Okay, I broke down and bought Neverwinter Nights. Feh, it was only twenty bucks.

I have found the game quite dreary as a single player exercise, and so I'm looking to try a little multiplayer. I've gone into a few anonymous dungeons... so far, this isn't really doing a lot for me.

(I think part of it is that you can develop your character offline, and then go back online with the products of all your spoils. That eliminates much of the 'geniune' nature of the online experience, in my book)

Anyway... I'm wondering if others here have played NWN online, or still do. If anyone still does - would there be any interest in trying to get together an FOFc "party" at some pre-arranged site? I think I might enjoy the game more if I knew the people I was running around with.

Any takers? Or, alternatively, any advice?

Advice? Find a different game? ;-)

I looked foward to this game for years and then waited when it first came out (still waiting...). If its $20 and there was an fofc party I think that would make it worth buying though. I'll be reading this thread.

I have not played online, but a number of my pen and paper friends have.

I would be up for an FOFC party if the play times work out.

Quik,

I also recommend you go to Neverwinter Vault and download the following mods:

Lone Wolf modules (available in the Hall of Fame)
Shadowcatcher (5 of them) and Dreamcatcher, the sequel (2 so far)

Those were much better than the shipped single player game. Lone Wolf was incredible, IMO. I wish the mod designer had more time to put them out faster.

I also might be interested in an FOFC group, although my new baby will probably make that an impossible task for me. :)

Dola.

The Bioware designed Witch Wake module is pretty good too, but it is taking them forever to put out more of them. I think there is a single developer at Bioware working on them.

Originally posted by Daimyo
I looked foward to this game for years and then waited when it first came out (still waiting...). If its $20 and there was an fofc party I think that would make it worth buying though. I'll be reading this thread.

I've pined for a game with the features of NWN since the day I first discovered CRPGs (Ultima 4 broke my cherry). Unfortunately, I found NWN insipid and boring. I've since traded it, but if there is enough interest in an FOFC adventure, I might considering picking it up for $20.

I'd be interested: Other mods I like: The Ultima 4 mod, the Pool of Radiance Mod :)

Trust me, the game is good :)

Originally posted by Malificent

The Bioware designed Witch Wake module is pretty good too, but it is taking them forever to put out more of them. I think there is a single developer at Bioware working on them.

Mali-mo,

One of my friends was really put off by the no exp for killing in Witch Wake. Did that bother you at all?

To clarify, I mistakenly expected BG3. Admittedly, Bioware never claimed that's what NWN would be, and given their emphasis on the toolset it should have been obvious (their last minute marketing hype notwithstanding).

For me, the main attraction was just the familiarity with the whole lexicon of terms and spells and so forth. I'm a bit familiar with the 3rd edition rules for D&D (actually played pen and paper a bit recently) and that's what attracted me to this game in particular.

For me, it's adequate - but not too inspiring. I will pursue some of the mods suggested... that could be a good pursuit.

But I guess what would make me more interested is something like Everquest, where there's no obvious back door to player development. For me if it's easy to acquire the things you want (liek playing your online character on your own, with who-knows-what hacks and cheats) then it takes a lot of the sense of accomplishment away (and makes me feel like a sap for trying to develop my character the right way).

Thanks for the thoughts so far...

QS, that's a problem with all non client-server multiplayer games. Diable II, NWN, Dungeon Siege, etc, all games that are more or less client-to-client there are ways to cheat. Easy ways to cheat.

The only way you'll be able to play a character knowing that everyone else had to take the long way you have to take is to play a server-client game like Everquest, Ultima Online, etc. (MMORPGs, that is). And even then, people have found ways to cheat.

Cheating is pretty much in every type of game. I know it sucks. It's the reason why I couldn't play Diablo, Diablo II, Dungeon Siege, NWN, etc. online. Because people have these uber characters that they cheated.

THe only way to ensure no cheating is to have a group of friends play. Or to go one, play some games online, find some people you like who you know don't cheat, and then kind of "shortlist" them and play with them when you can.

