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Some ideas I've been toying with...


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#1 Mistress Elysia

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 12:31 AM

Okay. *Deep breath*. I know I've only just returned to modding after a protracted absence (some of it not entirely intentional... *gazes adoringly at Lucy* ^_^), but that doesn't mean I've not continued to think up ideas for different mods.

My first question for all of you fine people is something that has been bugging me for a while now - although I see plenty of mods in the making, is there still a demand for them? BG2 is, afterall, coming up for 10 years old... Is it just the hardcore few that like new mods - considering many of us in the modding community have been here for donkey's years, are we all just creating mods for ourselves now rather than a wider audience (or has that indeed always been the case?) - or is the appeal of new mod NPCs still as widespread as it was 5 years ago?

Still, saying that; here are a few ideas I have had over the years for mods (some of these characters may be familiar to some people - I tend to incorporate many of my potential mod characters into either my stories or my roleplaying characters, mainly to test out their personalities and see if they 'work' as characters).

First up: Ghost and Jek

People who used to rp at Narbondel years ago (Kellen, I'm looking at you!) might remember Ghost. She is a mixture of an RP character I designed for the Midnight D20 system and then tweaked for Narbondel - I thought she might make an interesting mod NPC (although she *might* be a bit much, I don't know).

Ghost is a human female with pale, almost albino-esque skin, silvery hair and pale, silvery blue eyes. She is called Ghost not just due to her ethereal appearance, but also because she has no idea who she is nor where she came from; her anmesia with regards to her past (and sometimes even day to day things) is total and complete. She is, however, and accomplished sorcereress, but has no idea how she wields such power. Her only link to her possible past (and the 'person' who reminds her of day to day things) is her familiar, Jek - an abrasive and over-protective pseudodragon. She joins your party for two main reasons: to continue her seemingly neverending search to discover exactly who she is and why she dreams so consistently of flying, and simply so she has meaning to her life, a cause she can subscribe her life to and a place where she feels she 'belongs'.

Ghost is Lawful Good (which in itself is unusual for usually chaotic sorcerers). She believes in honour and helping others, and has an almost visceral response to evildoers. Although Ghost's life is very complicated, her morals are not - when it comes to them, Ghost sees the world in a very black and white way, which can sometimes come off as arrogance. Her amnesia, however, also makes her quite naive, and she can be manipulated quite easily. She finds it hard to connect with other people, and frequently has the nagging feeling that she simply 'doesn't belong' amongst other humanoid races. Surprisingly, she can also be quite covetuous and materialistic - she is seemingly drawn to gems and gold, favouring star sapphires and flawless diamonds over anything else.

Jek is Chaotic Good and serves as Ghost's friend, protector and personal journal. He regards his mistress highly, and reacts in an alomst jealous way if he deems other people's interest in her as 'too friendly'. He is also hiding a big secret that may or may not have something to do with Ghost's past.

Obviously, at first, the PC (and therefore the player) have no idea who or what Ghost really is, and obviously part of the fun is discovering this, but for the purposes of a mod pitch, I can't keep the twist a total secret! This is also where the 'Jeez, this is a bit much...' feelings might come in. Ghost is actually a polymorphed Silver Dragon, cursed to walk Faerun as an amnesiac human by a powerful Lich. This leads to the simple fact that as soon as she discovers who she is and regains her true form, she will leave the party, possibly making Ghost a rather bitter-sweet addition to BG2, especially if I do decide to include a romance (she would obviously have to leave once she re-discovered her heritage; I don't think anyone could excuse you carting a Silver Dragon around in your party!!!).

You would find Ghost in the Copper Coronet (or maybe another Athkatlan Tavern), and the culmination of her over-arcing quest would be iin Watcher's Keep (facing the Lich to break the spell, whereupon she would leave you - I figured WK was a good place for this, since it is the one place available for the duration of SoA and ToB).

Obviously, you could avoid losing Ghost as a party member by not allowing her to discover her true form (once she discovers her draconic heritage (the final realisation would be in WK), she will insist upon facing the Lich to break the spell to restore herself to her former glory (dragons are nothing if not self-centred and arrogant, afterall!) - if you refuse or leave it too long, she'll leave your party anyway), that's it, but that would just be mean...

Suggested Stats (subject to change): STR: 11 (although she is a dragon, as a human she is not too strong), DEX: 14, CON: 16 (her draconic heritage does make her pretty hardy), INT: 12 (average intelligence - the Lich doesn't want her to work out who she is too easily!), WIS: 15 (she's pretty sensible, hence the reason why she's survived regardless of her anmesia), CHA: 16 (she is a sorceress and a dragon to boot - this does lead to her having a strangely compelling aura about her).

Romance? Possibly. I do like writing romances, and this would be, for me, an interesting exercise in a doom-fated romance. However, romances are time consuming and might be a little passe now? I don't know...

Secondly: Xen'shai Aleanath

Xen'shai Aleanath is a NE drow bard with a complicated history. I first came up with Xen'shai years ago as a minor player in an RP (the member Xen'Shail (dunno if he is still around!) based his user name on the character many moons ago), and more recently, he is a major player in my Hordes of the Underdark fanfic, Where Darkness Resides.

Xen'shai is a Deathsinger, a drow bard dedicated to the service of Vhaeraun. He is charming (bordering upon almost sleazy), confident, and utterly self-centred, but is accomplished enough in manipulation that he can come across as caring and genuine. His reasons for joining your party seem innocent enough - as a drow upon the surface, he has little in the way of allies and is keen to 'make friends' (read: 'ally myself with someone hugely powerful who can protect me'), but underneath there seems to be another, slightly more sinister motive...

Xen'shai will target female PCs over male ones, simply because he finds females easier to manipulate than males (unless they are interested in the contents of his breeches; they're fair game as well). He likes to worm his way into people's affections as a way to get his own way - he enjoys the company of surfacer females because, in his experience, they are eager to please and easily satisfied (compared to the drow females he used to consort with, it's no surprise, really!). He is drawn to power, which goes some way as to why he is drawn to a Bhaalspawn... there is also the simple fact that as a Bhaalspawn, you have contained within yourself a divine spark, something that he rather covets himself (which makes his interest in the PC rather similar to Irenicus).

