Limiting the DM's power?

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Would it be possible for a DM to award "X" amount of bonus points for a really easy task thereby helping their best friend achieve level 20 in one day? Is there going to be a limit on how easily a DM can give out XP?

 

Funky stuff. Maybe someday (this would be really cool) they will make a real-time RPG world using 3rd edition rules. Kind of like Ultima Online. That would be pretty cool.

 

That's exactly what ALFA using NWN is trying to do, except that by eliminating pking/ powergaming etc which so dogged UO and EQ, it will be like comparing this year's Ferrari with a 25 year old rusty Skoda.

Now, if you read the ALFA charter it also says that any DM found to be favouring one group will be booted.

 

My only issue I think is with pking. I think ALFA is going to be great, but will there be evil PCs? It looks like that's the case so why no pking? I understand that pking causes balance problems and can hurt the experience of new players, but has a role in RPGs. I think it's all about role-playing. If, and only if you are role-playing your (evil) character in a proper way I think pking would be OK. Let's face it evil PCs would kill other PCs.

Has this issue been debated? And who is the outcome?

[This message has been edited by Voltric (edited October 16, 2001).]

 

BTA, you are quite right. Killing someone in Waterdeep should have a greater backlash than killing someone in Skullport, but I was just concerned that ALFA was 'disabling' pking all together. I'm all for crime and punishment including death, but not allowing pking would limited the ability and option of evil PCs a lot.

Not that I'm going to be playing an evil PC but it's just he concept and RP oppertunity I'm concerned about.

 

There is something about DM's that seems fishy. Would this "Character Vault" detect real XP pionts. Here is an EX.
I Sign on real realier in the morning, I work my butt off doing quests and gaining XP by killings creatures...etc. Now its like getting late. I gained say 7 levels that day.
I sign off.
Would that detect my levels as say me working for it or say a DM gave them to me?
Another thing I dont like about DM's is how you said they can give loot. In my ipinion a DM should be someone who monaters and helps out the people that play the game, to keep the peace, not someone who has the power to give. A DM is like your own little hacker buddy. Just like my worst nightmare ShadowKeeper.


[This message has been edited by Thalantyr (edited October 15, 2001).]

 

You have to draw a distinction between PvP (in character player verses player combat for a reason) which is definately in, and 'random' PKing, which is out.
A couple of examples of the former - You may want to play a gang of bandits that preys on travellers along a certain road. You demand money and if resisted, you carry out your threats. Your actions may attract the attention of the local watch, depending on area. Or, one player may challenge another to a duel, to settle some in game feud. Both these are OK.
However, lurking around where 'newbies' spawn in just to kill them and take their possesions to sell would not.

7 levels in one day? Hmmm, I doubt it. Average is 15 encounters per level, so that's
over 100 monster groups seen off. Don't forget death is permanent, no re-load and try again if you screw up. Isn't that going to make you a bit more cautious? And all that hack and slay doesn't leave much tme for roleplay, which is what this game is supposed to be about - it's not Quake or Diablo.

The DM quest awards would be for, e.g rescue the prisoner, retrieve the artefact etc type missions where the goal is more than just killing and the outcome might be achieved by stealth or use of the players wits.

 

I think we are just going to have to drop all the XP stuff and remember what DnD is about in the first place. Wasting hours at a time, acting like children pretending to be wizards and warriors, and kicking butt for goodness! It was never about getting to level 20, but going through junk food sitting around the table wasting your life away. And it should stay that way! Vive La Stylo et Papetre!

 

What my friend Casymere is trying to say, is that everyone worries to much, the time will come WHEN the game is released and then we will find the knowledge we seek.
Until then Dominoes Pizza will find itself round my house every Sunday for my Regular Roleplaying session.

-Snorri

 

erran, wont there be a resurect spell or something?

 

Yes, you can be raised from the dead as per the straight rules. However, you will need the assistance of another PC to get that done. If you die by yourself in the middle of nowhere, that's it. Also, if your 'friends' are not interested in carrying your corpse back to town, that's it.

Aloha
Vormaerin

 

What Erran & Vormaerin are saying is that there is no 'spawning' of PCs. You can't just log back in the next day and start playing the same PC. No coming back at a lower level or anything like that. If other don't make the effort to raise you - to bad so sad!

Hence life will be rather risky at low levels. One crit at 1st or 2nd and it's all over for you.

As far as the DMs go all we can do is hope the screening process weeds out those unfit to be DMs and retains the quality folks who will not favor any PC over another.

In regards to the PKing vs PvP topics thanks for the clearification. I think that sounds exactly right.

 

It depends on the server or group as to whether or not you will be allowed to come back again. Why is it that alfa members just assume that's the only place to play NWN and that's what NWN will be. I've actually read some creative ideas for starting another character out there. My favorite was a soul stone on one server. When you die, you go to whereever it is dead people go in that server. Now you don't have a soul stone. If you die without one, you're dead forever. You can choose to wait around for three day until you get a chance at a new soul stone (relatively easy quest), but by that time your arms and equipment will be gone in the wilderness. Or you can choose to rush out into the wilderness, take a chance at permanant death, and try to grab your old equipment for your new character. Now that's what I like to see. Put a little excitement into an NPC's life

 

Blah. Spawning of PC's smacks too much of powergaming to me.

 

Actually, Crawl, I'm not an "alfan". The reason the answers were directed at ALFA's policies is because the question was ABOUT ALFA's policies. Erran commented that ALFA was addressing DM control in a certain way, several other people commented about ALFA, and the raise dead question was directed specifically at Erran. Hence, an ALFA response.

Obviously, the DM has control over how the server works. He could script PC immortality if he wanted to. Just like in PnP, there are no inherent checks on DM power except the willingness of the players to put up with abuse.

Aloha
Vormaerin

 

Hmmm, atleast if you suffer a crit and no one reses you, then at a low lvl, you can start again, atleast the Legendary dragons, will no longer fear tose parties of adventurers as in BG2. Poor dragons, i think when i am a DM, i think i'll have Tiamat in my Dungeon, hahahahahahaha. *cough*

Anyway, i suppose the game will force team play, and make it so people are less keen to attack other PC's.
Atleast there will be help when needed at those personal Duels, well for me atleast