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Sep. 11th, 2007
Arcanum Stupidity
Sep. 11th, 2007 01:19 pmI've been back playing Arcanum lately.
I don't know why. I've beaten it any number of times, after all. On the other hand, the permutations are kind of interesting.
One thing I tried was re-activating an old character, an idiot savant ogre with technological skills - wait a minute. I'd better explain:
Arcanum is a computer RPG set in a Victorian-type world. Magic was formerly dominant, but technology has started to change the world. It's far more flexible than Diablo, with lots of different types of spells, social skills and technological skills. There's no way to master all of them, so character builds are important. Technology and magic are incompatible; if you're good at one, you can't be good at the other.
Anyway, I'd started the tech ogre long ago. My goal was to create an ogre who could have a high enough intelligence to create ogre-sized elite plate armor. You see, armor for ogres is relatively rare; you can find large leather armor sometimes, and there are a few ogres you can kill to get large guard armor or even a couple of suits of chainmail, but there's simply no way to get elite plate armor for an ogre. Unless, that is, you make it.
I wasn't originally sure that I would be able to make it. There's a recipe for making elite plate , but it's not specifically for large plate. I suspected that if I used large leather armor as a base instead of regular leather armor, the result would be large plate - and it was.
Otherwise I'd specialized in making the ogre a combat specialist, of course. No point in having elite plate if you're not going to be fighting!
The problem was that ogres tend to be dumb. So you have to take an extreme character background to get their intelligence high enough to learn how to make elite plate. In fact, I'm pretty sure that there are only two backgrounds which give enough of an INT boost to make elite plate possible. One of them is "sickly", which has some severe drawbacks. The other is "idiot savant", which means that you talk like an idiot no matter how intelligent you are.
It turns out, though, that if you take idiot savant there are a lot of things that you simply can't do. Some quest areas just won't appear on the map, since they only turn up when you're given the appropriate quest. I tried to get that quest, but the NPC just kept saying something like "Oh, my god, you're just too stupid. Go away."
I went to the quest area, and it was simply empty. So I can't start the series of shrine offerings necessary to the shrine quest. And frankly, the whole thing is a pain.
So I started a sickly ogre. The problem with him is that he's so weak that I'll need to increase his Constitution a LOT, or else elite plate will tire him out in no time. Still, it's worth a try. I'll miss a lot of the social plotline, because I can't spend any extra points on charisma. But I think I'll at least be able to complete the game.
I'm also running a magic-using elf with 20 Willpower, Dex, and Int. I'm trying to get a 20 Charisma, but his background makes his maximum 19. That's a pity, because 20 is a break-point for all attributes; when you hit 20, you get special powers. I'll probably try to do the shrine quest, since one of the sacrifices enhances your Charisma by one. The problem is that I'm not sure if the maximum still applies.
Okay, enough babbling about Arcanum.
I don't know why. I've beaten it any number of times, after all. On the other hand, the permutations are kind of interesting.
One thing I tried was re-activating an old character, an idiot savant ogre with technological skills - wait a minute. I'd better explain:
Arcanum is a computer RPG set in a Victorian-type world. Magic was formerly dominant, but technology has started to change the world. It's far more flexible than Diablo, with lots of different types of spells, social skills and technological skills. There's no way to master all of them, so character builds are important. Technology and magic are incompatible; if you're good at one, you can't be good at the other.
Anyway, I'd started the tech ogre long ago. My goal was to create an ogre who could have a high enough intelligence to create ogre-sized elite plate armor. You see, armor for ogres is relatively rare; you can find large leather armor sometimes, and there are a few ogres you can kill to get large guard armor or even a couple of suits of chainmail, but there's simply no way to get elite plate armor for an ogre. Unless, that is, you make it.
I wasn't originally sure that I would be able to make it. There's a recipe for making elite plate , but it's not specifically for large plate. I suspected that if I used large leather armor as a base instead of regular leather armor, the result would be large plate - and it was.
