Waterdeep! The City of Splendors is now Open to All
HDMayergo
Member Posts: 6
Waterdeep is one of the crown jewels of the Forgotten Realms Setting, and one of the largest cities in the setting. Its also one of the oldest and most treasured modules, a NWN player community for over 20 years that has some of the best Role Players in the game and it is now available to you!
Our volunteer team has put in countless hours cleaning up the module and adding features and re-balancing classes. We boast a number of interesting features:
Custom Crafting - Not just weapons and armor, but enchant anything with spell uses or even build your own golem/undead army! Build traps of great power to use against your enemies or potions and bombs to access spells you could not otherwise! Or simply sell the components needed for these creations to those that need them in our healthy player economy.
Tame Wild Animals Permanently - Animal empathy need not be temporary anymore! In exchange for some XP you can permanently capture that beast, weather it be a dog or a purple worm! It will faithfully fight by your side as you wish from then on. Big thanks to the script changes from Beamdog to make this all possible.
Intimidate Foes to Freeze or Flee - Intimidate can make your enemies pause or run entirely when they see you. Barbarians roll it when they rage as well, and nothing is more amusing then seeing your foes scatter in battle! It was also added as a class skill for Sorcerer.
RAGE RAGE RAGE! - Barbarian is better than ever now that he gets to intimidate on rage, but there are other perks! Going in with no armor? Regeneration bonus! Two handed weapon? Vampiric regeneration bonus! Rage is a thing to be truly fearsome now and barbarian is an exceptionally fun class to play now.
Jump Climb and Fly upwards Terrain is more important than ever, as you can get better position by investing in these skills or spells. Watch out though, enemies will do it to you too!
Sorcerer Spell Surge Sorcerer has also been boosted with a 5% chance per Sorc level of getting a magic "surge", adding a random amount of their charisma bonus to the spell level. Sorcerer can now punch harder!
Not so dumb Creature AI has been vastly improved. Some players have even been convinced a DM is in control when none is even on. Goblins will employ group tactics and hit and run. Other creatures may stay hidden entirely and pick your pocket clean. Frontal assault is rarely the best solution here.
We would be happy to welcome you to our community of Role Players in Waterdeep!
You can check our discord here
Welcome to the City of Splendors!
Our volunteer team has put in countless hours cleaning up the module and adding features and re-balancing classes. We boast a number of interesting features:
Custom Crafting - Not just weapons and armor, but enchant anything with spell uses or even build your own golem/undead army! Build traps of great power to use against your enemies or potions and bombs to access spells you could not otherwise! Or simply sell the components needed for these creations to those that need them in our healthy player economy.
Tame Wild Animals Permanently - Animal empathy need not be temporary anymore! In exchange for some XP you can permanently capture that beast, weather it be a dog or a purple worm! It will faithfully fight by your side as you wish from then on. Big thanks to the script changes from Beamdog to make this all possible.
Intimidate Foes to Freeze or Flee - Intimidate can make your enemies pause or run entirely when they see you. Barbarians roll it when they rage as well, and nothing is more amusing then seeing your foes scatter in battle! It was also added as a class skill for Sorcerer.
RAGE RAGE RAGE! - Barbarian is better than ever now that he gets to intimidate on rage, but there are other perks! Going in with no armor? Regeneration bonus! Two handed weapon? Vampiric regeneration bonus! Rage is a thing to be truly fearsome now and barbarian is an exceptionally fun class to play now.
Jump Climb and Fly upwards Terrain is more important than ever, as you can get better position by investing in these skills or spells. Watch out though, enemies will do it to you too!
Sorcerer Spell Surge Sorcerer has also been boosted with a 5% chance per Sorc level of getting a magic "surge", adding a random amount of their charisma bonus to the spell level. Sorcerer can now punch harder!
Not so dumb Creature AI has been vastly improved. Some players have even been convinced a DM is in control when none is even on. Goblins will employ group tactics and hit and run. Other creatures may stay hidden entirely and pick your pocket clean. Frontal assault is rarely the best solution here.
