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30 Skill Points To Spend -GF2- in Geneforge Series
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Wednesday, April 19 2006 08:25 Profile Homepage #14
quote:
Originally written by Nick Ringer:

I just had a splendid idea.

Spend all of your skill points on Parry. You should get it up to 16 (actually calculated). Anything that attacks you in melee will die.

You can't just do that from the start of the game, of course; the high incidence of getting hit by low-level enemies' attacks would bring you to your knees. When you have the opportunity to bump it like this (you're already suriving without spending skill points elsewhere) you might as well take advantage.
That's how I've played my guardian in G2. I had get enough other skills to survive, but Parry was top priority until I got it to a point where collecting all Parry canisters and +Parry equipment would get me up to max (18, I think).

quote:
You can become largely invincible with enough Parry; if it's up in the 20's you can just walk through Gazak-Uss or anywhere with Drakons bouncing off you. Parry was removed from GF3 for that reason.
What does Parry do at such high levels? I was under impression that it's useless to get it above 18 (or whatever level you need to get Riposte chance to 50%).

[ Wednesday, April 19, 2006 08:27: Message edited by: Zeviz ]

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
A3: Poor mages! in The Avernum Trilogy
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Wednesday, April 19 2006 08:21 Profile Homepage #25
quote:
Originally written by rantalot:

...
Useful priest spells: heal, healgroup, dispell undead.

Useful mage spells: dispell barier, haste, fireblast, ice lances, arcane summon, arcane shield (i am not sure about arcane blow)
...
Don't forget the most damaging priest spell: Bless (Battle Rage in Avernum series). By the amount of extra damage dealt per point of manna spent, this spell is stronger than anything in Mage's or Priest's arsenal. (Especially when you run into monsters with a lot of resistances and immunities.) The blessing spells are even stronger in the dungeons, where blessed fighters can just go from encounter to encounter, clearing large areas with the help of only a couple castings of these cheap spells.

PS About area of effect spells in A4, I was disappointed that they don't cause friendly fire. Positioning your fighters to avoid getting fried by your own fireballs is an important tactical decision in Exile combat.

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
A3: Poor mages! in The Avernum Trilogy
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Tuesday, April 18 2006 13:04 Profile Homepage #21
About useless spells, Blades designers are pretty good at setting up situations in which you have to rely on such spells. In various BoE scenarios I've had to use obscure spells like Web and Poison to get through some encounters.

And I also prefer the variety of spells in Exile. (Antimagic Cloud, damage fields, "bolt", "arrows" and "ball" type spells, barriers, mindduel, etc.)

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Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Should I Buy...? in Avernum 4
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Tuesday, April 18 2006 12:23 Profile Homepage #3
quote:
Originally written by Crystal Blue:

...
From what I've played...I can't decide.
...
In that case, the answer is probably "wait for A5". From what I've heard, neither plot nor atmosphere improve after the end of the demo. So if you are uncertain by the time the demo ends, chances are you'll get bored long before the game is over. This game has the smallest fraction of the game available in the demo compared to other Spidweb games and that alone should tell you something.

I personally am waiting for A5. In A4 Jeff was focusing on rewriting the engine, so plot and atmosphere got the back seat. In A5 he'll be able to spend a lot more time on the story, atmosphere, and other such elements, instead of tinkering with the engine.

[ Tuesday, April 18, 2006 12:24: Message edited by: Zeviz ]

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Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Been very busy in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Tuesday, April 18 2006 11:58 Profile Homepage #3
This isn't entirely unprecedented and I know of a couple cases where long distance relationships turned into regular ones. However, you have to remember that chatting online isn't the same as living with the person.

In one case that I am thinking about, the couple met on an online dating site and after about a year during which, in addition to spending hours on the phone and online every day, they've spent all vacations together, including living together during spring breaks, which didn't overlap for their universities. After graduating, the girl moved from California to Minnesota to live with the guy and they are still together, 2.5 years later.

In another example, the couple met at a mutual friend's wedding and later got in touch through that friend. A few months later, the young man sold his house, quit his job and moved from Washington D.C. to California to live with the young woman. However, after several months they've moved to separate aparments, and I am not sure about the current situation.

So in conclusion (if it's possible to draw conclusions based on only 2 cases :) ), the first advice is to spend some time living together before you decide to make a major move. After that, one of you will have to move to the place where the other one is living and, since cancelling plans to go to college is always a bad idea, it would make more sence to move for whoever isn't tied to a college campus. (If both of you are going to be in colleges, you'll just have to wait.)

