CF: The Bard

["Michael Toennies" <mtx93@informatik.uni-bremen.de>]

Hi

I have played around with oratory/singing and i found the idea very nice but
the implementation pretty useless.

I try some tricks and i bring it to level 7 but then the skills starts to be
real difficult.

- there was only a few monsters you can oratory.
- is pretty dangerous to do it in fight because you must go near to the
monster
- most of the hard one are multi tile monsters you can't oratory.
- to many good ones are immun
- even a hill giant is immun, a rat not
- the system don't work in reality

If you have a goblin you want make to you pat, you oratory him, but he get
killed in
the second you do it, because he attack and get attack by the others and die
fast.

I think, you should make it for flexible. UO show a nice way to handle it
(and they need time to
find out what useful is and what not).

If we set up the "barding" skills right, we can create a new way to play the
game. Not only a
new character (where we have to much useless), a real way to play most maps
without "sword&run"
and "bomb&wall" what the main techniques are to play. Summon&Missiles are
the other way (shoot
and arrow with a bow or summon a creature, the effect is the same).

I prefer to make 3 main bard skills (and more if needed): Peacemaking,
Provocation & Friendship. (thats other (UO) names,
i use them here for better understanding. They are some different from
singing&oratory, so i use the "old" names
when i talk about the skills in game yet).

First and the only way to play like a bard: There must be a ranged way to
play, a way to do it from hidden,
and they must effect multi tile monsters.

All "success" must be depend on level and charisma & intelligence of the
char. This will give the non combat
stats charisma&intelligence more potential in combat, will avoid the bard
wizard which use bard skills in the
same skala like a bard + his castings (calm down a horde of dragons, cast
wall without danger and bomb them out,
that will not so easy work because he need a high charisma).

Peacemaking
A range "attack". Better level, better range. It calms down the monsters in
range (greater level of monster, harder to handle).
They don't attack anymore.

Provocation
Also a range "attack". If success the monsters attack the monster next to
him. Also nothing special.

Friendship
Make the monster to your pet. This is the special one. Peacemaking must have
successed. And then you can try to pet it.
i prefer to make it range 1 or 2 around the bard. Every time you do it, you
have a chance to pet all near you (or they break
out of peace).

With the simple 3 skills, you can solve most maps. It is in the same
level/exp dependence like magic or weapon use, its not
easier to get exp (at the start maybe) as the mage/fighter but then more
complex. I think you run in, cast a wall, stand behind
them and Provocate the guys. Normally you will bomb then, now the use the
skill, there is no real difference.

Friendship also is not the big hit, because you get fast red dragons as pets
or skulls if you use the mage spell.

I think this is much more playable as singing&oratory yet and please don't
talk about "to easy" or "100 exp to much per hour".

Maybe you get some exp more as bard (i think not, because we can make hard
monsters Friendship immun), but we add some
useful to the game, a new char and a new way to play, thats very much.

Also, give charisma & int "combat" potential will bring some artifact to new
live, because now a charisma+3 weapon (which
is pretty useless now) is valuble for him. Also, we make it harder to create
a 30,30,30 hero in all combat stats.
At this time you will be god, if you have str 30, con 30 and power 30.

Michael

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