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Buying the game ? in General
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Monday, December 19 2005 07:53 Profile Homepage #3
You don't have to pay for shipping and handling if you only ask for the registration codes by email (or by phone) because nothing is shipped or handled. You can get both the code and a CD for a few dollars more if you'd like.

—Alorael, who has also had only good experiences with getting new codes when his old codes are lost to computer hijinks.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Longest Word in General
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Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Monday, December 19 2005 07:49 Profile Homepage #5
A series of protein isn't a word, and the full name of Bangkok also isn't a word. It's a series of words describing the city. The capital of the USA isn't Washingtonthedistrictofcolumbia even when you translate the words into another language.

—Alorael, who will contribute the longest palindrome he has ever seen used without intentional use of a palindrome for a palindrome's sake: deified.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Arcane and Nature Lore in Avernum 4
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Monday, December 19 2005 07:44 Profile Homepage #4
You can buy a few points in First Aid for money and not skill points in Formello. That was enough to get me through the entire game handily.

—Alorael, who decided that the key to First Aid is having enough so that you get at least two energy after killing one foe. That's enough for a Minor Heal or a Bolt of Fire, and for many minor battles that's all you need.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Bow Before Me as if I Were Your God in General
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Monday, December 19 2005 07:42 Profile Homepage #44
I'm able to change my name myself, along with everyone else on the boards. Titles are left to Drakey and *i. Schro could contribute too, but he doesn't.

—Alorael, who may have to borrow TM's time machine to change his title. Why is a time machine necessary? Because a time machine is always necessary for properly complex plots.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Hunting Tolliver help in Avernum 4
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 19:50 Profile Homepage #8
Stealing quest rewards before completing quests isn't really necessary, and Lark opens the door for you when you get the quest. Otherwise I agree. Tool Use is useful.

—Alorael, whose discount became four-fingered after an early accident with a trap that turned out more difficult than he was expecting.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Athron's lair key in Avernum 4
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 19:48 Profile Homepage #19
Actually, as of the end of A3 the dragons are still alive and on the surface just like in A3. Athron is probably busy mothering her brood, Khoth has his head in a book, and Sulfras may be setting innocents ablaze out of boredom.

—Alorael, who won't say what draconic revelations are in store for A4. But here's a hint: genders aren't resolved. In fact, in an early beta Athron switched yet again!
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Bow Before Me as if I Were Your God in General
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 19:43 Profile Homepage #38
quote:
Originally written by Thuryl:

Actually, relativity was explained in words of four letters or less (some of which had two syllables). Godel's Incompleteness Theorem was the one that was explained in monosyllables.
(Link added)

That's true too, but apparently people have been pining for "easy" explanations for more than fifty years.

—Alorael, who isn't sure which is more impressive. Well, actually that will have to go to "Near a Raven"
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Who will I be yesterday and who was I tomorrow? in Richard White Games
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Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 16:00 Profile Homepage #2
It was placed there at 11:00 am on December 15.

—Alorael, who will thank TM not to mock the QUestIon with a capital Q, U, I, and A (invisible).
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
A4 Hidden Skills [SPOILERS] in Avernum 4
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 12:37 Profile Homepage #24
Natural Mage gives an increase in Mage skill and Pure Spirit gives an increase in Priest skill, but these bonuses do not count towards the eight points you need to train in Magery.

The easiest way to get Magery is to raise the appropriate skill (Mage or Priest) one point, close the training window, and reopen it to see if you have Magery. You'll get there eventually.

—Alorael, who actually isn't sure that Mage is the quickest choice for the Natural Mage. One more point in Priest will give him his necessary eight points, but one more point in Mage may still leave him with less than eight in non-bonus.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Bow Before Me as if I Were Your God in General
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 12:32 Profile Homepage #29
Trying to explain TM is like trying to explain General Relativity in monosyllables (it's been done, but it requires genius), or where are the Snowdens of yesteryear. TM is.

But Terror's Martyr is known by his initials, TM, which are like the ™ of the trademark symbol. Hence Trademark.

