Profile for Ash Lael

Error message

Deprecated function: implode(): Passing glue string after array is deprecated. Swap the parameters in drupal_get_feeds() (line 394 of /var/www/pied-piper.ermarian.net/includes/common.inc).

Recent posts

Pages

AuthorRecent posts
Save this forum! in SubTerra
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Sunday, January 29 2006 14:27 Profile Homepage #82
quote:
Originally written by Student of Trinity:

Wait, this is actually intriguing. What was so incredibly hard about that level? Was it actually possible? I mean, depending on what you do, it can be no achievement at all to make something very difficult.
The level is called Cell Block. I think it's in the 2003 contest pack. It is a block of 25 very small puzzles. Every one of these very small puzzles is murderously difficult, but feels like it shouldn't be, because there are only a very small number of things involved in each challenge.

I suppose you're right, in that I or anyone else could easily make a harder level (just take Cell Block and take out all the save disks out and stick a tight time limit on it for a start). I suppose it's the difference between the water torture and just laying into someone with a hammer.

One of the things I love about Cell Block is that you can watch the solution all you want, you'll still never beat it. There's 25 different puzzles, you'll never remember how to beat them all. Heck, if anyone could get through even 5 of the puzzles, and that's with the solution, I would be impressed. Without it, well, good luck even getting through the first one.

Cell Block isn't really there to be played. It's there to be tried a few times, and then left as an unsurmountable monolith casting a shadow over you. :P

Marlenny: I've made quite a few levels. As "The Creator" myself and my brother made a bunch of BoE scenarios and got into SubTerra as well for a while. Some levels were made by me, some by him, and many were done by both. We won the first 2 contests and haven't participated in any since then. I'd say my/our best one, in terms of fun as opposed to sheer bloodymindedness, is probably Strata.

[ Sunday, January 29, 2006 14:32: Message edited by: Ash Lael ]

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Foreign Language topic! in General
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Sunday, January 29 2006 13:36 Profile Homepage #14
quote:
Originally written by Drakefyre:

Je parle français aussi.
Aussi, aussi, aussi! Oui! Oui! Oui!

I'm sorry.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Great Art in Games in General
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Sunday, January 29 2006 13:28 Profile Homepage #15
Um... yeah, I was referring to capital A art. I didn't think I'd need to clarify that around here, but apparently I was wrong.

In other words, pretty graphics = not what I'm looking for. Really awesome gun = not what I'm looking for. Empty rocking chair moving back and forth, but the shadow shows someone in it, and then that someone suddenly stands up and points at you = much more along the lines I was thinking.

Odyssey: Legend of Nemesis sounds cool. Did a quick google, and on the plus side it's now free, but the drawback is it seems to only be available for Macintosh. :(

[ Sunday, January 29, 2006 13:33: Message edited by: Ash Lael ]

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Great Art in Games in General
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Sunday, January 29 2006 02:40 Profile Homepage #0
Which aren't Spidweb/BoX.

Two examples from Half-Life: Near the start, when everything's just gone to hell and you press the elevator button, it malfunctions and sends a bunch of people crashing to their deaths. Gee.

Also, when you're crawling in an air vent, then you hear soldiers below you, and then rays of light appear before your eyes as bullets tear through the vent, coming towards you.

Fallout: I played it without sound, but I thought both the intro and the ending were pretty darn good.

And of course, entering Polito's office in System Shock 2.

Tell me some standout moments from games you've played. Specifically, endings that break from the "Yay! You win!" paradigm would be great.

[ Sunday, January 29, 2006 02:41: Message edited by: Ash Lael ]

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Save this forum! in SubTerra
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Sunday, January 29 2006 00:04 Profile Homepage #68
Really? For that, most people would curse me. :P

If they had ever played it, that is.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Geneforge series in Geneforge Series
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Sunday, January 29 2006 00:01 Profile Homepage #8
At this point, I'd support combining the BoE/BoA/BoA Editor forums into one.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Helping Jeff advertise in Avernum 4
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Saturday, January 28 2006 23:41 Profile Homepage #83
Oh my gosh, what a great topic, and I missed all the fun! :( Well, I'm saying my bit anyhow.

Way too much Bob talk for me (and I came up with the term). He's an inevitable symptom of putting the player in a situation where they can do pretty much whatever they feel like. There are much more important things to worry about.

