Posts from Lungworth Auto-translated

— Don't even think about it, or you and your friends won't see any reward. Remember our agreement... Instead, let's have a consolation prize. — The woman stabilized the condition of Gulveig and Veritta, who was now missing one of her arms. — Here, have fun.
— Alright, guys, let's go! — Archer1 clapped his hands energetically and, taking the stranger by the hand, to her obvious displeasure, headed towards the village, where he apparently was supposed to receive money. — Just leave me something, ha-ha!
Archer1 and "Fortuna" leave.

Is it possible to avoid resurrecting player characters every time, so that the NPCs can "have some fun"? Even though they were saved...

Added 2 minutes later

I was actually saying that. I shouldn't have yielded to the opinion of the crowd as a leader...

There's no need to create NPCs for ourselves. They are there to make things difficult, not to help us.

Veritta is dead, or she has faded into the sunset, it doesn't matter.

Well, it's actually good that the RL killed me, otherwise I would have definitely burned out.
I'll just say that I wouldn't want to participate in a game where you have to grind overpowered builds, abuse the combat system, throw in random elements, skip quests, and suck up to every little thing. This isn't some kind of prestigious "hardcore," it's just bullshit, sorry.

I signed up for hardcore, I'm going to play hardcore, and I will continue to do so.
L: This isn't hardcore, it's bullshit.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
The lack of balance, along with the accompanying min-maxing, the sucking up for initiative, and the nasty randomness have always been there; it's just that, like everything else, the grass was greener back then. Or maybe I really do need to retire, because all these experiences are turning into sessions of masochism, where you spend all day, against all odds, grinding numbers, trying to keep everything in your head, which is already occupied with other things, and then all you hear is - this is WEIRD, that is AWFUL, and the third thing is even worse.

Returning to the damn saber, which I still have a bad taste in my mouth about, there is criticism - this is when you raise some kind of question, "Revan, 7 accuracy and 10% crit from one skill is too powerful, maybe it needs to be fixed?". Revan replies that no, it doesn't need to be. Apparently, he has some thoughts on this, but maybe he's just stubborn, it doesn't really matter (I still don't think this ability needed a nerf or removal, but okay). Useful feedback looks like this. This is when you see ways in which, in your opinion, you can improve an existing system and present your version for consideration. Yes, maybe nothing of what is suggested will be used, but the intention itself is noble and useful. But if you repeat the same thing over and over again, then it's no longer criticism, but just a deliberate attempt to annoy someone or, at the very least, spoil their mood for no reason.
The same is true here. I do everything to the best of my human ability. Do I think that the goblin quest was good? No, I don't think so, mainly because of the problems with the game where I have to maneuver between variability/the ability to progress through some events, quests, and interactions with the world, as opposed to some semblance of balance. I took my mistakes into account during this battle, but "feedback" in this game is definitely just bullshit.

Added 34 minutes ago
Oh, and I'll add it while I remember. You can object here, saying that Revan also spoils the players' mood with his bullshit, we spend time, energy, etc., but I don't have the luxury of options, I can either do it or not, and the result largely depends on a number of factors that I, due to my human limitations, cannot influence. Complaining (instead of constructive criticism) about the game, the design of quests, or the motivation of NPCs is like reading someone's story and saying, "Why isn't it like Tolstoy's, and there's a missing comma here... Hmm..." I can't reproach myself for being dishonest, but what else can I do to satisfy (the increased, by the way, over the years) expectations? So that it's not a game with wooden swords, so that it's not frustrating to lose, so that there is some kind of plot, so that there are variable abilities and origins, etc., and so that the battles are interesting, the maps are made, the theme is beautifully designed, the pictures are found/edited, and everything else. Perhaps, all that's missing is for me to draw the art and write the music myself, and even then, something about the crooked anatomy or dissonant melodies would probably be found.

Actually, regarding the sabre, I suggested a fix for the skill where the dance ability would simply be removed, and the dodge bonus in the skill tree would be changed to a hit bonus. When I asked if the other options would then be buffed, you continued the discussion about the sabre instead of asking how I would do it... even though I had already written how, in the case of certain skill branches. For example, I suggested reverting the "Veteran" ability for the Bastards back to the old damage formula and a 10% run modifier. It's strange to say that I didn't offer any solutions to change the situation when that's not the case.

This constant penalty for initiative and the malicious randomness have always been present.

