Profile for Old Scratch
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Displayed name | Old Scratch |
| Member number | 6977 |
| Title | Warrior |
| Postcount | 66 |
| Homepage | |
| Registered | Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
Recent posts
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| Author | Recent posts |
|---|---|
| Beta call for "Where the rivers meet" in Blades of Avernum | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Thursday, April 20 2006 18:54
Profile
quote:"I'll scratch your back, you scratch mine?" Makes sense, but it seems like "plenty of beta-testers" would constitute about half of the current Blades of Avernum community, which I estimate to be quite small. Not that I think that reflects badly on the game, mind you -- after all, I still think Space Quest V is one of the best games ever, and I'm pretty much holding down the fort on my lonesome at this point. -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| Beta call for "Where the rivers meet" in Blades of Avernum | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Thursday, April 20 2006 11:04
Profile
quote:Well, personally, I'd prefer to wait a number of months after a game is beta tested and released, until version 1.0.2 or 1.1.0 or so, because then I know I'm getting a fairly polished product. Getting to play a game before everyone else is no treat (for me) if most of the wrinkles haven't been ironed out beforehand. -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| Death to All Merchants in Blades of Avernum | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Wednesday, April 19 2006 21:39
Profile
quote:Are you sure? It looks more like you bash the keyboard against the side of your fax machine and just pray for the best. Since your missives are just barely legible, you obviously have a very close relationship with whatever omnipotent being you choose to deify. [ Wednesday, April 19, 2006 21:43: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| Beta call for "Where the rivers meet" in Blades of Avernum | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Wednesday, April 19 2006 21:34
Profile
Beta testing is one of the most unselfish practices in the world of electronic gaming, as far as I'm concerned. I wouldn't want to experience a potentially wonderful game while it was still buggy and unpolished. I'm something of a perfectionist and a notorious nitpicker of the English language, so copious typos and bugs can (and often do) ruin my enjoyment of a game. So hats off to you, beta testers. I've never been one of you, but I couldn't live without your necessary sacrifice. -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| A3: Poor mages! in The Avernum Trilogy | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Sunday, April 16 2006 15:11
Profile
quote:Yeah, I never use status effect spells (aside from Slow) for that very reason. In fact, that's a big problem with a lot of roleplaying games, not just Avernum: It's far more efficient to cast purely damage-dealing spells, because the enemies resist the effects of status effect spells often enough that casting them is a waste of time and spell energy -- plus it takes longer to finish the fight. And the one type of enemy that status effect spells are great to use on -- bosses -- tend to be resistant to them. Like Spray Acid. Who uses that? Even at a high skill, it hardly does any damage at all. It's always more efficient to cast a Firebolt or some other attack spell, because if you just cast Spray Acid and wait for a critter to die, chances are you're going to be waiting a long time. And when you do kill him, usually you could have killed him without Spray Acid's help anyway. If Spray Acid were as strong as the Fetid Zombie acid in A3, doing 3/4 of the damage of a Firebolt on the first turn and continuing from there, it'd be good. I don't even know why Jeff continues to include it in Avernum. [ Sunday, April 16, 2006 15:12: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| A3: Poor mages! in The Avernum Trilogy | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Sunday, April 16 2006 13:42
Profile
quote:I didn't find my archer very useful in Avernum 3, either, but Blades is low on random encounters (where you fight in a totally open field) and high on isolated enemies who are all pretty far away from you. By keeping my archer's skill fairly high, his arrows did about as much damage as my fighter's melee attacks, and a LOT more damage than Skill 3 Firebolt with well-developed Intelligence and Mage Spells, plus Natural Mage. In fact, in the cave where you have to fight through all the ice-breathing lizards (which all appeared a dozen spaces away from the party, it seemed) to reach the drake at the end, I found my archer utterly indispensable. My fighter and mage were totally worthless for most of that dungeon; the fighter couldn't get there in time, and the mage couldn't do enough damage. -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| This Is Going to Suck, But Why the Hell Not? in Blades of Avernum | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Sunday, April 16 2006 01:02
Profile
When I discovered that Blades of Avernum supported third-party scenario design, I instantly realized three things: 1.) I want to design an enjoyable scenario that will entertain people.2.) Mastering the scenario editor is going to be hard.3.) Mastering the Avernum scripting language is going to totally suck and be really hard.That doesn't mean I won't give it the old college try, however. I'm currently soaking up the "docs" and Kelandon's FAQ, and I'll fiddle around with the editor itself at some point. If there are any obscure reference documents or Web pages I can't find by scouring this Web site, the other Avernum design Web sites, and/or Kelandon's FAQ, please share them with me. And yes, I will start small, as Jeff recommends. I figure the guy knows what the heck he's talking about, and I don't want to tank from pent-up frustration and exhaustion after taking on too large of a project. Wish me luck; I'll need it. Figuring out the Fallout 2 scripting engine was Hell on Earth for me, and I hope to God Avernum's will be kinder to me . . . though I doubt it. ;) [ Sunday, April 16, 2006 01:06: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| A3: Poor mages! in The Avernum Trilogy | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Saturday, April 15 2006 21:09
