Please post your thoughts and elaborate.
-driller
Blackstone Poll
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ValentianNizzle
- Duke
- Posts: 1333
- Joined: Tue Jul 04, 2006 6:55 pm
I think I'll refrain from voting, seeing as of late I haven't been on much. However, I will say this; in my experience, it's a place in between.
And with like even the greatest fall offs, the songs that made it's debut album great, is still great. But as you get to the 100th time of playing it, you get the odd sensation that it would be nice to either hear a new album where they get down with the old sound again. Or, either remaster the original album. Because, it can hopefully only get better.
And with the cryptic metaphors and all being used I'll make it even simpler. I like BSK, but it gets tedious when RP is at a downfall, for RP'ers atleast. I think the Den idea was a splendid thing to put in, and I hope it gathers as much RP as possible. It's nice to see.
I've been one to complain occasionally in the past, and therefore I am not going to do so now; but instead, I will say BSK needs more involvement to spice things up. This can either be by Driller making new areas or perhaps spiffing up the old ones, I don't think it really matters who or what is done, as long as people can still come to the Keep and be like "Hey! Would you look at that, a Den in the Keep? By jolly jovial spirits, let me check it out!". So what I am basically saying here is, BSK is great as it is, but it needs to be tended to. I think the lack of nuance when you've discovered it all over and over again, and have been playing on the server for quite a while, it all just gets a bit dull. Then you wait for your friends to log on so you can either team up, RP or do some forgie hunting or as k9mouse would've put it 'farming'.
So in conclusion, BSK is all about the challenge and have almost always been. You struggle to bash almost all the evil baddies untill you get to level 40 aka your heroes retirement. There's about three options now; RP (which has its ups and downs, considering where one might be stationed in that big world of ours.), Arena bashing (and you'll end up like Duo Maxwell... That speaks for itself.) or you can farm the hell out of the whole Realm and get all those uber items, just so you can stand on the top of the hill, just like... Duo Maxwell. You get the point anyhow.
So in a even longer drawn out conclusion. I like the server and think it's about time it became a place filled with more involvement, both from the players and DM's. Even Driller, as we've seen him do as of late. We're all on the same team, but it seems we all don't know how to play ball.
And with like even the greatest fall offs, the songs that made it's debut album great, is still great. But as you get to the 100th time of playing it, you get the odd sensation that it would be nice to either hear a new album where they get down with the old sound again. Or, either remaster the original album. Because, it can hopefully only get better.
And with the cryptic metaphors and all being used I'll make it even simpler. I like BSK, but it gets tedious when RP is at a downfall, for RP'ers atleast. I think the Den idea was a splendid thing to put in, and I hope it gathers as much RP as possible. It's nice to see.
I've been one to complain occasionally in the past, and therefore I am not going to do so now; but instead, I will say BSK needs more involvement to spice things up. This can either be by Driller making new areas or perhaps spiffing up the old ones, I don't think it really matters who or what is done, as long as people can still come to the Keep and be like "Hey! Would you look at that, a Den in the Keep? By jolly jovial spirits, let me check it out!". So what I am basically saying here is, BSK is great as it is, but it needs to be tended to. I think the lack of nuance when you've discovered it all over and over again, and have been playing on the server for quite a while, it all just gets a bit dull. Then you wait for your friends to log on so you can either team up, RP or do some forgie hunting or as k9mouse would've put it 'farming'.
So in conclusion, BSK is all about the challenge and have almost always been. You struggle to bash almost all the evil baddies untill you get to level 40 aka your heroes retirement. There's about three options now; RP (which has its ups and downs, considering where one might be stationed in that big world of ours.), Arena bashing (and you'll end up like Duo Maxwell... That speaks for itself.) or you can farm the hell out of the whole Realm and get all those uber items, just so you can stand on the top of the hill, just like... Duo Maxwell. You get the point anyhow.
So in a even longer drawn out conclusion. I like the server and think it's about time it became a place filled with more involvement, both from the players and DM's. Even Driller, as we've seen him do as of late. We're all on the same team, but it seems we all don't know how to play ball.
Thank you for your input. I am in the middle of a Blackstone makeover and I am curious to what people's thoughts on Blackstone's current condition is.
-driller
-driller
ValentianNizzle wrote:I think I'll refrain from voting, seeing as of late I haven't been on much. However, I will say this; in my experience, it's a place in between.
And with like even the greatest fall offs, the songs that made it's debut album great, is still great. But as you get to the 100th time of playing it, you get the odd sensation that it would be nice to either hear a new album where they get down with the old sound again. Or, either remaster the original album. Because, it can hopefully only get better.
And with the cryptic metaphors and all being used I'll make it even simpler. I like BSK, but it gets tedious when RP is at a downfall, for RP'ers atleast. I think the Den idea was a splendid thing to put in, and I hope it gathers as much RP as possible. It's nice to see.
