tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post5833456100971039371..comments2024-03-28T23:14:06.156-04:00Comments on The CRPG Addict: Pools of Darkness: Some Old FriendsCRPG Addicthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-81354865537380287772016-11-14T18:52:32.081-05:002016-11-14T18:52:32.081-05:00It was a beneficial choice not looting the elf in ...It was a beneficial choice not looting the elf in Myth Drannor. The hardest battles are in other dimensions and the girdle of giant strength doesn't survive inter-dimensional travel but the bonus XP you got instead did. cure888https://www.blogger.com/profile/17201066327084128298noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-4150129890154314692016-10-21T19:41:28.553-04:002016-10-21T19:41:28.553-04:00'I guess maybe there's a Level 10 spell ca...'I guess maybe there's a Level 10 spell called "Teleport Town" that I haven't received yet.'<br /><br />It's not called exactly that, but you can find a number of oddly specific, high-level spells sprinkled through various AD&D material.tlhonmeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03256644187305759072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-21238548278003163172016-10-19T03:14:03.568-04:002016-10-19T03:14:03.568-04:00I remember playing in a campaign where one of my R...I remember playing in a campaign where one of my Ranger's dual magic blades was a Sword of Truth.<br /><br />On one occasion when I rolled a natural 20 to hit a half-orc gladiator, he (the DM) screamed, "I peeped on my aunt while she was bathing when I was 10 and I liked it!"Kenny McCormickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01553499727945099493noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-37391563227193766662016-10-19T03:10:22.949-04:002016-10-19T03:10:22.949-04:00If you meant the Rakshasa in Indian folklore, then...If you meant the Rakshasa in Indian folklore, then no.<br />Maybe you were thinking of Yakshas or Asuras?Kenny McCormickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01553499727945099493noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-87759650425344829932016-10-19T02:59:54.074-04:002016-10-19T02:59:54.074-04:00Apparently, even if you hit someone in the leg wit...Apparently, even if you hit someone in the leg with it, that person's head will roll off by itself!Kenny McCormickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01553499727945099493noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-8354942056040727842016-10-13T20:25:55.339-04:002016-10-13T20:25:55.339-04:00This was especially gold: "They'll invite...This was especially gold: "They'll invite all their NPC friends from the Moonsea to a big annual party at Myth Drannor, cast the spell long enough to see his face again, laugh at him, and then return him to oblivion. Good times."Krteknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-62049338125806551802016-10-07T13:34:59.850-04:002016-10-07T13:34:59.850-04:00Probably an accident of memory restrictions origin...Probably an accident of memory restrictions originally, but depending on implementation, it may have required conscious effort to keep it that way for this title.<br /><br />As people commented in prior entries for this title, it's the first gold box game to require disk and thus have enough memory to allow for the full roster of monster types in each area (thus the emissaries/incursions from other lieutenants in each area with different types).<br /><br />A naive implementation of monster summoning that just relied on summoning from the monsters loaded in memory would likely have resulted in weird behavior here. I can imagine that being something found during playtesting.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14874291376019276497noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-32636840250549980722016-10-07T12:53:42.471-04:002016-10-07T12:53:42.471-04:00I think it might be a case of limitation and effec...I think it might be a case of limitation and effect happily coexisting (probably unintentionally).<br /><br />Monster summoning is intended to give results reflective of the terrain, so if someone had spent time and effort coding a bunch of different possibilities depending on location, you would end up summoning inter-dimensional weirdness in that zone.<br /><br />But I think the somewhat accurate result was an accident of memory restrictions in all likelihood.Tristan Gallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16769219573533545742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-13451404365371359632016-10-07T12:22:48.127-04:002016-10-07T12:22:48.127-04:00If a character is over the max age for their race,...If a character is over the max age for their race, they have a chance after every combat to die. (I had this happen due to some hex-editing mishaps: changed race from Elf to Human, but forgot to change age from 134 or whatever—young for an Elf—to 20something.)Delvin Anarishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00105691017793426595noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-568869808923994632016-10-07T11:48:56.262-04:002016-10-07T11:48:56.262-04:00Back in CotAB, I did take the time to cast "H...Back in CotAB, I did take the time to cast "Haste" a few hundred times. My human characters got above 200 for their ages but never had any problems. I don't know if they finally implemented something here, but I figured I'd keep everyone young just in case.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-8905341449165061282016-10-07T11:47:50.965-04:002016-10-07T11:47:50.965-04:00So that's interesting. When I ran into Arcam, ...So that's interesting. When I ran into Arcam, it seemed like he was going to give me some kind of quest, but then he suddenly said something like, "You're too powerful. Your task is to die!" So I assume if I hadn't completed everything up to this point, he would have tasked me with killing the other lieutenants?CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-42376135456625351712016-10-07T09:58:41.402-04:002016-10-07T09:58:41.402-04:00I looked it up (someone printed out all the game t...I looked it up (someone printed out all the game text). You get sent to help Priam, Vala, Nacacia, and Sasha, as you guessed.<br /><br />So you can get the minor quests from the council or, ironically, the bad guys in Mulmaster (who will also send you after some people you've already beaten).Null Nullnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-48957140691675789552016-10-07T09:50:27.311-04:002016-10-07T09:50:27.311-04:00In FRUA, it crashes your computer.
