Firstly, hello. You may have met my rather pallid Elf (Unen Dana) wandering lost around the isles.

Just thought I'd give some feedback and thoughts about the world - maybe give some ideas that have been overlooked through familiarity, or maybe just to give you some amusement because 'things are not done this way here, stranger'.

I think there is a nice balance here between roleplay and playability - it is not as 'hardcore' RP as some servers I visited where magic is rare and healing is nigh-on impossible. The focus is on characters, but not to the degree you need to spend days recovering from wounds and other 'realism' changes.

There are a few things I find strange though (here we go..)

Balancing, parties, and roleplay. Quite often now I have hit 'flat spots', where I die quite often. It has become quite common for me to finish playing with a few thousand xp less than when I started. I know, many will scream 'be in a party!' - I'll get to that shortly. Unless my character is fighting enemies that give 1 to 10 xp each, there is a very high chance of death, and mainly due to the size of the mobs surrounding the character making it impossible to run away. Obviously sometimes it is my explorations taking me to far too dangerous areas where I just get hit one or two times and die, but even the mobs on Caraigh where I can fight I just find the numbers they have win over in the end. Would it be possible to have some script or something to balance spawn size based on parties and levels, so solo fighters do not get quite so many, while larger parties could get more?

Parties.. Ah. I am here for the roleplay first and foremost, and have become quite disillusioned with parties. I cannot bring myself to use the party ball advertiser thing any more, it is a totally OOC method to get people together for grinding. I would prefer to join a group IC and go 'adventuring', not grind. I did enough of that on pure PvP servers. There could be other systems - even a simple notice board in the busier areas such as Cordor, Wiltun, Amia Forest - where people can 'advertise' an expedition, take a seat and wait for others that would be interested. That is just a thought though..

It could, however, remove another pet hate I have seen here. These OOC parties are.. just for grinding. Too many times I have seen characters from totally opposing views (even ones that should be hostile to each other?) happily grinding away at the xp mine, forgetting about any roleplay. For now I will blame the party ball for this xp whoring, but I hope that makes sense to at least some of you. Unfortunately most of the characters I find myself interacting with are high level, so adventuring has no benefit beyond someone that knows where they are going and some quality roleplay. I guess what I am missing is people of a similar level to go out adventuring and exploring with rather than evil wizard and good paladin just grinding for xp together, filling party chat with ooc....

Another minor annoyance was related to the job system - it seems like potent magical artefacts are more readily available than items needed for day-to-day jobs. Maybe a few more npc merchants dotted around to give the impression of an economy and trade between the cities?

The criticisms done, now on to the praises. This is the easy bit. Unless I mentioned it above, it is good, and I like it. Some of the characters I have met are really really well played. Level designs are great. There are some really nice scripting elements - like 'sailing' from server to server. Some top class work has obviously gone into this!

It is nice to be here, and I hope I have given you some food for thought.

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Yay for Morphine!
Boo for having enough pain to have to use it..

The official stance of the DM team is that there is no such thing as an OOC hunting party. For my part, I'll enforce it whenever possible. For example: you're a goodly cleric/paladin hunting with obviously evil types with their undead or fiendish summons? You're getting fallen. If you say it was OOC? Guess what: you're still fallen.

Also, parties that don't RP while they hunt aren't getting anything like an impromptu DM event to spice things up, at least not from me.

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Named Most Influential Character, Amia Awards 2011

Amia's critters aim to stop soloers even if certain classes will still have it easy enough to solo. Only people who are well versed into playing whatever they chose will be able to face the challenge. I know my rogue was barely surviving goblins at level 11, but my druid had no problems with orcs at level 4. If you don't know much about mechanics, what spells / potions do and what protections you need where it's likely you will find anything hard. Certain classes have it hard by default so party-ing is a must for them.

As for the party ball, I like it. I don't always have the time luxury of asking every single person my character meets if they would go adventuring with her and be in-range as well so the ball helps create meeting opportunities, if the characters decide they can work together then the hunting begins. I always think my character would have been searching for hours and hours and that was the time they found someone since I can't be there 24/7 as she would be there.

Also, come to Winya Ravana and you may just find the hunting buddies you've been missing.

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Get Ready for It
Forum lurker.

The Party ball is one of the best things ever made.

Since you are new I'll tell you that once long ago we ddn't have a party ball system.

