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[Nerevar]

Personally, I've never tried using the poison apples. The mission that you are given one for, I just killed the guy the old fashioned way. However, I know that I have read from others that they have used the apples to great success, just not sure if they used them in the mission you are referring to.

interesting, because in that mission

Spoiler

Lucien

GIVES you a poison apple and tells you how to use it. The mark(s) just wouldn't eat it. Annoying as shit, that's for sure. I just ended up doing my killing the old fashioned way, but it would have been fun to be more sneaky about it.

 

[SteveMeister]

If they have food in their inventory, they'll eat that instead of what's in front of them. You can pickpocket them, take whatever food they have and replace it with poison apples.

Spoiler

I offed several members of the Dark Brotherhood this way.

 

[raYne]

If they have food in their inventory, they'll eat that instead of what's in front of them.

So you have to hope that they don't have food on them (or check) so that it'll work? Whose idea was that?

..tell them I hate them.

Spoiler

Maybe...

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

If they have food in their inventory, they'll eat that instead of what's in front of them. You can pickpocket them, take whatever food they have and replace it with poison apples.

Spoiler

I offed several members of the Dark Brotherhood this way.

I wondered about the food in the inventory. Seems natural that they would eat that first. I've always intended to getting around to using some of the apples, just for the fun of it, but haven't given it a try yet. Perhaps I should try to break back into the Imperial Palace again! :lol

 

[Nerevar]

So you have to hope that they don't have food on them (or check) so that it'll work? Whose idea was that?

..tell them I hate them.

Spoiler

Maybe...

haha, yeah. That is a real pisser. That makes using the poison apples damn near impossible in many of the cases where you might be able to use it. People shouldn't be allowed to carry around food indefinitely, it'll spoil! :lol

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

I would think it would be fairly common for "adventurer" type NPC's to carry food around, but your average joe NPC shouldn't have any food except for what's in their house.

 

[Core407]

I would think it would be fairly common for "adventurer" type NPC's to carry food around, but your average joe NPC shouldn't have any food except for what's in their house.

They probably hunt for their food.

 

[Nerevar]

They probably hunt for their food.

yeah, pretty much all "adventuring" NPCs have camps with bedrolls, tents, and sacks somewhere. That's where all their food is kept.

Regardless, arguing reality is kind of dumb. I do dislike that people don't eat the food in front of them simply because it makes poison apples kind of worthless. I think it would've been better if they had a bit of everything in the area (kind of like how we all eat when sit down for a meal). That way you could just drop the poison apple in the middle of a banquet and it would kill the target anyway. Obviously can't be done now, but I do think it would be better if implemented that way.

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

Or, better yet, allow you to poison food in general, not just slip in some poison apples. Apply poison to food items the same way you can to weapons. That would make poison a lot more useful in general, in my opinion.

 

[GhaleonEB]

Or, better yet, allow you to poison food in general, not just slip in some poison apples. Apply poison to food items the same way you can to weapons. That would make poison a lot more useful in general, in my opinion.

Gotta agree here. I spent an hour trying to poison someone - anyone - with that apple (and the others I'd swiped). I have up and busted out my sword for the rest of the cleansing effort. I cannot see the implimentation of that item as anything other than broken.

 

[Core407]

yeah, pretty much all "adventuring" NPCs have camps with bedrolls, tents, and sacks somewhere. That's where all their food is kept.

Regardless, arguing reality is kind of dumb. I do dislike that people don't eat the food in front of them simply because it makes poison apples kind of worthless. I think it would've been better if they had a bit of everything in the area (kind of like how we all eat when sit down for a meal). That way you could just drop the poison apple in the middle of a banquet and it would kill the target anyway. Obviously can't be done now, but I do think it would be better if implemented that way.

I'm actually hoping that someone would come out with an Oblivion-styled game that is ultra-realistic.

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

I'm actually hoping that someone would come out with an Oblivion-styled game that is ultra-realistic.

In what sense would it be ultra-realistic? Care to elaborate?

