So you downloaded NoVFX, but don't like one of the effect removals? Are you feeling the overwhelming urge to make a bajillion comments requesting every single detail you want changed? Don't worry, I got you—here's how to edit NoVFX for your own game!
Before you begin, you'll need:
LSLib
Modder’s Multitool
Any basic text editor: Notepad or TextEdit will do fine; I like VSCode
1) Unpack NoVFX using Modder’s Multitool
Drag and drop the NoVFX pak into Multitool or use Unpack Mod(s) to generate its folder into UnpackedMods.
Friendly note #1: LSLib can also be used for packing and unpacking mods, but don't criss-cross between programs. If you unpack with LSLib, repack with LSLib; if you unpack with Multitool, repack with Multitool.
Friendly note #2: on Windows, drag and dropping files into applications REQUIRES UAC (User Account Control) to be enabled. Some people had to find that out the hard way. Ahem.
2) Open the StatusData file
Navigate to:Public > robogena_NoVFX > Stats > Generated > Data > robogena_NoVFX.txt
and open it in your text editor.
3) Find the effect you want to edit
All effects are labeled with headers and descriptions for easier identification. Visual effects are under the StatusEffect, ApplyEffect, EndEffect, and ManagedStatusEffectGroup attributes. Sound effects will use attributes such as SoundLoop, SoundStart, and SoundStop.
Lines that begin with ‘ // ‘ are ignored by the game. Helpful tip: when removing effects, don’t delete the line! Just comment it out by adding // to the front of it. You never know when you might want to have it back.
For each effect, you’ll see that its ‘new entry’ will be ‘using’ the same exact name. This is self-inheritance, and it’s what lets you change the effects attributes without affecting the entire entry. Unless you know what you’re doing, don’t touch this part. Everything under the ‘using’ line is okay to edit or delete.
4) Make your edits
Remove whichever effect you know you don’t want by deleting its VFX/SFX lines or its entire entry. If you’re at all unsure, comment it out first and check it out in-game to see if you really want it gone. It’s easier to un-comment than it is to hunt down the original entry for the line you deleted.
5) Repack NoVFX
Take the NoVFX folder and put it back into Multitool to repack it into a pak file. From there, the new pak can go into your Mods folder and you can export the updated file to your game. You're all done!
You can add new entries for effect removal by following the same syntax you see here. The more difficult part will be finding the name of the effect you want gone in the first place. If you’re lucky, the in-game name and internal name are similar and straight-forward. Otherwise? You’re gonna have to go hunting 'em down.
Here’s some recommendations for effect removal that have helped me:
VSCode Workspace
This is my preferred method. When you unpack game files using Modder’s Multitool, it puts everything into a folder called UnpackedData. Opening a workspace in this folder lets you search everything in VSCode and find that pesky entry that’s hiding from you. Might not be the fastest way, but it works for me!
Remember: Game File Operations > Decompress UnpackedData Files in Multitool BEFORE you start searching! VSCode can’t read file types like .lsf or .loca!
BG3 Search Engine by Norbyte
Real-life wizard Norbyte has a search utility for game data that’s simple and snappy. The utility parses dialogue handles, so you can search for entries by their in-game name OR their internal name. There’s even a Stats Validator to check your changes before you break your game. My hero!
This is the best option for most people. The downside would be not knowing what game version you’re searching through (or I haven't been able to find that info, at least). With UnpackedData, there’s no guessing—you’re pulling directly from your current install.
BG3 Hex & Data Browser by Blue Neuron
This is an easy way to dump tons of variables at once to peruse through them. Like with BG3 Search Engine, you can have the in-game name and internal name display together for easier searching. As a nice bonus, you can choose between the English or French translation.
BG3.Wiki
The wiki that I spend way too much damn time on. Some beautiful person(s) added UIDs (AKA internal name) and UUIDs (AKA unique identifier) for all the items. Whoever you are, I love you eternally and slightly non-platonically. I use this shit so often.
This is nice for finding passives that have annoying internal names. Many of them are just named after the items they appear on, like so:
Horns of the Berserker > MAG_Hat_Barbarian_Hide
Seeking Blood > MAG_Barbarian_Hide_Helmet_Bloodseeker_Passive
Blood Thirst > MAG_Barbarian_Hide_Helmet_Bloodthirsty_Passive
And that's it from me! If you have any questions or need more explanation on something, let me know in the comments. Happy modding!
4 comments
*cheers wildly from the peanut gallery*
Clear, concise, cogent, immediately comprehensible & actionable.
I've got at least 10 at least other kill-a-certain-vfx mods littering the load order (prolly some overlap) that need to be rolled into an AIO No VFX, and now I am [almost literally] purring along happily in Multi-Tool scanning thru their guts to find the needed entries. So far, I haven't run into anything you haven't already threshed out above, so no Qs [yet?]...
What do you do for encores?
By encores, what do you mean? Do you mean like duplicate entries?
I've only started tinkering & pawing thru stuff, learnin what I can thru brute, uh, pawing.
Someone taught me how to rip out embedded modfixers & another lovely soul helped me out with some container stuff (and pointed me to some basic resources)... and then I started tinkering with some encounter & difficulty mods' enemy xp tables, and now magpie-bright-shinyness has got me here. Really appreciate the tutorial article.
I love modularity, too. I also love AIO. Perfect solution would be an AIO that's configurable in Volitio's MCM to turn things on/off.
*giggles while waiting to see if the bait is taken*
And I see your bait 👀 That's actually probably possible to do with MCM? But I'm not entirely sure. I'd have to look into it. At the very least it would be a UI nightmare, because just configuring the effects already in NoVFX alone would be 80~ toggles to go through.