Our installation situation is a disaster - the saga of Co8 4.0.0

Re: Our installation situation is a disaster

to summarize..

1. the new mod has the terjons family heirloom removed from rainbow rock loot

2. leave the skeletal priest exactly as it is for its fight encounter, including what it looks like - [it is magical, part illusion / part necromancy / part enchantment] it was granted to a priest of Iuz [made by Iuz] to explain how a skeleton can cast spells. When the skeletal priest is killed, it drops some item.
[EDIT] * For those people who say, "Well, Iuz cannot cast illusions...Iuz goes to some powerful entity who can cast illusions and says to that entity and its followers something like...you owe me for your power and place here - now do such and such or you'll lose your precious standing [what I've given I can also take away].

3. the party takes the dropped item to Terjon and enquires about the dropped item...Terjon starts a tale about his father having done something which really ticked off a priest of Iuz in a major way. Terjon mentions some basic story, but stops (he actually knows more but is cowardly to more than just mention it), he says he has no more information, except refers you to Mother Screng in Nulb (who knows about it and is not cowardly to talk about it)...when asked, Mother Screng mentions Verbobonc [use the Verbobonc map used in an opening vignette and add a building entry point there]

4. continue talking with Mother Screng...she elaborates and gives more information [tells the entire story] plus gives the party a scroll [the scroll when used teleports the party to the Verbobonc map where the evil npc priest lives can be found and killed]...a priest about like the earth temple boss priest
[EDIT] * Mother Screng has been preoccupied with greater ordeals and assignments than to ensure a npc evil priest gets his due and she, really, likes the idea that she can assist a party who wants to put the smackdown on that priest...finally, is able to mark that personal task off of her list of things to do.

5. when the evil priest is killed, it drops Terjon's family heirloom which can be returned to Terjon...enter a portal and World Map to Hommlet...return the heirloom to Terjon

and to add to it..
[EDIT] This would be awesome for a story background!..
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Maybe he had a bad relationship with his father, he is stubborn, and, as a result, he menced bad words with his father where his father died before he could apologize. His father messed over the evil priest of Iuz. Like a year later, the evil priest plotted revenge and was able to kill Terjon's father - all before Terjon could apologize to his father. Terjon, himself, attempted to kill the evil priest, but was not able to succeed which explains alot. Now, Terjon is cowardly about the whole situation, and he really wants the evil priest to die, but is ashamed and feels little like a small person.
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[EDIT] great finishing touch, Cujo!..the Skeletal Priest was made from the remains of Terjon's father (St. Cuthbert priest)
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When you kill the Skeletal Priest, what is dropped is a sealed container with evil crap in it [evil unholy mud = is a mixture of soil (from Iuz's plane) and an unknown unholy liquid]. The sealed container of a vile and evil unholy mud is what the party takes to Terjon [stirs his memory, scares and shames Terjon] from which you learn to talk to Mother Screng.
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Re: Our installation situation is a disaster

who says terjons father was a good priest? he might've been evil.

btw does anyone have Libris Mortis, I had a look at it in the book shop but I couldn't afford to buy it. there are 2 spell casting undead in it the deathlock and the necropolitan in it, the deathlock is very similar to what Liv made. those links don't say very much about them tho

 

Re: Our installation situation is a disaster

It's not that Iuz can't cast illusions, it's that he has no illusionist levels. He's got other spells that will fit the scenario, like Phantasmal Force & some others which he can cast. Just not powerful ones like Demi-shadow Monsters. Of course, lots of creature worship Iuz, and this will no doubt include someone or thing that can cast illusionist magic of a powerful level.

This story is getting complex; while it has a lot of potential, as well as merit, I would like to suggest to those involved that it stay believeable. Being 'complex' and being 'complicated' are two different forces in a story. To my mind, one is detailed (good) while the other is tiresome (bad). It should draw the player into connecting the elements, not force them to accept things that seem unnatural to the course of events. Not that you need advice, but mine is to keep it simple.


Lord_Spike's Skeletal Cleric Recipe (with a couple of ingredients borrowed from Cujo & Krunch):

Dirt from the Land of Iuz + Unholy water + Lich Dust = evil sludge. Placed in an enchanted vessel (a phylactery) and combined with Animate Dead, you get something which raises a skeleton, and gives it enough spell casting ability to emulate a 5th level evil cleric. If the dirt comes from Dorakaa, you get wisdom bonuses for your skeleton (more spells) and it's harder to turn by two categories. The Unholy water MUST be defiled in the Temple of Iuz in Dorakaa. If the Lich Dust is from a Demi-Lich, then it can also summon 2-5 shadows to aid it once per day.

