Author Topic: Randomness of the Random Spawns  (Read 2153 times)

Offline Ghreyfain

  • PPG
  • Planewalker
  • *****
  • Posts: 4705
  • Gender: Male
    • Pocket Plane Group
Randomness of the Random Spawns
« on: May 26, 2005, 07:48:52 PM »
I'm not too sure you even did anything with spawn points since I haven't played in ages, but I don't ever recall seeing an ankheg in the south of the region, or a ghoul in the area just south of Beregost, but I did in my current game.  Part of the reason BG1 really worked for me was because there seemed to be an "ecology" that made sense.  There are a bunch of undead in the High Hedge area and south of that, because Bassilus is hanging around and animating everyone.  There are ankhegs in the north because that's their "habitat" (so says the ranger Gerde, anyways).  There are basilisks in the east because they like desert habitat or something.  It all seemed to make sense if you thought about it.

It seems rather arbitrary to have a ghoul in the middle of the Beregost/Nashkel road in broad daylight, so I was wondering what your criteria were when you were tinkering with the spawns.
Earn Money Sleeping.

Offline Echon

  • Global Moderator
  • Planewalker
  • *****
  • Posts: 1944
  • Gender: Male
    • The Fields of the Dead
Re: Randomness of the Random Spawns
« Reply #1 on: May 27, 2005, 09:17:59 AM »
I have been altering some spawn points but most areas remain basically the same. There may be a lot of ankhegs in the area just north of FAI but they live in temperate forests and plains everywhere and therefore I added a few of them to some other areas as actors, not through spawn point. As you may recall, there is also an ankheg at the top of the map where the bridge to Baldur's Gate is located. BioWare also added three ankhegs to the dungeon of the Island in the Trackless Sea that Shandalar teleports you to, but I removed those, of course. Basilisks live basically everywhere which is why there are a few of these elsewhere (also as actors, not spawn points). Besides, every BG player knows that that area is filled with basilisks and is never going to travel there without some spell or potion to protect himself from their gaze. By having a few basilisks in other areas, the player is going to experience situations that he cannot metagame his way out of.

Bassilus may be responsible for some of the skeletons and zombies in his area and the nearby ones but hardly all of them, and not the ghouls and ghasts. Besides, killing Bassilus does not stop these any of these creatures from appearing.

-Echon

Offline Ghreyfain

  • PPG
  • Planewalker
  • *****
  • Posts: 4705
  • Gender: Male
    • Pocket Plane Group
Re: Randomness of the Random Spawns
« Reply #2 on: May 27, 2005, 12:28:44 PM »
Okay, some of the randomization sounds good, except for the basilisk bit.  I remember the very first time I played BG1 that I encountered statues before I saw any basilisks.  This game me an in-game hint that I would be running into trouble soon so I scurried back to town, heart racing all the way, to get a few scrolls from High Hedge.  That was one of the most memorable moments I had, because it just felt so real, rather than a monster randomly dropping from the sky to give me more XP for the greater challenges that lie ahead.
Earn Money Sleeping.

Offline Echon

  • Global Moderator
  • Planewalker
  • *****
  • Posts: 1944
  • Gender: Male
    • The Fields of the Dead
Re: Randomness of the Random Spawns
« Reply #3 on: May 27, 2005, 01:06:15 PM »
That must have been a very cool experience but frankly, I do understand why the basilisk sucks when the other randomisations sound good. Is it because there are no petrified people hinting at its existance?

-Echon

Offline Ghreyfain

  • PPG
  • Planewalker
  • *****
  • Posts: 4705
  • Gender: Male
    • Pocket Plane Group
Re: Randomness of the Random Spawns
« Reply #4 on: May 27, 2005, 01:29:17 PM »
Right, it's a big bad monster that only a well equipped party can handle.  If a low level party stumbles on it, they'd just reload and have to skip that area.  Where's the fun in that?
Earn Money Sleeping.

 

With Quick-Reply you can write a post when viewing a topic without loading a new page. You can still use bulletin board code and smileys as you would in a normal post.

Warning: this topic has not been posted in for at least 120 days.
Unless you're sure you want to reply, please consider starting a new topic.

Name: Email:
Verification:
Type the letters shown in the picture
Listen to the letters / Request another image
Type the letters shown in the picture:
What color is grass?:
What is the seventh word in this sentence?:
What is five minus two (use the full word)?: