Jump to content

WebShaman

Members
  • Posts

    179
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by WebShaman

  1. Why were you concerned about the hollowborn? Never understood the connection there. Personally, I wanted to keep the machines running (until I have enough souls to kill the gods with. What That's and the Engwithians can do, I can do better!
  2. Galawain only cares about winners (the strong survive) - how it happens appears to be unimportant. When there are no winners...next! It apparently only matters if one has GM in the party.
  3. There *is* no alignment. You really need to let that sink in. There is no Wheel of Alignment governing things in PoE, no Detect Evil/Good/Chaotic/Law/Neutral. In fact, there is a lack of such - even the gods (which are not real gods but created ones) do not care about such things. Good, Evil, etc. merely human-constructed notions...and personally, I haven't found any references to such in the game. So one isn't going to have Dorn the Half-Orc Blackguard that serves an evil entity, for example, or a vile, evil blade...because in PoE such does not exist. One could have instead an Auama (whatever they are called) Paladin of (Cruel and Aggression) X who perhaps follows either Skaen or Woedica, depending, who perhaps is a serial killer. But it is really not the same, is it?
  4. Another interesting point - we know that putting the souls of animals into humans changes them into monsters...but then, through Sagani, we learn that souls apparently are NOT limited to humans/animals (through the conclusion of her quest). Sounds like a mistake. We are told through just about every source that souls go from person to person (yadda yadda yadda so-sick-of-the-soul-plotline) then we find out that is not true? So why not just suck the souls out of animals and use those instead? See the can of worms opened here? Someone screwed up majorly here. If the souls in animals are the same as all others...I think everyone can see how that screws everything up.
  5. I don't think you understand what I mean here. A greedy, despicable person (your idea of "evil", really?) will go along as long as things benefit themselves. Period. What you really want is for the Companions to "grow a pair" and offer conflict against the Watcher when he/she does something not beneficial towards said Companion. Whether outright attack or leave, whatever. Because as the Watcher, you can do some really nasty things in the game, you know...
  6. I killed the lioness - survival of the fittest, and hiding doesn't cut it regardless of the reason.
  7. To be blunt - I didn't want to stop The Leaden Key : I wanted to take it over! Suck up the souls myself and then kill all the "gods" and return things to how they originally were before the Egwithians decided for all after that they needed gods to exist purposefully (what rubbish). Sadly did not have this option.
  8. This is one of the main problems with the game and the IP itself - there is no "morality". None. Not through the gods, and it is not made clear if such arrangements are legal or not. Most of the game is like this - but here you get railroaded, indeed.
  9. ^ Exactly! I also thought being Awakened was a positive thing - that it would eventually drive you bonkers (also extremely poorly explained, basically 'because you have a conflict that must be resolved'- say what?) Was not really apparent and one also hears that perhaps not, no - one is really sure...and I certainly didn't have any negative effects from it. There were strange screens when sleeping but I clicked through those quickly (build - rest to past time for Stronghold because Obsidian didn't include any other way to past time).
  10. I didn't have these problems - it was really easy. Eder goes forwards (he is my tank) accompanied by my bear (slightly behind him). A chat ensued. Fight starts, auto-pause. Three figurines, Havarius does his root stuff slowing everything down and Aloth slips them up with grease. Kana sings, and ranged weapons on Raedric. Fampyres concentrate on summons (who get entangled) and Aloth and Havarius rain down death and destruction spells) while the rest whack and shoot Raedric down. The Fampyres go down even faster afterwards. No para or petrify used.
  11. "#1: He is a lord in Defiance Bay, and you choose to extort him for money, and you wonder why your Defiance Bay reputation takes a hit? Let's put it this way: When he returns home, he's not going to be your biggest fan." I got the extra money for my "silence" (perhaps you should do this to find out what really happens) - he obviously "betrays" this by some negative means. Now, I have the reputation of Champion with Defiance Bay, and also as being extremely honest - I can ruin this "lord" with a word - which I would have done had I the chance. I can see a hit with the Dorendals (or whatever they are called), that would actually make sense. But that took no hit! So your point here is misguided. The hit should be factional, not global against Defiance Bay reputation.