EDIT: The discussion above obviously assumes that you are already in a relationship, rather than just "talking a lot". If you are still at the stage of simply being online friends, the advice of Mad Minstrel, who posted while I was typing, is more applicable.

[ Tuesday, April 18, 2006 12:04: Message edited by: Zeviz ]

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Complex Core is still red on map -GF2- in Geneforge Series
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Tuesday, April 18 2006 11:38 Profile Homepage #1
To "clear" the zone as an enemy of Awakaned, you probably have to kill Tuldoric, or steal something (I don't remember what you are sent to do).

To "clear" the zone as a member of Awakened, you probably have to speak to Tuldoric.

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Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
30 Skill Points To Spend -GF2- in Geneforge Series
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Monday, April 17 2006 12:54 Profile Homepage #2
If this is Geneforge2, get your Parry up to about 14 or 15. With several items that give bonus to Parry, this should give you enough to max out chance of Riposte. The rest of points can go into combination of Endurance, Weapon Skill, Quick Action and Luck. I'd also recommend a slight increase to Blessing Magic to be able to cast Haste. However, if you don't have enough energy for it, don't bother.

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Web Hosts in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Monday, April 17 2006 12:28 Profile Homepage #15
quote:
Originally written by Kuranes-:

For the record, I've been here nearly 3 years and don't have immediate plans for leaving soon. Unless I die or something. Which can happen anytime, of course, so I wouldn't rely too much on my hosting. ;)
I wasn't implying that you are particularly unreliable. Sorry if it sounded that way. (Many of the examples I am thinking of aren't from this community anyway and some involved very respected people.)

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Results guaranteed by guaranteed results in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Monday, April 17 2006 11:49 Profile Homepage #20
quote:
Originally written by Kuranes-:

...
The Political Compass puts me in the lower left corner (reserved for anarcho-communists), but what the PC defines as "neutral" is heavily skewed towards the right. Just see where you end up - even the hardliners on this board usually only end up center-right.
Correction: what you define as "neutral" is heavily skewed towards the left. I've just taken that quiz from the point of view of a religiously conservative capitalist and got a 6.6, 7.3 result without even going as extreme as possible. (I wanted to keep answers realistic, so I erred on the side of caution.) I also got 10.00, 0.05 taking the test from point of view of a true free-market liberatarian. (Somebody who thinks that all regulation is inherently evil and people should tend for themselves.)

In both of these experiments I've tried to use only answers I could see coming from some people I know (although not the exact combination of answers from any given person). So just because the spectrum is shifted to the left on these boards and among the college students you interact with doesn't mean that the same shift is true for everybody in the world.

(Yes, I am bored enough to play around with political compass to see how various ideologies would score. :) )

PS Don't try to draw any correlation between RPG scales and Political Compass. Considering that "evil" (especially "chaotic evil") enjoys violence for the sake of violence and will take the more hurtful option whenever given a choice, you'd be hard pressed to find a corresponding RL ideology.

EDIT: Since this turned into Political Compass thread while I was typing the reply, I guess I'll retake it again, with my own point of view.
My result was: -4.38, 0.67.

[ Monday, April 17, 2006 12:04: Message edited by: Zeviz ]

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Web Hosts in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Monday, April 17 2006 11:15 Profile Homepage #11
I've had experience with following hosts:

Geocities: http://geocities.yahoo.com/
Pros:
- My site has been up for almost 5 years, including about a year during which all visitors were redirected to another site.
Cons:
- Intrusive ads, including pop-ups. (Although everybody has a pop-up blocker nowadays.)
- Hourly transfer limit. This is the real killer if your site is intended to have heavy spikes in traffic. (For example, posting "look at my new graphics" will produce a spike as people see your thread for the first time, making your site unavailable to all but first few viewers.)

Hosting by an online friend:
Pros:
- No ads, high transfer limit.
Cons:
- Tend to disapper without warning if the friend loses interest, forgets to pay his ISP, etc. Or disappear with warning if friend leaves the community. (I've seen this in every online community I've been in, sometimes with important sites people got used to relying on.)

In conclusion, I'd recommend against hosting by a friend, unless you know that person well in real life.

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Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
The Periodic Table of Spiderweb in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Monday, April 17 2006 08:07 Profile Homepage #257
quote:
Originally written by Jewels:

quote:
Originally written by *i:

*test post*
*wonders what *i is testing for*

*wonders if this post makes it test positive*
...
I guess he was testing new titles, since this is probabaly the active topic with the largest number of different posters.

