Haer'Dalis and the Summoning Wizard

[icelus]

This quest is quite a bit less detailed than the other one involving Haer'Dalis. David Gaider was much less descriptive with this one. Here is what we know:

"THE SUMMONING PROBLEM

This quest is a bit more sketchy. It was planned out, and dialogue had already been written for Haer'Dalis and the wizard involved, but it had never been implemented beyond that. No actual creation of the areas or scripting had been done.

Basically, a timer would initiate once Haer'Dalis was in the party. When it came up (and he was still in the party), and the party was out not in combat or anything in particular, they would get teleported en masse to a building in Athkatla (although they wouldn't know that).

A wizard (whose name I forget...let's call him 'Taras') would command the party to attack a group of enemies. Haer'Dalis would comment that this is the sad nature of being a planar, and that he wondered at how the wizard came to know his Name, but suggests that the party get this over with. Trying to attack the wizard would only get the party member's AI temporarily over-ridden and turn him to attack one of the enemies. Once the enemies were gone, the party would be returned whence they came...and Haer'Dalis would initiate, being pretty apologetic and pissed at the same time.

This would happen two more times, at random. After the second time, Haer'Dalis would blow up and vow to find this individual. On the third summoning, Haer'Dalis will break from the group and run towards the wizard. Dialogue will ensue showing that Haer'Dalis has snatched the wizard's amulet and he threatens to find and kill the man. Scared, the wizard immediately sends the party back. Haer'Dalis still has the amulet and sees the inscription on it...he now knows the man's name is Taras and vows to find out where it comes from. He leaves the party, saying he will be back within a day.
Good to his word, Haer'Dalis returns a day later and says he has found where the wizard is hidden. In Athkatla, in one of the areas off the Promenade (formerly unaccessible), the wizard has his home.
Going there to confront the wizard will result in finding the wizard lying, dying, with summoned creatures dead all around him. Taras will apologize to Haer'Dalis, saying he had no choice...an influential Cowled Wizard had become smitten with Taras's daughter, Alaya, even though Alaya wanted nothing to do with him. The Wizard became more and more demanding until finally he began assaulting Taras's home to take her forcible. Taras knows the wizard only wants Alaya for some more sinister purpose, though he knows not what. He begs Haer'Dalis to rescue her and then dies.
It's up to the party to decide whether or not to actually rescue her, although Haer'Dalis thinks it's somewhat ironic and fitting that he help the man who had annoyed him so.

The ending for this hadn't been fully written. If anyone's ever played the Cernd plot where he goes looking for his child, you'll see a bit of a plot (if I remember right) where the man he goes to see is involved with a Lich and there's some form kind of 'group' that the man is desperate to join. This was originally a larger plot with a larger area, the lich staying at the man's home while the man attempted to prove that he was a competent magic-user and make the needed unholy sacrifices to get his admittance not only to the group, but to lich-dom itself. Cernd's child was part of this, as was Alaya. The nobleman's name does not come to me immediately, though.

Freeing Alaya would get her gratitude. She'd return to her father's home and be there afterwards, where she would give the player a powerful magic item that once belonged to her father as thanks. If the party wasn't on Cernd's quest, as well, she would take the baby with her (and Cernd's quest could always end there, instead)."

Again, this one has been on the backburner due to the difficulty in writing for Haer'Dalis.

Questions? Comments? Ideas?


(The original thread can be obtained in .mht format here).

[Jerry]

Is the buiding this house in the Bridge District where the battle begining at once since we enter?

[Bookwyrme]

Is the buiding this house in the Bridge District where the battle begining at once since we enter?

That might make sense of the battle.  It was extremely puzzling to walk in on a bunch of angry wizards without any warning or reason.

[Cybersquirt]

er.. I think you're thinking of the Twisted Rune.  (the door where you need a rogue stone to open it.. after you disarm it, that is)

[Neffra]

Is the buiding this house in the Bridge District where the battle begining at once since we enter?

I think you might be right.  There's the one building over near where you meet with the Ex-Radiant Heart knights and fight them. There are 2-4 wizards inside this abandoned building that attack as soon as you walk in. I never got the reasoning for that.

[JPS]

I haven't really given this quest much thought, but as it stands, it could easily become a great source of irritation (the party is summoned twice, Haer'Dalis leaves the party for what would be the third time if the murder quest happens first). How much do you think these things could be tweaked before it stops being suitable for UB?

[Cybersquirt]

^depends on the reward 

(still, it is a good point)

[Bookwyrme]

er.. I think you're thinking of the Twisted Rune.  (the door where you need a rogue stone to open it.. after you disarm it, that is)

No--I didn't even know there was such a door. Where is this?

I meant the unlabeled house in the Bridge District. There's no trouble opening the door, but once you're in, you find yourself facing a group of already hostile people. No one says anything, they just attack. 

[Caswallon]

Valeria and her goons? The one not far from the Fallen Paladin-Thieves battle?

The way to the Twisted Rune is a sea-side door in the southern half of the map, around the corner in Rejiek the Tanner's house.

[Cybersquirt]

I meant the unlabeled house in the Bridge District. There's no trouble opening the door, but once you're in, you find yourself facing a group of already hostile people. No one says anything, they just attack. 

Ah.. reminds me of the house next the the Shadow Thieves in the Docks District - sometimes they're there, sometimes they're not, but they're always ready to fight.

[discharger12]

I meant the unlabeled house in the Bridge District. There's no trouble opening the door, but once you're in, you find yourself facing a group of already hostile people. No one says anything, they just attack. 

Ah.. reminds me of the house next the the Shadow Thieves in the Docks District - sometimes they're there, sometimes they're not, but they're always ready to fight.

Also that Rakasha disguised as the old lady. I liked Jan's banter to her 

It's like a shack..straw everywhere.

[Bibbi]

personally, I think any additional quests for Haer is a good thing, even if it means making him leave the party more.  it gives some potential for him to interact more, as he's one of the NPCs who has less banter than others, imo.  and i think an appropriate reward of some bardic item would work here.  there aren't any bard items left out you can fill in, yes?  maybe some other type of appropriate cut item.  maybe a summoning item...

and as someone said before, giving more quests would make ppl play with haer more, as he's often left out of parties due to his lack of interesting quests... if they don't like him leaving the party, they can drop him and not have to deal with him

[Sovran]

I second that -- more involvement for Haer'Dalis is always good. Especially if it elaborates on his planar origins, which, like so much else, are largely left unused in the original game. (So there's this tiny planar prison quest. Big deal.) ... could have been used more, all right?

As for H'D leaving the party, would it stretch the definition of "unfinished business" too much if the party went about town *with* him, trying to find the wizard? You can do as much for other NPCs, why not him -- unless there are some Dark and Sinister Mysteries of Summoning (tm) to consider, of course. You could ask around for leads -- probably anyone who deals in magic would do. The Cowled Wizards wouldn't probably be too forthcoming with information, though, they way we know and love 'em.

How would this affect Cernd's quest, BTW? "Um, Cernd... actually, we paid Deril a visit way back when, already, and there was this child..." That could be a bit anticlimactic.