Yes, that's true, but the penalty for initiative is getting harsher and harsher with each iteration. An expansion is supposed to offer something interesting to do. Therefore, players should be motivated to explore and complete quests, rather than just sitting in the tavern and eating meat. But what you're doing is the opposite – it's incredibly demotivating. We can always go work as day laborers in real life and eat meat. In an expansion, we want to be able to kill enemies without the risk of dying from a couple of blows from a random beggar. Okay, dying is part of the game. But in your recent expansions, our characters are constantly resurrected and subjected to all sorts of unpleasant things. So, you're essentially presenting us with a choice: stay in the city and work, or die, but not really die – instead, become enslaved by goblins.

I'm trying to balance variability/the ability to progress through events, quests, and interactions with the world against some semblance of balance.

I don't see the point in obsessing over balance. Entire game studios give up on it, and you want to do something super well on your own.

You're just fiddling with numbers.

I think Ment once tried to create some kind of program for calculating stats. It shouldn't be too complicated. I just haven't had the time to look for something online. But the calculations are really the most frustrating part.

Overall, what I want to say is this: it might spoil your mood, or you might have already gotten over it, but I'll say it anyway. If my expansions seem to be like: "Look, the game is going to favor us, and no one will die, or we'll have a chance to escape" (which is actually the case), then your expansions seem to be like: "Look, Revan is going to throw us a curveball, and we'll wipe out on the very first quest." If the NPCs in my expansion could annoy, amuse, or just do silly things (which is exactly what they're for), then in yours, it seems like they're intentionally making things worse for us. Astarion SUDDENLY agreed WITH ME. Not even with my character, but with ME AS A PLAYER. Because it's in his roleplaying, or because it made our quest much more difficult (as you yourself wrote)? I think it's the latter. The Nemesis that Alex encountered SUDDENLY decided to take revenge not specifically on him, but on all of us. She didn't find him in the city and didn't ambush him in an alley, didn't poison his beer, or push him off a tower. Instead, she bribed the villagers on a quest that affected ALL the players, not just Alex. And yet, you act as if all of this could have been avoided, we just needed to consider a billion nuances, and everything would have worked out. If in my expansion, an unkillable character/an impossible quest is just that – an unkillable character/an impossible quest. And no matter what you do, you'll die or lose. Then in your expansion, there are no unkillable characters and no impossible quests (there used to be), we just need to consider a billion nuances, and we'll win. If we don't, well, it's our own fault, we should have considered them. You act as if we can succeed. And then you do everything you can to prevent that from happening. Or, it's just impossible to succeed from the start, which is not so important.

This doesn't apply to the current expansion, but I still want to mention it. The behavior of your last two characters in my expansions looked like a deliberate search for trouble and death, so that you could then make the same accusations against me that I regularly make against you. You're saying to me: "Look, you also kill me with random beggars, just like I kill you, what's the problem?"

Everything written in the previous two paragraphs is impossible to prove or disprove, and I can't read your mind, but that's how I see it.

I didn't want to add anything to the previous post, but seeing the real sentiments, I will say something.

Yes, what happened wasn't great. Everyone sees it, and everyone agrees, including the GM. Regardless of the reasons, whether it's a new mechanic, balance, or an imperfectly calculated battle, it wasn't great. And during all this, I felt discouraged, like a Heroes player after a defeat, and probably many others felt the same. Because when you and Ples are on your last legs, overcoming everything through incredible skill, which I didn't expect, and which we got lucky with, and through luck in general, you think, "Okay, almost there, I need to try to finish off the wounded and rush that crowd, come on, girl, you're doing so well, you've almost overcome this, *pull through*, please, just *pull through*," and then, ugh, a critical miss with a critical dodge failure and a critical hit, and you're like, WAT?????!!! And you just want to smash your phone against the wall, and what's the point, there's no point...

And then Revan posted that thing with Aerie, where we were resurrected (I still feel bad for Asterion, but perhaps it's harder for other players here than for me), gave an open ending with the wording "you can finish this however you want," and also rolled back the critical failures, and it became clear to me that he understood everything too. And that my emotions were understood, and that Revan doesn't want our enthusiasm to backfire, and that he was genuinely rooting for us, however anyone perceives it. Well, and that's it, after that post, I don't see the point in fanning the flames, complaining, and throwing around loud words.

