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Post by portnoy on Nov 3, 2012 18:40:09 GMT
Hello everyone, I have recently been really missing my DnD gaming and reinstalled NWN and the 2 expansions and played thru the beginning game content a couple of times with different classes but I really hate that I never get high enough to get to the prestige classes or epic levels...so started looking around on the NWN Vault and found the gameworlds....now I am really intriqued and want so very badly to join you guys here...but, seems I need a little help. I have the game and both expansions loaded and patched...but lack the CEP. As you can see, I have registered on your board here and looked around a bit...but can't seem to figure out what all I need to do now. I have seen a few posts which tell me kinda what I need but still a bit confused....I know DnD have been playing it in some form since PnP when I started around 12 back in the 70's, but seems my computer literacy may need some tweaking to get me started here cause I am missing some things apparently. I was hoping to list some questions I have and see if someone can help me thru this...so, we'll see how this goes 1. I know I need the CEP but where is updated version I need, what do I need to do to download and install this? 2. Is there no download for the gameworld itself? If not, where do I find it and how do I access it once the CEP is installed? 3. Looking thru the subraces/classes....there are 3 builds I would like to try...some listed as rare/ultrarare. Since I could never get to the "special" classes in the NWN content....so, can I start a character to begin with with a rare/ultra rare subrace/class combination? Can I try more than one build for a character or is it one toon and that's it? I will list my 3 choices so you see my possible toons I wish to try... Elf/ Gnome Gnome Undying Spelljammer Spelljammer Theurge Gnomish Inventor Rog/Wiz/PM I have spent most all of my DnD gaming life playing almost exclusively Dwarves...no matter what class combination and just taking the XP penalty because I really love the race....but these other races and classes have me really wanting to try these out and play something new. I guess in all my gaming days...I really just identified with the Dwarven lore with my character in real life...boistrous, good-natured, really like my ale and dark beers, generally treating others with the kindness and respect they show me and being outspoken about my thoughts if I think I am being slighted or talked down to...now i understand roleplaying and realize if someone is maybe playing an Elf...and is talking/acting a bit haughty...I would not take offense and realize they, just like me are playing their race/class as they think they should be from the known lore of the DnD history...and such would be taken in good humor and taken as such...I hope that came out right and sounds as I intended it . Just the thought of getting this up and running and being able to play a DnD system in real time with others kinda has me giddy with excitement and looking so forward to my start....my birth in a new and wonderful adventure to immerse myself in when I am not working long hours to support the family. Being able to play an almost mmorpg type open ended game with others based on the DnD game system and its lore and worlds is so exciting to me....you can bet I will be very active and no one will have any problems from me. I might be a lil overwhelmed at first...and maybe ask a lot of questions of others to start...but, hopefully not to the point of being annoying...I am almost 50 yrs old and not completely inept so I don't think my learning curve will last to terribly long....I should hit the ground running pretty quickly I would imagine. Thanks in advance for listening/reading and hopefully I will be seeing you all very soon and making many more newfound friends from who knows where. Any help would be much appreciated because as I said....seems I am just not figuring out what I need to do next. Good luck and safe travels to you all and may your tankard always be full...hope to see you all in person soon;) Portnoy P.S oh, and...on looting...if in a party and you come to a chest...does everyone in the party get a pull from the chest? Is it one person loots and wait for respawn of said chest for your loot? Does one person masterloot and distribute later on honor system? Is coin divided between toons if someone loots and is grouped? And, do harmful spells hurt you/your party if not playing a HC character?...i.e. a fireball too close does it harm your group if within range? I did see that chests and such respawn and looting stuff while your group is still engaged is frowned upon, as it should be, it is very rude and seems selfish IMHO just not clear on the above questions...Thanks again for your time
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Post by portnoy on Nov 3, 2012 18:43:38 GMT
Race class combos didn't come out as I had them written...they are Elf/Undying/Theurge.....Gnome/Spelljammer/Gnomish Inventor......Gnome/Spelljammer/Rog-Wiz-PMas
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Post by Paradoom on Nov 3, 2012 19:12:18 GMT
