could there be a high level character effect

[okey231]

what I mean is.. when a character is at an epic level... there could be some effect with people around talking about you and lower level enemies could get scared when fighting you... stuff like that

[Leferd]

There will be reactivity based on your past deeds and reputation, but not necessarily because your party is level 19 and everyone else are level 3 sword fodder.

[Plutone00]

There could be high-level only abilies/perks, but that's about it.

[Abel]

May be a good idea. I probably would not have the will to fight Elminster in a BG1 playthrough. It's just another type of reputation i guess.

 

PoE may become a saga. So, if it's like BG, we may end the game with a relatively low level... Too low for such a thing. But it's just my guess.

[Osvir]

I don't want to shine like a christmas tree, I don't want to have wings or horns. I'd prefer if armor's didn't glow or swords either. And no aura rainbows either really.

EDIT:
Reputation: It should be possible to be rather unknown even as a high-level character.

Edited December 29, 2013 by Osvir

[Abel]

EDIT:

Reputation: It should be possible to be rather unknown even as a high-level character.

 

True. I said this just because in most IE games, your achievments in the region the game took place were obvious. The fact you may be recongnized or not is another matter. But i think this may be like a reputation, because all reputations are not affecting all people in the world. However i don't know how to manage this kind of stuff to make this feature non too time-consuming.

[Plutone00]

It would be enough to give high reputation character a medal of recognition for his/her deeds.

[Leferd]

It would be enough to give high reputation character a medal of recognition for his/her deeds.

That would be in the Steam version. Don't think GOG or cd version will have achievements.

[Plutone00]

That would be in the Steam version. Don't think GOG or cd version will have achievements.

 

 

I mean as in in-game quest token that will be recognised by npcs since some players wish for kinda "physical" proof of their achievements.

[Leferd]

Bring back the bandit scalp mechanic. Bounty Hunters FTW!

[Abel]

 

That would be in the Steam version. Don't think GOG or cd version will have achievements.

 

 

I mean as in in-game quest token that will be recognised by npcs since some players wish for kinda "physical" proof of their achievements.

 

 

 

An excuse to introduce this stuff may be like:

 

"Baron: Great friends! You served well my land killing this giant dragon! here is a proof of your achievments. Now, everybody will well know who you are and will give you the respect you deserve *giving a recognizable symbol of a high level chivalry officer of the land*"

 

Or for evil: "What an epic achievment to have killed so many soldiers... Let's take the baron's amulet as a reward. Everyone will learn to fear our might!"

 

Obviously, the item should not be an usable one as you may sell/lost or don't have the use of it. More like an invisible one wich can be viewed in kind of reputation list.

Edited December 30, 2013 by Abel

[curryinahurry]

There would likely be something built into the reputation system to accommodate NPC reactions both within the faction system and within the local reputation system.  So if you're character develops a local reputation for brutality, NPC's are likely to react to it; both unfavorably, favorably,  and also sometimes with fear I suspect.  I would imagine this would have some effect on whether low level mobs wanted to take your party on in combat.

 

Also, as a note, as far as we know, the game isn't going to reach Epic levels in this one installment.  We are likely to wind up at Mid-high levels as per Icewind Dale 2 (14th? or the equivalent).

[Osvir]

I wonder if I dress up as a certain type of character (Take out a guard, take his clothes) would allow you passage where you could not go earlier?

This badge of recognition, for instance, could then be an equippable item. If you are wearing it, people will know who you are, but if you choose to not wear it, people won't know what you did (unless it is blatantly obvious or whatever, i.e. you've got such a high reputation with this or that faction that everyone knows that it was you who got the Badge from the Baron, regardless if you have it equipped or not).

You could also do it as simply as just by having the badge equipped in a city, the city will always know (you'd have to go around every village with the badge to get global recognition though). Could give some incentive to get some neat little "recognition specific" random or scripted encounters. Bandits attacking you on the road, a mayor or nobleman who seeks your skill, a job offering as a general or maybe simply a scholar. Sounds like end-game~

[AGX-17]

what I mean is.. when a character is at an epic level... there could be some effect with people around talking about you and lower level enemies could get scared when fighting you... stuff like that

There is no "epic level." You're never going to be a WoW style stupidly-flashy ubergod whose glowing aura, stupid glowing armor and weapons and flaming eyeballs causes peasants to kowtow in awe at your presence.

 

There will be NPC reactivity to the player. But how exactly would one of them distinguish between a level 1 PC and a level 10 PC? There's not likely to be much more than differentiation between peasant rags and well-maintained steel plate. Or the chiseled abs of a competent monk.

Edited December 30, 2013 by AGX-17

[Abel]

I wonder if I dress up as a certain type of character (Take out a guard, take his clothes) would allow you passage where you could not go earlier?

 

This badge of recognition, for instance, could then be an equippable item. If you are wearing it, people will know who you are, but if you choose to not wear it, people won't know what you did (unless it is blatantly obvious or whatever, i.e. you've got such a high reputation with this or that faction that everyone knows that it was you who got the Badge from the Baron, regardless if you have it equipped or not).

 

You could also do it as simply as just by having the badge equipped in a city, the city will always know (you'd have to go around every village with the badge to get global recognition though). Could give some incentive to get some neat little "recognition specific" random or scripted encounters. Bandits attacking you on the road, a mayor or nobleman who seeks your skill, a job offering as a general or maybe simply a scholar. Sounds like end-game~

 

 

May be too complicated. If the baron rewarded you with a symbol of high chivalry for having killed this fearsome epic dragon nobody could approach (here is the epicness. It is not in the badge or the level AGX), then the item he gave you should not become a burden. What i mean is that equiping such an item will prevent you from equipping another one wich is usefull. And such detailed treatment may required large quantity of scripts.

 

However i never found a really cool way to introduce this in the lore, even when i played a Royal guard Chief in a RolePlayed MMO long ago. It was different kinds of badges or coats of arms refering to the grade of the officer, and the tag was in the character's name to be recognized by every player.

 

But i feel that when my character performed some epic achievments in Baldur's gate, i would have liked that, sometimes, my reputation have spread enough to influence some people. In a good, or a bad way. It's about reactivity i guess.

 

However, like said "curryinahurry", few chances that PoE allow you character to become powerful enough to perform such epic and glorious/infamous achievment.

Edited December 30, 2013 by Abel

[Osvir]

What about items and equipment you wear then?

If I use my shoddy shortsword of failure all game, wouldn't that become a signature to my character? "HAH! There goes Shoddy Short-Arm!" (which I have to say, amidst my brainstorming, is a pretty neat little bandit name ). The point remains though. Why would a badge be more "recognizable" than the gear I've been wearing all game?

"Signature" items basically. Sounds like high-level stuff, or things you'd only reach at a high-level. We talked about Legendary Items and such previously, what if a Shoddy Shortword becomes "the stuff of legends" because I used it all game? Maybe it becomes a... Rockin' Shortsword or whatever. The more you use a weapon the more you... merge souls with it? That'd be awesome. NPC's suddenly reacting to your passing "Oh noes! It's the devil slayer!!" and thus NPC's project and manifest their own souls into the blade and transforms it into the "Devil Slayer", when in fact it's just a Shoddy Shortsword. This would require lots of work to do I think, but it would be awesome. "X Time Used Weapon = Transform into Legendary or Heroic Weapon, or Weapon of Recognition".

As for scripting, well yeah, maybe. But it could also be as simple as:

Badge Equipped = Activate NPC Reaction, the hard work isn't in the scripting but in "What happens next?". How exactly does the NPC's react and how substantial would it have to be? Simplistic? Complex? Etc. etc.

Oh and sure, unequipping your Doomslayer Amulet or Badge and replace it with a Baron Badge (BB for short) wouldn't be as efficient in-combat but wearing it in a town, or at a marketplace, might bring prices down and people might be more friendly. Maybe a quest-giver that gave you the finger earlier is now more inclined to work with someone who is now the equivalent of a Noble (or whatever).

[Yonjuro]

...

If I use my shoddy shortsword of failure all game, wouldn't that become a signature to my character? "HAH! There goes Shoddy Short-Arm!" (which I have to say, amidst my brainstorming, is a pretty neat little bandit name ). The point remains though. Why would a badge be more "recognizable" than the gear I've been wearing all game?

