A Land Far Away

Question has come up a few times in gmae.

When hostiles show on the mini-map is that part of *our* game in ALFA or is it meta.

Particularly I mean for non-ranger outdoorsy types who are supposed to get to use track.

But what about for the rest of us?

Do you mean the dots that show hostiles if you have a high enough tracking?

Tracking in NWN2 is actually a radar, and not proper tracking. The exact location of mobs shown on the radar and minimap is something your character couldn't possibly known by tracking. You can however us the information to play out tracking, by explaining how there are tracks towards the general location of the mobs and how many tracks you see (you could even play out a faulty amounts because of confusing tracks).

Tracking is part of the NWN2 game engine and ATM it is not a disabled feature. Use it as any good roleplayer would; to enhance roleplay, instead of replacing it, and all should be fine.

Also, tracking isn't ranger-specific, they just have an advantage with it.

I think if used correctly as Demson suggests the tracking feature can greatly enhance immersion and roleplay opportunities for "scout" type PC's rangers or no. I agree that it is silly that you could track some beast that is up a hill and behind a large boulder just bc it is within the game engine radius of the track skill of your PC and the mob fails the save. But this can be used to advance roleplay. A few ways I have used it with my Barb/ranger character:

1. As Demson suggests RP that you see tracks on the ground leading towards where the minimap suggests. These can be footprints or other signs, such as a bit of fur on a rock, a broken branch as from someone passing, a pile of dung, a torn piece of leather etc. etc.

2. Emote "sniffing" the air and saying something like "Be wary, the scent of Gnolls is on the wind." or something to that effect.

3. Emote something like *cants his head to the side listening* and "Hold, I hear something up ahead."

I have always viewed the survival and track skills as more than just being able to see and identify footprints in the mud. IMO its a conglomerate of all of the various senses based skills that a hunter or tracker would use to follow his quarry. Its similar to a rogue's ability to see and identify a trap where the unskilled would not even notice the signs.

Question about NWN2's trac'DAR: I've not really played rangers using NWN2 but i am familiar with the brown dots. does having high ranks in survival or the Tracking Feat allow to ID the brown dots? hoving the move over the map tells me nothing but honestly i don't know if it's because of my PC's skill ranks or not...

and yes, Sniffing the air is what i usually emote for detecting brown dots on the Trac'DAR! myself...

You cannot ID the brown dots on the minimap per se. However, by moving your cursor over the hostiles they can be ID'd. Some may consider this meta but I do not. The reason is this. A real life hunter or tracker knows the difference between a gnoll print and a deer print, or the smell of orcs and say goblins. The game mechanics do not allow you to see and identify prints or other sign, but IMO make up for this by letting you identify the hostile using your cursor. Its then up to you to RP it consistently. Hopefully people don't just say "there are three orcs over behind those rocks there." I view the cursor ID as just another RP aid.

Generally, if the hostiles are far away from my PC or like behind rocks I don't ID them using the cursor (and emote and RP appropriately) until I get close enough for my toon to actually see, smell or hear them through the trees.

Some points presented here are quite decent, the approaches are inspiring.

Keep in mind though, that ultimately the decision will be up to the DM team of your server, and the individual DM you are with at a time.

It's really cool to see some of the creative thoughts here though.

It's also an eye-opener for me, I didn't even know about the brown dots until I read this thread.

The Detect Undead spell does something similar, putting dots on the minimap, except only for undead. That does properly function like radar. There might be other similar spells for other things.

What would people think about a detect magic or evil or lawful etc spell working this way? having dots of certain intensities show up on the mini map?

bartleby wrote:What would people think about a detect magic or evil or lawful etc spell working this way? having dots of certain intensities show up on the mini map?

Awesome if it would work......better ask the evil PCs how they feel though

Why? Detect Good works just as well. People should face the consequences for their choices. Although I don't think being "evil" is enough to put you away.

dergon darkhelm wrote:

bartleby wrote:What would people think about a detect magic or evil or lawful etc spell working this way? having dots of certain intensities show up on the mini map?

Awesome if it would work......better ask the evil PCs how they feel though

Hehe Thats what i thought too but if detect was in all non detection and masking spells would have to be in as well. Cant havea + with out a - might be good for RP *shrugs*

good point! maybe not as much of a must have right now, but a "nice thing"

Kalrenath wrote:Why? Detect Good works just as well. People should face the consequences for their choices. Although I don't think being "evil" is enough to put you away.

As long as the spell detects "aura" and not "alignment" as per PnP that would probably be fine. ((so long as it took into account alingment masking efforts by the bad guy))

As a player of an (alleged) evil PC I can say that if I were evil I would certainly take great pains to cast undetecatble alignment or other non-detection magic.

If that could be scripted appropriately then go for it

Bear in mind that the detect spells, are, in the main, blocked by quite thin amounts of ordinary building materials, and so shouldn't really be operable as an "Out of line of site Radar".

Blocked by:
1 foot of stone
1 inch of common metals
A thin sheet of lead
3 feet of wood

So in the typical dungeon, stone walls and metal doors, it will NOT detect the things out of line of site. Ditton in a mature forest - the goblin on the other side of a 100 year old oak will not be spotted.

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Plus it only lasts as long as you concentrate.