Hi everyone!

I’m a long time observer of this site but I’ve never been a participator. I’m a huge fan of RPG’s and their likenesses on the PC, and as I’ve gotten older, they’ve really become the bread and butter of my gaming.

My favorites are the old classics and the modern ones – but at the same time I tend to be very lenient, and enjoy lots of games that seem to be criticized or torn apart. For better or worse, my imagination greatly expands upon many games.

Currently I’ve been revisiting Arcanum and waiting patiently for The Witcher 1.2 patch before I install and play it. I’m a fulltime artist in the ole’ real world, then again – that profession is just as isolated as gaming! Just thought I’d give a “hello.”


Sincerely

Embolus

Welcome!

I've been revisiting Arcanum as well. Many of the newer RPGs just aren't interesting me enough to warrant upgrading the old system here and buying the games.
What sort of character are you playing in Arcanum for your current playthrough?

Again welcome to the Watch. It's a nice place to be.

like... HI..! and Wellcone?

I am playing an Elf that specializes in Necromancy and Mental Abilities : - )

Other games that are a bit older which I enjoy include

- Diablo II
- Divine Divinity
- Drakan: Order of the Flame (all time favorite)
- Fallout 1/2
- Gothic II
- Heroes of Might and Magic 3
- Morrowind
- Legacy of Kain series
- The Wheel of Time
- Warlords Battle cry 2
- Vampire: Redemption

I find myself returning to those mostly. I have never played Planescape Torment (!) but it's been suggested I do.

Planescape is great. The gameplay is lacking, but it's a great story with a wonderful setting. It's more wordy and with less action than the usual RPG but not as narrative-driven or puzzle-oriented as an adventure game. Somewhere in between the two styles I suppose is where it's best described, so more akin to a p&p RPG adventure than a computer RPG.

In regards to Arcanum, I think I've settled on a halfling thief tilted towards a skills build with some magic thrown in for support.

Out of your list, I've only played the Fallouts (never finished 2 though), Morrowind (didn't like), Divine Divinity (never got too far, some things really bothered me) and a demo for one of the Diablo games (not sure which, and I didn't really like it).
I tried Gothic II but it made me motion sick and I've played demos for the new HOMM games, but never played III. The others I'm not at all familiar with.

I like RPGs but I'm painfully picky! I tend to split my gaming between RPGs, strategy games and the occasional action game (like the GTA series).

Hello Embolus!
A fine list of games indeed - I played them all (save Divinity), with Morrowind as my favorite. While I'm sure that some folks might not see some of these titles (like Drakan, LoK and WoT) in the cRPG corner, I don't really care about genre labels .
While I suspect that Gallifrey and I do not share the same taste in games, I'm with them on the Planescape topic... I also thought it was a great game, and I really enjoyed it. It also had some terrific exploits .

So... what type of artist are you, if I may ask, and which pen & paper RPG/s do/did you enjoy?

Nice and varied list, Embolus. I also am fond of Arcanum and always play an elf or half-elf with a lot of alchemy and magic- It's been awhile and probably time for a replay. Of the others, two of my all time most played games were Diablo II and HoMM3. I also really like VTM:Redemption and need to get back and finish it someday.

@Gallifrey, you ought to indulge your strat love with HoMM3 one of these days. They have taken to releasing it in a bundled game pack with all the HoMMs in Europe and that will probably come to NA one day, or it's often still out there for bargain bin prices. It's the template that inspired Disciples, Etherlords and many other TB fantasy games. Of course, it's insanely frustrating and has a cheating AI the likes of which I've never seen equaled and which is guaranteed to provoke one's most vile profanity, but an almost obsessively addictive experience nonetheless.

Hello, and welcome ='.'=

I do art in Pen, Pencil, Colored Pencil, Marker and Acrylic Paint. Here's 2pieces I have on the net. You can go to these URL'S to see clearer versions

http://img126.imageshack.us/img126/654/sacredgroundsmallerrs8.jpg
http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/7921/tempic1.jpg

I like them both, though I prefer the black-and-white-and-gray one. You seem to have a thing for eyes .

magerette said:

@Gallifrey, you ought to indulge your strat love with HoMM3 one of these days. They have taken to releasing it in a bundled game pack with all the HoMMs in Europe and that will probably come to NA one day, or it's often still out there for bargain bin prices. It's the template that inspired Disciples, Etherlords and many other TB fantasy games. Of course, it's insanely frustrating and has a cheating AI the likes of which I've never seen equaled and which is guaranteed to provoke one's most vile profanity, but an almost obsessively addictive experience nonetheless.

Click to expand...

See that's the thing. It may have been the template for stuff like Disciples and such, and those games followed the template so thoroughly that I don't see much point in buying a game I don't have (HOMM) when I can play something I do have (Disciples, Age Of Wonders etc).
HOMM V and it's expansions look kind of neat though. I liked the Tribes Of The East demo, and when the whole to-do is bundled together here in North America I'll probably pick it up. And if it's the same package as the Euro one with all the HOMMs then so much the better. I'll grab that and the CivIV complete when it's released over here and have months of gaming on hand!

As for cheating AI, I found Disciples II was really bad for that. The computer would send enemy squads at me that it really had no business having access to at that point in the game (ie my squad was just out and I'd be hit with a couple of high-tier enemy squads which I stood no chance against).

Snazzy art Embolus. I like the coloured one with the hooded folks. You say you do this full time? Is it a paying occupation, and if so, what sort of clients do you have for art like that?

You wouldn't be a fan of Max Escher, would you Embolus?

Gallifrey wrote:

As for cheating AI, I found Disciples II was really bad for that. The computer would send enemy squads at me that it really had no business having access to at that point in the game

Click to expand...

I'm afraid H3 was the template for that, too.

Gallifrey said:

Snazzy art Embolus. I like the coloured one with the hooded folks. You say you do this full time? Is it a paying occupation, and if so, what sort of clients do you have for art like that?

Click to expand...

It means I work on art 12+ hours a day, take college classes for it, sell prints and construct my books little by little. My town has a vast art community, which helps – but it’s solely my own ambition that sells work. I carry 18x24 prints wherever I go. Currently I eat dust, have a low rent apartment and do real work on the weekends. Which is fine! My P.C. and games are the only luxury I have besides art supplies.

I'm on a 3 year plan. That is my self imposed “make it or break it deadline,” a personal challenge to myself to succeed in self employment before I HAVE to do something steady.

I’m an engaging conversationalist so I'm pretty good at saying what needs to be said to sell prints. It is very hard to maintain ambition every day towards the arts - but my motto is hard work reaps benefits. One simply must not be afraid to talk to strangers, make phone calls and use the internet to sell work. And it's very important to STAY in contact with people who buy your work. Do all the social effort for them.

Also, I'm being selfish. I've yet to post elsewhere on the forum. I'll do so tonight ; - )

Welcome aboard. There are several people here with artistic talents such as Jaz and Sorcha to name but 2. Try some of the new Indie games if you're on a very tight budget. Eschalon for example, or perhaps some of Jeff Vogel's work such as Geneforge!!