Norwick: Design Phase



  • @4c0642ae50=rei_jin:

    Then instead of the cold causing HP damage, have it cause fatigue.

    More realistic in some ways, as when you suffer hypothermia you first slow down, and then when you stop, you begin to slowly die.

    Makes it better as it cannot kill you, and as long as you are in town being fatigued isn't too harmful.

    So..how do you propose we simulate fatigue ?

    Slow Spells ? Con drain ? Strength drain ?….I'm not looking to rubbish the idea merely for clarification ( So I can rubbish the idea later 😄 )*

    • (This was infact a joke…as denoted by the smiley)


  • Then instead of the cold causing HP damage, have it cause fatigue.

    More realistic in some ways, as when you suffer hypothermia you first slow down, and then when you stop, you begin to slowly die.

    Makes it better as it cannot kill you, and as long as you are in town being fatigued isn't too harmful.



  • @854d06dbb2=Ulyetia:

    As far as I know anyway, you 1 get a saving throw against the cold, and 2, it isnt like every single round the moment you're away from the camp fire. It would be the same as the road to Ormpur, once and a while it makes you save, you fail, you get cold and take damage.

    The thing is, places where cold damge is currently applied – like the Cold Caves and the road to Ormpur -- are places where characters venturing onto them are going to be at least level 5 (or are really asking for death anyway). They have the HP and in many cases the saves to put up with this. It's a drip, drip, drip. They are also going to be (if not asking for death) in groups where their friends can take care of them if they go down.

    Whereas a lvl one sorcerer with 5 HP is looking at stepping out of the inn, walking towards the front gate, failing their pathetic fort save, and going to the fugue from Uninjured.

    Or a lvl 3 could stagger in the gate having barely survived a vicious combat with gob- whoops, cold got him!

    Not fun, will make low levels even less friendly, not an idea what IMHO should be implemented.

    -Lagermane



  • As far as I know anyway, you 1 get a saving throw against the cold, and 2, it isnt like every single round the moment you're away from the camp fire. It would be the same as the road to Ormpur, once and a while it makes you save, you fail, you get cold and take damage.



  • @e6591e404d=Shido_Shurukai:

    Has anyone here played Hordes of the Underdark? Well, I'd like to rebut the cold idea with a little bit of a spoiler:

    When you end up in Cania, you take cold damage whenever you arn't near a fire. You can die from this cold, and it just makes things tedious when travelling is a mad dash from one bonfire to the next. This would also punish people who can't cast Endure Elements, as travelling would be extremely dangerous without it. I like realism as much as the next guy, but I think it would do more harm than good to make people take cold damage.

    Also, unless the cold damage is rather high (like over 5 a pop, which seems to me a great way to accidentally kill our low level mages and rogues and bards) I predict that you'll simply see a certain tailor's shop in Pelt do a brisk business selling a certain type of magical cloak, which will then become all the fashion outdoors as people continue to blissfully ignore the cold.

    -Lagermane



  • Has anyone here played Hordes of the Underdark? Well, I'd like to rebut the cold idea with a little bit of a spoiler:

    When you end up in Cania, you take cold damage whenever you arn't near a fire. You can die from this cold, and it just makes things tedious when travelling is a mad dash from one bonfire to the next. This would also punish people who can't cast Endure Elements, as travelling would be extremely dangerous without it. I like realism as much as the next guy, but I think it would do more harm than good to make people take cold damage.



  • @807d16a7f3=Darkspyr:

    A small thing perhaps and maybe should have restarted the southern defenses post. I was wondering about a sally port in the wall to the east of the hill at teh new south gate defenses. A small "door" that could be opened with a Militia Barracks key to sneak out scouts or rescue parties without compromising the main gates.

    LOVE that idea



  • A small thing perhaps and maybe should have restarted the southern defenses post. I was wondering about a sally port in the wall to the east of the hill at teh new south gate defenses. A small "door" that could be opened with a Militia Barracks key to sneak out scouts or rescue parties without compromising the main gates.



  • @73a75c3d0e=Kerby:

    @73a75c3d0e=Sethan:

    If you're going to be hitting people with cold damage in an area, none of that warm weather terrain makes sense there.

    Fast running water can happen in below freezing temps.

    Yes it can - though the sentence previous to the one you quoted above mentioned liquid standing water. A good example would be the lake immediately south of Norwick's south gate.

    @73a75c3d0e=Kerby:

    And it can be BITTERLY cold without snow on the ground. This is supposed to be tundra and pine forests.

