Educating A New Generation: With Descriptions!
Ward
Member Posts: 1,305
Hello everybody.
I was reading the item details for various things in Baldur's Gate and I wondered if somebody should tune them up a bit. Aside from some mistakes, they aren't very engaging.
They could be taken furthur, like giving you descriptions and details on how the historical item was made and what it was used for. For example:
The helmets, we'll start with the horned helmet from the Candlekeep shop:
This helmet is based off the 15th century Italian barbute, which resembles classical Greek corinthian helmets and may have spawned from a renewed interest in ancient civilizations. While horns were not historically used on battle helmets throughout the Middle Ages, they were used for ceremony and later, identification in heraldic tournaments.
The helmet used by the Flaming Fist mercenaries:
Evolving from the earlier flat top Great Helm which became popular during the Crusades as the first head enclosed helmet of the Middle Ages, the sugar loaf helmet gets it's name from it's shape. The distinctive coned point allows it to better deflect blows than earlier counterparts. It was surpassed by the visored bascinet and close helmets.
Tower Shield:
Based off the Norman kite shields of the 11th and 12th centuries. Earlier designed were teardrop shaped and featured a center boss, which was a leftover ornament from the days of Viking round shields. Rather than held from the boss, teardrop shields were held through a system of enarmes, straps. Later versions featured a flatter top and no boss.
You get the idea. I'd like to see it!
I was reading the item details for various things in Baldur's Gate and I wondered if somebody should tune them up a bit. Aside from some mistakes, they aren't very engaging.
They could be taken furthur, like giving you descriptions and details on how the historical item was made and what it was used for. For example:
The helmets, we'll start with the horned helmet from the Candlekeep shop:
This helmet is based off the 15th century Italian barbute, which resembles classical Greek corinthian helmets and may have spawned from a renewed interest in ancient civilizations. While horns were not historically used on battle helmets throughout the Middle Ages, they were used for ceremony and later, identification in heraldic tournaments.
The helmet used by the Flaming Fist mercenaries:
Evolving from the earlier flat top Great Helm which became popular during the Crusades as the first head enclosed helmet of the Middle Ages, the sugar loaf helmet gets it's name from it's shape. The distinctive coned point allows it to better deflect blows than earlier counterparts. It was surpassed by the visored bascinet and close helmets.
Tower Shield:
Based off the Norman kite shields of the 11th and 12th centuries. Earlier designed were teardrop shaped and featured a center boss, which was a leftover ornament from the days of Viking round shields. Rather than held from the boss, teardrop shields were held through a system of enarmes, straps. Later versions featured a flatter top and no boss.
You get the idea. I'd like to see it!
2
Comments
I remember that in Age of Empires (or was it Civilisation?), each technology came with a real-life description of what it was and who developed it first historically. However, for D&D, this information might be more appropriate for a "designers notes" bonus book.
L.
I don't think it would break the immersion. Why base anything off anything if you can't justify it? Adding details about these items would enhance the experience because you'd understand the basis. I feel like if people's immersion is ruined by knowing what that helmet is or what that building does, that's an aweful shame and I do not agree.
I remember back in 2001 when I played Runescape and it was a fantasy game set in a 'medieval' world, but all the items had real life descriptions.
They were basic descriptions, however, it was nice. Maille was called "A suit of interconnected metal rings." or something like that.
Orcs for instance originally appeared in Tolkien's novels, but exist in D&D as well where they are a different kind of creature, for instance not being a race created out of tortured elves. And both of these orc types are again different from, say, the orcs/orks in the Warhammer settings.
Similarly, a tower shield existing in the Forgotten Realms was not based on Norman kite shields, as no one in that setting has heard of Normandy.
Having said that, I don't see an issue with adding details about how items are created or what they consist of (as opposed to their real-world influences and places of creation), but I think current descriptions do a fair job of that.
Now, where did that dislike button go? As we all know, when Tolkien created Middle-Earth he stole like a chav from mostly celtic and germanic history, and there's nothing wrong with that, but having to read TLotR full of footnotes with him confessing, or justifying, every single theft would have been a pain in the ass. So in my opinion, not understanding the basis can enhance the experience just as well, if not more so.
Also, I'd say BG's tower shields look more celto-iberian than norman, but yeah, I could be dead wrong here.
I guess the difference between you guys and me is I don't pretend I'm in the Forgotten Realms. I pretend I'm in the Middle Ages with magic. I'm not interested in D&D, it's only a basis for the game. The lore is only a basis for the area. But the history as far as I'm concerned is medieval.
Forget D&D being based off Medieval times, if that's incorrect then we have to agree the GAME is based off that period. Whoever did the artwork knew something about it, Friendly Arm Inn IS HISTORICALLY ACCURATE in many ways.
You can't justify the game as 'not medieval' because it gathers things from all cultures. The middle ages was a collection of cultures! Chess came from the Crusades!
So because of that, I don't think it's inappropiate to educate the player a bit. I would enjoy it.
Well i DO pretend im in faerun, i dont care about "real" history at all.
Baldur's Gate is a good game in itself...but concidering the subject matter (Bhaalspawn) trying to ignore the forgotten realms is nay impossible.
I play Baldur's Gate BECAUSE its D&D and because its Faerun. BG was the first of many of its kind (isometric party-based AD&D2e rpg's set in Faerun) And it did a damn good job of interpreting the core rules into a computer engine.
And Lore! Real history bores me, so telling me im wrong just makes me turn in to a stubborn prick and ignore things. But i love Faerunian lore, the history and backstory behind everyhting. IT has been my HOBBY for many years, and it has been something that drives me.
I don't care about real history when playing this game even though I love history.
I like the Faerun descriptions. Anyways, a "How it's made" is kind of impossible when it comes to Faerun since it can be made 5 or 6 different ways.
"Gnomes did it" when it comes to the real world.
1) updated, more accurate and helpful descriptions
2) the actual tables governing abilities and modifiers (by class, race etc)
There is no reason to make your users look at pdf / hardcopy of the manual to build a good character, and with the smartphone generation there is practically zero chance of it. A new player with a bad character can ruin the experience, I'd argue that a good up-front presentation of this data will go a long way to avoid frustrated new players.
Similar to the abilities, a larger info window would be helpful for race, class and kits. Ugh, maybe I'll mess with GIMP to mock something up...
Besides, Forgotten Realms IS NOT medieval Europe, it's a fantasy setting, set in a region of one of the continents of the world known as Abeir Toril that presents a blend of technologies that range from many eras in our world, as well as some that never existed, including steampunk technology in Lantan.
So although this kind of information is interesting, it has no connection at all with the game settings, and imo, the developers shouldn't waste resources implementing them.
Age of Mythology is definitely a fantasy game but it still tells you the historical basis for everything. They don't even have to add real life periods and ethnic groups like 12thc and Norman, just add some detail about how the items were made 'in the real world'. Or just say how the blacksmith did them.
I just love tiny details there, in my games, it makes them have playability and more value. But at the very least, items should better describe what they do in the game. Forget history, atleast tell us what it's for.