ALFA Summon Spells

Ideas and suggestions for game mechanics and rules.
User avatar
Galadorn
Haste Bear
Posts: 2483
Joined: Sat Feb 07, 2004 9:10 am
Location: Hefei, China

Re: ALFA Summon Spells

Post by Galadorn »

Yea. hmmm.... Well... what is the risk /really/? :)

And it's never a "wasted spell" even if you do get 1 at a lower level.

....you normally get 1 creature.
You will still get "a" creature.
Yes, it's 33% chance you get 1 creature that's less tough. Not that big of a risk rrreeally is it? Is a Dire Badger instead of a Dire Wolf gonna be that terrible? It's a chance... lower than the alternative 2 or 3... i'd be willing to take that chance EVERY time though from one summoner to the next. *shrugs*

But!! what's 'fun' and more close to PnP, is for a summoner to have an option... :) ...to go for a few more furries... 66% chance in fact, good odds alright!! and depending on the situation (solo? many weaker enemies? one big dangerous enemy? so many combinations or possibilities for so many different enemies or groups of enemies), that choice, which in fact in PnP is even more versatile (1d3 one level lower, OR 1d4+1 creatures 2 spell levels lower), was put there for a reason I think, and might very well be the fate of said summoner.

and just curious (not antagonizing at all!) but ...make sense??
What does not make sense?
The spell itself? The one in the rulebooks of PnP?
...the entire PnP rule history that has allowed summoners to choose 1, 1d3 or 1d4+1 from a spell that the summoner gets to choose based upon a situation? or.... does something else not make sense? If you disagree with that spell as it has been in PnP since the beginning... then ok... but... that is no reason we can't get it in ALFA for some (I think) much useful "versatility"! :) Know what i mean? I don't even know why you disagree yet? Is it lag? ....heh...dunno why it would ever be such an issue when in fact you never actually ever need to change the original way it actualyl already is! :) ...thus... the option!

I enjoy the discussion though, as i'm passionate about summoning! :) It's one of the ultimate saviours in my book, and thus, for survivability sake (which is key in ALFA), I say yaha! let's do it! ...if we can't have FULL PnP... finding a solution that just might work already available, that can at least give a summoner the option of only at least 1d3 a level lower... hey, that's cool enough, and way way better than the current situation. In my opinion.

If PnP says a 3rd level caster can (even at a lower chance) pop 3 wolves to occupy the 5 goblins giving chase... and 3 do appear! that is something I hope any 3rd level summoner (even in ALFA) has a chance to go for. :) Not to mention how cool it is! yay summons.
But that same summoner, with 3 friends in close quarters, fighting one or two big Orcs, so as not to "block the way" (that one was a very interesting counter argument Ith, I gotta say! jaw dropper i tell ya!), and so to make sure he pops a "heavier hitter" to do some damage, then in that situation, he/she would choose the single Dire Badger instead. :P

It's all gud.



Of course,..... i'm wrong. :P eek
t-ice
Dungeon Master
Posts: 2106
Joined: Fri Apr 17, 2009 6:24 pm

Re: ALFA Summon Spells

Post by t-ice »

It remains that nwn2 can only handle the movement of so many creatures around each other in combat at a time. And it is of course the AI that is most gimped by what happens in a horde-vs-horde fubar. It is not a good starting point to give players the ability to summon pathfinding-screwing flashmobs, and the expecting them to not use it when they could de facto be the most effective way to fight the AI on the engine.

It might work well and be cool for the solo player. But is it worth it when it can break the AI when we have a party of PCs?
I-KP
Otyugh
Posts: 988
Joined: Fri Apr 09, 2010 6:27 pm

Re: ALFA Summon Spells

Post by I-KP »

Galadorn wrote:What does not make sense?
The spell itself? The one in the rulebooks of PnP?
You're asking the wrong person. I don't much like DnD as a system. The setting is fine but IMO the system is frequently silly and rarely clever, and crumbles at both ends of its scale. The PnP version of / your suggestion as a fix for this spell is but one example of why I don't like it. (Granted, Pathfinder does a non-terrible job of cutting away the chaff but NWN2 doesn't use Pathfinder.) NWN2's awful mob AI only cements the non-uptake of this deal.
User avatar
Galadorn
Haste Bear
Posts: 2483
Joined: Sat Feb 07, 2004 9:10 am
Location: Hefei, China

Re: ALFA Summon Spells

Post by Galadorn »

*parry* *block* *dodge dodge* >>thWACk<< uuHHhhhnnnnn....

Blast you smart people!

I will try again.

In 1 year.

.....when Castano gets all servers split into 4 seperate servers hosted on 4 seperate super fast machines with flawless server to server automatic ATs when your "makes-to-much-sense-against-my-scud-missile-summoning-idea" ideas will fade.

...and YOU I-KP. Aw hell i luv ya.
I-KP
Otyugh
Posts: 988
Joined: Fri Apr 09, 2010 6:27 pm

Re: ALFA Summon Spells

Post by I-KP »

No you.
Locked