Whilst Xen'shai would probably come under the umbrella of a romance mod, the fact that he is utterly selfish and that he is incredibly unlikely to genuinely devote himself to the PC (although I am sure there are PC's with huge CHA scores out there that could do this!) will mean that any 'romance' pursued by a PC (although it will be Shai doing most of the pursuing, if that makes sense!) is effectively false - there is only one person Shai loves, and that is himself! Although he is evil, however, he does favour 'good' PCs (not that that excludes evil PCs - in fact, and evil PC is more likely to be the one whom he devote himself to), but that is simply because he sees them as easier targets... but in the long run, he would respect an 'evil' PC more.

Suggested Stats (subject to change): STR: 12, DEX: 17, CON: 10, INT:16, WIS: 12, CHA: 18. Xen'shai is not much of a fighter when compared to other characters, and prefers to talk his way out of things if possible, but he can hold his own when necessary.

The third and last proposal is probably going to be my most contraversial and least likely to be accepted, so I'm bracing myself for a bit of a flaming for even suggesting this, but here goes anyway...

Solaufein

Yes, THAT Solaufein.

I would like to make is clear from the very start that this is in no way an affront or condemnation of Weimer's fine work. His Sola was the first mod I played, and was the mod that started my modding career (I wrote a whole bunch or pretty crap flirts for him back in '03...), and for this reason, I do hold his Sola in high regard.

However, the more I read around the subject, the more I realise that a lot of people are not particularly satisfied with Weimerfein, stating specifically that he is just a little too different from Bioware's original character. Now, I am in no way whatsoever saying that I think I could do a better job in characterising Sola than Weimer (sheesh, I think that could actually be considered modding blasphemy!), and any tentative project undertaken to bring an alternative Sola into the game would MOST DEFINITELY be undertaken by a team (in this instance, I do think a team of people could pin down Bioware Sola's personality, simply because it's not just one person's interpretation), but I do think it might be an interesting project to undertake... *dons large iron helm and hunkers down into the foetal position, awaiting the many and varied beatings she may receive for even thinking this, let alone suggesting it...*

Before commenting upon the Solaufein suggestion, please remember that it is literally just an idea and nothing else!! :unsure:

I do have other ideas, but these were the main three I wanted to toss out. Obviously, when it comes to modding, Fade is my main concern right now, but it is fun to think of other projects, too :)

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#2 --arconian--

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 01:19 AM

First up: Ghost and Jek

People who used to rp at Narbondel years ago (Kellen, I'm looking at you!) might remember Ghost. She is a mixture of an RP character I designed for the Midnight D20 system and then tweaked for Narbondel - I thought she might make an interesting mod NPC (although she *might* be a bit much, I don't know).

Ghost is a human female with pale, almost albino-esque skin, silvery hair and pale, silvery blue eyes. She is called Ghost not just due to her ethereal appearance, but also because she has no idea who she is nor where she came from; her anmesia with regards to her past (and sometimes even day to day things) is total and complete. She is, however, and accomplished sorcereress, but has no idea how she wields such power. Her only link to her possible past (and the 'person' who reminds her of day to day things) is her familiar, Jek - an abrasive and over-protective pseudodragon. She joins your party for two main reasons: to continue her seemingly neverending search to discover exactly who she is and why she dreams so consistently of flying, and simply so she has meaning to her life, a cause she can subscribe her life to and a place where she feels she 'belongs'.

Ghost is Lawful Good (which in itself is unusual for usually chaotic sorcerers). She believes in honour and helping others, and has an almost visceral response to evildoers. Although Ghost's life is very complicated, her morals are not - when it comes to them, Ghost sees the world in a very black and white way, which can sometimes come off as arrogance. Her amnesia, however, also makes her quite naive, and she can be manipulated quite easily. She finds it hard to connect with other people, and frequently has the nagging feeling that she simply 'doesn't belong' amongst other humanoid races. Surprisingly, she can also be quite covetuous and materialistic - she is seemingly drawn to gems and gold, favouring star sapphires and flawless diamonds over anything else.

Jek is Chaotic Good and serves as Ghost's friend, protector and personal journal. He regards his mistress highly, and reacts in an alomst jealous way if he deems other people's interest in her as 'too friendly'. He is also hiding a big secret that may or may not have something to do with Ghost's past.

Obviously, at first, the PC (and therefore the player) have no idea who or what Ghost really is, and obviously part of the fun is discovering this, but for the purposes of a mod pitch, I can't keep the twist a total secret! This is also where the 'Jeez, this is a bit much...' feelings might come in. Ghost is actually a polymorphed Silver Dragon, cursed to walk Faerun as an amnesiac human by a powerful Lich. This leads to the simple fact that as soon as she discovers who she is and regains her true form, she will leave the party, possibly making Ghost a rather bitter-sweet addition to BG2, especially if I do decide to include a romance (she would obviously have to leave once she re-discovered her heritage; I don't think anyone could excuse you carting a Silver Dragon around in your party!!!).

You would find Ghost in the Copper Coronet (or maybe another Athkatlan Tavern), and the culmination of her over-arcing quest would be iin Watcher's Keep (facing the Lich to break the spell, whereupon she would leave you - I figured WK was a good place for this, since it is the one place available for the duration of SoA and ToB).

Obviously, you could avoid losing Ghost as a party member by not allowing her to discover her true form (once she discovers her draconic heritage (the final realisation would be in WK), she will insist upon facing the Lich to break the spell to restore herself to her former glory (dragons are nothing if not self-centred and arrogant, afterall!) - if you refuse or leave it too long, she'll leave your party anyway), that's it, but that would just be mean...

