No player list...

[Ace-of-Spades]

At first I was thinking bad idea, but really...I don't care, you can still log in and check the player list just fine. This does help to hide those important or secret builds that no one wants to share.

However, as Blystos Re said above, "you might lose to someone that was bigger than you thought they were." I don't really mind this, but it kinda sucks sometimes. If you can't tell what level anyone is before you log in, and there is no floating box above there head like in every other game saying "Level 70" or some such, could the Challenge Ratings (ie. Impossible, Very Difficult, Moderate, Easy, Very Easy, Effortless) be added back in. Sure it might allow players to easily spot effies and slaughter them, but then again there is no rules (I don't think) against killing people substantially lower level than you. I'm sure it was removed for a reason, but I don't really know what that was so, this is just my suggestion.

[LinuxPup]

The whole point is we don't want you to know.... what level you are means nothing in PvP as far as rules are concerned... we've always been ok with level 40s hunting down level 1s.

[Shhhhhhh]

It's a shame, I always look to see if theres interesting builds I can copy
Purely from a gameplay standpoint I think its nice tho, you actually need to learn who your opponents are a lot more than before, what their strenghts and weaknesses might be etc.

[Alkapwn]

It's a shame, I always look to see if theres interesting builds I can copy
Purely from a gameplay standpoint I think its nice tho, you actually need to learn who your opponents are a lot more than before, what their strenghts and weaknesses might be etc.

ROFL. I think thats the point.
It hurts for me but it hurts good. It will cut the metagaming down a bit. Most of us hardcore pvp'rs know exactly what the achilles heel is by looking at the build. But that works both ways so no problem on my part
I will hate having to LFP shout now though. Previously I'd just login look to see who was on and what levels log a similar level toon and send tell asking what thier up to. AH well ...
** ban-able suggestion removed** - Flailer
*For the record it wasnt my suggestion it was Shhhhhhs* - kapwn

[disastro]

i kinda like the new change. i am more of a build-tinkerer kind of player and i like to experiment with off the wall builds. they usually suck, but once in a while i'll hit on a successful combo that ive never seen anyone try before. nobody gets my secret sauce!

though i did make extensive use of level-matching-before-login-for-party, it will be sad to see that go.

[LinuxPup]

Linux, the list is more to see if we even want to log in. These days seem to be tighter than those of days past and we (whoever we applies to) have to schedule our time accordingly. If I saw a friend was on I log in get a little XP shoot the breeze and do some guild stuff.

Well, I'm willing to sacrifice 10 seconds of your time a day to make the game more fun overall. Is she a sorcerer or a wizard? How many levels of X does he have? I guess you may never know... If you've never seen another player's character its stupid to think that you have the right to know exactly what the basic build is. Surprise!

Another side note is that if you had a problem it was nice to try and get a hold of a DM instead of going through PM's on the boards. Because some issues are minor and take a second but put into a PM, you have to schedule a time to be when that DM is on in order to get your toon out of a wall or some other minor issue.

This doesn't change at all... send a message on the DM channel if you need help, if no response, then go to #neversummer or send a PM on the forums. You don't need to be able to see the player list to get DM help.

[--Ashe--]

I don't see how it's going to disturb gameplay all that much anyway. If its a 'friend' issue, you can see who is playing from the player list when you log in... and besides, most of the time, when I play, I send tells to my friends to see where they are playing, who they are playing with, etc and then login to fit the party if I feel like it.

Goodness forbid anyone have to utilize the shout channel to find parties and make new friends.

As for the metagaming quashing... three cheers and huzzah. This change just lends to more adaptation and interaction. If you happen to be fighting someone you aren't necessarily well suited to engaging, so much the better... adapt, learn and come back and kill them with more people or a different build. As for hurting pvp... please, since when have we ever worried about level restrictions to murdalize anyone else.

[Ajantis.]

To a certain extent, I can understand a bit the idea behind hiding the player list, and it does concern me how I know other guilds/players pay close attention to who has what builds for their own strategy.

But I'm posting here just to say that I'm still very disapointed that it's gone. I'm really going to miss seeing who's playing and logging on the player who's level matches the player I want to party with. This is going to greatly impact the way I play Neversummer, and I'm not sure how well I'm going to adjust to this, if I will. I signed on a bit ago to see what the change was, and I immediatly felt compelled to just close it down, since the incentive to sign on because I know someone is on, is now gone....

[renarð]

Only thing I dislike, is I can't see what levels are on to know which toon might get a party.

I feel lame going lvl 8 13 25 36 40 lfg

[LinuxPup]

All the more reason to get on Teamspeak if you ask me... back in my guild days I would know what was going on before I even started up NWN.

[Ajantis.]

I can already foresee my shout channel now...

lvl 8 lfp
lvl 8 lfp
lvl 8 lfp
lvl 8 lfp
lvl 8 lfp
lvl 8 lfp
lvl 8 lfp
lvl 7 lfp

[Bargeld]

All the more reason to get on Teamspeak if you ask me...

My woman gives me funny looks when I talk to an empty room with a headset on.

[Lokey]

We could have just changed Darkfalz's level list you know (paladin 3 maybe). Better get to slaughtering people that feel safe as houses with 118 spot before HiPS gets nerfed

[cRaZy8or5e]

Uh yeah, login real quick and look for your friends if you want to know who is on.

Not being able to see what a person has for a build, well, yeah it was nice to go, 'ooo look, only 29 caster levels, dispel bait!!!! '

But, whether its there or not, doesn't matter to me. I didn't think it was that big a deal before hand. Don't get me wrong, I'll miss it. But like most things I'll learn to live without it.

Some toons will invariably need a party to level with, others will not. Having to shout for a party, well that could be a bit painful, but that's life. Unless you have friends on in your level range, even shouting wouldn't guarantee you a party anyway.

[VagaStorm]

All the more reason to get on Teamspeak if you ask me...

My woman gives me funny looks when I talk to an empty room with a headset on.

Yeah!!! For some reason talking into the screen has a really low FAF(female acceptance factor) rating Needless to say, as long as I have to have my computer in the living room, Teamspeak is a no go