Spider

Although to be fair, the trader (I think, or maybe Wolf) does tell you that the bandits always come back to the factory, regardless of how many times they are drive off/wiped out. But yeah, enemies respawn at most places. Killing everything (and having it stay dead) is not an option.

I also prefer the new line. I much prefer the openess of the setting and I think the rules are vastly improved.

No, but the original poster did mention Bloodlines being the reason for the inquiry. Just not in the first post.

By default, the key "V" is supposed to be tied to grenade launchers. Haven't tried it myself though, so I can't verify. (I still find it frustrating that there is no support for a five button mouse)

I think so. But on the very first map, south of the trader, there is a military border patrol of some sort. Heavily guarded, 10 or so army guys that patrol the roads. I think that's supposed to be the entrance to the Zone, although you can't go anywhere in that direction.

What? I did? Either I wrote it wrong, or you read it wrong. I've played loads of oWoD. At least the core games. It's new WoD I don't have too much experience with (but I've played a fair amount of the core rules, and read enough on Vampire and Mage to have a decent grasp on them). I'd personally recommend going with the new WoD, mainly because it leaves the issues up to interpretation in a larger degree. In oWoD the source material is typically heavily tied into the core story that it feels sort of mandatory. It's a lot harder to change details since the big picture always need to be thought of. And if we're talking Vampire, there is a lot of material out for Requiem by now as well. Certainly enough for any new Storyteller to get lost in. But since the original poster mentioned that Bloodlines was the source of inspiration, I did a write up of oWoD. Because similar as they may be, a lot of things have changed. And someone who's really into how Bloodlines presented things may not be equally thrilled about Requiem. I know Darque (and possibly Dark Raven) has accused new WoD of being soulless, for instance.

I also wiped that fairly quickly (and man was that a tough fight, I really didn't have the weaponry to take them on at that point). They have yet to respawn. Maybe because I wiped the ones at the entrance to the Zone as well, I don't know.

I got it when I got to the bar. And the quest that takes you to the bar also gives you an insane weapon (at least if you're paying attention). I think it plays a lot like Gothic 3. And yes, in that respect as well. The story is nothing spectacular (so far), but it's not really important for the game either. I'd say it plays as a cross between Gothic 3 and the original Ghost Recon (although a little less so now that I've got better weapons and armor).

Truly a fantastic movie!

It beat the 10k 150GB Raptor in most of those tests. No it didn't. Especially the ones where HD performance truly matters most of them went to the Raptor. It did, however, come close enough that the loss in performance is somewhat negligible and it makes up for it with being very quiet and having 7 times the storage capacity.

I do have relatives there. But no, I'm a Swede like you.

Cool. I somehow missed that (and read in a review that there was none, so I didn't look too hard). That key will probably be worn out by the time I finish with this game.

Amnesiac who doesn't even remember his name, the only identifiable characteristic is, well, a mark. If it's from the intro, it's a tattoo with the word S.t.a.l.k.e.r. It's significance (if any) has yet to be explained to me, although I am only in the second zone. And while I've got the hang of the combat interface to such a degree that I no longer fear the dogs, I repeatedly get the crap kicked out of me when fighting multiple opponents. The key (for me) is range and cover. That usually works, until somone circles you without you noticing and unloads a shotgun in your back (= reload). Oh yeah, a quick save button would also have been nice.

No. Other than gear collecting, that is. And I suppose having dialogue could qualify, but it's dialogue on a similar level to Diablo. But the atmosphere is indeed fantastic. Also, the game is freakishly hard. I'm playing on the default difficulty and I keep dying. All. The. Time. I don't really mind though, I much prefer a difficult game over an easy one. Edit: There are some issues though. The AI can sometimes be retarded (while it's pretty good most of the time) like trying to shoot me through a solid stone wall (at one time the character shooting actually damaged me, so I guess it's maybe not so stupid after all). And why a FPS in this age (or any computer game really, but FPS especially) doesn't have support for a 5 button mouse is beyond me. And quite annoying. To me it makes the interface somewhat more clunky than it has to be.

Actually, a more accurate description would be (a less buggy) Gothic 3 with guns. Mkreku is going to love this game.

With the new WoD, things are somewhat different. First off, you definitely need the WoD core book, since that contains all the rules. In fact, WoD core is playable all by itself (as a mortal in the WoD). Second, the games are much more coherent (in lack of a better word). They are balanced with eachother and the glaring contradictions of the previous editions are gone. You can use as many, or as few, of the new settings as you like. And mixed groups are definitely possible. The thing is, White Wolf has moved away from an overarching storyline for their games that mandates the world to be in a certain way. Instead they're now providing the foundation. Options instead of definite answers. For instance, in the book about the mysterious organisation VII (for Vampire) they provide three different, detailed, versions of the organization. Which one is true (if any) is totally up to the Storyteller. If this way of doing it is better or worse, I suppose is up to each individual. I know the people running our games feel very liberated by this approach. As to which setting is the most fun, it depends on what you're after. In the new WoD, I've really only played mortals, although I've read up a lot on Mage and some on Vampire (and we've started to play a Vampire campaign, but haven't gotten very far). We've had a lot of fun as mortals, that's for sure. But I like what they've done both with Vampire and Mage. And the rest of my group have had a lot of fun with Werewolf, so I guess it's up to the individual group. At the core, Vampire is about political intrigue and fighting the monster within you, Mage is about mystical exploration (and is still the most complex game, but has become much, much simpler) and Werewolf is still spiritual, but you also have to deal with the beast that you are (we're talking severe anger management issues here). Promethean I haven't even looked at, so I can't say anything about that. I am, however, really looking forward to the coming re-release of Changeling. I have high hopes for that game.

