I'm hopelessly confused

Which front end should I load. I'm guessing the beta since it seems like it has been out awhile?

 

Thanks it is good to be back. I was concerned that Liv's mod and all the other changes were included. Are you saying that the 5.02 pack is basically just fixes to the game and shopmap?

If this is the case and later on I want to try all the custom mods people have created I'm guessing I have to download them seperatly and install somehow through the front end?

 

FWIK, latest 5.0.2 pack (11.06.06) contains all additionnal mods.

IIRC, the only mods which can be excluded during 5.0.0 install are Desesperate Housewives and the Shopmap (also know as Jade Empress caravan). But even if you choose to desactivate the later at 5.0.0, it is automatically reactivated when adding 5.0.1 or 5.0.2 packs.

 

Woah, so that does mean I can't play the original game if I load 5.0.2 and the front end? If I want to play the original game does that mean my only option is to load patch 3 and hope for the best?

Now I'm really confused.

 

Yes, that is what it means--though it's advised you forego patch 3 since while it does fix the looting bug it also introduces other bugs not found elsewhere.

Personally, I think it's a nice idea to want to do the original game, but the truth is most of what the modders have done is fix problems with the original game or restored elements which weren't implemented in the original release but were intended to be, had Troika had world enough & time to do so. And frankly, the new material, such as it is, works very seamlessly with the original game, and serves almost completely to enhance it, not deviate from it in any way. The large departures are Hickory Branch, Verbobonc, and the moathouse respawn, and the incredibly minor effort it takes to avoid them, if you want to, is far outweighed by the manifold benefits patching up to the latest release offers.

So take your pick. Happy gaming.

 

If you have installed ToEEFE and Co8 5.0.2 mods (= 5.0.0 upgraded with CMF 5.0.2), you can launch from the Front End either :
1) the original ToEE module (with Atari patch 2)
2) the Co8 5.0.2 mods with all fixes and mods

So you can still play the original game but you'll have to live with the no-loot bug. This bug was fixed by Atari patch 3 which is incompatible with Co8 mod pack.

 

Ok, I'm sure this is going to sound stupid, but the one thing I want to be able to do is kill Rannos and Gremag after they are revealed as agents. The walkthough I was reading said that they were killed by a level 1 party. My party was level 2 and once I did enough damage they drank potions and disappered. After I hit that difference I got concerned that whatever I had loaded was going to continue to change the game. I guess what I'm asking is "Is this type of thing a change or a fix?"

 

from what I read, I think it's a change from Liv's mod.

 

And would it be included in 5.02 or is there a way to shut it off?

 

Bottom line is that there is no offering from Co8 that is "bug fixes only", nor is there any way to turn off most of the non-bug fixing changes in the Co8 mods. Nor is it likely that either of those will be offered at any time in the future.

There is no way to turn off Rannos and Gremag trying to escape with the Co8 mods. It is possible to kill them before they escape, and if they do escape they will show up later and you can kill them then.

 

Got it. So I loaded everything as per the sticky (at least I think I did) I notice it says version 5.0.0 on the main menu page, should it now say 5.0.2 or did I not apply the cumulative patches correctly.

 

The only indication that you are using 5.0.2 will be in the mod description window in Front End, along with a build number that corresponds to the date that version of 5.0.2 was posted.

5.0.2 is an ever changing patch, conceived mainly to keep all new mods coming out compatible, to make sure modders had the latest files to use in making their mods, and to simplify putting together new major releases ( the ones that come with installers, like 5.0.0). 5.0.2 gets updated frequently to include the latest mod submissions. Changing the menu art to reflect 5.0.2 and it's version is far too time consuming to do that often. Thus I opted to only display 5.0.2 as being installed in the mod description window, since all that takes is a quick edit to a text file. The menu art will only be changed to reflect major releases.

 

Excellent. I think I'm good to go. Hopefully I can find time this weekend to actually play.