Suggested Stats (subject to change): STR: 11 (although she is a dragon, as a human she is not too strong), DEX: 14, CON: 16 (her draconic heritage does make her pretty hardy), INT: 12 (average intelligence - the Lich doesn't want her to work out who she is too easily!), WIS: 15 (she's pretty sensible, hence the reason why she's survived regardless of her anmesia), CHA: 16 (she is a sorceress and a dragon to boot - this does lead to her having a strangely compelling aura about her).

Romance? Possibly. I do like writing romances, and this would be, for me, an interesting exercise in a doom-fated romance. However, romances are time consuming and might be a little passe now? I don't know...


This is why it is awesome that you're back Miss! I love this idea, I don't think romaces are passé :P . And a doomed one like this would be awesine, even if you decide to leave it out though a memory erased silver dragon joining your party would be great :) , it'd be something different that's for sure :P

Secondly: Xen'shai Aleanath

Xen'shai Aleanath is a NE drow bard with a complicated history. I first came up with Xen'shai years ago as a minor player in an RP (the member Xen'Shail (dunno if he is still around!) based his user name on the character many moons ago), and more recently, he is a major player in my Hordes of the Underdark fanfic, Where Darkness Resides.

Xen'shai is a Deathsinger, a drow bard dedicated to the service of Vhaeraun. He is charming (bordering upon almost sleazy), confident, and utterly self-centred, but is accomplished enough in manipulation that he can come across as caring and genuine. His reasons for joining your party seem innocent enough - as a drow upon the surface, he has little in the way of allies and is keen to 'make friends' (read: 'ally myself with someone hugely powerful who can protect me'), but underneath there seems to be another, slightly more sinister motive...

Xen'shai will target female PCs over male ones, simply because he finds females easier to manipulate than males (unless they are interested in the contents of his breeches; they're fair game as well). He likes to worm his way into people's affections as a way to get his own way - he enjoys the company of surfacer females because, in his experience, they are eager to please and easily satisfied (compared to the drow females he used to consort with, it's no surprise, really!). He is drawn to power, which goes some way as to why he is drawn to a Bhaalspawn... there is also the simple fact that as a Bhaalspawn, you have contained within yourself a divine spark, something that he rather covets himself (which makes his interest in the PC rather similar to Irenicus).

Whilst Xen'shai would probably come under the umbrella of a romance mod, the fact that he is utterly selfish and that he is incredibly unlikely to genuinely devote himself to the PC (although I am sure there are PC's with huge CHA scores out there that could do this!) will mean that any 'romance' pursued by a PC (although it will be Shai doing most of the pursuing, if that makes sense!) is effectively false - there is only one person Shai loves, and that is himself! Although he is evil, however, he does favour 'good' PCs (not that that excludes evil PCs - in fact, and evil PC is more likely to be the one whom he devote himself to), but that is simply because he sees them as easier targets... but in the long run, he would respect an 'evil' PC more.


Miss, how dare you! A non-good, non-dual weilding manipulative drow?! Those don't exist :D . I know my evil male PC would be very happy to have a guy he could compare notes with xD. He'd find it a challenge to have someone just as, or more, manipulative than him around :)


Solaufein


I never played the old Solau mods so it would be a new experience for me any which way.

Well...looks like you're back for good, yay :D

#3 Orthodoxia

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 06:46 AM

Ghost and Jek - this is one great idea. There are not many "unrequited love" romances around, especially when that unrequited love is directed towards the PC. But having someone in the party who is all paladin-like and still so materialistic would probably make some funny moments.

Xen'shai Aleanath sounds like he would be a really interesting addition to already problematic life of my Bhaalspawn - so long as there was an option to play "smart" against him :D

As for Solaufein, there are already two Nalia mods. I don't see anything blasphemous about creating another mod about Sola. More Sola is always good.
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#4 Aeryn

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 08:05 AM

Xen'shai Aleanath

Yes please! :D I have been dying for a truly evil male to 'romance,' and gods would Xen'shai be perfect. And it has nothing to do with that particularly drool-worthy, half-naked drawing of him...no, nothing at all...*cough* The idea of a manipulative relationship is hugely appealing to me, and to my evil PCs who think Anomen would be more useful with his head on a pike.

Ghost and Jek makes me kind of sad. It sounds interesting, and it's nice to see ideas that deviate from the typical flow of mods.

I agree with pretty much everything you said about Sola. I think most people shy away from the idea of a new project for him simply out of deference to Weimer, which is all well and good, but I am with the group that was not really satisfied with how he was characterized. At all. If there is enough demand for a different type of Solaufein (which I believe there is), then I see nothing wrong with undertaking the creation of another mod.

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#5 Mistress Elysia

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 09:53 AM

This is why it is awesome that you're back Miss! I love this idea, I don't think romaces are passé :P . And a doomed one like this would be awesine, even if you decide to leave it out though a memory erased silver dragon joining your party would be great :) , it'd be something different that's for sure :P

:hug:

If I was going to tackle any of these ideas, I think this is the one I would probably tackle first. Ghost has been around as a character for a good 4 years, and so it would be nice to give her a part in BG2. I think she would also be easier to undertake than Xen'shai - as an 'honest to goodness' PC, she would definitely be a more straightforward character in terms of personality.


Miss, how dare you! A non-good, non-dual weilding manipulative drow?! Those don't exist :D . I know my evil male PC would be very happy to have a guy he could compare notes with xD. He'd find it a challenge to have someone just as, or more, manipulative than him around :)


I know! It's almost as if I was a bit fed up of dual wielding rebel drow with hearts of gold... :D

I've been wanting to write a true 'evil' romance for ages, but I have to say that they are HARD. I've toyed with a few characters over the years, and they've all come to naught in the end, simply because although I find writing evil fun, I am also a hopeless romantic who does like a 'happily ever after' kind of ending. However, I got that with Fade, and there is no way I'm going to do that again - what's the point?


Ghost and Jek - this is one great idea. There are not many "unrequited love" romances around, especially when that unrequited love is directed towards the PC. But having someone in the party who is all paladin-like and still so materialistic would probably make some funny moments.

