Sacred_Path

Are you a wizard?

I know that you're not trolling because you've had this argument before, so: Monks punching through armor have as much basis in reality as wizards conjuring fireballs from their palms. Significantly less than one trained fighter whacking another over the head with a blunt object. That's the entire point. I don't mind the fantastical (obviously), if it can earn its place in the narrative.

Well, this. And even if PE should suck, I'd still play it while crying silently into my napkin.

PE is not like any game before it, ever! Heresy!

I can't quite follow the 'this fictional race looks kinda like another fictional race so don't replace one with the other!' line of thinking. It's not like Auamaua were actually based on Orcs, they're obviously both based on the idea of stronger yet decidedly more feral humanoids. Tolkien **** will already have generic elves and dwarves to play with, after all.

It could fail at disappointing us?

Although the simulation **** in me is repulsed at the idea of deflecting ranged attacks, I see your point. The thing for me is that a fighter in plate+shield should be able to tank it out on all levels against all physical attacks anyway. Don't need a monk for that. Tanking against mages is the one thing where I'd say ok, this is what a monk can do and why they should be in the game. Unfortunately that's kind of hard to implement mechanically (why would wizards point their magic missiles at your monk?) I could also agree to this (except the 'holding the front line' part; there are already 3 classes in the game that can do this). It would actually make sense in a 6 man party to have one who is extremely maneuverable and can help out in all kinds of places.

That was not my main complaint, no. I an actual shaolin school, noone has flaming fists, noone is immune to poison and noone can facepalm a dragon. My point was that in this game, monks are simply superfluous; if the game was set in the ancient Far East, I wouldn't say so. I think we can approach the problem from the rear, too: why should monks be in the game? What do they bring to the table that other classes can't do, or shouldn't do, and why is it relevant enough to implement them? edit: sorry, I chose a bad example. All classes can do unrealistic stuff. The bard is often called ridiculous because his singing bestows extraordinary bonuses. So, let's look at it at a more basic level: an army of unarmed and unarmored shaolin would get slaughtered by an army of knights. There's no such thing as punching through armor and ripping someone's heart out. That's what makes them unrealistic, they fail at the most basic level while in the game the classes are considered to be about equal.

The one thing that sets them apart from orcs is the habitat in which they evolved; their aquatic background should give some freaky bonuses/ weaknesses/ racial traits. I'm a bit undecided on including a race that lives in such an environment though, unless we really get to explore some of those shorelines/ swampy areas where Auamau might commonly live.

Realism is an exhaustive topic, but I think one point needs considering: if you add something that is not based on reality to a fictional world, at least come up with some justifications/ explanations of why it's in there. Now, with mages, it's usually neither: they're not based in reality and there's no indepth explanation of why they can do the things they do. But that's cool, I like wizards for the flavor and possibilities they add to the world. The monk is just the same, except that they don't really add anything to a fantasy world inspired by European Middle Ages. They are an enigma like the mage is, but a significantly more boring one.

Climbing probably won't be in, but big monsters could get stuck in ledges. I was mostly thinking about running away, but you're right that there are other escape options. As long as you don't have too many of those items/ spells that help you escape. It should be a rare occurence and reserved for either those times where you're ambushed and outnumbered or when a fight has been going particularly badly. Also disengaging from bosses shouldn't be an option IMO. I also pulled the bear example out of my butt. I'm not informed about how far the average bear would pursue you if it was pissed off

You are right that it's usually your party that's one the initiative, but that's more of a limitation of games/ convenience. Usually you will walk into a spot where there are bandits, but the implication is of course that they waited for you/ ambushed you, not that they are friendly bandits who just wanted to be left alone. Same goes for monsters (yes let's say that it was you who wandered into their territory, but that might not make a difference. An enraged bear will follow you if it feels provoked, that should be even more true for magical beasts (case a). Case b I think should be very very rare, how many instances have you seen in games where your wandering(!) band occupied a space that was coveted by someone else who just wanted to stand around in that same place? Case c is exactly the problem I was talking about, you have to be much faster than they are. That's not always a blessing (high movement speed for the player results in kiting, for example).Case d means enemies fleeing from combat, yes that would actually be nice and realistic (in some cases, like a minimum of intelligence in the monster).

As a general rule, I don't like it when my food looks at me.

people on this forum really know how to make polls Disengaging or running away are nice options to have, but OTOH there's believability. If your party doesn't move much faster than they do so they lose track of you it kind of begs belief. With most monsters I'd assume they'll not disengage from combat because they want to rob you/ eat you/ are stupidly violent/ magically programmed to kill. Now skirting enemies or sneaking past them is a different matter entirely, that should be a viable option often.

I think for fantasy games, simple journals work best. Modern/ sci-fi games may have logs that are organized like a file folder and have pictures etc. in it, but for high fantasy, it's already a stretch when you character is a barbarian and still meticulously keeps his diary.

I was thinking more about the lines of this: I wonder what the (great) artist's intention was when he pronounced the nose so much? Is it a clever social commentary? Interpret plz.

East Germany (little Siberia) trained v. rigorously for invasion and counter invasion scenarios. This needs more Nazi propaganda posters, but they mostly depict Jews so they're not art

There could be a compromise too: make the first 5 levels of the dungeon mandatory for plot advancement, and level 6-15 optional. If you implement a mechanic by which you get less XP for monsters of a lower level, you could balance the game for both people who do the dungeon and those who do other side quests/ outdoors grinding. Now if there also was a time limit or something you could even impose a choice and consequence (do I do the dungeon or rather go elsewhere). Everyone could be happy! :D

Suicide by Burger King. It's the only option

Nop. A character who is defined by his wearing heavy armor and using heavy weapons is p. different from a mage in terms of mechanics and make-belief, especially when they're not relying on abilities that have a limit-per-day use Yes that's unfortunately what they do. They tank like a boss but without any explanation based in reality, and that is a very striking similarity to a mage (his powers are just as inexplicable)

Josh Sawyer has never said these words exactly, but the general feeling I get from stalking him across the internet (that is, lurking on SA and realizing holy **** that's Josh Sawyer) is that they want stats to be relevant in some way for all character classes instead of every fighter walking around with 18 strength and 8 intelligence. Again, I can't point to any specific quote, and I may just be remembering some random conversation between totally unrelated goons, but it's also a thing I hope is true. The world needs more muscle wizards. Besides all that, what's a barbarian tribe without a shaman? I think it's nice if every race has something to contribute to every class, but I also like races being really distinct. Since melee mages will be a viable build I hope that an Auamaua wizard will usually play out like a solid melee fighter with magical abilities.

Not much new stuff there, but it's always good to hear from the man himself. I'm a bit disappointed that combat and non-combat skills are seperated. I like it when I have to decide between studying alchemy and practicing shield blocking (*cough* realism *cough*). It can make for so much more diverse characters. Of course the challenge there is that you have to make non-combat skills as powerful and frequently usable as combat skills, but I'd trust you guys with that. Oh and healing batteries are bad but magic users who can summon firestorms but can't heal a cut are just as bad (:

So Auamaua wizards will be a viable choice? Not as much of a min-maxing race then. Not sure if that's a good thing or not

"If that's all that's left for humans to eat, ok. In moderation, enjoy some whale. But just for fun, to scare tourists? I don't think so." - David Letterman

I agree with your points, though I do like the general idea of a megadungeon. I just wanted it to be part of the plot (as in, not optional) and really bound into the surrounding countryside, as an organic structure with quests from top to bottom. Like the Temple of Elemental Evil, a game in a game. Could have been p. cool.