-
Posts
8444 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Blogs
Everything posted by ShadowPaladin V1.0
-
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
Yes all well and good but you have missed something so obvious. Oddly enough so has everyone else and its a REAL kicker. All your guff about freedom in the game is about to be rendered meaningless in one stroke. Here we go... Without freedom of character it's pointless giving the player control unless you artificially wipe the characters memory every time. A pre generated character that already has a personality in place dosnt need anyone to make choices for them. So if Revan never lost his memory you couldnt have KOTOR. If TNO never lost his memory you couldnt have PST. Because you could never suprise the character with a revelation which they were already fully aware of. Which leaves you with two choices. Either have every character in RPGs from now until doomsday without memories. Or take the route Squenix have taken and have fully aware character acting out their parts in the story like an interactive movie. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
In Baldurs Gate you have to be a Bhaal Spawn and it ends there. It's simply a part of what you are (granted its a rather large part but anyway). The mistake Bioware made was having you grow up in CandleKeep for a variety of reasons. It's much like FO, you have no choice but to be a vault dweller but beyond that you are free to do as you please. In PST you are a specific pre generated character. You either do nothing except follow the story. Or you create a background and have it constantly invalidated by the game. -
Wait till you see La Pucelle. Link to follow.. http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/rpg/lapucelle/...ens.html?page=4
-
How pointless is that ? The guys been dunked in Lava and lives in constant pain anyway. I mean if your just going to replace it with a cybernetic one anyway. I would have credited Palpatine with more imagination. Its not like you want your right hand man (oh my god the pun make it stop) unable to fight is it ?
-
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
Isnt that one in the rule book ? I wouldnt exactly call those backgrounds though. They are more like sound bites. Parents killed by orcs would be quite interesting if that character happened to be in the same party of as a half orc who was actually proud of their parantage. If your going to ignore the characters background then you may as well stop be a DMing and start being an author (which pays money as well). -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
Modules for us have always been something to modify.Like moving the entire Temple of Elemental Evil to Faerun(and of course rewriting its history). Very good analogy though. Although modules are not 100% complete in content like a game needs to be. I and the DMs I learned from tend to take a very real world approach. If you live in a world then you must have come from somewhere. On the other hand if you remove the player from that geographical location then you dont have to refer to their histories at all. But would you agree that you would have to respect a history that the player has written and not invalidate it because of something that later occurs in the game? This is the problem with CRPGs with total character freedom vs the trying to make the player feel a part of the world. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
Heck if they pay for the game they can do what they like with it. It dosnt bother me in the slightest. Some people just seem to have this rather warped idea that by making a character who does a lot of talking you are in fact roleplaying. And that somehow games that allow you to talk your way to the end are better roleplaying games. Usually at the same time looking down on those who would rather fight and engineer a character to fight. Sometimes its just nice to remind them they are not as far appart as they would like to think -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
I dont think I have encountered it quite to that degree. There was the Drow campaign (the DM really liked them) which I suppose could well apply. Thats kind of the point of being a protagonist though. The story is about that character. More a CRPG thing. I use histories to make the characters more a part of the world. And because a lot of the time they are a very good read. Every DM is going to be different I think the important thing with a CRPG is to realise that its like the DM writing the campaign before they have even met you and then being totally inflexable and unable to change what they have written. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
Pretty much. If you look at FO those are specialised characters that each suggest a certain a certain approach to a situation. But they are not really what you would call powergamed. Well its natural that people with certain stats will end up in certain professions. But that dosnt preclude a well rounded character that can deal with different situations in different ways. -
KotOR2 confirmed at 1Up.com
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to Dhruin's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
Ah so you use your lifeforce to use the force ? Dosnt sound like the movies but I suppose it would stop people spamming force wave Must be a bit frightening to be a smuggler when the average blaster can do 3 times you base vitality. Generally when you are talking CRPG the only consequence of failure is having to reload. Since that generally kills the flow of the game I can see where Bioware are coming from with their design decision. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
Yes its a shame that they are wrong them isnt it What you assume isnt really my problem. I think you just answered you own question there. It's about making presumsions if you presume that the game is there to allow you to take your chosen path through it and you engineer your character to that then your not roleplaying. To your character the world is real and the real world dosnt always let people do what they want and niether should a virtual one. Yawn.. really is that the best you can do. You know if you stopped trying to be clever. Emphasis on trying these debates might even prove fruitful. Well I'm sure we are all looking forward to seeing your finished work. If you manage it then I suggest you go get a job in the industry. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
Your not. It's just that classically powergamed characters are those that excel in combat. Glad to hear it. It depends on the level of specialisation. Like taking 3 int because you never intend to use it. Or making sure you have max chr max social skills and having zero combat skills because you know if you fail your persuade roll you can reload. Read the how to finish FO without killing anyone FAQ its like a guide to powergaming a talkie character. -
