South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Feedback for the mainline campaign The South Guard.

Moderator: Forum Moderators

Rheves
Posts: 1
Joined: September 22nd, 2007, 3:52 am

Post by Rheves »

(1) 1.2.6, beginner
(2) 10.
(3) Very clear.
(4) Interesting enough.
(5) I had not recruited any elves in the previous mission, making this a 2-man map.
(6) Right now maybe a 2-3 due to the difficulty, I liked the idea though and it would easily get an 7-8 with an adequate number of troops. I find myself favoring certain characters more than others (Which is why I never got any elves) and this might force some to play without relying on those characters.
(7) Maybe I missed it on the previous mission, but I had read all the conversations and didn't think recruiting the elves was all that important. Maybe if it was hinted more strongly to recruit elves ("If we need to send a messenger back at some point, I'm sure the elves you recruit could lead them back safely" or something like that), a 2-man mission for this scenario could be avoided.
I can't really comment more about the map itself as I die before reaching a village to heal myself in.

Also Ithelden always dies without my game ending even though a losing condition is his death, is this a bug or some sort of leeway for only having two characters?
meomwt
Posts: 3
Joined: September 30th, 2007, 2:30 pm

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by meomwt »

Eleazar wrote:(1) What difficulty levels and game versions have you played the scenario on?
(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
1} Civilian, ver 1.2.6
2} 6
Had to run the scenario twice, fist time I ran out of turns. But tacticlly it isn't a major brain-twister.
3} Very.
4} Storyline was fine. Ogre dialogue was bitty and cliche. Naga Queen had pathos in her death.
5} Make it clearer which unit is the Naga Queen (didn't realise I'd killed her first time, so spent turns searching rather than running for home).
6} 10
After the heavy battles in the previous senario, the change of pace was refreshing. No recruitment to improve the odds, just run with what you have and head for the other end of the map. It felt good having only a few units to control in this one.
7} Naga icon, but other than that, I think it's pretty good.
Jeff Carr
Posts: 1
Joined: December 11th, 2007, 12:18 am

Post by Jeff Carr »

(1) Hard
(2) 10
(3) I couldn't
(4) Not bad, although I've only gotten to the Ogre so it's impossible to tell...
(5) Started the level with one non-leveled elf and one 10 hit point hero...
(6) 2
(7) I had two healers (the Elf Queen, and the Mage) in the previous level. I also had a quite a few Dragoons. There is no way my character would have run off almost dead with only a single elf accompanying him as the Dragoons wouldn't be of much use under the earth. If I had been given some sort of clue in the previous level, I would understand or even the choice of how to split my forces. As it is, I'll have to replay the level previous.
Dwachs
Posts: 11
Joined: December 11th, 2007, 7:51 am

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by Dwachs »

Eleazar wrote:(1) What difficulty levels and game versions have you played the scenario on?
(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
(1) 1.2.8 / normal
(2) 6
(3) clear, go north!
(5) don't wake up the oger
(6) 4 - there are so many (exotic?) new enemies in this level, which is quite unnecessary. Why saurians? Why this oger? I had a couple of elves available, so the scenario was doable
(7) Remove the Oger and the Saurians. It would be ok to have only one enemy party - the nagas. Also the Naga queen did not behave very intelligent. She was more on a suicidal trip against my troops.

Give people the possibility to recruit something in the first turn.
Kaptain
Posts: 2
Joined: February 6th, 2008, 11:17 pm

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by Kaptain »

Eleazar wrote:(1) What difficulty levels and game versions have you played the scenario on?
(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?