When I was knocked out in battle, I thought I wouldn't continue, but now I'm motivated, and I intend to write a role-playing post (I plan to finish off the goblins for Gulveig, and you guys can rest and heal, and at the same time, some of you will have an important mission to scout the situation in the village, because normally we wouldn't just go back there without making sure we weren't being ambushed with pitchforks. And also, we need to finish off goblin 1). Well, and... When Revan is able to and regains his time and composure, we'll continue. Those who want to, come with me. Those who don't want to, do as they please. But I urge you not to be too harsh on the person who has spent a lot of his personal time on us.

What else can I do to meet (and, by the way, these expectations have grown over the years)? So that it's not just a game with wooden swords, so that losing isn't frustrating, so that there's some kind of plot, so that there are varied abilities and origins, and so on. And also, create battles, design maps, beautifully format the theme, find/edit pictures, and do everything else. Perhaps, the only thing missing is for me to draw the artwork and write the musical score myself, and even then, something about awkward anatomy or dissonant melodies would probably be found.

So that it's not just a game with wooden swords, so that losing isn't frustrating.

This is the only requirement I have for you, for example. I don't know about the others.

These expectations have grown over the years?

No, I don't believe that. Does anyone really expect Revan to create a world as detailed as Martin or Tolkien, with a billion races, skills, abilities, and so on? You can answer me in the forum if you're too shy to do so here.

The variability of abilities/nations/religions that was in the old expansions, with just one paragraph of description, was more than enough. I don't remember anyone ever being seriously unhappy with the lack of variability, the artwork, or the theme's design. Arandor probably hasn't even read the first few pages of the thread yet.

This doesn't concern the current game, but I still want to say something. The behavior of your last two characters in my games looked like a deliberate attempt to find trouble and die, so that later you could accuse me of the same things that I regularly accuse you of. Like, you're saying to me: "Look, you also kill me with random weaklings, just like I kill you, so what's the problem?".

I don't operate within the context of other people's games, I don't compare myself to them, and I don't use as an example how things went well or badly for someone else. Did I make any claims to you on these (or any other) topics after the games ended or during their course? I don't remember what happened in the previous one, but in the last one (where there was Hanzo), the most I asked was about an alley when guards approached me. Then there was a lot of back-and-forth in private messages with Ples/Loken directly about your reaction, not about your actions as a GM, but I don't think I wrote a single word about it in the thread or to you in private, so I don't know why you're bringing this up.

Added 12 minutes ago

But since you brought it up, I took the time to find this moment:

I didn't feel any benefit from the successful intimidation.

- As you wish.
Hanzo releases the elf from his friendly embrace, throws him at the pikeman, and attacks the swordswoman with a katana.

He should have at least led him into an alley, not pressed him in the middle of the street...

Well, firstly, I wasn't beating him in broad daylight, we were just talking (they have a lot of free time or a lot of staff if they interrogate everyone passing by in the city). And secondly, the guards are guards, but I was the one intimidating him, and he immediately backed down, so there's no ultimate difference between successful intimidation and failed intimidation... He would have surrendered either way.

I realized that you are diligently looking for flaws in the mechanics in order to pick on me. I don't know why, but I won't continue the conversation and explain anything.

I don't think I wrote anything that could be classified as picking on you. I just voiced a thought about one specific event at the moment it was relevant. But whatever.

As far as I remember, I didn't write anything else about this incident anywhere, even after the game ended. And where I said above about my frustration in other people's private messages, let me clarify that I was talking specifically about the second-to-last post from the quoted ones above - not about a GM's mistake in the gameplay, but specifically about his reaction. That's why I'm going to waste my time writing a quest just to "prove something" lol.

Did I make any claims against you (or any other claims at all) after the games were over or during their course? I don't remember what happened in the previous one, but in the last one (where Hanzo was), the most I asked was about an alley when guards approached me. Later, there was a lot of back-and-forth with Ples/Loken directly about your reaction, not about your actions as a GM, but I don't think I wrote a single word in the thread or in a private message to you, so I don't know why you're bringing this up.

The problem isn't that you might accuse me of something in the thread or write that the mechanics are bad, the game is bad, and so on. The problem is that you did it through Hanzo. So that later, when my character dies in your game (remember the stealth Knights), you can protect yourself from my claims (or your own conscience). When I don't like what's happening in your game, I drop it or kill my character myself. But you did everything to make me kill your character. You didn't die on a quest to kill homeless people, you didn't get caught in a trap when leaving the toilet, you didn't get poisoned by fruit in the tavern, you weren't surrounded by stealth Knights while completing the main quest. You were deliberately looking for trouble, when the item you found was offered to be bought for a price that you considered insufficient. You were testing my patience as a GM. It's the same as if Atarax now went around harassing townspeople because he couldn't work and study at the same time; the queen would punish him, and I would start complaining about it in the thread (or in a private message, it doesn't matter).