 

[GhaleonEB]

After playing the game for a while it's easy to forget how good the AI is, because you start to see the flaws more and more. The Radiant AI really is impressive in that it helps make the world feel more alive, as if everyone has a life that goes on when you are not around, rather than just waiting for you to show up.

That said, I have one general comment about the AI, specifically the integration - or lack thereof - between the AI and the scripting.

When conversing with people as part of a quest, the lines they deliver and their temperment is pre-determined. This can often conflict with how they actually feel about your character based off the AI response, and it can make for really disjointed conversation. The first big instance I ran into was when I had to help one of the city mayors (not sure what he title was) find who stole her painting; it was one of two suspects and she asked me to gather clues. She asked me this the first time I spoke with her, and I thought it was putting a lot of trust in me.

She gave me keys to the entire castle, including her private quarters, and gave me free reign to roam through. It strikes me that you've got to have a lot of trust in someone to do that. And when I found the painting, and turned in the guilty party, she was over joyed. After receiving a reward I then asked to buy a house in town.

"I'm sorry, I don't trust you enough to talk about that."

....WTF? You just trusted me with keys to the castle, and I can't talk to you about buying a house? A very odd exchange to say the least.

Other examples include when I am looking for some one in their home for a quest. I often find them at night, when their door is unlocked but when the entry icon is red, meaning I'm not welcome and will be tresspassing. I can walk in, and the AI response is that I'm tresspassing, but I'm welcomed when I get there. That leads to conversations like this:

"What are you doing in here? Get out!"
*I start to talk to her*
"Oh, I'm so glad to see you! I really need your help. blahblabhbah quest stuff blah bhal bha"
*I stop talking to her*
"Get out of my house! I'll call the guards!"
*I run out before getting arrested*

One possible way to address it is to simply not allow NPC's to discuss quest topics when their disposition towards me is negative, but that has it's own set of issues. At any rate I wanted to comment on it, since it goes a long ways towards making conversation with NPCs less enjoyable than it could be.

 

[epmode]

Gotta agree here. I spent an hour trying to poison someone - anyone - with that apple (and the others I'd swiped). I have up and busted out my sword for the rest of the cleansing effort. I cannot see the implimentation of that item as anything other than broken.

As was said before, pickpocketing an NPC will work. You can also clear an area's cupboards and closets of edible food and replace it with a few poison apples. Eventually, the people using that particular closet will check for food and grab an apple instead.

 

[Core407]

In what sense would it be ultra-realistic? Care to elaborate?

Just the standard stuff.
Realistic combat - single hit kills/wounding/etc (Of course if you're wearing armor, you won't really be seeing single hit kills)

A health system that is a little more advanced than what we are expecting. Probably would be a branching system. (Health branches off into 3 different categories (sleep/eat/???) Your overall health would be an average of all the sub categories and so on.
--------

I just think that an ultra-realistic game would allow for utlra-unrealistic possibilities. Say for example you don't seep for a couple days, your vision will begin to get a little blurred, response time drops and hallucinations start to set in, which can lead into quests and all that standard stuff.

 

[GhaleonEB]

As was said before, pickpocketing an NPC will work. You can also clear an area's cupboards and closets of edible food and replace it with a few poison apples. Eventually, the people using that particular closet will check for food and grab an apple instead.

I cleared the dinner table on the santuary of all food and put an apple on each plate, and waited for three days. None eaten. Logically, given the direction I was given from the guy that gave me the apples (basically take away good food and replace it with the apples) I thought that would work. I never would have thought of putting an apple in their pocket. Wouldn't you find it odd if you left for work with a sandwich and got there with an apple in you pocket (example)? I was just tying to do what I thought the AI would think was logical.

Just the standard stuff.
Realistic combat - single hit kills/wounding/etc (Of course if you're wearing armor, you won't really be seeing single hit kills)

A health system that is a little more advanced than what we are expecting. Probably would be a branching system. (Health branches off into 3 different categories (sleep/eat/???) Your overall health would be an average of all the sub categories and so on.
--------

I just think that an ultra-realistic game would allow for utlra-unrealistic possibilities. Say for example you don't seep for a couple days, your vision will begin to get a little blurred, response time drops and hallucinations start to set in, which can lead into quests and all that standard stuff.

