Temple of Elemental Evil

[Scruffy]

i started playing it, with a pure cleric, but i'm not enjoying it... i admit it-s only been 4/5 hours but... i miss that "feeling" if you know what i mean...

what am i doing wrong?

 

[Multi-headed Cow]

Elements or alignments, which is better and why?

 

[Lim-Lim]

Apply some lubricant, and the feeling is guaranteed.

 

[thesheeep]

I just guess that you're still busy with Hamlet and the smaller outdoor areas.

The real fun begins with the big dungeons and the bigger (and more often occuring) fights, because combat and character development is where this game really shines.

Of course, it is possible that you don't like the art direction, which always results in a huge deficit of fun. But I don't know a lot people that don't like the graphics in ToEE...

 

[Murk]

just one character?

I solo'd it with the co8 fixpack + level decapper using an evil cleric, and good lord did I love every second of it.

after playing through the hommlett area once I now simply give my characters 3000xp via the console and just skip the whole damn town. its not worth it after the first time.

 

[Jasede]

ToEE doesn't have much "feeling", play something else. ToEE has as much feeling as an Excel spreadsheet, and not a particularly interesting one. Still worth playing if you like this kind of TB combat; but the game itself has no heart, no soul, no love in it.

I'd say play something else; though try a party first, maybe that'll spark your dungeon-crawler instincts.

Edit: And yes, skip Homelette. Don't use the fixpack though, it sucks out even more "feeling" out of the game. (IMO!)

 

[Murk]

Eh, the fixpack only is fine, it just fixes some stuff and doesn't add new content, which I liked as the homebrew content is... very weird I thought. Great job on the guys for being able to make it but I'd rather stick to the actual game.

I personally like the game a lot, the plot is crap as is a lot of the dialog/interaction, but the battle system is glorious and I had fun overcoming weird obstacles with a single character -- or even a small party.

 

[Andhaira]

Pick a awizard or sorceror. Te game is no fun without fireballs.

 

[Morkar Left]

Basically it´s a dungeoncrawler.

- the Implementation of the D&D rules is great
- as a dungeoncrawler it has not enough variety, it is not long enough and has a too short lvl-cap
- as a rpg it lacks on dialogue and c&c

Another example of a game that´s got published too early but still worthwhile for a playthrough if you like turnbased combat or D&D.

If you are done with the moathouse and it wasn´t fun for you, don´t expect to have fun with the game at all.

 

[Shannow]

- as a rpg it lacks on dialogue and c&c

To put it in Volly's words: No. Period.

I suggest you play it again. There's plenty of dialogue and in a c&c-to-gamelength-ratio-sense there's also lots of c&c. It even has a rare case of choices are more than binary and don't just occur in sidequests.

what am i doing wrong?

The trolls are getting better. I'd give it a 3/10.

 

[Andhaira]

The potential of this game and its engine was just amazing. FUCK YOU ATARI, and FUCK YOU TROIKA for onc again not having a good game plan.

 

[Morkar Left]

- as a rpg it lacks on dialogue and c&c

To put it in Volly's words: No. Period.

I suggest you play it again. There's plenty of dialogue and in a c&c-to-gamelength-ratio-sense there's also lots of c&c. It even has a rare case of choices are more than binary and don't just occur in sidequests.

Maybe my memory betrays me at that point... The problem is that you often don´t realize that you have a choice and it´s always better to fight than to choose another option (e.g. killing that guy from the moathouse, talk to the elemental factions in the temple etc.).

On a sidenote, Homlet wasn´t too bad at all as an introduction (very P&P-like). That part sucked for me only because of the bad dialogues and unfinished stories..

 

[thesheeep]

In a P&P game, Homlet would have been cool.

But in a PC game, running from A to B to C to A to [...] just gets annoying after a certain amount of time. Especially after the first time.

 

[DarkUnderlord]

ToEE won't hit you until you get to the temple and one of your guys gets eaten by a frog.

Before then it's mundane town crap.

 

[Shannow]

Maybe my memory betrays me at that point... The problem is that you often don´t realize that you have a choice and it´s always better to fight than to choose another option (e.g. killing that guy from the moathouse, talk to the elemental factions in the temple etc.).

Well, it paid off most to first talk to everyone, do their quests, help them... and then backstab everyone. :twisted:
Hooray for RPGs without un-killable npcs.

I had a replay with the most current Co8 mod from Nov 2008 about 3 weeks ago. There was 2-3 new VOs that were cringeworthy but others were quite ok. Some unfinished and bad quests, and no ballancing to all the extra xp you get and the removed level cap. But it was more stable than it used to be and overall an improved experience compared to the vanilla game.
Just makes me angry that the engine was never used in a really good game. Visually and gemeplay-wise certainly the best RPG-engine out there (if still quite far from perfect).

 

[kingcomrade]

I reinstalled ToEE yesterday and made some characters, then needing to do all the stupid boring Hommlet quests loomed up before me and I quit.

 

[Gaear]

I had a replay with the most current Co8 mod from Nov 2008 about 3 weeks ago. There was 2-3 new VOs that were cringeworthy but others were quite ok. Some unfinished and bad quests, and no ballancing to all the extra xp you get and the removed level cap. But it was more stable than it used to be and overall an improved experience compared to the vanilla game.

Hey shannow, glad you got some enjoyment out of the mod.

Which voiceovers did you find cringeworthy? There were no new voice sets added to the latest mod, though some of the universally cringeworthy ones from before were removed. There were a large number of new PC sets added, but they were all taken from NWN.

