Dragon Age: Origins - Best Mods: slinks s3 RAVAge, Advanced Tactics, Faster Combat

Dragon Age: Origins DA:O

Best Mods

slinks s3 RAVAge 

Advanced Tactics

Faster Combat




Marquee selection, isometric-like perspectivefull party control, pausable real-time, overhead view and the conditional tactics framework means Origins has a degree of appeal, but - similar to Sword Coast Stratagems for Baldur's Gate 2 - combat can be greatly improved with a tactics overhaul.

A good starting point is Origins Faster Combat which basically increases attack speed animations to make combat more fun, natural and challenging. I recommend going with v3 for increased movement speed (+20%) and stronger ranged weapons (brings them inline with two-handed melee weapons).

This tweak shows how even small mods can profoundly impact how combat plays out, which is why I say start with it first and see if you like what it does.


slinks s3 RAVAge is a larger, fully-customizable mod for advanced players that seems to work fine with Faster Combat's changes. It adds many random encounters, hand-crafted enemies who equip random items (making even the same enemy type fight differently), random loot drops, and beefed up AI scripts. This mod takes some tweaking to get the settings tailored to personal skill and taste, but can be really challenging and rewarding. I recommend the following settings, most importantly the 5-5 difficulty settings and Nightmare difficulty:

[RAVAge]
Difficulty=5
ExtraDifficulty=5
NoExtraMobs=0
NoMobEq=0
NoBossExtra=0
NoItems=0
NoAutoLoot=0
ItemsPerHolder=5
DropRate=5
PropRate=5
NoNegative=0
NoAutoAdjust=1
NoVFX=0

EliteOnly=1
NoFloaty=1
NoFade=1
ImStuck=0
FreeMoney=0


At 5-5/Nightmare difficulty you'll start to really feel the effect of RAVAge in the Korcari Wilds, specifically against Blood Magic-using Darkspawn necros (Blood Wound is OP at that stage). And by the time you reach the Tower of Ishal, the design pits you up against Wild Drakes and the like. This is when your party consists only of Alistair and unnamed, generic support crews... So yeah, hard. Anyway, more on RAVAge another time.


Advanced Tactics extends the actions/conditions available in the tactics screen, automating many processes which would otherwise have to be (tediously) micro-managed.



The sort of tailoring pictured above is something of which Infinity Engine gamers can only dream, limited as they are by clunky IF THEN END scripts and Ease-of-Use Party AI, which, while a noble attempt, really only automates basic pre-buffing, use of once-per-day items, and healbotting.

Note that the Dragon Age Rules Fixpack is compatible with these, and should be installed first.

This mod combo played on Nightmare difficulty makes Origins still one of the best pause n play tactical RPGs out there.

My mod list (covered above):

Dragon Age Rules Fixpack (aka GT Core Rules Fixpack)
(Core fixes and the two haste bug fixes; auto-loot functionality)
Slink's Slightly Skewed (s3) RAVAge
Advanced Tactics
Origins Faster Combat
Origins Faster Runspeed

Other stuff you may like:

Extra Dog Slot: Another unit to control in combat? Sign me up!
Qanari and Mabari update: Just visual mods to improve their look to the DA2 style.
Skip The Fade: I'm a fan of skipping a tedious segment that plays exactly the same each time you play, regardless of your character. A truly idiotic design decision, an embarrassing example of devs masturbating over their own "creativity". The Fade is so tedious that the mere thought of it kills people's desire to replay what would otherwise be a highly replayable campaign. This mod is just a 26 Kb *.ncs file that you throw into your override. You will receive all stat bonuses and Codex entries without having to slog through The Stupid Fade.
DLC in Awakening & Awakening Fixes: Gives you all your DLC gear in Awakening (import or new character).

There are lots of other large-scale mods (both graphical and for game-play), but I don't particularly like the changes they make.


EoP

Modding Diablo 2

UI mods for Neverwinter Nights 2

This post has been updated, rewritten, and can now be found here.

