Penny Arcade - Comic - Eras

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Penny Arcade - Comic - Eras

Videogaming-related online strip by Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins. Includes news and commentary.

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Johnny17

I actually knew someone who joined the military and used to play DnD as a teenager.

...

ok he has a desk job but I'm pretty sure he _could_ order an assassination if there is a popular war going on.

Quid

Johnny17 wrote: »

I actually knew someone who joined the military and used to play DnD as a teenager.

...

ok he has a desk job but I'm pretty sure he _could_ order an assassination if there is a popular war going on.

D&D is popular in a lot of military fields. Helps that everything needed is easily transported or replicated.

cckerberos

I had an article pop up in my newsfeed saying that people shouldn't go back to play the old games before starting 3.

And when I saw the title, my thought was that that was a fair opinion, as there are a lot of ways those games haven't aged well. I recently bought the console releases and am planning to go through them again, but I'm under no illusions that it won't be a somewhat bumpy ride.

But when I actually read the article, it was mostly complaining about THAC0 and how it's weird that lower AC is better. Which would be way down on my list of reasons to steer people away from the games.

syndalis

cckerberos wrote: »

I had an article pop up in my newsfeed saying that people shouldn't go back to play the old games before starting 3.

And when I saw the title, my thought was that that was a fair opinion, as there are a lot of ways those games haven't aged well. I recently bought the console releases and am planning to go through them again, but I'm under no illusions that it won't be a somewhat bumpy ride.

But when I actually read the article, it was mostly complaining about THAC0 and how it's weird that lower AC is better. Which would be way down on my list of reasons to steer people away from the games.

The enhanced editions had just enough QoL fixes and resolution support to make it viable for people willing to deal with an older game that was quite punishing at the early levels.

BG1 is MUCH harder to get into if you have not personally experienced the slog to level 5 in 2nd edition before. If you play a wizard or thief be prepared to die from single hits early on, and often.

Tofystedeth

syndalis wrote: »

cckerberos wrote: »

I had an article pop up in my newsfeed saying that people shouldn't go back to play the old games before starting 3.

And when I saw the title, my thought was that that was a fair opinion, as there are a lot of ways those games haven't aged well. I recently bought the console releases and am planning to go through them again, but I'm under no illusions that it won't be a somewhat bumpy ride.

But when I actually read the article, it was mostly complaining about THAC0 and how it's weird that lower AC is better. Which would be way down on my list of reasons to steer people away from the games.

The enhanced editions had just enough QoL fixes and resolution support to make it viable for people willing to deal with an older game that was quite punishing at the early levels.

BG1 is MUCH harder to get into if you have not personally experienced the slog to level 5 in 2nd edition before. If you play a wizard or thief be prepared to die from single hits early on, and often.

So many level 1 wizards, killed and eaten by house cats.

MagicalGoats

Friend of mine that I introduced to Baldur's Gate 1&2 a few years back had that experience with a bear. Natural response was to attack a brown bear on the very first map.
Quickly found out why low level is not the time to faff about. Also found out Xzar and Montaron are absolutely FINE traveling companions for even a good party! The traveling group suddenly went from being "Only the best NPCs need apply!!" to "I think the necromancer is a cannibal but the murderhobo tank won't stick around if I kick him out"

RatherDashing89

I always wondered about the cRPGs based on old D&D because, from my understanding, an integral part of the "everyone has a couple hit points and the mage gets one spell a day" that was present in the old tabletop games, was that combat was a fail state because you didn't successfully evade or negotiate with the badguys. So I could see where a video game, where you are much more likely to have to fight the enemies, would be pretty difficult to work through when using a mechanical system from a game that disincentivized combat.

Eat it You Nasty Pig.

well, also games were being run by a DM who (presumably) didn't want the players to get killed by rats in the first 15 minutes

as opposed to run by a game run by a heartless machine that neither cares if the party is killed by rats or tires of killing them

Eat it You Nasty Pig.

like I vividly remember playing BG1 on a starter mage and getting to the part that's very obviously meant to teach you how combat works (kill three rats in the store room or whatever), and just not being able to do it. Poor guy had probably rolled like, two health or something

then of course I learned that the true way to play mage was to start as a fighter, then dual class at level two

Hevach

My first experience with the 2nd edition based games was Planescape. Which apparently of the lot was the easiest, because I barely even used magic and just ground through the slow way rest spamming. The main character could become absurdly overpowered if you tracked down all the random little upgrades like his lost finger and memories he left behind, and dialog choices with several NPCs could unlock huge upgrades (like the guy with the shapeshifting sword). Breezed through it without much problem, then started BG1 and several hours in took a break (which ended up lasting nine years) after describing it as, "Dragging the pickup group from hell through Upper Black Rock Spire." Rest spamming just resulted in my paladin declaring me a false friend and fucking off leaving us all trapped in a place we'd only come to in the first place because *his* sister was being held captive.

YoungFrey

Since I am not in tune with releases, I legit thought this game came out 3 years ago. I remember watching videos. Early pandemic, sitting in my car at the vet's office, waiting for my Labrador to come back. So here I am thinking "did they re-release BG3?" "Fix a enough bugs to make it good?"

dennis

YoungFrey wrote: »

Since I am not in tune with releases, I legit thought this game came out 3 years ago. I remember watching videos. Early pandemic, sitting in my car at the vet's office, waiting for my Labrador to come back. So here I am thinking "did they re-release BG3?" "Fix a enough bugs to make it good?"

I'm kind of in a similar boat. I watched Jerry play it for a while and thought, "Wait, this plot seems really familiar with all the Illithids putting babies in people's brains and such."

Tofystedeth

It's been in Early Access for a long while. I think the whole first Act was available.

V1m

Eat it You Nasty Pig. wrote: »

like I vividly remember playing BG1 on a starter mage and getting to the part that's very obviously meant to teach you how combat works (kill three rats in the store room or whatever), and just not being able to do it. Poor guy had probably rolled like, two health or something

then of course I learned that the true way to play mage was to start as a fighter, then dual class at level two

Cleric. You start as a Cleric then multiclass.

MagicalGoats

Eat it You Nasty Pig. wrote: »

like I vividly remember playing BG1 on a starter mage and getting to the part that's very obviously meant to teach you how combat works (kill three rats in the store room or whatever), and just not being able to do it. Poor guy had probably rolled like, two health or something

then of course I learned that the true way to play mage was to start as a fighter, then dual class at level two

Want to play as a mage? Roll a bard.
Want to play as a fighter? Roll a bard.
Want to play as a thief? Roll a bard.
Want to not have to deal with Haer`Dalis (... I think I spelled that right)? You guessed it. Roll a bard.

Pyrian

Bard: Jack of all Trades, Master of None Any

Dratatoo

V1m wrote: »

Eat it You Nasty Pig. wrote: »

like I vividly remember playing BG1 on a starter mage and getting to the part that's very obviously meant to teach you how combat works (kill three rats in the store room or whatever), and just not being able to do it. Poor guy had probably rolled like, two health or something

then of course I learned that the true way to play mage was to start as a fighter, then dual class at level two

Cleric. You start as a Cleric then multiclass.

BG1: Simply give your casters a ranged weapon they can carry.