(1) Difficulty Medium, Version 1.2.8 under Leopard
(2) Not much, let's say 3, but it really depends on how many units you have
(3) Very clear :D
(4) It could be good as a break from the previous scenario, but the collection of monsters you meet sounds a bit curious
(5) I was worrying about running out of turns... after my Elves engaged with the nagas I sent Gerrick ahead alone trying to reach for the marked spot, and find the mage waiting for me. I must admit that was a good surprise, even tough Gerrick was able to solo him pretty simple. It could be useful to remove the mage and put some melee fighter in his place: that would be a thougher problem for Gerrick alone to solve, and would prevent my tactic of "keep them busy and let Gerrick run" from working ^_^
(6) 7... not very "useful" for the campaign, but fun ;)
(7) When I began the first turn and saw Gerrick and Ithelden surrounded by the Elves I have had in the previous scenario I wondered what would have happened if I did not recruit any... now, after reading the other comments, I know: it is a flaw. I was lucky I had hired two healers and four fighters, so the scenario went on pretty good for me, but it could have been impossible without them. I think there should be a fixed amount of elves to protect Gerrick, not just Ithelden. One healer and three lvl 1 fighter should do it, with the option to have them replaced by the player's own units if he recruited any in the previous scenario, but still up to a maximum of 6 units TOTAL (including Gerrick and Ithelden). This would be a nice way to keep the difficulty of the scenario under control. And if the trick of automatically replace the units is impossible to do, then just go with more new and fixed units, like Ithelden himself.
Lyinar
Posts: 13
Joined: February 18th, 2008, 1:23 am

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by Lyinar »

(1) What difficulty levels and game versions have you played the scenario on?

Easy, 1.2.8

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)

3. I had used plenty of Elves in the previous scenario - for healing and for fighting in the heavily-wooded area, or at night - and still had at least 2 of the druidess' level 2 bodyguards alive as well, so I had a good force to do this. Additionally, neither the scorpion nor the ogre decided to fight, making it easier still.

(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?

Crystal. Kill snakey lady, get to the north.

(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?

Honestly, this just felt tacked-on. Why am I taking time out to kill the Queen when I can just avoid her? Why are all these folks blocking my path? Right now there seems to be no purpose for this, and Gerrick's journey can be mentioned in a paragraph or two in the opening of 7a.

(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?

Turn limit. I felt I was shaving it a little close, especially with that forced Queen-slaying detour.

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)

8? Definitely a nice change from all the other levels. Of course, I used lots of elves, so I had a nice group to fight with.

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?

Insert a plot-relevant reason for us to be here with Gerrick on his march. Maybe the remnants of the bandits, now leaderless, are pillaging nearby villages and waylaying Gerrick on his way north. Provide a fixed force of elves - or cavalry - for escort. Right now it's just a series of utterly random encounters that are either unbeatably difficult or a total breeze depending on whether or not you favoured recruiting Elves in the previous scenario.
Lyinar
Posts: 13
Joined: February 18th, 2008, 1:23 am

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by Lyinar »

(1) What difficulty levels and game versions have you played the scenario on?

Medium, 1.2.8

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)

3. I had used plenty of Elves in the previous scenario - for healing and for fighting in the heavily-wooded area, or at night - and still had at least 2 of the druidess' level 2 bodyguards alive as well, so I had a good force to do this. Additionally, neither the scorpion nor the ogre decided to fight, making it easier still.

(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?

Crystal. Kill snakey lady, get to the north.

(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?

Honestly, this just felt tacked-on. Why am I taking time out to kill the Queen when I can just avoid her? Why are all these folks blocking my path? Right now there seems to be no purpose for this, and Gerrick's journey can be mentioned in a paragraph or two in the opening of 7a.

(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?

Turn limit. I felt I was shaving it a little close, especially with that forced Queen-slaying detour.

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)

8? Definitely a nice change from all the other levels. Of course, I used lots of elves, so I had a nice group to fight with. On the other hand, where's all my gold?! I had loads of the stuff after Choice in the Fog!

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?

Insert a plot-relevant reason for us to be here with Gerrick on his march. Maybe the remnants of the bandits, now leaderless, are pillaging nearby villages and waylaying Gerrick on his way north. Provide a fixed force of elves - or cavalry - for escort. Right now it's just a series of utterly random encounters that are either unbeatably difficult or a total breeze depending on whether or not you favoured recruiting Elves in the previous scenario.

Oh, and give me back my money! Also: Make all units in that scenario "Loyal" so I don't LOSE my money in upkeep.
User avatar
Turuk
Sithslayer
Posts: 5283
Joined: February 28th, 2007, 8:58 pm
Contact:

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by Turuk »

(1) What difficulty levels and game versions have you played the scenario on?
Soldier (Normal) 1.5.6

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
3. The enemies at the beginning prove a tad bit difficult, but even using level 1 units I was able to finish them off in a few turns. Good challenge for this difficulty though.

