Red Herrings

[Ephesos]

Okay, there's a corpse in the outdoors in A2, northeast of the Moldy Cavern (the one with the graymold). You can only see it via Far Sight, and I don't think there's a way to reach it even with the Orb. Anybody know what's there (if anything)?

 

Anybody even know what I'm talking about? I'd clarify, but the A2 map site is still down.

 

EDIT: As the question was answered and the topic changed, so has the title.

[Zeviz]

If I am thinking about the right body, it's completely inaccessible and when somebody hacked their location to get to it, they found that it had nothing.

[Rent-an-Ihrno]

like many games, avernum has several inaccessible things hidden somewhere, hints that lead nowhere, stuff that simply doesnt make sense... and being a game, the reason for all that is simple: fun!

a little mysteriousity has never harmed the quality of a game.

so if you find something you cant get to, just assume you really cant.

[Verelor]

Still not as cool as something you think you can get to but then all signs point that you can't get to that particular thing but then actually in a very secret way it turns out it is really possible to get to it using a very secret method.

 

Must I clarify that?

[Walter]

There's something much worse in Geneforge 3: there is a trapped chest out in the open midway through the game that it is impossible to disarm and if you try to open it anyway it does over a thousand damage almost certainly killing you. However if late in the game you've invested a lot of endurance and equip lots of armor that gives protection from that damage type and survive opening it, it is empty anyway.

[John S]

Quote:

Originally written by Verelor:
Still not as cool as something you think you can get to but then all signs point that you can't get to that particular thing but then actually in a very secret way it turns out it is really possible to get to it using a very secret method.

Must I clarify that?

But things like that lend themselves to being passed quickly. For example, let's say that the corpse mentioned above were actually accessible. Well, someone would say so, thus ruining the experience. The only way to overcome that problem would be to load up the game with red herrings, which I and a large number of other people would hate.

[Ephesos]

Well, thanks for the clarification, anyway. I just didn't remember from the last time I played A2, because I overused the hintbook that time.

 

Note: I atone for this sin, and am playing it completely sans hintbook this time.

 

Red herrings can be fun, and they would've made A3 more fun. Imagine attacking the wrong group for the plagues (i.e.: if you actually got all of dragonkind up against you, or possibly accused the Anama of causing an apocalypse), and the plot twists that would result.

 

Even though the coding would be painful for such in-depth red herrings, it would still be cool.

 

Lastly, why's it called a red herring? Who looks for off-colored fish in a mystery?

[Drakefyre]

From Wikipedia: "The phrase is believed to originate from the practice of saving a hunted fox by dragging a red herring across its trail to cause the pursuing hounds to lose the true scent and follow the false odor of herring instead."

 

Not sure if I believe that, but oh well.

 

And in Exile III/Avernum 3, you can choose to get Dragon-slaying and Erika-slaying weapons and kill them.

[Ephesos]

Well, I knew you could get the odd weapons, but I didn't know anybody would attack them. Out of curiosity, what happens if you attack them (and assumedly kill them)?

 

About the red herring... weird. So old school environmentalists used fish?

[Drakefyre]

I've never gone after the dragons, but I have gone after Erika. All that happens is that you don't get the benefits of having the right weapon (you have to fight a bunch of crystal souls in the Keep of Tinraya and Bon-Ihrno won't talk to you) or Erika's amulet.

[Ephesos]

Hm... that would make things more difficult. Again, I was cursed with the temptation of the hintbook when I first played A3, so I never even had a doubt.

 

I expect that if you kill the dragons, you just don't get that Beastslayer sword. I can't remember any other significant plot impacts they had.

[Micawber]

Quote:

Originally written by Ephesos:
About the red herring... weird. So old school environmentalists used fish?

I don't think the purpose was to save the fox, but rather to train the hounds. So that the hound could still follow the fox, despite being confused by herring scent, that was the purpose of the training.

[Drakefyre]

Ah, but you can get the sword first.

[Ephesos]

So, you can theoretically finish the game while "accidentally" going off to kill the dragons, with virtually no limitations. Interesting. I should try that.

[Alorael at Large]

I've heard rumors to the effect that having the Cooling Amulets slightly reduces all fire damage you take. I'm dubious, but if that's true then the Cooling Amulets are probably better to have than the Thought Crystal.

 

—Alorael, who is quite sure that the Thought Crystal isn't useful. Haste and move quickly through the room and the Crystal Souls are no threat at all. Then you can still talk to Bon-Ihrno, too.