Hello portnoy, nice that you found your way here. Welcome to HG. That´s quite a question cataloque you posted there bud. So first I suggest you check the links in my signature. There you´ll find some very helpful informations on how to start off and what you need. E.g. there is an automatic download programm called ARF2 that will install all you need (CEP and HG Expansion hak paks.) This can take quite a while until it´s finished just so u know. Some I want to answer directly though: First of all, when you start off completely new, you can only use open subraces. Secrete, Rare, Ultrarare and Beyond Ultrarare are special races you have to find ingame (items and books). Once you get those and used them in the right way, you will be able to make charakters with the subrace you optained. Once you got your game ready check the open subrace build section here in the forums found under highergroundpoa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=openbuildThere youll find alot of interesting builds with which u can start your adventures in HG + they have good information on what you will need and how to make them. You cannot download this gameworld. It is completely online and I realy recommand playing in teams (easer, more xp and loot). For the party etiquet it is usually handled this way: One in the party is determined as the looter. She/he collects all the lootpieces on the run. In the end you will perform a lootsplit at the wyrm (a special place in town) or in a guild hall. Your draw gets rolled by the partyleader (from high (firstpick) to low (lastpick)). When everybody is done picking and there are rests, this loot can be autosold and everybody gets the same share of gold from that sell. If you run across goldpiles (e.g. after beating dragons and such) everyone get´s the same share of gold when you loot them splitted between the amount of partymembers in the group (10 maximum). I hope to see you ingame soon. Have fun Paradoom P.S.: I recommand haveing skype, as it makes it muuuuuuch easier to explain stuff and fun on runs.
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Post by laserpointer on Nov 3, 2012 19:36:48 GMT
Hi Portnoy. This is an online gameworld composed of many different servers to allow you to connect with other people and party with them while you explore Higher Ground. You can create multiple characters and share loot among them and level them up as you please; they will all be saved and tied to your account name. Subraces that are not classified as "open" need to be unlocked through various methods within the game. Assuming your game is running NWN with HotU expansion and the latest patch, then the only requirement to play is CEP. I also recommend installing an Higher Ground Enhanced (HGE), the custom hak for the server. There are two main methods to installing these. The first (and recommended) method is do download a community tool ARF2, which checks your files and updates your game with 1.69 Patch/CEP/HGE. You can find instructions on how to use ARF2 at wiki.hgweb.org/wiki/Installation_Guide#Manual_Downloads. The other method is to manually download and install CEP and HGE via wiki.hgweb.org/wiki/Installation_Guide#Manual_Downloads. You can find Portrait/Voice pack extensions at wiki.hgweb.org/wiki/Client_Changes. Regarding the loot system here, there are different loot containers populated throughout an area and loot also drops on monsters that are slain. Generally speaking, the usual method of gathering and distributing loot involves one designated "banker" picking up all of the loot along the run/raid that you are doing. At the end of the run, the banker will put this loot into a split chest and people will all come to look at it. Then the party leader will issue the "party roll" command, which automatically rolls a 100-sided die for each party member. People keep picking in this order until they pass. When all people have passed the last person that is still picking will issue a "mass sell" command, which automatically converts the rest of the loot in the split into gold which is distributed evenly among each party member. As far as your race class combos are, theurge can be a powerful class, however, Undying is a poor subrace to choose as it does not boost the main statistic that determines the DC of arcane theurges (Intelligence). A subrace that gives intelligence is more beneficial because as you will soon find out, DC is one of the most important parts of a caster build. Gnomish inventors are certainly unique classes however they are somewhat niche and out-shadowed by many other classes so are hardly played. As you progress into Legendary Levels you will come to depend more heavily upon the support and offensive capabilities of four main classes, dubbed "core classes" because of their ability to make most end-game runs much smoother and more efficient compared to the other classes. As a result of their usefulness and desirability I invite you to take a look at the roles of Arcane (sorcerer or wizard class), Bard, Cleric, and Druid. Some of the best building and newbie play advice (in my humble opinion) you can find in the Open Subrace Forum (builds for new players) are from the following builds that emphasize a strong party class combo: Bard: highergroundpoa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=openbuild&action=display&thread=21271Cleric: highergroundpoa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=openbuild&action=display&thread=21269Druid: highergroundpoa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=openbuild&action=display&thread=21272Sorcerer: highergroundpoa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=openbuild&action=display&thread=21323Wizard: highergroundpoa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=openbuild&action=display&thread=21270Tank (another important role but often already filled in parties): highergroundpoa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=openbuild&action=display&thread=21197My personal recommendation is to make a sorcerer. Sorcerers excel in every area of the module and will allow you to farm pre-legendary levels and legendary-level runs with comparable ease for gear that will allow you to progress happily through the mod. In truly end-game areas such as Hells and beyond, when sorcerers can encounter some major difficulty due to mob saves and increased need for spell slots, I would advise you to take a look at the role of the support Bard, which will allow you to successfully learn by watching from other talented players players and covers one of the most desired classes in end-game areas.
