Solo Shocktrooper-Last Requests...

[Death Knight]

Im going to make a solo shocktrooper in Geneforge 4. Ive decided that while i dont like playing as a rebel and that, playing any of the said classes the said way in any of the later geneforges is too easy; i will make this challenge to myself.

 

Instead of bumping strength to a high amount, i will instead spend points on melee weapons and dexterity instead of missile weapons. The reason being is that while missile weapons will be part of the weapons i use (wands/rod), dex is more imporant to this character as it not only allows me to dodge better but it gives me a chance to hit with missiles.

 

This character will abuse missile weapons though not so much batons as much as rods and wands/crystals. Melee is an option as well when i am low on missiles, though parry is pointless beyond a few levels.

 

Battle magic is out of the question as troopers are weak in it, as well as mental. I will mostly be using blessing magic as it will enhance my character. I hope to get up to battle roar by the endgame and will skip spellcraft as it does little for blessings.

 

The only thing i am unsure of will be whether i should go with the rebels or the shapers. Im not sure which is easier really. Ive played the game before as shapers and dont think it would be any different the other way, however havent played that way. Any tips (last requests) anyone can make before oblivion?

[Lord_Shaper]

If you haven't tried it, play rebel - it's more varied that way. However, certain things, like the repair Moseh quest make it worth playing a little shaper.

[nikki.]

Whenever I play G4, I put off siding wholly with the Shapers or Rebels until the fourth province. That way, you get access to both their camps/forts/whatevers, and don't miss out on any quests. There's still plenty of time after this to side with one or the other, so don't worry about that. Might be worth considering.

[Randomizer]

Slarty has a discussion on how to maximize rewards from both sides.

[Death Knight]

Well so far its been mildly a bit frustrating. Im currently at the electrified field. To be honest ive noticed one thing thats a plus about this build, i dont need to put one point into intelligence. Since i dont rely on creations yet still use magic for blessing and stuff, i have a pretty darn good magic pool, which is good.

 

So far i use melee for the characters that i would prefer not wasting ammo. I use thorns for ranged, along with wands and crystals for killing enemies in one round.

 

Im currently also writing a story based on the game experience and its coming along well. It restricts how i am playing my game character, but its a lot of fun. The story is mature as is most of my writing and is based on my character being the only apprentice of Shaila. Im going to put it on the fanfiction site.

 

Its definitely been one of my more fun ways of playing geneforge.

[Death Knight]

Hmm...im having a bit of difficulty with fighting against the shade guarding the forge. Does anyone know a good solid way to combat enemies with slow/cold?

[Lord_Shaper]

If you suck at magic like most storm troopers, then use crystals. Normally, I'd suggest enchanting your armour against cold, but as it's the forge you are taking....

 

Fyora's are surprisingly effective here.

[Jerakeen]

I'm a little confused. Isn't the point of a shock trooper the ability to have lots of creations? If you want to solo, why wouldn't you pick Agent/Infiltrator or Guardian/Warrior?

 

Or do you just enjoy the challenge of ignoring your character's greatest strength? This is not a criticism, I'm honestly curious.

[Death Knight]

What i do to get through games like this, is since ive played g1 g2 (both very similar as the rest of the games), is i find new ways to play the game that challenge me in a way that is still fun. Shocktrooper solo is actually easier for me than a guardian as i dont have to invest one point in intelligence.

 

The main reason im playing like this is i used agent g1, guardian with maxed parry g2, geneforge 3 doesnt work on computer. It only made sense that i use a dexterity/finesse melee fighter this time around. Its going to be hard when i get to g5, maybe ill do a sorc without creations, thats gotta suck.

 

If jeff does anything in the future with regards to geneforge remakes, all i ask is for a few neat perks to separate characters.

[Jerakeen]

Wow. I don't think I'd have the discipline to stick with a deliberately gimped character. My hat is off to you, sir.

 

And creations are the one thing I really like about Geneforge, anyway.

[Lord_Shaper]

Originally Posted By: The Turtle Moves

And creations are the one thing I really like about Geneforge, anyway.

