Gandalf the White mini-mod [RELEASE Beta]

[smoesville]

This is just a mini-mod which gives you a second chance with Gandalf. It basically resurrects Gandalf, gives him a new portrait, staff and bumps up his starting stats. I haven't tested it yet as i don't have a clean install of TATW but it should be fine, i'll upload an uninstaller soon. All you have to do is unpack into your TATW folder and it should work If in doubt check gandalf as Eriador and he should be called the grey.

Also just overwrite any of the files it asks about, if it doesn't ask then you probably unpacked it in the wrong place

Credit:
Kai whose code i altered from the immortal nazgul mod

[AragornElessar]

Great! Plz make him too for Gondor

[Vifarc]

Gandalf should become White even he does not die (when could he upgrade? just in some given turns? when Isengard is at war vs Eriador and Rohan?).
To not commit him suicide, some very good bonus should be given if he succeed in becoming White without dying:
Maybe he could give alliance and fame with every Free People faction, some units for each?, etc, as he then would had have time to make diplomacy and help Free faction leaders to levy armies.

[smoesville]

Gandalf should become White even he does not die (when could he upgrade? just in some given turns? when Isengard is at war vs Eriador and Rohan?).
To not commit him suicide, some very good bonus should be given if he succeed in becoming White without dying:
Maybe he could give alliance and fame with every Free People faction, some units for each?, etc, as he then would had have time to make diplomacy and help Free faction leaders to levy armies.

I'm not sure what you mean in the last part about levied armies? Do you mean that eriador would get free units from the other factions?

An idea would be to give him to rohan/gondor when he dies (lorewise it makes perfect sense) or if both of them are dead then give him to the elves etc. basically just go down through the list of good factions and check if they're dead and give it to one of them. I like the idea of him not dying and becoming white but i also think you wouldn't see him for a few turns (3-4) before he returns to a faction.

Might have an event like 'An urgent mission - Word has reached us that Gandalf has left during the night leaving only a hasty note on which is scrawled "Have been called away, had to leave immediately. G p.s. Look for my return..."' and then gandalf the Grey disappears then appears either for another faction or eriador.

He would also return with shadowfax (if he had it before i'll remove it).

[Santeri]

An idea would be to give him to rohan/gondor when he dies (lorewise it makes perfect sense) or if both of them are dead then give him to the elves etc. basically just go down through the list of good factions and check if they're dead and give it to one of them. I like the idea of him not dying and becoming white but i also think you wouldn't see him for a few turns (3-4) before he returns to a faction.

I think it should be possible to give him to players faction and I think that is how it should be done when player is one from good factions

[Noobio]

having him roam around for some turns (with some turns intreval) would be really

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

AWESOME

ps
if you haven't made portrait or staff pics i could help..it's really easy

[smoesville]

having him roam around for some turns (with some turns intreval) would be really

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

AWESOME

ps
if you haven't made portrait or staff pics i could help..it's really easy

I've since realised that there is a staff and probably a portrait already for the fellowship campaign so they can be re-used.

It would be really cool if he appeared where he was needed; like leading the helmingas at the battle of the hornburg.

Here is a portrait i've done, don't really like the background though. It's a bit trippy for my liking. Meant to plow on with the mod today but i'm knackered so it'll have to be tomorrow after work Perverse though it is i think i prefer modding the game these days to playing it

I think it should be possible to give him to players faction and I think that is how it should be done when player is one from good factions

This is a good idea, it negates a problem i foresaw which was what if he goes to rohan after eriador and immediately gets killed since rohan is almost always on the ropes early on or indeed any faction. At least with a player faction you know he's there and may not get him killed so easily.

[Noobio]

portraits are 69 x 96 size ..tga file form .. 32 bit and shouldn't have backround (i've noticed that all are clear of backround ,at least all besides those used for faction leaders ) so just "cut" the backround and keep the human form..