As for NWN, the main reason I bought this was for the mods. I knew the single-player games was boring. I knew multi-player would be filled with people cheating. But I knew that there are people out there that would make killer mods. I also got it so that maybe one day I could work on my own mods. Don't know if that'll happen though. :)

Fritz,
It's a shock in Witches Wake not getting xp for kills. But once I got over the shock of that and got used to getting xp for roleplaying (ie. how you answer questions in relation to your character, who you attack, how you play, continuing the storyline), I gotta say I really enjoyed Witches Wake and the way the xp was handed out. Story line was quite good actually. The bad as mentioned above is that it leaves you wanting more and they aren't in too big of a hurry to put the second one out, heh.

Going forward I will be looking for more mod's that give out xp in this way rather than the "traditional" way.

Quick,
I've played single and multi quite a bit. Single I got bored fast and in truth never finished a mod. Multi was fun but not really because of the game, more because I was playing with friends and we just had fun. The multiplayer communication is kind of encumbersome I think for one as well as coordinating large fights. Reminds me more of a Diablo style which I did not like.

I'm not a huge rpg'er but I did get caught up in the online game Everquest and after an online game like that I didn't find NWN very satisfying. After awhile though Everquest also left a lot to be desired although the friend thing kept me awhile, now we're all waiting for the next online thing to come out. Star Wars Galaxies.

Personal opinions will very though. Have fun!

One of the guys at my office was playing the game in a manner that I think Quik is looking for. He and a group of his friends from college were playing online once a week for 3-4 hours on Wednesday nights. None of them were playing the game offline, so that they were all "experiencing" the game together. He was having a blast playing it that way. I believe they were playing one of the mods, but I don't know which one. I think it would be important to play a mod none had played so you could get the full "impact" in a group setting, JMO.

I thought the game sucked. Since you played the real version of D&D, you may enjoy it if you find a group of people to play with on a regular basis. Like someone else mentioned, I was expecting Baldur's Gate 3, not a pen and paper RPG simulator. The people who play the real version of D&D seem to love that game but most people I've talked to that aren't into that didn't really enjoy the game. I did try to give the game a chance and play it like real D&D but I couldn't get into it and I'm not a big fan of the new engine Bioware designed. I thought the 2D engine worked just fine, I hate how companies upgrade for no reason other than to have better graphics. I felt the 2D engine in Baldur's Gate worked better for this type of game. After playing Baldur's Gate 2 (IMO, one of the best roleplaying games ever), the weak storyline in NWN put me to sleep. I waited out some of the custom mods but I was a little disenchanted having to download different hack packs all the time and no matter how good a story people wrote for their mods, I found the new engine to be bland. Everything looks the same and gets boring quick, especially since they created the toolset to be cookie-cutter easy.

I grew bored of cookie cutter, RPG-lites after the original Diablo. Unfortunately, NWN was Bioware's attempt to tap in to that much larger market, and it seems to have paid off in spades- the game has continually been a top seller. I don't blame Bioware for maximizing their profit, I just hope somebody else is willing to fill the void (ie Bethesda).

How does "Shadows of Undrentide" look?

Fritz, it was a little weird, and took some getting used to. The Lone Wolf mod I mentioned above is the same way, but I found there to be more story there and it was smoother. Witch Wake I felt like the combats were tougher and more crucial (so I should be getting some XP). But I also played a wizard in Witch Wake, whereas in Lone Wolf, due to story constraints, you must play a fighter type class.

Dola.

I cannot emphasize how much I enjoyed the Lone Wolf modules. Anyone who thought the single player experience sucked should play these two through. They arent tremendously long, but I thought they were very involving.

Originally posted by Bee
One of the guys at my office was playing the game in a manner that I think Quik is looking for. He and a group of his friends from college were playing online once a week for 3-4 hours on Wednesday nights. None of them were playing the game offline, so that they were all "experiencing" the game together. He was having a blast playing it that way. I believe they were playing one of the mods, but I don't know which one. I think it would be important to play a mod none had played so you could get the full "impact" in a group setting, JMO.

That is why I bought it. It didn't workout well for me because the guy who was going to "run" the game never finished a module. It is loaded on my system and I have played with it like three times.

Might be interested in playing with some FOFC people. It just depends on when.

QS, I'd get into an online game of NWN with ya. Just PM me.

Here is a link to some of the top rated NWN modules available for download:

http://nwvault.ign.com/Files/modules/modulesTop2.shtml

So far I've tried Four Demons and Pool of Radiance. I've only gone a little way thorugh them, so I can't give a full review, but so far I like them better than the one that came with the came.