What *I* would like to see is a story that is more personal and less political. When was the last Spiderweb game where the story wasn't all about faction X fighting faction y? Having that stuff in there is cool, as a background, but it's not engaging as the main plotline. With war movies, the movies aren't actually about the war, it's just a backdrop to the story about the characters.

Imagine the next Geneforge game running like this: Battle lines are being drawn between the Shapers and those who oppose them. You're a farm boy living under Shaper rule, who gets drafted into the army. Under the command of a Shaper, your troop (or whatever) goes to seize/destroy some bunch of canisters/something along those lines that the rebels have. Through a twist of circumstance, you find yourself in the room with the canisters. A bunch of rebels burst in, and you look doomed... only hope is those canisters. You heard they made you powerful or something.

You quickly use them and trash the rebels. Then in comes your commander with a few other soldiers and creations. Your commander looks at you, at the empty canisters, and at the dead rebels before you. He orders everyone else out of the room.

He explains his problem. They won the battle, the canisters are destroyed, so the objective is complete. Trouble is, you, a regular human, have come into possession of Shaper power. Shaper law makes no provision for circumstance, you're pretty much up for the death penalty here. He shows mercy and tells you to run.

Out on your own, as a fugitive from the Shapers, you decide to go home and try to find your family. You haven't heard from them since you were drafted and are worried about how the war might have affected them.

...and on it goes. That sort of beginning sets the stage for a very different kind of game; one that is much more personal than political, and as a consequence, feels fresh.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
AIM Blades Chats in Blades of Avernum
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Saturday, January 28 2006 21:40 Profile Homepage #22
Thanks, that thread slipped past me somehow.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
AIM Blades Chats in Blades of Avernum
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Saturday, January 28 2006 18:10 Profile Homepage #20
Has anyone kept a log for those of us who weren't there to read?

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Oops in General
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Saturday, January 28 2006 18:06 Profile Homepage #24
quote:
Originally written by Arancaytar:

HTML. It doesn't stand for How To Make Love, see.
Now you've started me imagining what the world would be like if it did.

Edit: And I was gone for 4 weeks, count 'em, 4! But you don't see me making a big song and dance about it, do you?

Oh, wait. That's what I'm doing now. Disregard.

[ Saturday, January 28, 2006 18:08: Message edited by: Ash Lael ]

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Save this forum! in SubTerra
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Saturday, January 28 2006 17:59 Profile Homepage #66
Whoever has the last post, I can still claim the honour of having made the single hardest Subterra level ever.

In fact, it's probably the single hardest level ever made for any game ever. :P

[ Saturday, January 28, 2006 18:01: Message edited by: Ash Lael ]

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Romeo and Juliet. Thoughts? in General
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Thursday, January 26 2006 11:19 Profile Homepage #22
R&J is Shakespeare's Titanic. :P

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Romeo and Juliet. Thoughts? in General
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Wednesday, January 25 2006 15:40 Profile Homepage #4
Measure for Measure is my favourite Shakespeare play. R&J, well, the title characters are too immature to be likable, so I didn't really enjoy that one.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Save this forum! in SubTerra
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Sunday, January 22 2006 15:09 Profile Homepage #25
*sigh* And SubTerra is such a good game, too.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
I'm late! I'm late! in General
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Sunday, January 22 2006 15:04 Profile Homepage #73
quote:
Originally written by Synergy:

Number nine, number nine, number nine...turn me on dead man.
28IF

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
I'm late! I'm late! in General
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Wednesday, January 18 2006 16:31 Profile Homepage #22
#219. Go me.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
I Want to Crush Your Dreams. in Blades of Avernum
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Monday, January 16 2006 17:16 Profile Homepage #126
I'm glad someone asked. Believe it or not, I was kidnapped and held as a hostage by a bunch of terrorists. The cops decided to blow up the building we were in, but since I was locked in the basement, I survived the blast. I stayed alive by feeding on my fellow hostages while I waited for the rescue teams to dig me out.

Actually, I've been on holidays.

(on topic, post away)

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
I Want to Crush Your Dreams. in Blades of Avernum
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Sunday, January 15 2006 21:49 Profile Homepage #115
quote:
Originally written by BainIhrno:

I'd like to point out that Ash has been gone for a really long time. I sure hope he comes back, though.
I was missed. Yay.