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Post by portnoy on Nov 3, 2012 21:51:16 GMT
Thank you all for the replies... I have the Arf2 downloading...I think...lol....will see what I can do when it says it's done. Since I cannot start any of the builds I listed earlier...are these all possible to start with?
Dwarf/Derrzagon/Rog-Wiz-PMas Elf/Drow/Theurge (Male) Dwarf/Derro/Bard-Sor-RDD or BfM-Sor-RDD Human/Satyr/Bard-Sor-RDD Human/Yuan-Ti/Bard-Sor-RDD or BfM-Sor-RDD
None of these are listed as secret or better so just wondering if these are possibilities to start after I can figure this out and get up and running....kinda wanna know what I can start with once I can get the game squared away....and again, many thanks for the prompt responses....checking back in between my honey do list of yardwork while she is gone to the store Portnoy
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Post by hfb on Nov 4, 2012 0:50:03 GMT
Greetings and welcome aboard. It is a great place to game and I almost enjoy planning out character builds more than playing. Cool stuff to contemplate while doing the honey do stuff.
You got all the crucial bits above and of course keep the questions rolling either here or ingame w/ the !newbie channel.
A couple of thoughts: Loot just about everything you can and go everywhere you can. This will get you the feel of the place and a goodly amount of gear which will serve you well as usable items (for your first or following characters) or as money so you can begin filling your gear collection.
Look to be able to cover as many immunities as you can. You don't need to do that all the time, but the ability to have knock down and fear covered at the same time is good.
Store you gear in the bank for future use on future characters. It is very nice not to do the heavy lifting twice. ^_^
Most parties will be happy if you offer to bank and more often than not, you'll just get to keep everything. This is one of the many perks of being a new player.
Another perk is a goodly amount of patience and the desire to share information w/ new players. Old-timers may be all snarky and sharp w/ each other, but trumping with the newbie card (should) work every time. This is hands down the best online gaming community I have ever participated in.
The world is big. There is a ton to do. The replay value is immense (I've been here for like a decade). There is help to be hand. Brilliant. Welcome to the fray, once more.
Cheers,
Dancer
PS: Say, "Hi" if/when you see me on and we can chat/play. PPS: The RDD boards/builds are pretty good. The Tin Can build is nice if you wish to tank. The BFM build w/ 3 pally lvls is good if you wanna cast some and tank some. (Deadly Dreadnaught--Thanks Railkin.) You will be biting off a significant learning curve if you start w/ theurge--many many spells to learn and really tough initial level up since your spells will not start shining until you hit actual theurge status. Pure wizzie is good to start: not as gear reliant since you can buff yourself and you have options for everywhere in the mod. Same for sorc and a bit easier to play, but many fewer options may also be frustrating. Pale Master might be frustrating for the same reasons (ineffective in some areas), but when it is rolling, PM is a blast!