Profile
I've never noticed this in Avernum 3, possibly because my priest was a warrior-priest and not quite as skillful or intelligent as my mage -- who also had the Natural Mage trait, which may have contributed to the discrepancy. In BoA, though, I haven't really been using my mage at all. My archer has been the most useful character, followed by my priest, followed by my warrior; the mage is right there at the bottom. Ice Lances and Lightning Spray cost more than in Avernum 3, and although they are useful, most of the time I can't see enough enemies to justify the cost of using them, or else my archer and fighter have already slaughtered everything. (There's no use reducing the enemies to 1/2 or 1/4 life with Ice Lances or Lightning Spray when the fighter and archer are going to mow them down in one hit at full health anyway.) In A3, though, I found the mage to be extremely useful, laying waste to the battlefield -- especially in battles with a bunch of lower level critters. [ Saturday, April 15, 2006 21:10: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| Death to All Merchants in Blades of Avernum | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Saturday, April 15 2006 20:58
Profile
quote:What?! Zounds! -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| Death to All Merchants in Blades of Avernum | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Saturday, April 15 2006 20:55
Profile
quote:You know, I may very well get around to making a scenario at some point. I actually have a lot of prior experience with writing dialogue, scripting, and just generally putting roleplaying games together -- I'm a professional writer, I've worked on several fan-made Fallout 2 mod projects (among other, similar endeavors), and I gamemaster tabletop roleplaying games, which means I'm very familiar with the concept of game balance. Creating interesting characters and entertaining dialogue is a specialty of mine. We'll just have to wait and see what happens . . . [ Saturday, April 15, 2006 20:57: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| Death to All Merchants in Blades of Avernum | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Saturday, April 15 2006 16:33
Profile
I hate merchants. Look, it's standard practice in every roleplaying game to ensure that players can only sell loot for a fraction of the value . . . but in BoA's "A Small Rebellion" scenario, I am really starting to dislike the discrepancy between what I can sell an item for and how much it costs to puchase an item. A lot of games will let you sell items for 1/2 price, but in Avernum, 1/3 is awesome unless you have the Barter special skill. But all across Morrow's Isle, I can only find merchants who buy for 1/5 price . . . or maybe 1/4, if I'm lucky. I feel ripped off! Cheated! Swindled! Ah, well. :rolleyes: -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| How did you discover Avernum? in The Avernum Trilogy | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Saturday, April 15 2006 16:15
Profile
Oh, well if you'd like to know what my favorite game of all time is, that would be Fallout 2 -- I don't even need to stop and think about it. If computer games were my religion, Fallout 2 would be my Jesus Christ, Boddhisatva, Shiva, Muhammad, Buddha, etc. I've played both games all the way through at least half a dozen times each (more like a dozen in the case of Fallout 2) since the first one was released in 1997, and a better game has not been created in the nine years since. If you're a Mac gamer (or a PC gamer, for that matter) and you've never played Fallout and Fallout 2, you are doing yourself a harsh injustice. [ Saturday, April 15, 2006 16:19: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| I Hate "Regenerating" Locks and Barriers in The Avernum Trilogy | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Saturday, April 15 2006 12:35
Profile
quote:As far as I've ever experienced, exiting and then re-entering a town (or a dungeon) in any Avernum-engine game causes all the doors to lock again -- no exceptions. I know I've seen barriers reappear, too, but only in Avenum 3 (as far as I know, anyway). quote:I just gave you an example of a time when I couldn't finish my business behind a barrier, silly. :P quote:I have noticed that (it's the same in Genforge, of course), but I'm not too sure about Avernum 4 yet. I played it for a number of hours at one point, and I'll try to play it again, but I don't think I was terribly impressed with it. It's not too bad, but I'm going to finish the other Avernums first. [ Saturday, April 15, 2006 12:37: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| The Push, Hide, and Loot Maneuver (And Miscellany) in The Avernum Trilogy | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Saturday, April 15 2006 12:31
Profile
quote:Alas, while that is a wonderfully devious trick, it would feel like cheating to me -- although technically, if you can do something in-game without a cheat menu simply by pressing a couple of buttons, it's not really cheating. -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| The Push, Hide, and Loot Maneuver (And Miscellany) in The Avernum Trilogy | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Friday, April 14 2006 22:31
Profile
