What if....

That would actually be one of the most entertaining things in the hypothetical game. People being suprised or bored with how someone asks about something, which was already been asked by the Living One.

 

Big fat bloody spoiler coming up...

Spoiler

Virgil's brother is plot-dead. It's in the game if you follow Virgil's sidestory.

 

Xiao beat me to it. And it isn't the first time. :-(

 

Who knows, maybe they will fall into a random kiddy pool of jello...

 

*Bump back to topic*

I pretty sure it would be a bitch and a half to script - if it's even possible.

 

As Arcanum is based around the pendulum of technology and magic, and in this particular time phase about the return/rise of technology I don't seem to remember any drawn out quests involving technology, perhaps we could have a main or secondary questline focusing on technology

What I mean by that is that all the heavily technology related parts are all pretty much one shot occasions or in the background of a quest with little importance or substance to the quest

Perhaps we could come up with something entirely new thing rising to threaten or hinder the world of Arcanum

 

Perhaps a giant steam powered spider machine like the one i Wild Wild West.

 

:3 :3 :3
My love and eternal gratitude to who so ever manages to create a sprite version of the giant spider machine.

A tech-themed difficulty/series/storyline wouldn't be terrible. Ideas, anyone?

 

Yea, I considered that. I think that, at this point, we just need to kidnap some middle-eastern country, and refuse to return it until the Troika team gets back together, and finishes Arcanum 2.

 

Seconded. I'll just start ordering missiles, shall I?

 

Since airships, steamships, and house-sized robot spiders are not practical additions, that pretty much leaves someone with an automaton army.
With careful planning and scripting - yeah, it could work.

Open for ideas.

Also - Now that the Survivor has learned of the danger to the Living One from the assassins at the crash site - it's back to Shrouded Hills to learn the next destination.
What should Ristezze want for the info? Something else from Bessie, still hoping to get a camera, or should it be something completely new?

And.... Lukan & Co. Keep 'em?

 

On Lukan you could have him whining to Thaddeus, upon joining you could be given a quest(s) to train Lukan as an alternative to the item stealing which could involve pickpocketing, lockpicking and prowling of various sorts

Something of value to Ristezze could be anything, I think it should be some sort of jewellery. Perhaps offer a couple of alternative ways to obtain it, such as a pickpocket/lock, persuasion or intelligence based conversation methods. The character that has the item could be a character not in the original such as your new follower (before joining, this could be how you meet them) or someone related to an existing character in Shrouded Hills such as Doc Roberts or Constable Owens' wife

Edit: An idea that occured to me elsewhere is that there isn't much in the way of education represented in the game, possible side quests could be errands for a teacher or head. Perhaps if it is a school for problem causers you could instigate a fight amongst the students, convince the student body to shape up or help/hinder the production af a new gang comprised of the students

 

An unsolvable quest dealing with the magick/tech aspect would be an interesting alternative to the X-File quest. The newspaper talks about the failed magickal firearm experiment, and Bronwyck's Gun uses mithril, which while not magickal itself, is a good conductor of magick. From the schematic text, it sort of sounds like Vendigroth had also experimented with utilizing the destructive force of when magick and technology come together. The professor that attempted the magickal firearm could have been inspired by more ancient designs he discovered. The Industrial Council (and Tulla), wanting to keep secret that advanced technology existed in the past (and that massive, destructive weapons can be built by utilizing it with magick), sabotaged the experiments, all the while attempting to make such a weapon themselves. It could all start after the player returns from the Isle of Despair with the first vendigroth schematic when some half-ogre thugs appear demanding the schematics.

 

If I understand you correctly, do away with the Half-Ogre quest altogether in favor of a new "X-File"?

I'll admit, the concept you proposed does have a certain appeal.

 

Nice ideas there, Archmage. It may not be necessary to completely replace one main plot with another, they could both be happening simultaneously, the player operating a little on one quiest, a little on the second, not being sure what is his main goal and even not being sure if any of the two plots are real, or if it's just his mind turning insane and seeing thing that do not exist.

 

This post is more for my own benefit, because I had a little difficulty understanding Archmage's idea completely, And when that happens I tend to break things up and try and understand it piecemeal.

Bronwyck's gun has magical potential due to newspaper reference, schematic text and components.

This signifies Vendigroth experimenting with the nature of magic and technology.

The one experimenting was working based upon earlier schametics.

The Industrial Council/Tulla are trying to hush the existence of the gun and the notion that it could be possible.

Whilst continuing the research themselves.

And to start the the quest you have to have the schematic when you leave the Isle of Despair.

Have I got that right?

The people behind the conspiracy will have to have knowledge of the time when Vendigroth stood, I don't think the Industrial Council would, unless it is just a couple of the members who have conducted research in the matter (this could be tied to the guy that is in the Roseborough Inn, and possibly meet him at the Vendigroth Ruins).

Furthermore they would have to have knowledge of the schematic, which I think would be unlikely that they would allow it to be left there as I presume it could really help the research it has been suggested that they're conducting. Perhaps the source of their information is the recently rescued Isle of Despair dweller(s) as there are 3, 2 directly and 1 indirect rescues from there.

Perhaps we could have some Vendigrothan newspaper references to the experiments maybe some derisive articles about usng magic in a technological environment and experiments.

Further information into the earlier schematic could be rather than weapon based have some other utility kind of use and the Vendigrothan experimenter's progress with the idea was making it in weapon form, his motive for doing so could have been inspired by that a good deal of technology was inefficient against magical things coupled with fear of Arronax's threats.

I can only see Tulla being involved in the case of hushing the whole thing over as they view technology as a 'taint'. Perhaps a member of the Industrial Council is trying to create a magic/technology weapon and someone in Tulla is trying to eradicate and hush it all, this could present a fork in the quest similar to the keeping or destroying of the Bagellian Scourge. this coulld be related to the prize of the quest, you could recieve a non-tech, non-magic gun or a magical item for destroying the item.

Though some of these ideas feed back into what was the living one like and what did they do and makes assumptions.

If any of this seems like me trying to shoot the idea down, it is not, I'm just pointing out things I feel we need to work around. I very much like the idea ^^