 

"Signature" items basically. Sounds like high-level stuff, or things you'd only reach at a high-level. We talked about Legendary Items and such previously, what if a Shoddy Shortword becomes "the stuff of legends" because I used it all game? Maybe it becomes a... Rockin' Shortsword or whatever. The more you use a weapon the more you... merge souls with it? That'd be awesome. NPC's suddenly reacting to your passing "Oh noes! It's the devil slayer!!" and thus NPC's project and manifest their own souls into the blade and transforms it into the "Devil Slayer", when in fact it's just a Shoddy Shortsword. This would require lots of work to do I think, but it would be awesome. "X Time Used Weapon = Transform into Legendary or Heroic Weapon, or Weapon of Recognition".

....

 

 

This a is a good idea. In BG2, the only weapon I can think of that mentioned the PC in its lore was the Sword of Chaos, which became obsolete soon after leaving the dungeon. Given the epic story of BG2, presumably the items that the PC and party members used for the difficult encounters would end up with lore attached to them. It would probably need to be limited to things like: This is <name> the <item> of <character name> which has <some property that it has been imbued with [after encounter 1]  [<some property that it has been imbued with [after encounter 2]]....

 

Where "[]" signify optional lore bits depending on where it was used - a limited number for major events - and it may also be imbued with some property just due to long use.

 

 Such descriptions may be ironic, intentionally or unintentionally. Such as,

 

"this the sword of brave Sir Robin used to kill Jon Irenicus on the tree of life in Suldanessallar"

 

might really mean:

 

"this the sword that Sir Robin the coward carried as he cowered in fear as the skeletons summoned by his party cleric killed Jon Irenicus on the tree of life in Suldanessallar"

 

 Perhaps such things need a check that an actual hit was scored by the weapon. Then again, mythologies have a life their own.

[LadyCrimson]

Reputation: I really disliked it in games where if you killed people in one town, every town/every guard everywhere would know to attack you on sight, as if everyone in the world knew what you and every member of your party looked like (even with hoods/helmets on). Unless it's a hi-tech sci-fi "big brother is watching" type game, such doesn't fly with me.

Reputation should affect whether people are willing to ally with you sometimes, and there can be convo options that reveal who you are/deal w/your rep level, but...I dunno. I just don't like the auto-rep-encounter method. But I often accept it because I'm supposing something more all-encompassing complex is too much work/time.

As to achievements or awards - even outside of Steam, seems like one can have earned titles in the game or something. I don't see how that would be that difficult..."if one has killed 1000 gnolls, give title "Gnoll Slayer." Not sure about badges you carry around...better than auto-rep (assuming you don't have to wear the badges) maybe.

[Lephys]

@Osvir:

 

REALLY like the idea of "signature" weapons/items, as you put it.

 

I mean, you read the lore on all these old relics, and it's always some progression from a mundane item, like "This used to be the blade of some guy who was a soldier -- passed to him from his really-skilled-blacksmith of a grandfather (so it's all awesome quality construction to hold up over time and whatnot) -- who then happened to fight in the battle of such-and-such, when the Dark King invaded the old empire. He died valiantly sacrificing himself to ensure the death of the dark-magic dabbling foe, causing the blade to become imbued with his spirit. It was then granted to the new king of the land, as the blade representing the sacrifice required to protect the kingdom. It became lost, until it was found by some order of magic-y people, who further enchanted the blade because reasons and circumstances... etc."

 

And yet, all you ever do is find already-awesome items that you then can't really make more awesome, or make mundane items kind of cool, but in a sort-of mundane and non-unique/story-worthy fashion.

 

It'd be pretty great if you could potentially CREATE such lore for a given weapon/armor piece, throughout the course of your journey. I'm talking more story-worthy effects, and not so much "+5 fire damage, now +5 ice damage! Now +10 damage to evil! NOW +20 SOUL DAMAGE!" accumulating on into the night, until it can cut down mountains.

[Plutone00]

Fable 3 had that system. Your weapon stats changed depending on how and how much you used it. Weapon's look also reflected it's use and it became nasty if you used it for evil.

 

I remember Obisidian using similar system with name crystal in KotOR 2, but I doubt it would be implemented in PoE. Would be nice though.