quote:I won't utilize a glitch if it feels like cheating. While I am aware of the ability to sneak past scripts in combat mode, I would never use it unless there was no other option. When you've been gaming as long as I have, you begin to hate cheating . . . it ruins everything. Once I've beaten a game a few times, I might just cheat for the fun of it, but not until then. Heavy manipulation of the odds using blessing spells and combat mode doesn't quite feel like cheating to me, but I usually don't do much of it until I stumble into a fight that kicks my ass and have to load a saved game. If I know a hard fight is coming after having to restore, I will use that foreknowledge to the best of my advantage! I have to say, though, that things like waiting for 5 AP to appear or loading a saved game anytime a magic lockpick breaks are things I avoid as much as possible. In Skylark Vale in BoA, I came close to saving and restoring to see what was behind every barrier and high-skill locked door (lots of those and precious few materials to breach them), but I fought the urge. I do save the game before attempting to steal anything, but at this point, I always know how not to get caught and only steal publicly if it's a great item and I have no other choice. (The Fine Waveblade near the three Vhanatai in Skylark Vale, for example). [ Friday, April 14, 2006 22:34: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| I Hate "Regenerating" Locks and Barriers in The Avernum Trilogy | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Friday, April 14 2006 19:46
Profile
This is something of a trivial topic, but one feature in the Avernum engine which I thoroughly despise is the fact that barriers and locked doors "regenerate" when you exit an area, even after you've dispelled/unlocked them. This bit me in the arse in BoA, when I dispelled a barrier only to discover that I wasn't skilled enough to pick the lock on the door behind it yet. And when all you have to use to dispel barriers are Piercing Crystals -- which of course don't regenerate at all -- that really sucks. Ideally, I could come back later and unlock the door after improving my Tool Use skill. As it is, I have to load the game or weep at the loss of a Piercing Crystal. [ Friday, April 14, 2006 19:47: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| The Push, Hide, and Loot Maneuver (And Miscellany) in The Avernum Trilogy | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Friday, April 14 2006 19:42
Profile
quote:The combat mode trick also works in Fallout and Fallout 2 (the best roleplaying games ever created), and I've known about that for years and years, but I discovered the same trick in Avernum entirely by accident. I got slaughtered in the first ambush, and so I had to load and carefully prepare myself with blessings . . . I distractedly entered combat mode, thinking my spells would last a bit longer if I cast them that way, and walked past the scripted area, which then vanished. quote:It is odd that Jeff added that touch, isn't it? Crates into water s a feature that almost never comes up, but it does add a nice touch to the game. I have done it a time or two by accident, though never with a valuable barrel or crate. However, I'd be willing to bet that the container returns to its original position if you exit and re-enter the area. -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| How did you discover Avernum? in The Avernum Trilogy | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Friday, April 14 2006 18:15
Profile
How did you first find Avernum? I found it on a Mac shareware site while desperately searching for a Mac game worth playing that would run on my machine. (I have already played the Fallout series dozens of times, and Baldur's Gate runs a bit slow, which I find highly annoying.) Why did you play it? Just to try it, see what it was like. I'm not sure just what caught my attention about it, but it turned out to be very entertaining and I was hooked. What is your favorite game? I've only really played most of Avernum 3 and a little bit of Avernum 1, but after finishing the first Blades of Avernum scenario, I think BoA is my favorite. It has more features, a much wider array of item and terrain graphics, and just feels more immersive. The four new character models/portraits were a great touch. [ Friday, April 14, 2006 18:17: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| The Push, Hide, and Loot Maneuver (And Miscellany) in The Avernum Trilogy | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Friday, April 14 2006 17:39
Profile
I'm sure I'm not the first Avernum player to discover this, but I take a certain manic glee in looting boxes or barrels which, in their original locations, are in plain view of the public. The solution, of course, is to push all of the containers filled with wonderful "NY" goodies into an abandoned house, shut the door, and loot the bejeezus out of them. Does anyone else have any obscure tips or tricks that they have discovered? Oh, another thing: In Avernum 3, when you sneak into Blackcrag, you get ambushed by Empire Dervishes, archers, and wizards -- unless you walk past the scripted spot in combat mode, in which case they fail to appear. I suspect that other, similar scripts can be bypassed in this manner. I also use combat mode to prevent all four characters from following the lead character into something dangerous/poisonous, which they will in normal mode. I'll go into combat mode and just send my fighter to take the brunt of mines in Blades of Avernum, too. -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| Avernum V in Avernum 4 | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Thursday, April 13 2006 10:12
Profile
quote:For future reference, said vessel is often referred to as a "phylactery". -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| I Guess I Just Don't Get It in Geneforge Series | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Tuesday, April 11 2006 02:10
Profile
