137 replies to this topic

[Discordia]

wouldnt it be easiest at the end of the dialog with irenicus (when meeting him first in spellhold) just to add another line pointing that irenicus cast some sort of (improved) power word sleep right before it skips to the cutschene.

btw, got a sample banter with my favourite conjurer?

[Lykainon]

wouldnt it be easiest at the end of the dialog with irenicus (when meeting him first in spellhold) just to add another line pointing that irenicus cast some sort of (improved) power word sleep right before it skips to the cutschene.

Perhaps, but wouldn't that risk ruining something of the impact of the whole traitor business? I'll need to put more thought into this...

btw, got a sample banter with my favourite conjurer?

Alas, Edwin is among those NPCs who haven't gotten any banters yet. I like him a lot myself (I usually go with an evil or neutral party and he's one powerful fellow ) but I'm not sure what they should discuss yet. If nothing else, it'll probably contain some reference to the fact that both of them enjoying using (parenthesizes to talk under their breath).

[Discordia]

so they d have some sort of discussion while constantly taking "mental" notes...(maybe even making fun of each others quirks not realizing, at least for edwin, that they are doing so themselves)

i suppose they both like their harlots, that could make for some banters. and edwins lawful disposition against casons chaotic could be used to make for some conflict...at least minor.

[Kellen]

btw, got a sample banter with my favourite conjurer?

Alas, Edwin is among those NPCs who haven't gotten any banters yet. I like him a lot myself (I usually go with an evil or neutral party and he's one powerful fellow ) but I'm not sure what they should discuss yet. If nothing else, it'll probably contain some reference to the fact that both of them enjoying using (parenthesizes to talk under their breath).

I can just see it now. An entire conversation in ()

[Lykainon]

Since people seem interested in Edwin banters, here's a little sneak peak. In all honesty I'm not particulary pleased with it and will probably rework it quite a bit but hey, it's something.

EDWIN: "You seem like a reasonable talented specimen, Cason. (Reasonable for a barely housebroken monkey, at least). Why would you waste your life as a pirate?"
CASON: "Oh, come on, Eddie. Don't tell me that you of all people will start lecturing me about my amoral way of life? 'Cause I'm telling you right now, that's the sort of stuff that would get you kicked out of that fancy pink wizard club of yours."
EDWIN: "Not at all. I am merely stating that attacking ships hardly seems like an efficiant use of somewhat semi-competent pirates."
CASON: "I don't think I'm following..."
EDWIN: "(Bah! This is like explaining arcane secrets to a half-brained baboon) How much effort does a flock of pirates put into one single attack? Quite a bit of planning I expect. Then there are weapons, logistics and escape routes to consider."
CASON: "Yeah, so? If you end up with a freight of gold, it's worth it. (What are you mumbling about, eh? Bloody wizards...)"
EDWIN: "If the Sea of Swords held nothing but ships filled with gold, you would be correct. As it stands, most ships carry food, fabrics or soldiers. Not most valued 'loot' one would imagine."
CASON: "As much as it pains me to say this (and trust me, having sharks chew on my guts seems preferable at the moment) you *could* have a point."
CASON: "Then again, I can't say I know much about anything but cutting throats and freeing folks of their valuables."
EDWIN: "Of course not. (Who in their right mind would try to teach a barbaric baboon something?) Just... keep an open mind for now. (It's not like there is much in there that could fall out)."
CASON: "If you say so, Eddie. (Maybe snapping some of those spell flingin' fingers of yours would adjust that attitude. How's that for an open mind?)."

[Discordia]

yay

a typo though, efficient is spelled like this

also is he supposed to be reasonably talented or reasonable and talented? i assume the latter due to the addition in brackets.
and of course somwhat semi- seems tautological, if not a full grown a pleanosm.

[Lykainon]

a typo though, efficient is spelled like this

Ah, I ran it through a spell checker but it must have missed it.

also is he supposed to be reasonably talented or reasonable and talented?

Reasonably talented. I noticed it after I posted and it's corrected in the banter file. Thanks for pointing it out though.

and of course somwhat semi- seems tautological, if not a full grown a pleanosm.

Unlike the above, that is completely intentional. Edwin isn't big on compliments and minimizes them as much as possible.

[Lykainon]

Naturally.

[sdrake]

Feedback, Ideas, Random Thoughts, etc.

Transfering from here:
http://www.shsforums...opic=38098&st=0

So pirating is the only life Cason has ever known. He has all the vices one would expect from a pirate. His life is take
from the enemy ship, get his share, hit the tavern, drink, hire a prostitute, sleep, repeat. Yet somewhere in the middle
of this daily routine he finds himself wondering/philsophisizing (I don't think thats a word oh well)/speculating about
a lot of things, from who his father was to what a peaceful life might be like to thinking of a future where he might
retire with all his loot to better and faster ways to seduce women and on and on. He tries to repress these random
thoughts/daydreams to some extent, rationalizing them as weakness, but keeps coming back to them again and again
because they break his every-man-for-himself daily grind. Cason always remembers first and foremost that he is a
survivor in a bleak world, and always reminds himself of this to stay sharp. He has suffered a recent setback with his
latest employer and is taking a "break" when the party encounters him...