I'm not sure whether it would be unrequited - just doomed. Ghost certainly wouldn't reciprocate any feelings the same way Fade would - she is just too distant for that, so I suppose in that sense any romantic feelings might seem unrequited. Once she reclaims her true form, however, then it would definitely be unrequited - I envision potentially a very sad ending for Ghost's story, which in itself is interesting for me :).

Xen'shai Aleanath sounds like he would be a really interesting addition to already problematic life of my Bhaalspawn - so long as there was an option to play "smart" against him :D

Oh, absolutely! Shai would be an interesting yet difficult character to write for, because I would have to ensure there were 'evil', 'good', 'naive and 'smart' options for his dialogues, ensuring as many PC types as possible were catered for. As I said above, I think Ghost would be an easier mod to write (and so would probably be tackled first), but Shai would be a real meaty challenge... I'd like it so that you could play him through at least twice, getting a different response from him each time depending on whether you played the innocent or whether you smart-mouthed him. For this reason, I expect I'd probably have to draft people in to help me - I don't think I'd like to undertake writing Shai on my own...

As for Solaufein, there are already two Nalia mods. I don't see anything blasphemous about creating another mod about Sola. More Sola is always good.

:D I have to admit, this surprises me! I was expecting to get totally lambasted for even suggesting such a thing - I expect I would have been when I first thought of it a few years ago. Maybe there has been enough time between releases now, and so a new Sola would be more accepted than once upon a time?

Yes please! :D I have been dying for a truly evil male to 'romance,' and gods would Xen'shai be perfect. And it has nothing to do with that particularly drool-worthy, half-naked drawing of him...no, nothing at all...*cough* The idea of a manipulative relationship is hugely appealing to me, and to my evil PCs who think Anomen would be more useful with his head on a pike.

Aeryn? Is that Aeryn Phoenix? :D Hehee - hi! Since I know you've read WDR, you know what kind of character Shai is (and thanks for the comment on his drawing... :hug:) - I think he would make the PC's life 'interesting', shall we say! As I said above, though, I do think he would be hard to bring to life... I have thought long and hard as to how to implement him, and I would definitely have to change his motivation towards the PC than Jen; we know why he (and Vhaeraun) want Jen, but would the same plot device work for the divine spark of Bhaal? This is the one thing I'm not sure about, I have to admit...

Ghost and Jek makes me kind of sad. It sounds interesting, and it's nice to see ideas that deviate from the typical flow of mods.

It would be a 'sad' mod - I'm not sure how many people would want to undertake a possible romance that was fated to be doomed, but then again, that's where dramatic irony comes in - although the player might now what is going on (although I wouldn't tell them the twist in the mod description!), the character doesn't, and if he likes Ghost, then why not pursue her? I'm definitely into atypical romances right now - I've essentially done the whole straightforward 'true love' path, and so I think it's fun to explore different avenues ;)

I agree with pretty much everything you said about Sola. I think most people shy away from the idea of a new project for him simply out of deference to Weimer, which is all well and good, but I am with the group that was not really satisfied with how he was characterized. At all. If there is enough demand for a different type of Solaufein (which I believe there is), then I see nothing wrong with undertaking the creation of another mod.

Again - I am surprised at this! I really did think I would be burnt at the proverbial stake as a heretic... although I would seriously LOVE (and it warrants the capital letter, believe me!) to create another Sola mod (because I just lurve stoic, brooding warriors, as I am sure you already know!), I am not sure I am the modder to do it - I don't have the clout (and to be honest, I don't particularly want to cultivate the clout) of a lot of the big name nodders out there... I kind of like being little me, nibbling away at the fringes of the core community. Bringing another Sola to the fore would definitely change that - Christ, I'd be the modder than effectively took on Weimer, which half scares me to death, considering the negativity that would inevitably spark! - so I'm not sure if I am the person to do this. I'd happily write the mod tomorrow given the chance - I've been a Sola fan since the beginning - even before I knew of the mod, I used to write silly fanfics where he joined the PC after the whole Ust Natha incident (and no, no one has read them, and no one ever will!) - but I think even if enough people lent me support, I'd rather hide amongst a group or even write under a pseudonym, simply so people didn't know it was me.

Yes; I am that much of a coward... :lol: (In all my years of modding and writing, the one thing I've never been able to deal with is the politics that inevitably go on within the community - I just want to write and have a fun hobby, not argue and get shitty with people. Unfortunately, as soon as I started work on Fade, I found out rather acutely that, as hard as you try to avoid the drama and politics, it eventually comes and seeks you out and you end up embroiled in it whether you want to be or not... :( It has put me off creating other mods in the past, I must admit, which is a shame, because modding itself is actually quite a lot of fun once you get in to it (whereas worrying about whether you're going to get subjectively lambasted by people simply by virtue of who you are (as opposed to people objectively and constructively criticising your work, which is something I embrace wholeheartedly) is, simply put, not. I'm not naturally the kind of person who goes against the grain - in real life, I'm pretty easy going - and so I find this abrasive mentality quite upsetting and, well, baffling sometimes...

Err, yeah. Umm, sorry - didn't mean to go on about that here! Just had to say why I am so very nervous about even proposing to make a new version Sola, let alone actually producing one! :)

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#6 Aeryn

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 10:22 AM

Aeryn? Is that Aeryn Phoenix? :D Hehee - hi! Since I know you've read WDR, you know what kind of character Shai is (and thanks for the comment on his drawing... :hug:) - I think he would make the PC's life 'interesting', shall we say! As I said above, though, I do think he would be hard to bring to life... I have thought long and hard as to how to implement him, and I would definitely have to change his motivation towards the PC than Jen; we know why he (and Vhaeraun) want Jen, but would the same plot device work for the divine spark of Bhaal? This is the one thing I'm not sure about, I have to admit...