I've been one to complain occasionally in the past, and therefore I am not going to do so now; but instead, I will say BSK needs more involvement to spice things up. This can either be by Driller making new areas or perhaps spiffing up the old ones, I don't think it really matters who or what is done, as long as people can still come to the Keep and be like "Hey! Would you look at that, a Den in the Keep? By jolly jovial spirits, let me check it out!". So what I am basically saying here is, BSK is great as it is, but it needs to be tended to. I think the lack of nuance when you've discovered it all over and over again, and have been playing on the server for quite a while, it all just gets a bit dull. Then you wait for your friends to log on so you can either team up, RP or do some forgie hunting or as k9mouse would've put it 'farming'.
So in conclusion, BSK is all about the challenge and have almost always been. You struggle to bash almost all the evil baddies untill you get to level 40 aka your heroes retirement. There's about three options now; RP (which has its ups and downs, considering where one might be stationed in that big world of ours.), Arena bashing (and you'll end up like Duo Maxwell... That speaks for itself.) or you can farm the hell out of the whole Realm and get all those uber items, just so you can stand on the top of the hill, just like... Duo Maxwell. You get the point anyhow.
So in a even longer drawn out conclusion. I like the server and think it's about time it became a place filled with more involvement, both from the players and DM's. Even Driller, as we've seen him do as of late. We're all on the same team, but it seems we all don't know how to play ball.
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ValentianNizzle
- Duke
- Posts: 1333
- Joined: Tue Jul 04, 2006 6:55 pm
I see. Just a couple of questions then.driller wrote:Thank you for your input. I am in the middle of a Blackstone makeover and I am curious to what people's thoughts on Blackstone's current condition is.
-driller
1. Will we be able to retain our old characters?
2. Is it the whole mod your going to give a makeover or how much of it, say in percentage terms, would be given said 'makeover'?
I gotta compare BSK to Depeche Mode here... They have had a great sound throughout their 20+ years, and occasionally throw in some songs that become reminiscent of their old stuff, but the bands that have survived through the years always play around with their sound a bit in order to stay relevant. Such greats like U2, NIN, Sting and even Pink Floyd have been good examples of that.
Keep those ideas and changes flowing. Like the old cliche, the more things change the more they stay the same, anyway. You're going to get complaints from the upset minority before hearing from those who are interested in the updates.
After all, like those long standing bands, their old stuff is GREAT, but it's not the 80's anymore as much as you might like to visit those memories every so often.
Keep those ideas and changes flowing. Like the old cliche, the more things change the more they stay the same, anyway. You're going to get complaints from the upset minority before hearing from those who are interested in the updates.
After all, like those long standing bands, their old stuff is GREAT, but it's not the 80's anymore as much as you might like to visit those memories every so often.
Driller, you are a good builder and scripter. Unfortunately you cannot build something that will maintain itself. A good server must also be a community and in that you have been negligent. You have been an absentee landlord who relies on a management team to keep things going. The fortunes of BSK have varied in direct relationship to how good or bad that management team has been. Remaking BSK will not solve those basic problems.
You have a serious problem. Without an active community using the mod, you cannot get the feedback necessary to fine tune the mod. As a builder you would be seriously hampered. However, unless you are willing to be an active part of that community my advice is to release the mod to Neverwinter Vault.
You have a serious problem. Without an active community using the mod, you cannot get the feedback necessary to fine tune the mod. As a builder you would be seriously hampered. However, unless you are willing to be an active part of that community my advice is to release the mod to Neverwinter Vault.
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Caesius
- Duke
- Posts: 735
- Joined: Wed Jul 05, 2006 8:57 am
- Location: Somewhere within the Imaginary Number Domain...
Hey driller, what about some of your Lost World material? Perhaps a new region could be added to liven things up a bit. I would suggest scaling it for levels 15-25 so the mid level players have more choices when it comes to choosing their hunting grounds. Maybe a hidden area or two where the level 40 epics can find a suitable challenge as well. Perhaps a hidden shop with a nice selection of hunting gear such as fashionable jungle style light armors, short blades, big axes and bows.
Who knows, maybe even a... barbarian tribe! And women with loincloths!
Who knows, maybe even a... barbarian tribe! And women with loincloths!
Last edited by Caesius on Sun Jun 10, 2007 4:13 pm, edited 2 times in total.
The only constant is change.
1. I am not a believer in character or items wipes. Tweaking and balancing yes, but not wipes.
2. I was thinking of paring down the mod a bit and getting rid of some of the redundancy and bloat. Make it more focused and lean.
-driller
2. I was thinking of paring down the mod a bit and getting rid of some of the redundancy and bloat. Make it more focused and lean.
