Co8 New Content: Hickory Branch

Discussion in 'New Content Subdirectories' started by Gaear, Mar 22, 2010.

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  1. Gaear

    Gaear Bastard Maestro Administrator

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    What is it? An area north of Hommlet and west of Nulb where a nefarious band of orcs and other humanoids is purported to be up to no good.

    Authors: Krunch, rufnredde

    Support: Gaear

    Featured in modpacks: 6.1.0 NC, 8.1.0 New Content Edition

    New maps: 1 outdoor, 2 indoor

    Quests: (2) 'Missing Ranger,' 'Hickory Branch'

    New NPCs: Angra Mainyu, Noostoron, Lord Hungous, Captain Krunch, Lieutenant Ruff, Lieutenant Ergo, Lieutenant Boonthag, Lieutenant Kallop, Lieutenant Naig Lliht

    Designed for: a party of high level adventurers

    Availability: the Verbobonc chapter of the game - after you've dealt with Zuggtmoy

    Images:

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Apr 27, 2011
  2. Gaear

    Gaear Bastard Maestro Administrator

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    Fun fact: Time will now be a significant factor in the upcoming 5.8.0 NC version of Hickory Branch.
     
  3. taltamir

    taltamir Established Member

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    if time is a factor (which is neat btw)... it is very important that there is a NOTE about that... because time is NOT a factor anywhere else in the game... people would assume that it isn't a factor here either.
     
  4. Ausdoerrt

    Ausdoerrt Veteran Member

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    By the way, I was wondering - were you guys thinking of changing the way to get to HB? I mean, only having one chance in a dialogue to learn about it is a little bit harsh, plus you can't get other stuff from that dialogue.
     
  5. Ranth

    Ranth Established Member

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    Who do I need to talk to? The elder guy wont mention it to me... I dont like not knowing what to do haha.
     
  6. Gaear

    Gaear Bastard Maestro Administrator

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    Brother Smyth. Always talk to Brother Smyth. New content = Brother Smyth. :)

    p.s. ... Did I mention Brother Smyth? ;)
     
  7. GuardianAngel82

    GuardianAngel82 Senior Member

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    Yeah, but what about Brother Smyth?
     
  8. Ausdoerrt

    Ausdoerrt Veteran Member

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    Oh, not Mona anymore! Great.
     
  9. EdCon

    EdCon Member

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    Bug: Talked to Brother Smith the 2nd time about "something different", then the elder (this was after having finished the Bog and cleared the Moathouse). The elder mentioned the bad guys hanging out at Hickory Branch, and showed the option of sending me there. I ended the conversation by saying I'd look into it without choosing the "send me" option. Now the elder and brother smith won't discuss it, and it doesn't appear on the world map or destinations list.

    Starting a new game to see if this was a freak happening, but I have the saves if it would help.

    -EC
     
  10. Gaear

    Gaear Bastard Maestro Administrator

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    Nevets dialog seems to be fine, and I just tested it and it worked fine. You can botch the quest if you decline and tell him you're afraid, and you can also just blow him off with the generic "never mind," in which case he won't mention it again. Maybe we should get rid of that line and force you to choose.
     
  11. taltamir

    taltamir Established Member

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    why should you be forced to choose permanently? If you decline then shouldn't you be able to pick it up at a later point.

    I found a way to "lose" hickory branch...
    I accepted the quest and chose "travel immediately", on my way I was ambushed by two gnolls... hickory branch was now gone forever, as I could not continue traveling there on my own via the map, nor would the town elder mention it again.
    EDIT1: I think this might have been a one time thing, I can travel back and forth from and to HB, it was just that one time that it was "lost" (but I did reload that other game and try again). I will do some more testing and get back to you./EDIT
    EDIT2: I did some testings and I found that if I am waylaid on the path to HB I can continue to it. I don't know what caused it not to work that first time. Maybe it was there and I just didn't notice... point is, it seems to work. /EDIT

    There are a few creatures in HB that speak to me and then disappear. However, if I attack them before they can trigger their conversation (mostly via clairvoyance/clairaudience) then I get to fight and kill them without triggering their conversation... is this a problem? will it break HB or has it been taken into account?

    I found something interesting, Lord Krunch will only trigger his conversation if you walk up to him from the front. If you double around and come from the back and "talk" to him he will say "yes sir" (aka, float) without actually engaging his dialog.

    Helm of midnight has a value of about 10gp (same as a generic helm). yet it is a magical item that provides bonuses when worn.
     
    Last edited: Apr 28, 2010
  12. taltamir

    taltamir Established Member

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    I just finished HB, it was very cool, I am seeing tons of unique new creatures, lots of intense combat, and beautiful and large scenery. Thank you to everyone who Krunch, rufnredde, and Gaear. You guys rock!

    If you are curious about how it plays out...
    I didn't rest even once because I was warned its time sensitive, as a result I went through TONS of scrolls there :p... literally over 50. As well as a bunch of potions. My lone wizard also leveled twice, went from level 8 to level 10. Had some very difficult encounters, especially the fiendish minotaur.
     
  13. Necroticpus

    Necroticpus Cthulhu Ftaghn!

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    The new and improved Robes Of Midnight are excellent. The only thing that's weird about it is that it says it offers no protection but receives a +2 deflection bonus. What's that all about? For deflecting arrows maybe?
     
  14. Gaear

    Gaear Bastard Maestro Administrator

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    I guess we could add a "hey about that HB thing" line, but I don't get why you would be unsure if you want to do HB or not. If you're playing NC, that sort of assumes you want new content. Why would you tell Nevets no or "I'm not sure?" You don't have to go there immediately. In fact, you don't have to go there at all if you don't want to.

    We should just add the HB map to known areas in the 'travel immediately' dialog and that will not be a problem.

    It has been taken into account, but if you do that you will lose out on much of the 'story,' such as it is. I figured people would try that though.

    Weird, he talked to me from both angles in testing, although they generally are much more alert in whatever direction they're facing.
     
  15. Gaear

    Gaear Bastard Maestro Administrator

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    I see this is already the case, so if you lost HB en route, that is definitely a fluke.
     
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