—Alorael, who can assure you that asking for a custom title is unlikely to get you a custom title. There has been one exception to this rule, but it was most definitely an exception.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
How I rank A4 and why in Avernum 4
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 12:24 Profile Homepage #27
quote:
From Jeff Vogel:[Geneforge 4] will probably be well in the opposite direction of Avernum 4. More plot, talking, and intricate scripted encounters. But I'm trying to think about it very little at this point.
Jeff may not care, but he's catering to both sides.

—Alorael, who is more excited about hints that more old games will be Carbonized. Not losing older Avernums and Nethergate when Classic is no longer supported would be very nice.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
What would you do with a billion dollars? in General
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 12:22 Profile Homepage #15
Time doesn't move forwarad at a constant rate when you start moving things very quickly. That's what relativity is for!

Physics hasn't proved that time travel is impossible either. It's just proved that we can't do it yet.

—Alorael, who hopes Goldenking has a plan to banish dissidents to the caves beneath Louisiana.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
To sink or not to sink, that is the question in Richard White Games
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 09:45 Profile Homepage #9
Richard White lies deep below the surface (Rock Solid) and far into the heavens (Galactic Core). His way takes us over the oceans (Ocean Bound) and even beyond death (Lost Souls).

If anything, RWG belongs at the top.

—Alorael, who is feeling a very strong urge to initiate an ever-moving forum.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Report Your Stats Here (Uncle Spam Needs YOU!) in Avernum 4
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 09:36 Profile Homepage #6
I also got killed by Nociduas repeatedly. Winning was a matter of not letting the demon eat my casters, not letting Nociduas let loose several spells in one round because they could kill even fully healed fighters, and keeping my casters back to heal a lot.

—Alorael, who found the Testing Bones much easier (and much shorter!) in the final version than in the earlier betas. He still waited to get some cold resistance, Augmentation, and Prismatic Shield, but he's not sure it was strictly necessary.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
What would you do with a billion dollars? in General
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 09:31 Profile Homepage #8
quote:
From the BBC:"The American people expect me to do everything in my power, under our laws and Constitution, to protect them and our civil liberties," [Bush] said.
(Emphasis added)

He's failing our expectations, then. Or exceeding them in the wrong direction.

—Alorael, who would take his billion dollars and invest some of it, stick some of it in the bank, and give a large amount to worthy causes. He can hardly even figure out to do with a several thousand dollar windfall, let alone a thousand thousand thousand dollars.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Gremlin Whine in Avernum 4
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Saturday, December 17 2005 23:08 Profile Homepage #3
This topic is clearly about the gremlins that are in A4. They're just not purple or especially giggly anymore.

—Alorael, who can at least promise that there are no painful gremlin mazes like the Gremlin's Gold. There are, as far as he's found, exactly two Gremlins, none of whom are necessary fights.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Hunting Tolliver help in Avernum 4
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Saturday, December 17 2005 23:06 Profile Homepage #4
I think it's poison, but yes, that's the gist of the effect. Those globes reappear in several other places too.

—Alorael, who is pretty sure the globe use is set to trigger on the beginning of a round in which Tolliver has below a certain percentage of his health. Most of the special combat scripts seem to do that.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Hunting Tolliver help in Avernum 4
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Saturday, December 17 2005 20:32 Profile Homepage #1
The traps aren't unreasonable. I don't know how difficult they are because I've never had any trouble disarming them when I reached them. Perhaps they're in the 8-10 Tool Use range.

The secret tunnel can be accessed from a corner of Fort Draco. The southwest corner, I think.

—Alorael, who was always disappointed by the tunnel because it serves no real purpose if you have sufficient Tool Use. You get no advantage from creeping up behind Tolliver.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
How I rank A4 and why in Avernum 4
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Saturday, December 17 2005 20:27 Profile Homepage #16
Plot isn't one of them, puzzles aren't one of them, and even exploration isn't really one of them. There's a little bit in a few areas, notably the warrens of caves under the Eastern Gallery and the southern Great Cave and to some extent the Honeycomb, but most of what you explore is familiar territory from A1 and A2 and most of it is close to civilization. There are no Dark Waters or Waterfall Warrens, no Lost Bahssikava, no remote northern lands. Even the land past Fort Remote has become pretty obvious.