-driller
ValentianNizzle wrote:I see. Just a couple of questions then.driller wrote:Thank you for your input. I am in the middle of a Blackstone makeover and I am curious to what people's thoughts on Blackstone's current condition is.
-driller
1. Will we be able to retain our old characters?
2. Is it the whole mod your going to give a makeover or how much of it, say in percentage terms, would be given said 'makeover'?
Completely and utterly in disagreement with Gahani on this one, but oh well ... I'm not too concerned.
Blackstone, I think was described in the past, is a mod meant for the player who doesn't have a whole lot of time on their hands, but needs actions, social environments, and fun without time consuming hassels. The server in general provides that and is very self-maintained.
One of the things that makes Blackstone so great is that its design is very simple. That basic simplicity of area design and world building is very important, and I urge that the remake of BSK retain the same feel.
Built off those basic designs are all the cool features... the runegate, the random item generators, powerword dungeons, the forgestones... etc etc so forth and so on. Those are the things that make Blackstone stand out in the server listings, and all the functionality make it a successful standalone server. I grit at the teeth at the thought of it being released to the Vault, where people can take it, rip whatever they want out of it, and basically copy without consequence all the work that's been put into the mod by one man.
If we're working with the music metaphor, if there's going to be a new album, I want to hear different lyrics, a couple new innovative chords, but the same musical feel.
Most people just get 'bored' with features, areas, monsters, character-builds, etc etc. If you can supply a new varity of the same creative goods, then Blackstone will be bigger, better, and more fun than before.
... so in the long and short of it, I'm with Caesius ... adding more regions to what's already there, and perhaps a facial job on some of the astetic stuff will spice life up for the persistant players.
Blackstone, I think was described in the past, is a mod meant for the player who doesn't have a whole lot of time on their hands, but needs actions, social environments, and fun without time consuming hassels. The server in general provides that and is very self-maintained.
One of the things that makes Blackstone so great is that its design is very simple. That basic simplicity of area design and world building is very important, and I urge that the remake of BSK retain the same feel.
Built off those basic designs are all the cool features... the runegate, the random item generators, powerword dungeons, the forgestones... etc etc so forth and so on. Those are the things that make Blackstone stand out in the server listings, and all the functionality make it a successful standalone server. I grit at the teeth at the thought of it being released to the Vault, where people can take it, rip whatever they want out of it, and basically copy without consequence all the work that's been put into the mod by one man.
If we're working with the music metaphor, if there's going to be a new album, I want to hear different lyrics, a couple new innovative chords, but the same musical feel.
Most people just get 'bored' with features, areas, monsters, character-builds, etc etc. If you can supply a new varity of the same creative goods, then Blackstone will be bigger, better, and more fun than before.
... so in the long and short of it, I'm with Caesius ... adding more regions to what's already there, and perhaps a facial job on some of the astetic stuff will spice life up for the persistant players.
ZOMFGOMBIES!
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k9mouse
- Duke
- Posts: 639
- Joined: Fri Jan 26, 2007 7:19 pm
- Location: The Plane of Dark Nightmares…
Here it goes, my view on this matter…
Here is what I look for in a mod:
Easy to start new chars
Still is fun 2 play at level 40
Normal resting system (ie no getting junk to rest)
Some Quests
Can change to any alignment or subtype
Forging system
BSK has everything besides the alignment request and that is a different topic for another time. BSK is very very good and I enjoy it great deal. I agree with some of the people thus far, we keep the core the same, but just add items like music and new areas (leaving the old areas alone). One idea is that the server runs to copies of nwn1. One copy runs the old bsk as is and one travels over the mountain of the frozen wastes and enters into a new mod (ie the other nwn1 server).
This mod will have brand new city/keep new quest, etc. It can be design to support ideas such as horses and other cep2 content. We can keep the same chars and we still log into the old mod first. I know great many people spent countless hours studying and building their chars and will be a great shame to lose them.
On the new mod/server2, we can themes like different planes. (This is just an idea). I know will be another download, but have you (driller) check into Community Music Pack, it will be nice have some new music as well.
To sum it all up, keep the core and just add new areas/quests/music, etc to it, but do not change the old copy. Just used it as the baseline and build from it.
PS CEP 2.1 being worked on as of right now….
Here is what I look for in a mod:
Easy to start new chars
Still is fun 2 play at level 40
Normal resting system (ie no getting junk to rest)
Some Quests
Can change to any alignment or subtype
Forging system
BSK has everything besides the alignment request and that is a different topic for another time. BSK is very very good and I enjoy it great deal. I agree with some of the people thus far, we keep the core the same, but just add items like music and new areas (leaving the old areas alone). One idea is that the server runs to copies of nwn1. One copy runs the old bsk as is and one travels over the mountain of the frozen wastes and enters into a new mod (ie the other nwn1 server).