Yes ma'am. ^_^ I've played around with characters with a pretty similar arc, and I get giddy over the possibilities, but one thing or another always stops me from developing them in any real capacity (usually some combination of real life and the panic attacks I get when I stare at code for too long :P). From an outsider's perspective, I can easily see Shai being fascinated by a Bhaalspawn, for different reasons depending on the type of PC. It would be a hell of a lot of work considering different motivations/plots/plans/smartassness...but it would be so amazing. :D

I just want to write and have a fun hobby, not argue and get shitty with people.

I feel exactly the same way, which is why I'm kind of staying out of the mainstream while I fiddle with a project(s) until something gets complete. Then I'll just toss it out there and people who hate it can hate it, and those who don't can have something to play with.

The one thing that always hangs me up about a new Sola mod (and I loved him early on too, in my first vanilla playthrough) is how long it takes to actually get him in the party. It's so much easier for a character that starts out somewhere close to the start of the game because they can be developed and integrated into the party. Strangely, to me at least, it seems like it would be more work than a fresh character .

Edited by Aeryn, 21 May 2009 - 10:53 AM.

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#7 berelinde

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 10:36 AM

Whoa. I think you're really overthinking the Weimer Sola thing. People have played and enjoyed Sola for years, and even if you write a Sola mod, they will still play it, but everybody needs a change sometimes.

And there's no such thing as modder clout. Some people are better known than others, and some may have a high opinion of themselves, but when all we're offering is free downloads, how much "clout" can a person possibly have? We don't even own our own characters, not really, or at least not once it's downloaded. You never know what interpretation someone is going to walk away with. This is doubly true when a person mods a BioWare NPC. For example, the NPC Flirt Pack offers flirts for Anomen. I'd like some variety. Maybe I want to write my own flirt pack. Would it be wrong for me to come up with a group of NPC-initiated flirts and a new PID menu that was a little different? OK, you probably wouldn't be able to have both on the same installation, but it would offer some choice. I can do this because the writers of the NPC Flirt Pack don't own Anomen. There's an encounter with Edwin in Romantic Encounters. There's a mod romance that involves Edwin. I don't see a problem with this.

Do you see what I'm getting at?

Anyway, if you wrote it, people would play it.

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#8 Mistress Elysia

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 12:08 PM

Yes ma'am. ^_^ I've played around with characters with a pretty similar arc, and I get giddy over the possibilities, but one thing or another always stops me from developing them in any real capacity (usually some combination of real life and the panic attacks I get when I stare at code for too long :P). From an outsider's perspective, I can easily see Shai being fascinated by a Bhaalspawn, for different reasons depending on the type of PC. It would be a hell of a lot of work considering different motivations/plots/plans/smartassness...but it would be so amazing. :D

I feel exactly the same way, which is why I'm kind of staying out of the mainstream while I fiddle with a project(s) until something gets complete. Then I'll just toss it out there and people who hate it can hate it, and those who don't can have something to play with.

The one thing that always hangs me up about a new Sola mod (and I loved him early on too, in my first vanilla playthrough) is how long it takes to actually get him in the party. It's so much easier for a character that starts out somewhere close to the start of the game because they can be developed and integrated into the party. Strangely, to me at least, it seems like it would be more work than a fresh character .

It might seem silly, considering I have effectively been modding since the end of '03, but I never have shaken off that feeling of being a total noob when it comes to these things...

I think that has always been the issue with Sola, but I wouldn't want to have him join the party any earlier - it would just be too game breaking.

Do you watch Stargate? If so, you'll know who I'm on about - I kind of see Sola as a mixture of Teal'c and Ronon: he would have Teal'c stoicism and age along with Ronon's brooding nature and almost animalistic / vicious way of fighting. I personally would keep him a pure fighter, and his SoA dialogues would be more about him adjusting to the surface and dealing with living outside of drow society, as well as dealing with just what he's gotten himself into with regards to the PC. Any Ust Natha backlash would actually initially be aimed at the PC as well - the fact that Sola is with them would come as a bit of a surprise for them (he just disappeared, after all). Any romance might be tentatively started in SoA, with the main bulk of it happening in ToB. I personally wouldn't make him a chosen of Eilistraee - he would be just a drow on the run, trying to come to terms with the massive decision he has made and the full implications of his actions in Ust Natha.

Whoa. I think you're really overthinking the Weimer Sola thing. People have played and enjoyed Sola for years, and even if you write a Sola mod, they will still play it, but everybody needs a change sometimes.

And there's no such thing as modder clout. Some people are better known than others, and some may have a high opinion of themselves, but when all we're offering is free downloads, how much "clout" can a person possibly have? We don't even own our own characters, not really, or at least not once it's downloaded. You never know what interpretation someone is going to walk away with. This is doubly true when a person mods a BioWare NPC. For example, the NPC Flirt Pack offers flirts for Anomen. I'd like some variety. Maybe I want to write my own flirt pack. Would it be wrong for me to come up with a group of NPC-initiated flirts and a new PID menu that was a little different? OK, you probably wouldn't be able to have both on the same installation, but it would offer some choice. I can do this because the writers of the NPC Flirt Pack don't own Anomen. There's an encounter with Edwin in Romantic Encounters. There's a mod romance that involves Edwin. I don't see a problem with this.

Do you see what I'm getting at?

Anyway, if you wrote it, people would play it.

Berelinde - you speak a hell of a lot of good sense, that much is true. You're right - I am overthinking it all (I tend to do that!), and I'm getting all tied up in knots over it. Problem is, I still have quite a severe case of 'once bitten, twice shy' when it comes to certain aspects of modding - earlier on in my modding career, I with hindsight made some pretty stupid decisions. I didn't make them out of arrogance (which I was accused of), but simply out of stupid naivete; I got so caught up in the whole 'wow, I'm making something!' that I didn't necessarily think things through carefully enough with regards to some of my choices. Problem is, I now tend to go in completely the opposite direction - now everything I write is completely optional, with intensely (almost stupidly) detailed dialogues that cover near enough every single kind of PC reaction I can think of, which was equally stupid of me, because it led to the Avenue of Complete and Utter Burnout - in the end, I was sitting at my computer, stressing out because I couldn't figure out if Cespenar was a Baatezu or Tan'ari and sitting on an unfinished dialogue that already had well over 100 blocks of dialogue in it, just so I could cover as many eventualities as I could think of (when you're getting up to 8 PC choices or responses per dialogue block out of fear of people coing back to you and accusing you of 'railroading' them, it really is time to stop and evaluate what is important in your life!).