KotOR2 confirmed at 1Up.com
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to Dhruin's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
Interesting... How are hps worked out ? because if they are correct in KOTOR I think I can see why the blasters were toned down too. The problem with Jedi is that if you make them as powerful as they are in the films then its pretty pointless being anything else. I presume blasters dont get more powerful as you level ? At least in D&D you somewhat level the playing field with various magic items. -
KotOR2 confirmed at 1Up.com
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to Dhruin's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
I would have thought it was pretty obvious why you wouldnt want characters running around doing 6d8 damage when your average blaster does 1d8. Its almost as bad as the westend one where you could have 16d6 for your roll. 4d6 for the saber and 12d6 for your control (or was it sense) stat. A heavy blaster. The kind Han Solo uses did 4d6 in that system. Which is the same base as a lightsaber before you figure in the overkill you get from the Jedi stat. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
I insinuated nothing. Your the one who said it not me. If you dont want to be called out on it, then dont say it. But where is the character freedom of PST ? Yep that ones always touchy with some people. But its very true. A classical powergamer creates a character to be a combat powerhouse because they want to power their way through the game on the combat path. A "talkie" powergamer creates a talkie character because they want to talk their way through the game. Both different aspects of powergaming because you are engineering your character for a specific task. Why do I call them RPGs ? Because thats the accepted definition. I'm not going against anything I've never not said that by restricting character freedom you can tell a better story. That was the challenge that Grommy set you. Come up with a story concept that allows the depth of involvement between character and world of PST while at the same time giving you the total character freedom of IWD. Dosnt suprise me in the slightest that you cant do it. -
What games do the developers play?
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to mkreku's topic in Developers' Corner
What competition would that be ? -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
If you think that choosing clothing colour and a name is what makes a character. Then your a lost cause. But that is what character freedom is. People dont arrive at PnP sessions and play characters created by other people. Thats what actors do , they act out a character created by someone else. A Roleplayer acts out a character that they themselves have created. The problem it would appear here is you not knowing what things mean before you go spouting off. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
Character freedom is the freedom to create a character of your own chosing with a background of your own chosing (perhaps with a few restrictions thrown in) without the GM or in this case the game constantly invalidating it by bringing up past events which had no place in it. Dosnt sound a lot like PST now does it. Maybe Grommy is right and the problem is you dont even know what concept you are arguing against.. -
KotOR2 confirmed at 1Up.com
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to Dhruin's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
They should know the truth of it right away. Thats why I think in KOTOR if you lie to them as Revan they are fully aware of it. They need you to retrace your steps to find the StarForge whatever side you are on. Only Bastila is supposed to kill you once you have found out the location if your not playing along. Not quite sure what happens shortly before EP I but its clear from what Yoda says that they can no longer sense the dark side. Which must mean that prior to that they could.... You can always be a Maverik like Qui Gon or the game could be set during the purge. But thats unlikely before EPIII. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
As long as the creation is in fitting with the game world and the player isnt seeking some sort of advantage I agree. Thats assuming they actually write one. I've played in a lot of groups where the characters suddenly "wake up" like they have been in stasis for 16 years while waiting for their adventuring career to begin Having a character fit into a particular world is fine. But I do draw the line at being forced into a particular mold for adventures. Though there are always exceptions. In one game the entire party belonged to the same Drow house. The campaign revolved around us getting our house to the top of the ladder while at the same time not getting stabbed in the back. It was a great adventure because the DM could plot the entire campaign around it. And most of our battles were against other sentient creatures rather than monsters which made things more interesting tactically too. I suppose in a lot of ways it was like BG. You are going to be a Drow , you are going to have grown up in this location. But beyond those restrictions were had a lot of freedom in our backgrounds. As well as fact sheets about the area provided by the DM to equip us with the local knowledge a Drow would have (which we as geeky students didnt). I disagree I think you are being unfair on the designers here. Time and size are important but unless they can realistically deliver something like that you can hardly blame them for it. That was IWD's great strength (maybe why I played it 11+ times with various parties) but as you say its weakness was that the majority of it was all in the mind.Which dosnt really matter in a single player game, but a lot of people dont get it which is something that is going to be reflected in how they see the game. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
In BG thats the case which I already pointed out even growing up in the same place though the characters you create can have different experiences just as people who grow up in the same neighbourhood and the same family can. Enviroment is not the only determining factor of who you turn out to be. Its very different from BG because its all done for you. If you cant get your head around why then thats too bad if your not a PnP player it wouldnt suprise me in the slightest anyway. If your making the choices for the character based on your own wants then your not roleplaying. Thats all there is to it. Creating a "talky" character for the express purpose of talking your way through a game is not roleplaying. It's simply a different form of powergaming. Of course its player driven. Thats why they removed the characters memory Oh yes you most certainly can. The underdark in BGII I was creeping around there as a drow for ages and it felt wrong. I wasnt enjoying the game in the slightest. The reason was it just wasnt in character. My Cavalier was champing at the bit at having to hide his identity. In the end I gave in dropped the disguise and had one of the most epic battles ever. Hiding his identity was clearly not an option that was applicable to my character. Even though after seeing what was there and coming to the conclusion it was probably a battle I couldnt win at the time it was the option that I as the player wanted to take. It's kind of funny that you were the one preaching for character freedom isnt it ? When PST dosnt have any at all. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