This mod will have brand new city/keep new quest, etc. It can be design to support ideas such as horses and other cep2 content. We can keep the same chars and we still log into the old mod first. I know great many people spent countless hours studying and building their chars and will be a great shame to lose them.
On the new mod/server2, we can themes like different planes. (This is just an idea). I know will be another download, but have you (driller) check into Community Music Pack, it will be nice have some new music as well.
To sum it all up, keep the core and just add new areas/quests/music, etc to it, but do not change the old copy. Just used it as the baseline and build from it.
PS CEP 2.1 being worked on as of right now….
~=% Run from your nightmares, chase after your dreams, but in the end ... they both come to you in sleep %=~
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Battlerager_Draco
- Baron
- Posts: 83
- Joined: Wed May 09, 2007 2:28 am
- Location: The Wild West! Yeehaw! (western USA)
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BabydollJennifer
- Baron
- Posts: 52
- Joined: Tue Jul 04, 2006 3:04 pm
- Location: Northwest Forest USA
The recent changes are quite nice, and I look forward to more. There are a few areas that are not used much that could use a re-vamping, such as some of the Dark Forest areas.
Any new hunting grounds would be a nice change as well.
The dye selection is lacking a bit. “Mandragon’s dye kitâ€
Any new hunting grounds would be a nice change as well.
The dye selection is lacking a bit. “Mandragon’s dye kitâ€
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Pretty Fly White Guy
- Duke
- Posts: 1350
- Joined: Tue Jul 04, 2006 4:40 pm
- Location: Yorkshire
- Contact:
I'm going to go with everyone else and compare BSK to a band.
This is just from my experiences until i stopped playing, which was a while ago.
A band comes out. You love their sound, their members, their style. You can't wait to listen to them again. You listen to their first album for several years. BSK is obviously here the band. They're variable, fun, and have a brilliant fanbase (That's you guys
)
Then they bring out a second album, and you're not so big a fan. They've changed a lot. They've recruited A KEYBOARDIST, of all things, and start playing some power ballads. You still stick by them, because you think they're still cool people, but the love fades a little.
They're still you're favourite band, but the original love that you had has been replaced with something else, something like a mutual respect. Similar to being married for a long time It's nothing like what it was when you started, but you realise that it's changed, but that it's not changed for the worse.
-Edd
This is just from my experiences until i stopped playing, which was a while ago.
A band comes out. You love their sound, their members, their style. You can't wait to listen to them again. You listen to their first album for several years. BSK is obviously here the band. They're variable, fun, and have a brilliant fanbase (That's you guys
)Then they bring out a second album, and you're not so big a fan. They've changed a lot. They've recruited A KEYBOARDIST, of all things, and start playing some power ballads. You still stick by them, because you think they're still cool people, but the love fades a little.
They're still you're favourite band, but the original love that you had has been replaced with something else, something like a mutual respect. Similar to being married for a long time It's nothing like what it was when you started, but you realise that it's changed, but that it's not changed for the worse.
-Edd
I feel the same way, which is why I put in that option. Blackstone was conceived as a Wild West type environment.
Players maintained law and order. Now, after years of incessant whining by the player base. I have knocked off almost every rough edge that gave the original Blackstone character.
Pickpocketing is just about useless. Getting disarmed is a ho-hum experience. You can act like a fool and annoy the hell out of people in the keep with no fear.
No purpose for the guilds to protect newbies from less savory players. No evil guilds to cause mischief and mayhem, you must consent to pvp!
I have just realized I have turned into Beth Hall. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks,
-driller
Players maintained law and order. Now, after years of incessant whining by the player base. I have knocked off almost every rough edge that gave the original Blackstone character.
Pickpocketing is just about useless. Getting disarmed is a ho-hum experience. You can act like a fool and annoy the hell out of people in the keep with no fear.
No purpose for the guilds to protect newbies from less savory players. No evil guilds to cause mischief and mayhem, you must consent to pvp!
I have just realized I have turned into Beth Hall. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks,
-driller
Pretty Fly White Guy wrote:I'm going to go with everyone else and compare BSK to a band.
This is just from my experiences until i stopped playing, which was a while ago.
A band comes out. You love their sound, their members, their style. You can't wait to listen to them again. You listen to their first album for several years. BSK is obviously here the band. They're variable, fun, and have a brilliant fanbase (That's you guys
Then they bring out a second album, and you're not so big a fan. They've changed a lot. They've recruited A KEYBOARDIST, of all things, and start playing some power ballads. You still stick by them, because you think they're still cool people, but the love fades a little.
They're still you're favourite band, but the original love that you had has been replaced with something else, something like a mutual respect. Similar to being married for a long time It's nothing like what it was when you started, but you realise that it's changed, but that it's not changed for the worse.
-Edd