|
|
|
Prepare for some intense combat (so intense you'll, um, sweat or something)
|
Pool of Radiance may be an RPG, but one of the main appeals of a good fantasy RPG is hacking at disgusting and large monsters with sharpened, two-handed axes, or maybe just poking them in the eye with a sturdy staff when you run out of throwing darts. In PoR, along with the more traditional character classes, are a few you won't have seen in the other recent PC AD&D RPGs. Since it would make more sense to give a brief description of who you'll be using to fight with in the game before explaining how the combat works, I've prepared a tidy little list of the niftier sounding character classes -
Monk: The monks look like docile enough folk, and most people think they just walk around (carefully, so they don't squish any bugs) and spend their time praying or meditating. Well let me tell you something, mister, the only "praying" they'll do is "preying" on evil! Haha! Ok, that wasn't funny either, but as long as it managed to take up a sentence I'm happy, since there really isn't a whole lot to tell you about the monk. They are very powerful with their fists and channel energy called ki. This energy lets them stun opponents with a single blow while unarmed. Monks also have a way of (in a sense) predicting attacks, and thus are good at dodging sword swipes or swinging hammers, etc. As they become more powerful they can perform even grander feats with their natural unarmed prowess and their ki.
Sorcerer: This character class has an innate ability for spell casting, giving him or her great power and elevating this class to the top of all classes! Well, as far as magic goes, at least. Their inborn powers lend them great versatility in the ways of magic and ensure they're forces to be reckoned with. Is it just me, or am I repeating the same thing over and over? Probably just me… but I'll go to the next paragraph now just in case.
Rogue: If I had to become an AD&D character today, I think I'd best fit the rogue class. That is mainly because I am a great procrastinator and underachiever and can't seem to grow up and find a real job. This class is similar, at least in the sense that a rogue is like a snowflake, and each one is different. Keep in mind my analogies are horrible today. And every day. But that's not the point, the point is, a rogue can become a thief, a spy, a scout, a homemaker, or even the host of a successful talk show (er… scratch those last two). Nevertheless, rogues are generally good at getting whatever they want one way or another, so they can be a valuable addition to any party.
The enemies in the game will range from hideous monstrosities to even bigger, more repulsive monstrosities. Ok, there are enemies not quite so revolting too. Although I had only intended to ask Stormfront about the allegations that flying monkeys did exist in their games, they responded by naming some cool flying enemies and what sounds like a scantily clad (and deadly) chick, so I'll just paste what they said:
"Well, sorry to disappoint, but no flying monkeys will be in the game. However we do feature a variety of flying creatures such as Dragon-kin, Gargoyles, undead Specters, and their ilk. We can say though that on the subject of 'chicks' in the game, our main villianess is rather... ahem, fitted in her choice of attire (which isn't much as it stands)! She's one tough opponent though so watch out; don't let the costume fool you (or keep you staring for that matter)."
Other enemies include Drow, which are evil elves trained in combat and magic. I think one of the cooler sounding bad guys is the iron golem, since it's a huge iron creature that weighs around 5,000 pounds and is incredibly strong; normal weapons don't even hurt the magically devised being. On second thought, maybe I don't like the idea of the iron golems, because it sounds like it might be a challenge to defeat them, and I hate thinking. In fact, all of the other enemies sound challenging too, but to a hardcore gamer that's like the sound of the Goldberg variations to Dr. Lecter from Silence of the Lambs. Normally an analogy that bad would be painful, but I think my warning you beforehand made a real difference.
Your party will consist of four characters created by you, and up to two additional characters can join your group down the road. Commenting on the different ways you can make a party, Stormfront told us:
"Personally we feel that a diverse group really adds to the success rate of the game. It allows for individual character's strengths and weaknesses to be offset by others in the group. Not to mention, the new 3E rules have a variety of new presentations for spells that no cleric or sorcerer will want to miss, and no party is complete without a strong fighter to back you up or a quick rogue to pick that trap in a pinch. This is not to say however that players can't feel free to create a single class direction for their parties; the game is not engineered to make one class necessary for completion of the game over another. But there is something to be said for diversity of abilities and skills within the shattered realm of Myth Drannor..."
The combat will be a sort of time based initiative combat. That is, it won't exactly be turn based, but it won't quite be real-time either. When it's a character's turn to battle, they can fight. When it's not their turn, they get hit with things. Sounds pretty simple to me, and it should properly convey the D&D feel while being easy for new players to figure out too. In other news, the level cap is set at level 16. To give readers unfamiliar with AD&D an idea of how powerful that is, it means that spell casting characters can cast up to level 8 spells. Crap, that probably won't make sense to readers without knowledge of AD&D either. Well, let's just say that level 9 spells are the most powerful spells in AD&D, and they are insanely destructive. Level 8 is the next best thing, and that means you can make one tough character in PoR.
|