[smoesville]

It is the right proportions, but the only filetype twc allowed was a jpeg so there it is. Didn't know about the BG, makes life easier

Edit:
I also realized that he will only known as Gandalf as otherwise we'll get captains of Eriador called gandalf the grey/white, captain gandalf i've seen and isn't too bad but 'captain gandalf the grey' is a bit much. Also there'll be more captain Gandalfs popping up around ME if i make it so he switches faction since a character can only be named from the name list of the faction ie i'll have to add gandalf to any faction that gets him afaik.

Edit:
Also Lois Lux has given me permission to use the gandalf grey/white models from his heroes submod

[Santeri]

Edit:
I also realized that he will only known as Gandalf as otherwise we'll get captains of Eriador called gandalf the grey/white, captain gandalf i've seen and isn't too bad but 'captain gandalf the grey' is a bit much. Also there'll be more captain Gandalfs popping up around ME if i make it so he switches faction since a character can only be named from the name list of the faction ie i'll have to add gandalf to any faction that gets him afaik.

You could give him trait which give "the white" or "the grey" just like there is traits which gives "the honourable" or "the just"

[smoesville]

You could give him trait which give "the white" or "the grey" just like there is traits which gives "the honourable" or "the just"

That could work if it had the right conditions, it's probably how richard the lionheart got his name (since richard would be on the names list).

It's frustrating that i can discuss all this but i can't test any of it until i get home

[Withwnar]

Good one Smoesville. +rep

You could give him trait which give "the white" or "the grey" just like there is traits which gives "the honourable" or "the just"

That could work if it had the right conditions

You can just create a new trait that does this and give him that trait along with the others when he's spawned. Or even modify the existing gandalf trait, adding a new level, giving each level a different epithet: level 1 = the Grey, level 2 = the White. And use level 2 when spawning The White.

[smoesville]

You can just create a new trait that does this and give him that trait along with the others when he's spawned. Or even modify the existing gandalf trait, adding a new level, giving each level a different epithet: level 1 = the Grey, level 2 = the White. And use level 2 when spawning The White.

Took a while to figure why i was screwing up but both 'the Grey' and 'the White' work and they both have a bio and effects attached

He now also has the white staff, just the portrait and script to implement and stage 1 will be done

Don't know why but have a weird glitch, at some stage the strat model has changed to Elessar

Edit:
So far i have Gandalf the grey at the start and then gandalf (the just atm) when he dies, or more to the point when he no longer has his staff. Portrait is just about done and i think i've found an appropraite pic for the return event (which is done too).

Things to do? Get 'the White' working again (when i put it in it causes the elessar glitch) and the pics i mentioned. When that's all done i'll see about going further with the scripting

The changes are here if antone who knows how to mod wants to have a look.

[Noobio]

if you go with the gandalf-tour idea ,maybe you could use his various names...mithradir when in gondor for example..or his valinor name when in elven kingdoms (olorin i think)

and why should his name be included in the faction's name list ? in med2tw crusades expansion, richard the lion-heart spawns as reinforcement to the kingdom of jerusalem and i'm pretty sure no other jerusalem general ever had the same name-title...

why not ask-search in the mod workshop about it ?

[Noobio]

at least you get a fun-break from working

[smoesville]

Don't tell anyone but... i'm not working very hard

[Noobio]

don't know what pic you chose but i think the fangorn moment, the one with rays of light behind him would be a real cool event pic

[smoesville]

You don't know the dimensions of the event pics do you?

[Withwnar]

Event pics don't have a fixed size. There must be a minimum/maximum but I don't know what they are.

[smoesville]

That isn't technically the problem, the code i put up works but i omitted 'the white' trait. The problem is actually when i take the gandalf trait away the stratmap model switches from gandalf to elessar. After that i'm not really sure what's happening, i think it's the order the stratmap models are listed in expanded, or at least it points the way, the order is aragorn, gandalf, eriador general, elessar. What i'm worried about is what if i put another gandalf in and and when arnor comes along it screws up. I have to figure out why a trait with no link that i can see to the stratmodel does this.