Travel: Final Fantasy vs. Baldur's Gate

Ronan · Post by **Ronan** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 7:04 pm

I definitely ment for each server to do their own. A travel server with more travel areas is possible as well, but I don't think thats likely to occur.

HEEGZ · Post by **HEEGZ** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 9:55 pm

The travel map can easily look realistic and be done well. I wouldn't be pursuing it if that were not the case. Perhaps I shouldn't have posted pictures of an early build but they can look as realistic as any normal sized exterior, or nearly so.

- HEEGZ

ElCadaver · Post by **ElCadaver** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 10:00 pm

I'd have a look at the Warhammer Mark of Chaos Demo as one good example of overland maps... and a cool intro video

Castano · Post by **Castano** » Fri Nov 24, 2006 6:03 am

this is a great concept. I've wanted something like this for ages as scale never transfers properly between rural and town areas to begin with.

bartleby · Post by **bartleby** » Fri Nov 24, 2006 6:08 pm

I take it there is no possible way to fix how broken NWN2 is then? No hope the community can pull something out of their nether regions and patch something together akin to the NWN1 system?

Because if the goal is to recreate faerun i just dont see an over land map doing it. I want to be in the nitty gritty of it all right from the get go.

Ronan · Post by **Ronan** » Sat Nov 25, 2006 1:09 am

bartleby wrote:I take it there is no possible way to fix how broken NWN2 is then?

You mean fix the module size and RAM limitations? I doesn't look that way currently, though tile-based exteriors may provide a solution.

In any case I'd think some people would still want to use this system. For caravan and boat travel, scripted cutscenes could be used with wagon and boats, etc. IK would probably need it for something like that, I'd assume?

Its not something builders have to use, of course.

Vendrin · Post by **Vendrin** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 11:09 am

I like it Ronan. While not perfect, it's better then a static map.

Leareth · Post by **Leareth** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 5:53 pm

bartleby wrote:I take it there is no possible way to fix how broken NWN2 is then? No hope the community can pull something out of their nether regions and patch something together akin to the NWN1 system?

Because if the goal is to recreate faerun i just dont see an over land map doing it. I want to be in the nitty gritty of it all right from the get go.

It isn't exactly broken but the reality of hardware and memory is in our way right now. I suspect well find ways around it in time but right now, not likely.

Leareth

White Warlock · Post by **White Warlock** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 11:09 pm

Frankly, i prefer this way to travelling endlessly on countless areas devoid of other players and pretty much anything to do but look at scenery. That's not how we played D&D in the past, it's the way we played PG-type MMORPGs like EQ and WoW. We want to encourage roleplay, we need to find means to bring the area to player ratio down, and this approach is a good one. The fact this game engine restricts us from doing the same foolish mistake committed with ALFA1, only makes me more happy, becaues we're pretty much forced to go the route that helps this community move closer to the underlying goals of creating a 'roleplay-oriented' persistent world. And to tell you the truth, the vast majority of Faerun' is friggin' dull. It's only the highlighted areas, the towns and special interest points, that provide content to entertain us. Other than that, it's miles and miles of hoping for DM intervention. Or, in a tabletop session, "roll a 8 d20. Nope, no encounters. After travelling many miles, you reach Waterdeep a little tired and hungry. You're nerves no longer on edge, your defenses now down, you enter past the gates only to be pickpocketed by a swarm of urchins." Doh!

HEEGZ · Post by **HEEGZ** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 11:41 pm

White Warlock wrote:Frankly, i prefer this way to travelling endlessly on countless areas devoid of other players and pretty much anything to do but look at scenery. That's not how we played D&D in the past, it's the way we played PG-type MMORPGs like EQ and WoW. We want to encourage roleplay, we need to find means to bring the area to player ratio down, and this approach is a good one. The fact this game engine restricts us from doing the same foolish mistake committed with ALFA1, only makes me more happy, becaues we're pretty much forced to go the route that helps this community move closer to the underlying goals of creating a 'roleplay-oriented' persistent world. And to tell you the truth, the vast majority of Faerun' is friggin' dull. It's only the highlighted areas, the towns and special interest points, that provide content to entertain us. Other than that, it's miles and miles of hoping for DM intervention. Or, in a tabletop session, "roll a 8 d20. Nope, no encounters. After travelling many miles, you reach Waterdeep a little tired and hungry. You're nerves no longer on edge, your defenses now down, you enter past the gates only to be pickpocketed by a swarm of urchins." Doh!

+1

And exactly the route I'm hoping to take. Should have my proposal posted this week...

- HEEGZ

Inaubryn · Post by **Inaubryn** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 1:36 am

Ronan and I were discussion' this because I had forgotten how the FF series of games worked as far as travel. But, then I remembered.

PCs would travel a road that would rep some road in Faerun, let's say the Traders Way. I would assume encounter triggers would be painted on the road and at someplaces off the road, potential campsites for example. If the PCs were to trip an encounter, they'd transition into an actual encounter area.

They would see what enemy they're facing and how many and a GUI menu would come up. You'd have two choices, "Fight" or "Run". You select fight, then you fight. You select run... the computer rolls dex checks for the monsters and PCs. If the PCs' check is higher than the monsters, they transition back into the travel map. If it is lower, then they have to fight. Every three rounds or so, the option to run could come back up, with the same checks recurring.

Thoughts?

Stormseeker · Post by **Stormseeker** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 2:35 am

How would this work with lone pc's or small parties? Would someone traveling the same road be able to have the choice to join in on a existing battle? or would they not know at all about those fighting in a area? Thats what i am wondering about, many a time i was either saved or saved someone else just traveling the roads.

Mulu · Post by **Mulu** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 2:54 am

Seems like stealth, invisibility spells, shapechange, etc. should all play roles in being able to avoid an encounter. Maybe even bluff or intimidate depending on what's encountered.

But aside from that, it mostly reminds of FF. I thought we were here to roleplay?

White Warlock · Post by **White Warlock** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 10:01 am

Mulu wrote: But aside from that, it mostly reminds of FF. I thought we were here to roleplay?

And sans DMs to interact with us, providing us possible encounters, how would you prefer we handle travel? It's not an issue of roleplay, it's an issue of statics. Roleplay occurs when opportunities for roleplay are provided by DMs and other players. When such is not available, we either have statics... or nothing. Considering this is a 24/7 persistent world, we have to assume DMs and other players may not always accommodate our need to play, travel, and adventure. Roleplay encompasses the process of 'communication' and interaction. It has only a small footprint in survival. When you're on the road, it's about survival. To intimate such, we need statics.

Ronan · Post by **Ronan** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 10:45 am

I find statics far more enjoyable with other players around. The travel area allows statics and encounters to be made much easier than they would be otherwise (playing random encounters in the travel area = putting down a trigger, placing random encounters in OE's overland map = PITA scripting), and allows different options more easily implemented (do we go over the mountains, or around them?). Then there is the fact that you can chat with people while walking in the travel area... I dunno, seems a win/win to me, biggest problems are graphical oddities from the scaling really.