    It can be - but you don't generally see green grass and deciduous trees where this is the case, if it is that cold for more than a very brief period.

    If it is supposed to be tundra and pine forests, then we are talking about some map changes (within the limits of the toolset). For crafting purposes, deciduous trees might be a good deal more difficult to find too, except in warmer or more sheltered areas.

    @73a75c3d0e=Kerby:

    I could see having campfires make a person immune to the area cold, but with the limitations in terrain available, imagination is sometimes needed.

    I would love to see campfires make a person immune to the area cold.



  • So combine the guardhouse with the barracks. have some of the militia stuff in it. Faster to muster troops to trouble, then.

    You can always combine the interior guardhouse map with other norwick buildings, as well



  • A perfect place for shakedowns, charging of tolls, detaining suspicious persons…

    It's not a bad idea... though the idea of having to transition twice just to leave the town makes my eye start twitching a little.



  • I love the idea of a gatehouse 🙂



  • Exactly like a gatehouse. In fact, historically, weren't inns within walled towns place right AT the frontgate (both inside and outside… although not usually connected) to insure traveller's would be able to find housing without getting lost or waylaid deeper within the town. Also kept the strangers out of the more communal parts of the towns.

    this would just be taking that concept one step furter. As for not being able to hear a war happening right outside? Dunno... anyway to make a script so that yells or talk could be heard from a surrounding area? Never know until you ask. 🙂

    @67c52e6eed=Sethan:

    If you're going to be hitting people with cold damage in an area, none of that warm weather terrain makes sense there.

    Fast running water can happen in below freezing temps. And it can be BITTERLY cold without snow on the ground. This is supposed to be tundra and pine forests. I could see having campfires make a person immune to the area cold, but with the limitations in terrain available, imagination is sometimes needed.



  • @66cb4b35eb=Sethan:

    That said, this below is a neat idea:

    @66cb4b35eb=Kerby:

    I was always for making the Boarshead a gateway to the south by having it half out of the town and half in with walls butting up to both sides of the building. Walk in one door in-town… through the main hall... and out into a walled area and with a gate and a tower to the south.

    Like a gatehouse, you mean ? ( This thread Page 2, post #8 )

    Groundhog day, indeed !



  • @80d15c1bd9=Kerby:

    Thing about the beergarden ties into what I was doing popping people with cold spells as a DM while they all frolicked around the campfire south of Norwick. This is NARFELL folks… bitter cold northern block-o-ice place.

    Fine - then lets do away with all that green grass and trees and liquid standing water.

    If you're going to be hitting people with cold damage in an area, none of that warm weather terrain makes sense there.

    That said, this below is a neat idea:

    @80d15c1bd9=Kerby:

    I was always for making the Boarshead a gateway to the south by having it half out of the town and half in with walls butting up to both sides of the building. Walk in one door in-town… through the main hall... and out into a walled area and with a gate and a tower to the south.


  • The Halfling Defence League

    That's what I get for just skimming through the thread as I play! 😉



  • groundhog day?

    points at page 2

    @34adc722d8:

    Actually, if you want people to use the Boarshead, make it a Biergarten - i.e., a place that serves outdoors (preferably with a covered area, but with no walls).

    People tend to not use indoor taverns because a war could be happening outside and you would never know - and you tend to miss all sorts of good opportunities to adventure as people happen by.


  • The Halfling Defence League

    Since the big "meeting spot" is outdoors….why not have an enterprising dwarf set up a nice, cozy beer garden by the south gate?



  • Hrmm.. would be interesting to see a way into the crypt underneath the Inn… 😉



  • @96563fcaec=Dorakhan:

    I think a better solution would be to start tossing plot hooks inside the inn. If you take DM attention away from the south fire and move it to the inn, people will hang out there more often waiting for things to happen, and in the mean time, should RP with each other. People tend to hang where the action is.

    Exactly. And vice versa. If players go to the inn, the DMs will follow.

    When I first started playing Narf, I used to hang out in the inn all the time. To me, it didn't make sense to stand out in the freezing cold huddling around a little campfire (this is when Norwick was covered in snow - yuck!).

    I spent many hours RPing with other players and had some great times in there. Sometimes, we would get DM attention and we would often end events back at the same hall.

    Of course, that's before I knew "better" and learned that the "in" place to be was hangin' out by the south gate (stupid Noob!).

    I hardly ever go into the inn now, of course, the ground isn't covered in snow anymore either.

    I think it would be great for to move things back inside the inn.

    Z