Storm of Zehir Item List

Storm of Zehir MAP OLM, Neverwinter Nights 2

Archery in cRPGs



The criteria for being on my list is just what I personally found fun, well-implemented, powerful or interesting. I've tried to mix it up by including skill-based and tactical, RNG-based role-playing games. Enjoy!

Dark Souls Archery


I love this game, the mechanics are wonderful. Providing you spec right, reinforce your bow and are skilled at headshots (love that sound!), you really shouldn't hit many speedbumps in the single-player game. Melee opponents in PvP who are killed by staggering headshots will rage hard and call you cheap. There's nothing like chaining staggers together on a tanky opponent, knowing that if the next shot fails to stagger you're probably gonna be one-shotted. Enemy archers can be really annoying; I cite the giant knights wielding dragonbows who fire "javelins" for ammo which knock you down into the void. This dragonbow can be used by the player later, though it's largely a gimmick short of long-range knockdown sniping in PvP. There are much better bows in DkS.

Oblivion Archery


This is sort of a joke entry, but archery on a stealth build is mildly entertaining for a few hours due to how broken it is. You have bowzoom, enchantable arrows, high RoF and couple that with high sneak and 5% on-hit knockdown and 5% paralysis perks, you're untouchable. Expect to get extra plinks at a knocked down enemy before it manages to stand up again. I beat Oblivion's main quest on default difficulty with a first level archer. For Morrowind Bethesda released an Area Effect Arrows plug-in, but archery still wasn't as brokenly amusing as in Oblivion (and Skyrim), though mods like Requiem can really up the challenge.

Deus Ex


When I get to choose between a GEP gun and mini xbow, I choose the latter. Tranquilizing "terrists" for non-lethal silent takedowns is very satisfying and facilitates the stealth approach for which Deus Ex is famous.

Baldur's Gate


Multiple reasons can be given for why archers just devastate. Early in the campaign, your average enemy is made from such lowly stock as 1-2 Hit Dice, so only one or two projectiles are required to drop them. Against such squishy foes, percentile Strength warriors wielding two-handed swords is just overkill; moreover, by the time Minsc has shouted "Go for the eyes, Boo!" and charged in, Kivan has sniped two or three from under his nose, anyway! Low level archers, who by wielding a bow gain +1 ApR, also don't necessarily need a tank to hold back certain stronger, 4-8 HD foes; they can simply mow them down as they close in. To increase killspeed and deal with truly formidable foes later in the campaign, archers can swap to enchanted quivers of Acid Arrows, Fire Arrows, Ice Arrows, Piercing Arrows, Biting Arrows, Dispelling Arrows and the insane Detonation Arrows (1d6, +6d6 Fireball, save vs. spells for half). Upon reaching Sorcerous Sundries in Chapter Five, in addition to stacks and stacks of other ammo, the player can purchase twenty-one quivers of Acid Arrow, two-and-a-half quivers of Dispelling Arrow and three quivers of Detonation Arrows. Imagine a few archers unleashing what amount to Fireballs at a max rate of four per round - that's some serious DpR!

 

Decent bows are EZ to find, too: while only one composite longbow (THAC0 +1, dmg +2) can be bought from Winthrop in the Prologue, they're commonly sold by merchants and easily looted from that point on. The Composite Long Bow +1 (THAC0 +2, dmg +3) - the "best" bow - can be bought from Feldepost's Inn as early as Chapter One; the finale of Chapter Three also yields the Longbow of Marksmanship (THAC0 +3, dmg +2); and the Eagle Bow (THAC0 +2, dmg +2) is obtainable when the player reaches Baldur's Gate city. Being wooden, bows also have the early-game perk of being exempt from the plot-based "taint" which can cause non-magical iron weapons to break in your hands.

Companion-wise, Kivan and Coran are already lordly archers at the time of recruitment; Khalid can be specced into a sniper and out-shoot Kivan. Coran is the undisputed king of archery, having an illegal High Mastery in bows and potentially reaching Dexterity 21 if given the Manual of Quickness of Action (Dex +1, permanent); not that he needs it. Nor does he need the Bracers of Archery (THAC0 +2) or Gauntlets of Dexterity (sets Dexterity to 18), which should be gifted to second-rate archers like Ajantis and Minsc.