Otherwise I'd specialized in making the ogre a combat specialist, of course. No point in having elite plate if you're not going to be fighting!
The problem was that ogres tend to be dumb. So you have to take an extreme character background to get their intelligence high enough to learn how to make elite plate. In fact, I'm pretty sure that there are only two backgrounds which give enough of an INT boost to make elite plate possible. One of them is "sickly", which has some severe drawbacks. The other is "idiot savant", which means that you talk like an idiot no matter how intelligent you are.
It turns out, though, that if you take idiot savant there are a lot of things that you simply can't do. Some quest areas just won't appear on the map, since they only turn up when you're given the appropriate quest. I tried to get that quest, but the NPC just kept saying something like "Oh, my god, you're just too stupid. Go away."
I went to the quest area, and it was simply empty. So I can't start the series of shrine offerings necessary to the shrine quest. And frankly, the whole thing is a pain.
So I started a sickly ogre. The problem with him is that he's so weak that I'll need to increase his Constitution a LOT, or else elite plate will tire him out in no time. Still, it's worth a try. I'll miss a lot of the social plotline, because I can't spend any extra points on charisma. But I think I'll at least be able to complete the game.
I'm also running a magic-using elf with 20 Willpower, Dex, and Int. I'm trying to get a 20 Charisma, but his background makes his maximum 19. That's a pity, because 20 is a break-point for all attributes; when you hit 20, you get special powers. I'll probably try to do the shrine quest, since one of the sacrifices enhances your Charisma by one. The problem is that I'm not sure if the maximum still applies.
Okay, enough babbling about Arcanum.
Arcanum Stupidity
Sep. 11th, 2007 01:19 pmI've been back playing Arcanum lately.
I don't know why. I've beaten it any number of times, after all. On the other hand, the permutations are kind of interesting.
One thing I tried was re-activating an old character, an idiot savant ogre with technological skills - wait a minute. I'd better explain:
Arcanum is a computer RPG set in a Victorian-type world. Magic was formerly dominant, but technology has started to change the world. It's far more flexible than Diablo, with lots of different types of spells, social skills and technological skills. There's no way to master all of them, so character builds are important. Technology and magic are incompatible; if you're good at one, you can't be good at the other.
Anyway, I'd started the tech ogre long ago. My goal was to create an ogre who could have a high enough intelligence to create ogre-sized elite plate armor. You see, armor for ogres is relatively rare; you can find large leather armor sometimes, and there are a few ogres you can kill to get large guard armor or even a couple of suits of chainmail, but there's simply no way to get elite plate armor for an ogre. Unless, that is, you make it.
I wasn't originally sure that I would be able to make it. There's a recipe for making elite plate , but it's not specifically for large plate. I suspected that if I used large leather armor as a base instead of regular leather armor, the result would be large plate - and it was.
Otherwise I'd specialized in making the ogre a combat specialist, of course. No point in having elite plate if you're not going to be fighting!
The problem was that ogres tend to be dumb. So you have to take an extreme character background to get their intelligence high enough to learn how to make elite plate. In fact, I'm pretty sure that there are only two backgrounds which give enough of an INT boost to make elite plate possible. One of them is "sickly", which has some severe drawbacks. The other is "idiot savant", which means that you talk like an idiot no matter how intelligent you are.
It turns out, though, that if you take idiot savant there are a lot of things that you simply can't do. Some quest areas just won't appear on the map, since they only turn up when you're given the appropriate quest. I tried to get that quest, but the NPC just kept saying something like "Oh, my god, you're just too stupid. Go away."
I went to the quest area, and it was simply empty. So I can't start the series of shrine offerings necessary to the shrine quest. And frankly, the whole thing is a pain.
So I started a sickly ogre. The problem with him is that he's so weak that I'll need to increase his Constitution a LOT, or else elite plate will tire him out in no time. Still, it's worth a try. I'll miss a lot of the social plotline, because I can't spend any extra points on charisma. But I think I'll at least be able to complete the game.
