New Uniques and Legendaries - Brainstorming

[Silver_fox 397]

I already told you that I'm glad to see how you expanded the pool of unique staves. But I have to say it again because these new addition are great. They finally make an idea of creating a staff-wielding mage look compelling. I love how you keep coming up with bits of lore or story to accompany every item. The simpler names suddenly have the whole new meaning if you have a story to associate with them. They stop being something you randomly got from enemies and become gifts of powerful beings, or interesting findings, or something else you wish them to be.

 

So you decided to nerf Blood Dryad's. I wonder how high the final amount would be. Something like 900-1000?

[Flix 5,116]

Thank a lot guys! Silver Fox, the CA Range on the Blood Dryad Staff has been only slightly lowered, down to 1000.

Time for the next update. This time: shields! Lots to cover here. There are new uniques and also new randoms.

Unique & Legendary Shields

Shield of the Cid
El Cid (literally, "The Master") was a folk hero in pre-medieval Spain who was said to have a shield with a glorious shining dragon on it. The Projectiles Block Chance is unlocked by Shield Lore skill.

This one has been previously anounced, but I thought I'd refamiliarize you with it and place it among its new peers. Pesmontis sent me these textures and I continued filling in colors. This was my first success at adding damage values to a shield, and you will see damage added to a few more shields below. I'd like the damage value to be similar to a base damage ring of the same level, but the values may need tweaking up or down, let me know.




Celioth's Ward
The High Elf mage Celioth was renowned for his profound arcane knowledge and exquisite spellcasting. He erected a magnificent tower in western Tyr Lysia where he researched the magical arts, and long after his passing Celioth's Tower remained a center of learning for magecraft. Deep in the vaults beneath the tower, keepers uncovered a powerful magical artifact of Celioth's creation: a shield specifically forged to protect against sorcery and enhance spellcasting.

If Silver Fox hadn't mentioned this shield (the design appears in the artbook but not in the game) I might have never known about the presence of this and several other of the shields and items that made their way into this mod.




Firebird's Wing
This shield is imbued with the essence of the Firebird, protecting the wearer from all forms of fire damage, granting preternatural health regeneration, and searing enemies who stray too close.

This is another brand-new item that was sitting unused in the game folder.




Ostur's Shredder
Ostur was an elven craftsman who had a dream: to craft a shield that could be used as an offensive weapon unto itself, even if the wearer's weapon was lost. He poured his life's work into crafting an ornate bladed shield of veridium, mountain jade, and aurum. The resulting spikeshield was light but devastating.

Another unused item. The block chance is unlocked by Shield Lore.




Shield of the Dark Crusade
The Dark Army is a ruthless and savage entity bent on terrorizing the surrounding areas of Artamark and razing villages all in the name of the Unholy Crusade. This group is no ragtag band of outcast bandits - they are an organized and elite fighting force with Mages, Archers, and Knights in their ranks. Lately they have become bold enough to attack and lay siege to Kufferath Castle. Their wooden shields are unnaturally sturdy, deflecting fatal blows and enhancing the powers of their fiery weapons.




Kufferath Defender
The soldiers of the Urtamark barony range far and wide over the land, and are known to the people as stalwart and dependable protectors. These guardians are easily recognized by their green shields, armor and capes displaying the white tree of Kufferath castle.

The two block modifiers are unlocked by Shield Lore, but even a non-specialist will benefit from the large number of sockets in this shield (may need to make this a Legendary due to the power).




Swampshield of the Leech
Lizard settlements that are home to the Cult of the Unnamed are even more dismal and dark than the rest of the Swamps. The leaders of the Unnamed have devised a ritual that allows them to feed off the life force of the local creatures to obtain a sort of immortality for themselves. Their ritual shields bear the image of worm-like creatures feeding on one another.




Khorum Reflector
The sun burns hot in the Bengaresh desert, and despite bearing the image of an oasis, this shield offers no comfort to those facing it. Melee attacks skid off it and maim the attacker instead, ranged projectiles bounce back at the shooter, and magic spells that hit it somehow reverberate back against the caster. Its blinding metallic surface stuns enemies and even tangled roots are seared through by the power of the sun this shield seems to carry with it.

 

Thanks to Dave-O for suggesting a mirrored shield with highly reflective properties.