I have a normal attitude towards you and I'm not trying to offend or annoy you. I just want to point out that you're either deceiving yourself by pretending that the situation was a natural development of your character's personality, or you're deceiving me. That's how I see it, and no other way. And I can feel that you were trying to make me feel guilty in that situation. Maybe you didn't even realize it, but you were acting on emotions and have long forgotten about it. But I still find it unpleasant to remember. Or maybe I'm paranoid and I see insincerity and deception everywhere. I'm bringing it up because we're talking about GMing and the game in general.

Added 6 minutes later

I'll clarify once again that I'm talking specifically about the second-to-last post from the ones quoted above - not about a GM's mistake in the gameplay, but specifically about his reaction. I mean, I'm not going to waste my time writing a quest just to "prove something" lol.

Well, basically, I described everything above, how I perceived it. The reaction was appropriate. It's not implied that you initially wrote the quest to prove something. But you decided to prove something already in the process of the game.

I don't even remember what those stealth knights are, and you're talking about some kind of insurance against complaints... No, I don't do that. To do something on impulse that goes beyond the intended character's personality is fine, but what you're describing is hard for me to understand. Especially since, again, when have I ever reminded anyone of anything? Why would I need an excuse to kill someone's character? I always say what I think. The fight with the goblins turned out badly. Fruits and, in particular, the chest with a bomb are some of my favorite traps, and I still believe they were well-thought-out. What kind of insurance are you talking about? In the last one, I even pleaded (figuratively, of course) with the players not to take the death of their characters too seriously when they died during the quest (which wasn't nearly as bad as this one).

Maybe I'm paranoid and see insincerity and deceit everywhere.

No offense, but I think that's the whole problem, and it's not just you.

No offense, but I think that's the whole problem, and you're not the only one.

Hope is the first step on the road to disappointment...

Guy, who now had only one eye.

When Guy recovers from amnesia, he will remember that his real name was Esmonde Marten.

Since such a heated discussion has started, I'll also add my own unemotional two cents as the main a**hole.
So, what actually happened? A Mage Guild error, or rather, several. An unsuccessful mechanic with critical failures was multiplied by a strange balance – no, I'm not even talking about those unfortunate sabers, but about the fact that without cheating and importing a character, such a weak character simply can't succeed, and, once again, about the fact that Revan saw everything completely differently than the players ultimately did. As a result of this error, the players first thought that there was no correct option in this "corcor" at all, and when they realized that there was, some began to think that the Mage Guild was deliberately messing with them. Let's break it down into numbered points.
First. Critical failures. There are two points here: the first is that they break the tactics and screw over the players – the mobs don't care how many of them fall, but losing a character (or injury in corcor conditions) is a small catastrophe. Several such catastrophes lead to players dropping out of the game. The second is that they are, pardon me, incredibly absurd. It looks very strange to have such low-quality clowning in a hardcore realistic setting. But everyone already understands this, so we're moving on to less obvious things.
Second. I will digress to the private messages and related issues. A bad balance in itself is not a problem. The problem starts when the Mage Guild insists on decisions that are clearly not good for the others. And a hundred and fifty posts in private messages are not an attempt to trigger a rage quit, but simply a reminder that something is going wrong. The problem has been around for a long time, and when a problem exists, everyone points the finger at the person responsible. This happens from kindergarten to Gazprom headquarters, and the expansion is no exception. But here's the thing: if the Mage Guild is stubbornly sticking to "I don't want to, I won't," then all that's left is to accept it. The Mage Guild is the Mage Guild, and the final word is his.
And third... This is a philosophical question. On the one hand, the Mage Guild should never adapt to the players. On the other hand, he should think things through so that all actions of the players within reasonable limits do not lead to a critical failure. This is ideal, and I think that even Mage Guilds with thousands of games of different systems, durations, and formats, those gray-haired elders who can reproduce an 8K-3D picture of the world in their heads based on a single short phrase from a player and a number on a die, are not capable of fully fulfilling both of these principles at the same time. Something has to be sacrificed. Nebok sacrifices the first and feels great. Revan sacrifices the second, and he is also quite confident in his rightness... but the critical failure is then dealt with by both the players who didn't have time to start and wiped out for no reason, and by him, when he has to urgently put patches on the expansion before everything collapses completely. Here, by the way, we see this very attempt to put a patch – an unkillable killer, a Mage Guild character from nowhere, off-screen battles, and a reworked mechanic. Honestly, I won't thank him for that. We calculate builds, Plesen sweats over the tactics, Ment tries to carry the game solo with his character, Nebok loses simply because he's a pushover, a wipe, burning butts, and then – yes, it's all bullshit and a joke. A red-haired piano has already emerged from the bushes, ready to play the final chord of the comedy.

