Dungeons!

[Kruge]

I must say I'm getting a bit curious...I'm lvl 18, have seen a good part of the server and yet I havent seen anything that qualifies as a real dungeon.
Not some silly cave with some goblins or even oroks, but dungeons!
I have a tech that requires the heart of a shadow dragon, yet I havent found anything on the server that even comes near the challenge it would pose.
Where have you guys been hiding em?
Its just to say, the server could use a few dungeons, and definately a few bosses, just to spice things up.
Challenges are FUN!
Currently I havent seen anything that a duo of high levels couldnt beat, and I've been searching.

And with dungeon I mean a multi level highly trapped insanely dangerous-at least two hours to get through with as big a party as you could wish-kind of thing.
Not to say that dragons, balors and what not should become the daily life, but truly, weapon masters get 100+ crits, 1 in 4 attacks or so, clerics throwing around implosions,mages with maxed chain lightnings...its all there, and a puny goblin just isnt a match for that.

[ikkis]

They will come, given time.
I have one that is half finished, which will be a little different to what people are used to, but atmospheric I hope.
The trouble is finding time to finish it off and get everything else done too.

The reason they didn't go in to start with is we love scripts for dungeons. Visuals, jumping players around, summoning x/y/z and having special ai sequences and so on.
Not the sort of things you want to be having firing off on a server that may or may not be stable, as it would have made the bugfinding even more horrific

I can't say how long it will be until people start finishing them and we get to add some in, I don't know. I would imagine it won't be in the next month.

I don't know what where exactly, but you will get rarer spawns scattered around that are harder to kill.

Sounds like we need to make some of the monsters harder though

[Eleniriel]

Well, i would say you haven't been in the right places then.. i've seen many difficult creatures around the server.. just to name a few: Lich, Demilich, Bebilith, Balor, Balrog, Black Slaad, Sea Hag, Harpy and that nasty Blight Demon (Heh. until i discover an effective way to get the demon.. now it runs when it sees me coming) any of these can get my lvl 20 cleric if i get distracted for even 1 second.
I have heard so many people saying that they have seen most of the server and all the time i can't avoid shaking my head. There plenty places out there to go.. and also a few dungeons to visit, you just have to contact you local travel agency
Seriously.. take a look in the mountains or even in the desert there you can find couple of the most fun places to go with a party.. No? well then try one of those insane elven tombs.. like the one in Cormanthor Graveyard.

[swanhilde]

As far as I am aware, high level rangers can track high level special monsters if they're lucky, so I'd imagine that being helpful.

[Bindragon]

Originally Posted by Eleniriel

... try one of those insane elven tombs.. like the one in Cormanthor Graveyard.

I stumbled upon that tomb with 2 others recently. A word of advice...take more than 3...

[Doomnair]

Originally Posted by Bindragon

I stumbled upon that tomb with 2 others recently. A word of advice...take more than 3...

Yep, those where pretty nasty. Just a quick peak and me and my companions died. It was you, I and another one, wasnt it Bin?

[WolfOorin]

Originally Posted by ikkis

They will come, given time.
I have one that is half finished, which will be a little different to what people are used to, but atmospheric I hope.
The trouble is finding time to finish it off and get everything else done too.

I can't say how long it will be until people start finishing them and we get to add some in, I don't know. I would imagine it won't be in the next month.

Sounds like we need to make some of the monsters harder though

We sure need them. my paladin for instance can solo almost all the server (give me my buffing mage and it will be all the server.) she isnt even lvl 20 also.
I been searching those weird and hard killing monsters but they tend to be rare... very rare.
hmm I hope ikkis's dungeon of doom comes soon. I have a few elves to throw in there.

[Bindragon]

Originally Posted by Doomnair

Yep, those where pretty nasty. Just a quick peak and me and my companions died. It was you, I and another one, wasnt it Bin?

Yes, it was with you....er....Froderic. We luckily smited our initial encounter, then we detected more in the other room but were too stupid to just get the hell outta there. Next thing I know, a Balor shows up behind me and we're toast, or at least the 2 of us. Our other companion managed to run away....bastard :-)

[ikkis]

doom.. hmm...