Hellknight's Shield
This rare shield was created as a possible addition to the Doom Guard set (along with a sword you will see soon). Currently however it exists as a lone unique. It bears a resemblance to the HellKnight shields from Diablo.




Random Shields
The following shields are NPC and unused shields that have been unlocked and added to the game as normal, magic, or rare shields:









More updates coming soon!

Edited April 10, 2014 by Flix

[Gilberticus 374]

I like the 3rd random shield, the yellow one. That design would make a slick arm tattoo. Dang, it's a bummer that I'm already about as sleeved as I can get.

[Silver_fox 397]

Flix, do you know that you've just doubled the amount of unique shields in game? There were 8 shields below tier 15 (6 uniques and 2 from seraphim's sets) and your mod brings us 8 more! And these ones are really useful, unlike the original selection, out of which only Stalworth Safeguard, Glacial Defender and Unyielding Wall had some real use. Me and my shield-bearing caster characters can't thank you enough! The Reflector is worthy of its legendary status too, so now we have something other than Kira's Wall to look for when we go for the boss raids.

 

For me the post about the shields is a thing I was looking forward to, partially because two of these shields were my suggestions in some way. It's an incredible feeling to see how your creative approach transformed a vague suggestion about "Elven shield for magic users" into a glorious item called "Celioth's Ward"! Now that's something my High Elfs would be aspiring to find and equip. I also like the little story you came up with to explain the shield's name. The wing shield is something special too - the fire-breathing dragons should beware of power of the Firebird! On this second pic the elf looks like she's preparing to fly... it's a pity you can't equip two of these shields and try.

 

As for the tier change for the Kufferath Defender, I don't think you should make it a legendary. Now it's more comparable with Patience of Saints, Shield of Mirrors and Officer's Saber than with Kira's Wall. If Officer's with its three gold sockets and two modifiers, one of which is a unique (golden) bonus is a unique that frequently drops, why should a shield with many sockets and modifiers that only benefit characters who specialize in shields be a legendary? Granted, it's a treat for those with Shield lore, but for characters without it, the aforementioned three-socketed items would be a more beneficial way to fill a hand slot.

 

And while we're talking about tiers, I think you can consider moving the Shield of the Cid to tier 14, because it is quite strong in comparison with Glacial Defender and Stalworth Safeguard. All three of them sport damage reduction and one gold socket, but the original shields only have two more other modifiers, and not a big amount of them. Shield of the Cid has an addition of three useful defensive modifiers and a damage boost, so it comes between those shields and tier 15 Kira's in the matter of strength.

Edited March 19, 2014 by Silver_fox

[Yoshio 91]

As usual very nice things are there to come and I'm very much looking forward to get my hands on them!

By the way, is there a chance to add sockets to the Seraphim shields which seem to be somewhat linked or better said designed to match the Ancient-Set. So far they are available since, I gues, one of the CM-Patches but still without any sockets which, obviously, at least for me, does limit their usefulness quite a bit.

It would be really great if there could be something achieved on them!

[Pesmontis 166]

The 'Khorum Reflector' is my favorite, closely followed by 'Ostur's Shredder'.
That palm tree texture.. I think I'll edit it or use it for a new shield.

[Flix 5,116]

As usual very nice things are there to come and I'm very much looking forward to get my hands on them!

By the way, is there a chance to add sockets to the Seraphim shields which seem to be somewhat linked or better said designed to match the Ancient-Set. So far they are available since, I gues, one of the CM-Patches but still without any sockets which, obviously, at least for me, does limit their usefulness quite a bit.

It would be really great if there could be something achieved on them!

 

Do you mean these shields? I guess it shouldn't be too difficult to add sockets to the bonusgroup for the shields.

[Silver_fox 397]

The bonusgroups for the rare shields are very large. If you throw in the sockets, the chance of socketing would improve, but not drastically. I'm not sure that having a socket on one shield out of 30 is exactly what we were asked for. The only way to get a near 100% chance of a specific socket on a random item is to add this socket directly to the blueprint. But this means that all yellow shields and not just seraphim's ones would get additional socket and I'm not sure this is desired. They have a lot of bonuses (by sheer number) already and simply adding a socket would make them very powerful (more powerful than some uniques). Permanently changing a less valuable bonusgroup for a socket... may be an option, but it would affect all shields including those already in somebody's posession. So the best way to improve this Seraphim's shield is to create a new blueprint for it. How about making a unique with this skin?