And let's not forget bladder and bowel management. Seriously, where are the toilets?

I don't want to play the Sims, and do that kind of micromanagement on my character. I think anything that interferes with the ability to quest, explore and have fun is damaging to the game. I got a taste of that with my spate as a vampire, and I didn't like it one damn bit.

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

Just the standard stuff.
Realistic combat - single hit kills/wounding/etc (Of course if you're wearing armor, you won't really be seeing single hit kills)

A health system that is a little more advanced than what we are expecting. Probably would be a branching system. (Health branches off into 3 different categories (sleep/eat/???) Your overall health would be an average of all the sub categories and so on.
--------

I just think that an ultra-realistic game would allow for utlra-unrealistic possibilities. Say for example you don't seep for a couple days, your vision will begin to get a little blurred, response time drops and hallucinations start to set in, which can lead into quests and all that standard stuff.

I agree with some of your ideas. More realistic combat could be good, as long as it's not overly complex. I would like to see different body areas offering up specific damage types. Headshots, etc. But I wouldn't want it to be so realistic that it became slow paced, or overly complex.

Health system ideas like that sometimes sound good on paper, but become very mundane when put into a game. I don't want to have to stop to eat all the time, or carry around lots of food with me when I go out into the wilderness. Sleeping I don't mind as much as it helps to heal, etc.

Developers have to walk a thin line between realism and making a game fun. Moving to much in one direction can totally suck the fun out of game.

 

[Core407]

I agree with some of your ideas. More realistic combat could be good, as long as it's not overly complex. I would like to see different body areas offering up specific damage types. Headshots, etc. But I wouldn't want it to be so realistic that it became slow paced, or overly complex.

Health system ideas like that sometimes sound good on paper, but become very mundane when put into a game. I don't want to have to stop to eat all the time, or carry around lots of food with me when I go out into the wilderness. Sleeping I don't mind as much as it helps to heal, etc.

Developers have to walk a thin line between realism and making a game fun. Moving to much in one direction can totally suck the fun out of game.

I actually have a fleshed out combat system that would work well for this type of game. :lol Yeah, the whole problem with going for ultra-realism is the boring/tedious elements that need to be dealt with. I think that adding an element like eating into a game only works for certain types of titles. Eating in a game like Oblivion wouldn't be as big of an issue as say a game like GTA, since in Oblivion you find yourself hunting animals, which provide food, or sneaking around stealing. You shouldn't be stopping and eating unless you want to gain weight ( - agility/speed/endurace). Really you should be eating 2 really good meals a day, which would come from your kills.

Yeah, health systems can become pretty complex, but it's workable. You'd basically be taking care of your health through completely different ways. Lets say you haven't slept for a couple days and your mental health is draining. How would you cure this? Obviously you would sleep. But when you sleep, not only does your mental state return, but your moves are more precise (+ agility) and your view isn't alterted (+ accuracy).

I think the problem with the genre is more related with developers and a lack of good implementation.

 

[GhaleonEB]

I actually have a fleshed out combat system that would work well for this type of game. :lol Yeah, the whole problem with going for ultra-realism is the boring/tedious elements that need to be dealt with. I think that adding an element like eating into a game only works for certain types of titles. Eating in a game like Oblivion wouldn't be as big of an issue as say a game like GTA, since in Oblivion you find yourself hunting animals, which provide food, or sneaking around stealing. You shouldn't be stopping and eating unless you want to gain weight ( - agility/speed/endurace). Really you should be eating 2 really good meals a day, which would come from your kills.

Yeah, health systems can become pretty complex, but it's workable. You'd basically be taking care of your health through completely different ways. Lets say you haven't slept for a couple days and your mental health is draining. How would you cure this? Obviously you would sleep. But when you sleep, not only does your mental state return, but your moves are more precise (+ agility) and your view isn't alterted (+ accuracy).