Geneforge without creations has always seemed stupid to me.

[Death Knight]

Here is the 1st chapter of something ive been working on for geneforge 4. It has a lot of elements of my previous action stories on kindle.

 

 

A Geneforge Short Story

By David Krausser

Title: The Unpredicatable

Rating- Mature

Chapter 1-“The Lost Child”-

 

Shaila sat there perched on her throne intoxicated with pain. She hated it, yet.. it gave her pleasure. She knew that she would never get over her losses. With her one and only pupil gone, it left little to hope left. “My child is lost…”-Shaila said as she threw her thorn baton onto the table. It then hit her like a pile of bricks. Why not hunt down her missing pupil. Yes. She could then regain her last bit of honor by presenting the child to the shapers. They don’t know that her child isn’t aligned, but who cares? They won’t bother to ask. With her mind made up, Shaila bended down to pick up her Thorn Baton.

 

As Shaila picked it up, the lights in her lab went out. “You didn’t think I’d forget about you did you….?”-A shrill-like female voice said. Shaila was alarmed at first but instantly recognized who it was. It was her child.

 

Shaila let out a roar-“Do you really think you can defeat me here Rathera?” This is my place of power! Not yours. I am the …”

 

Before she could finish the whispering voice let out a cackling childlike giggle-“Killing some..Not much fun..” Rathera enjoyed tormenting her former master.

 

The voice ended and an explosion hit the experimentation room. Without any time, Shaila ran towards the explosion to try and salvage some bit of it. By the time she got there, the voice was gone, as were her experiments. Holding her baton with renewed fury, Shaila let out a guttural howl and started to make her way back to her throne. Before she could enter, Rathera jumped out at her former master and drove a crimson knife into Shaila’s right shoulder, crippling her and forcing her weapon onto the ground.

 

Shaila looked up at her former apprentice with blood spattered on her shirt. It took a while to get a glimpse. Her apprentice Rathera had dark and dirty black hair, blood stains on her shirt and somehow managed to be holding Shaila’s Shieldspike Dagger which gave her a crimson aura surrounding her visage. To be honest, Shaila couldn’t believe this was the same person. The apprentice who could barely hold a sword was now faster and agile as ever!

 

The crimson wraith circled Shaila while walking back and forth while teasing her now and then with a slice of her knife. Shaila quietly acted defenseless, while she slowly used her right hand to reach for her baton. In a lightning-like act, Shaila grabbed her wand and pointed at Rathera and let fly the thorn. Before it could graze her however, Rathera easily sidestepped to the left and laughed-“You little whore..”

 

Running out of options, Shaila muttered to herself-“Rathera…what happened to…”

 

Her child finished for her-“The day where I am helpless is over….and by the way…the name’s Raven.” With that said Raven pulled out a crimson wand, looked Shaila in the eye and fired, exploding her body into a pile of chunky, fiery bits. Her scream barely echoed as she was erased from existence. Raven laughed at the sight of her master’s defeat, but wondered whereto next? While she agreed that any chance of joining the shaper’s was forfeit, she agreed that the rebel’s might be an option.

 

Then it hit her, why join any of them? Thinking about the pros, she agreed that as long as she was somewhat on the ok side of the rebels, she wasn’t fighting on two fronts. An idea then sprung to her mind. Why not slowly but surely, keep both the sides in a stalemate. She could quietly and stealthily assassinate small-time contact shapers and lifecrafters before any of them get too powerful. Not only will this give her better equipment, but by the time its all over, she’ll be powerful enough to destroy both sides! “Heh, those poor fools wont have a chance”, she laughed as she gathered her supplies.

 

While leaving Shaila’s lab, Raven heard a noise coming from the entrance. With that in mind, she reached for her dagger in the hopes of killing some more. Maybe if she got lucky, she’d get to snuff some poor unfortunate fool. Yes that would be nice…

 

As Raven made her way to the entrance, she spotted a lone guardian standing there with broadsword drawn, as if awaiting her presence. He looked her over for a second. She was almost about 6 feet tall, with an agile way about her, extremely wild and frizzled out black hair, and she bore a smile, that practically emphasized her aura of confidence. There was something different about her and not just about the fact she was alone. Something that he couldn’t put his finger on.

