dave s

Dragon Quest VI will finally be reaching our shores on February 14th after many many years. I cannot wait. Dragon Quest, while very Japanese, has always been a staple of the RPG kingdom. My first RPG was Dragon Warrior on the NES. This will finally give us all the Dragon Quest games.

Give shields MUCH better enchantments. So it's a choice between some great shields and better damage. Dragon Age: Origins did a great job balance dual wielding, sword and board, and two-handed weapons. They each had their own role to play in combat. But that was largely due to each having a set of unique combat skills. Harder to pull that off with a Spiderweb game.

See, I could barely get past any maps beyond the first town without at least 2 creations. Even with my artilla and Fyora I was dying regularly. On normal, my shaper was dying in 1 hit from some of the monsters and if more then 2 were on the screen, I was done for. If I waited to clear out an area until I was able, I no longer got any XP from killing anything. I realize I must be doing it wrong, but not sure how to do it better.

What's the advantage of leveling up monsters instead of creating new ones? If I grow in skill enough to create a level 12 creation, and the one I created a while back is level 11, is there any advantage? I guess the Skill Points, but I haven't had enough essence to pump up stats anyway in my creations. Maybe my shaper build sucks. I'm level 13 and I'm still having trouble with some fights. Not to mention, I have trouble with creatures like turrets that give me 1 xp. So I'm wasting time fighting monsters that give me nothing in return.

You do get the EXP. As long as you are in sight of the monster. If it dies from acid/poison/summon while you are around a corner out of sight, you don't get the exp.

Thanks for the reply. I will definitely look into those. I'm the type who plays Avernum on Normal, and around 75% into the game I'm heavily using the cheat codes and maybe even maxing out my stats just to get through the battles so I can see the plot.

So I see the various lists. Some are gone. Some are outdated. A lot of author's pages are gone. I don't really know how to get into BoA. Or maybe I want to try BoE instead? I've heard the scenarios tend to be much better. But going back to the old Avernum interface is a big step, let alone Exile, after playing A6. I just want more to play while waiting for Avadon. It'd be great if there was just a nice list of various campaigns. Like start with this, then go to this, then that ties into this, and this is a good standalone to build up levels before you go to that. I value plot over difficulty. A good story is more important to me than a strategic battle. Can you help? Or am I better off just saying screw it and playing Geneforge (Only played the first one).

All the A6 food system meant was that I had to dedicate a few inventory slots to items I pay no attention to otherwise.

I think the closest non-strategy RPG to what I'm looking for in how decisions affect the story and gameplay is in Phantasy Star III. At the end of each chapter you pick a wife. That determines the plot for the next chapter, including which character you start the next chapter with, where you start, the fate of other cities, the order in which you find different locations, which companions you can recruit, etc... Too bad the actual gameplay is boring and the plot isn't actually all that good. But the idea behind it, it's something I haven't seen since and have always longed for. I think Spiderweb games could easily lead themselves to such a system, it just would take a lot more dialogue and writing on Jeff's part, which considering he is an indie game developer for a niche audience, I can't see the time needed justifying the result.

There are a few other posts that play up the sex a lot more. I just don't feel like messing with the quote system. But that aside, I grew up playing Dragon Warrior, Final Fantasy, Ultima and other "old school" rpgs. I've got a rich background in western and jrpgs. And still enjoy them both. While Avernum certainly feels like Ultima, I don't think the modern RPG has really shifted focus or lost anything, even with shifts to real time combat. Elder Scrolls contains much of the same open world feel as Avernum. Even more freedom really as Avernum often has plot devices for keeping you from exploring everything right away. Not to mention the skill-leveling system where you gain ability in the skills you use. I think that more than anything really increases immersion. Bioware games have decision systems very similar to SW games. With a main storyline you have to do, but many ways to get there, again often more options than Avernum. Maybe not as many as Geneforge, I never played those games. Now, going back to an earlier topic, that of a decision system that matters. I could envision such a game, where a few key choices drastically alter game play from that point onward, to the point of where you go, what you do, how the story unfolds. It would take either more development time or more likely, shorter scenarios. Phantasy Star III is probably the closest to this I've ever seen in a game. Usually you just get the same set of missions, but maybe in one you defend a fort in another you take the fort, or something where you are one side or the other. To make it really worth it, you'd have to have completely different missions, maybe even completely different goals that lead to completely different places based on your choices. I know, I'm dreaming there, and considering I don't make games, I can't talk. But I can wish.