We would be happy to welcome you to our community of Role Players in Waterdeep!
You can check our discord here
Welcome to the City of Splendors!
Post edited by HDMayergo on
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Also to get an idea of the scope of the server, here is a handy grid map of just the city area:
And in game maps look.
A breakdown of areas is here:
https://sites.google.com/site/alfawaterdeep/city-map/alfa-area-map
One of my favorite moments experienced in ALFA's Waterdeep was when the Half-Orc Samurai Takashi, the Gnomish Veteran of the Goblin Wars of Cormyr Doctor Luther Von Mufflebop, and the Elven Adventurer Korsan Blackmane worked in concert to explore the depths and dangers of the infamous Blue Alley. It proved to be as dangerous and harrowing an experience as the stories told about the place claimed it would be. Only through team work did the three survivor the myriad traps and dangerous clockwork scorpions known as Scaladers.
It is indeed, one of the largest cities in the realms.
There are of course a number of rural and forest areas in the module as well and much more area than just these.
I have begun working on creating an In Character starting guide for any budding adventurers looking to get a start in ALFA's Waterdeep. While the guide is still in it's infancy, the plan is to in time expand upon it to include wondrous and dangerous locations such as.....
Umberlee's Cache
The Dungeon of the Crypts beneath the City of the Dead
The Lost School of Yintros
The Westwood
Kryptgarden
I invite anyone interested in an entertaining mixture between quality Role Playing and exciting action adventure where the stakes matter, to come visit A Land Far Away's Waterdeep.
Here is a link to the IC Guide mentioned above which can be found in ALFA's community Library.
https://www.alandfaraway.info/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=52995
An honest question, from my thirteen year old son. It's not the first time he's asked it.
It is an old game. Enhanced Edition or no, it's blocky pixels and cardboard streets. D&D itself has moved on, to 5th Edition, by all accounts a great ruleset. There are new games, roleplaying games, with elaborate beautiful worlds, crafted by dedicated teams of hundreds of designers, played by huge numbers of devoted players.
So why? Why this?
I don't mean to discredit what's been written above, by my fellow players. They're not lying. It's all true.
Ayergo and team, DMs and players alike have poured their hearts into this server. There's an amazing amount of detail built into the city, and things are always changing, shifting, with each new campaign.
The DM team works hard to engage players with new places to explore and thoughtful story hooks crafted to entice our characters. And our players too have contributed a ton to the richness and accessibility of the game. They've written player guides, updated spell descriptions, gone out of their way to be welcoming to new players that drop in. They've filled the forum library with poems, art, and accounts of their adventures and character's lives. It's impressive, really. For anyone. Even my skeptical son.
But this isn't Critical Role. We're not famous actors, writers, or game designers. There isn't a budget. As Ayergo has said himself, he's just one guy. Things take time. There are bugs to squash. Life, as I'm sure you know, sometimes gets in the way of the best gaming intentions.
So why?
Why am I only on Season Five of Game of Thrones? Why despite buying the whole trilogy at Christmas, am I only a half hour into The Witcher games? Why do I have a list of books as long as my arm to read, recommended by friends I adore, with hardly a cover lifted?
Why over the last three years have I logged thousands of hours playing on Waterdeep instead?
It started slow, I can tell you that.
I've played D&D a long time, but I'm not an encyclopedia. There's lots I don't know. So I made a fighter. He was blocky. I didn't spend a long time thinking about him. Just gave him a name, figured out where he grew up, decided he was fond of the ladies, and logged in.
It was late at night after the kids had gone to bed. There was no one else on the server. I wandered the streets a bit, found some rats to kill, talked to a few NPC's. It was nice to play, I thought. Kind of relaxing in a zen way, walking the streets, looking around at the cardboard. I logged.
The next night I tried again. This time I stumbled across a group. They were talking about a house, a block over, a house that had belonged to a friend of the elven mage. There was something inside, she said. Dark creatures, that had taken hold. They were going to need a fighter.