[Flix 5,116]

A new Seraphim shield...tt's something to think about for the next version. I'm not adding any more content to this release though.

 

I'm glad the shields are well-liked. The lack of good shields was a major hole I wanted to fill.

 

Time for another update. This time: Ranged Weapons, and a Dryad set including the first unique shrunken head!

 

Sylvanwood Bow

A finely crafted bow, probably of Elven make. This bow was NPC-only until I unlocked it. The attack speed is unlocked by Ranged Weapons skill.

 

 

 

Spinebender Bow

A gruesome weapon crafted from the bones of defeated undead, this bow still seems to possess an unearthly life of its own, siphoning the vitality of the living and destroying the undead that it pierces.

 

This ghoulish bow was made from a random rare model. The Chance to Pierce is unlocked by Ranged Weapons and the Opponent's Reflect Chance reduction is unlocked by Ranged Weapons Mastery.

 

 

 

Horns of the Forest God

The Forest God walks the woods as an elk-like creature by day and strides across the treetops by night as an ethereal spirit. Once each year he sheds his horns and the hunters that find them prize them above any trophy. Possession of these antlers enhances the prowess of all who know hunting and woodscraft, and they protect against unnatural creatures that intrude upon the earth.

 

The Chance for Secondary Effects is unlocked by Ranged Weapons.

 

 

 

Dracunculus Pipe

The Dracunculus worm is a tiny parasite that burrows into the victims skin, causing a sensation of extreme fire as it crawls around. Ancient healers extracted the worms by twirling them around a stick - this is one fanciful explanation of why symbols such as the Rod of Asclepius and the Caduceus, which this pipe resembles, became associated with healing and medicine.

 

This was a random rare pipe. The Chance for Critical Hits is unlocked by Ranged Weapons.

 

 

 

Aestus Obscura

This name came about from the fact that this looks like a glowing cigar. "Oscuro" is a term in the cigar world, so I tweaked the word to Latin and paired it with Aestus (light, shining). Simple as that.

 

This model was present in the game files but totally unused until now.

 

 

 

Quetzalcoatl's Breath

Quetzalcoatl is a Mesoamerican god whose name means "feathered serpent". Quetzalcoatl was related to gods of the wind, of Venus, of the dawn, of merchants and of arts, crafts and knowledge. He was also the patron god of the Aztec priesthood, of learning and knowledge.

 

 

 

Skeleton Key

I think Throwing Daggers are an underused weapon class that boasts only 1 unique item (Xyryna's Parable), so maybe this will give an incentive to try them out. The Chance to Slow Opponents is unlocked by Ranged Weapons.

 

 

 

Molotov Cocktail

The ever-popular "poor man's grenade," this fiery concotion is sure to scorch and burn your foes. Unlike the only other unique throw drink (the Legendary Essence of DarkMatters), the appearance and bonuses on this weapon are not random. The Chance to Hit Additional Opponents is unlocked by Ranged Weapons.

 

 

 

Windbiter

The only unique throwing star is the Poison Star, and now it has some companions. I'm just going to borrow the Wiki pictures since they're hard to take good pictures of.

 

 

 

Star of Astaroth

Astaroth in demonology is a Crowned Prince of Hell. His seal is a five pointed star. The Chance to Slow Opponents is unlocked by Ranged Weapons, and the reduction to Opponent's Reflect Chance by Ranged Weapon Mastery.

 

 

 

Electric Executioner

He leaned back and narrowed his eyes. "I hate butchery of any kind, and hanging is barbarously crude. You know last year the New York legislature voted to adopt electric execution for condemned men—but all the apparatus they have in mind is... primitive... I knew of a better way, and told them so, but they paid no attention to me. God, the fools! As if I didn’t know all there is to know about men and death and electricity—student, man, and boy—technologist and engineer—soldier of fortune. . . . But I must have experimental subjects—and do you know whom I’ve chosen for the first?”

-HP Lovecraft, "The Electric Executioner"

 

I thought I "discovered" this item because it wasn't documented on the Wiki, but it turns out it's just a very rare Energy Weapon, which has by far my favorite design.

 

 

 

Kaleidoscopic Evangelist

A Legendary Energy Weapon that comes with all five damage types, several sockets, and some rare modifiers (the Chance to Stun is actually a newly crafted bonus by Silver Fox). The intensity of the modifiers has been increased since the stats pic was taken.