That it has to be scripted is the root of the problem. It's one that a human DM never faces. Here are two really easy examples. Dialogue. Now in a CRPG all the characters will get the same dialogue options be they dwarf or dark elf (excepting the odd "racail/class dialogues). Obviously people from different cultures dont talk in the same way. You only have to listen to the voice samples for the characters to see that. Morrowind actually solved this problem. By giving you goals for your dialogue rather than dialogue itself. You could pretty much "imagine" your characters speech. But again this is something you as the player has to do for the character rather than dialogue being written by the designers in advance. Another one which you see now games are being voiced more and more is the characters name. In KOTOR no one could actually call me by my chosen name. Because they (Bioware) didnt know what it would be when they wrote the game. On the other hand everyone could call me Lord Revan because the designers knew all along thats who I really was. If you play FFX-2 Yuna never calls Tidus by name (because in X you could rename him). She always refers to him as well, him. Clever if you think about it because it avoids the whole but my character wasnt called XXXX that you sometimes get in sequels. BG for example if you never Multiclassed Imoen. To account for every possible outcome would require more scripting that you could possibly imagine. Which is why the technology needs to move away from scripting to solve the problem. With regards to voice overs that one may never have a solution until a computer can speak like a human B) Even on the simpleist level of refering to a character by the name given to it how many voice samples do you think that would require? Of course you could give the player a choice of first and last names, but again thats a limit placed on the freedom of character creation. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
Creating the world dosnt really preclude using character backgrounds. Unless your talking about those DM's who create the world down to the tiniest little detail and then sort of squeeze the player characters in ? I suppose the thing a lot of DM's forget (new ones especially) is that if a character is 16 years old they have already had 16 years of life before the player "took over". The character should be a natural part of the world. It should know people and be known (at least locally) have a family, or some reason why it dosnt have have a family. Have friends and all those things that "normal" people have. but equally you have players who want to be the son of a king , or daughter of a high mage (so daddy can give pressies) and so forth. Things that are generally to give the player an avantage. Imagine if BG was a PnP session and you could only have one Child of Bhaal. It wouldnt be very fair to the other players. So in PnP at least you need to have a somewhat level playing field (or agreement from all the players involved in the game). Ideally character creation should be a compromise between DM and player if the player wants to be the son of a king. Then the DM may want him to be the son of a king in exile. The player may get some extra wealth, but not enough to disrupt the game. And the background is an absolute cornocopia for adventure possibilities which should get any DM's creative juices flowing. The daughter of a high mage may well find out that daddy is one of those parents who wants her to "make it on her own" and chucks her out of the tower without a penny. How she deals with this shock to the system after being pampered for most of her life should make for an interesting character. She may end up resenting daddy and wanting to replace him. Daddy may well be spying on her and helping out unkown to her. Well everyone has their own idea of what roleplaying is. When I was at university I roleplayed with my classmates and our roleplaying focussed almost entirely on the personalities of the characters and how events shaped them rather than looking for treasure without. They were looking for treasure within. Where CRPGs "fail" is they cant predict anything about the character the player will create. Any family and friends your character has will have to be created by them.And that concept may well be completely alien to the sort of background the player has visualised. Which is why people complain about having to start in CandleKeep in BG. In essense when you "arrive" in the game you are an unknown quantity. Actually Ultima got around that very cleverly by really making you an unknown. As a traveller from another world you really dont expect to know anyone , or have friends and family. -
Best way to start an "Adventure"
ShadowPaladin V1.0 replied to ShadowPaladin V1.0's topic in Star Wars: General Discussion
No game have achieved this and until someone cares to point out how it can be done I dont think any game will with the current technology. I notice your reluctant to say how. Which leads me to believe your clueless about how it could be done as well. Ah see now we are on totally different pages here as to what a roleplaying game is. In BG you are destined to be a Child of Bhaal , nothing more than that. You can be Jack the Child of Bhaal , Jill the Child of Bhaal or Cob the mad axe murdering child of Bhaal. Each of those characters will have a different background and a different outlook on life. When you play the game only some of the dialogue choices will fit the personality of each character. Which is what the whole concept of staying in character is all about. In PST all the choices fit the character because all the choices were written for that character. You just pick whichever one you want. And thats not roleplaying because the choice is player driven not character driven. You can play PST by rolling a dice and your never not out of character for TNO (its not possible to be) but if you tried that in something like BG your character would act very out of character. Characters dont just appear at the start of the game. They had lives and experiences before that too. Which is the whole point of having a background. So you can draw on a characters past life experience to best judge how THEY (very imporatant that) would handle any given situation.