Cantousent

Click Me You have to read through the whole thing. Imho by the end of it Sawyer looks quite the ****, but I'll leave you to judge for yourselves. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> And for revenge, you look like one now. I don't really give a damn what they do to MP as long as the SP is good. So, to me, he looks like a knight in shining armor.

Ah, hell, my screenshots will have to do. I've wasted enough time. here is the latest batch. I know it looks prettier without a light spell, but I like being able to see a good distance.

No, I never cheated. I have a masters in alchemy and I can, legitimately, create 103 light effect potions.

As far as I know, you can't take a screenshot with bloom effects and anti-aliasing. I have my resolution set to 1024x760. I have bloom effects running and I use anti-aliasing x6. So, I turn off anti-aliasing and the bloom effects. The "washed out" look is due to having 103ft light effect. Trust me, it really lights up the place, but it washes everything out in a greenish tinge. I'll tell you what, if it's important for you to see a non-light spell screen, I'll use a torch and take a picture again.

I turned down all the setting to take a screenshot in the first place and I have a 103 ft light potion going also. It tends to seriously wash out the colors, but I can see things way off in the distance.

The point is, some folks like levels and classes. You might not like them, but that doesn't mean they're not a perfectly valid structure for someone else. Now, you can argue that one system allows for more actual "role-playing" than another. After all, levels and classes are restrictive. I agree. They also allow for some oddities during gameplay. Of course, there are oddities in real life. I don't find that classes and levels are bad because they allow one person to defeat another at the wrong level. They usually make it near impossible for low level monsters or NPCs to kill high level characters. A twentieth level character can run through a horde of orcs like a wheat thresher. I don't tend to like extended battles, but you must know some folks really do. For some people, DnD is nothing more than an excuse to run through battles. We might think it's boring, but that doesn't change the fact that some people love it. Not only that, but they're perfectly right to enjoy the game in whatever way they like. If they want nothing but 2 hour battles, they're not going to game with me, but I don't resent them for it. :Eldar's wry grin icon: That's one of the things I like about Paranoia. Combat is most definitely not the main activity during the game.

Deirdre is now the imperial champion. She is the Archmage with masters in destruction, alteration, and alchemy. She has faced all foes and destroyed them in turn. The empire was under her care, guarded by her sword and spells. Now, however, she intends to retire destruction spells and focus on running the Arcane University, Henceforth known as "Martin Septim University of the Arcane Arts" Recently, she instituted a number of staff changes at MSUAA. New buildings on campus include Traven Hall and a memorial to all the mages who perished in the battle against Oblivion. In the power vacuum that followed the war, Deirdre solidified mage influence in the imperial council. She offered the services of battlemages for the defense of the Empire. She sent high ranking officials from the University to each province in order to gather support. She provided the Council with invaluable skills, items, and information from MSUAA. She, herself, remained in the Imperial city, pushing for a plebiscite. Her goal is to establish Democracy as the new Imperial form of government, a possibility that was hitherto not realistic. Already she has, through Occata, pushed imperial bans on slavery, necromancy, and daedric summoning. Her ultimate goal is to establish the Mages' Guild as the protector of arcane law, with the laws established by a representative government. Recnetly, Deirdre returned to her old cell. The air was still dank and cold, as it had been on that day long ago when fate thrust her into the role of protector and champion of the Empire. She thought long on the those who had been lost in the Oblivion war and wondered, as she stood, what the future would hold.

You know something I'd like to play again is Paranoia. Great game. It takes a great GM, however. It's not so much that he needs to know the rules as he needs to have finesse, quick thinking, big balls, and the ability to back up those big balls by sheer force of will. Another one from back in the day is Gamma World. I remember playing it a long time ago and it was great. It was my first exposure to a post-apocalyptic game. Ultimately, for all of my protests, the ruleset doesn't matter nearly so much to me as the game.

I don't think simple rules are bad. In fact, for some people a simple rules system is the best choice. Probably for most people. On the other hand, having truly complex rules isn't bad. The necessity to look up rules and go through charts isn't bad as long as the players and the GM enjoy the rules as much as the setting or the gameplay. I'm not joking. Some players enjoy making characters more than playing them. Some players look forward to spending a couple hours on one fight, using every little trick and going through tons of charts and using diagrams. The point is, don't bash DnD rules for being simple (although I've seen simpler rulesets). Perhaps that's the point. Don't bash a system that uses character classes or levels just because you prefer one that doesn't. It's one thing to prefer complex system and another to attack someone else because he doesn't. Well, Kaftan's just stubborn and pig-headed, so it's alright for him. ...But everyone else should be understanding. :Eldar's poking fun at Kaftan icon:

US groups my backside. You're in my group, dammit.

Well, it would have been great, but we really needed more than two players. Four, I think, would have been good. I'd really rather stick with five, which means we're pretty much full as long as Tigranes is serious. Now we need to make a European group.

