Immortal Newbie Helpers

Dorian_ertymexx · Post by **Dorian_ertymexx** » Mon Jun 28, 2004 9:41 am

After having tried many different characters in different factions, I have found one common flaw in all of them, and that is a players vulnerability to powerful character whim.
As a new character, you are weak, poor and need the meager equipment you can buy. This is made very difficult, in some cases "fatal" to characters when the basic faction merchants (or Newbie helpers as I like to call them) and guides get killed. They respawn very slowly, and trying to get out of the barracks can lead to quick death, especially in Sleeth where hoards of rats and angry dragons can kill you in a heartbeat. A new played does not want to lose 10% gold for each death, and in the end get an inplayable character at the start when entering the otherwise great NS4 server.
My suggestion is simple: Make these two characters per faction, the newbie guide and the newbie merchant, immortal. They might be made not to fight back against attacking PC's (as not to make it impossible to storm faction barracks, if desired), but they need to be fended against less than honorable PC attacks.

I hope the DM's will consider this suggestion.

-Dorian Ertymexx

sheriffbugs · Post by **sheriffbugs** » Mon Jun 28, 2004 11:53 am

This should probably extend to the "Job Managing" NPCs as well. I originally thought that the best way to make sure Lord Einhard was available to manage my job as a messenger was to defend him. That was before reality set in... The time you need Jobs is at low level. Anyone coming to kill Lord Einhard is not going to be bothered by my 4th level monk standing ominously in their way...

Throst54 · Post by **Throst54** » Mon Jun 28, 2004 1:33 pm

you are lvl 1... you are weak and meager.. and thus shud be at thier whims...

die well and often...

yub yub...

get a party of weak and meager people together and be weak and meager together and go kill other weak and meager things. then become un-weak and un-meager...

work for it yourself.. dont have a NPC there for u...

Dorian_ertymexx · Post by **Dorian_ertymexx** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 7:45 am

What a positively silly post, Throst. We are not all in it for the power-playing, some of us LIKE quests and problem-solving. And those NPC's are there to help us become un-weak. It is a personal choice if you want to use them or not, but that you look down upon them does not mean that others should not be able to get their help.

Besides, it isn't always easy to find a party with the right levels and the at the right areas with the factions and the party XP-penalty imposed. More often than not, the newbie helpers are the only help for new players on these servers.

sheriffbugs · Post by **sheriffbugs** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 10:54 am

Throst you are usually smarter than that. So I will give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you were just going for a rise...

I never asked for someone to do anything for me. I merely pointed out that the NPCs who control the Jobs are an important part of the game at low level. I want players to be encouraged to use and experience the whole mod -- including crafting, jobs, quests, etc., etc.

So by all means, make hack and slashable NPCs with great drops and high difficulty. But make the dissemination of jobs more consistent.

IDEA FOR DEVS: Make jobs controlled by an inanimate object as opposed to an NPC (like Crafting). There could be a "Mail box" in the barracks where you would check for a message from Lord Einhard. You may or may not have a job/message waiting for you (put all of the same criteria and controls that exist with Lord Einhard in the mailbox).

IcemanXV · Post by **IcemanXV** » Wed Jun 30, 2004 9:08 pm

Then the devs should make the NPCs less Eye candy. Making them high levels that drop loot and they attack you is going to make an invader want to kill him. I don't see the problem right now, seeing as I never had quests. Right now ya should enjoy them when you get them

AndrewCarr · Post by **AndrewCarr** » Thu Jul 01, 2004 4:23 am

Simply put npc chars behind locked doors(openable by quest key or pick) and make them very low lvl. I never really killed commoners when i raided towns until some guards starting con'ing effortless, but i certainly wouldn't bother wasting time picking a door, and then opening, walking inside, just to kill one guy for ~12 xp. Some ppl still may do this, but it should reduce the amount of times the guys die.

Dorian_ertymexx · Post by **Dorian_ertymexx** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 2:50 pm

Well, the problem is some raiders attack them pretty much out of spite. No amount of hindrance would stop them.
And having to do quests to buy basic gear and talk to the local quest-master to get to your first quests is sort of malplaced.

Sakad the II · Post by **Sakad the II** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 6:53 pm

Just create a guild of Pcs devoted to helping out newbs......... its that simple.