Be kind to each other. Registered Member #1711
Joined: 2:51:22 am GMT 04/03/11
Posts: 1995
I feel the system we have is fine especially for when we are playing solo or in small groups with no DMs. Most of what we have today evolved from that need.
Combat play during a DM event though is different. During events I carry a handful of "Raise Dead" and depending on the situation I'll leave the person on the ground to be recovered or I'll raise them and say to them "Your regain consciousness." In other words I nearly always RP that they have been rendered unconscious and not "dead".
Registered Member #1394
Joined: 3:59:40 am GMT 02/05/09
Posts: 83
MetalTree wrote ...
It wouldn't be IRL 10 minutes, IMO, more likely a few minutes, less than 5, and you would be RPing preparing that spell in that time, as it takes a lot of concentration to cast such high level and significant spells.
I think a minute would actually be enough of a speed bump to curtail the behavior. Combat doesn't last very long, and people will know they can't immediately get someone back on their feet so they'll likely forget in the heat of the moment to stand by someones body to count out a minute.
Dontella wrote ...
But if the PC is only mechanically 'Dead' and not RP 'Dead' then it's not a True and Proper resurrection. Therefore in terms of RP (not mechanics) it wouldn't take that much time as they are not actually preparing that spell.
The Game Engine Mechanics as it stands already has a system by which a spellcaster is challenged in casting, when in a hostile environment. It's called: Concentration Checks.
An alternate system could then, be devised in which an additional Concentration (or perhaps Discipline for non-magical sorts) check is required for casting and using items to restore the dead.
Mostly I'm just throwing random ideas around. I think it's fine as it stands. It allows for a variety of RP and Play-styles.
I said it in my first post, I'll say it again. Making death have a harsher mechanical aspect is simply going to result, I believe, in even more superman boring builds.
I don't think the point is if someone is mechanically/RP dead, so much as battle raising in events/PVP is super tiresome. I've been on the receiving end of it all of once, and that was enough for me.
Concentration checks don't really matter, because the PC can just be invisible (or whatever). Can you take the time to waste an action on see invisibility/true seeing? Sure, but you've got all these other jerks trying to murder you at the same time. Relying on the underlying mechanics of the game to stop it (Discipline/Concentration checks) will just encourage more of the character building you don't like via skill stacking. It needs a hard counter, one that you can't build against.
Playing a healer shouldn't mean you have to play the whack-a-mole with revive spells, the encounters should be balanced to let you actually heal. And if they aren't? I hope it becomes a learning experience for DM's that start unintentionally wiping out all the PC's at their events.
Registered Member #2049
Joined: 12:00:00 am GMT 01/01/70
Posts: 0
Fair points on forcing stuff on people.
How about this:
Just simply make a "no raise switch" for DM's. Meaning, when the DM activates this on a player/group, trying to rez by a scroll or stone will result in "This item cannot be used now". This way the rez spamming will not be possible (under normal circumstances = not a group of clerics) while clerics will still be able to do what they're supposed to do. The DM would of course be nice enough to inform people about no rez on this trip, so losing a turn over nothing would only occur if you really actually forget it in the heat of the moment.
Registered Member #2049
Joined: 12:00:00 am GMT 01/01/70
Posts: 0
Also one imho fair point on rez/heal in PnP vs. NWN:
Yes, trying to rez people in the heat of the battle sounds very silly and what most consider good DM'ing is to make this (at least near) impossible. However, in PnP battles every player gets to consider what to do next round while the other players / NPC's / monsters do their stuff, which is usually several minutes. In NWN a round is 6 seconds. In PnP the cleric's player knows exactly when it's wise to start healing others up or moving towards the tank who's taking the most damage. In NWN the moment you realize someone's about to die, it's usually too late to try healing them.
So, to me, the possibility of considering one's actions with time equals the possibility of rezzing people during combat.
How this is RP'd (did the toon actually die or was this just a close call and some other healing spell) and whether scrolls and/or stones should be allowed during combat or not, are other matters. I'm only pointing out how rezzing during combat is a different deal in PnP and NWN.
Registered Member #633
Joined: 3:59:33 pm GMT 10/24/05
Posts: 1173
Thranduil wrote:
I play on several NWN servers other than Thain. For every hour I spend on all the other NWN servers combined, I spend 10 hours on Thain. The reason for that is because I have the most fun here. When it stops being fun for me to play here, I'll stop playing here.
I may be the only player on this server that feels that way, but I doubt it.
I will not comment on the passive/aggressive overtone of this statement, because "respect" (amazed at how often people tend to regard this as a one-way street) and crap. Don't threaten to leave when you know you won't because it must be your way or no way in the context of a daydreaming session.
That's totally disrespectful.
This is NOT a discussion on changing anything for the sake of change, or to improve my game experience at the expense of your's: it's a discussion on how some view the RP possibilities of death, with a little spitballing on how it it could be helped by scripting.
Few of those discussing it from that point of view have much hope of ever seeing anything actually done about having our POV prevail; we're not builders and scripters, nor members of Staff (mostly). It IS possible to have a theoretical discussion about an IG mechanic and a play style without that discussion bearing literal fruit at the end of the day.
The sky is not falling.
The world is not coming to an end.
The "I always win" mentality remains unassailable.
It's a game. The discussion is not taking food from your children's mouths, it is not forcing you to donate bone marrow against your will, it will not institute a regime of World Communism, it is indicative of what some may be thinking in terms of their overall RP experience.
Stop thinking in terms of personal "punishment" and how this affects you -- and apparently ONLY you -- and perhaps you won't be so distraught.
[ The Island of Thain ]
Discussion of Death Ideas
