Randomly decided to check in after years and see talk of Doordie and Amel. Lots of fun memories! Arguably my first long time character, Narwyn, ended up closely aligned with Amel as his protege.
Doordie was one of the best RP's I ever played with. His stories, with his character Amel, were amazing. Rich, deep, complex. I hope Doordie is doing well! You have a really great Uncle!
Registered Member #608
Joined: 8:14:50 pm GMT 09/01/05
Posts: 407
We've done fighters, rogues, and bashed a some mages So, who's next...
Opinions, comments, rants, suggestions and other things about the Agents of the higer powers?
My own experience with them is pretty limited, but what strikes me as odd is the contrast between pnp clerics and nwn/thain ones. In pnp clerics often fight hard to avoid being a heling machine, here it's the opposite, apart from the occasional raise, I got the impression that clerics are mostly doing melee buffs and use them to dish out damage
What I personally would like would be greater accesability to the Thain gods and some easy accessible rp around them. *tips hat to Itharilde for the primer on gods*
Registered Member #636
Joined: 1:42:07 am GMT 10/26/05
Posts: 505
wrote ... I got the impression that clerics are mostly doing melee buffs and use them to dish out damage
Not only do I get that impression on Thain, but it is the rare (extremely rare, in fact - only once to be honest) have I witnessed a Cleric that actually behaves different than a combat machine - and that is Sqwarr.
All the other times that I have adventured with other Clerics on Thain (with diverse characters) they have been soley used as combat machines.
Registered Member #1075
Joined: 10:48:57 pm GMT 06/19/07
Posts: 792
Let's talk about clerics, baby, Let's talk about you and me, Let's talk about all the good things, all the bad things, That we see. Let's talk about clerics.
Registered Member #345
Joined: 2:28:49 am GMT 11/25/04
Posts: 1954
I haven't adventured consistantly with many clerics, but those that I have, I've had great fun with. Eloril, Palil and Varnal would top that list. The first two are combat oriented - but that makes sense, their diety is combat oriented. The latter is very much a throwback cleric that reminds me of the only NWN cleric I've played - very focused on healing and party protections/cures.
Another cleric who I haven't ever adventured with but who struck me as incredibly well RP'd would be Pariah Fenton (not sure I spelled that correctly).
Are clerics often used as combat machines. Sure, probably so... But I think the staff have done quite a bit to reign in the discrepancy between clerics and other classes in that regard. A combat role is also often the role suited for a cleric based on their deity. So I'm not sure what there is to feel unlucky about. I'd welcome the chance to RP again with Eloril, Palil and Varnal, and I'm sure there are many other clerics out there I would say the same about if I had experience playing with them.
[ Edited 11:36:10 AM 08/04/07 ]
Registered Member #1099
Joined: 5:26:33 pm GMT 07/11/07
Posts: 933
i've just started a cleric and it's very clear she's not a warrior .. i gave her 10str 10dex and 10 con to prove it .. it'll be interesting to see how she develops.
TPK Insurance Specialist, call now for our low, low rates! 1-800-U KILL ME Registered Member #552
Joined: 4:34:52 am GMT 06/13/05
Posts: 2608
mojo pixy wrote ... i've just started a cleric and it's very clear she's not a warrior .. i gave her 10str 10dex and 10 con to prove it .. it'll be interesting to see how she develops.
That's the thing though - even sucky physical stats don't stop a cleric from tanking. A few buffs and they'll be up at the frontline crushing skulls with the best of them.
I don't think this is a problem, so long as care is taken not to swamp other characters. It would be all too easy to buff to indestructability and destroy all before you, without leaving anything for the rest of your party to do. That's just not fun.
So even a combat orientated cleric can be valuable in a party by sharing the love - buff everyone, not just themselves.
As for the Thain gods... well, for a cleric, I personally feel that they are a closed book. I'm of the school that thinks a cleric should be tied to a specific deity, and as the FAQ makes it clear that the Thain gods will not be known about by new arrivals, I can't see that a cleric should be worshiping them without some extensive RP (a la Slagg).
However, that doesn't cut them completely off from RP. D&D is a pantheistc religious system, and the gods also have alliances, friends and enemies. I can't see any reason why, for instance, a cleric of Moradin (Lawful Good dwarven deity) couldn't offer an occassional prayer to Eathenel(sp?). Both Lawful, both earthy related... they'd make good allies IMHO. Just because a cleric reveres one god above all others and works for them, they'd still believe in the others.
One thing I would like to see is more RP of actually following the chosen deity's strictures. Not to the point it disrupts other RP perhaps - I wouldn't break off an in depth conversation to go pray, but if I was just sat at the fire making small talk and the sun came up, I'd take my cleric off for a quick prayer. But that's a personal thing, as is everyone's RP, so not something I'd jump up and down about!
My 2cp worth.
[ Edited 12:30:56 PM 08/04/07 ]
Registered Member #198
Joined: 6:30:40 pm GMT 08/02/04
Posts: 2228
vectorz wrote ... My own experience with them is pretty limited, but what strikes me as odd is the contrast between pnp clerics and nwn/thain ones. In pnp clerics often fight hard to avoid being a heling machine, here it's the opposite, apart from the occasional raise, I got the impression that clerics are mostly doing melee buffs and use them to dish out damage
Eloril is built as a throwback for old Corellon priests, skilled in the longsword and longbow, as well as the general art of war.
Clerics styles should depend on thier diety selection, but as all clerics have access to the same spells, it is player oriented.
Registered Member #34
Joined: 11:01:04 am GMT 02/26/04
Posts: 2778
Clerics certainly don't lack for anything on Thain... and probably not anywhere else either. In fact, they have so many built-in plot hooks that I often see that the one which defines their class is just forgotten.
2004 & 2006 Thain People Registered Member #15
Joined: 9:32:15 am GMT 02/24/04
Posts: 1257
I'm not a big fan of the idea that you are a Cleric you must RP A, B and then C then read every god manual ooc. There are some players that need to grow in their RP and will given the chance. They may have just started playing with a Cleric.
The one thing of note that come to me is that on Thain the Staff has made an effort to make Clerics somewhat more valuable by making Raise a bit more difficult for other classes as it should be IMO.
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Joined: 8:30:40 am GMT 02/25/04
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The reason why you don't see more pure healing clerics is because almost all of the healing spells in this game are outright terrible compared to buffs and consumables. Playing a pure healer isn't very rewarding, because if you try to use your spells, a fighter with a few bandages is going to out-heal you every time.
There are a number of reasons why the healing spells aren't good. Their cast times are relatively long compared to kits, which is a serious issue when you're trying to heal mid-battle and have to guess whether the person will die by the time the healing hits. Spells are also unreliable, vulnerable to interruption and low rolls, which causes problems if your party tries to rely on them instead of consumables. Heal has some degree of use for healing in large packets (you can completely restore a character in 1 round instead of 5), but the rest of the spells are just outright inferior to what another character can do.
So clerics who want to play the support role turn to defensive buffs. They start throwing Magic Vestments and GMWs and Improved Invisibilities on their party, each of which prevents many times more damage than a healing spell of the same level. And once you're playing a character who favors those buffs, why not use them on yourself too so you can contribute something in melee?
That's why most clerics end up as plated buff machines. Because most of the healing spells clerics get don't do anything, and when you've got all those level 1-5 spells to prepare, what are you going to use them on if not buffs?
[ The Island of Thain ]
Let's talk about Clerics...
So, who's next... 
.. it'll be interesting to see how she develops.
My 2cp worth.
