a brand new mod, and that time drops to about 3 seconds. It is the same kind of delay I see from doing things like huge hak creation, when file counts go over say 50k, or simply working in Windows explorer with crazy amounts of files in a single directory (more like 100k+ for that).

There are suggestions out there to disable 8.3 file name creation on file servers for that reason, but I definitely wouldn't recommend it for regular use, since it breaks a few things... starting with user %TEMP% path settings. If you do some research, you can find workarounds for those issues, but there are lots of old apps used by NWN still, that I'm sure would break without it.

[Nighthawk4]

I didn't see Psionicist as an option

Otherwise it seems OK so far. Very early days

[Sarmanos]

I didn't see Psionicist as an option

Otherwise it seems OK so far. Very early days

Have to use a mod with the Avlis haks all properly loaded in (or any set of haks with psion in them). It still wouldn't work properly unless the psion ability scripts are there too. Just a cool proof of concept on a way they are handling things a bit better with this new version.

[Nighthawk4]

I didn't see Psionicist as an option

Otherwise it seems OK so far. Very early days

Have to use a mod with the Avlis haks all properly loaded in (or any set of haks with psion in them). It still wouldn't work properly unless the psion ability scripts are there too. Just a cool proof of concept on a way they are handling things a bit better with this new version.

Ah, I see what you mean.

Thanks

[Sarmanos]

There will be another NWN EE stream tomorrow at 11:30 am PST at https://www.twitch.tv/beamdog. They are hinting at revealing some more details, so I'll catch it at some point and add any new info to the first post.

[Sarmanos]

Info gathered from today's stream: Check the first post for whether it is in a definite or possible category:

• New format of support for allowing scalability of NPC models.
• Ability for players to hide helmets. No detail on if this only applies to the individual or to all.
• Would just release the master server code if Beamdog went out of business. Expressed a desire to not see another scenario like before when the master server died. (I made it a point to push this question myself.)
• Module resource limit will likely be increased and tinkered with until they find a limit where things start to break.
• Support for NWN EE will last as long as possible for Beamdog.

[PlasmaJohn]

• Would just release the master server code if Beamdog went out of business. Expressed a desire to not see another scenario like before when the master server died. (I made it a point to push this question myself.)

Did they name the escrow service they hired to manage this along with the exact trigger conditions? If not then it's worth nothing more than a steaming pile of manure. (aka PR).

Did they address how they plan to manage it when it goes down out of office hours? Don't forget there's blessed little overlap between their office hours and Avlis' prime time.

[Sarmanos]

• Would just release the master server code if Beamdog went out of business. Expressed a desire to not see another scenario like before when the master server died. (I made it a point to push this question myself.)

Did they name the escrow service they hired to manage this along with the exact trigger conditions? If not then it's worth nothing more than a steaming pile of manure. (aka PR).

Did they address how they plan to manage it when it goes down out of office hours? Don't forget there's blessed little overlap between their office hours and Avlis' prime time.

They weren't going too in depth during the stream. They'll have to be pressed more on the boards after the holiday weekend I think.

[PlasmaJohn]

Oof. Drama already. See the longer 1.69 compatibility thread in the Persistent World forum. Sad that a BD dev resorted to threats and accusations instead of clarifying their position.

I bumped my thread but I'm not holding my breath on a positive response from BD. I also asked what happens during a MS outage. In Classic NWN there's a server flag to ignore it. Would not surprise me in the least if they left that one out.

Either way, if they won't commit to letting PW's manage their own authentication then I very strong advise against using NWN:EE for PW purposes.

[Nighthawk4]

Oof. Drama already. See the longer 1.69 compatibility thread in the Persistent World forum. Sad that a BD dev resorted to threats and accusations instead of clarifying their position.

I bumped my thread but I'm not holding my breath on a positive response from BD. I also asked what happens during a MS outage. In Classic NWN there's a server flag to ignore it. Would not surprise me in the least if they left that one out.

Either way, if they won't commit to letting PW's manage their own authentication then I very strong advise against using NWN:EE for PW purposes.

+1

[Sarmanos]

Oof. Drama already. See the longer 1.69 compatibility thread in the Persistent World forum. Sad that a BD dev resorted to threats and accusations instead of clarifying their position.

I bumped my thread but I'm not holding my breath on a positive response from BD. I also asked what happens during a MS outage. In Classic NWN there's a server flag to ignore it. Would not surprise me in the least if they left that one out.

Either way, if they won't commit to letting PW's manage their own authentication then I very strong advise against using NWN:EE for PW purposes.

Can't say I am surprised they snapped a bit. Some of the PW admins have been making unreasonable demands and even threats to protect their turf as far as player retention goes. The paranoia of player losses because of fears people might not pay $20 is going too far.

Kind of reminds me of the horror stories of the Smash Bros Melee community.

[PlasmaJohn]

Some of the PW admins have been making unreasonable demands and even threats to protect their turf as far as player retention goes.

Did you actually read the concerns or did you dismiss them as poors? There are valid concerns beyond not willing to part with $20.

Since the kerfuffle I'm adding poor developer attitude as a big one. It could be a case of cranky software hack. We'll see if what was said gets walked back or not. If not I'd be very wary of trusting that outfit.