I suppose when it comes to Sola, I don't want anyone to think I am disrespecting Weimer's version in any way, because I am not. As I said, it was Weimer's Sola that brought me to modding, so on that level alone, it warrants my undying respect. I'm not in any way saying Weimer got it 'wrong' - just that it would be interesting to come up with another interpretation of him, and so I do see completely what you're getting at.

Thanks a lot - I need people like you around me to help me maintain my perspective! (And thank you even more for the very sweet last comment... :hug:)

I'm not sure - I might do a poll, asking for people's opinions on the Sola matter - you know, seperate it from this thread. Do you think that is a good idea?

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#9 berelinde

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 01:12 PM

If it helps you choose between ideas you feel equally strongly about, yes. Otherwise, the only opinion you should consult about what to work on next should be your own.

Yeah, I know I'm saying yes and no at the same time. ;)

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#10 DDV

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 01:25 PM

Solaufein

Yes, THAT Solaufein.

I would like to make is clear from the very start that this is in no way an affront or condemnation of Weimer's fine work. His Sola was the first mod I played, and was the mod that started my modding career (I wrote a whole bunch or pretty crap flirts for him back in '03...), and for this reason, I do hold his Sola in high regard.

However, the more I read around the subject, the more I realise that a lot of people are not particularly satisfied with Weimerfein, stating specifically that he is just a little too different from Bioware's original character. Now, I am in no way whatsoever saying that I think I could do a better job in characterising Sola than Weimer (sheesh, I think that could actually be considered modding blasphemy!), and any tentative project undertaken to bring an alternative Sola into the game would MOST DEFINITELY be undertaken by a team (in this instance, I do think a team of people could pin down Bioware Sola's personality, simply because it's not just one person's interpretation), but I do think it might be an interesting project to undertake... *dons large iron helm and hunkers down into the foetal position, awaiting the many and varied beatings she may receive for even thinking this, let alone suggesting it...*

Before commenting upon the Solaufein suggestion, please remember that it is literally just an idea and nothing else!! :unsure:

I do have other ideas, but these were the main three I wanted to toss out. Obviously, when it comes to modding, Fade is my main concern right now, but it is fun to think of other projects, too :)


Another take on sola can only be interesting and would be fun to play. I think the community as a whole is mature enough to appreciate another interpretation of the character for what it is, and not draw narrow comparisions on which is better or worse.

#11 Aeryn

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 02:08 PM

Do you watch Stargate?

If we change the word "watch" to "own every single season and do a marathon every few months just for fun and still get upset over stuff that happened 10 years ago"...then yes. :lol:

But actually I think you're description is pretty close to how I picture him as well. I think he'd be jumpy and nervous at first, and really nervous in surface cities/crowded places, especially during the day when it's harder for him to see. (In a lot of ways, he's pretty defenseless in those situations, and he'd have to trust the PC to back him up if things go badly.) I think he'd be paranoid, even of the PC. Especially of the PC if she's female. Life as a drow male and all that. If the PC shows trust and vulnerability with him, I can see that staunch loyalty really kicking in. It's obvious from the way he tries to "protect" Phaere even when she tells him off that he's the protective type. I can't see him romancing an evil (at least not a prototypical "evil") person. I think he would have had enough of that from his past...but I guess it would depend more on how an evil PC treats him and the people/things he values than his/her actual alignment? And I think the Eilistraee thing should be something similar to the way Aerie occasionally mentions her beliefs in an offhand sort of way. It's important to him, but it's personal to him. If that makes sense...I think I'm babbling.

In case I didn't say it outright, I do like the Sola idea :D though I'm still in the cheering section for Xen'shai.

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#12 GeN1e

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 05:03 PM

Problem is, I now tend to go in completely the opposite direction - now everything I write is completely optional, with intensely (almost stupidly) detailed dialogues that cover near enough every single kind of PC reaction I can think of, which was equally stupid of me, because it led to the Avenue of Complete and Utter Burnout - in the end, I was sitting at my computer, stressing out because I couldn't figure out if Cespenar was a Baatezu or Tan'ari and sitting on an unfinished dialogue that already had well over 100 blocks of dialogue in it, just so I could cover as many eventualities as I could think of (when you're getting up to 8 PC choices or responses per dialogue block out of fear of people coing back to you and accusing you of 'railroading' them, it really is time to stop and evaluate what is important in your life!).

Having as many dialog options as possible is always good, we're playing RPG after all. However... Having 3-4 different - and I mean really different, not just various formulations of the same subject - options is quite enough. Anything more will most likely result in diminishing return. Furthermore, having to read through 6-8 lines every time one is about to reply quickly gets tedious and boring. Same thing about having long (over 20 words) replies. In fact, the dialog system employed in IE can't really support more than 5-6 options, just as it can't work with replies that are more than 10-15 words long. Not for technical reasons, but exactly due to the need to read through all of them before selecting one.

Speaking of railroading, sometimes that's needed more (and much so) than diversity. Heavy story and sandbox are incompatible by their nature. Problem is, not everyone knows (judging by many RPGs released) how to conceal those rails well enough. That's it, unless you meant exactly the concealing.

I suppose when it comes to Sola, I don't want anyone to think I am disrespecting Weimer's version in any way, because I am not.

That's surely none of my business to meddle in, but if they do think like that, aren't those their own problems?

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#13 Kellen

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Posted 21 May 2009 - 09:14 PM

People who used to rp at Narbondel years ago (Kellen, I'm looking at you!) might remember Ghost.

I *thought* that was what her name was. I still remember her picture(I suppose I could've looked that up first. :doh:) if that makes you feel better.