 

Raven instantly sized the guardian up. He was about 6 and a half feet tall, with strong almost titan-like shoulders, had a neatly trimmed auburn-haired beard, and a imposing presence. With little time, the man spoke-“I don’t know who you are rebel, but that does not matter. I know what you have been up to. You’ve been using the canisters quite a bit. I can see it in your eyes, that wild look. Answer me one question rebel, where are your creations? I’ll have you know that I wont be taken down easily by you even if they ambush me right now. Where are your…”

 

Raven finished for him-“Creations, hah. I’ll have you know that I’ve been doing just fine for myself without them fool. You won’t find me so weak as you find the other rebel cowards, hiding behind the creatures like a bunch of wet sops. Raven then spit at the ground next to his feet.

 

The guardian instantly reached for his sword, but then stopped. He kept his hand there ready for a second and rethought his words. He then took his hand off his sword and spoke-“You seem to be an open-minded fighter so I will take your insults with restraint. There are many secrets you can help us uncover to settle this war peacefully. Even if you don’t use creations, should you come over to the shapers you might be able to still make a name for yourself. My name is Gareth and I am just a simple Guardian for the Shapers. Once we win the war, the possibilities for me will be good, but for you-they would be endless if you help out. What do you think…”

 

Raven looked at the ground where she spit and then back at Gareth-“The name’s Raven, and let me get one thing straight with you guardian, I don’t follow anyone. I follow my own path and don’t use creations for anything. Now that I’ve said that, I will say no more. I suggest we skip the smalltalk…..and get right to what I’m after. Gareth put out his hand as a sign of friendship and walked over to Raven. Before Gareth could say anything, Raven instantly drew her blade and coarsed through the air with a huge leap, landing mid way and exploding onto Gareth’s quickly drawn blade.

Gareth was confused while he neatly parried her strike. What rebel fighter would so blatantly disregard his sign of friendship and even moreso, be intent on killing him. What could she want. Then it hit him-She wanted his gear….

The 2 warriors battled it out with finesse and force. The guardian leveled his strikes with forceful strength while Raven dodged and evaded each attack like a game. It was very much like a game. Like a game of chess. For each 3 attacks (or pawns) that Gareth moved, they were rebutted with just 2 evasive flips from Raven. It went on like this for a while until finally Gareth stopped short of breath while Raven stopped as well. He could tell she knew he was wearing out his energy. The problem was Raven still looked very much in her prime.

 

“Who trained you?”, Gareth asked seriously.

Raven stretched her arms and laughed-“It wasn’t so much who trained me as much as it was who remade me.”

Gareth swallowed his anger at that last comment. Such uncontrolled power, yet how? She must have just been a byproduct of an insane amount of canisters. The problem however was that with the amount of canisters it would take to get to that point, she still felt very much sane and in control. It was a very crazy turn of events. Gareth raised his sword and slowly made for another swing.

 

Before Gareth’s sword connected, he looked at Raven. She didn’t look she would move to get out the way. As if she wanted to die. Right before it connected, she dodged almost effortlessly to the right. Gareth, caught off balance, fell down onto the floor. Raven pointed her dagger at Gareth and smiled-“You know, for a guardian you really are pathetic. Gareth went to reach for his sword. Before he could, Raven instantly got out a wand and shot twice. The first shot sent a beam to Gareth’s hand, which exploded into fleshy chunks as he howled in pain. The second shot grabbed a hold of his broadsword while he groveled in pain.

 

Raven observed the sword with interest. It seemed as if it held some magic quality to it. She needed to be sure. Taking the sword up in her hand, she stabbed it into Gareth’s leg. Instantly, his leg fell motionless as if it were numb. Very interesting, Raven thought to herself. With that in mind, she left her opponent on the floor and thought of what to do with him. A quick death would suffice. She pulled her fiery wand out and blasted into Gareth, lighting him on fire.

