Gold Box I played the NES port of Pool of Radiance for a bit; this game is terrible

[orcinator]

As a researcher by trade

We found the guy responsible for the replication crisis.

 

[Zed Duke of Banville]

Then you have a guy who sees he lost the battle and just gives it up, so he doesn't die. That's attention to detail right there.

Gold Box games were great for implementing enemy surrenders, and also monsters fleeing the battlefield. Of course, you want to hunt those suckers down so you don't lose the XP.

It's always funny when someone proposes that CRPGs should adopt a morale system governing flight and surrender of enemies, blissfully unaware that the Gold Box already had it in Pool of Radiance (1988), courtesy of the morale system that has always existed in D&D/AD&D:

 

[Jadeite]

Didn't read. Then play the illustrious original. This is one for serious '80s people. However if you like bog standard Apple II RPGs (more old school than I!) then I guess you're in luck as there's a never ending fount of them out there. And American developers carry on that style hardcore into the early '90s too with games like Magic Candle and...the sequels to this. Final Fantasy wasn't ported there till 1990! I think this one was scored in '89 (soundtrack is like the PC88 version), so barely a year after the original. Truly a gem of the '80s. Maybe you need to grow up a little first!

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

The morale system was pretty good in Goldbox. What the frontier series brings to the table is calling for reinforcements and a few other odd situations. Perhaps "calling" is using a summoning type protocol but the games also have summoning spells at higher levels. I think the game missed the boat not including lower level summoning like dust devil, animal summoning, and the later elemental summoning or shadow monsters. Oh well. I imagine that the Dungeon Craft and Iceblink engines can do some fantastic things for different playstyles. I recall initially being very impressed by DC.

 

[mondblut]

It's always funny when someone proposes that CRPGs should adopt a morale system governing flight and surrender of enemies

When the game discourages you from letting enemies escape (since you're losing out on xp and loot), introducing a system only to have the players actively seek and exploit the means to bypass it sounds like a fruitless endeavor. "Degenerate gameplay" at its finest.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Once you're max xp or level and the mobs are trivial rubbish (esp since by that point you are beyond wealthy), mobs fleeing and surrendering is a blessing. Maybe if you're keeping a kill counter of mobs that might suck but the game doesn't have that; ie..

Rolf: (kill list)
GOBLINS: 515
GOBLIN LEADERS: 156
KOBOLDS: 334
KOBOLD LEADERS: 121
ORCS: 220
OGRES: 12
TROLLS: 2
WYVERNS: 1
Etc etc

Trivial and autistic perhaps.

 

[Zed Duke of Banville]

It's always funny when someone proposes that CRPGs should adopt a morale system governing flight and surrender of enemies

When the game discourages you from letting enemies escape (since you're losing out on xp and loot), introducing a system only to have the players actively seek and exploit the means to bypass it sounds like a fruitless endeavor. "Degenerate gameplay" at its finest.

A simple fix is to give the player full XP for escaped opponents, since they can be considered to have been defeated, and for fleeing enemies to drop their treasure in an effort to lighten their load and thereby increase their movement rate, so that players receive the treasure and XP for it.

 

[mondblut]

A simple fix is to give the player full XP for escaped opponents, since they can be considered to have been defeated, and for fleeing enemies to drop their treasure in an effort to lighten their load and thereby increase their movement rate, so that players receive the treasure and XP for it.

Would they strip off their armor and pull off their magic rings, too? That's some dedication...

 

[CryptRat]

I think I would prefer if they only surrendered and were removed from the maps (that's how Disciples of Steel does it I think? I can't remember if sometimes they try to flee) and never literally run away because when they're stuck and can't flee I think it defeats the purpose a bit as the fight actually takes longer rather than shorter as you need to chase the enemies and it can take long because they're unable to flee from the map.

Even more subjective perhaps but I think when it gets stuck is also one of the times where the AI looks a bit ridiculous, that and going back and fourth through clouds and such (that it enters it could be fine). I think these can give the false impression to new players that the AI is poor while it's in fact pretty decent and fun to deal with (both when you try to abuse it and when you don't).

 

[octavius]

A simple fix is to give the player full XP for escaped opponents, since they can be considered to have been defeated, and for fleeing enemies to drop their treasure in an effort to lighten their load and thereby increase their movement rate, so that players receive the treasure and XP for it.

Would they strip off their armor and pull off their magic rings, too? That's some dedication...

"Your XP or your lives!".