(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
Crystal.

(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
Good dialogue, like the other scenarios, but the nature of the enemies and what they say.... "Oh I just happened to be looking for the mage you killed, where is he?"

(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
None.

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
4. Nice map, like the idea of fighting your way out to get reinforcements, but the nature of the enemies you fight are unexplained and a bit random. I could see the nages or the dark adepts, but the coincidence of both?

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
Potentially just make it one enemy? Just a thought.
Mainline Maintainer: AOI, DM, NR, TB and THoT.
UMC Maintainer: Forward They Cried, A Few Logs, A Few More Logs, Start of the War, and Battle Against Time
podbelski
Posts: 151
Joined: June 7th, 2011, 8:35 pm

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by podbelski »

(1) What difficulty levels and game versions have you played the scenario on?
1.9.6, top difficulty, 100gp, no reloads

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
5
finished in turn 15/18, 0 losses 12 kills

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
8
very fun to start with fresh elven recruits and fight that crazy mix of foes

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
great as is
Attachments
TSG-Tidings,_Good_and_Ill_replay.gz
(27.54 KiB) Downloaded 744 times
User avatar
Pewskeepski
Posts: 378
Joined: November 17th, 2010, 6:24 pm
Location: An icy dungeon beneath Antarctica

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by Pewskeepski »

(1) What difficulty levels and game versions have you played the scenario on?
Version 1.9.9, Normal difficulty.

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
4, simply because it's short.

(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
Clear.

(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
Good.

(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
The saurians we're a bit tough.

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
6. A quick, relatively easy scenario.

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
Nothing comes to mind.

(8) How well done did you find the map for the scenario?
It's good.
Attachments
TSG-Tidings,_Good_and_Ill_replay.gz
(28.12 KiB) Downloaded 773 times
"Everything is better with penguins."
Creator of Burning Souls, The Fall of Wesnoth (abandoned) and Adventures of Knighthood (now available on BfW 1.15!)
User avatar
Faello
Posts: 441
Joined: June 7th, 2005, 9:01 am
Location: Holy Office

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by Faello »

(1) What difficulty level and version of Wesnoth have you played the scenario on?

Soldier - top difficulty level, 1.9.9, no saves/reloads, 100 starting gold <fixed>

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)

3.

Even with bad luck and no recalls Sir Gerrick should reach the north end of the woods easily. Saurians at the beginning of the scenario might be annoying, but next set of opponents (nagas) are easy to deal with, just lure them on land.

3 losses, 12 kills

(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?

Crystal clear.

(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?

It was above average, ogre lines made me smile :)

(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?

No major challanges to be honest.

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)

6+.

It's a standard scenario, no major flaws, no major strong sides either.

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?

I don't know, this scenario is obvious time-filler, not really crucial for the whole campaign.

(8) Was there any event that caused you to lose the game and forced you to reload or restart the scenario?

No.

Replay attached:
Attachments
TSG-Tidings,_Good_and_Ill_replay.gz
Tidings Good and Ill replay, Soldier difficulty level, 1.9.9, no saves/reloads
(26.73 KiB) Downloaded 724 times
The yellow jester does not play
but gently pulls the strings
and smiles as the puppets dance
in the court of the Crimson King.
BritNavFan
Posts: 10
Joined: December 17th, 2011, 8:47 pm

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by BritNavFan »

(1) Wesnoth 1.8.6 at NORMAL/"Easy" twice
(2) Difficulty (1-10): 3 (lost once (pun not intended), but trivial to win on second play through)
(3) Clarity of scenario objectives: Confusing.
(4) Dialog and storyline: OK. Rather anticlimactic: we're about to reach the climax of the story, the real bigbad has just been revealed and the main characters are about to take him down! - but wait, let's find out what's happening to this secondary character, oh, he's travelling through a forest, well, that's interesting.
(5) Major challenges: Figuring out that there's nothing I need to fight in the big swamp in the upper right hand corner of the map (see "Clarity of scenario objectives")
(6) Fun (1-10): 3
(7) Changes I'd make: I think I'd just take the ideas in this scenario, use them in scenario 5 to make the long journey in that scenario more interesting, and delete this scenario.
(8) Lost game due to: ran out of time due to confusion about scenario objectives. I thought I needed to go into the unknown area in the northeast in order to "Defeat the Queen Xeila."
Gerion
Posts: 49
Joined: March 28th, 2010, 11:01 am