 

While Gareth slowly burned to death, Raven walked out of the entrance to Shaila’s lab. She knew that while her new powers were indeed amazing, she realized that she was going to need some new gear once she destroys the next poor soul. She laughed to herself with her new blade in hand-“Those poor fools are going to beg for death. But you know what, it wont be that easy, not this time…”

 

 

 

 

[Lord_Shaper]

Good start! When can we see chapter 2?

[Death Knight]

Well, what im hoping is that i can finish my writing presentation in my last actual class in college. Our professor has us meet up in senior writing seminar and give a 3 minute presentation on our 25 page story. After that is over at 6pm today, I can think clearly.

 

I dislike giving presentations but will only do it because i dont have to read off the paper. I cant give presentations where im just reading off the paper. What i like to do is remember 8-10 words before i go and go from there as cues. I cant give a presentation when any paper is in front of me as it confuses me.

 

Once i do that im officially done with classes in college and actually have some room to breathe.

[Death Knight]

 

Well, the first chapter is officially on fanfiction under geneforge. Its kind of good actually that i put it on there. Geneforge is such a great series and its kind of lame that there isnt many stories on it. Im hoping to do the 2nd chapter soon as i progress. Its been somewhat brutal lately. Unpredictable

[Death Knight]

Im having trouble fighting enemies with slow. Is there any way to combat against it with say resistance to it? Does cold resistance help prevent it from happening like in usual rpgs? I have no trouble with most enemies as i can find a way around them but slow is brutal for my character.

[Randomizer]

Slow is a mental effect so you need intelligence or go in with haste buff and keep reapplying.

[Death Knight]

This is the rest of this tale. Judging from what transpires, that pretty much tells you how my character made out

 

Chapter 2-“Mixed Feelings”

 

After a two day journey to Dillame, Raven was tired. She had exhausted all her finesse and strength in slipping past any rogue creations. Things were different when you didn’t have an army backing you, and Raven could only agree with that-It was brutal. Still there was hope that while she knew she couldn’t change much, she could still take down as many of these fiends as she could-both shaper and rebel. As she made her way to the docks, Raven pulled her cloak over her face as she noticed someone of importance.

It was Lilly, a rebel spy. Now while Raven always liked spying for people, this was different. Why was it? Because she was liked by the rebels. So why ruin the possible chance of going with the rebels? Easy, because while the rebels trusted her, there was a low chance of them suspecting something amiss with one of their spies. Along with the fact that doing something for the shapers would torment them even more into rethinking their allegiance. Raven smiled with delight to herself as she walked up to the Rivergate Compound. “Yes, Alwan will have to believe I am with him. At least for now. Until of course I erase him from existence…”

With little time, Raven made her way through the shaper fortress. Telling the guard that she had something important to tell Alwan, was all he needed to hear. Allies were hard to acquire these days. Even if only for a short time..

Making her way into Alwan’s room, Raven noted the Guardian’s powerful visage the moment she stepped in. “His heart will be hard to slice in the future”, Raven muttered to herself.

The Guardian Alwan spoke while looking over Raven-“I have to say, I am confused. I wasn’t aware Shaila had any apprentices, to say nothing of her most unpredictable death.”

Raven cleared her throat and looked into Alwan’s Hazel eyes-“Shaila very rarely spoke much of anything in her last days. I was ambushed by a rebel Guardian and managed to drive him off. Luckily, before her death, one of Shaila’s rogue fyora’s burned the Guardian to death. I then made my escape and decided to come here to offer my loyalty and a bit of information.”

Alwan smiled and looked over Raven-“Well that is somewhat heartening. Even if we lost Shaila, we might as well embrace the good in acquiring you as an ally. What have you learned of the rebels. You will be rewarded if you have anything to help the war.”

Raven then came close to Alwan and whispered some words to him. To his surprise, he smiled and then immediately ordered a group of guards to go out. He then asked Raven to stay a few minutes while they go fetch a traitor. Before long, Lilly was hoisted into the room and thrown at Alwan’s feet. Dirt covered her face as she sat there helpless. Alwan backhanded her in the face, knocking her into the ground and causing a red bruise on her cheek while his guards picked her up. Lilly then looked over to see Raven smiling.