I'm also running a magic-using elf with 20 Willpower, Dex, and Int. I'm trying to get a 20 Charisma, but his background makes his maximum 19. That's a pity, because 20 is a break-point for all attributes; when you hit 20, you get special powers. I'll probably try to do the shrine quest, since one of the sacrifices enhances your Charisma by one. The problem is that I'm not sure if the maximum still applies.
Okay, enough babbling about Arcanum.
I don't know why. I've beaten it any number of times, after all. On the other hand, the permutations are kind of interesting.
One thing I tried was re-activating an old character, an idiot savant ogre with technological skills - wait a minute. I'd better explain:
Arcanum is a computer RPG set in a Victorian-type world. Magic was formerly dominant, but technology has started to change the world. It's far more flexible than Diablo, with lots of different types of spells, social skills and technological skills. There's no way to master all of them, so character builds are important. Technology and magic are incompatible; if you're good at one, you can't be good at the other.
Anyway, I'd started the tech ogre long ago. My goal was to create an ogre who could have a high enough intelligence to create ogre-sized elite plate armor. You see, armor for ogres is relatively rare; you can find large leather armor sometimes, and there are a few ogres you can kill to get large guard armor or even a couple of suits of chainmail, but there's simply no way to get elite plate armor for an ogre. Unless, that is, you make it.
I wasn't originally sure that I would be able to make it. There's a recipe for making elite plate , but it's not specifically for large plate. I suspected that if I used large leather armor as a base instead of regular leather armor, the result would be large plate - and it was.
Otherwise I'd specialized in making the ogre a combat specialist, of course. No point in having elite plate if you're not going to be fighting!
The problem was that ogres tend to be dumb. So you have to take an extreme character background to get their intelligence high enough to learn how to make elite plate. In fact, I'm pretty sure that there are only two backgrounds which give enough of an INT boost to make elite plate possible. One of them is "sickly", which has some severe drawbacks. The other is "idiot savant", which means that you talk like an idiot no matter how intelligent you are.
It turns out, though, that if you take idiot savant there are a lot of things that you simply can't do. Some quest areas just won't appear on the map, since they only turn up when you're given the appropriate quest. I tried to get that quest, but the NPC just kept saying something like "Oh, my god, you're just too stupid. Go away."
I went to the quest area, and it was simply empty. So I can't start the series of shrine offerings necessary to the shrine quest. And frankly, the whole thing is a pain.
So I started a sickly ogre. The problem with him is that he's so weak that I'll need to increase his Constitution a LOT, or else elite plate will tire him out in no time. Still, it's worth a try. I'll miss a lot of the social plotline, because I can't spend any extra points on charisma. But I think I'll at least be able to complete the game.
I'm also running a magic-using elf with 20 Willpower, Dex, and Int. I'm trying to get a 20 Charisma, but his background makes his maximum 19. That's a pity, because 20 is a break-point for all attributes; when you hit 20, you get special powers. I'll probably try to do the shrine quest, since one of the sacrifices enhances your Charisma by one. The problem is that I'm not sure if the maximum still applies.
Okay, enough babbling about Arcanum.
I have an appointment at 6 PM tomorrow night for my regular biannual dental cleaning. I am very slightly nervous about it.
Why nervous? Well, if you're new here, I have a dental phobia. I've worked on it a lot, and with the help of several techniques plus nitrous oxide in the dentist's chair I've taken much of the edge off of my fear.
But why am I only very slightly nervous? Because I haven't had a problem in several years. Each time I go into the cleaning expecting a root canal, and each time things have been fine. So each time the fear becomes a little less.
What's more, this has been the best six months I've ever had, dentally speaking. In the past I've had twinges of pain in my molars, probably caused by sinus problems or possibly TMJ. But for the past six months, I've had no problems at all, no pains that I can remember...nothing.