I think the problem with the genre is more related with developers and a lack of good implementation.

I agree that it's possible to impliment, but it's all about balance. Even just having to wait around to dodge daylight while a Vampire was frustrating to me. Now imaging heading off to a cave:

1) Sleep
2) Eat
3) Hit the bathroom
4) Hike to cave, fight monsters, etc. That's tiring stuff, and you might work up an appetite.
5) Eat
6) Sleep
7) Hit the john again

Guys like me that just wanna go exploring would get pretty frustrated, since the amount of playtime devoted to just nurturing my avatar would skyrocket. I never went hunting per se, since I didn't think that would be fun. Being more or less forced to (or forced to take a penalty for not doing it) would begin to impact the freedom of the game, to a degree.

All of which is not to say the health system shouldn't or couldn't be more nuanced, I just don't like the specific implimentation you're describing. Of course, I don't have a better idea (leave it the same?). :lol

 

[Core407]

I agree that it's possible to impliment, but it's all about balance. Even just having to wait around to dodge daylight while a Vampire was frustrating to me. Now imaging heading off to a cave:

1) Sleep
2) Eat
3) Hit the bathroom
4) Hike to cave, fight monsters, etc. That's tiring stuff, and you might work up an appetite.
5) Eat
6) Sleep
7) Hit the john again

Guys like me that just wanna go exploring would get pretty frustrated, since the amount of playtime devoted to just nurturing my avatar would skyrocket. I never went hunting per se, since I didn't think that would be fun. Being more or less forced to (or forced to take a penalty for not doing it) would begin to impact the freedom of the game, to a degree.

All of which is not to say the health system shouldn't or couldn't be more nuanced, I just don't like the specific implimentation you're describing. Of course, I don't have a better idea (leave it the same?). :lol

No, you're thinking in excess here. You don't have to sleep ever at all, but your decision will be reflected in your statistics. It's not like the game will end if you don't sleep at time point a or time point b and same goes for eating.

Edit: See, the problem is that you guys are thinking of things that are realistic and are throwing it in the game, which is wrong. What you should do is find realistic things that add a new level to gameplay. Having to use the bathroom adds nothing to the gameplay and is more of a gimmick than anything else.

 

[ShutEye]

OMG.

My Girlfriend, who generally dislikes video games, decided that Oblivion would be fun to play because of the "beautiful, realistic, but cartoony" graphics, the "relaxing feeling" she felt while watching me play, and the "way the game reminds me (her) of choose-your-own-adventure books" she used to read as a kid.

She struggled with the controls through the tutorial but otherwise really enjoyed herself.

I am shocked.

 

[raYne]

Marry her.

 

[GhaleonEB]

No, you're thinking in excess here. You don't have to sleep ever at all, but your decision will be reflected in your statistics. It's not like the game will end if you don't sleep at time point a or time point b and same goes for eating.

Right, I took that into consideration:

Guys like me that just wanna go exploring would get pretty frustrated, since the amount of playtime devoted to just nurturing my avatar would skyrocket. I never went hunting per se, since I didn't think that would be fun. Being more or less forced to (or forced to take a penalty for not doing it) would begin to impact the freedom of the game, to a degree.

Most players will consider taking a stat hit unacceptable and be motivated to address it. The same way we do now, with trying to cure diseases and other stat-damaging afflictions. I'm just saying there's a line to draw when adding those, since they will add up and the player can spend lots of time just trying to prevent the stats from degenerating over the course of playing.

 

[Core407]

Right, I took that into consideration:


Most players will consider taking a stat hit unacceptable and be motivated to address it. The same way we do now, with trying to cure diseases and other stat-damaging afflictions. I'm just saying there's a line to draw when adding those, since they will add up and the player can spend lots of time just trying to prevent the stats from degenerating over the course of playing.