Not done the monster stats yet, don't give me the idea that you want to die

[Johannes]

Originally Posted by ikkis

don't give me the idea that you want to die

Ikkis, we live to die - quite literally.

[NyMoogle]

On the flipside, with a huge sized dungeon that requires a good 5-10 people and 1-2 hours RL time to get through, you have 50-75% of the server running off to get that uber item after you kill that uber boss and leaving the 3-4 people who come in here to RP just hanging out by their favorite tree or log.

New areas, quests/new challenges are a welcome thing but I think theres the issue of balance. Theres already local cave raiders who pop in town for 5-10 minutes and they're off again, so imagine how stranded the casual gamer/rper is gonna be if they pop in and just take off to play somewhere else due to lack of interaction with other players. Just two cents from the other p.o.v.

[_Vega_]

Originally Posted by Kruge

And with dungeon I mean a multi level highly trapped insanely dangerous-at least two hours to get through with as big a party as you could wish-kind of thing.

Talking with other party members to very carefully plan strategies and B plans.
Needing to overbuff our beloved life-saver fighter with towershield, preferably a dwarven defender.
Clerics healing and mass healing during battle.
Bard song being a must-have for the party.
Also some druid's aura of vitality, barkskin, etc.; even druids counterspelling enemie mages while companion joins to fight.
Mage needed for magic offensive spells and to counterspell bigby's, disjunctions, and more.
Paladin or weapon master needed for long-term damage output.
With final chests locked dc65+ needing a real fine rogue, also traps around doing insane damage...
And finally getting our ass sneaked to death for lacking an elven ranger.
¿do you really wish that?

With a minimum decent role play in such a big party, pausing to detail the adventure between encounters and all... a big dungeon takes some.. FIVE or SIX hours to be completed!!. (2h? lol 2h is what it takes for an expedition to simply gather some minerals and come back to Brighthaven)
Also those quests are much better when having a dm to enhance the whole thing, but again that takes even more time (sure it's worth it).
I love those adventures playing from 22pm to 6am, splitting the loot while irl hearing morning birds singing.. but hey... i am a CRAZY insomniac!!

so imagine how stranded the casual gamer/rper is gonna be if they pop in and just take off to play somewhere else due to lack of interaction with other players

Yes, indeed.
Huge dungeons are good for lineal-story kind of game based mainly in ACTION, as it was Underdark Adventures.
For a roleplay server, small and medium dungeons are better.

BattledaleII Beta as it is now reminds me of an action/story server (like UAII) more than a rp server (like Enroth).
I like both kinds of playing anyway, but always wished to enjoy both at a time. Challenging action with detailed roleplay during the adventure. This is very hard to achieve, but i feel it will soon be possible here in BDII, making this a (the) best place to play.

[Blark]

I honestly think a dungeon should take time, not just a quick two hours but a good three hours plus.

I feel it should have high risk also, very complicated locks, hidden doors that are very very hard to find, inhabitants that'd make the sane man call for mommy before the first 5 mins of the dungeon. A crazy amount of deadly traps and even a few easy ones.

What is the point on having a dungeon that can be completed in less then an hour soloing and with little risk? Kinda boring.

I say bring on Vaskas tomb (spelling is probably wrong) Hell, with that damndable place it might have walked it's self close somewhere. *shivers at the thought of it* I still remember going there with a few, mainly Shalla, me and I think it was Wace, that time sticks out the most because we finished it. When we where through I was hearing the moring birds and completly impressed, took a long time and was worth every min of it.

From what I see and in my opinion, the easy dungeons are already in place.

[Doomnair]

Originally Posted by Blark

I honestly think a dungeon should take time, not just a quick two hours but a good three hours plus.

I feel it should have high risk also, very complicated locks, hidden doors that are very very hard to find, inhabitants that'd make the sane man call for mommy before the first 5 mins of the dungeon. A crazy amount of deadly traps and even a few easy ones.