Okay, part of my brain notes that it would be ironic and therefore quite in keeping with my life for my first totally pain- and fear-free six months to presage massive, painful root canals. But oddly enough, the rest of my brain isn't buying it. I simply can't panic, and that's a weird feeling. It's like a long-term wound that has healed almost completely; I can tell there's still a little sensitivity there, but it's so slight that it's the relative lack of sensation that feels out of place.
Or, as Alfred Bester once wrote, "If you live with one jeeze big tumor long enough, you miss him when he is cut out."
Why nervous? Well, if you're new here, I have a dental phobia. I've worked on it a lot, and with the help of several techniques plus nitrous oxide in the dentist's chair I've taken much of the edge off of my fear.
But why am I only very slightly nervous? Because I haven't had a problem in several years. Each time I go into the cleaning expecting a root canal, and each time things have been fine. So each time the fear becomes a little less.
What's more, this has been the best six months I've ever had, dentally speaking. In the past I've had twinges of pain in my molars, probably caused by sinus problems or possibly TMJ. But for the past six months, I've had no problems at all, no pains that I can remember...nothing.
Okay, part of my brain notes that it would be ironic and therefore quite in keeping with my life for my first totally pain- and fear-free six months to presage massive, painful root canals. But oddly enough, the rest of my brain isn't buying it. I simply can't panic, and that's a weird feeling. It's like a long-term wound that has healed almost completely; I can tell there's still a little sensitivity there, but it's so slight that it's the relative lack of sensation that feels out of place.
Or, as Alfred Bester once wrote, "If you live with one jeeze big tumor long enough, you miss him when he is cut out."
I have an appointment at 6 PM tomorrow night for my regular biannual dental cleaning. I am very slightly nervous about it.
Why nervous? Well, if you're new here, I have a dental phobia. I've worked on it a lot, and with the help of several techniques plus nitrous oxide in the dentist's chair I've taken much of the edge off of my fear.
But why am I only very slightly nervous? Because I haven't had a problem in several years. Each time I go into the cleaning expecting a root canal, and each time things have been fine. So each time the fear becomes a little less.
What's more, this has been the best six months I've ever had, dentally speaking. In the past I've had twinges of pain in my molars, probably caused by sinus problems or possibly TMJ. But for the past six months, I've had no problems at all, no pains that I can remember...nothing.
Okay, part of my brain notes that it would be ironic and therefore quite in keeping with my life for my first totally pain- and fear-free six months to presage massive, painful root canals. But oddly enough, the rest of my brain isn't buying it. I simply can't panic, and that's a weird feeling. It's like a long-term wound that has healed almost completely; I can tell there's still a little sensitivity there, but it's so slight that it's the relative lack of sensation that feels out of place.
Or, as Alfred Bester once wrote, "If you live with one jeeze big tumor long enough, you miss him when he is cut out."
Why nervous? Well, if you're new here, I have a dental phobia. I've worked on it a lot, and with the help of several techniques plus nitrous oxide in the dentist's chair I've taken much of the edge off of my fear.
But why am I only very slightly nervous? Because I haven't had a problem in several years. Each time I go into the cleaning expecting a root canal, and each time things have been fine. So each time the fear becomes a little less.
What's more, this has been the best six months I've ever had, dentally speaking. In the past I've had twinges of pain in my molars, probably caused by sinus problems or possibly TMJ. But for the past six months, I've had no problems at all, no pains that I can remember...nothing.
Okay, part of my brain notes that it would be ironic and therefore quite in keeping with my life for my first totally pain- and fear-free six months to presage massive, painful root canals. But oddly enough, the rest of my brain isn't buying it. I simply can't panic, and that's a weird feeling. It's like a long-term wound that has healed almost completely; I can tell there's still a little sensitivity there, but it's so slight that it's the relative lack of sensation that feels out of place.
Or, as Alfred Bester once wrote, "If you live with one jeeze big tumor long enough, you miss him when he is cut out."