The hum -- my computer You know, TrueNeutral, you had some good points about this swearing business a couple pages ago. Now, it just seems strange that you keep harping on the issue. The fact is, we live in an arbitrary world. That's one good reason. ...But here's another good reason: profanity reeks of violence. It is the speech of violence if violence itself can be captured by the spoken word. Profanity, whether folks should see it as such or not, scares some people. Take, for instance, me. If I'm with my friends, in my house, and my wife isn't here, I'll swear the whole time. Between the Navy (in which I swore like a sailor) and everyday life, I am not unaccustomed to profanity. If I'm walking down the street with my mom and I hear a group of guys swearing, I automatically assume the worst. I assume: 1) they are dangerous 2) they've been drinking 3) they're fighting. So, on the one hand, some folks are frightened because a group of guys is swearing. On the other hand, some folks get ready for a fight themselves. Part of being an adult is knowing when certain types of speech are appropriate. Cooing at a baby is appropriate. Cooing at the guy at the gas station will get you a black eye. Telling your buddy who just scored you tickets to the game, "I love you man" is appropriate. Telling the guy who gives you that plush job, "I love you man" probably, probably isn't appropriate. Let's get back to profanity. Maybe you curse around your mom. Maybe your mom curses around you. Hell, we all curse to some degree or another. Dammit, I do it all the time. ...But, before you get on your high and mighty horse, I think you have the intuitive idea that you shouldn't break out in profanity in that job interview. You shouldn't break out in profanity in the middle of a memorial service. You shouldn't break out in profanity while walking through campus at an elementary school. Do you think that it makes sense? I guess not. Does it matter whether you think it makes sense? Most definitely not. Lodge your protest. Shake your head at the arbitrary world in which we live. Think you're better than everyone else. Then get on with life. Once again, late posting isn't my friend, but I'm forced to mention that the board is very clear. You should have followed the rules. If you expect to enjoy the privilege of access to most public fora, you simply must get past this incident. BTW: I understand what you're saying. I really do. Nevertheless, you must be mature and live through this grave slight to your rights and liberties as a human being and accept that, while sacrosanct in your mind, the ability to curse at will is mostly a load of crap.

"I often double post" HA! Double Poster! Anyhow, I was quite happy about the ending. Folks in the street reference my battle and it's cool to go to my tower to rest. The clever trick Bethesda used at the end to get the player to continue with the game for a while longer made me laugh. It was a great idea. Here's my biggest beef, now that I made peace with my horse. Ah hell, let me talk about my horse first. It actually helped me in a fight once. Some bandit attacked me and concentrated on my horse. I put the bandit down easily, and then I healed my horse. Ever since, for some reason, I loved the stupid beast. It's not even as if I wouldn't have won the fight hands down, but I saved the animal and ever since I thought of it more as a pet rather than a mount. Okay okay, back to my beef. I hate the scholars. I am their damnable boss! I'll talk to folks and they'll say, "I'm far to busy to talk with you right now." You know, I could literally start at one end of the city and move through it zone by zone and kill everything in my path. These damn fool mages at the university would do well to remember that. ...But nooooo, they know that I'm not going to burn a swath of destruction upon them, so they can talk to me as if I were some ridiculous apprentice. I'm going to start firing folks in key positions until they learn to respect me. Arghhh

Well, let's hope that the this or that the Lord wills for us tomorrow is to get enough of us together to smite down some bad guys for his greater glory! Huzzah!

Roads to Moscow -- Al Stewart Great song. Has anyone ever done a review of Darth Drabek? We need one!

Hey, I've lived those lyrics. I'm one of those weak, came to the fold because I was a rock bottom loser Christians. Currently listening to Nessum Dorma -- Puccini

Il Principe: Nessun dorma!... Nessun dorma!... Tu pure, o Principessa, nella tua fredda stanza guardi le stelle che tremano d'amore e di speranza! Ma il mio mistero

Sure, Child. If you ever just want to sit in on a session, feel free. You're always welcome.

I can start anytime between 7amPDT to 3pmPDT. I'd like to have at least four of our players, however, as this is where we actually start the campaign. The intro is pretty much all done. BTW: You guys can do anything you want. You could even role-play several days of sitting around a hot inn who is increasingly agitated that you leave. It might not be fun, but I'm not going to force you to do anything.

I've already cleared tomorrow if you guys would like to get together. This is probably one of the few Saturdays I can play. I'll be available from the morning until the late afternoon PDT.

*shrug* I honestly think the writing is better in Diablo. It is certainly better in Diablo 2. Now, as Lonewolf says, I like the exploration and scenery, but I think it's silly to make pointed comments concerning Planescape to divert the conversation from legitimate comments on Oblivion. Comparing Oblivion to any game is certainly valid for the purposes of discussion. Now, saying that Oblivion isn't any better than Mavis Beacon Types or some such might sound silly, but that's a matter of context. Perhaps you find going through the motions to get to the end much like the process of finishing the Mavis Beacon program. The point is, we make comparisons all the time. It's going to happen. Danger Double Post Danger Anyhow, I just finished the game. I liked it. I even thought fondly of my horse at the very end. Now, I have to admit, when I They're stupid and run right into my spells. ...And running into my spells is not what anyone wants to do. It's just plain ugly.

I liked Diablo.

You people scare me, but I had fun. I just wish we could have gotten out a bit, but I didn't want to start without Blank and Tigranes.

Just fire up Open RPG and then go to the room I've created. you can just be a passive observer for now if you'd like to play. The actual game won't start for another hour.