A Persistent world is designed to run with a specific set of files which they will provide for you to play with. Having the wrong files can cause issues when you play, especially with files in your override or ui directories. The first time you play on a given world you should remove ALL such files. It is recommended that the first time you join a world that you inspect these folders for files you downloaded from the vault, or ones that happen to have been put there by other persistent worlds. If you've used other worlds that use an installer such as WorldGate, Audolo, or something else there is a good chance something is in your folder you do not know about.
Some worlds use do this for good reason, custom classes, gods, and races all require that you do this. And this issue was not really understood to be a problem until recently. Some are campaigning for override free servers, which is really impossible for these worlds at this point. To do so would require a server wipe of all their characters, removal of features that are integral to their worlds, and for the most part starting over. However these worlds should work to minimize the issue by analyzing which files can go in hak's, and only putting the bare minimum files into the players override folder. Care should be taken because files that work for players, do not work when in the toolset, which can lead admins to think they need to be in the override when they do not.
The interesting thing is that players who use content from the vault are not the cause of problems in this regard. These players see the notice that overrides should be removed, and because they downloaded said files themselves, they know enough to remove them, themselves. However those who play on persistent worlds tend to use an automated installer. These players don't know where the files actually went, so they assume they have no files that are a problem, and it is only after the issue is troubleshot by the PW admin who is dealing with the problem, do the files show up. Therefore i recommend that all Persistent World's install files for the override to the desktop, and have the player manually move them to their override folder. This will cause some players problems who cannot handle this, but by the same token these are the same players who cannot handle removing them, and it keeps your decision to use overrides to being your problem. Once the files are in the override folder it is fine for the installer to update all the files specific to your server in the given folder.
What can players do about this issue[]
How to inspect for other files[]
- Navigate to your "<Program Files>\Atari\Neverwinter Nights 2\Override" and make sure this folder is empty. This generally has nothing in it, and remember in the future that all files should go into your player folders override folder. The UI folder next to Override tends to not be touched either, but if you've changed things here you usually have to reinstall to get things sorted out. Just remember ""Leave your Program Folder like Obsidian gave it to you"".
- Navigate to "<My Documents>\Neverwinter Nights 2\". Look for the file dialog.tlk, if it exists remove it.
- Navigate to "<My Documents>\Neverwinter Nights 2\override". Everything in this folder should be removed
- Navigate to "<My Documents>\Neverwinter Nights 2\ui". This folder should contain two folders, "custom" and "default". "default" should only contain the file "guisettings.ini" which holds your camera settings, and custom should be completely empty.
This should be done before and after running any installer, just so you know what the installer went and installed.
Resetting your player folder[]
This can help fix issues, and gives you an override free folder in the process
- Go to "Neverwinter Nights 2" in your my documents folder. Rename it so it is safe to something like "old Neverwinter Nights 2".
- Now start up neverwinter nights, and it will create a brand new clean folder ready for using on any persistent world, and can fix issues caused by putting things places you don't realize.
- You can copy files from your old folder, such as "My Docs/Neverwinter Nights/ui/default/guisettings.ini" which is all your keyboard settings and movement controls you've selected. Hak's and PWC's are safe to copy back as well.
Managing Multiple Folders[]
The above resetting technique can be used to play on multiple persistent worlds. Im going to assume you like playing solo games with files from the vault, and on "World A" and "World B", whichever worlds they might be. The first time you do it you generally have your system set up for playing the official campaign or the expansion, or perhaps modules you've downloaded.
- Rename your "Neverwinter Nights 2" folder "Official Neverwinter Nights 2".
- Now start up Neverwinter Nights, then quit. Run the installer for "World A" and get everything set up for this world. You can test it out and play a bit. When you are all set, rename your "Neverwinter Nights 2" folder "WorldA Neverwinter Nights 2"
- Repeat the above step for "World B"
- Now when you play you'll always have a folder called "Neverwinter Nights 2", and your other world will be renamed for what they are. Just keep track and rename things before you update and you can play on multiple worlds without causing yourself, or those worlds any issues.
Exceptions to the rule[]
Less Obtrusive Spell Buffs is one exception to all this. ( See PW Player Guidelines ) Other files may or may not be allowed, and you should discuss this with the admins of your persistent world. Remember you are in their house, and you should treat them with respect, having the wrong files can cause issues to everyone playing on the server and not just you.
Why is this an issue[]
The wrong files being used actually make it so there is basically two version of the game being played. Portions are done in the client ( your computer ) and others are done on the server itself ( the persistent world ). Some would assume that this could give a player an advantage, but the server is more than capable of correcting the client. But each time it does this it uses a lot of bandwidth to sort out the issue. If this happens on a server that is hosted from someones home, this can fill up the connection. The result is your client crashing and/or lag being experienced by all the players on said world. Also some of these files actually trigger bugs in the obsidian engine, which can cause crashing the entire server, which means ALL the players lose what they were doing. This is a major source of crashing, not the only one of course, but one that is preventable.