Forgotten Realms: A temple belonging to the sect of Tyr-the-Lawgiver
Gameplay Length
This module may be completed in approximatly 10 - 13 minutes.
Number Players
1
Language
English
Level Range
All
Races
Any
Tricks & Traps
Non-existent
Roleplay
Heavy
Hack & Slash
Non-existent
Classes
Any
Scope
Small
DMNeeded
No DM Required
Single or Multiplayer
Single Player
Max Character Level
Any
Max # Players
01
Min # Players
01
Min Character Level
Any
Content Rating
Everyone
Alignments
Not important
Gameplay Hours
<1
Description
To deliver documents to a secluded mountain cloister, you must speak with the priests of Tyr and find a way to get through the cavern passage that leads to the cloister.
Posted by Aessinus at 2006-03-31 07:49:12 Voted 8.75 on 03/31/06
Story grabbed me right away. Descriptions and items were well done. Not what I was expecting, thankfully. Primary NPC was appropriately PIA. _________________________ Please don't forget to vote and leave feedback!
It's Free! :)
Posted by Redbeard_219 at 2006-03-25 13:39:19 Voted 5.00 on 03/25/06
The first guy is obnoxious when you first talk to him, but is reasonably helpful the second -- why the turn around? Read the books and there is still no response for the philosopher. Unable to find an ending.
=====================
Modules rated: 72
Average: 5.92
Standard Dev: 1.51
Posted by Mister_Leebo at 2006-03-13 06:17:46 Voted 9.00 on 03/13/06
I enjoyed this module. SPOILERS!
Orien was fun to hate, but Roald wasn't. I would have liked for an option to de-antagonize Orien as well as explain to Roald that seeing as the solution to Abrel's sin was outlined in the book I wasn't actually misleading him or destroying his faith. On the contrary I was more surprised that Abrel hadn't figured it out on his own.
Had each character been given some closure like that, they might all feel "complete" the way Abrel is completed by the end of the module and I don't think it would have taken too much more in wordcount to accomplish.
I did not like all of the writing but in most places it is above average. I could see a concept like this being used in a BioWare game so it qualifies as a good Sidequest to me.
Overall, I enjoyed the module, it felt like it was part of a world outside itself.
Posted by The_Krit at 2006-03-11 17:46:20 Voted 6.75 on 03/11/06
BTW, did you realize you left a book in the SW corner of the area, perched on the ceiling?
Posted by The_Krit at 2006-03-11 17:42:51 Voted 6.75 on 03/11/06
The writing is good, but for some reason I didn't have that much fun playing. This is highly subjective -- and apparently not a common sentiment -- but I feel it is also a valid aspect of rating.
I've identified two points I didn't like. The most significant is probably that I only had a short conversation with the first NPC, and ended up not liking him. (He didn't like me either, but that's not important.) As BioWare predicted, this set the tone for the module. What most rubbed me the wrong way was that he acknowledged that I was on a secret mission, but still (arrogantly) insisted that I tell him about it.
The second point was that I noticed a similarity between one of the books and Abrel's mutterings, yet I had to return to Mr. Mean before I could make use of this fact. (Those first impressions were popping up again.)
My negatives are all subjective, so with enough people liking this module, you probably should ignore them, much like the low votes are dropped from the average.
Posted by Kirian at 2006-03-05 12:36:42 Voted 7.00 on 03/05/06
Hey! I expected a naughty story featuring giggling nuns! Ack, my dirty mind gives me away again ;)
Overall, I liked this mod. The writing was decent, and there were some nice ideas in the story. [Attention: spoilers!] I found Abrel's turnaround a bit incredible though. The man fasts for over a year, then a stranger comes along that recites two lines from a book, and suddenly all is rosy and peachy? Too easy!
Posted by Brougham at 2006-03-01 14:17:55 Voted 9.50 on 03/01/06
I give this a good score on the count of a very good focused plot and characters I liked reading. This is one of the best as it just struck my fancy the right way.
Posted by herrjeff at 2006-03-01 06:24:06 Voted 8.25 on 03/01/06
Nice story with one interesting NPC and two average "support actors". The philosophical discussions were well written. However, as goblinfoundry indicated, dealing with Roald afterwards was frustrating. Even if there are some elements to understand his reaction, I haven't seen any way to change his mind. The third NPC was helpless at this point.