So, being Chaotic Neutral and pirate, Cason obviously has no problem with the stealing part of pirating. But what about the more heinous acts a pirate might have to do, like killing the whole crew of a ship that might include women and
children?

Relationships with the NPC's
Banters posted so far:

Edwin-Excellent banter. Edwin slowly points out to Cason that there are other possibilities out there besides pirating,
options that are far more profitable and much less risky. Cason has to ponder this...

Jan-Like many other NPC's Cason finds Jan extremely irritating between the family and turnip stories.

Keldorn-The banters are very well written, especially at the end of the second one where Keldorn temporarily pierces
Cason's emotional defenses briefly before Cason comes back in the third banter (after not liking the feel of not being
strong) with a scathing retort that restores his hardened edge. Keldorn seems to have a persistence that eventually
he may be able to get Cason to change his ways.

Minsc-Minsc seems like a mild amusement or distraction for Cason, who gets a chuckle of seeing this physically huge
and fearless warrior who is clearly not all there talking to his pet hamster.

Viconia-It seems she considers Cason to be a complete waste of space and only refrains from giving him excruciating
torture and death out of respect for CHARNAME being the leader. Viconia isn't even interested in a little emotional
manipulation before going for the kill.

Other NPC's
Aerie-Cason could find her to be pathetic and weak and an easy target (most likely) or Aerie's innocence and goodness
despite everything that's happened to her might make Cason slowly see that life is not this grueling, bleak burden to bare.

Anomen-These two come to blows and Anomen's ego-boosting preaching and Cason's massive indifference collide. They
are ironically somewhat the same, projecting an outward image of strength and toughness while carefully masking
their emotional insecurities.

Cernd-More nature rhymes while Cason guzzles his ale and barely notices as he's checking out the local Athkatla "talent".
Next.

Haer'dalis-Cason might find Haer'dalis interesting on a minor friendship level. Haer'dalis' living in the moment, living
in complete and utter chaos knowing that death could come at any time yet still having fun might appeal to Cason.

Imoen-Imoen probably reminds Cason of the chattier women he's bedded. Annoying for what he wants, but the end
result is worth it. Of course he might alter his plans after finding out Imoen is the sister of his new employer/leader,
not to mention a Bhaalspawn...

Jaheira-Jaheira's no-nonsense, blunt style will definitely rub Cason the wrong way, and the verbal fireworks here are
worth the price of admission.

Korgan-Cason might see Korgan as a darker verison of himself. In his pirating career he's dealt with Korgan's type a lot
so they would have the typical grudging respect, trash-talking, macho image relationship "business associates" have.

Mazzy-Cason would see Mazzy as someone way out of her league with this laughable dream of being a paladin. They
wouldn't get along at all with some good barbs being traded.

Nalia-Cason would have a major problem with Nalia. Born into wealth and privilege that few ever see and she wants to crusade for the rabble in the streets? He's going to tear her down every chance he gets. Or (not likely) Nalia wanting to help the poor hits an emotional would with Cason, him remembering his childhood as nobody would help him or his poor mother as they were starving and penniless.

Sarevok-If Cason continues to TOB he could see Sarevok as someone who was defeated and is not worthy of respect, as by this point he has aquired plenty of power and skill of his own, far more than he ever imagined.

Valygar-Cason and Valygar would have respect for each other based on their respective abilities but might not banter
much as Valygar doesn't have much to say and Cason is interested in other pursuits...

Yoshimo-Cason has also dealt with Yoshimo's type a lot in his pirating career and is on guard for what Yoshimo might do.
They might have a few banters of small talk where they're both gauging the intent of each other, making small talk
and not giving up any useful information.

[Lykainon]

Yay! Plenty of feedback. Thanks.

So, being Chaotic Neutral and pirate, Cason obviously has no problem with the stealing part of pirating. But what about the more heinous acts a pirate might have to do, like killing the whole crew of a ship that might include women and
children?

He doesn't believe in killing unless it's necessary (of course, his definition of "necessary" might not match yours or mine...) but if it would come to it, Cason would probably be prepared to kill just about anyone that stands in his way. This hasn't really been tested in theory though and if he would be faced with the choice, he might show more moral then anyone, including myself , believed possible.

Relationships with the NPC's
Banters posted so far:

To avoid filling the post with endless quotes, I'll just write my response to what you said in regards to the various NPC-banters.

Edwin- Pretty much, yeah. If Edwin's in the party he might have a couple of comments during the quest-ish thingy I've got planned for Cason.

Jan- Irritated, yes, but Cason is a little bit entertained as well.