You could alwa...In FRUA, it crashes your computer.<br /><br />You could always Camp, rest and cast Haste, and see what happens. Given how many 3rd-level spells you can memorize in POD it's a pretty good opportunity.Null Nullnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-62346222494764904132016-10-07T09:49:37.974-04:002016-10-07T09:49:37.974-04:00AD&D'a Vorpal Blade is the same thing, ess...AD&D'a Vorpal Blade is the same thing, essentially: a nat-20 on the attack beheads whatever you are attacking (which kills it if it is something that beheading would kill.)<br /><br />There were also Swords of Sharpness that de-limbed on a natural 20; I don't think those were implemented in any Gold Box games.Jonathonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12424548045152722964noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-47139336339715970422016-10-07T08:18:49.860-04:002016-10-07T08:18:49.860-04:00He took his vorpal sword in hand:
Long time the ma...He took his vorpal sword in hand:<br />Long time the manxome foe he sought --<br />So rested he by the Tumtum tree,<br />And stood a while in thought.<br /><br />And, as in uffish thought he stood,<br />The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,<br />Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,<br />And burbled as it came!<br /><br />One two! One two! And through and through<br />The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!<br />He left it dead, and with its head<br />He went galumphing back<br /><br />Nethack's Vorpal Blade (not sure which version introduced it) had a 1 in 20 chance of outright killing any monster by beheading. Boy, does it suck when some Mordor orc picks it up and beheads YOU. You're doing fine in your game, and then out of nowhere you see: "Vorpal Blade decapitates you!" --MORE-- You die... --MORE-- Do you want your possessions identified? (y/n)<br /><br />Huh, so the aging mechanic <i>does</i> work in Goldbox games, then? You start losing stats and then you die in your sleep? How's it work, exactly? I thought there wasn't even any code in the game to implement the ill effects of aging by haste. Harlandnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-86725972626085071932016-10-07T02:20:58.006-04:002016-10-07T02:20:58.006-04:00I don't recall specifically. But they are more...I don't recall specifically. But they are more likely the optional quests like the Temple of Tyr, Taydome's Keep, and Myth Drannor than the farmhouse-type quests.<br /><br />In any event, the official cluebook does say that the clerk sends you on missions, so I don't think I'm making this up.Avenirnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-30253988965213062162016-10-07T01:58:10.948-04:002016-10-07T01:58:10.948-04:00Oh, wow. The clerk actually does send you on quest...Oh, wow. The clerk actually does send you on quests? I just figured they had a couple of dialogue bits about that for old times' sake. What kind of quests? All those miscellaneous farms and whatnot?CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-89677017372223201962016-10-07T01:52:08.532-04:002016-10-07T01:52:08.532-04:00The setup of Phlan is strange. On the one hand it ...The setup of Phlan is strange. On the one hand it serves as a good base of operations -- it has places to rest, train, buy/sell/appraise items, and convenient access to Elminster's vault. It also has a council clerk to send you on quests. <br /><br />BUT, then they go and position Phlan extremely far from where you start so you're unlikely to discover it until you've already completed all the quests that the clerk might send you on, plus you have to beat that super-tough white dragon/black mage fight to get to it. So it doesn't make much sense to go there until you've improved your characters quite a bit. But you presumably miss out on having the clerk send you on quests.<br /><br />Mulmaster has a very similar issue.Avenirnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-47459958293528868382016-10-07T01:26:40.039-04:002016-10-07T01:26:40.039-04:00Wow. Yes, you're right. "Meteor Swarm&quo...Wow. Yes, you're right. "Meteor Swarm" would have taken care of them. That would have really helped in one of the near-end battles. CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-66417819388106866292016-10-07T01:25:43.104-04:002016-10-07T01:25:43.104-04:00It should be "Phlanarian Warrior" but it...It should be "Phlanarian Warrior" but it's cut off.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-32281767476884826362016-10-07T01:25:08.440-04:002016-10-07T01:25:08.440-04:00I wonder if summoning area-appropriate monsters is...I wonder if summoning area-appropriate monsters is supposed to be a "feature" of the spell or if it's just a limitation of the programming.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-14891411543461241722016-10-07T01:24:30.474-04:002016-10-07T01:24:30.474-04:00I'm glad to hear that. Thanks for the feedback...I'm glad to hear that. Thanks for the feedback.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-59246087651601646522016-10-07T01:23:53.042-04:002016-10-07T01:23:53.042-04:00"No matter what you do, you'll disrupt th..."No matter what you do, you'll disrupt the ritual and you'll start a battle." I didn't have a chance to check it out personally, though.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-23963758364620829912016-10-06T00:02:03.276-04:002016-10-06T00:02:03.276-04:00Another property of the vorpal blade: it goes '...Another property of the vorpal blade: it goes 'snicker-snack!'Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11630415436281765460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-60433483850195132462016-10-05T23:28:21.394-04:002016-10-05T23:28:21.394-04:00According to GameBanshee, all of these options res...<i>According to GameBanshee, all of these options result in the interruption of the ritual and Tyranthraxus's immediate death</i><br /><br />Even "Flee"?Rowan Lipkovitshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08691096685515251681noreply@blogger.com