Posted by pika2 at 2006-02-24 22:18:57 Voted 9.50 on 02/24/06
i enjoyed this module. i thought the script was well writen. I really like the fasting guy. his character was well devopled, and i thought he was cool. the story line was interseting to me.
Posted by NullthraBloodeye at 2006-02-17 09:46:14 Voted 9.00 on 02/17/06
Not bad at all. Opening Npc stands out! Echo...
Posted by Lonely Gecko at 2006-02-16 22:52:26 Voted 9.50 on 02/16/06
This module should be evaluated very highly for this reason alone: it provides considerable flexibility in gameplay. All introduced elements have the opportunity to become tools depending upon the player's perspective. For me, the book(s) were critical. For Mr. Bottrell, they were not (see his review and note his frustrations). We had separate gaming experiences with the same module. Based on others comments, I replayed it a few times with totally different outcomes (my 1st time through I killed Abrel & didn't need to open the chest...). Variability adds to the playability of this module.
The ability to frustrate a player stems from the player's gross assumption that the designer is inexperienced or inept. However, this designer is very "ept". The module is carefully constructed to evaluate and provide different responses to the player's actions and dialogue selections. It's rich design makes it suitable for a wide range of tastes. The many options are not garishly obvious all of the times. AND, if one selects the "wrong" answer, so be it: the gameplay proceeds forward and does not force one to redo certain scenes "correctly". There is no "correct" answer! Yippee!!!
Other stuff: The design, the plot, characters, etc. were well-done. Navigating the rooms were easy (how could one miss the book cases?). The writing was delicious (I love the word "prat") and refreshing. The "naughty" responses appealed to my dark inner creature trapped within my "nice" exterior.
Posted by Lance Botelle at 2006-02-14 14:12:18 Voted 6.50 on 02/14/06
6.5 THE KEY TO THE CLOISTER (121ST TESTED MODULE)
My intention is to give feedback on both the writing (competition) and design (not necessarily competition) for every module I have the chance to play. NB: Judging any material is always subject to personal taste. I have tried hard to be as objective as possible and apologise if I have appeared harsh in any of my scores. Also remember this is only my opinion; Bioware�s is the one that counts!
NB: I have changed from my current choice of modules (working my way through one by one), to check some of the top modules. I will do this from time to time just to ensure I do comment on the top modules.
WRITING: It took me a little longer than I expected to find out what I was actually doing here. Once I did, I thought the idea of the old man being the key to the cloister a good one. However, I found some of the conversation choices inappropriate. (Perhaps I am just a prude.) I only found one ending. (Were there any more?) One conversation reminded me of the sword-fighting contest of the classic Monkey Island. I thought the reaction of the priest by the chest a bit strange/unbelievable after I returned to him. (After realising I needed to collect the equipment from the chest behind him, it became obvious that this was required to work the game, but it did not seem true to character.)
DESIGN: An interior of a church. There were a couple of books that were superfluous to the plot, but that is probably just nit picking.
FINAL: Once again, I have seen better modules than this that are not currently in the top spots. I don�t like having to stick my neck out with giving a score that tends to go against the grain, but I am trying to remain true to all other modules I have scored to date.
MY SCORE SYSTEM (IMHO):
< 5 Not up with the competition.
5 - 6 Average.
7 - 8 Above average.
> 8 An exceptional piece
SCORING FACTORS (IN ORDER OF MY PRIORITIES):
GRAB FACTOR: How quickly am I involved in the action? Do I have direction?
PLOT: Is the story engaging? Is subject interesting? Varied conversation choices?
CHARACTERS: Are they easily identifiable? Are they rounded/memorable?
SPELLING & GRAMMAR: Is the text easy to read? Are there quite a few errors?
OTHER FACTORS (MINOR INFLUENCE): Design for atmosphere & scenery, including sounds & props. Quality of module stability; does it break easily? _________________________ World of Althéa Blog: Link
Posted by lyte13 at 2006-02-13 20:42:26 Voted 9.50 on 02/13/06
I would say that you captured the stuffiness that I've always associated with the followers of Tyr. Roald was truly a pain in the butt. Nice work. _________________________ "A wise man creates more opportunities than he finds."
--Sir Francis Bacon
Posted by MikeLM9215 at 2006-02-12 15:44:59 Voted 7.50 on 02/12/06
Good module. Like the use of items as part of the story. Do wonder why the documents mentioned twice don't exist. _________________________ The road to Ravenloft is paved with good intentions.