In all those games mentioned, I would hardly say there is a focus on sex. It's a small part of a much larger game, and you can play the game without ever romancing anyone. It's a side quest, no different than fighting in the Spire arena. Which may result in a 30 second cut scene tamer than Cinimax After Dark. I think obsessing over this as some harmful new focus in CRPGs is like walking into a forest, pointing at a rock and saying "SEE! All forests are about rocks these days!"

The graphics would be outdated on a DS. The games have great writing. Great setting. But too little direction is a bad thing when trying to appeal beyond his niche audience. Even the big open RPGs of today (Fallout: New Vegas, Elder Scrolls) have extensive quest journals and quest compasses to guide you in the right direction. I love Avernum. But this style of gameplay would not appeal to a mass audience without a major graphics overhaul.

I remember for one of the older games someone did a comprehensive analysis of when it was better to use the pre-set classes, and in a few cases it seemed to be. Has anything like that been done? Like is berserker better for a sword-using character? I think the idea was that presets had more skill points in skills, and in a few cases those points were in things you would put them in anyway, so you were better off with the preset.

Screw apple. Go with Android! Still, doesn't matter much to me. PC is where I will play it.

Everyone is telling me to be careful, the canisters are changing me. But is there another way to gain levels in creatures and spells? I know skills get various raises through quests and books, but spells and creatures?

AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual-core 3.0 Ghz 4 GB ram ATI Radeon HD 4870 graphics card 500 GB hard drive + 1 TB external hard drive.

I've just been rewatching a lot of good sci fi lately, Babylon 5, Doctor Who, Farscape. I just see a lot of potential there. I would imagine a Spiderweb sci fi universe being similar to the Phantasy Star series for genesis in feel. Truthfully, it's not hard to picture Avernum or Geneforge taking place on some Earth colonized world far into the future, where they have forgotten their origins. But I also think back to games like Star Flight and Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday. Amazing games. So outdated I couldn't play them now (I've tried) but I imagine Jeff could capture the feel of those games and make it his own, and make it fun to play.

A game set in space, traveling from planet to planet instead of town to town. Ship battles. I'd love to see Jeff's take on such a thing. Sorry if this has been discussed before.

I wouldn't mind a game where the pcs have some personality. Maybe let one character be a blank slate, but other party members actually feel like real people, ala Baldur's Gate. I am an Avernum only guy myself. I just don't feel at this point I could go back and play the early geneforge games, after playing the more refined later avernum games. Same way playing Avernum 1 after playing 2 & 3 just isn't as good.Or 4 after 5. Sci Fi would be cool, but nothing wrong with fantasy. Avernum was an interesting, unique world. Phantasy Star successfully mixed the two, it can be done.

So, I missed this and now I can't get it because I killed the giant queen and the adventurers left. Is there anyway to get it? SDF code?

Not quite what I meant. I have two monitors. I want to watch a video in one, and play avernum on the other. I can do this with other games. I will have Dragon Age full screen on one monitor, and a movie full screen on the other. But I guess something about Avernum prevents this. I was hoping it'd be fixable. Guess not.

A5 has a much more interesting story. Though, if you didn't play A3, then I can see how A4 had appeal. A3 was my favorite, though I started with A1, and the Exile series before it. A5 is fun too though.

Online text-based RPGs, similar to MUDs, but with more of a focus on RP and little to no hack-n-slash. An Avernum based game would be awesome. Anyone recommend any? Text-based online RPGs are hurting from the MMORPG boom, but they are still out there.

I want to watch video on one monitor and play avernum on the second, but I can't seem to get it to work. I'm using VLC player for watching movies. As soon as I start up Avernum, the video freezes on the other monitor. Sound keeps going, but the video stops. Anyone know how to get this to work?

Thanks. Since you are here, can you meet up with the private you saved from Lystakk?