Getting Started

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Installing the Toolset

  • Install the game. Ensure that Dragon Age is installed before dabbling in the toolset, as it relies on the game's resources and engine, and cannot function without them.
  • Create an account. In order to contribute to pages on the DA Builder Wiki or participate on the BioWare Social Network, you will need to create an online user account.
  • Register the game. In addition, you will need to register your copy of Dragon Age before gaining access to game-owner only content, including the toolset.
  • Download the toolset. The Dragon Age toolset contains the same functionality used by BioWare to craft the official campaign, and provides the power and flexibility to create your own custom content and adventures.
  • Install the toolset. Refer to this page for general information and step-by-step instructions to installing the toolset.
  • Troubleshooting. Refer to this page for specific information on how to resolve issues in the event that toolset installation goes awry.
  • Known issues. Refer to this page for a currently documented list of known issues and bugs in the current version of the toolset.

Overview of the Toolset

Starting the Toolset

How to determine which module is currently open
Warning-information.png Do not edit Single Player or Core Resources with custom content!

Before using the Toolset, it is important to take note of what module the toolset has open. A module is a "container" in which game resources are stored in; you will only be able to see the resources for the currently open module (and any modules that it is marked as depending on). The default module when first starting the Toolset is the "Demo" module, which is a very small and simple module intended to show several common resource types in a basic pre-built adventure that you can experiment with safely.

The main Dragon Age: Origins campaign resources are stored in a module named "Single Player". If you're just starting out with the toolset, it can be dangerous to edit these, as you could inadvertently corrupt your main campaign. Take care when exploring not to edit any of those resources without knowing what you're doing.

The first basic steps in the Toolset shall be to create your own Module. The only possible type of Module is "Addin", but note that this name is somewhat misleading; it is possible to have "standalone addins" that are completely separate from any other module (such as the main campaign).

  • See: Module - For a general overview of how a Module works, and what awaits you.

Using the Toolset

As described in the overview linked to above, the game uses a wide variety of resource types. A "resource" is something that you can create, such as a script or a creature, and you will often need to combine many different resources together to accomplish a particular design goal. The toolset consists of many independent tools for working with these different types of resources. These tools can be well discussed separately.

The next best step for learning the toolset would be to look into the categories on the Main Page, which link deeper into each topic and the tools involved with them. If you are having questions at a specific part of the toolset give this Wiki a search for it. This can be very specific, and always worth a try. You may also find the toolset forums to be useful in solving specific problems the documentation here may not cover.

A list of certain Interest, and the 3 Resource types:

  • Design - Talks mainly about Designer Resources, such as Items, Monsters, NPC's, Vendors, etc.
  • Art - Talks mainly about Art Resources, such as Models, Textures, Facemorphs, etc.
  • 2DA - Talks about the 2DA Resourcetype, which is sets of Gamewide usable variables and references.


Tips and tricks

  • Shortcuts - Assorted toolset shortcuts.
  • Common Problems - Little things that most people will need to know but that are not necessarily obvious.

Specials

It is currently not possible to delete a module by normal means.

If you run into a problem that the documentation doesn't cover and that you can't fix, contact toolsetsupport@bioware.com

Removing Custom Content

This section describes how to remove all custom content from the game.

To be on the safe side, before you start, you might want to

  • disable all the unofficial add-ins on the DLC screen in game
  • play a recently saved game (using the Force Load option) to confirm that it works reasonably well without the add-ins
  • back up your Documents > Bioware folder

Since you can't be certain that all authors have followed best practice, you'll need to clean out all the folders that can be customised.

In Documents > Bioware > Dragon Age,

  • In the AddIns folder, delete all the folders except Demo, Single Player and anything starting with dao_prc (the official DLC).
  • Delete any files In the AddIns > Single Player folder and sub-folders (you might get away with just deleting the Single Player folder, but caution never hurts).
  • Delete any files from the modules and packages folders.

Dragon Age 2

See Dragon Age 2 for more information.


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