No more doubts

[Jolee]

I could have kept my mouth shut and let people *think* I'm a newbie. Instead I open it and remove all doubt!

Last weekend I made my first character in a multiplayer game. I chose Sundren for the good reviews it had. However the game had serious lagging issues and I was booted time and again. Is that usual?

Also, I have barely gotten wind of DM events. I think I suspect what they are, but maybe someone can point me to the correct bulletinboard?

If I have posted this in the wrong place or if someone already has adressed these questions elsewhere in the forums, feel free to pull the trigger and shoot me.

[Rhifox]

The lagging issues happen every now and then, it's flooding which happens when people crash and then immediately log back on. There's a few descriptions on the more technical details around the forums. Sometimes it's really bad for a night, other times it's mostly stable. This is not something Sundren can really fix, as it's Obsidian's bugs that are causing it. GBX is going to be implementing an auto-temp-IP ban that will ban people for 10 minutes after they crash to prevent flooding, so that might be able to alleviate most of the serious lagging and crashes that we've been having (which has been increasing due to higher popularity for Sundren and more chance of people with bad computers. Bad internets also lag out the entire server)

Sometimes it's good, othertimes it's bad. Just have to grin and bear it. Personally I'm fine with server crashes as it gives a chance to talk to people OOCly in the NWN2 chat channel, which is always good fun. Though I hate the amount of transition crashes I get (which is, again, Obsidian's fault, and not something the Sundren team can fix)


As far as DM events, it's generally all about being in the right place at the right time. Sometimes they get announced ahead of time, but most of the times they're done on the spot. Right click on your character, scroll down to the 'Sundren' menu, then click 'Find Other Players'. Any zone that has either 'a lot of people' or 'a commotion' is a prime site for a DM event generally, as either the DMs try to hit as many people at once as they can, or a small DM event grows and gathers a larger group as people start telling each other an event is going on (or people chance on it and stick around), though any place with just 'a few players' could also be having an event. It's hit and miss.

[Fajitaduke]

I've not been on a lot, as I'm married and work long hours, so my free time isn't often spent on the computer (and when it is, there are other games that I play as well). I have however logged into Sundren around 2 dozen times, and I've only experienced difficulty with lag once.

As far as DM'ed sessions go, I haven't played in any as I'd been holding back from jumping into RP with both feet until I decided whether or not I liked the server. I have seen a number of events going on however, both in the form of seeing the possessed NPC interacting with players right in front of me, and via using the Sundren tools to see a bunch of players in one location and being affected by the occasional DM pause or shout. I would venture to say that events happen with some frequency.

In addition, I have noticed a number of players basically creating their own events via RP. Some of them looked very appealing, while others really wouldn't have done anything for me even if I were in a position to jump into them. So, it does seem that there is almost always something to do in Sundren, you just have to be willing to step forward and talk to people. Waiting for someone to talk to you will not get you invited into a group.

[aleksei_aiden]

Don't be discouraged by the lag. Try to get on and roleplay and as Rhifox says, talking to people oocly will allow you to familiarize yourself with the server and it's players.

BTW, welcome. =)

[nutranurse]

As far as DM events, it's generally all about being in the right place at the right time.

Actually for the case of Rook, it has been being in the wrong place at the wrong time...

[Jolee]

Thanks for the quick replys and the good advise. I will probably log on again this weekend and see if the lag is better... Thanks all

[GodBeastX]

We DM's are human, sometimes we just can't, for the life of us, get inspiration for events and anything we'd run would be below our own set standards.

One thing that helps us as DMs to start events for players, is that players aren't piled up on people 30 people in one area, or not always in heavy populated areas, like towns. People RP'ing out accomplishing tasks usually end up with events WAY easier than people who are just running around randomly getting exp. Set yourself a realistic goal limitted by your own imagination, and not the engine. Wizards I think need to work on this alot. I'd love to see a necromancer poke me and say "I got a bunch of people who want to help me capture a zombie for study." or "I'm going out looking for reagents to spells." etc etc. Sure, the engine doesn't let you do that, but if your goal is just "I need exp and something to pass the time." Well, the engine DOES let you do that, so I'm not likely to DM that.

I myself (Maybe not other DMs) don't mind being poked by a group of players saying something like "5 of us are going XXXX to find XXXX in XXXX" or whatever. Then it helps me to think up something for that group. I really don't like when solo people try to pressure me into favoring them with random events. "I'm bored, can you do something to fix that?" <-- I get this alot.

I like to help people accomplish things THEY are trying to do. My own personal plans and events usually span tons of players. But if you want us to help you, you have to help us.

[Aux]

^^^^^^ What he said

[Machiavelli]

Hehe, those are exactly the sorts of things that I'd like to ask for... but I'm usually a bit worried about asking in case you guys are busy. In future I'll be sure to make requests anyways

[Aux]

We can just reply "Busy" if its the case

[GodBeastX]

Yeah, I reply with a busy signal if I'm busy. Sometimes I'm just watching people trying to get inspiration though.