Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor in 2018

[KeighnMcDeath]

I copied the play through and a few sites. The real lure these games were was to snag players of EOB and old pool series esp the ones who pnp and had the modules or accessories. Myth Drannor is one of those bitch areas where little info is given and it’s badically up to the DM to develope.

Oh, you could read the novels that take place there. I have them in digital format and this games physical book (it reads better than the original pools trilogy).

I can’t recall if there was a good webring or site where someone really poured their heart and soul into developing Myth Drannor. It’s ruins, it’s ancient, and deadly as fuck quickly in pnp.

 

[iqzulk]

few screenshots of the starting area

Press F1. Also, any further impressions?

So how does one play this game? Is it for sale somewhere or abandonware at this point?

It's peculiar and very divisive. Think of it as of an exact opposite of ToEE to an extent. ToEE, if you disregard fanmade content, is pocket-sized in scale, but ultra-detailed (whether or not to consider those details trivial - I personally don't - is another matter altogether), if you keep your eyes open. RoMD, on the other hand, is just massive, and made in very broad strokes. Regardless, it's the kind of game, that does its own thing, and that you are either on the same page with - or you are not. There seems (to me) to be no middle ground at all.

Don't hold your breath over ToEE style combat. It's D&D and it's turn based alright, but no 5 foot step, no attacks of opportunity when walking close to an enemy, no readied actions, clerics play like sorcerers and don't need to memorize spells, insane Diablo-like weapons and items and probably other things I forget.

Think of it as some bizarro D&D.

I personally think, that it makes sense, that RoMD's combat is very different from - and significantly more primitive, when compared to - ToEE. Due to the stark difference in scale and the density of detailing, in RoMD you have to constantly move - way more than in ToEE. Both games also push for the grounded, semi-realistic pace at which things play out, so that in both, say, zombies move the way you would expect them to. So, in order to keep the game on going, all the while retaining both the turn-based aspect of the combat, as well as the semi-realistic vibe expressed in particular through how things move, making the combat more straightforward actually makes quite a bit of sense, at least, to me. Also, keep in mind, that, although you can turn the timer off, by default, RoMD's combat is supposed to play out with time restrictions, which, from what I remember, ToEE lacks entirely.

 

[Lonely Vazdru]

Well, letting the player neutralize enemy casters a mile away by having your melee guys waltz through enemy lines right to them and then hack at them since they can't use 5 foot step to safely cast is too much. Making enemy casters a non-issue in a D&D game is overdoing the simplification IMHO.

I still like the game but it was rushed and had to change ruleset from D&D 2Ed to 3Ed in the middle of development and it shows.

 

[iqzulk]

Well, letting the player neutralize enemy casters a mile away by having your melee guys waltz through enemy lines right to them and then hack at them since they can't use 5 foot step to safely cast is too much. Making enemy casters a non-issue in a D&D game is overdoing the simplification IMHO.

I still like the game but it was rushed and had to change ruleset from D&D 2Ed to 3Ed in the middle of development and it shows.

I do more or less agree with your point. However, waltzing to the back lines, you 1) put your warrior in the midst of all the enemies, meaning you have to make sure he survives somehow, 2) can generally only consistently block one caster at a time with one warrior, 3) leave your own casters with less cover than there could be.

 

[Chippy]

The concept that every single older RPG ages like wine is a false one.

 

[Martyr]

Also, any further impressions?

like I've said before, I'm reading like an absolute madman right now. trying to read as much as I can in these last few silent and peaceful days I'll have for a long long time. this means I've only played ~5 hours in the last 9 days. 4 of these hours were speant on Ruins of Myth Drannor, 1 on the Old School Computer Game (which I can heartily recommend to anyone who has enjoyed the superb Gold Box RPGs or even newer incline like Knights of the Chalice, OSCG isn't that different).
I got what I expected and wanted out of Ruins of Myth Drannor. this game oozes atmosphere and I'm slowly exploring and fighting my way through a dungeon double the size of Hommlet.
and there was one battle ( 1 mage, 5 skeletal warriors, 2 of them in armor) I had to reload several times and I could only win this fight through tactical placement of my party members before the enemies attacked me. that was challenging and fun.

in conclusion I've got to say one thing: in the last few weeks I've played Bard's Tale 4, Pathfinder: Kingmaker and Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire. I played each one of them for several hours but my interest in them slowly faded and I've no intention in playing them again in the near future.
but on the other hand I'm really looking forward to playing some more of RoMD. like I've said, this game is exactly how I wanted it to be. but that's of course a matter of taste.

The concept that every single older RPG ages like wine is a false one

I've also got to adress the fact that many people see Ruins of Myth Drannor as a weaker ToEE.
to that I can only say one thing: yes, Ruins isn't as complex, deep and tactical as Temple. but it still is a damn good RPG.
I can see no sense in comparing two good things, one of those two will always be "worse". but that doesn't mean it's not worth playing/reading/watching/driving etc.
Might and Magic: World of Xeen isn't as good as Wizardry 7, Morrowind isn't as good as Daggerfall, Temple of Elemental Evil isn't as good as Jagged Alliance 2, Xcom isn't as good as JA2, Total War: Medieval 2 isn't as good as Dominions 2 - but does that mean these "not as good"-games aren't worth playing? hell no!

 

[iqzulk]

through a dungeon double the size of Hommlet.

I am sorry, I'll just leave it at that, you'll see soon enough.

Glad you like it, though.

 

[Darth Canoli]

Bard's Tale 4, Pathfinder: Kingmaker and Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire.