Keldorn- Thanks. The point of the banters, aside from pure entertainment value, is to demonstrate the strong and weak points of Keldorn's and Cason's philosophies. After all, they are both fairly intelligent and charismatic guys with clearly defined and very opposing philosophies. It's doubtful that either of them will change their ways but hopefully they get out of the experience a little bit wiser, Cason exposed to Keldorn's calming goodness and Keldorn's to Cason's liberating anarchism.

Minsc- Exactly. And since Cason, pirate or not, behaves pretty friendly towards Minsc (and even earns Boo's "recommendation"), Minsc is pretty friendly in return.

Viconia- While that's certainly in line with her personality, I think Cason will spark a little bit of interest from her. Being quite a skilled liar herself (which Drow isn't? ) she senses that he's not exactly like he presents himself.

Aerie- While Cason respects strength, he isn't (unlike, say, Viconia) one pick on the weak. Rather, he'll do what any ruthless, sexist pirate would do if he ran across a vulnerable, hot elf-chick, he'll hit on her. (His approach to this is guranteed to be quite different from Haer'dalis' elaborate compliments and CHARNAME's oh-poor-poor-you style. Since she likely won't be very interested (and likely pretty scared) and Cason (as Keldorn points out) isn't one to rape women, he'll probably end up leaving her alone.

Anomen-Anomen is probably the NPC Cason gets along the least with (despite their similarities in alignment and some personality aspects). Mostly because Anomen (Lawful Neutral Anomen at least) is all law and order to Cason's chaos and anarchy. A version of Batman and the Joker where Batman is something of an ass and the Joker isn't quite evil, if you will.

Cernd- Like with Anomen, their clashes in philosophies keep them from getting along very well. Cernd values nature and balance while Cason prefer cities and would gladly go out of his way to upset the balance just for the hell of it.

Haer'dalis- After some initial arguing (Haer'dalis keep calling Cason "catfish" and Cason subtly threats his life in return) they get along fairly well.

Imoen-Cason and Imoen gets along suprisingly well. In their first banter Cason upsets Imoen slightly regarding the ugly truth behind romantic pirate stories but after that they are pretty friendly. Both of them have an obvious chaotic streak to their personalities (and alignments ) which make them similar in some ways. Imoen is also the only female NPC so far to be exposed to Cason's flirting without getting upset, angry or something like that. While she doesn't really flirt back, she's letting him down easily (and humorously, hopfully.)

Jaheira-Jaheira's banters (I've written two) brings out a rather different side of Cason. Some rather insensitive comments, even for Cason, leads to the attempted appology I mentioned in some earlier post.

Korgan- Sounds like what I had in mind myself. I would probably had written it already if I didn't fear writing Korgan's accent.

Mazzy- So far her dreams haven't been mentioned. Cason is more interested in her good looks (and he's curious abot short women...) and she doesn't exactly appreciate being hit on by a pirate. Doesn't get along with him very well.

Nalia- You could be onto something but I haven't really planned much banter for Nalia yet. I very rarely play with her in the party and should probably get a better idea of her before writing anything.

Sarevok- Haven't planned this one much (although there will, eventually, be ToB-content for Cason).

Valygar- Works with me. Haven't planned much since I've played with Valygar just barely more then with Nalia.

Yoshimo- They would probably get along nicely but seeing as Cason isn't recuritable until Brynnlaw and Yoshimo gets... lost in Spellhold, they won't have time to talk much. I might write one banter for them a make sure it triggers before Yoshi leaves.

Also, as a more general information. I'm in the middle of moving (I won't actually move until early January but those pesky holidays messes up my planning ) so I haven't had a lot of time to spend on Cason lately. I'm progressing but fairly slowly. I'm expected to pick up pace somewhere around the second week of the new year though. I will finish, damn it.

[Lykainon]

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. I'll play a bit with but if I still don't grasp them, I'll ask for advice.

I'll probably do better once I'm past "rich brat who feels sorry for poor people" and "strong, silent ranger who doesn't like magic".

[Lykainon]

Yeah, most NPC's aren't that one-dimensional... not even Jan and Minsc. Though certain things come to mind a lot quicker than others.

Indeed and there's always a chance to show other dimensions in NPC that aren't obvious in their vanilla banter, as long as it's in line with their general personalities (and ability scores for that matter).

[Thanatos.]

*whistles* Cason absolutely, for lack of a better, more intelligent word (mainly because I don't know enough of those) p0wns! If you need help with anything, just ask! (apart from Valygar banters and coding. Know nothing about either of those.)

[Lykainon]

There aren't any new progress to report I'm afraid but I can now happily inform my many fans ( ) that I've settled into my new place and got a working internet-connection again. Thus, I'll try to get back to working on Cason shortly.

[Thanatos.]

YAY!

[Lykainon]

Woohoo! I have at least one not-imaginary (right? ) fan. Granted, he's a self-confessed sycophant but who am I took look gift-horses in the mouth?