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KnightErrantJR
Great Reader
USA
5402 Posts |
 Posted - 08 Mar 2005 : 00:41:29
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Inquisitor, you are absolutely right about their CR, and I would like to note that I really don't want to spend any more time trying to crunch numbers. Its enough for me to see the fight as logical in the context of the story itself, and each of the heroes, while victorious, have been portrayed as having been wounded, winded, and having given it everything they have to kill the dragons they are fighting.
But, as one late "game rule" comment . . . CR is a measure of an encounter that is challenging but not deadly, and is geared towards using up about 1/4 of the character's resources, i.e. 1/4 of their spells, 1/4 of their expendable magic items, and 1/4 of their hit points. If Taegan is 12th level and the dragon in CR 12, there is a 50/50 chance that he would either kill or be killed, and it should be a tough fight. If Taegan is 16th level and the dragons CR is 16, then the same is true. If Taegan is 16th level and the dragon is CR 12, then Taegan would have a hard time of it but would have better than 50/50 odds.
This is really the last in game analysis I am going to do though, as originally I was just interested as to weather the fight makes sense in the internal logic of the novel iteself, and to my mind, none of the fights have seemed too one sided. The only reason I did the analysis is that we did have a few clues as to Taegan's level from the novel iteself.
Thanks. |
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Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
Posted - 08 Mar 2005 : 05:05:03
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Who knows what Taegan's level is, or whether or not he could have fended off dragons with his skills. Maybe the monastery should have been rubble by the end of the book. And perhaps the dragons haven't destroyed enough cities.
But somehow, these things just didn't stop me from enjoying the series as a whole. I have found that the characters in the book are, by and large, excellent, with witty banter and realistic emotions. And to be honest, I'd likely be turned off of the series if I found out it was just another excuse to destroy large portions of Faerun.
To top it all off, the book has a lot of good humor.  |
"Instead of asking why we sleep, it might make sense to ask why we wake. Perchance we live to dream. From that perspective, the sea of troubles we navigate in the workaday world might be the price we pay for admission to another night in the world of dreams."
--Richard Greene (letter to Time) |
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SiriusBlack
Great Reader
USA
5517 Posts |
Posted - 08 Mar 2005 : 06:07:13
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quote:
Originally posted by Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
To top it all off, the book has a lot of good humor.
Oh you must love Taegan then. That man avariel does have some witty comments. |
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Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
Posted - 08 Mar 2005 : 22:40:51
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quote:
Originally posted by SiriusBlack
quote:
Originally posted by Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
To top it all off, the book has a lot of good humor.
Oh you must love Taegan then. That man avariel does have some witty comments.
Yes, I do like him and find him funny, but I also love the humor of Will, Pavel, and Dorn. It doesn't cease to amaze me that after two novels and one short story (maybe more, in Dragon?) the "mock feud" between Will and Pavel hasn't run out of steam. And the way Dorn would simply say "No" to the eloquent requests of his companions made me crack up. Dorn proves that a character doesn't have to be a wiseguy or joker make the book funny. |
"Instead of asking why we sleep, it might make sense to ask why we wake. Perchance we live to dream. From that perspective, the sea of troubles we navigate in the workaday world might be the price we pay for admission to another night in the world of dreams."
--Richard Greene (letter to Time) |
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Paec_djinn
Learned Scribe
173 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jul 2005 : 10:28:38
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Just finished the novel yesterday. Generally, most books I read is because of its story, but this book I have to laud mainly because of it's battles scenes. The story itself is decent but quite cliched and rather rushed in some places. The novel is definitely better than it's previous one though. Anyway, for a full comment proceed forward:
(SPOILERS)
Plot
The story plays out nicely right from the start where we see the beginning of the invasion of Damara and Sammaster ordering Malazan to do some of his personal biddings. From there the plot cuts into three main plots - Dorn, Raryn, Kara and Chatulio heading to the Monastery of the Yellow Rose, Taegan and Jivex arriving at Thentia and Pavel and Will searching Thar for more of Sammaster's notes.
Most of this book is full of combat and a little bit of VERY unpredictable mystery (and confusing later on). We see also some developments later on to the plot line with Pavel and Will brought to Damara to save Gareth Dragonsbane.
Characters & Development
While the previous book focussed alot on Dorn, this book is certainly a departure as the party splits and the focus is tossed around like a clicking bomb. Kara and Dorn's relationship is shown for a few instances and it's developed to the point where Kara actually hurts Dorn in the Rage.
Pavel and Will's mock feud suddenly becomes less of a mockery as they're embroiled in trouble which could cost them both their lives. We see Taegan in all his ego-ness attempting to take charge of an investigation. This was kinda weird especially since Taegan was new to the wizards.
We see a new character who develops instantly in the short time he is in only to meet a sudden end. Chatulio also develops nicely and we see he's jokes continue even till he's death.
Originality
The quest for Sammaster documents and a man-made Rage is pretty original in my opinion. There's quite a few cliches and some things happened too coincidentally. (e.g the green dragons outside the orc ruins). The quest to find the traitor is also very unpredictable and when the traitor is first found, the following events is pretty confusing but explained at the conclusion which was a rather good tactic, although it did cost me some time having to re-read the scene twice.
Writing Style
The fight scenes in this book is simply EXCELLENT. A full thumbs up goes to Mr. Byers for writing this out. The deaths of Chatulio, Lareth, Rilitar and even Igan were very saddening but Mr. Byers did well do give each one of them their very own way of dying. A few scenes felt rushed to me in particular the rescue scene of Gareth Dragonsbane. But that just goes to show that even with 330 plus pages, Byers had done alot that some scenes had to be rushed.
Setting and Flavour
I liked the Monastery of the Yellow Rose and Damara especially. The area around Monastery of the Yellow Rose and the battle in it was fun and entertaining. The inclusion of key figures like Lareth and Gareth Dragonsbane just added the hype.
X-Factor
The battle scenes, multiple dragons, key figures, great backdrop. This book is full of great factors to make it good. |
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Ioulaum
Acolyte
USA
18 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jul 2005 : 20:01:52
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I like the 2nd book much more then the first book and I think it is a great read. But i do agree with Inquisitor that the Dragons should be doing much more damage then they have currently.
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Chosen of Bane
Senior Scribe
USA
552 Posts |
Posted - 26 Apr 2007 : 04:10:44
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Talk about casting True Rez on a thread...Okay, I read this novel when it first came out and I forgot some details...
What was the purpose of Sammaster bringing War to Damara? I remember that he made the monsters/humanoids in the region think that he was the return of the Witch-King...buy why?
I am currently running a campaign in the 1373 and the PC's are likely heading to Damara/Vaasa so I would like to know so I can answer any questions they have.
Any help would be appreciated. |
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The Rite: Year of Rogue Dragons Book II (Spoilers)
