Cantousent

I want an unweighted point buy. I despise weighted point buy. I hate it with a passion. I think it's nothing more than a heavy handed and almost always pointless way to dictate things to the player. I would rather have lower stats with a straight point buy than higher stats weighted. Hell, I would rather have random stats than a weighted point buy. Straight point buy with a reasonable spread makes the most sense to me. Just so happens that I know Sawyer prefers a straight point buy system also, if I recall it right, and so I'm pretty happy.

Yeah, I switch between my monitor and my tv for gaming these days. It mostly depends on whether my wife is playing or not. I looked over all the stuff last night and a lot of it doesn't necessarily appeal to me, such as the patch, but some of it struck me as actually ranging from not so bad to awesome. I don't want to insult the team, I respect the devs and I admire their talent and the only reason I bought in at the tier I did was out of confidence in their ability, but I don't really know that an autographed box will be that exciting. On the other hand, the cloth map and the ring tones and the wallpapers are nice. I know they'd put out the wallpaper anyhow, and probably will well before the game ships, but I'm still looking forward to it. I hope they do full blown themes with music, wall-paper, and color schemes. I guess some stuff will seem more cool to some folks than others. I know a lot of people won't care about the wallpaper but I'm stoked about it, even if it is small and would be free anyway. I don't really put patches on my clothing, but you never know. I might be able to use it. My neice might like it or something.

Will there be strict 'mages' as a class? It's getting far enough along that I should probably stop reading stuff so that I don't ruin any of the story, but I'm still curious about a few of the gameplay aspects, such as, are there even classes? If so, is magic use something confined to one or two classes? Is soul magic the only magic? If so, then there's nothing like the divine/arcane thing of DnD and everything is either 'arcane' or 'divine' depending on how people interpret the soul magic idea? I prefer if there were two categories, but I'll live with whatever. I plan on playing a mage and the best way to keep yourself safe from gun-totin' red-necks is to kill them first. Towards that end, I'd like to think that it's not going to be a rock/paper/scissors approach where mages can kill off melee with ease, melee can kill off ranged at ease, and ranged can kill off mages with ease. If it falls into that sort of uber-balanced nonsense, I'll be a bit disappointed. EDIT: Guns of this variety weren't the reason armor became obsolete.

I'd try to blind him with my stupid looking pointy assed wizard's hat, take his weapon, shoot him with it, and then I'd cast pyrotechnics to celebrate.

Wow, you've already sold two of those $5 grand slots. Pretty nifty. Sure leaves my meager pledge in the dust. :Cant's wry grin icon:

I kind of see this as close to what Lionheart could have been if they'd done it right. Poor Lionheart got no end of hate.

I can think of a character who is bi-polar and has periods of expansive spirit contrasted with periods of lethargy. ...Or a depressive who has to fight back from behind the teeth of despair daily in order to keep going. ...Or a Schizophrenia, where the PC knows some things are real and some aren't and he must decide how to respond to his environment. Has potential at least.

I wouldn't do this, but I wonder if folks could combine their pledges into a larger sum and then collaborate on how to create the party or inn or item or whatever. I'd rather just let the design team do it because I don't think I'd do a particularly good job, but combining pledges and then splitting up the bennies equitably could be a way for folks willing to work through the issues.

I don't see why you couldn't be an atheist in the game. After all, the logical argument is that the souls are created by the living rather than eternal. They're a by-product of magic that have become a talisman for religious belief. If someone wants to disbelieve (or believe) there's always an argument to be found, and sometimes quite good arguemnts.

At least my mage won't have to wear a ridiculous wearing hat and long robe. Forget armor, I'd be happy if the only good gear for a mage didn't look like a dress. Maybe pants, shirt, vest, and boots? I have to travel in this stuff, after all.

I'm looking forward to the ring tones. Shouldn't be too hard to figure out how to put them on my phone. :Cant's huge grin icon:

My reaction was negative on reading the first post. I then read the whole thread. I've been trying to think of why my initial response was negative. I guess we could say that some folks hate the idea of transgender issues in an RPG because they can't countenance transgenders as human beings in the first place, but that's not true of me and I don't think it's the impetus behind most of the negative, even snarky responses. So why is it an issue? I'm going out on a limb, but I'm not trying to win an argument and I'm not trying to insult anyone. I'm just giving my genuine assessment. Let's say I go to a bookstore and pick up a book. On reading the back, I see that the story revolves around how a young boy feels trapped inside his body and identifies with the female form. The story details the events of his life as he goes through the process of changing his sex. I wouldn't be interested in the book. It might be a good book. If I forced myself to start it, I might find it engrossing and compelling and it might lead me to a better understanding of transgenders. ...But I'm only allotted so much time on the Earth and I have the right to pursue my interests. I'm not saying that I hate transgenders or think they shouldn't have an outlet to express themselves, but I am a consumer and I will consume the things that appeal to me. Since I'm not transgender, do not know anyone who is openly transgender, and have no real interest in transgender issues, a story that deals with such things won't have any appeal to me. I won't hate it, but I don't buy things based on what I don't hate. I buy things based on what I like or desire. It's not like I would toss out a game for any reference to transgender, but I want an immersive world that entertains my interests. If I read the back of the Project Eternity 'book' and see that it delves too much into lifestyles and interests that I don't share, then I'm not going to buy the book. If I play the game and some of these issues are addressed in an intelligent and mature manner (that is not to say didactic and morally intrusive) then it wouldn't bother me at all. So, if Obsidz can provide that experience, awesome. I'm just afraid of the game being held captive to a huge swath of special interests. As for small things, such as traits at the beginning and special dialogue that only comes up if you have certain characteristics, I don't mind that at all. If the design team implements something that players can choose at the beginning that caters to the transgender crowd but does not later intrude on my experience, I'm down with that, but how much time, money, and talent will that entail? The point is, my negative response wasn't born of hatred or bigotry any more than if I read a review of 'My Pretty Pony.' I have nothing against it on its face, but I'm not spending my money on or taking my time with it. ...And, like all consumers, I'm something of a selfish bore when it comes to the nitty gritty. I don't want the design team to spend resources on the things I don't desire when there are so many things I do want to see in the game.

On second thought, I've decided against my previous post. If any mods happen by, just delete this thread, sil vous plait

I think weather could be interesting, although perhaps a little tricky to implement properly. Time sensitive quests are tougher. On the one hand, a living breathing world that progresses on its own regardless of the PC sounds compelling. On the other hand, it is limiting. I think most quests should not be time sensitive. What I really don't want is a journal with a clock telling me how long I have to complete a bunch of quests. Talk about breaking immersion!

It's really a resource issue. What I think would be ideal is letting the player designate anyone from the PC to the NPC be the party leader. Hell, maybe the PC is one of a band of people with a variety of motives that just happen to coincide. Maybe the PC could find himself part of someone else's merry band rather than being the one picking up all the strays. Think of how liberating that could be. You have to participate in conversations, but it's not up to you to arbitrate everything. Maybe you start out as part of a band of people, but the players who are more controlling or ambitious could end up in control. Then there's dialogue where the PC participates but doesn't always control everything. Yeah, it would be tough to keep the player engaged while making the dialogue more freestyle, but think of the breadth of variety you could have in such a system. Every dialogue would not need to be either PC driven or PC arbitrated. He could be a bystander, simply listening to the interlocutors, or insert himself. He could sometimes initiate conversation or sometimes have others initiate conversations with him, but he could jump into conversations. Want to be a strong, silent type? Aspire to be the leader of your group? It's all up to you. I haven't played Zehir. I was all NWNed out by the time it hit the shelves. It sounds like it's way closer to what I'd like than anything I've seen so far.

Originally, I wasn't going to post in this thread again. I thought to myself that I'd look like an idiot, and I probably do. ...But then I thought to myself, why care? I don't know if this idea really helps or not. I don't if anything will come of it, but I'd rather look like an idiot trying to do something constructive than fear being an idiot and not do anything at all. So, what I did was look through the LA Times and found out they'd done an article on Kickstarter in June of 2012. I then looked up the staff writers for technology and emailed all of them. I might be wasting my time, but I think I'll do it with the Register and the Review Journal and other newspapers. I don't know, probably won't do much, but you never know. The point is, if you bought into the project, you must want it to secure as much funding as possible. Be like Hurlshot and go out there and try to scrounge up support wherever you can! That or laugh at me. It's all good. :Cant's self-deprecating icon: Dear LA Times: I know you've published at least one article about Kickstarter in June of this year. It's an alternate source of revenue for computer games by which a large number of consumers buy into a project as a way to secure funding to begin development. In fact, Obsidian entertainment, which has developed several big projects for the likes of Bethesda Software and Atari has recently Kickstarted a project, called Project Eternity, and met it's initial goals of $1.1 million in the first 24 hours. I do not work for Obisidian, but I did contribute to the project. While it might be self serving for me to suggest this as a possible topic for an article in your paper, I also think it's a legitimate story. After all, it involves what will undoubtedly be a multi-million dollar project funded not by some huge publisher, but by fans like myself. There may always be room for the Activisions, Ataris, and Electronic Arts of the world, but there may be a day when some or even most of the big name projects in computer gaming are funded entirely by large numbers of donations from small donors. Just think, this is a project underwritten by thousands of small investors who don't demand royalties or a stake in the revenue, but only wish to support the artistic vision. A timely story, as a follow up to your previous article, could shine a light on an increasingly popular way for the consumer to have a stake and say in the future. http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/obsidian/project-eternity Respectfully,