I would also be interested in an online game with FOFC'ers, if the time was right.

Echoing the rest - I enjoyed NWN, never got into multiplayer, interested in giving it a shot if the time works, etc etc etc.

Kevin

So.. should we elect someone to come up with a scenario, or to run a current mod, and if so, who's willing to play.. I'm willing to play, and DM if there's not too much work, but I have a psuedo weird schedule, 12:30-9 PM M-Th, 11:30 AM-8 PM Friday.

I want to see the crew do Pool of Radiance ;)

i'd be up for it

I spent about an hour in an online version of Shadowmasters #2 (I think this is what Mali was recommending). It seemed pretty well done, from what I could tell. You have to have downloaded the hakpak, but after that it's all online.

I'm open to trying a multi game, but my availability might be spotty. But if we pick a time, I'll try to join in. Thursday evening... maybe 8 or 9pm, ET? (That's my best window that I can see in the near future)

I'm up to give it a try too if it's at a good time.

Ok.. I'll run POR.. say Thursdays at 9:30-10 PM?

Wow, I've heard great reviews about NWN. This thread is surprising, but informative.

i'm off this thursday night so i'll be in

SOmething came up and Thursday's no good for me, so I'm out. Hopefully someone (or several) will post about how well or how bad it goes. And hopefully they'll be more. :)

i haven't played NWN in a long while, so i may be a bit rusty guys

I will be around.

I'm going to be at the ESPN zone Thursday, so I'm out.

Depends on the weather - I have a flag football game, but looks like it will pour.

What do we need to have prepped?

Kevin

I'll be having the server up tommorrow (Thursday) night at 9:30 or so (I get home from work then), and will post the information needed to log on. You will need fresh 1st level characters, but don't worry.. there's a place where you can get trained/equipped. :) I will ask that no one leave the city for a bit, let everyone join who's going to join :)

it would probably be best if we knew what character type everyone was planning on using. I would bet a party of 6 fighters woulnd't get too far

Agreed, especially since this mod uses restricted resting (certain spots or in inns only)

I am a needs of the party type of guy, but spellcasters can be very dull at lower levels.

The range of levels is 1-10 or so by the end, so spellcasters will get powerful :)

I'm not really looking to start over with my character - I'd prefer to import my local character, if that's possible. I have a monk who just made level four... i don't have any toys or anything, but I'd rather not have to go back to the drawing board.

If I get a chance, I'll just find a server tomorrow night, and post here where I'm headed...

Cool.. any one else up for a game on someone else's server tonight? :)

If I haven't shown up by 9:45, don't wait for me... no clue if the game will be on or not. :)

Kevin

Well, something came up again and it looks liek I can play tonight. Don't know how long I'll be able to play for , though...

Ack. Tonight is looking bad for me... I just got back to my office after a long day of public hearings, and I have work to do before I can get away. I think I'm out for this evening... but by all means, let's capitalize on what momentum we have, get a party together, and I'll catch up next time. I think this could be pretty interesting.

By the way - my character has the same name that I use here - just to reduce confusion...

thursday night, about 10:20 now. I guess it is off for tonight

Sorry.. Rule #1 when it comes to work.. "When your boss's boss's boss's boss's boss shows up, your schedule is a suggestion, not an imperative" Just got home ;?

If anyone is up for some NWN this evening, respond in this thread. I'd be game for some hacking.

I'm up for it

Anyone around this afternoon interested in a little online NWN? My monk has developed a bit beyond "beginner" status, but would still be interested in joining a FOFC party...

I'm thinking that perhaps the way to play this game online is not through the "local character" (just too subject to abuse) but rather via a server-based character. There are a few servers that are designed to be up all the time, and do not allow local characters - so (supposedly) the characters are more *real* in there.

I've started a new druid character on a server called World_of_Iniquity... I don't yet have a great sense that it is an overall excellent game, but it seems fairly popular, and my first couple of levels came at a fair rate, I felt. I have just made level 3, and am starting to get a feel for my character and the area.

If anyone might be interested in joining me in the WOI setting, drop a line - respond here or by PM - and we can try to adventure together (which I still think would be interesting).

I am QuikSand, Hugger of Trees...

Well, after some dabbling this morning, Fritz and I both have middling characters on the WOI server, capable of wreaking some goblin havoc. More are welcome to join in...