 

 

 

Noisy Cricket

You probably don't need to be reminded of

, but if you didn't know, this is a tiny gun that packs a huge whallop. The Chance to Hit Additional Opponents is unlocked by Ranged Weapons.

 

 

 

Remnants of Glaurung

Suggested and planned by Thorin Oakenshield a while back, I decided to bring his idea of a jewelry + shrunken head set for the Dryad to life. Glaurung was the first great evil dragon of Middle Earth, and although he lived before Dragons had wings and could fly, he sowed immense chaos and sorrow in the First Age. These pieces are his remnants.

 

I significantly nerfed the bonuses from Thorin's original plan, because it was overpowered. As it is, the set is still very desirable. The bonuses are granted at 3, 4, 5, and 6 pieces. Only the Dryad can complete the set with all 6 pieces due to the inclusion of a Shrunken Head. The High Elf could wear all the jewelry and get the 5-piece bonus, and the best the other classes could achieve would be 4 pieces (except for the Seraphim who could wear only 3 pieces).

 

I have not extensively tested how the head drops. I added it to the Dragon Shrunken Head droplist and also to the unique armor droplist. So it should drop from Dragons, and only for the Dryad.

 

 

 

 

 

 

More updates coming soon!

Edited March 20, 2014 by Flix

[Yoshio 91]

Sorry, but here at work I'm not able to access the Sacred Wiki.

But I guess, you figured out of which shield I was talking about correctly. What Silver_Fox said, is not exactly what I was thinking about or hoping for. All other shield do have, at least to my knowledge, the chance for random sockets - random in their chance to show up and amount off - but this Seraphim shield, again to my knowledge and observation, doesn't. At least I never ever had seen one with a socket. Although it is correct that those shields, as far as I can recall it, do only show up as magic (yellow) items, I feel that they, without the chance for even a single socket, are in general too weak to make them really useful.

As I do see it, this now holds two options, either, if possible, a chance for sockets to show up on them could be achieved or, as Flix said, thinking about a new Seraphim unique shield (brown/bronce) or even legendary (orange) for the next version might be a nice idea.

These are just my thoughts and, although I would, obivously, be very happy to see something in this direction, I fully understand that this something for later versions of the modification. So, now I would like to thank you both for your feedback on my idea and giving me the hope of that something could be done on them.

 

As for the ranged weapon up-date, very, very nice! Why is it just Thursday now and not already weekend!?

[Silver_fox 397]

I just checked and the Seraphim's yellow shield already has a separate blueprint of its own (number 2235). It shares two bonusgroups with other unique shields, and the third group is changed to combination of "absorbtion warding energy" and "block chance close combat". It currently has one more modifier than other rare shields, but it has decreased socket chance because it lacks the most common bonusgroup. Maybe the "block chance" modifier can just be swapped for silver or gold socket? I don't recommend swapping "magic" bonusgroup for "common" one as it would increase the chance of socketing but decrease the general quality of the modifiers. The only trouble is that any alteration of an already existing blueprint for a rare causes all items with this blueprint to change their stats, sometimes quite unpredictably. If you change this shield, all such shields that people have equipped or stored would change and we can't be completely sure that they would change for the better.

 

The new update is of course a delight. I'm especially glad to see new energy pistols and weapons. These classes were underrepresented in game, so not many people considered building a character entirely around these weapons. You made a good design for the big energy weapons, these ones can actually be useful. The biggest problem with this weapon class is that they usually are too weak in comparison to BFG, so energy weapon-oriented Seras rarely even consider them. Kaleidoscopic Evangelist with its sockets and unusual modifiers can actually win this comparison.

 

New bows are another good addition. Most people prefer blowpipes because of thier fast attack speed, but such good bows might make them reconsider. And the new blowpipes all have incredibly interesting look and the stats to match - an amesome find for any ranged Dryad!

[Flix 5,116]

Why not just add a socket to the third bonusgroup? That way no existing shields would be changed but all shields that dropped in the future would have a chance to have sockets.

 

Time for another update. This time: Sword Weapons.

 

Aeon Flux

This sword has been previously announced but I never posted the stats or pics of its current look. Pesmontis made this sword and sent it to me to add to the mod. Thank you! The Opponent's Evade Chance is unlocked by Dual Wield.