It would have to be a continual decrease and not a sudden hit. To do it correctly, the user shouldn't even notice any real difference for a time period. Say I don't eat anything for a day and my endurance begins to fade. For that day I don't eat, I don't see any actual change in my characters performance. As time goes on, the hit becomes obvious. Still, I can counter not eating for a day and losing 5 endurance points by going to sleep, which improves endurance/stamina. If I don't eat for another couple of days, the hit begins to become bigger and more noticeable. Attacks aren't as powerful as before and my character isn't as quick as he is as 100%.

This system would take a lot of balancing, but it's a possibility.

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

Actually, I was thinking of things being realistic because you used the words "Ultra-realistic" in your discription. Personally, the sleeping thing wouldn't be that bad, provided you could sleep anywhere. I've played plenty of games where sleeping was integrated into RPG's. I think NeverWinter Nights even required you to have a bedroll with you.

Now eating on the other hand, is not something I want to have to deal with. Carry food around or hunting is not something I want to have to deal with when I'm out roaming the countryside. I haven't hunted, or killed a deer once in Oblivion. Some things just border on tedium, and I want to play the game for fun, not spend time dealing with things that I have to do in real life.

Ultra-realistic can go too far imho. That is why most developers shy away from it.

 

[GhaleonEB]

Actually, I was thinking of things being realistic because you used the words "Ultra-realistic" in your discription. Personally, the sleeping thing wouldn't be that bad, provided you could sleep anywhere. I've played plenty of games where sleeping was integrated into RPG's. I think NeverWinter Nights even required you to have a bedroll with you.

Now eating on the other hand, is not something I want to have to deal with. Carry food around or hunting is not something I want to have to deal with when I'm out roaming the countryside. I haven't hunted, or killed a deer once in Oblivion. Some things just border on tedium, and I want to play the game for fun, not spend time dealing with things that I have to do in real life.
Ultra-realistic can go too far imho. That is why most developers shy away from it.

The first thing I thought of was working as a forklift driver when I read the bolded part. :lol Gotta draw the line somewhere.

 

[Mejilan]

Plenty of Morrowind and even some Oblivion mods that give you options when it comes to adding food/water/sleep requirements to the experience. Some of the more elegant solutions create purchasable bedrolls that you can carry around (ala Ultima 7), and allow you to auto-eat and auto-drink when necessary, provided you have the food and drink in your inventory.

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

The first thing I thought of was working as a forklift driver when I read the bolded part. :lol Gotta draw the line somewhere.

:lol Yup! Shen Mue as a cool game that took some of the realism too far. So you stood around waiting for things to happen sometimes. Obviously good game design plays into too, but driving a forklift around wasn't all that fun!

 

[Core407]

Actually, I was thinking of things being realistic because you used the words "Ultra-realistic" in your discription. Personally, the sleeping thing wouldn't be that bad, provided you could sleep anywhere. I've played plenty of games where sleeping was integrated into RPG's. I think NeverWinter Nights even required you to have a bedroll with you.

Now eating on the other hand, is not something I want to have to deal with. Carry food around or hunting is not something I want to have to deal with when I'm out roaming the countryside. I haven't hunted, or killed a deer once in Oblivion. Some things just border on tedium, and I want to play the game for fun, not spend time dealing with things that I have to do in real life.

Ultra-realistic can go too far imho. That is why most developers shy away from it.

Kung Fu Jedi: How is eating any different than taking a health potion? Basically eating takes the role of the health potion since the combat will be 1/2/3 hit kills.

Edit: I'm glad you guys brought up Shenmue, because that is a prime example of a title that really doesn't work too well when realism is applied. WAITING takes away from the gameplay and ths the first rule you don't want to break. If it takes away from the gameplay then it's obviously something that needs to be reworked or completely axed. Not eating isn't something that's going to prevent you from running around the country side or questing, but just a reworked health system.

 

[GhaleonEB]

How is eating any different than taking a health potion? Basically eating takes the role of the health potion since the combat will be 1/2/3 hit kills.

I thought you meant in ADDITION to a health potion, and a lack of food damages other stats. If we're just talking substitution then yeah I don't see a problem.

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

How is eating any different than taking a health potion? Basically eating takes the role of the health potion since the combat will be 1/2/3 hit kills.