(the member Xen'Shail (dunno if he is still around!) based his user name on the character many moons ago)

Hmm, on DeviantArt and RPGDungeon I go by Xenshail(And you even drew me a sketch, which was fabulous), but I never based it on another character that I recall... Course that was back before Fade was even released, iirc. So that's quite a time ago.

Both of your first two ideas look very intriguing. I'm sure you'd write Sola well, also, but he just never interested me.

I'd really be open to whichever you want, but you know I've got a little bit of bias for Ghost of course. And that crazy little psuedo, Jek. :D
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#14 Mistress Elysia

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Posted 22 May 2009 - 12:55 AM

If it helps you choose between ideas you feel equally strongly about, yes. Otherwise, the only opinion you should consult about what to work on next should be your own.

Yeah, I know I'm saying yes and no at the same time. ;)

Hehehee ;) It's the attitude that counts!

Thanks again - you've thrown new light on the whole issue for me, which has definitely put it into perspective (which is what I needed).

Another take on sola can only be interesting and would be fun to play. I think the community as a whole is mature enough to appreciate another interpretation of the character for what it is, and not draw narrow comparisions on which is better or worse.

Hopefully this will be the case! Got to admit, I was expecting a largely negative response - to get this much of a positive one really does make me feel a hell of a lot more comfortable about thinking about this project ;)


If we change the word "watch" to "own every single season and do a marathon every few months just for fun and still get upset over stuff that happened 10 years ago"...then yes. :lol:

Gah, I know - Janet's death is a particular one for me; each time I watch that blinking episode, I sob like a child. And then there's Sunday... argh, don't get me started on Sunday. Carson... NOOOO! :crying: JUST GO FISHING WITH HIM!! (As for Quarantine - still won't watch that episode. Bloody Keller - who does she think she is, makin' moves on my Ronon?! :angry:)

*cough* Umm, yeah, okay, this is a discussion for elsewhere, methinks... :D

But actually I think you're description is pretty close to how I picture him as well. I think he'd be jumpy and nervous at first, and really nervous in surface cities/crowded places, especially during the day when it's harder for him to see. (In a lot of ways, he's pretty defenseless in those situations, and he'd have to trust the PC to back him up if things go badly.) I think he'd be paranoid, even of the PC. Especially of the PC if she's female. Life as a drow male and all that. If the PC shows trust and vulnerability with him, I can see that staunch loyalty really kicking in. It's obvious from the way he tries to "protect" Phaere even when she tells him off that he's the protective type. I can't see him romancing an evil (at least not a prototypical "evil") person. I think he would have had enough of that from his past...but I guess it would depend more on how an evil PC treats him and the people/things he values than his/her actual alignment? And I think the Eilistraee thing should be something similar to the way Aerie occasionally mentions her beliefs in an offhand sort of way. It's important to him, but it's personal to him. If that makes sense...I think I'm babbling.

Have you been peeking into my mind? Because That's basically how I envisioned him, too! At first, he'd be incredibly reserved to the point of almost being withdrawn (think Ronon when he first speaks to Weir in 'Duet' - all that suspicious reservation), so to begin with, it would be a case of helping him aclimatise to the surface (again, like Ronon has to aclimatise to civilisation after being on the run for 7 years). For a male PC, there could be a real Sheppard / Ronon dynamic, and with a female PC (although I am not a Spanky shipper at all) a Ronon/Teyla dynamic... Lol, can you guess that I have also thought about making a mod based on Ronon's character at all?! (In fact, it was this that made me think about doing a new Sola mod in the first place - there are a lot of similarities between the two characters at the end of the day!)

In case I didn't say it outright, I do like the Sola idea :D though I'm still in the cheering section for Xen'shai.

Hehee - 'Shai is definitely an interesting NPC to play around with, but he would be 'one of the long haul', rather like Fade...

Having as many dialog options as possible is always good, we're playing RPG after all. However... Having 3-4 different - and I mean really different, not just various formulations of the same subject - options is quite enough. Anything more will most likely result in diminishing return. Furthermore, having to read through 6-8 lines every time one is about to reply quickly gets tedious and boring. Same thing about having long (over 20 words) replies. In fact, the dialog system employed in IE can't really support more than 5-6 options, just as it can't work with replies that are more than 10-15 words long. Not for technical reasons, but exactly due to the need to read through all of them before selecting one.

Exactly - this is why I was getting so bogged down with something that was in the end ultimately futile. Having choice is fun, but having too much choice is actually counter productive - when it comes to this, I really, really, REALLY need to gain my perspective.

Speaking of railroading, sometimes that's needed more (and much so) than diversity. Heavy story and sandbox are incompatible by their nature. Problem is, not everyone knows (judging by many RPGs released) how to conceal those rails well enough. That's it, unless you meant exactly the concealing.

As Sillara once said to me, 'it's all about giving the player the illusion of choice, whilst at the4 same time getting them to do what you want them to do'. I used to be able to do it... but then it all kind of went a little bit to pot!

Agreed with the modern RPG thing as well - it's something I've noticed in near enough all games (don't even get me started on the new Tomb Raider games... totally and utterly ruined, they are. Crystal Dynamics should be shot for Legend, simple as that!)

That's surely none of my business to meddle in, but if they do think like that, aren't those their own problems?

Yes, it is their problem... but that's the kind of thing I worry about anyway. I like to create, but not necessarily rock the boat, y'know what I mean? And I have a feeling creating a new Sola might rock the boat just a little bit! :D

I *thought* that was what her name was. I still remember her picture(I suppose I could've looked that up first. :doh:) if that makes you feel better.

Yep - that was her! I would have to re-paint that portrait before using it - *shudders* so many anatomical errors... :D

Hmm, on DeviantArt and RPGDungeon I go by Xenshail(And you even drew me a sketch, which was fabulous), but I never based it on another character that I recall... Course that was back before Fade was even released, iirc. So that's quite a time ago.

LOL! This is why it should be against the law for people to change their online names - because old hags like me get confused at to who used to go by what name! :P I was sitting there, wracking my brains, thinking 'I know Xenshail became someone else, but who the buggery was it??' - now I know :lol:

Both of your first two ideas look very intriguing. I'm sure you'd write Sola well, also, but he just never interested me.