I loved it. The way they spoke to each other, gestured. These were old friends, talking on the street, and I was the new guy, welcomed in. It felt real, for a blocky fantasy game. I understood who my fighter was a little more, just by talking to them. I was learning about him just as much as they were.
I told my wife I had some work to do and logged in earlier the next night. I couldn't wait. I'd been thinking about those dark creatures all day. Those friends needed me. And they did, too. Those creatures were bastards.
Waterdeep is a dangerous place. There are so many ways for an adventurer to die. The monsters are never far, and they're toothy and well equipped. You can't just charge in and hope to survive, as my fighter and I soon learned. You have to know stuff. You need tactics. Gear. I started reading rulebooks I hadn't cracked in years, found NWNWiki and SRD online. I would sit in doctor's offices reading spell descriptions on my phone while everyone around me checked Facebook on theirs. I had no time for memes. Those friends needed me.
It's been three years, and thousands of hours of play now. My fighter with a thing for the ladies died a long time ago, but I think about him all the time. I don't remember any present I got for my birthday this year, or what I had for breakfast yesterday, but gods almighty could I fill your ear the story of the time in the Blue Alley when he was overrun by scaladars but somehow, miraculously, survived. It was epic.
My new character walks the streets, and it's zen too, but in an entirely different way.
Every corner, every turn down a street, has meaning. The emotional geography is all around her, like what you feel walking through the neighborhood you grew up in, but magnified by the drama of an adventurer's life.
The corner where she first saw the vampire sorceress that had been stalking her. The forest where she was set upon by a pack of dire wolves. The balcony over the street where she told her new hin friend why she had to leave home. There's story everywhere.
Why? Why do I play? Because of the story, that's why. Because the characters you meet will move you. Because the decisions these little blocky pixels make will stay with you. You'll think about what happened six months before in this old game and laugh aloud, or be moved to tears. The people checking stupid Facebook around you will wonder what's wrong with you, but we, your fellow players won't. We've been there too. It's why we're still playing.
If I sound like a lunatic then that's fine. Stare incredulously at your screen like my son stares at me and carry on with the Final Season of Game of Thrones or the final chapter of The Witcher 3. I hear they're good.
But if you feel a kinship with anything I've said, then come play with us. I dare you. I doubledog dare you.
Write down every detail about the presents your spouse gave you for your birthday last year, and log in.
It's Pandora's Box. It's Hotel California. You can check out, but you'll never really leave. Not if you came in for the right reasons.
It's whatever you want it to be. Whatever bit of a tale is stuck in your head that you're dying to play out, with people who care about story and roleplaying the way you do.
It's Waterdeep, kindred. It's where story lives and breathes, with every roll of the dice. It's blocky, and old, and perfect.
Come make some story with us.
Small Team Tactics in Tunnel Systems
The upper sewer system of Waterdeep
This chapter will focus upon the lessons learned after witnessing and partaking in several different expeditions into the city sewers with dozens of different teams using varying levels of team work and various tactics. We will begin with some broad strokes describing the Sewers and it's various denizens as well as common reasons adventurers brave these dark and dangerous tunnels. Afterwards we will take a closer look at the threats that have been encountered, and the different teams and tactics that have proven successful and unsuccessful in surviving the unique challenges of Waterdeep's sewers.
The sewerage system of Waterdeep is as large and complex as the city streets they serve and almost as well populated. The Slimey Goblin Tribe and various other vermin make up the dangerous population of the upper most levels of the sewers.