 

 

 

Snickersnee

In the game files, this is the name for all daggers. The name is a combination of "snick or snee" (stab or slice). I liked the name enough to use it for a unique. The model is an unlocked NPC-only weapon used by Garema and other enemies.

 

Note: the stats picture shows Armor Lore as the modifier. This was a mistake I have corrected. The Attack Speed bonus was the Armor Lore-unlockable version, it has now been changed to the standard Attack Speed modifier. I made a similar correction for Tinwora's Curse (no longer requires Armor Lore to unlock the Cast Speed).

 

 

 

Hellknight's Blade

A unique item that I was considering pairing with the Hellknight's Shield and/or making them part of the Doom Guard armor set. Let me know if that sounds like a good idea. The sword and shield bear a passing resemblance to those used by the Hellknights from Diablo I (and the Doom Guard armor was based on them as well).

 

 

 

Troll Carver

Trolls are a constant menace to the Orc tribes, to which Ogres belong. Ogres therefore have no shortage of mighty swords to cut down these mountain giants. This 2-Handed sword has seen battle, and will see more.

 

An NPC-only sword that I unlocked. Chances to hit additional opponents and to disregard armor are unlocked by Sword Weapons. Chance for serious open wounds is unlocked by Sword Mastery.

 

 

 

Laurelinad's Agonizer

Presenting the game's first unique Fist Weapon. Laurelinad is the Dark Elf rescuer and companion of Megalcarwen at the beginning of Sacred 1. I thought he could get a nod with an item named after him, if she could.

 

 

 

Bartuc's Cut-Throat

This is a recreation of the unique fist weapon of the same name from Diablo 2, that every assassin was thrilled to see drop. The appearances are fairly similar as well. It should be very powerful. Let me know if it needs a boost to make it truly Legendary.

 

 

 

The Night and The Silent Water

This is a two-piece set consisting of companion fist weapons. One is a blackened blade and the other a shining crescent.

 

 

 

 

Lightsabers

Silver Fox contributed 3 new Lightsabers of his own making to the mod. Thank you!

 

Windu's Mace

 

Disturbance in the Force

 

The Dark Side

 

 

Swordstaff Lightsabers

I have to give massive enthusiatic and heartfelt thanks to Pesmontis and Silver Fox for bring these brand-new weapon types to life. I just said making a double-lightsaber was "maybe something I'd like to do" and Pesmontis got to work on making a new weapon model and editing animations to accomodate them. Then Silver Fox worked to make them into a unique weapon class (that, like 1h Lightsabers in the CM Patch, gains damage from Willpower and uses the Sword Weapons skill), and scripted some uniques as well as random rares that can be bought and found. Altogether, we now have an awesome new classification of weapon for Sacred 2. Thanks guys!

 

Currently fire is always the predominant damage type (but not the only one), so they will always have red blades.

 

Maul's Swordstaff

 

Jedi Mind Trick

 

Light Source

 

 

Random 2H Sword

This another large and intimidating Ogre Blade I have unlocked for the player. It can be found as a random drop now.

 

 

More updates coming soon!

Edited March 20, 2014 by Flix

[Yoshio 91]

OHHHH!!! WUHUUUU!!! That is now just toooo cool!

I really love that you guys brought two bladed lightsabres into the game! It really makes my Sacred Jedi builts worth to play!

Felix, I really love the probosal of yours for adding socket(s) to the third bonus group. If this would be possible, I can't thank You enough. If it is too much asked for, I would be happy if either You, Felix, or Silver_Fox could explain to me what has to be done to see them happen and I would give it a try in a "private" mod.

[Silver_fox 397]

That's another awesome update! I really like all new fistweapons and the Troll Carver sword - the game needs more two-handers worthy of wielding and this is one good sword. I'm glad to see that you found some use for sword-unlocked "chance to hit additional opponents" - it's a simple but effective modifier that can appear on more items than just Maul's lightsaber. And I just love the design Pesmontis made for the Aeon Flux sword. It's good to know that you've furnished it with worthy modifiers and made it available to all classes, not just for the Seraphim as was the original idea. I'm looking forward to finding it for my Dual Wielders.

 

I hope that you won't mind if I tell some more things about swordstaves. Just so that the people knew what to expect from the new weapon type.