What can we conclude from this? Everyone probably already understands this, but I will repeat it anyway.
We should never expect anything from the Mage Guild. You might as well expect the president to fulfill his promises before the election, honestly. Mage Guilds sometimes behave inappropriately. Awkward mechanics, stupid event logic, Laidas, unsolvable quests – we can always encounter this. But the game is still the Mage Guild's, not mine or yours. Such mistakes and personal weaknesses are quite forgivable for the Mage Guild. What is unforgivable is deliberately screwing over the players. But personally, I don't really believe in that. What I believe in is stubbornness, ill-considered decisions, and the desire to push a line without understanding the consequences. Well, those who believe... Well, you need to have big balls to play with the condition that the Mage Guild is not just creating a mess and a corcor, but intends to harm you and every other player personally.
And the requirement for the Mage Guild himself is simple – he needs to approach the work calmly and with enough time. The roots of this whole situation lie precisely here. The Mage Guild didn't have time – he didn't check how critical failures actually work and what Gulveig is against a goblin and a goblin against a regular enemy. I, while optimizing, calculated about twenty simple test battles – it was already clear how a failure could be resolved. The Mage Guild sits down at the computer, exhausted by real life – a decent suggestion for fixes may completely overwhelm him. The Mage Guild hastily writes a line and creates a quest fork – we have a party wipe. In short, you need to rest more, Revan, and take a break not when everything is falling apart, but when you don't have the inspiration and time to lead.

A red-haired "royaal" has already emerged from the bushes, ready to play the final chord of the comedy.

Actually, Gulveig has a companion skill! The previous one died, and they gave a new one as a replacement.

how I would like it to be:



how it actually is:

On the other hand, he needs to plan things out so that all actions of the players within reasonable limits do not lead to a critical failure.

In fact, it is not so much the ability to think through everything regarding the actions of the players that is important here, although this is also important and useful, but rather the ability to adapt to the circumstances and improvise. Because players will always find some way to deviate from the plan and surprise the GM – they will argue with an important NPC (or even get into a fight), skip an important plot point, side with a faction that was originally intended to be their opponents in a side quest, or do something else. There is a long-standing joke that players can ignore a well-thought-out NPC with a backstory or turn them into a combat encounter, while a randomly created character that was not in the original plans will become their favorite and may ultimately gain some plot significance. The main thing is not to tie any important plot points (and not a hidden alternative path or bonus content) to potentially obscure and specific triggers, assuming that everything may not go exactly as planned. I myself have had problems with this.

Here, you have to sacrifice something. Nebok sacrifices first and feels great. Revan – second.

It's scary to even imagine what I sacrifice in those rare moments when I decide to GM.

Here, by the way, we see this very attempt to use a crutch – an unkillable killer, a GM's character appearing out of nowhere, off-screen battles, and a change of mechanics. Honestly, I can't thank you for that. We count the builds, Mold sweats in tactics, Ment tries to carry the game solo with his charm, Nebok dies just to look cool, it's a massacre, everyone is upset, and then – it's all a joke. A red-haired deus ex machina has already appeared from the bushes to play the final chord of the comedy.

In fact, I personally assumed that Air would come to the rescue in case of a wipe, although I was not entirely sure. To be honest, I don't think such a deus ex machina is too far-fetched or ruins the world, given what Revan described earlier. Failures like this happen, and it is sometimes important for GMs to adapt to the situation, so I even consider such moments to be a good thing – in this situation, I felt sorry not so much for the time or effort invested in the battle, but for the loss of Gulveig in such an absurd way. In the case of a simple wipe, where everything is serious, it would be much sadder. A critical failure devalues the battle and the efforts invested much more than an attempt to mitigate the consequences of this failure, if it comes to that.

Mold sweats in tactics.

For the sake of fairness, I discussed some actions with Ment in private, in case I missed or overlooked something. So I can't say that I was the only one sweating.