Lilly immediately laughed-“So..I’m not only caught by faceless and gutless bastards of a dying regime; but the one person who has no allegiance decides to turn me in. Oh this is almost too funny. She’ll kill us all, just give it time.”

Alwan motioned to his guards and they hoisted her up against the wall. Without a given order from Alwan, Raven walked over to the prisoner and drove her blade into her gut. With a howl of pain, Lilly cried out in anguish. Raven smiled as she slowly brought the blade up further past her midsection. She then, without a thought, ripped the blade out and cast a fireball onto her weakened assailant. The fireball exploded and all that was left was charred remains.

Alwan looked at Raven who just stood there fiddling her thumbs-“Damn..you really are a bloodthirsty one. There seems to be a problem that we have here. Although I had my doubts before, I wonder just what part of that wench’s words were true?”

Both Alwan and Raven stared into each other’s eyes each giving off different auras. Alwan’s was a fiery one, but still with a large amount of reason. With Raven, that was not present at all. No reason or human ability to feel. No compassion, no regrets. Nothing. All that she felt was a diabolic urge to slaughter destroy everything that she could. The gaze didn’t last long before Raven almost instantly drew her sword.

 

“Vices and Consequences”

 

Before Raven could launch an attack, the first guard came at her with sword drawn. Instead of rushing to meet him, Raven let fly her sword which plunged into the guard’s eye, killing him instantly. The other guard that was there, seeing his dead ally, rushed to meet Raven. Raven sidestepped out of the way allowing him to meet the wall. Before he turned around, she whipped her energy wand out and shot him exploding his body into bits and pieces.

 

Alwan didn’t flinch. No, not even at all. He instead stared down this diabolic murderer. “It seems that your motives are more clear than they could be. I can sense you want our canisters. I will tell you this: We have a few, but they are for no one to use, most especially freaks like you. The rebels breed monsters like you and I’ve got bad news for you. It ENDS here.”

Raven giggled a sinister and most demonic laugh-“Hush little baby, don’t say a word, I am going to show you..the big…black…bird….”

The 2 warriors almost flung onto each other, blade against blade. For every attack that Alwan parried, Raven countered with a shot from her wand. But Alwan was no mere warrior, he parried every shot she took and feint with his own counterattacks.

The fight went on for a few minutes and while Alwan knew that he was getting tired in his full-plate mail armor, Raven didn’t break a sweat. Alwan counter attacked Raven when he thought he would hit, only to meet air as she dodged out of the way. Before Alwan could defend himself, Raven was on him. Her blade hit Alwan’s shoulder almost too fast to see, causing him to bleed and hold his wounded area while he knelt down.

Raven giggled, knowing that she just needed to finish him off-“Poor little baby..”

She then grabbed Alwan by the throat and stuck the blade up to his neck-“You know, I’m going to have fun killing all you fools when you’re dead. How does that make you feel. Does it comfort you to know that your men will be slaughtered and that when I am done, I will become a god!”

About to drive the blade home, Alwan mustered the last bit of strength he could and got up picking Raven up with both hands. She tried swing her sword at him, but it did no good. Alwan then threw her as hard as he could into the wall. Raven smashed into the wall with an explosion, blood dripping from her mouth.

Alwan, then gathered his sword and finished off Raven with a sword thrust to her chest. He looked down at her cold dead red eyes and shuddered at the thought of what she had planned to do. Holding his shoulder, Alwan spoke to her corpse-“This is the kind of thing that happens when power gets driven out of control. Sick, sadistic individuals that think that they will take the world down with them.”

Alwan knew that Raven was only partially responsible for the present circumstances. He cursed the rebels for their canister-loving ways and knew that he would forever be a changed man. One of his sentries from the barracks came up to ask what was wrong, seeing the ended battle. Alwan looked down at the mess on the floor-“There is no need to worry….this is just another reason why I WILL end this war to bring an end to the chaos.” And judging by what transpired, I being the narrator doubt that will ever happen.