 

Rare Swordstaves:

Just as Flix said, Dual-bladed lightsabers now appear as a new weapon type available as rare (yellow) items. These items can be found from all the same monsters that can drop two-handed swords and with enough bargaining can be bought at vendors. From what I've tested, for the characters who keep Bargaining at level, they are common enough merchandise to make it possible to use them as main weapons for a character biuld.

All rare swordstaves share some common features - they sport the "chance to disregard armor" modifier that is a feature of a weapon class (similar to the original one-handed lightsabers) and starting from the Silver difficulty they have at least one high quality socket. In 90% cases it is a gold one, but sometimes it is replaced with silver. Other than that they have two more modifiers - an offensive and a defensive ones, that also have a chance to turn into sockets.

They also have custom names, so that you could tell them apart from other things when they drop. If you want to find them, look for dropping items called "Saberstaff", "Lightstaff" or "Doublesaber". Here are some examples of what you can get:

 

Maul's Swordstaff:

This swordstaff was designed in the image of a lightsaber that Darth Maul wielded and offers modifiers that allow to imitate one of the fighting styles for such weapons. With it you can use both blades of your lightsaber to hit enemies, effectively reaching not just those who stand in front of the fighter, but to the sides and even behind. The "chance to hit additional opponents" is rather high, making it one of the main features of this unique item. However, just like Attack and Defense values it is unlocked by Sword Weapons skill and scales with it. At the height of its power Maul's Swordstaff is a formidable weapon, but you need to invest a whole lot into your character's skill with Sword Weapons to see it shine like this. Here is what it can become (Niob, 200 points in Sword Lore):

 

Jedi Mind Trick:

Mind Tricks are the type of Force power that alters the opponents' perception of reality. This weapon allows you to warp their sense of time, causing them to move slowly and think that you move at incredible speed. It also makes it easier for you to evade their slow clumsy blows. Though there is a limit to the weapon's power - you can only be seen as a fast fighter if you have some real fighting prowess. So "Attack Speed" requires the Sword Weapons skill and scales with it. The Jedi Mind Trick was intended as a "levelling weapon" - the more powerful it is, the more you can do with it! So if you see it dropping with different sets of modifiers at different item levels, it's not a bug, it's a feature. See how it grows:

Edited March 21, 2014 by Silver_fox

[Silver_fox 397]

The blueprint for the seraphim's shield has not three but four bonusgroups, two of which are simple groups that consist of a single bonus and therefore should not be altered. The other two are very large and altering them would affect all the rare shields. From the testing I've done while making a rare blueprint for the swordstaves, it's not only changing bonusgroups inside a blueprint, but also changing a bonus list inside the bonusgroup that can cause all modifiers to reroll. Right now, the blueprint for this shield has the following:

  bonusgroup0 = {589,1100,1,9,0}, -- BGS_sec_shield_rare 
  bonusgroup1 = {588,1100,1,5,0}, -- BGS_sec_shield_magic
  bonusgroup2 = {715,1100,1,2,0}, -- SB_def_eshield_shieldfaktor
  bonusgroup3 = {826,1000,1,9,0}, -- SB_shldl_chance_block_CC

And you know, from what I've seen, the energy shield bonus does not always appear. The simplest way to enhance this shield is to open blueprint.txt, find a blueprint that has a string saying "id = 2235" and add the following line below the four I've listed:

bonusgroup4 = {858,1000,1,9,0}, -- socket silver

Maybe we can make it a permanent enhancement, as one of the current bonuses is rather erratic. Adding a socket to such blueprint won't make the shield OP. Besides, this alteration is unlikely to cause the random modifiers to reroll, it would just add sockets to all seraphim shields.

Edited March 21, 2014 by Silver_fox

[Pesmontis 166]

> ".. bring these brand-new weapon types to life.."
Don't forget to credit the one who had the idea in the first place ;-)

> ".. I just love the design Pesmontis made for the Aeon Flux sword.."
Thanks Silver_fox, you're actually the first to appreciate this model (in 6 months).

[Flix 5,116]

Excellent write-up for the double lightsabers, thanks!

 

Since it was a quick and easy change to make, I added in the silver slot to the rare Seraphim shields for this release.

 

Alright, time to go put together another update. I'll just leave this here...

