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rjshae

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Everything posted by rjshae

  1. rjshae
    Something I've been curious about for a while is how close we are to using computer voice synthesis for voice-overs in computer games? I'm sure that human voices are much higher quality, but given the cost of voice-overs, a voice synthesis approach seems like a useful alternative for non-AAA titles.
  2. rjshae
    Ciphers could be at a significant disadvantage against creatures that (nominally) don't have a mind: undead, oozes, and plants. (I'm not sure about elementals and other spirits.) I don't think that the other classes have a comparable limitation. Ciphers will need some capabilities to compensate for that liability: mind-over-matter powers would help, including TK, vibration, and molecular thermal control. The ability to phase shift and teleport about the battlefield would also be of value. Maybe ciphers can augment their weapon damage through mental exertion?
  3. rjshae
    The middle ages weren't noted for their leniency toward criminals. Yet in games like Oblivion, a crime is punished merely by penalties and time in gaol. Obviously a beheading would bring the game to a speedy conclusion. So what penalties should the player suffer if he is captured and found guilty? Would it make sense to implement permanent physical and mental disabilities from the player's incarceration and ill-treatment (torture)? How about permanent penalties from loss of limbs or senses?
  4. rjshae
    Size might not make much sense in a game of this scale. Reach is a question mark. The others will depend on the type of combat system they implement.
  5. rjshae
    There are some nice mods that expand on the NWN2 experience: Races of Faerun pack Kaedrin's PrC pack NWN2 Facelift pack Companion and Monster AI pack Here are some well-received NWN2 remakes you can play: Pool of Radiance remastered Icewind Dale plus many other modules are available. YMMV, of course.
  6. rjshae
    It may not be that obvious. Taking one path versus another can have different balance drivers. Giving equal XP for both options might actually be inappropriate. Hence we can't really know if equal XP makes sense unless we see it in a wider context.
  7. rjshae
    Eh. Would like to be able to reach out and trip up that enemy scout that is running away to warn the main force.
  8. rjshae
    Don't make me quote the entire last two pages of this thread. edit: rereading your text, I did not direct my posting at you rjshae. You used the word "muddle" which I took to mean that it wasn't the most tactically sound of decisions (and probably allows you to beat some(/many?) of the mobs in a normal or easy difficulty) and likely the least effective way. I was directing most of my disagreement toward other posters. Okay. Yes, that is more or less what I meant by muddle. As was more-or-less pointed out by IndiraLightfoot though, if battles devolve into number crunching exercises then it's not going to be much fun. In most cases that trusty broadsword should be able to do the job, even if it is not the "perfect" weapon against a specific opponent. Generally I'd rather resort to weapon switching only in cases where a weapon is clearly not up to the task: like using a rapier against a knight in field plate armor.
  9. rjshae
    It's pretty clear that you did not read the full comments since you're resorting to a strawman argument. To quote, "But most of the time (~80%) I'd rather it be a secondary factor, compared to sound tactics."
  10. rjshae
    The designers can probably make weapon swapping a less optimal tactic by putting in a time penalty for the swap. If you lose a full attack by swapping weapons, then the benefit of the swap may be outweighed by the extra attack you're effectively granting your opponent. Where it (weapon swapping) is probably a more interesting aspect is in cases where the opponent is going to take a substantial number of blows before they go down, such as the traditional one-on-one battle with the enemy's champion. In the case where you are going into battle against a mixed group of less challenging foes, it probably only makes sense to perform a weapon swap once at the start, before the ranks can close. Repeated battles against similar opponents will likely minimize the need for weapon swaps.
  11. rjshae
    Evil deserves just what it gets.
  12. rjshae
    So that it too can be overanalyzed to death? Sure, someone has to point out the glaring flaws in the system, while others are too busy mashing the like button or pondering about important things like how many damage types should a flail have, hmmm. Ah, so that's why you can't wait. Shrug.