Slimey Goblin Tribe
One threat of the Sewers are the very tribal and territorial Goblins who work together to lay ambush to the unwary be within the larger sections of tunnel following the sewers main drainage canals or in the smaller narrower side tunnels that spiderweb beneath the city streets. The Slimey Goblin Tribe have not managed to populate and dominate the City Sewers by chance, they have done so because they have been able to adapt very well to using the environment to their advantage to not only survive but to thrive. They have easy access to the city streets above to raid the population above in an effort to gather food and resources, and anyone who dares to give chase or confront them below the streets is forced to content with their superior numbers and low murderous cunning. All of this has allowed the Slimey Goblin Tribe to grow numerous, fortify their hold upon the Sewers, and raise generations of well feed and durable warriors who have been born and raised to work together to defend their home against all intrusions with merciless murderously effective team work and tactics.
Giant Insects, Vermin, Snakes, and Rust Monsters
Fire Beetles
Theese beetles come in variable sizes from that of a small dog to that of a small pony. All of them appear to be immune to fire, and some have proven themselves capable of breathing such. Their Bellies though are a potent alchemical ingredient that alchemists can use to create a variety of potions.
Sewerum
These large and dangerous snakes are capable of spitting a venomous contact poison that can soak through armor and flesh to infiltrate the blood streams of the victim. If slain the poison of Sewerums is a spell component valued by the City's Watchful Order of Mages as spell components and research materials.
Sewer Wasps
Monstrous version of the common wasp. They attacked when hungry or threatened, usually taking the dead bodies of their victims to the hive where it could be consumed by young wasps. Their stingers are collected by members of the City's Watchful Order of Mages as spell components and research materials
Giant Ants
Giant ants look much like a normal ant with six legs, a waspish segmented body, and large antenna. Their hides are covered in thick chitin, and they have large, serrated mandibles flanking their mouths and stingers on their tails. They are not exceptionally dangerous though they are far from harmless and more then willing to make a meal out of adventurers.
Gelatinous Cubes
Gelatinius Cubes are completely transparent, with only the glint of its surface in the light to give away its position. The occasional random object floating in a well fed gelatinous cube's body could also serve as a warning of its presence to dungeon delvers. They are slow moving and it is possible to out pace them but they are large and capable of making the narrow tunnels of the sewers impossible to navigate.
Ochre Jelly
Ochre jellies resembled giant amoebas, consisting of a thick, golden sludge. The ooze's body was made up of yellow-orange colored acid capable of dissolving any organic material. These are exceptionally deadly threats because any physical harm delivered to them by swords, axes, arrows, bolts, club, or sling stones will cause the jelly to divide into smaller jellies. One can quickly find one Ochre Jelly has been divided into sixty smaller jellies each as dangerous as the original mass. It is very easy for one to become surrounded and slain by such and I advise that one avoid contact with such when possible, and to make effective use of alchemical breath weapons to combat them when one must.
Otyugh
Otyughs are primarily omnivorous scavengers. They could consume almost all kinds of refuse and waste, such as carrion, offal, and many other things others would view as garbage. Nevertheless, they would take fresh meat when they had the chance. They are exceptionally strong and dangerous beasts of filth as capable of rending a man in two and spreading disease.
Rust Monsters
Rust monsters are the size of a small pony, with four insect like legs and a squat, humped body.Their hides are thick, lumpy and are yellowish tan on the belly and rust-red on the back. Their tail ends in what looked like a double ended paddle. Two long antennae come out of its head, one under each eye.
More then any other being I have seen encountered on any other battlefield from here to Chessenta, Rust Monsters shatter ranks.
The fear caused in Adventurer's regarding their precious items being destroyed causes them to flee in every possible direction possible as quickly as they can in an effort to see their personal effects spared the ravages of the Rust Monster.
The most effective means I have found for combating and defeating such beasts without the loss of costly arms, armor, and other items is to have a scout successfully locate them before they become a threat, and then select a champion to strip down and proceed to combat them armed only with disposable weapons such as the clubs and daggers gathered from previously slain goblins. Should you manage to slay a Rust Monster, remember to harvest the valuable antennae which can be used by alchemists or exchanged at the Watchful Order of Mages for a gold reward.