In other news, I approve heartily of this topic.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Scenarios in Blades of Avernum
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Thursday, December 15 2005 14:26 Profile Homepage #13
In my opinion, even if a scenario is horrible, if you've put in the effort to make the thing, you ought to release it.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Some Simple Suggestions for not Sucking at A4 in Avernum 4
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Tuesday, December 13 2005 20:03 Profile Homepage #49
quote:
Originally written by Delicious Vlish:

quote:
Originally written by Ash Lael:

Is playing A4 singleton seriously that much harder than playing Diplomacy With The Dead level 1, fully disadvantaged, and with no magic?
Ever seen that movie Starship Troopers?

Avernum is swarming, [b]SWARMING with bugs now. There are also ogres, capable mages, archers that hide behind well defended murder holes, more bugs, assassins with absolutely deadly poison attacks and insanely high levels of quick action that will pump you full of poison, undead that you must allow to hit you first before you can damage them, and they hit hard, more bugs, demons, insane necromancers, power hungry necromancers, insane power hungry necromancers, gazers, eyebeasts, giants that will overrun you in swarms, terror wolves that will chomp your bones, drakes, crocolisks, basilisks, mutant lizards by the dozens, liches, more bugs, and let us not forget the pylons. LOTS of pylons. Pylons that fire mind control terror rays, death rays, freeze rays, burning rays, pain pain pain!

Oh, and more bugs.

Remember to bring your bug spray. You are going to be cleaning out many bug infestations. People's cellars are infested with bugs, various caves, a hive, oh geeze there are bugs everywhere.

Edit. Also forgot.

Muggerers, buggerers, murderers!

That's Hedley![/b]
I'll take that as a no.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Some Simple Suggestions for not Sucking at A4 in Avernum 4
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Tuesday, December 13 2005 19:39 Profile Homepage #46
Is playing A4 singleton seriously that much harder than playing Diplomacy With The Dead level 1, fully disadvantaged, and with no magic?

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
The Worst Game Ever in General
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Tuesday, December 13 2005 19:34 Profile Homepage #57
quote:
Originally written by Eldibs:

quote:
There are present-day stories involving aliens that don't involve the government and secret agencies?
It doesn't count if the secret agencies are just part of the government. I haven't played F.E.A.R. yet, so I can't comment on it, but excluding Area 51, I can't think of another game that centers around aliens, the government, and secret agencies.
Combining a bunch of cliches does not make for originality.

I have Deus Ex, but can't get it to run. :(

[ Tuesday, December 13, 2005 19:35: Message edited by: Ash Lael ]

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Some Simple Suggestions for not Sucking at A4 in Avernum 4
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Tuesday, December 13 2005 18:58 Profile Homepage #43
Caught out. Yes, I'm guilty of not reading the thread properly. Sorry about that, but there's only so much tactical discussion of a game I can't play that I can find interesting. :P

Anyway, levelling up problems likely won't be much of an issue. "Be tougher than the other guy" is an effective tactic, but I don't use it too often. I'm more a fan of "Don't get hit".

Okay, I'll stop flexing my e-muscles now and just wait for the windows version so we can see how it goes.

[ Tuesday, December 13, 2005 18:59: Message edited by: Ash Lael ]

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
Some Simple Suggestions for not Sucking at A4 in Avernum 4
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Tuesday, December 13 2005 18:22 Profile Homepage #38
quote:
Originally written by Skippy the bush kangaroo:

quote:
Originally written by Ash Lael:

Seriously, I can't imagine it would be that hard. Jeff's combat is really easy.
Expand your mind and be a bit more imaginative - it can be that hard. Particularly if you can't level up...
Why would I not be able to level up?

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00
The Worst Game Ever in General
Ash Lael
E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
 written Tuesday, December 13 2005 16:09 Profile Homepage #52
One game with a similar story to Half-Life? How about nearly every FPS out there? Wierd alien things invading from another dimension... yeah, that's original.

Half-Life offers a certain amount of immersion, but I never felt like I was actually in Black Mesa - I definitely felt like I was actually on Riven.

Sure, the Myst series isn't very replayable, but that misses the point. The more you rely on story, situation, and character to provide the enjoyment, the less replayable the game is going to be. The more you rely on combat, engine dynamics and suchlike, the more replayable. They provide completely different forms of entertainment. You only get to gasp at the twist in The Sixth Sense once... that doesn't mean it's not as good as playing a game of footy where you can kick that ball over and over and over... it's just a completely different form of entertainment.

--------------------
SupaNik: Aran, you're not big enough to threaten Ash. Dammit, even JV had to think twice.
Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00

Pages