Agelastos

I'm experiencing the same bug, and I just can't bring myself to disable achievements (I'm a compulsive completionist). Please, fix this bug! Sorry for necroing an old thread. It won't happen again.

Can't say that I have, no. In fact, I've never even heard about a charity vow of silence before. But I have spent time in Norrland (Northern Sweden), which is kind of like swearing a vow of silence since people up there are about as laconic as they come. In certain parts, they don't even use words to express agreement. They just inhale audibly through the mouth. I guess "yes" is a bit too long-winded for them.

I see your point. But I think being able to partake in all the childish name-calling would help me feel like I was actually part of the group, and of the South Park universe. I want to form an actual relationship with the guys. Bond with some, insult and/or bully others. That would make the game a lot more enjoyable to me, and probably to many others as well. But, like I said, I'll most likely enjoy the game either way. It's not a huge deal. But a definite answer from one of the devs would still be appreciated. If there is no dialogue system, I hope the other kids will hang a lampshade on the fact that the new kid never speaks. It doesn't have to be a running gag or anything, but it would be nice if they at least commented on it once or twice.

I already knew that The New Kid, a.k.a. "Sir Douchebag", would be a silent protagonist. However, I always took that to mean that, while the player character wouldn't have a VA, there would still be some kind of dialogue system - like in other Obsidian games. But, after watching the gameplay trailer, I'm not so sure anymore... To me, RPGs are all about interactive dialogue and moral choices. That's the reason I've never really liked jRPGs (okay, that's not completely true - I used to love them back in the mid-'90s, but that was a long time ago). I knew this game would have FF-esque combat when I pre-ordered it, but I also knew there would be character customization and that it was being developed by Obsidian, so I assumed it would be more "western" in terms of dialogue and decision making. Was I wrong? As a fan of both South Park and Obsidian Entertainment, I'm sure I'll enjoy the game no matter what, but I would still like to know: will there be any kind of (interactive) dialogue system?

It's not? Hm. Pennalism is a form of institutional hazing or bullying which occurs in some academic milieus. The older/stronger students bully the younger/weaker students in order to "help" them by making them "stronger" and "preparing them for life". By having extracurricular academic clubs and athletic teams right there in school, you create an (often anti-intellectual) intergroup hierarchy where the strong and the "cool" usually reign supreme while the physically weak and/or "nerdy"/socially awkward (and people with interests associated with "nerdiness") become the subject of ridicule and bullying. And since most school shooters seem to be academically gifted but socially and emotionally challenged...

Gun control laws help, but they only treat the symptoms, not the disease. Want to cure the disease? Then do something about the near-pennalistic social hierarchies in your high schools, the fear mongering of your news media, and your huge wealth disparity.

A wide variety of monsters is not necessarily a good thing. Not if it's just for the sake of "diversity". I don't want a bunch of weird creatures that are just there, without any explanation as to what they really are, where they came from, how they fit into the food chain, etc. They have to make sense in the context of the setting. I won't mind if the list of monsters is short, as long as they are well-fleshed out (and preferably make some kind of evolutionary sense - i.e. no mimics, flumphs or roving maulers). Also, I hope there won't be monsters around every corner. Too much supernatural stuff just ruins the sense of wonder and makes the fantastic mundane. There's a ton of real-world animals they can use. And since P.E. is going to be an old-school isometric game, I'm sure there will be a lot of carefully planned hand-crafted encounters. So even if there were nothing but human(oid) enemies, combat could still be plenty diverse and exciting.

He's supposed to be a Rashemi berserker, but since there was no Barbarian or Berserker class in BG1 they made him a Ranger instead (closest class available) and gave him a negative Wisdom score so that he couldn't cast any spells. They added the Barbarian class, the Berserker specialization, and the Rage ability in BG2. Instead of changing his class and risking to piss off the fans they decided to keep him a Ranger and just give him the Rage ability instead. The reason he uses a greatsword and has a Chaotic alignment is to make it more obvious that he is indeed a Rashemi berserker and not just some Ranger. All Rashemi berserkers are sworn to serve and obey the hathrans (Rashemi witches), despite the fact that most of them are Chaotic and NONE of them are Lawful. It's all part of FR lore. Great post, but it seems like something is... missing. From the end, specifically. I think it could use a little bit more... I... what?!

It's neither. Lamellar is pretty much scale armor, only the scales interlock with eachother instead of being attached to a layer of cloth or leather. And a gambeson is a padded cloth jacket (they look nothing like that). The armor in the picture is just some kind of leather cuirass.

It's your choice evolve or be extinct. The kind of forced evolution proposed by most transhumanists would not allow you to choose for yourself. It's all about liberal eugenics: selective breeding and embryonic genetic engineering - not adults deliberately exposing themselves to gamma radiation like in some bad superhero origin story. Or were you talking about biomechatronic prosthetics, perhaps? Or nanobots? That's not evolution.

Soule's rendition of Nobuo Uematsu's Terra from Final Fantasy III (or VI, I guess it's called now) is just... sublime. Haven't heard anything by Bell, AFAIK, but I'm sure he's good too. Was kind of hoping for Michael Hoenig, though.

I was half-expecting to find something to be displeased with, but everything sounded awesome. Every change is in the right direction IMO (at least on paper).

He's supposed to be a Rashemi berserker, but since there was no Barbarian or Berserker class in BG1 they made him a Ranger instead (closest class available) and gave him a negative Wisdom score so that he couldn't cast any spells. They added the Barbarian class, the Berserker specialization, and the Rage ability in BG2. Instead of changing his class and risking to piss off the fans they decided to keep him a Ranger and just give him the Rage ability instead. The reason he uses a greatsword and has a Chaotic alignment is to make it more obvious that he is indeed a Rashemi berserker and not just some Ranger. All Rashemi berserkers are sworn to serve and obey the hathrans (Rashemi witches), despite the fact that most of them are Chaotic and NONE of them are Lawful. It's all part of FR lore.

Oh, math is just the Devil's mad libs. Who needs math and scientific facts when they've seen the blinding light of "truth" that is the Father?

I wasn't arguing for or against the inclusion of monks. I was merely pointing out that wizards DID exist, regardless of whether magic (as in actual, functional magic - like what we'll have in P.E.) did or did not exist. Even in a medieval (or pseudo-medieval fantasy) setting completely devoid of functional magic, there should still be witches and wizards. It would be "unrealistic" otherwise.