I love Steam. I've never had a problem running any game on my computers. I tend to update my computers regularly each an oem os I purchase at that time. I save a lot of info from the old systems, but I never worry about Steam games because I can just download them. This is something that I've done many many times. Yeah, it's probably intrusive, but it sure as hell beats the Diablo 3 setup, which I've come to loathe. Steam might have to be running while I play, but at least I don't have to be signed onto a server the whole time. All that said, this makes it certain I'll be pledging more money sometime this week.

A good English Longbowman scoffs at crossbow, and rightfullfully so. Tell the French at Crecy and Agincourt about how the English Longbow fared against armored foes. I know I know. The History channel et al have all done exposes recently downplaying the value of the longbow, but the fact remains that the Longbowmen shredded the assaults. Just sayin' there's plenty of use for a good Longbowman. After that debate, we can bring up Mongol horse archers. :Cant's lubricated grin icon:

Hurlie, you bastard, another great idea! I took notice and sent in an email to Cavuto@foxnews.com. He's done interviews with both the CEOs of both Gamestop and Activision. I think this Kickstarter phenomenon is worthy of a look from the business community if nothing else. Getting the word out could really help. Tomorrow, I'll send a letter to the LA Times and other local papers. Take the idea and consider contacting local news outlets to see if you can drum up interest. I know we're not 'investors' as such, but we've put our money into this project and we want as many people as possible buying into it. If the project tops 3 million bucks, it will certainly be noteworhty as an up and coming method for funding games.

I don't want the devs to be didactic. It's unbecoming in a young girl and men *loathe* it. Anyhow, I would like to see some themes treated in the game, but I don't want the design team to morally instruct us in regards to those themes in any way. No good/bad meter. No dark/ligth meter. Here's the situation, what will you do?

I actually started a thread about the weight of gold a while back. I'm going to repost an idea I had about alternate money. What about something non standard? Different types of currency for different realms? I ran a campaign once where the characters could find black weightless tokens (They were interplanar so they had shape and hardness but not weight). Anyhow, there were machines left over from an extinct empire that took the tokens. The players never knew what they would get, but I kept track of their conversations they'd been having and I ran the machines as being able to take images and make them reality so that the players would get things along the lines of what the characters desired. Never too terribly powerful, but then again nothing in my campaigns is until at least level ten. After they got into the twelve to thirteen levels range, I upped the power significantly. I run pretty meager in terms of items, but you have to reward players somehow. Anyhow, to get back to topic, something like those tokens or pieces of some exotic metal or anything like it could add a different dimension to the game. I don't know that it's worth it to the devs, but it's an idea. EDIT: As to you, GofA, it's not a difficulty issue. To a real grognard, money weight won't be difficult, merely time consuming. My argument isn't that it's too hard to deal with the money weight. It's that it's too tedious.

Yeah, that sounds a lot like the Fallout system Chris mentioned above. I like that idea. Limited money with a lot of bartering sounds appealing to me, but the real issue is that I don't want to worry about huge sums of cash taking up all my inventory/carrying capacity. Novel ways of dealing with the issue are all well and good if they actually enhance the gameplay.

No, Obsidz really is permissive. Fionavar is particularly adept at navigating between the rocky shoals of total clamp down control and the stormy seas of trawling trolls. I myself have been a moderator here and been warned several times before my time as mod and after. hehe Also, several of the devs come here. I see Alvin quite a bit and Sawyer has always been good about dishing out the appropriate amount of dirt. All in all, I like the way Obsidz, and BIS before them, managed the community. Interplay, where I was also a moderator, was a little bit pyschotic about deciding whether or not to be the wild and wooly west or the newest province of the Reich. The big thing is, we're keeping ourselves entertained right now, but things will die down a bit now, I think, until we get our first batch of real news. Unless, of course, FU dishes out some real dirt in his statement. Then all hell might break loose right away.

Just kill 'em with cheap arrows.

Well, I'm encouraged by your take at least. I've never participated in a kickstarter before and I would never think of myself as knowing what I'm talking about. What you've suggested is certainly sensible enough, nik.