[REQUEST] Help getting started modding

Also, should I begin with DS1 modding or DS2? Is DS1 simpler? Do I need Legendary mod installed, or can I mod (and create) maps for the stock games?

for beginning modding i will suggest the ds1 modding cause it had more modding tools and was easier to mod. u will need to have ds and loa installed for starts also need to find gmax...and also will need the siege construction set...i not sure if they on this site.

Is there a bird's eye view, or explanation, of the DS architecture &/or layout (how maps, resource files, gas files, etc.) all work together to create the game?

As well, I still don't have All*Saves or Succubus working at the moment. Is this required for modding? If so, I'll have to re-install, which I dread because I'm not sure how to save my characters, parties, save games, etc.

all saves and succubus arent required for ds1 but are nice to have for ds2. as the mods will corrupt save files on ds2...thats why i think for beginners ds1 is good to learn modding.

Thanks so much,
WyrdForge

P.S. Not sure if this is in the correct sub-forum. Please feel free to move as required. Thx

dont think it in right forum but im sure an admin will correct it if not...

Siege Editor Tool Kit: https://www.nexusmods.com/dungeonsiege1/mods/49
Siege University: https://www.nexusmods.com/dungeonsiege1/mods/46

Apart from DS1 you only need the Siege Editor Tool Kit to get started.
I recommend doing the Siege University Tutorial 100 and make a nice little dummy map. It covers the most basic topics of terrain, foliage, actors, events etc., from there on you'll see for yourself what you want to do next.

Welcome back to modding! Post questions here in the forum or on the discord: https://discord.com/channels/373223103985090581/397476722691407874
There's also a wiki with lots of info about game lore, monster stats, leveling guide etc.: https://dungeonsiege.fandom.com/wiki/Dungeon_Siege_Wiki

You can check out our modding tools here.

I recommend reading through Siege University. It's a really good resource.

Posting here is fine for now, no worries. Further topics should be posted to the DS1 & LoA Mod Development forum.

For some reason, I can't find a copy of skritpad, which is a text tool for you to write your templates and save them as gas files. I've uploaded it here. You can use Windows notepad as long as you change the extension to .gas, but skritpad does a better job, imo.

Thank you all for the help. I'm now back up to where I was two years ago. I'm just about through the Siege Editor tutorial (the CHM file that comes with SE1.7). I notice a few differences between the tutorial and the actual menus and dialogs; I guess the tutorial wasn't updated with 1.7. As last time, I'm trying to wrap my brain around all the permutations of terrain and how they fit (or don't) together, especially when the elevation changes. The naming conventions help a bit, and thinking in 3D, but I'm fumbling most of the time. I've got Siege University in the queue.

Question: In SE, how can I select an object that is underneath ("behind", in terms of layers) another. For example, I placed a bow on the ground, and then a large tree nearby; the bounding box for the tree prevents selecting the bow, no matter what placement mode I'm in. Probably my oversight on something obvious. Only workaround I found is to move the tree, do what I need to do, put the tree back.

Also, after adding *a lot* of detail to a locale, don't things get confusing and convoluted? Is there a way to work in layers (maybe Prefabs)?

I'll put my next questions to DS1 & LoA Mod Development.

Yeah that annoys me sometimes as well - especially when Siege Editor thinks an object is overlapping that actually is far away from the cursor lol.
Anyways what I usually do is right-click -> "hide object" until I can select the one that I want.
For some use cases, like say when you want to hide all trees, you can open the object list, select a tree, and then click "select all of template" and then "hide objects".