  13. rjshae
    I'm somewhere in the middle on this. Clearly there are circumstances where it makes sense to swap weapons, such as when you're facing skeletons and you're armed with an estoc, or when you're up against a boss monster and you need every advantage in order to win. But most of the time (~80%) I'd rather it be a secondary factor, compared to sound tactics. A muscular barbarian wielding a great axe should be able to hack down most foes, even when they are protected by the right armor vs. slashing weapons. I like Josh's overall thinking about the combat mechanics, but most of the time I want to be able to muddle through with decent weapons.
  14. rjshae
    So that it too can be overanalyzed to death?
  15. rjshae
    There's a lot of actions that can be performed with a TK ability. I once built an item (in NWN2) to summon an invisible servant, which then functioned like a TK power. It allowed you to: Retrieve a distant item; carrying 20 lbs. within 100 meters, or drag 100 lbs. within 20 meters. Open or close an unlocked door. Operate a placeable. If the placeable is trapped, this will trigger it. Try to trigger a trap that is activated by entry: 10 + 1d20 versus the Disarm DC of the trap. Distract a creature, thereby briefly lowering it's listen/spot skill by -2 for 1d4+1 rounds. Then, of course, there were the various Bigby hand spells for more potent TK effects. Intermediate TK effects could perhaps lower the Dex of a target, make a shield less effective at blocking, or a weapon less effective at hitting. It might also convey a hurled grenade to precisely the right spot.
  16. rjshae
    Telepathy/ESP would probably require a significant expansion of the conversation tree, so I'm not sure that would be expedient to implement.
  17. rjshae
    Hey, welcome to the hobby, redneckdevil! It's good to hear that you enjoyed the experience, and that new gamers are still joining PnP play. I had a blast back in the day when I played with a regular group. Hope it's just as fun for you!
  18. rjshae
    As long as the shapeshifted Druid doesn't start randomly sniffing people's backsides...
  19. rjshae
    Battle Roar-once per encounter, Activated mode While fighting one-on-one, the barbarian can attempt to awe his opponent. This is an aggresive performance that typically consist of an intimidating stance combined with an animalistic roar or challenge. On a success, the barbarian can perform an all-out attack against that foe without lowering his defense rating. However, the defensive penalty for an all-out attack is still applied if the barbarian is then attacked by another opponent.
  20. rjshae
    Cool, you guys have a stalker.
  21. rjshae
    To me there's very little to distinguish the historic roles of barbarian and ranger, other than their cultures. So I'd speculate that culture is where you want to find the key differentiator for this class. The barbarian often comes from a hunter-gatherer lifestyle, so he is inured to physical hardships and can push himself well past the limits of the softer civilized peoples. His gods are the nature gods; wind, mountain, river, and the beasts. He would commune with nature and may identify himself with a particular creature type. When he goes to war, it's more about physical courage, battle prowess, and native cunning, than about martial discipline and methodical tactics. He'll seek out a foe for a one-on-one battle, then try to overwhelm the opponent with power and speed.
  22. rjshae
    I suspect not. It sounded like they may not want skills to be the determining factor in what conversation options (plot branches) you can access. Languages would be almost entirely about limiting who you can converse with or what information you can obtain. Including language skills may actually be detrimental to the game.
  23. rjshae
    Looking at it from a tactical front line perspective, I'd want a tough center (Fighter/Paladin/Priest), mobile skirmishers on the flanks (Rogue/Barbarian/Monk), and artillery to focus on the point of attack (Ranger/Cipher/Wizard). I guess Druids can join the flankers thanks to their animal forms, or maybe function as infiltrators/disruptors thanks to their nature powers. That leaves the Chanters to hand out the cool-aid and towels.
  24. rjshae
    There was an interesting article posted on Gamasutra today regarding the different RPG Genres. It identifies Dragon Age as a narrative RPG and lists the qualities of that type. PE/IE sounds a bit more of a mix of the narrative style with the dungeon crawler. However, the author of the article regards mixing styles as a mistake. I'm not sure how much that is true, but it does make for a contemplative read.
  25. rjshae
    The Greek pantheon is more compact than the Faerunian one, and has a better mix of deities with a smaller proportion of evil gods. The Faerunian pantheon contains several redundancies, and a number of deities that shouldn't really have a significant following. I suppose the difference can be explained in part by the large and more diverse geography of Faerun, but I do think the Faerunian pantheon could have been greatly improved.
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