PS Aran, do you feel brave enough to also rebuke Jeff for a topic revival in the Nethergate forum? :P

[ Monday, April 17, 2006 08:10: Message edited by: Zeviz ]

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Statistically Yours, on the First Anniversary in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Monday, April 17 2006 07:50 Profile Homepage #12
Looks like the resolve to end the spamming contest lasted only one month.

(This is post 1 out of 6 posts I'll need to make today to get on my way to top 10 next month.)

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Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Guaranteed results!! in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Sunday, April 16 2006 22:13 Profile Homepage #57
Lawful Good Elf Fighter

Alignment:
Law and Chaos:
Law ----- XXXXXXXXX (9)
Neutral - XXXXXXX (7)
Chaos --- XXXXXX (6)

Good and Evil:
Good ---- XXXXXXXX (8)
Neutral - XXXXX (5)
Evil ---- X (1)

Race:
Human ---- XXXXX (5)
Half-Elf - XXXXXXXXX (9)
Elf ------ XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX (17)
Gnome ---- XXXXXXXXX (9)
Halfling - XXXXXXXXXXX (11)
Dwarf ---- XXXXX (5)
Half-Orc - (-3)

Class:
Fighter -- XXXXXXXXXXXXX (13)
Barbarian -X (1)
Ranger --- XXXXXXXXXXXX (12)
Monk ----- XXXX (4)
Paladin -- XXXXXXXX (8)
Cleric --- XXXXXXX (7)
Mage ----- XXXXXX (6)
Druid ---- XXXXX (5)
Thief ---- (-1)
Bard ----- XXXXXXXX (8)

It looks pretty close to what I usually play in RPGs, especially if the Fighter/Ranger tie had broken in favor of Ranger.

[ Sunday, April 16, 2006 22:15: Message edited by: Zeviz ]

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
The Push, Hide, and Loot Maneuver (And Miscellany) in The Avernum Trilogy
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Sunday, April 16 2006 20:50 Profile Homepage #10
One fun use of fight-end-teleport trick is exploring areas where you aren't supposed to be. For example, exploring Celt village as Romans in Nethergate. There is usually nothing interesting in those areas, but it's fun if you are bored.

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
The favorite rating abominable photo game vs. return of the undead karma census poll! in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Sunday, April 16 2006 20:22 Profile Homepage #43
quote:
Originally written by Dikiyoba:

Aren't you glad it isn't any of those things?

IMAGE(http://www.metroweb.cz/metro/Ecs/1001.jpg)
...
Dikiyoba reached 1001 posts today. Wow.
The plaque in above image says "Mytishi Machinery factory", which gives me this mental image:
IMAGE(http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/4774/diki10019pd.th.jpg)

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Temple of Pain Design Help in Blades of Avernum
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Friday, April 14 2006 15:30 Profile Homepage #1
Out of the screenshots you've posted, I like number 1 the most. It is sufficiently dark, but still feels realistic. Tiles in #2 are a bit too bright. Red floors look unrealistic, especially the one used in #5,6, and 8. And #7 has too sharp of a contrast between white and red tiles. #3 might work, but #1 feels more real.

However, I am not a graphics expert, so this is just a random player's opinion. (Except I don't have BoA, so I am not even a player. :) )

[ Friday, April 14, 2006 15:34: Message edited by: Zeviz ]

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Miscellaneous PPP questions in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Friday, April 14 2006 10:36 Profile Homepage #1
That top menu never worked. To get to later pages of the thread add "&post=25", "&post=50", etc. to the end of the URL. For example:
http://pied-piper.ermarian.net/archives/browse.php?action=topic&forum=1&topic=2793&post=25

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
The Sequel in Geneforge Series
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Friday, April 14 2006 10:24 Profile Homepage #17
quote:
Originally written by Student of Trinity:

... Is it worse to have your character know much less than you, or much more?
I'd say that knowing less is far worse, because in most cases character already knows at least a little more and there is a standard way of dealing with this:

"You haven't talked to Alwan much, because he is in another grade, but you know that he is one of the top students and always exibited examplary behavior..." is a much more natural way to cover gap between player and character knowledge than:

Narrator: "Serviles are supposed to be dumb and you are extremely surprized to find one that appears to be intelligent."
Character: "Wow. An intelligent servile!"
Player: "Surprized?! I've just played two whole games of interacting with intelligent serviles."

A better way to handle above situation would be:
Narrator: "You finally see one of the intelligent serviles you've heard so much about. He looks just like a regular one, but you remember from your briefing that these creatures posess dangerous cunning and intelligence."

