As we inch closer to the release date for this game, I'll likely pop in from time to time to post my thought of the moment.

Currently that thought revolves around the mass battles that I recently learned will have a part in the latter portions of the game. I just gotta say that I am so incredibly stoked that this element is finally being pulled into a full blown CRGP. We've seen the RTS world attempt to integrate elements of RPG games (e.g. Dragonshard, Spellforce), but as much as I enjoy a good RTS game, I'm an RPGer at heart and have been waiting for a long time to let my CRPG bard turn around to find his army of loyal followers marching behind him toward the fields of battle.

What I really find intriguing is that, apparently, in NWN2 you'll be gaining followers over the course of the game, and employing them as defenders of your stronghold. The more attention you devote to this pursuit, the better defended you will be. And not all of your followers will necessarily be fighter types, as there is a decent variety of professions included. The idea is just so great that I can't help but smile! :)

Now, all that said, I sure as hell hope Obsidian nailed the implementation of this feature, because a poor implementation could easily kill it. But I'm choosing to remain optimistic (in spite of the publisher, which I have oh so little faith in).

Is anyone as stoked as I am about the mass battle idea, or would you rather just keep to your party of 4, like you always have in CRPGs?

[ September 13, 2006, 16:19: Message edited by: Marceror ]

As in a situation once or twice in the game, of for the greater part of the game? As for a game to be totally like that, I would say no. Like the batlle in HotU yes. I agree. but the battle in Hotu was far to small. A good skirmish nothing more.

For me the most important thing in a rpg is the exploring/adventure part. What is in the next street, what is in the next corridor. A man, will he attack, rus, speak... Remeber the riddlefaced walls in the asylum in bg2, or the brigde just before the temple in the all seeying eye quest. The fighting is a close second. If I want a game with only battles, I will play guild wars or something similair.

so, if the attention of the gamemakers is focused on batlles, and away from dungeon crawling, the game will sell less.

My understanding is that your armies will participate only in a few of the key battles during the latter half of the game. The rest of the game will involve your PC and up to 3 companions.

My only reservation would be the ineveitable slow down on anything but a super pc. In my experience, when an engine that is built for small party gameplay attempts to depict a large scale battle, performance takes a huge hit and the battle is more trouble than its worth.

I have the same reservation as ion- I'm not sure my PC is gonna be too happy with lots of effects and creatures all over the place.

However, I do have something I am wondering about. It has been said that the more effort you put into your force, the better protected you are. Is the game going to give you a sensible lternative to simply doing the quests that give you more forces? After all, if there is no real alternative, then everyone will end up with their forces at maximum capacity everytime. And that kinda sucks.

I'm hoping this army can upgrade your keep throughout the game, like they did in Suikoden. You start out with a more or less empty keep and as you gain troops the rooms get filled with their various features. One room for a mage's alchemical experiements, a tower for summoning, the main hall can become the training room for fighters, stuff like that.

You can have four guys in your party?! SWEET!

But yeah. The bigger the battles, the better, I say.