The game will be rebalanced in the next release by simply moving the majority of our new content to the end and thus making it technically 'optional,' if you will, and restoring whatever balance was there in the vanilla release to begin with. Also, the quest issues associated with the expansions (primarily Verbobonc) will be addressed, and in fact the Verbobonc section of the game is being entirely overhauled and expanded, with a much larger map and some additional material. And all the moved content will be adjusted for a higher level challenge. We'll also be adding an entirely new series of maps and quests for the early game that may serve as an alternative (at player discretion) to the admittedly lackluster opening Hommlet chapter, advancing players to the same level they would be if they had fedexed their way through Hommlet.

 

[Shannow]

Which voiceovers did you find cringeworthy? There were no new voice sets added to the latest mod, though some of the universally cringeworthy ones from before were removed. There were a large number of new PC sets added, but they were all taken from NWN.

"New" as in new to me
I remember that the witch in Nulb from whom you can buy magical tattoos (overpowered even with the high price, btw, imho) sounds very different when you talk to her about said tattoos. But that was only inconsistent not outright cringeworthy.
One or two of the VOs (both male) simply had bad voices. And another male voice was obviously recorded on a mike with a lot of backround noise and that was plain bad quality. Don't remember who had them, though.

While you're here. I had a bug(?) that I found extremely funny, but which'd probably ruin the fun for anybody who played the game for the first time:

Spoiler

Zuggtmotoy apeared by herself and only summoned a cornugon. The way I remembered it she should have appeared with a gaggle of funghus themed monsters. Might be I'm remembering wrong though and she summoned them over time. She didn't get to do that this time. The balor I summoned cast slay living on her. She passed the save but died anyway... Hilariously short end-fight. But I'd get rid of that bug, make her immune to instagib spells in general and give her some minions for support.

 

[Burning Bridges]

I would like to get into ToEE, too. I like turn based games, and yes, I like the graphics style. I just didn't see the point in what I have to do at the beginning of the game (Hommlet). I have some savegame somewhere where I am finally ready to go to the moathouse, maybe I should continue that one soon.

Anything new on the 'Keep on the Borderland' project, actually?

 

[Mackerel]

I think I remember that the last time I played it with Co8 there was a cleric NPC upstairs in the Hommlet church who had a VO that I felt was poor quality.

 

[Gaear]

I remember that the witch in Nulb from whom you can buy magical tattoos (overpowered even with the high price, btw, imho) sounds very different when you talk to her about said tattoos. But that was only inconsistent not outright cringeworthy.

That's an original Troika NPC with an original Troika voice set, but she has two personas (and voice affectations) - one an old woman who sells herbs, and the other her real identity, Canoness Y'Dey. IIRC we had to use a line from her old woman voice or vice versa for the tatoo sale thing. It's inconsistent, yes.

I think I remember that the last time I played it with Co8 there was a cleric NPC upstairs in the Hommlet church who had a VO that I felt was poor quality.

Yeah, that's Ronald the cleric, a Co8 NPC. (Probably the same as shannow refers to above.) I'd desperately love to re-do that set with a better voice actor in at least a semi-professional environment, but it's all we've got right now. The contributor behind that character insisted on recording the audio himself, but he obviously used low end gear in a contaminated environment. I agree the audio quality is crappy - I applied every noise reduction filter under the sun to that set but it still sucks, frankly. Hopefully one day we'll re-do it. Voice set aside, that NPC is probably the most interactive one in the game now. He has literally hundreds of lines of dialogue and responds in kind to a large number of game variables.

Anything new on the 'Keep on the Borderland' project, actually?

From what I hear from Shiningted, KotB is moving along at a brisk pace. They're working on the Caves of Chaos now - much of the artwork is done and the caves are being populated with monsters etc. and scripts and encounters are being written. Ted has stated that he expects a release of the full game in 2009.

@shannow - never saw that bug before. It is rather funny, but things like that (one-offs) just tend to happen from time to time in ToEE .

 

[circ]

If you want to enjoy ToEE, ignore the large number of Hommlet quests. They're not that bad, but the occasional VO, especially Meleny, makes them silly. I suggest you head straight for the mayor so you get moathouse and orc cave on map, maybe talk with the wizard in the inn so you get the meadow also. The best looking inn in any RPG btw. Head for moathouse, clear it, picklock the diary, head for Nulb, talk with Otis, go for the temple.

 

[Mackerel]

Yeah, that's Ronald the cleric, a Co8 NPC. (Probably the same as shannow refers to above.) I'd desperately love to re-do that set with a better voice actor in at least a semi-professional environment, but it's all we've got right now. The contributor behind that character insisted on recording the audio himself, but he obviously used low end gear in a contaminated environment. I agree the audio quality is crappy - I applied every noise reduction filter under the sun to that set but it still sucks, frankly. Hopefully one day we'll re-do it. Voice set aside, that NPC is probably the most interactive one in the game now. He has literally hundreds of lines of dialogue and responds in kind to a large number of game variables.

Ah, that's a shame, I just couldn't stand listening to him. I usually play with headphones and it makes such things even more apparent. It didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the mod in the least though, great job!

 

[Thrasher]

What? And miss out on one of the few gay NPCs in a CRPG?

Seriously, character development and combat is where TOEE shines (crafting is fun too). It turns into a fun dungeon romp once you leave the towns.

 

[Scruffy]

So i'm basically in the "temple of trials" part i guess...

i stopped playing and started king's bounty and enjoying it a lot, but i'll hold on and try getting out of that village then...

thanks people.