All we had to tell us if we were even in range was the difficulty rating.

Remember that, old players? When if another player was either "Very Easy" or "Impossible" they couldn't hunt together?

Then it would force ALL characters practically into meeting areas to find adventurers(Usually Cordor). It caused a lot of grief in Cordor when bad guys showed up looking for parties.

The Party Ball actually helped people to OOC find other players, at which point they can arrange an "IC meeting" and see if the classes/align/beliefs fit for party hook up.

It is good to know it is not an expected thing, rather an unfortunate activity that seems to happen. I was not meaning to call anyone out by it though, just stating it as my own personal thoughts - and a pre-emptive reply to 'you need a party' posts. It is why I have resigned myself to solo adventuring - most the xp I earn lately comes from following the Job system as it does not kill me, haha.


I am 'stuck' at 10, and would have been stuck before then if I didn't set aside my RP preferences to leech in a grind party.. I know there will be tricks that can only come with experience and familiarity. Just a bit frustrating to think that killing 10,000 goblins at 1xp each will be faster than going somewhere else to die a lot.. *heads off to the forest to RP instead*



I had not thought about it that way - more a method of 'life goes on' even when not logged in. I only saw it as an ooc device for grinding. Good reasoning.


I will.. I *think* I remember how to get there, though the previous time I was there it was a ghost town...

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Yay for Morphine!
Boo for having enough pain to have to use it..

O, damn. I must have forgotten to activate the Karōshi system...

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Say 'no' to JSBF!

Yeah, it has good days and empty days, also timezone favored... again a thing that needs experience so you know who the usual Winyan players are and when it's most likely to find one around.

And I know your pain if you play a typical elf. Every other party has a goblin, orc, necromancer in it that it's hard to spontaneously find parties to join. Think first levels are hardest, after you reach 10, you can role-play around the city and sooner or later you will find someone within range. Think the best level to have such chances is 15.

Feel free to add me on msn or yahoo or PM me with any questions you might have about it. I know how empty Winya can look at times.

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Get Ready for It
Forum lurker.

... This was great. This is what meeting areas are *for*. To meet for preliminary RP before you go off and do your thing. But I've always disliked the silly party ball thing, it's always used OOC and always followed by the words "Toss me a portal?" in party.

Anyways, as for soloing/partying: The best parties are 3-4 man. Bigger we support but in my opiion it gets clustered. Soloing is boring and I don't really care who says it: If you're soloing you're missing the point of a multiplayer server, most of the time.

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Davion Telemos - Monk of the Four Winds
Korthan Isharnos - Dragon Shaman of Thunder Spirit Zamasham

OMFG THIS


Hate soloing. It makes me want to rip my hair out. (And I have nice hair)

Also, if you're "stuck" at a lvl (We who play, say, crappy-built wizards have aaaaaaall been there)

Ask around oocly. Most of the time there's SOMEONE who has a char in your range, wants to RP, and is bored as hell. I know I have like thirty ranging from lvl 2 to lvl 26. Someone in there is your lvl and is OOCly appropriate for you to hunt with. They may just not be one I pull on all the time, but nudge me and they can play.

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Aly'dra Zau'ana: Priestessish Of Eilistraee
Danika Nefzen: Druid of the Earthmother
Delia Am'Anodel: Paladin of Torm

His point is that he, admirably, wants nothing to do with OOC, or asking people OOCly. That is something to strive for.

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Davion Telemos - Monk of the Four Winds
Korthan Isharnos - Dragon Shaman of Thunder Spirit Zamasham

Do I hear the word "compromise" hanging in the air?

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Say 'no' to JSBF!

No they don't.

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I play: Gage le Gris
Socially and recently politically Inept Knight of Xymor

Party ball is awesome. I've met some great characters with its help, and it always almost ends up being good RP. You just have to make it clear from the beginning: I will talk IC and refuse to rush the spawns if I'm still in the middle of RP, I won't respond to irrelevant OOC comments, I always RP the encounter like I would meeting any new person.

It would be even better if it was IC, but it's only fosters RP as is.

Good points, though.

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Yeah...I used the party ball...but instead of OOCly just hooking up with them..my character had a code..

In order to hunt with anyone..he either needed to know their name or must have been introduced.

If he didn't get the name he'd either leave or even attack the person who did not introduce themselves.