 

Re: Our installation situation is a disaster

For one, Deathlocks and Necropolitans are not part of normal D&D where purists would roll their eyes and turn their noses up. However, let's say for the moment it would be okay to use them and discuss this suggestion.

deathlock = are undead born of the corpses of powerful spellcasters

necropolitan = Humanoids who have renounced life and embraced undeath by a Ritual of Crucimigraation
* a D&D forum discussion I found mentioned necropolitan (were familiar with the book Cujo mentioned) as a leveling character would only gain the HD, cold resistance, damage reduction, or other undead benefit and would, literally, transform in to a subtype of necropolitan undead creature like a ghast or ghoul.

Necropolitan Subtype would be an undead class that any human, demihuman, or humanoid character class could give up normal training in lieu of becoming undead through painful evil rituals. A character would give up living any normal life to be changed to an undead creature - necropolitan subtypes would be undead similar in hit die and related ability to that of a ghoul or ghast, not weaker forms of undead and also not more powerful undead with spellcasting ability, either.
* I think the name necropolitan, literally, came from the phrase undead politician.

IMO 1 - A necropolitan subtype would not be a good fit for Terjon's father as the Skeletal Priest. The Skeletal Priest was made just to be the main component of an evil trap and should be considered more powerful and beyond any necropolitan subtype of undead. More importantly, an evil priest would aspire to become a lycanthrope, vampire, or lich - something with much abundant evil power and ability as well as control over other evil creatures and also have extended long life.

IMO 2 - A deathlock would be a good fit...made from the remains of a spellcaster. Why say more than the obvious if this would be adopted?

IMO 3 - In getting back to normal D&D, I like the idea of Lord_Spike's Skeletal Cleric Recipe. I would vote for this because it seems to be more in line with what people should normally accept and like, both, for a good story and good game-play.

You guys should vote - I am not the final say or voice on the matter; I am only voicing my opinion on this topic.

 

Re: Our installation situation is a disaster

One of these two options will do me fine - the deathlock because it already exists in D&D in some shape or form, and the other option cos thats "my" tormented coming into being.

 

Re: Our installation situation is a disaster

Add in the 'botching' business to the recipe, and you've got it Cujo...! Now all that's left is to finalize the story.

Cujo...mother of the "Tormented Dead."

BTW, I recommend highly "Hellboy" as a cool dungeon style movie. It's got everything from Demons to undead, to a dungeon crawl or two, nazi spies, evil sorcerers, mutants, etc.

Ooops....forgot evil gods returning to earth, man it covers it all!

 

Re: Our installation situation is a disaster

Well, since I seem to be the only one here who thinks that the generl post battle situation at the meadow (tons of residual arcane, devine and psychic energies coalescing (sp?)) is sufficient to explain the skeletal priest, who is obviously guarding the Fungus Figuring, I am remaining silent on this subject. I will add that while the proposed storyline does explain how the skeletal priest came to be, it is rather weak on why anyone would have gone to such lengths to place it in the meadow.

As for a progress report on the new Co8 release, I have the files all put together and am waiting for anything we feel needs to be included. I am now working on the release notes, which are being quiet the bugger, and the Voice and Portrait packs. If anyone has (or can get) the release notes for Co8 2.0.0 in a word or text format, rather than the webpage that is linked to in Co8 3.0.4, I would appreciate it if they could send it to me. I cannot seem to extract them.

Edit: I managed to extract them, so please disreguard my request.

 

Re: Our installation situation is a disaster

One thing we certainly don't want to have is a camel...a horse built by committee. I'd rather it be left as is rather than get all mucked up. it's just a question of:

1. who will mod the changes
2. who will test the changes
3. making a decision once the testing is done.

I don't really see holding up everything else waiting on a story which is ok as is...plus, wasn't the whole point of this trying to get all of the stuff ready for a new co8 release? Some fleshing out can be done later as modding is sure to continue, and be included in the next release...

 

Re: Our installation situation is a disaster

I was just thinking of dialogue chalanges for Ted anf KotB and had a thought about this whole priest thing.
1. if you made Terjon hirable (can remember what excuses he has for got geting his stuff himself) could he take on emridy meadows?
2. the CN starting thing - someone else knows about the stuff at the rock and drew a map to it, maybe its their stuff (the other stuff apart from Terjons stuff, which he/she found and added it to the rock) and they set the trap. maybe someone from the temple (planing to take over?) who doesn't want anyone poking through their stuff...

 

Re: Our installation situation is a disaster

Here it is for you Blue, cf., attached file.