One "limitation" of archery is that you can only hold twenty arrows in a quiver, of which you have three. Sixty shots might sound like more than enough, but you'll burn through them fast with a high RoF and have to backtrack to town to restock. Well, just fill your backpack slots with quivers as well, and you shouldn't run out in a hurry.

My focus here on bows n arrows doesn't mean crossbows aren't also viable, but while the Light Crossbow of Speed (THAC0 +1, dmg +1, ApR +1) is readily available in Beregost, the Heavy Crossbow of Accuracy (THAC0 +5, dmg +2) may not be found by many players, as it's acquisition depends on how you solved a previous Chapter's quest. Bolt variety is very limited compared to arrows, with the Bolt of Biting and Bolt of Lightning being the most sought-after. I personally love to see Shar-teel or bards like Garrick and Eldoth firing from crossbows; Montaron is a crack shot, too.

By virtue of darts setting attack rate to 3 ApR, even "useless" mages can contribute a lil' to the party's combined projectile hail (1d3), especially if they let loose the Dart of Wounding or Dart of Stunning. Along with druids and clerics they can also fire slings, a cheeky "halfling weapon" that receives a strength bonus to damage and allows a shield in the off-hand. With such weapons at your disposal, there's really no excuse to have your back-row casters standing around doing nothing just because they're out of spells.

Archery was nerfed in Baldur's Gate 2 but an archer prestige class with Firetooth xbow (ToB) or Gesen will still tear through the field and drill down bosses, with Greater Whirlwind.

Gothic 2


Just like in Dark Souls, a player who specializes in melee will still nock an arrow and make a bow sing because the design is thoughtful and the game logically at times calls for it's use, no matter your proficiency in magic/melee. The only problem is that the cheesy side of me calls for its use a little too often...

ToEE


General consensus seems to be ranged weapons suck in this game, but holy axiomatic or icy-burst +3 longbow on a well-built elven archer means you are dropping tough foes such as Hill Giants before they can even raise an eyebrow (high initiative). Very satisfying.

Diablo 2


Bowazons were a whole lot of fun, but the letdown was they were so overshadowed by lightning javs. The Median XL: Ultimative mod turns them into glass cannons, but they can clear out areas in a couple of clicks - fastest killers I ever saw in any game. Still, the ranged king in Ultimative is the xbow necro, boasting of a skillset mixing in sniping, SMG and shot-gun firing modes. It has to be seen to be believed.

Dragon Age: Origins


You will know how effective archery can be if you run into AI using Scattershot when you are under-leveled. With quick weapon switching there is no reason not to have your non-mage companions firing from range as the enemy closes in.

Warband


OK, this is it!

First off bows far outstrip xbows as the latter only do flat damage. A total noob using a starter bow with bent ammo can headshot an armored vet for 80 dmg. Lethal. Now, a masterwork warbow in the hands of a strongarm build with 10 power draw and +3 arrows will one-shot anyone but a king decked out in lordly fullplate. Headshots do in excess of 200 dmg. RoF at skill 400 is probably 2.5 draws per sec, causing RSI.

Second, Rhodok snipers using xbows can single-handedly win sieges, expect to get 50-200 kills before you even send your sergeants up the ladder. Plus they are tanks, the board shields on their backs protect them from responding hail when they bend forward to reload. A great unit to invest in.

Third, Khergit veteran horse archers are sexy as hell, a hundred of these guys circling and kiting an infantry force is a sight to behold. A player with 10 horse archery and 10 ride on a champion coarser is going to have lots of fun running circles around the enemy, but, even with end-game stats and gear, still needs to maintain a healthy respect for her rival sharp-shooters.

Last but not least, the Noldor rangers in the Prophecy of Pendor mod fire bows like machine guns, their arrows blot out the sky. Nothing lives. After much hardship the player can eventually earn a "sapphire bow", thereby exceeding even the DPS of these ancient elves.

Warband makes you work hard in archery, from the tentative early-game skirmishes against forest bandits up to the truly epic battles against massive roaming armies in the Prophecy of Pendor mod, but the rewards are worth it. When it comes to archery, Warband hits the bull's eye.