I only need to take health potions when necessary. In the middle of a battle when I'm in trouble, or shortly there after if I don't want to use healing spells. But it's quite possible that I could go through the whole game without using a healing potion.

I was under the impression that you were suggesting we needed to eat food on a scheduled, regular basis no matter what, even if just walking around town. If not, and food is just another way to get health back, no problem. But if your character gets hungry, and you have to feed him to keep his stats up, that's mundane and not something I want to deal with in an RPG. As others said, save that for the Sims.

 

[Core407]

I only need to take health potions when necessary. In the middle of a battle when I'm in trouble, or shortly there after if I don't want to use healing spells. But it's quite possible that I could go through the whole game without using a healing potion.

I was under the impression that you were suggesting we needed to eat food on a scheduled, regular basis no matter what, even if just walking around town. If not, and food is just another way to get health back, no problem. But if your character gets hungry, and you have to feed him to keep his stats up, that's mundane and not something I want to deal with in an RPG. As others said, save that for the Sims.

No, you're not REQUIRED to do anything. If you don't eat, there's going to be a realistic result of your choice and that may mean a point loss in power or speed, but it's regainable and not JUST through eating, but through other means. You can go days without eating and still be successful in the game. Think of it like the weapon quality level in Oblivion. The more you use it, the more degraded it becomes and the less damage it can do. You CAN repair it with hammers, but you're not REQUIRED to.

GhaleonEB: You can still have health potions in the game, but they're not going to be readily available and require many items for the recipe and so on and on.

The whole realism thing is what got me into Morrowind and it's one of the reasons I'm not 100% pleased with Oblivion.

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

No, you're not REQUIRED to do anything. If you don't eat, there's going to be a realistic result of your choice and that may mean a point loss in power or speed, but it's regainable and not JUST through eating, but through other means. You can go days without eating and still be successful in the game. Think of it like the weapon quality level in Oblivion. The more you use it, the more degraded it becomes and the less damage it can do. You CAN repair it with hammers, but you're not REQUIRED to.

GhaleonEB: You can still have health potions in the game, but they're not going to be readily available and require many items for the recipe and so on and on.

The whole realism thing is what got me into Morrowind and it's one of the reasons I'm not 100% pleased with Oblivion.

What you describe would REQUIRE ME to eat. I'm not going to allow my stats to take a hit because something in the game says that I lose points because I'm not eating. That's like saying that you don't need to heal yourself when you get a disease in Oblivion. Of course you don't have to, but you suffer consequences, and when I play a game like this, I want my stats to be at their peak. Otherwise, it's quite possible you wouldn't be able to defeat more powerful foes if your stats are too weak due to lack of food (and water I suppose?)

The strict rules of the game may say you don't have to eat, but my approach to a game would say that I would indeed have to eat. Again, leave that to the Sims. I'd have no interest in that type of game.

 

[Core407]

What you describe would REQUIRE ME to eat. I'm not going to allow my stats to take a hit because something in the game says that I lose points because I'm not eating. That's like saying that you don't need to heal yourself when you get a disease in Oblivion. Of course you don't have to, but you suffer consequences, and when I play a game like this, I want my stats to be at their peak. Otherwise, it's quite possible you wouldn't be able to defeat more powerful foes if your stats are too weak due to lack of food (and water I suppose?)

The strict rules of the game may say you don't have to eat, but my approach to a game would say that I would indeed have to eat. Again, leave that to the Sims. I'd have no interest in that type of game.

So don't buy it.

 

[teiresias]

The whole "Your Characters need to eat" deal was done already - to mind-numbingly annoying perfection in Ultima VII, it was the only truly horrendous thing about that game.

 

[Core407]

The whole "Your Characters need to eat" deal was done already - to mind-numbingly annoying perfection in Ultima VII, it was the only truly horrendous thing about that game.

Just because other games failed at the idea, doesn't mean it's a bad one.

 

[Vrolokus]

The whole "Your Characters need to eat" deal was done already - to mind-numbingly annoying perfection in Ultima VII, it was the only truly horrendous thing about that game.