Organising OOC and hunting OOC are different. PnP you organise to have characters meet in a party OOC, you do the same here most of the time in varying degree's. Now if you do this, in my opinion thats fine, but I believe the problem is when everyone ignores party RP in favor of hunting for XP. That is frowned upon big time. I believe what is being said, or least from what I understand, is that you should have your party RP, regardless of how you went about organising the party to form.

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I keels u with my axe!

"Do ye know where the Holy-Flamin' Frost-brand Gronk-slayin' Vorpal Hammer o' woundin' an' returnin' an' Shootin'-Lightnin'-out-yer-bum is?"

I <3 the party ball.... hard...... in all sorts of ways... with blow-up dolls and other devices... you don't even want to know the rest..... needless to say, it involves duct tape, goats and tapioca pudding.

Seriously though, I whore out the party ball. It will create some really interesting dynamics. I've had people join the group and come to wherever we happen to be gathering before the hunt (I never ask about alignment/class/religion or any of that) and had all sorts of opposing characters show up. I think it's great. It adds a certain spice to the whole experience. Yeah, you can look at it as a purely OOC element, and in some ways it is. But you can look at it as an OOC element to facilitate IC RP and in that respect it's awesome. Yeah, they may be in your range, but is your pally really gonna risk falling to grind for that 5k that s/he needs to get that next level? I know I wouldn't. I had a BG fall and it took me the better part of 2 months to get her back in good graces (Shout out to Gers for that!).

If someone disregards the IC aspect of what's going on, they deserve whatever they get. However, used properly, the party ball is awesome.

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"I once took the high road and it took me straight to hell and I stood there all by myself." -Hank III

Please don't stop using the party ball. Over the past week I have had a *single* party organized via the party ball turn out to be an OOC grind, so one of us must be getting some sort of luck. But I'll still sleep better at night knowing more RPers are using the ball.

Just yesterday I used the party ball to find a party. But I refused to come anywhere unless one of them would talk with my character.

This 'talk' ended up sounding so threatening I was escorted by two other characters to the place. But they were already inside then and so we just took a hike back to Cordor, only to meet the group I originally had to meet on their way back to Cordor.

Some talk ansured and then ANOTHER group of adventurers bumped into us.

It was more crowded than Cordor, that it was.

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"Most assume that all the followers of Lathander are great morning people. They're very wrong."
"I think we are the only group where AD&D stands for Attention Deficit Disorder."

Can't believe it; I wholly agreee.

Also going to add "Don't run away! I'm still trying to talk to you!" as a quick-slot

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Jess Incognito:- Ah, but the phoenix may fly only when its feathers are grown...

Olaf Grudgebringer: Stroppy Cleric or Morradin

Krunk (Underdark): Stay back! He's a bit mad.

the_incognitos@live.com

How do you do that exactly, I'd love to know.

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Get Ready for It
Forum lurker.

Right Click your quickslot -> top option (Custom Text Macro) -> Type in your tag (whatever you want to appear in the box to let you know what it is) -> Type: /tk "Don't run away! I'm still trying to talk to you!"

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Remember when I knew a boxer, baby

When I turn my back on someone I take a few steps forward after my parting shot...and wait.

Most cases even talking goes back and forth, and a lot of times I actually allow the player their last word/act/emote etc.

As far as OOC/IC party talk, if you want others to RP during hunting, your best bet is to lead by example and simply start talking/emoting. It never fails. Somene WILL follow suit, and they will RP...and even that little interruption in the grinding makes all the difference.

I have mixed feelings on the party ball. It is handy, and I've seen it used as just a tool where the party runs into each other ICly, introduces, and proceeds, which is awesome, and I've also seen the OOC use, where I'm lucky if 2 words are IC, it's port, slash slash slash, k thx for party.

It is kind of about luck sometimes; sometimes you get an awesome group and sometime you get a horrible one. Up to you how you want to handle it, but I do feel the pain on it.

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I wish the Party Ball ported you to Triumvirs pub, which becomes the nexus for travelling.

Wont happen because of Drow etc.

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I play: Gage le Gris
Socially and recently politically Inept Knight of Xymor

Actually, that might be doable... However, it'd also probably require creating an evil teleporting hub for drow/etc. The Demon's Den in the Abyss has always been underused, I think. >>

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Named Most Influential Character, Amia Awards 2011

Or just make two pubs?