On the other hand it doesn't mean you spend a fortune on locks and bolts either (and in the case of Starforce, electrical shock generators that may or may not give the owner a shock when the door is opened). I think that copy protection schemes are a waste of the publishers money. Oblivion apparently managed to do just fine with only a standard cd check as copy protection, apparently Bethesda saw no need to fork out loads of dollars for something that will just be invalidated within a day or two anyway. Ironically, the two protections schemes that actually delay pirates for long enough for it to matter are so invasive that the game companies have to shy away from them since people refuse to buy them. Well, one anyway (Starforce). The other has managed to fly somewhat under the radar so far (Tages), but given the amount of problems it introduces by it's very nature, I'd guess it'll stop being used within a fairly short time frame.

I think you've read wrong. From what I gather it uses SecuRom. I suppose it could depend on what country your in though.

Yeah, that filter has some unfortunate side-effects. Speaking of, a game set in Moorc0cks multiverse would be amazing (or in any one of his specific worlds like the Young Kingdoms or the world of Granbretan). I'd also love a Neuromancer RPG (although virtually any Cyberpunk franchise could sustitute for it, I chose Neuromancer because it's the first) Other than that, I wholeheartedly support Fables.

What do you want to know? I've played the core games in the old WoD (since that seems to be what you're still focused on), but not the newer ones (Hunter, Mummy, Demon). A summary: Werewolf: Violent. It is entirely possible to play without fighting, but the game is clearly geared towards combat. It also deals a lot with spirits and the spiritual world. Basically you play as guerilla fighters, fighting against large corporations for the environment. Sort of like a militant Greenpeace, only with fur. And large fangs. And claws. Mage: Weird. On a conceptual level, Mage is pretty cool. Magic is dying and Mages must fight to get humankind to awaken before it's too late (unless you're playing the third edition where the ascension war has been lost and it's already too late, iirc). Opposed to this is the Technorcracy, technomages, that like the sleepers to stay sleeping. They are trying to keep the order of the world, and magic just causes trouble. Which it does in the shape of paradox, events and malignant spirits manifesting themselves if magic is used too overtly or frequently. The problem with mage is that spellcasting is just a mess (from a rules perspective). It's tricky for the players and a lot trickier for the Storyteller. It's also extremely powerful. The game easily places the highest on the powerscale of any of the games. By far. Changeling: I don't have much experience with this game and what little I have was ruined by some players with too great a fondness for the prankster fae (imagine Malkavians on speed and you're close to getting the picture). At it's core it's the most depressing game. Mankind is no longer dreaming and this causes the fae to loose their powers on earth, even to die. Most fae have left earth for Arcadia, but left behind are the half-fae, the changelings. They can still feel how the lack of dreams is draining them, condemning them to a life of the mundane. Imagine if all of a sudden your world would just be devoid of all colors, all smell and all taste. This is what is happening to the Changelings, and what they are desperate to stop. Wraith: This is my favorite game on a conceptual level, but we've found it almost impossible to play in the past (I'll get to why in a bit). It's also kinda depressing, you are dead after all. And I mean really dead, not faux dead like the vampires. Something or someone keeps you from letting go though, but given that you are a ghost your interactions with the physical world are limited. As a wraith you fear Oblivion beyond everything else, if you end up there no one will remember you even existed. You also have your shadow self to deal with, the voice in your head that tries to goad you towards your worst fears. And this is where the game becomes hard to play. The shadow is supposed to be voiced by another player. There are multiple ways of doing this, but none of them have worked very well for me. Basically, either the shadow is present too often or not enough. Too strong or not nearly strong enough. Having that voice in the back of your head is a fascinating experience, but if it's not done just right it detracts as much as it adds. The best solution is probably to have a separate Storyteller that only deals with the Shadows for a group of about three or four. That way it could possibly work. Edit: Onee thing about the old books worth mentioning is that they were never really intended to be played in a cross-setting. The powerlevels are extremely fluctuating (where mages can beat up on anyone), but more than that the settings are contradicting eachother a lot. (Except Wraith and to a degree Changeling, although those aren't very compatible with any other game anyway). For instance, each of the games has this larger than life organisation that secretly rules the world (Camarilla, Technoracy, Pentex Corporation) and having three such distinct powerplayers just feels implausible. These are issues that have been fixed in the new WoD, so no matter what people may think of it, it is much more suitable for mixed parties.

Bioware has done beta-patches in the past. I think for either BG2 or Kotor. Or both. Anyway, it's not something new with NWN2. And they're a good thing. Most of the time they just fix things and using beta means getting it a week or two earlier than would have been the case otherwise. Depending on the issue, buggy fixes can be better than no fixes. And if not, it's just to skip the beta patch. Bottom line is, having options is a good thing. Edit: (besides, it's not like the issues Sand is listing are exactly bugs, just things he doesn't agree with. I think the screenshots of that halfling is more than adequate for a short halfling)

Here is mine, extremely minimalistic as usual (there is also a dock at the top currently hidden with links to frequently used programs). I just love the art of David Mack and this interpretation of Neail Gaiman's Death is just fantastic. Although I was looking for a Kabuki image (technically it's of Scarab) but this was almost as good.

From IMDB: # Far Cry (2008) (pre-production) # Tunnel Rats (2008) (pre-production) # BloodRayne II: Deliverance (2007) (post-production) # Postal (2007) (post-production) # Seed (2007) (post-production) # In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale (2007) (completed) The man is nothing if not persistant.