Things that character knows and player doesn't are parts of the game world that can be wowen into the story. Things that player knows and character doesn't are things that he has to forget in order to connect with the character. And in all RPs, the less disconnect there is between IC and OOC knowledge, the easier it is to enjoy the game.

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Are FRPGs inherently gerontocratic? in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Friday, April 14 2006 09:56 Profile Homepage #10
This seems to be a convention of the genre. Sci-fi movies/books/games are about mad scientists building brand new ultimate-weapons-of-doom. Fantasy books/movies/RPGs are about evil wizards unleashing ancient-artifacts-of-doom.

Fantasy focuses on history and history looks more impressive when it is more ancient. "I found a diary Bob wrote last year" doesn't sound nearly as impressive as "I've discoverted a secret journal of powerful archmage Bobius, which lay hidden for a thousand years."

Another reason for old magic powers is that making up new spells appears to be a longer process than designing new devices. A mad scientist coming up with a dozen deadly gadgets in twenty years sounds reasonable, but a power-hungry wizard designing a dozen deadly spells in twenty years would be very unusual. So wizards are forced to search for ancient spells in dusty libraries, dangerous dungeons and forgotten tombs, while scientists can simply make stuff up the moment the author needs it.

[ Friday, April 14, 2006 09:59: Message edited by: Zeviz ]

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
E3 in may. in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Friday, April 14 2006 09:41 Profile Homepage #3
Considering that on these boards "E3" stands for "Exile 3", I think the answer is "highly unlikely". :)

[ Friday, April 14, 2006 10:03: Message edited by: Zeviz ]

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Trajakov must of been a great guy in Geneforge Series
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Friday, April 14 2006 08:31 Profile Homepage #2
It could also be a sign of genetic differencies between Shloai and Shapers. From what I understood, Shapers are at least a different ethnicity from other humans, and Shloai are yet another ethnicity, so perhaps canisters have more side-effects for them than for Shloai.

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Letter in G2 in Geneforge Series
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Friday, April 14 2006 08:10 Profile Homepage #3
If I remember correctly, some Barzite asks you to find that letter, if you join their sect. I think it might be one of the guys in their main city, who gives you quests if you join them. However, I don't remember exactly.

EDIT: After checking Shrodinger's faq, I've found that you don't need to be allied with Barzites. From the FAQ:
quote:
To the SW you'll find Trace, a pseudo-shaper, who will give you a quest to kill some rogue battle alphas (which you also did for Learned Darian, I believe). Doing so gets you a pair of puresteel boots (great for armor, but heavy), and the option to take another quest, to get a letter from Medab.


[ Friday, April 14, 2006 08:32: Message edited by: Zeviz ]

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
How many people would like spiderweb software to make a game for the nintendo DS in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Thursday, April 13 2006 09:22 Profile Homepage #36
quote:
Originally written by radix malorum est cupiditas:

They? There's more than one?
"They" is sometimes used in English as 3rd person singular pronoun, when gender of the person referred to is unknown. It isn't grammatically correct, but sounds better than saying "he/she".

[ Thursday, April 13, 2006 09:29: Message edited by: Zeviz ]

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
How many people would like spiderweb software to make a game for the nintendo DS in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Thursday, April 13 2006 08:37 Profile Homepage #33
I've never seen these boards so united about anything. You wouldn't get such uniformity of results even if you asked "does Spidweb make good games". I am glad there is something all of us can agree on. :)

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00
Happy pesach! in General
Zeviz
Nuke and Pave
Member # 24
 written Thursday, April 13 2006 08:24 Profile Homepage #20
quote:
Originally written by Tyranicus:

Is it just me, or does the active member population seem disproportionately Jewish? I have nothing against Jews, but I'm curious what makes Spiderweb such a Jew-magnet.

Interestingly enough, I work at a grocery store, and we sell more challah bread during Passover than any other time of the year. Now, if Jews can't eat levened bread during Passover, who the heck is buying all that challah?
10 people out of 200+ active members doesn't look that disproportionate. (5% might be a bit higher than general population, but not by much.)

As for sales of challah during passover, that's weird. Maybe some people that go to your store confused challah and matza? :)

PS Nico, sorry about misreading your post. I probably shouldn't have been posting at the time when I should have been asleep.

--------------------
Be careful with a word, as you would with a sword,
For it too has the power to kill.
However well placed word, unlike a well placed sword,
Can also have the power to heal.
Posts: 2649 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00

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