An alternative is to use disposable items such as metal tipped arrow heads and collected goblin daggers to leave a metallic breadcrumb trail for the Rust Monster to follow. This can be done successfully so long as the Rust Monster is not distracted from the meals you are laying out for it to follow. Using this method you may either direct the Rust Monster away from your decided path of travel, or lure it to where it may become easy prey to numerous ranged attacks before ever getting close enough to destroy a party's valuable equipment.
For Coin or Cause
Often the City's Adventurers explore these sewers in an effort to collect the bounty the Plumber's Guild offers on Goblin Ears and the prizes the Snookery rewards for the heads of Elite Goblin Warriors. Others seek to gather rare spell components and potion ingredients or the promise of riches raised from hoarded goblin treasure dens. Last but not least the opportunity to reclaim stolen babies and see them brought safely back to the surface world inspires others to enter the sewers.
Basic Formations
Here is an example of a basic formation of three heavily armored shield bearers creating a defensive line while crossing a bridge over a sewer canal with a pair of archers behind them, followed by a battle cleric in the rear prepared to heal any injured party members or slow down an attack from the rear ranks.
What makes the Sewers a unique fighting environment is how quickly the terrain alternates between narrow tunnels and the wide and open passages of the central sewage canal. Both create unique challenges that the Slimey Goblin Tribe are well prepared to take swift advantage of should they be allowed to control the battlefield. It is of utmost importance that adventurers navigating the sewers keep ever vigilant of their surroundings and strive to use every advantage they can to protect themselves from the superior numbers and low murderous cunning of the goblins.
When navigating the sometimes long and often narrow tunnels; the Goblins with their numbers can quickly fill the tunnel and use their slings and short bows to great effect to overwhelm most they encounter with not only accurate attacks but with their surprising rate of attack. This coupled with their dark magics being used to stun or paralyze individuals, they goblins can quickly turn a capable and prepared party of adventurers into a group of victims. I have found that it can be best to use the tight turns and intersections of the tunnels to help mitigate the number of goblins that can effectively sling their stones and loose their arrows upon the party. Doing this requires team work and discipline, for often there is a desire in the thrill of the fighting for people to charge ahead into the enemy lines of attack or pride motivates them to stand where the fighting is fiercest to prove they can weather the storm. It is my advice that teams train and practice using existing terrain features so that they keep themselves out of harms way as best they can while allowing their own numbers to overwhelm any goblins that dare to advance on the team's position.
When navigating the larger and wider open canals it is of great importance that a scout be used to note the enemy's numbers and find a suitable place to mitigate risks. Open fighting against the Goblins will allow them to use their magics to disable one or more members of the adventuring party and quickly surround them and lay them low with murderously places strikes. I highly recommend any group navigating the sewers to find side tunnels in which to make their stand or using the staggered corners of the canal tunnels walls to provide some measure of cover and protection from overwhelming goblin numbers.
Common and Costly Mistakes
I have witnessed groups make some often repeated and costly mistakes that have resulted in death while navigating the sewers, and I will try and provide some examples of what to be mindful of should you and yours dare the Sewers of Waterdeep or similar environments.
Inability to Maintain Formation
It takes discipline and team work to maintain a formation, and often I have seen adventuring parties lacking both. Often the scout is crowded by the shield wall or worse yet, archers will grow impatient with the organizing and mobilization of the shield wall and make an effort to advance pass them in an eagerness to find an opportunity to let their arrow fly. This can be disastrous. When a group fails to move in a formation and stealthy Goblins are capable of attacking in large numbers with little to no warning it creates dangerous chaos in the ranks that sends archers running instead of loosening their arrows, and forces shields to scramble instead of standing ready. During these moments of disorganized chaos the Goblins have every advantage they need.
