Stronghold/saved posts

Category: Game Design Discussions
Topic: Critters and Creatures
Message #: 4582
Author: GS4-MESTYS
Date: 4/27/2007 8:37:17 pm
Subject: Re: Stronghold Bowels

>Number one:

A massive boulder comes barrelling into view!
In a vain attempt, you leap to avoid the speeding boulder! The krynch strikes you squarely, crushing you beneath it and the ground!
 ... 45 points of damage!
 Awesome shot collapses one of your lungs!
 You are stunned for 6 rounds!
Roundtime: 20 sec.

This is pretty much as bad a result as is possible for this maneuver. The various negative status effects can be mitigated or completely avoided based on a standard maneuver roll (see last paragraph).

>Secondly, the illoke doing their "teleport to you" maneuver that gives them no RT and casting stone fist immediately. I can deal with the no prep time for stone fist, it's just how they can step out of the wall and cause instant death that annoys me. Can't they have at least one round of RT after teleporting to me from half the bowels away?

Both the Illoke jarls and Illoke elders have Transference (225) in their respective repertoires, which does take up a normal amount of roundtime upon casting. The only functional differences between their version and the players' is the messaging and their ability to use it to target players in the area.

Their Stone Fist is also mechanically a spell, and if they are casting it without first preparing, it is a bug.

>Third, does the bowels really have to be unlocatable? It's not like there are really many people in the Landing capable of coming in there and rescuing me anyway (illoke always like to swarm around a corpse and kill people instantly when they come in), but I'd sort of like the rare opportunity to have someone attempt to rescue me.

The prevention of magical location within the hunting ground is indeed intended. It's meant to be a facet of the area itself.

>Now, an honest question. Are the illoke supposed to teleport behind the opening (where the earth elementals and krynches generate)? They don't ever spawn back there, but if I run through to the opening, the illoke will inevitably teleport to me (often just after I attack something and get into RT) after perhaps five or ten minutes of being back there. There aren't even people in the main area to generate them in the first place as far as I know.

The room range of the Illoke creatures' version of Transference is solely comprised of the whole of the Thanatoph Bowels. Even if you're not in a section in which they normally generate, they can still teleport to a valid target anywhere in the area; and since it is all considered one area, they will generate in their normal range of rooms.

>Another honest question -- why are the illoke so vulnerable to arrows? They're stone-like creatures, and yet arrows to the eye tear through them faster than I can use my axe to kill kobolds -- because sniping to the eye takes three seconds, versus my five second swing to kill a kobold.

This is a result of the Illoke creatures' natural armor, which is roughly equivalent to chain hauberk. This is in contrast to many of their rocky allies, who tend to be closer to full plate. It's much easier to achieve an endroll to get that puncture death critical on the former versus the latter. You might consider swapping out to a nice dagger against them, assuming you ambush and have a reliable means of knockdown.

>Lastly, what exactly helps in dodging stone fist? It doesn't seem to be physical skills (since I get hit every time), and yet it doesn't seem to be magical skills (since casters get hit almost every time). -Grendeg

The Illoke creatures' Stone Fist spell is primarily based around the standard maneuver roll. Spells such as Mobility (618), Prayer (313), and Dauntless (1606) will benefit you. Ranks in Combat Maneuvers, Perception, and Physical Fitness will also be of assistance. The Dexterity and Agility stats also play a role.

-M.