Hidden Curses

[NTJedi]

One downside to this game is discovering a curse for an item/artifact after making the item.

example=
boots of the planes--- allows the owner to use the spell teleport.
(secretly this item places a horror mark for anyone equipping the item. Nothing indicates the artifact is CURSED !)

Amon Hotep Helm--- allows for spell mummification which generates mummies.
(secretly this item is cursed and cannot be removed. Nothing indicates the item is stuck on the owner until death.)

Aesthiks Armor-- gold armor which offers great protection...
(yet again another item that does not explain it's cursed.)


what's the deal with these hidden curses !?!??

people new to the game would never have a clue these are cursed.

[ January 30, 2004, 20:50: Message edited by: NTJedi ]

[Gandalf Parker]

Originally posted by NTJedi:
what's the deal with these hidden curses !?!??

people new to the game would never have a clue these are cursed.

The devs seemed to like the idea of "find it out as you go" with most of the game.

[Arryn]

Originally posted by Gandalf Parker:
The devs seemed to like the idea of "find it out as you go" with most of the game.

An even better explanation is that the game is low-budget (not to be confused with low-quality, which it most certainly isn't). Hence many of the niceties people expect such as well-edited and comprehensive docs, fancy graphics, et cetera ad naseum have to give way to the practical realities of what's most important: spending the devs valuable time making a great game, and then making it better and better by systematically squashing the inevitable bugs.

I honestly don't think the devs are callous enough to take the attitude of "play the game and figure it out for yourself". That's not very friendly, and the devs have amply demonstrated on this forum that they are helpful and friendly.

It's simply a matter of their priorities. Complete docs don't rank high on their list. Of course, we could get into many long discussions on whether that's a good idea or not ... wait, aren't there a gazillion threads on that already? One more isn't useful.

[NTJedi]

It's just that these artifacts will have a good paragraph or so written about its history... yet only some details about what it does.

As a big strategy gamer myself I know it's more important to give me the facts first... then go into a little story or history of the item.

If I'm making a cursed item... the gamer should be made aware it's cursed !
It's like eating some apple pie only to find out it has worms !

Due to the poor documentation they are unable to know exactly what everything is. Which is in part, the fun of it.

On the other hand for the player who likes to know information it is readily availiable (and more coming every day) here on the forums.

Ceremony's Walkthrough and Strategy Guide (Yay Bruce)
Saber Cherry's Newbie and Technical Guide FAQ (Don't eat the paste!)
My Magic Item Reference (I'm one dope motha)
Sunray's Dom2 Library* Including all National Units/sites (except Ermor, because Ashen Empire and Soul Gate are mind numbingly boring, will be done later tonight, yay Sunray!)
Darryl's Online Spell Grimoire ("This is my brother Darryl, and my other brother Darryl", Yay Darryl!)
Gandalf's Web Directory of Modding/Map Editing Stuff (I just point people who want to learn how to mod of map edit there, Yay Gandalf)

As you can see NTJedi, there are a few gaps that a newbie can find at least some information for their desires. The only thing stopping them is knowing about them.

Originally posted by NTJedi:
If I'm making a cursed item... the gamer should be made aware it's cursed !
It's like eating some apple pie only to find out it has worms !

Well the counterargument to this is in the D&D roots, you never knew if something was cursed or not, it was always a little surprise when it turned out that super-powerful magic item was actually cursed and tried to take you over and eat your soul. Think of the One Ring in LoTR at the very least.

But if you don't want to think of it like that, you can pick up the Magical Item Reference and see almost everything that every item does before you make it.

[Kjeld]

The devs seemed to like the idea of "find it out as you go" with most of the game.

I do agree, but for me, this is a positive attitude (ie : there is some "magic", some genuine pleasure discovering the little things, so we won't spoil it for you) rather than a negative one (we won't give you info because we don't have time or because we dont want to).

Take the "Gift of Kurgi" description : the description of the artifact is purposefuly (imho) vague : we learn that it is an item made of madness that can grant great power but at a tremendous cost. Not knowing exactly what it does place the player before a dilemma, and I think it adds to the flavor of the game.

There are a lot of surprises (events, sites, spell effects ...), a lot of things to discover, experiment and experience, and it is where this game's greatness lie.

As a big strategy gamer myself I know it's more important to give me the facts first... then go into a little story or history of the item.

What I find rather interesting in this game is that it is not only a strategy game, but a very immersive experience by itself, that can in some way remind roleplaying games (just have a look at some AAR, and to the fact, according to the developpers, that the Ars Magica pen and paper game setting and concepts were widely used when designing the game), and, of course, the detailed and rich "flavor texts" play a very important part there.

However, back on topic, while I don't mind (and sometimes appreciate) "vague" descriptions on magic items for the reasons previously mentioned, I do 100% agree that the cursed (unremovable) flag should be obvious in an item's description.

[Kristoffer O]

Originally posted by Kjeld:
I do agree, but for me, this is a positive attitude

Of course it is. It is positive for everyone.