  12. It is bland, the OP is right. There is just no "pre-history" for me as a Player to "fall back" on. I have no emotional attachment to the IP! And neither does my character, which is plainly bad. There is no "spice" that comes to flavor it up, either. With FR, and other D&D settings, I am intimately familiar and emotionally attached. There is no denying this. DA at least took the time to immerse me into their IP with the background adventures (which served their purpose well). Hells, even Wasteland 2 got me better immersed in the IP than PoE!! PoE starts out (imho) extremely well. And then simply kills it. Dead. First disappointment; with ever more to come. Then some tired ol soul crap that has been done ad infinite - since BG (Bhaalspawn, to SoA and the whole soul thing, to NWN2 and the whole spirited ter (another word for soul) until it just sticks in my throat. The first village had me as a player thinking "totally depressing-go-somewhere-else" and like I give a Damn what happens to some place I have never heard of before. Not to mention some rot about some god blown up! That pretty much blew it for me, storywise. I only finished the game because I backed it. The Stronghold is the best example of what the OP is saying - it is just there. It matters little what you do with it - there are no consequences at all. You can invest in it - makes absolutely no impact on the world about you. What a WASTE of resources! So many zots and it is just fluff. Now, don't get me wrong, I had my fun with it. But after it was finished (made easy with bounties and resting for free in mah bed), it went rather fast and...made absolutely no difference to either the game world or plot. Bland, really. There will only be a handful of peeps playing this game in the years to come, and it won't make it over into the PnP crowd.
  13. I think this poll is just too simplistic and limited in scope - there are several catagories that I think each potential Companion should be considered : Written - how well, how poor. Mechanically - how well made the Companion is made and how valuable (or not) said Companion is to a party. Compatibility - this is really just how the Companion in question is liked (or not) by the Player. Written I think that Durance, GM and Eder are the best, followed by Aloth, Haravias, Kana and then Sagani. Mechanically, I think Eder is the best of them, followed by GM (Cipher, nuff said), Kana, then Haravias and Aloth, then Durance, Pellegina and and then a distant last Sagani. Compatible is foremost Eder, the guy everyone likes, followed by Sagani (she is just simple, likable), then Kana (likable, giant oaf of a Auama) then it starts to get a bit more difficult - my choice falls then to Aloth (but only his "other personality"), then Pellegina, followed by GM and dead last Durance. Sadly, none of the PoE Companions are "memorable" like those of yore (ie, nwn, wl2, etc). They are ALL somewhat...lukewarm. No one will be talking about any of them in the years to come.
  14. There is no "good or evil" in the PoE game world. There is only beneficial or not. This is most obviously represented by the reputation system (favored or not, and to what degree instead of good/evil). Even the "gods" are not divided along such lines. There is no inherent good vs evil in PoE. Therefore, there is no good or evil path or CNPCS in the game. Just benevolent or despicable, beneficial or not and so forth.
  15. I find the game mostly too easy - a select few battles are the opposite, and actually require more than auto-attacking. The bounties, for example. I found them a lot of fun. The Church and the Lighthouse were fun as well. I found most Dragons unbelievably easy! I was expecting BG2 hard...nope. Only one was notably different. The Endless Paths I find quite good - I wish the rest of the game had had similar areas. For the record, I had a death godlike ranger with bear pet (warbow user), Super - tank Eder, Pelligena, Super - character Hivarius, Aloth the weak, and Killer Kana. No enchanted stuff, just what I found and bought. I didn't use potions, scrolls, or food. So yeah, much too easy.
  16. From what I gather, it is supposed to be so - to "simulate" what the Protagonist goes through, and "feels"... In the end, the only "canon" for the next Expansion (whatever) will be whatever is decided...because everything is so vague, it could be anything.
  17. Hmmm...he never escaped in my game (perhaps because I had him flogged daily by the Jailor?). Eventually, someone came by, offering to pay for his release, so I released him. *shrug* I figured he had done his sentence. Never ran into a band in any forest mentioned.
  18. The "parked" Companions then receive enough XP to level to your level - that is how it was in my game. Tested many times.
  19. ^This. Hide Cloak and Hide Helmet are standard features in modern CRPGs. Personal taste and all that. I really hate the Cloak/Amulet thing, personally. The limitation seems pretty weird. I wonder if it is somehow a limitation in the GUI? I mean...nobody in their right mind would purposely design something like this...right? Perhaps they did not have enough zots to put in the extra slot?!? I dunno.
