Long Distance Traveling

[I_am_a_Minotaur]

Is there a way to travel long distances in Avernum? If so, please tell me how.

[Contra]

After you investigate Fort Avernum, you gain the abillity of teleportation inbetween those stone pylons you have found around Avernum.

[Glafna]

that sounds pretty cool. But you'd think by this time Avernites would have learned to train the giant lizards or the friendly spiders to be like horses on the surface, except alot more deadly

[Kelandon]

They have used the giant lizards as pack animals, I believe. You see this in A2 — not sure if it's in A4. The GIFTS drive people insane (literally), so I doubt they'd be much use.

[Glafna]

i repeat what I said, logically they shouldave found a way to train them so they can be ridden long distances, I mean hell, they use them as pack animals, so why not riding animals as well? or are they saving that privilege for the cave cows?

[Alorael at Large]

Some animal are more domesticable than others.

 

Also, I can see several problems with riding lizards. Aren't they too low to the ground for your legs? Wouldn't they eat your legs anyway? If the only way to get your beast of burden to follow you is to entice it with your own sweet flesh, maybe riding on it would be a frustrating experience.

 

—Alorael, who would rather ride pylons anyway.

[Donald Hebb]

Quote:

Originally written by Dear Alorael::
—Alorael, who would rather ride pylons anyway.

...

...

...

[Alorael at Large]

In a wholesome way.

 

—Alorael, who typed right into that one.

[Glafna]

Those are good points, but are easily solved by 1 simple answer.

Have a harness that 1.holds the lizards head in place, 2. it holds the riders legs in place. With different sizes of lizards and harnesses for different species/ hieghts, the problems are solved

[Aoslare]

How exactly do you ride a pylon in a wholesome way?

 

As for riding animals, worgs would seem a better choice. And there are clearly some domesticated worgs around.

[Glafna]

First you'd have to capture a whole crapload, and how many would die in that venture? Then you'd have to work for a few hundred years to train them, then thier offspring, and make sure it's a hereditary fact so they don't try to kill the trainers, you'd also have to ward off a crapload of the sentient monsters working to capture the worgs and thier trainers, and then trying to capture them back from the succesful raids, and so on and so forth. I say, use giant lizards, the friendly spiders, or at worst, the cave cows.

[Dikiyoba]

I don't think giant lizards are a good choice. It seems that there are occasional enounters in previous Avernum games where the giant lizards pulling the wagons kill the merchants. If they can kill something while harnassed to a cart, it would be too easy for them to kill riders. Besides, why do you need giant lizards, GIFTS, worgs, or pylons when there are teleportals?

 

Dikiyoba can't think of anything else to add at the moment.

[Alorael at Large]

Unlike portals, the pylons apparently cause no sensation of being violently disassembled and then carelessly reassembled on arrival and do not evoke sensations of colors never meant to be perceived.

 

Riding a worg is like riding a dog. A Great Dane, for example. Surely there are Great Danes if there are worgs!

 

—Alorael, who cannot imagine that all the dogs on and under Ermarian are small, red, and yappy.

[Contra]

Quote:

Originally written by A = A:
Unlike portals, the pylons apparently cause no sensation of being violently disassembled and then carelessly reassembled on arrival and do not evoke sensations of colors never meant to be perceived.

Not quite. Listen to the Portal Mage in Fort Avernum. He says that you will be taken to the location, along with "..Most of your spirit."

Most of it, not all of it. I think that's enough to cause an unpleasant sensation.

..Of course, to know for sure, we would have to first ride the pylon, and then do it the Douglas Adams way.

[Ephesos]

Quote:

Originally written by Contra:
..Of course, to know for sure, we would have to first ride the pylon, and then do it the Douglas Adams way.

Ouch... that's even worse than Alo's double entendre...

But the "most of your spirit" bit would explain the rather maniacal look of Vidrain on Fort Avernum. He was never that disheveled before...