One good pub;And one evil pub; at each side of the triumvir. Same owner of course, but he realised it would be better for business to open up two pubs instead of one?

Oh, and Mean mean bouncers.

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Amia Minecraft Server Ip: vps1602.directvps.nl
NWN Damage Calculator: http://www.afterlifeguild.org/Thott/dnd/
NWN Build Calculator: http://nwvault.ign.com/View.php?view=Other.Detail&id=856

The Racial ban on Drow etc going to Cordor would be thoroughly circumvented if you just let it go like that.

However the Noway Inn on B works, and Kampos on A. No Racial locks out there, suitably seedy and mercenary etc both nexus areas on their respective servers.

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I play: Gage le Gris
Socially and recently politically Inept Knight of Xymor

I actually like this idea...

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Persephone Ashallin - Persistant Salandran
Vrok - Cudgel?

The discussion of parties have been the focus of every reply so far.. there was other things too!

Things are better now, my character knows more other characters, and I've been given a few tips on surviving while alone (no spellcraft check or level restriction on summon scrolls? *buys invisibility potions and scrolls*). I still die quite often when I fight, but I have a better chance now.

The 'Adventurer's Inn' is a nice idea for finding a party. I will make a point of visiting Inns more often, so even if it does not become a game mechanic, it could become a player convention. Looking for some fellow adventurers? Go to the pub..

One thing I would like to know is if it is possible to change the entry point? I log in to the 'welcome to Amia' area, knowing that once I walk through the magic mirror my nature-loving hippy elf is going to find himself in the city! Maybe it is some curious self-hate sleepwalking that forces him to wake there.. I would like to log in to a nice secluded grove somewhere.

I still have a long list of questions, but all in good time.

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Yay for Morphine!
Boo for having enough pain to have to use it..

Yups. Bind to a crystal node of your liking and use the rest menu to make it your default spawn in point.

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Say 'no' to JSBF!

Ah, thank you!

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Yay for Morphine!
Boo for having enough pain to have to use it..

The triumvir has no need for a "good" and an "Evil" pub and the very idea of that makes me groan with cheese.

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Davion Telemos - Monk of the Four Winds
Korthan Isharnos - Dragon Shaman of Thunder Spirit Zamasham

Good/Evil areas to party ball to is silly. Turning an OOC tool into an IC tool then turning it back into an OOC tool makes no sense to me.

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I play: Gage le Gris
Socially and recently politically Inept Knight of Xymor

Oh c'mon... Some cheese is good. At least it's less cheese than the
-"HEY YOU, THROW ME A PORTAL!" Char 1
-"SUURE THING!" char 2
-"IIINCOOOMIIIING!" Entire party

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Amia Minecraft Server Ip: vps1602.directvps.nl
NWN Damage Calculator: http://www.afterlifeguild.org/Thott/dnd/
NWN Build Calculator: http://nwvault.ign.com/View.php?view=Other.Detail&id=856

I would agree that the Party Ball is a lazy way of finding party members... HOWEVER... when someone is new to a server, doesn't know where the good and evil bases are, and doesn't know any of the playerbase it is actually a helpful tool in meeting people. I definitely could live without it however.

I also agree that party chat makes lots of people into lazy roleplayers, although it is nice to just chill with friends sometime. But this is something i can do on MSN or in Tell and not ruin the role play experience.

Finally, I have played evil characters and partied with good characters. It really depends on the characters' mindsets and whats going on. For instance, if an evil character believes in simply tricking whomever he or she is with it works out just fine. But then we ended up butting heads and our excellent leveling party exploded into some heated roleplay which lead to PvP. I had great fun although I doubt my character will be able to party again with those certain characters unless he feebleminds them first and wears a disguise... lol.

Yea, cheese it right. Also, you know, putting a pub on each side and allowing them the ability to meet in the middle, yet never fight each other because the "bouncers" are another set of unkillable super powered NPC's will likely just piss people off even more. If the bouncers where killable, even with a DM's help, Trimvuir would fast become a warzone.

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I keels u with my axe!

"Do ye know where the Holy-Flamin' Frost-brand Gronk-slayin' Vorpal Hammer o' woundin' an' returnin' an' Shootin'-Lightnin'-out-yer-bum is?"