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Post by jcp on Nov 4, 2012 23:46:31 GMT
I had 2 rooms when I first started: a rogue/AA and sorcerer/pally Both were found in the forums and were pretty solid. The !newbie channel is a great way to ask questions in game and I recommend the side quests from the inns in the docks area to get your low levels up quickly.
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Post by portnoy on Nov 8, 2012 1:22:03 GMT
Thank you everyone for the help. I have gotten it loaded and started....have 2 toons now to start my adventuring with....and already having a blast...even tho I am still a bit overwhelmed a my start...but, have met some most helpful people....notably Whatriot and Ayla who have showed me a bit and gotten me up and running....I've not encountered one negative person yet and many helpful ones. I am trying to not be annoying and constantly asking stuff in !newbie, even tho no one has given me any indication that I was, but I'm finding my way. I have never even played a NWN game multiplayer until now, myself and family have played LAN while sitting in same room...but never with others elsewhere....so chat has been a bit of a learning curve itself...but figuring it out....sorry if my first couple o night I nay not have responded to a few tells....I really couldn't figure out how to reply to some of them. I just wanted to thank everyone for helping me with what was a shaky start, completely overwhelmed...into a quick learning experience which has me up and going now with my new adventuring life...hope to seeya all soon in our world!! I have started a Rog/Wiz/PMas and a Bard/Cle/RDD ...they may not be the perfect builds but they seem what I will enjoy to get me started....and already have 2 subrace books for when I hit 50) So I see a Minotaur and a Thrikeen?(sp) in my future also...hehe. I do however have to get a handle on some video/lag issues when there is a lot going on but plan on looking into straightening this out as quick as I can...I know my cpu is well capable of handling the game...must just be some setting issues. Thanks again.
Portnoy Rog/Wiz/PMas Hodgepodge Cle/Bard/RDD
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Post by portnoy on Nov 8, 2012 1:23:10 GMT
Thank you everyone for the help. I have gotten it loaded and started....have 2 toons now to start my adventuring with....and already having a blast...even tho I am still a bit overwhelmed a my start...but, have met some most helpful people....notably Whatriot and Ayla who have showed me a bit and gotten me up and running....I've not encountered one negative person yet and many helpful ones. I am trying to not be annoying and constantly asking stuff in !newbie, even tho no one has given me any indication that I was, but I'm finding my way. I have never even played a NWN game multiplayer until now, myself and family have played LAN while sitting in same room...but never with others elsewhere....so chat has been a bit of a learning curve itself...but figuring it out....sorry if my first couple o night I nay not have responded to a few tells....I really couldn't figure out how to reply to some of them. I just wanted to thank everyone for helping me with what was a shaky start, completely overwhelmed...into a quick learning experience which has me up and going now with my new adventuring life...hope to seeya all soon in our world!! I have started a Rog/Wiz/PMas and a Bard/Cle/RDD ...they may not be the perfect builds but they seem what I will enjoy to get me started....and already have 2 subrace books for when I hit 50) So I see a Minotaur and a Thrikeen?(sp) in my future also...hehe. I do however have to get a handle on some video/lag issues when there is a lot going on but plan on looking into straightening this out as quick as I can...I know my cpu is well capable of handling the game...must just be some setting issues. Thanks again.
Portnoy Rog/Wiz/PMas Hodgepodge Cle/Bard/RDD
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Post by vorshlumpf on Nov 8, 2012 23:10:56 GMT
I've seen you on, poking around, portnoy. I'm glad you're having so much fun. The performance may be related to multi-core compatibility. If you have multiple CPUs then you need to configure NWN to handle them. If you haven't done this already, definitely do so - it made a huge difference for me when I got my new computer. nwn.wikia.com/wiki/Nwnplayer.ini (Client CPU Affinity) - Niilo
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Post by thomascovenant on Nov 9, 2012 9:46:16 GMT
Portnoy for what i saw the other day you look to be a nice guy then you will meet a lot of pples on HG who will be glad to answer your questions and to show u things you need to know
we are about all ready to help new players on hg some will help u more on low and med lvls and some others will help you more on high lvls as i told you
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