What is the point on having a dungeon that can be completed in less then an hour soloing and with little risk? Kinda boring.

I say bring on Vaskas tomb (spelling is probably wrong) Hell, with that damndable place it might have walked it's self close somewhere. *shivers at the thought of it* I still remember going there with a few, mainly Shalla, me and I think it was Wace, that time sticks out the most because we finished it. When we where through I was hearing the moring birds and completly impressed, took a long time and was worth every min of it.

From what I see and in my opinion, the easy dungeons are already in place.

I mostly agree with you, but not the three hours plus thing. Most people cant spend three or four hours straight and if a party loses a key element (for example, his girlfriend physically drags him from the comp), then its good bye for the whole party in that monstreous dungeon. If such dungeons are to be built, there need to be special places where you can reach the surface and reenter again. How about a doorway to the surface on each level and to reenter you have to use a special key that is only found on that specific level and only usable once. This way, you can build a monstreous dungeon, go through two levels, take a break for a couple of days and then regroup and enter again, almost at the same place as you left.

[Blark]

Originally Posted by Doomnair

How about a doorway to the surface on each level and to reenter you have to use a special key that is only found on that specific level and only usable once. This way, you can build a monstreous dungeon, go through two levels, take a break for a couple of days and then regroup and enter again, almost at the same place as you left.

That key would need to dissapear once you rentered at that level. Not a bad Idea, at least you'd be able to maybe get a hold of the others that where there and then would be able to set somthing up to finish it that way.

I do agree, the three plus hours -is- hard to come by, expecally with the wife standing over my shoulder pulling my ear and whispering soft threats on my life. But I do like indepth time consuming adventure rather then hack and slash your way to the end in 5 mins.

[Tyndareus]

Originally Posted by Blark

I say bring on Vaska's tomb (spelling is probably wrong) Hell, with that damndable place it might have walked it's self close somewhere. *shivers at the thought of it* I still remember going there with a few, mainly Shalla, me and I think it was Wace, that time sticks out the most because we finished it. When we where through I was hearing the moring birds and completly impressed, took a long time and was worth every min of it.

Glad you liked it. That tomb took a long time to make too. Unfortunately, I think a tomb like Vaska's would put a lot of strain on the server. To rotate the gear rooms was a fairly big script involving sound cues as clues which (as lag increases) become less stable in their firing. I'm sure people noticed that the delays involved in the sounds. You see the room rotates with a gear grind sound immediately after someone leaves the room and then a delayed 'Ka-CHUNK' sound indicates the locking into place of the new position of the room. When lag is high, these sounds get out of synch or sometimes aren't even fired. I think the final trap where the cage comes down and the poison gas fills the room would also be a bit of a problem as area of effect gas scripts didn't seem too nice lag wise.

Nevertheless, I'm sure stuff like this is on its way.

[MyNameIsJam]

I can't remember the name of the place, but I really enjoyed the fort area in Icewind Dale with the lich as a boss encounter at the end. The sign on the road nearby said something to the effect of 'All ye who pass this point abandon all hope.' I went there with Blark, Emma, and perhaps a couple others, and had a blast.

I would love to see something like that make a return.

[Viconius]

Dae'ban (I do not recall exact spelling) or such, Trito made that one, altough I think sign was mine (I think). We do not have IWD, so I doubt it returns, same reason applies with Tyn's tomb.

[Solan'thal]

Originally Posted by MyNameIsJam

I can't remember the name of the place, but I really enjoyed the fort area in Icewind Dale with the lich as a boss encounter at the end. The sign on the road nearby said something to the effect of 'All ye who pass this point abandon all hope.' I went there with Blark, Emma, and perhaps a couple others, and had a blast.

I would love to see something like that make a return.

Wizards' towers always make good dungeons; I don't think dungeons have to be supremely complex with scripts and so on. Basic puzzles, skill checks and riddles are easy enough to implement and can work well.

Also, I think there were 2 towers in IWD?

[Viconius]

Yes, second was of a late wizard whose mystery never got fully solved.