Inability to Hold Positions
Often I have seen a well defensible position selected to provide a sincere combat advantage, only to see the advantage squandered by the inability of people to hold and use said position. I have witnessed heavily armored warriors break ranks to advance around protective corners and place themselves needlessly in harm's way turning a preciously advantageous situation into an extremely disadvantageous situation. I have seen these same warriors hold their ground in the open while engage the goblin horde in such a way they are vulnerable to numerous Goblins at once while also keeping the goblins from advancing to where the warrior's allies can provide support. This forces the allies to either remain safely behind cover were they are effectively out of the battle unable to lend ranged support, or to advance into the lines of overwhelming Goblin attacks where they are afforded no protection at all.
Another example of this is the over eager archer who will push through ally ranks to try and get an arrow or two off before retreating back through the shield wall, effectively leaving a gap in the ranks for goblins to follow through. Such actions can lead to disaster if the archer is held in the open by goblin magics forcing the entire party to either expose themselves to defend their helpless companion or leave them to their fate. Such can easily be avoided by an archer maintaining their position behind the shield wall and waiting for their target to step into view, instead of advancing.
Summoned Creatures
The ability to conjure allies to the battlefield can a wondrous boon or a dire mistake if the terrain and position of one's allies are not taken into careful consideration. I have seen large blocks of gelatinous acid used to stop enemy advance to amazing effect, and I have seen the same summoning placed in positions where they trapped allies on the wrong side of the summons where they were exposed to overwhelming enemy attacks with no place to retreat. Be mindful of what you may summon to the battlefield and where you summon such.
Waiting For The Perfect Shot
Some archers pride themselves on their marksmanship and the ability to place an arrow reliably inside the vitals of the enemy at closer ranges. While such skill and talent should be celebrated and used at every available opportunity, do not waste precious time creeping slowly closer to the target while allies are fighting for their lives locked in mortal melee combat. Once the fighting begins, it is time to fight. Use every available opportunity to let arrows fly into enemy ranks, and maneuver while reaching for the next arrow or bolt. Every second can be vital, do not squander the opportunity to let attacks fly in an effort to position yourself for the perfect shot, unless of course your quiver is near depleted and you can not afford to waste a single arrow. In which case you must ask yourself why you are unprepared.
The Weight Of Greed
The Goblins in addition to wielding foul and dangerous elemental magics capable of burning a combatant with acid or lighting, are also capable of sapping the strength from a person with potent ray's of enfeeblement. The same can be said for some of the poisonous vermin of the sewers. More then once I have witnessed a strong and able bodied combatant rendered incapable of advance or retreat as suddenly when the combined weight of their arms, armor, and what plunder they had acquired left them suddenly encumbered after a poison took its hold or goblin magics sapped their strength. One needs to be mindful of not only what they can safely carry and remain mobile but how to quickly shed weight should they need to.
Preparation is the Key to Success
Doctor Von Mufflebop of the Adventurer's Guild
There are several things any party moving through the sewers can do to prepare themselves for success and stave off failure and death.
1) Take inventory of the party's members and decide upon roles and responsibilities prior to even entering the sewers.
A Party made up of several heavily armored individuals without a scout will need to agree upon battle plans and tactics to fit their capabilities, as will a party primarily made up of light fighters lacking anything resembling a proper shield wall.
2) Take inventory of the party's equipment before entering the sewers.
Does everyone have a full quiver, emergency curative potions, potions of lesser restoration to quickly recover from strength draining effects, potions of elemental warding, or even a potion of invisablity if things turn truly dire?
3) Decide where to enter the sewers carefully.
There are dozens of entrances to the sewers and some are relatively safe points of entry while others can drop you directly into a storm of goblins. Take care to choose your point of entry.
4) Consider the Hour.
Goblins are nocturnal creatures and they are not only most active during the night cycle, but their fiercest and and most capable warriors tend to fill the ranks of their night time patrols. Unless you are intentionally looking to head hunt these elite goblins, it maybe in your best interest to stay out of the sewers until after morning has broken. Also keep track of your hours underground, more then once a successful day time venture within the sewers lingered until after dark to find themselves ill prepared for the swelling ranks of the goblin patrols.