Posted by iicydiamonds at 2006-02-12 12:21:10 Voted 9.00 on 02/12/06
Great use of items! Both the books and the ring. The story was interesting and I enjoyed the variety of responses. I thought this was a good size story for the scope of the project. I was caught offguard by Reland's response to Abrel giving up his fast, but twists make it more interesting. A couple of small mistakes, but they didn't detract from the module.
There was one problem with the journal. I got an entry about the books after talking to Reland, when the first NPC (who's name escapes me) had not yet told me about those books. (Let me know if that doesn't make sense.) Otherwise, very good!
Posted by thegeorge at 2006-02-09 11:14:35 Voted 8.25 on 02/09/06
*echoes Meerclaw*
Posted by Rhonair at 2006-02-05 08:28:07 Voted 7.00 on 02/05/06
While every setting should have a large book in it, and even though you seemed to put a great deal of effort into this story, I just found this experience very frustrating.
First of all, due to the point of view that I use, I was only able to find the one bookcase. Then I found a second one. Only after two failed attempts of trying every option in every person�s conversation did I find the third bookcase. I then made the error of only examining the book that I needed. When nothing happened again, I finally returned with the book in my possession. It was a lot of effort for a very forced conversation.
Even with that prejudice aside, I did not feel that this module gave me much of a choice in how I went about solving the puzzle. Combined with the limited endings, this story just doesn�t measure up to the other ones that I�ve seen.
Bottom-line: A strong setting and heavy detail do not make up for the rather hard-to-believe story or the lack of player control in events.
Posted by goblinfoundry at 2006-02-03 03:15:15 Voted 8.25 on 02/03/06
(5 as average)
Very nice job. The story is interesting and the dialog, well written. Each character had a distinct voice. You also had plenty of PC dialog options which was great, too.
One minor thing: when I first spoke with Reland, I didn't *get* that he was so fawning and devoted to Arel. Though, I may have missed it? I guess a few more clues in the dialog would have been good; as his response after helping Arel took me by complete surprise...
Posted by Meerclaw at 2006-02-02 18:32:37 Voted 8.25 on 02/02/06
A well written module, with interesting charaters to converse with. I enjoyed having to learn the right way to get a useful response from the "key", and generally enjoyed the module.
Posted by Vance at 2006-02-02 16:25:31 Voted 7.50 on 02/02/06
Entertaining and faily solid, with a new niggling issues which undermines the module a little. (Not recognizing dialogs already said, etc).
Also, a bit too many 'bad' answers to dialog, making the 'right' choices a bit dry and obvious.
Otherwise, very solid, just not stellar.
Posted by sexpansion at 2006-02-02 16:11:04 Voted 8.75 on 02/02/06
Very good work. I actually found a spelling error (which surprised me as the rest of the dialogue was so good) and there were a couple dialogue trees that didn't make a whole lot of sense (the first guy you talk to asked me how my conversation went with the guide, and even after I talked to him I couldn't tell the first guy that I did) but overall very good work.
Posted by Botap at 2006-01-31 19:59:51 Voted 9.00 on 01/31/06
Wonderful characterization and admirable dialogue. As well, the story flowed nicely with no jumps. I'm a big fan of playing with metaphor, and it seems like you must have had fun writing the dialogue for Abrel. I certainly had fun reading it! I also didn't notice any spelling or grammar errors, which earns high points from me. Well done!
Posted by emperorzog at 2006-01-31 11:35:25 Voted 8.75 on 01/31/06
Really good job. It was very small in scope, but that was fine given the circumstances. It was well writen and interesting. A solid entry. Second highest score I have given so far.
Posted by Sirano Simons at 2006-01-31 09:52:08 Voted 8.00 on 01/31/06
8/10 seems right to me. The dialogue flowed very nicely and effectively portrayed your different characters. My favorite was Abrial (sp?) because all of his religious philosophies made sense to me and I agreed with them. A dramatic plot twist would have been nice but you can only do so much with 3500 words. I enjoyed playing it though. A very well written story with believable characters.
Posted by wraithapotomous at 2006-01-30 22:46:42 Voted 8.00 on 01/30/06
Very nice. Well written and interesting characters. Would have liked a few more options and paths for different play styles, but very good.
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