Everything taste so good after trying these 3 (well, i didn't, nor intend to, play BT4)

 

[Martyr]

Bard's Tale 4, Pathfinder: Kingmaker and Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire.

Everything taste so good after trying these 3 (well, i didn't, not intend to, play BT4)

if only inXile would've made a proper dungeon crawler and not a dc-lite with heavy emphasis on illogical, dull puzzles.
disappointment of the year for sure.

 

[Cryomancer]

I really wanna play this game, but mouse acceleration is hurting my hand. Any way to disable this BS???? The game looks interesting but i can't play due mouse acceleration.

 

[Martyr]

I really wanna play this game, but mouse acceleration is hurting my hand. Any way to disable this BS???? The game looks interesting but i can't play due mouse acceleration.

sorry, I have no idea, but maybe someone else can help.
runs without any problems on my Win10 computer.

 

[Darth Canoli]

I really wanna play this game, but mouse acceleration is hurting my hand. Any way to disable this BS???? The game looks interesting but i can't play due mouse acceleration.

It doesn't work with a living mouse, even if you find one with a long tail ...

Tried to launch it again and turns out i'm piling up problems, there is a fix for the transparency issue but it doesn't work for windows 8. (there's no MS ACT working with windows 8, one works for win 2000 -> 7 the other one for win 10 only)

Did you try disabling hardware acceleration ?

I have no idea how to do that, i don't even think i can access the directX control panel (on windows 8), i think i should have stuck with windows 3.1.

Edit : Well, i just downloaded the direct x panel thing as explained in the link, disabled hardware acceleration in direct 3d and direct draw tabs and voilà! (directx panel 9.0c even though i use directX 11)

It finally works but for some reason, i don't want to play it anymore now it runs perfectly (the videos and logos were stuttering before, now everything runs smoothly).

Back to Wizardry 8, i guess ...

 

[Darth Canoli]

I launched it anyway with the speedmod and the xp mod (back to regular xp table).

The speedmod is a life-saver but it bugs in combat so you have to decrease speed when you have to move during combat or characters will run toward their target, hit it and get pushed back out of melee range.



Also, i've read on a PoR RoMD thread there is no characteristics increase but there is, you get one once you hit level 3 (probably more later) and there is a couple of permanent attribute boosts barrels Might&Magic style (3 CON, 1 STR, 1 INT, 1 WIS, 1 DEX so far)

The xp mod call for multi-classing as you level fairly quickly.

 

[Cryomancer]

Any way to remove the mouse acceleration? It hurts my hand... I tried the hints above and din't worked. Quite the contrary, when i ALT TAB to change the settings, the game crashes.

 

[Darth Canoli]

There is a option in the settings to set the mouse speed, at least with the 1.4 version. (i think it was there already when i just installed the game, it was 1.2 already though)

Also, it seems possible to alt-tab it if you use dgvodoo and play with the settings. Well, i can minimize it and then get back to it, except nothing responds then, maybe there's a key to focus back on the game like the ALT key for Wizardry 8.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

After the damn gog Dungeon Siege shit port (i'm still having issues) i wouldn't put high bets on a fixed version this if it ever was put on gog. Damn headaches at times and I'm not like some of these ytubers who have $$$ for a few pimped out old PCs.

 

[Cryomancer]

The problem is not mouse speed, is acceleration. Fallout New Vegas was awful before i learned how to turn it off.

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\fallout new vegas, (or a similar directory)

And open/edit Fallout_default.ini.

Then navigate yourself to the section [CONTROLS] and add these lines.

fForegroundMouseAccelBase=0
fForegroundMouseAccelTop=0
fForegroundMouseBase=0
fForegroundMouseMult=0

source https://steamcommunity.com/app/22380/discussions/0/615086038665025467/

 

[Darth Canoli]

KeighnMcDeath Aside from being able to buy the game, a port isn't needed, the game runs perfectly, transparent bug aside but there's fixes.

S0rcererV1ct0r I have no idea what you're talking about, my mouse doesn't accelerate that much, except when the cat is around ...

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

No install issues? I have the CD back at my parents place assuming they didn't junk my old stuff. Hmmmm... or is there an iso floating around?

 

[Lord_Potato]

There was one on the Iso Zone. Sadly, the site is no more.

 

[Darth Canoli]

I picked the My Abandonware version. (it's version 1.2)
- Then pick patches 1.3 and 1.4 from the sorcerer's place
- Speedmod and eventually the xp mod

Didn't need any trick to install it, except i couldn't find a clean no-cd (i know i found one last time i tried) so i play with CD2 in a virtual drive.

Also, you have to mount CD1 and 2 in the same virtual drive during installation and i think mount CD2 in the same one when you play.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Area 45 I guess. https://www.gamebanshee.com/poolofradianceromd/walkthrough/hallsoflight.php


https://www.gamebanshee.com/poolofradianceromd/walkthrough/hallsoflight.php

 

[Lonely Vazdru]

Area 45 I guess. https://www.gamebanshee.com/poolofradianceromd/walkthrough/hallsoflight.php

Nice to see this thread bumped, but I'll be damned if I have the slightest idea what this is supposed to mean.

 

[Moaning_Clock]

Never finished the game - maybe I was like 20%-25% through on my last playthrough, that one is massive. Really liked it and didn't encounter bugs aside from Win 8 specific graphical glitches (maybe luck, maybe the playtime). Are there spiritual successors to that game? Always had a really weird vibe I liked.

 

[Cryomancer]

Any way to disable mouse acceleration? It ruins the game...