5) Use Your Combined Strengths
Carefully crafted synergies on the battlefield can make turn the tide towards victory where previously only defeat was possible. Consider carefully the various strengths available to each individual and determine how to best enhance them upon the field of prowess. A carefully placed supernatural darkness can cause confusion amoungst a horde of goblins while one or two warriors with ultra vision granted to them by spell or potion can tear through their ranks with near impunity and surprising savagery. There are a myriad different variations of adventuring party compositions and ways to use overlapping skill sets and abilities for surprising effect. It is important you give what your combined strength is capable of careful consideration.
6) Ladders
The city sewers have dozens of access points scattered throughout the city streets and it pays to always be aware of the location of the nearest ladders to your location. At any moment you maybe forced to flee for your life and the difference between knowing how to quickly access a ladder verses running blind through the sewers in hopes of finding an escape can be the difference between life and death. As you traverse the tunnels and canals pay attention to the ladders you find and keep mindful of how to best reach them if you need to.
It is pretty amazing truth be told. The City is there as real as can be in the NWN EE engine complete with canon stores, NPC'S, and a plethora of Dungeons and other environments to explore for fun and profit.
A link to a rather extensive Player Guide to ALFA's Waterdeep.
The mod itself is enormous and unbelievably detailed; it's so much more than just the (absolutely huge) city itself. The static content - dungeons etc. - and mechanics are all incredibly well balanced to be challenging but educationally so; as a whole, the server functions as a system to get people to group up and go adventuring together.
More than that though, the RP is excellent, the community is great and very welcoming to new players, and the DMs are very present and very attentive. Gone are the old-school idiotically un-newbie-friendly ALFA days; the environment is much more relaxed now, though RP is of course king.
This place is awesome. Come check it out, either hop on the server in-game or have a look at the info and new player guide on our website first: https://www.alfanwn1.org/
https://www.alfanwn1.org/
ALFA uses NWSync, so it's very easy to try out. If you have questions, please try our discord channel: https://discord.gg/eTYJfY.
What makes ALFA different from other PWs are:
- High Quality Role Playing: Player Characters are expected to be considered as actual people and are treated as having unique motivations and considerations. I have played on many servers, many of which have RP as good as ALFA, but none better.
- High Challenge Level: ALFA statics use highly-intelligent AI and demand teamwork and sound tactics, as noted from jmecha's posts above. Do not expect to be able to solo most encounters and live, especially not without careful planning and a bit of luck. No risk, no reward.
- Attentive DMs: in ALFA all things are possible thanks to story DMs. DMs run server-wide plots and side-plots and are always open to hearing requests and suggestions for ideas for characters.
- Rich Mod: ALFA's Waterdeep module dates from the very early days of NWN. It has been worked and reworked over many years until its revival in 2017, after which ayergo has single-handedly cleaned it up and made scripted additions, resulting in a gem of a server.
From the Game page, here are just a few highlights:
Immersive World
A Land Far Away is a persistent world, meaning that the game never ends even when you log off. Players can and do log on at any time that works for them. Make friends or enemies with other players and NPCs, explore deadly dungeons, or uncover secret plots.
Story-Focused DMs
Our Dungeon Masters bring the world to life so that you can tell your story. Player characters build ALFA’s world in very direct ways thanks to responsive DMs that keep things interesting by presenting an endless array of challenges for players to overcome.
Explore the Realms
ALFA is set in the Forgotten Realms, in the city of Waterdeep and the surrounding wilderness and villages. Keeping true to the spirit of D&D, these areas have been recreated based on canon and enhanced with the builders’ creative talents. Dungeons and lairs of all manner of beasts wait for brave parties to discover and conquer them with or without a DM. Though take care when you go alone as many dangers lurk for those who are careless.
Custom Crafting & Skill Systems
ALFA supports a robust custom crafting system that allows players to brew potions, craft weapons and armor, enchant items, and even create constructs to command. The heal skill allows players to patch others up between battles. There is even support for climbing, flying, jumping, and swimming.
Learn about crafting and skills >