QFT. Along the lines of "how many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootise Pop?" is "How many times does Iolo have to say he's hungry before I cave in his skull and leave him in the forest?"

 

[Nerevar]

OMG.

My Girlfriend, who generally dislikes video games, decided that Oblivion would be fun to play because of the "beautiful, realistic, but cartoony" graphics, the "relaxing feeling" she felt while watching me play, and the "way the game reminds me (her) of choose-your-own-adventure books" she used to read as a kid.

She struggled with the controls through the tutorial but otherwise really enjoyed herself.

I am shocked.

my sister, 27 at the time and not having played a video game since we were like 8, bought an xbox for Morrowind. No joke.

 

[Nerevar]

So don't buy it.

you should invest in the PC version of Oblivion then. As has already been pointed out, plenty of mods already implement this, pretty much exactly as you describe. That's the beauty of the PC version of Oblivion, the mods make it pretty timeless.

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

So don't buy it.

If I knew that was part of the game mechanism, I wouldn't buy it. And seeing as you're about the only one here who thinks it's a good idea, I don't think anyone else would either.

You'll get your first game out, but due to lack of sales there won't be any sequels, while the rest of us will be playing Elder Scrolls V or VI

 

[GhaleonEB]

I'm having way more fun with my second character. I'm level three and I've now got a Marksman skill of 39, which is higher than it ever got with my other character. I just got through clearing out an Alyid ruin filled with bandits, and I killed all but about five of them in one shot, while sneaking. (With the help of some damage health poisons, which I'm mixing in bulk for my arrows.) Very very fun stuff.

I'm still learning new things. I'm too embarassed to say what I just learned other than it sure would have come in handy during my last game. :lol

Speaking of which - what does it mean when an attribite such as Agility "governs" a skill, such as Marksman? Does this mean Marksman goes up faster when I have a high Agility?

 

[FateBreaker]

christ there's a lot of posts in this thread. x_x;;

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

Speaking of which - what does it mean when an attribite such as Agility "governs" a skill, such as Marksman? Does this mean Marksman goes up faster when I have a high Agility?

I believe that skills and attributes effect each other both ways. Your Marksman skill is better when you have a higher agility (more accurate, more damage), but obviously as your Marksman skill increases, it effects the number of points that will be available for agility the next time you level up.

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

christ there's a lot of posts in this thread. x_x;;

Yes. Yes, there are. And you'd better get reading them. Each and every one! :lol

 

[Naked Snake]

What good mods have been released lately? I haven't been keeping up.

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

Here's one mod that would making having the PC version all the more worth it:

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3151709

Basically, it adds multi-player to Oblvion. The Alpha release allows for 2 players to play co-op together, and the next release will add 8 player deathmatch and CTF.

While the DM and CTF stuff doesn't appeal to me too much, I'd love to have co-op mode in Oblivion. Something like 2 to 4 players working as a team would be awesome. I know there are all kinds of issues with balancing the game and making things work in a multiplayer environment, but I'd kill for a small party, multiplayer Elder Scrolls game.

 

[GhaleonEB]

christ there's a lot of posts in this thread. x_x;;

Oh, we're just getting started.

 

[Richiban]

How many quests are there?

A friend of mine figures he's pretty much done the game, but I'm curious to know what the total number of quests there are to do.

I love this game. I just bought a spell of invisibility and boy did it change the way I play the game. Closing Oblivion gates is hilarious now. I just walk on through like I'm taking a sunday stroll, grab the tablet and enjoy the monsters scrambling to come kill me.

Sure it's cheap, but also hilarious fun.

 

[Nerevar]

yeah, I abuse ghostwalk to clear Oblivion gates at this point. sometimes fighting the daedra can get so tiring - I just prefer to speed run right through.

 

[Kung Fu Jedi]

Clearing Oblivion Gates did get pretty tiresome after awhile. The last few I closed, I would often just make a dash for it once I got to the end.

As for the total number of quests, I thought I heard someone say there is about 195 quests in the game. Giver or take a few.