quote:Unfortunately, I don't yet meet the astronomical energy requirement for casting Speed (100 Energy), and I didn't have enough Essence left over after making my Thahds to use Augmentation (30 Essence). Also, War Blessing wouldn't have helped much with that battle anyway, since the Thahds could kill the bugs in a single hit; I suppose the Shaper might do more damage to the Creator more often with Firebolt (or the equivalent), but I was using Ice Crystals and a Discipline Wand, so that's a moot point. As far as Shielding goes, I decided to save my last few Essence points for Healing Craft. (There's no way I'm going to use up an Essence Pod just to regain 6 Essence.) I suppose it could be useful, but I've never noticed Shielding to be particularly effective -- meaning that three Minor Heals would probably be a better Essence investment. It does do some good, don't get me wrong, just not enough to justify the drain on my tiny remaining pool of Essence. I've given up on Geneforge 3 for the time being and started Avernum 1 instead. I'm getting frustrated with always having too much weight to carry, even when I sell absolutely everything that's nonessential, and I'm constantly dying unless the enemies are garden variety. The Roamers on Harmony Isle slaughtered the living bejeezus out of me when I approached the herb sheds. Dying constantly and never having enough AP starts to take its toll on a player. Not to mention the annoyance of the Energy and Essence requirements for many of my spells, which severely limits what spells I can cast and how often. It seems to me that I can never cast anything without having to return to town to regain Essence. [ Tuesday, April 11, 2006 02:20: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| I Guess I Just Don't Get It in Geneforge Series | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Monday, April 10 2006 13:47
Profile
With two 21-Essence Thahds, 14 Ice Crystals, and one Discipline Wand, I easily defeated the creator boss. In fact, it seemed ludicrously easy this time around. (I hadn't realized before that using crystals only requires 3 AP). I almost wonder if I should have used up all the crystals. I think I could have survived a lot longer than I did! In any case, thanks for your advice, everyone. -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| I Guess I Just Don't Get It in Geneforge Series | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Monday, April 10 2006 12:20
Profile
quote:Ha! Don't worry, I appreciate your input. To answer the question, yes, it did imply something, and in almost all roleplaying games, I fill up my party with the best party members I can get my hands on. Just this once, I wanted to go solo, and look what happened! Hmmph. -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| I Guess I Just Don't Get It in Geneforge Series | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Monday, April 10 2006 05:59
Profile
quote:I could try that, but I've been refusing to add NPCs to my party, because the game is extremely stingy with experience points as it is. In fact, for the last level or two, I've been seeing an awful lot of this: "You gain experience. (1)" Some of those (1) enemies had been giving me a run for my money, too. Therefore, Greta and Alwan are currently at their default levels. That means that the creator would slaughter Alwan (since he's melee and the creator has ridiculously powerful melee attacks), though Greta might be able to swing it with her Firebolt. You guys are probably thinking, "Man, this guy's so negative. What a defeatist!" But during my time playing the MMORPG Final Fantasy XI, I learned how to use every single dirty trick in the book, and to utilize one's abilities to their maximum potential, in order to defeat bosses. I will try what you both have suggested, and I will do my best. I'm a veteran at boss-beating, though, and in more than a dozen tries already, I have consistently failed to succeed. The outcome looks very dim; from my perspective, the game wasn't designed to accomodate lone Shapers with only their creations to aid them. Which is ridiculous, since that's basically the flagship image of the game and the one that appeals to me the most. [ Monday, April 10, 2006 06:01: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |
| I Guess I Just Don't Get It in Geneforge Series | |
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Warrior
Member # 6977
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written Monday, April 10 2006 05:13
Profile
quote:That's a wonderful idea. This boss and that dialogue option remind me of Fallout; I'd be willing to bet that's not entirely coincidental, what with the Xian Skull reference to the Master in Avernum 3 and the faint similarities between this boss and the Master, the "end boss" of Fallout. (You can convince the Master to self-destruct by convincing him that he erred by making all the Super Mutants sterile. Also, the Master was a stationary head and some arms on a pedestal, and he created lots of mutant creatures.) Unfortunately, my Leadership is "only" 6. And since there's nowhere else on the entire island for me to get experience, that's exactly where it's going to stay unless I cheat. I won't play a game where I have to cheat to advance (it ruins it for me), so that's right out. As for Ice Crystals, my Firebolt does more damage than any of the crystals I own. I do have a couple of Discipline Wands and a Wand of Inferno, but even if I used all of my powerful wands, I somehow don't foresee them getting rid of him before crawlers come to assassinate me. Did I mention that my Firebolt only has about a 57% hit chance on him, and did you know that he regenrates? Yeah. "Hey, I have the only boat! If you want to get off the island, I'm going to blackmail you into killing the dragon Zacknefain first. Here's half a meat cleaver. Good luck!" [ Monday, April 10, 2006 05:16: Message edited by: Old Scratch ] -------------------- Man may have been made in the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite number, and is always trying to get back home. Posts: 66 | Registered: Thursday, March 30 2006 08:00 |