 

 

 

[Silver_fox 397]

It was my exact reaction when I first installed I&B and saw this helmet... Though if you dig up the real Maul's portrait you'd see the difference. Maybe your old idea about making a Darth Maul's helmet/mask that still is listed in the first post is worth implementing now that we have the sword.

 

I'm glad that you liked the writeup. I'm sorry for stealing the spotlight like this, but as the new two-handed lightsabers are unlikely to get a proper wiki page like all original weapontypes have, I decided to make a similar explanation here.

 

Now I'm waiting for this update you went to make. I'm curious as to what you'd be showing next.

Edited March 21, 2014 by Silver_fox

[Flix 5,116]

Hey these new lightsabers are more yours and Pesmontis's products than mine, so it's very fitting for you to fill us in on the details. I feel like all I did was just watch as it all came together and say "good job."

 

OK I'm cranking out yet another update because I want to get back to work on my new Inquisitor set (the very last thing I was able to squeeze into the mod - only the textures and icons need to be finalized).

 

This update: Hafted Weapons! And now we finally get around to seeing more Dual Wield sets that Thorin suggested a while back.

 

Insignia Regis

This is a four-piece dual club set. But I'm not calling them clubs. Due to their regal designs I'm calling them sceptres. And every king needs a sceptre or two, as well as royal attributes like a firm hand and a commanding voice. The set has 2 sceptres that are retextured rare models, a ring, and an amulet.

 

 

The Fire Damage to Undead on the Sceptrum is unlocked by Hafted Weapons. The Chance to Stun on the Globus is unlocked by Hafted Weapons Mastery. The set bonuses are unlocked at 2 and 4 pieces. Thanks to Silver Fox for suggesting the theme of sceptres and some names.

 

 

 

Flesh-Eaters Implements

This is a dual-axe set with four pieces total, including a ring and an amulet. I chose the meanest, rustiest looking axes the game had, and they are also unused for any other uniques so they have their own personalities.

 

Ghouls are those who feed on the flesh of the dead, eventually becoming more grotesque than the corpses they consume. They are known to haunt graveyards and crypts. The Wendigo, on the other hand, are known by Native American tribes to prefer warm living flesh, the better from which to steal the victim's strength.

 

Tengu are bipedal winged creatures from Japanese lore. In some tellings they are more noble, but in others they swoop down on unsuspecting prey with outstretched claws. Finally, we have the Jotun, the most fearsome giants of the north, some large enough to swallow a man in one gulp.

 

 

Opponent's Chance to Evade on the Ghoul Blade is unlocked by Dual Wield. The set bonuses are unlocked at 2 and 4 pieces.

 

 

 

Bone of Ullr

Ullr is an ancient god of the Germanic tribes, so ancient that when the Norse myths of the Iron Age were recorded almost all had been forgotten about him. He is remembered as a god of hunting and the winter.

 

Saxo Grammaticus says this of Ullr: "The story goes that he was such a cunning wizard that he used a certain bone, which he had marked with awful spells, wherewith to cross the seas, instead of a vessel; and that by this bone he passed over the waters that barred his way as quickly as by rowing."

 

This was an NPC-only club used by Lizard warriors that I have unlocked. The Fire Damage Against Undead is unlocked by Hafted Weapons. Thanks to Pesmontis for suggesting the name and telling me about this old god.

 

 

 

Eugene's Axe

Since there are no Legendary 1h Axes, I decided to invent one. Thorin suggested the name, which is from a Pink Floyd song "Careful with that Axe, Eugene" (which is instrumental so we may never know the meaning). The Chance for Open Wounds is unlocked by Hafted Weapons.

 

 

 

Labrys the Star-Axe

One night a farmer found a strange large chunk of metal in a smoking pit in his pumpkin fields. It was greenish in hue and seemed to emit an ever-so-faint glow. The blacksmith who bought it couldn't identify the ore - it seemed unlike any he had ever tested, strangely pliable yet incredibly resilient. Mere days after having acquired it, he began to work on forging a weapon from it. Day and night, he labored feverishly over his work, forging, drawing, bending. All other work was cast aside. He claimed he could "see the shape" and that it wanted to be "let out." His close proximity with the metal seemed to make him appear strangely weak and sallow, while the glow of the metal seemed to only intensify. On the very day he finished the work, he looked around in confusion for a few moments, and gasped his last breath. No one ever purchased the axe, however, and as everyone who came near it grew faint or nauseous, his nephew eventually locked it away in a cheap forgotten warehouse.