  20. Yeah, in this game it is like a double whammy! Really short buffs and no pre-buffing combined. So super conserve stuff...until along comes Cipher! Cipher! Cipher! Cast, cast, cast away! Sort of totally breaks the "conserve yer spells laddy" thing, doesn't it? Same goes with Chanter. Chant, chant, chant away! Then summon! Then summon some more! Use figurine for even more! But don't you DARE let those evah Whizzahs ta pre-buff! Nossirie bob! Good grief!
  21. Obviously it is not "just fine"! Anytime that actual Players come to the boards to vent frustration at a particularly controversal mechanic means that it is not just fine for them! I knew back then it was going to get some riled up because it just doesn't work - wanna rest? Jump through hoops. Waste RL time. You really mean it is "just fine" for you. I remember you from before *slow nod* Having a simple "Unlimited rest" check in the main HUD would have solved a lot of problems and issues here.
  22. Oh, I wouldn't say that. Pre-buffing can be a LOT more meaningful than simply "making you stronger". And I'll give you a very common example. Invisibility. Invisibility is an IE game pre-buff. But it doesn't make you stronger. Instead, it simply opens up new tactical avenues. It allows for optimal positioning. It sets up your Thief. It places your Fighter in front of the Enemy's mage so that when the fight begins, that mage is instantly put into a melee situation. And no, PoE's pathetic excuse for Stealth is not a valid substitute, because it doesn't work that way at all. And then there's Protection from Evil. In BG2, Protection from evil is more than a buff that makes you stronger. It's a buff that nullifies an enemy's demon summoning spells. it forces that demon to ignore you, allowing you to focus your efforts on the enemy itself, instead of the enemy's summon. We are denied these tactical options in PoE, NOT because of "balance" (or whatever the preferred argument on this thread currently is) but because Josh Sawyer thinks that pre-buffing is Rote, and that Combat should be more quick and 'actiony'. <gag> Pre-buffing in BG results in godmode when done correctly if you have mage spells. Improved invisibility plus a few spell immunities divination makes you always invisible and immune to targeting by spells. Throw in SI: abjuration, protection from energy, protection from evil, a spell shield , globes of invulnerability and so on and the base game AI can not touch you. You need SCS and SCS II to get mages to use anti-magic spells properly. These mods also allow your enemies to prebuff as well. Check out the no=reload threads on Bioware's BG legacy forum and read up on Alessia (sp?) and her solo no reload beatdowns. In one example it would have taken seven ruby rays of reversal to start to drop the buffs and this was in Ascension Final battle. I for one am glad that the pre-buffing arms race is cancelled in this game. Now you can hit the enemy priest or mage before the game changing buffs are up. If they were all pre-buffrd to the max at the start it would be crazy. Not allowing the enemy to pre-buff while allowing you to do so would totally break immersion and make no sense. Another problem would be for the game AI to figure out which buffs to use. Better to balance the base saves and abilities of the monsters without taking pre-buffs into account and then just balance the spells for both player and monster. If you can pre-buff then the smart move is to always pre-buff. This wastes your spell resources and promotes sleeping every other fight. If you choose not to pre-buff and get rolled then you just save scum and repeat with the proper pre-buffs. How would the ability and requirement of pre-buffing increase the tactical choices in the game or improve the game experience? For starters, it would allow other classes (re: Wizard/Priest) a chance besides Cipher to perhaps solo PotD, etc? Besides, this game is not BG/BG2! Buffs in this game last seconds, not hours. This has been explained before.
  23. Forgot about sawing...but which weapons do sawing damage in PoE?!? I want one...yeah baby! Cutting damage over time! Stand still, please! Or even better...here comes Ash! I want that Chainsaw fist! Imagine your Monk with two! Now THAT would really be a PoE Monk, right? Oh hell yeah! @gkathellar - oh man, you are ruining the fun! Of course, you are right...but the fun...shucks.
  24. It is already in the game. Pay attention, please. Fact is, one can rest whenever one wishes simply by backtracking and trodding to an Inn, etc. As has been patiently explained before, the only detriment is an out-of-game annoyance called "time sink". I rarely need resting, but that is just me (and, apparently you, and probably some others). That still does not change the mechanic. Don't blame the victim for a poorly implemented mechanic.
×
×
  • Create New...