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by Gerion »

(1) What difficulty levels and game versions have you played the scenario on?
Hardest, 1.8.6

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
4. Not really difficult even without leveled elves. Just recruit one or two druids and a bunch of fighters and you'll be fine

(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
Clear, but confusing... Why do i have to kill the Naga? Yes, she says that we are the ones who allied with the mermen (does this message also appear when you never found the mermen in the 1st scenario? Then it wouldn't make much sense) but they actually never attack except you come too close to them. For a messenger, and Gerrick is a messenger in this scenario, it would be much more logical to not risk the mission just for the sake of killing a few snakes. Instead it would be much more logical to try to avoid as many fights as possible.

(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
To be frank... i dont remember if there was any relevant dialogue at all. The only dialogue i remember is the one with the Ogre and the one with the Naga. Both are more or less random encounters with no impact on the story.

(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
Gerrick got poisoned in the beginning (the scorpion) and because i only had druids i had to assign a personal druid to prevent him loosing hp

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
4. It could be fun if it weren't totally pointless. It even breaks the dramatic curve of the campaign (the curve = problem: the bandits; surprise: the undead; growing tension: the undead are only servants of Mebrin; then here is this pointless break, the tension ends; the climax: killing the Lich. Unfortunately the tension is down at this point because of the break in between; then the Final: Return to Westin, Problems with the elves) This break is very hard and stops the built tension completely. Just think: LotR, the climax. Frodo walks into the volcano, cut to Aragorn in front of the gates of Mordor, but then not the cut back to Frodo but to Butterbur in the Prancing Pony. He has problems with a pissed customer because the soup was salty. The tension is totally gone and will need a while to return when we cut back to Frodo.

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
The scenario is just a bunch of random encounters totally unrelated to the main story. Relate the whole scenario in some way to the story or skip it completely
User avatar
Ninjuri
Posts: 167
Joined: April 28th, 2012, 2:59 am
Location: California

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by Ninjuri »

Normal 1.10.2
Difficulty:4
Objectives: 100% clear
Dialogue: Good
Challenges: Taking down the suarians and scorp at the beginning, they were pretty dodgy. Nagas weren't too much of a problem, i didn't even go near the ogre. The whole thing just seemed like a nice mini scenario
Fun: 7
Changes: none
Fate is against me.
Cabrillo
Posts: 7
Joined: September 10th, 2012, 8:52 pm

Re: South Guard 6a. Tidings Good and Ill

Post by Cabrillo »

(1) What difficulty levels and game versions have you played the scenario on?
1.10, normal (hardest)
(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
3: I played pretty lazily and never really felt much of a threat. The first attack of the queen naga was a bit of an eye-opener, but I had enough slowing-capable units that I never felt too much concern.
(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
Very clear.
(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
It was fine, except my avenger in the forest triggered dialog events even when he was invisible. I think that should be changed.
(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
Frankly, I didn't really have any.
(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
About a 4. It's a little less engaging than the last few have been, but a breather isn't exactly unwelcome at this stage.
(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
As far as the gameplay, I think it's fine in the context of the campaign. I think the focus of any improvements should be on the dialog. The Saurians are new enemies, so maybe someone could comment on them. Maybe Sir Gerrick had a terrible childhood experience with a lizard that causes him to over-react. The skirmish ability is new, too, and a beginner hasn't been exposed to it yet. Perhaps there could be some (brief) commentary from the Wise Elves regarding that capability. The gag with the Ogre was fine ("wait! I don't believe you!") but maybe he could buy it at first and then come storming back a turn or two later once he catches on. The naga bit adds a little to the gameplay, but it's somewhat contrived and maybe isn't worth it in terms of gameplay enhancement. Running with my previous suggestion, if we need a bigger enemy, maybe the ogre comes back with his friends--maybe they're the ones who convinced him not to believe you the first time.
Attachments
TSG-Tidings,_Good_and_Ill_replay.gz
(28.44 KiB) Downloaded 708 times
Locked