 

This stunning find is my favorite result from searching the game files for unused and unlockable items.

 

 

 

Random Hafted Weapons

The following axe and hammer are former NPC-only items (Orc weapons) that I've unlocked and made available as random normal, magic, and/or rare drops.

 

 

 

One more update to go before release!

Edited March 22, 2014 by Flix

[Dragon Brother 619]

I think you are right about the axe, it has to take the cake. Truly beautiful weapon!

 

Edit: And Kal'Dur's can drop as legendary so it's kinda a legendary 1h axe so now there are 1.5 perhaps?

[Yoshio 91]

Many thanks for explaining in detail about the shields and for adding it to the mod!

[Gilberticus 374]

Green glowing chunk: the Loc-Nar! But then again, not everyone's as much of a "Heavy Metal" fan as I am

Edited March 22, 2014 by Gilberticus

[Flix 5,116]

Heh. Speaking of Heavy Metal, I saw a silly message the other day that reminded me of you:


I swapped around some bonus for the Dual Axe set above. You can now see the new stats in the post.

Time for the last new items update before release (tomorrow!). This time: Polearms.


Transfixion Orb

Dragon Brother made these textures and did some scripting for the design. Thank you! I'm very glad to include it in the mod. "Transfixion" has a double meaning of a trance-like state and also wounding. The swirling hypnotic orb mesmerizes enemies while the spiky blades slice and stab them.

 

 

 

Longinus Lance

Two ideas from Dave-O, one for a spear with chance to stun and ice damage, and another named after the Spear of Destiny, combined into one item.

 

 

 

Waton's Dreamblade

This long halberd was an NPC-only item that I unlocked. It was mainly used by Dragon Cultists. This particular blade belonged to Waton, who aspired to be leader of the cult, when he discovered the former leader Ophtanar was giving the cultists dreamberries to make them drugged and fanatical followers. He enlists your help in the Dragon Cult quest. The Chance to Hit Additional Opponents is unlocked by Pole Arms lore.

 

 

 

Halberd of the Rocks

This halberd is named after the weapon of the same name from Divine Divinity, which was quite powerful but afflicted with a stamina drain curse that could only be cleansed in limited circumstances. The curse has been lifted from this incarnation of the halberd. The Defense value is unlocked by Pole Arms lore.

 

 

 

Snowstaff of the Ogre

Another unlocked NPC-only item, this pole (not a magic staff) is wielded by Ogre ice shamans. It is lightly coated with frost and protects the user from fire.

 

 

 

Twilight Harvester

An atmospheric name for a big intimidating scythe (the three scythes are classified as blunt Poles btw). The Chance Opponents Cannot Evade is unlocked by Pole Arms Mastery.

 

 

 

Ok, well that concludes the introductions of all the new weapons and shields I've made! You will get one last update with some new Inquisitor armor added (in a separate thread), then tomorrow before release of the mod I will update the first post of this thread to be an overview of everything added (probably just a single small thumbnail for each new item/set).

[Silver_fox 397]

The last but not least update for this mod release is now done. And a good one it is. Finally we have a unique scythe with some nice stats, so maybe these weapons would get some more attention and show up in character builds more often. I like the Halberd of the Rocks, which finally made this beautiful model into a useful unique weapon. As a person who played Divine Divinity, I'm just happy to finally be able to equip the thing without worrying about the curse.

 

Though probably the best part of today's update is the new stats for the Flash Eaters'. I'm very fond of the new way the modifiers are distributed - all items look good, but the best bonuses are reserved for set completion, just like a well-designed set should be.

[Gilberticus 374]

Lol, Flix, that message is So me! The female form is mystifying to me, far beyond just a base, carnal level. The female body has a duality that just amazes me. They can be sensual and predatory, yet nurturing and motherly all at the same time. There was a song by Meredith Brooks, where she says she's a sinner, saint, mother, secret lover, and everything in between all at once. THAT is the female form to me; it's not something to be covered up, censored, and considered sinful, it's the most awe-inspiring expression of art that I've ever seen. One could possibly say I feel as such because of my....preference, but I don't think so, the reason is because I think that males in general struggle with duality to a certain extent, I don't think we can be simultaneously graceful yet powerful on the same level that females can be.