I'd really be open to whichever you want, but you know I've got a little bit of bias for Ghost of course. And that crazy little psuedo, Jek. :D

Thanks! I'll see how it goes... got to get my head around finishing Fade too (although sometimes working on something else actually paves the way for more inspiration...). As I said before, if I was going to tackle one first, it would probably be Ghost, since she would be in the game for a set time, rather than spanning the entire thing, so she's not *quite* as daunting as taking on Xen'shai.

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#15 KIrving

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Posted 22 May 2009 - 03:07 PM

I like the idea of Xen'shai. I generally play good or neutral PCs so it would be an interesting experience, especially as a romance. He also sounds hot! :)

I'm with berelinde on the Sola issue. To be honest I don't believe it would be an issue making a different interpretation of the much loved drow. Sola was one of the first mod npc's I played and it was a lot of fun, however I always felt that his personality didn't fully gel with the Sola one first meets in the Underdark.
I don't think it is about whether a mod is better or not. Variety is the spice of live and all that.

BTW, this is me saying 'go for it' and that I'd love a new Sola to adventure with. :)

On another note, the interesting thing I have noticed at the BioWare forums is that people who first encountered BioWare games through NWN or Kotor/Jade Empire/Mass Effect are being encouraged, and appear interested in, buying and playing BG and BG2. Even people being drawn in by the Dragon Age hype seem interested in what came before. Perhaps this will renew some interest in the modding scene for BG.
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#16 -Claire-

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Posted 23 May 2009 - 08:22 PM

I love the sound of the second and third ideas. I've been longing for another take on Solaufein for awhile now after reading some different fanfic takes on his character. So I'd be definitely keen to see that!

The second idea also appeals (apart from the knee-jerk, "Another drow?" question). But I'm longing for an evil romance option for females.

So, a thumbs up from me on both of those options.

#17 Cykuta

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 04:38 AM

Yes, the 'evil romance' is talked about on the internet a little. There seems to be a discussion going around on how you define 'evil' in emotional context, especially in the face of the 'evil can't love' idea. What Elysia describes here suits some of the oppinions i've seen, so there's bound to be interest in the mod. Personally i'd like a different approach to the matter than the manipulative-selfish-drow-salvanas ;) but the character seems created and ready to write, and he's bound to have a lot of fangirls with that attitude :). Plus, since ideas for the 'evil romance' - or indeed any romance - vary, mods that would like to be one can (or even should) vary as well. That way we get a richer gaming experience.
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#18 Lord of Al

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 05:09 AM

I'm not sure I would play Xen or Sola, but I might try them out, but I would play with Ghost and Jek for sure, well-written, content full partnerships are things I relish, as long as the PC has a fair amount of interaction as well.

sort of meandering from what Gen1e said, in dialogue options, for most things 3-4 different ones are fine, but one of the reasons I guess I loved Xan were the little things to define your character, often with 6 choices or more, just along the side, when playing my paladin, I got all drunk but comradely with Xan, and when he asked my PC for views on the world, I loved being able to exercise my characters point of view, flawed as it may be. I'm not sure what insight or help this may provide.

Having said that, I also want to say that work like that, as I have seen in Xan, Jcomptons D'Arnise and of course, Fade, that is heavy duty work, and giving and identifying all the roleplaying options that some players might want is insanely hard, so if you plan on trying all 3 of these projects in addition to TOB Fade, I urge you not to spread your abundant talent too thin!

P.S It's the little things that make NPC mods worth it for me, getting drunk with Xan, and commenting on his cooking made me cry tears of sweet, silly joy. QUICK EDIT: ..I say it's the little things, but without the big things, like focus and story, the little things get lost and I dont care about them, cant see the forest for the trees, or something

Edited by Lord of Al, 26 May 2009 - 05:19 AM.

My! What an interesting turn of phrase.

#19 yarpen

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 06:13 AM

I think that even evil can love. It can be sick love as it was in Natural Born Killer. It's hard to say something positive about Mickey&Malorie, but they were in love. For me personally the best alignment for evil romance is neutral evil. Neutral evil is let's say... not so evil and dull as CE and LE. He don't have "masterplan of being evil", he doesn't have any rules about that. He's just plainly realistic, he got his own wishes and dreams... and he don't like to be stopped when chasing them. They got their desires: he can be cruel guy who wants only money (as Eldoth was) or can be a druid who hate civilisation (as Faldorn). There can be a gallery of NE characters limited only by creativity of author, not convnency of D&D. That's cool and that's why I think there's a chance for bad love.

I don't like the idea of next joinable drow. For me personally drows are plain and boring. Salvatore who made them especially famous (from FR universe) thanks to his books about Drizzit wasn't capable of showing true nature of a character who was taught to live in uber-cruel society. Salvatore's drows were evil for fun, not because of enviroment. :/ I think that person who wants to show evil character needs a lot of writing skills and creativity ;-)

#20 Aeryn

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 09:58 AM

The notion that evil characters cannot love is absurd. That's almost as silly as saying an evil character doesn't need air or food because their evilness sustains them. Emotions are part of being alive, so unless we're talking about a schizophrenic evil character, I can't see any truth in the statement. I have written and read a number of stories that provide believable examples of "evil" love. While their motivations and expressions of love can be different than those of a "good" romance, the emotions are the same, and often the loyalty is the same - especially between two like-minded characters. If your ultimate desire is to rule the world with an iron fist, wouldn't you be thrilled to find someone with the same drive (and who is willing to sleep with you :lol:) to enjoy the power with? I think too many people confuse "evil" with "crazy" as well. Just because a character is selfish and power hungry, doesn't necessarily mean they're cackling megalomaniacs.

Shai is absolutely the kind of evil my CE PC would "fall in love" with. ;) And if he even thinks about betraying her, she'll take her heartbreak out on his hide and mount his head on a pike in the pocket plane...:D

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