I didn't think I'd miss wall bumping, but I do. The Spiral Crypt isn't the same. The outdoors have no secrets. Nowhere really has any secrets.

—Alorael, who can only think of two more elements of A4. The combat has already been praised, and it is good. The only other thing is the Avernum ambience, which is still there. It's not as pronounced as in A1 or A2, but it's not missing like in A3.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Converting Geneforge, Avernum, etc. to D&D D20 Rules in General
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Saturday, December 17 2005 20:21 Profile Homepage #10
If you're not trying to preserve the Spiderweb ability to do everything to some extent, which isn't really what d20 is good at anyway, you get three easy classes. The Guardian is a fighter of some sort (not necessarily the class of that name), the Agent is your pick of spellcasters, and the Shaper probably does need to be built from scratch.

If you want to reflect the three tiers of ability a little better, the Shaper is still whatever you make, the Guardian is some fighter approximation with minimal Shaper abilities tacked on, and the Agent is a mix of fighter and spellcaster, a hybrid that has been designed to death by just about everyone.

—Alorael, who can see how this would be problematic if you're trying to to use these three classes and only these three. That's always a problem when trying to adapt something most emphatically not designed for pencil and paper.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Converting Geneforge, Avernum, etc. to D&D D20 Rules in General
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Saturday, December 17 2005 18:04 Profile Homepage #7
If you're referring to the semi-Spiderweb game with odd alterations that was taken offline after its creator realized that it was an object of interest to the world at large, yes. But I wasn't thinking of that.

There was a project on a forum for a while that was trying to do more or less the same thing as Ziabatsu. It didn't get too far, stuck around without any changes for years, and disappeared sometime. The group behind the effort was the Psychosomatic Response Team, I think.

—Alorael, who was able to Google up a few more aborted efforts, but none of them got anywhere.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
The Worst Game Ever in General
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Saturday, December 17 2005 14:57 Profile Homepage #68
Kali is remarkably unlike a Hypercard game for a Hypercard game (and somewhat Myst-like in its way), Chronicle of Ekan is a valiant attempt at an RPG that is kind of fun despite ugly graphics and some fun glitches if you look for them.

A question for those who despise Myst: have you perchance played Secret of Monkey Island or any of the other SCUMM point and click games? Do you dislike those as well?

—Alorael, who can't think of any other recent point and click games. Alone in the Dark comes close, but that's getting long in the tooth too.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Converting Geneforge, Avernum, etc. to D&D D20 Rules in General
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Saturday, December 17 2005 14:44 Profile Homepage #3
Ziabatsu's half-finished d20 conversion.

There was another attempt elsewhere, but it's gone now.

—Alorael, who doesn't see how Avernum needs much in the way of conversion. The setting is different, and vahnatai need to be detailed (if you can't find cat people and lizard people, you failed Google 101), but mostly its generic fantasy in a setting that needs description, not mechanics.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Formello's Shade in Avernum 4
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Saturday, December 17 2005 14:36 Profile Homepage #17
Yes, you trade the control rod for the Onyx Scepter to kill shades, and no, you can't do it in the demo. I can't even think of any way to realistically get the shade down to 0 health before it regenerates back to full health.

—Alorael, who now wonders why the plagues in A4 are relatively tame compared to those of A3. Sure, shades are bad, but they're not like Alien Beasts overrunning an entire province.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00
Bow Before Me as if I Were Your God in General
Or else o'erleap.
Law Bringer
Member # 335
 written Saturday, December 17 2005 14:32 Profile Homepage #14
Here we have a jar that's getting ready for display:

IMAGE(http://www.asianfamilyfoods.com/prodimages/Jar%20open-hand1.jpg)

And here we have a jar revealed in all its topless glory:

IMAGE(http://www.blissbotanicals.com.au/pics/open_jar.jpg)

—Alorael, who supposes its worth pointing out that the offering in his first image is topless as well as heartless.
Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00

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