melbella
N7
Trouble-shooting Space Diva
Games: Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, KOTOR, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
Origin: melbella
Prime Posts: 2186
Prime Likes: 5778
Posts: 8,207 Likes: 25,393
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Post by melbella on Jan 5, 2018 5:38:42 GMT
I can confirm that the Voeld vault does NOT need to be reset for the Architect to show. And actually, it makes me feel better fighting in a level 2 hazard area without the vault on. It should be cold.
Peebee and Cora talked about poor Scott like he wasn't even there, despite his best attempts to remind them. "I'm right here. I'm still right here."
Tomorrow I'll finally see about rescuing the Moshae.
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Post by colfoley on Jan 5, 2018 8:01:38 GMT
Personal Logs: Robert Ryder, Pathfinder, Mission Day: 58.
We did it, the Kett are now more or less off Eos. At least there ability to wage war is severely compromised. It was actually a tough fight. The Kett had a layered defense system with several overlaps and converging paths. Eventually this led us to get compromised when we were facing Kett from both our flanks, had to fight them off from both directions by going back and forth. We eventually were able to beat them off and penetrate deeper into the facility. Where, we ran into the Invictor. We took out his guards first and eventually he came into the room we were in, after a tense battle, we were able to kill him off. We then turned off the power, the Kett shouldn't be much of a threat against us for now.
Now back to the Nexus, gotta check in on my memories and do a few more things. Maybe check into the embassy, we'll see.
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melbella
N7
Trouble-shooting Space Diva
Games: Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, KOTOR, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
Origin: melbella
Prime Posts: 2186
Prime Likes: 5778
Posts: 8,207 Likes: 25,393
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Post by melbella on Jan 6, 2018 6:36:23 GMT
Rescued the Moshae (so much easier on Normal). Took a screenshot of the tower blowing up but apparently either hit the wrong button or didn't copy it over soon enough, so I don't actually have a screenshot.
::insert picture of tower blowing up here::
Got the Moshae to the Tempest so Lexi could look her over and then headed back planetside to finish up a few things. Mostly killing more kett. Started the "Know Thy Enemy" quest, clearing out both the science lab and the comm center; cleared the air of kett shuttles; and found all the bugged angara. Still haven't done the vault but viability is at 94%, I think.
Headed back to Aya for a hero's welcome (and for Ryder too ). Uploaded messages, scanned some fruits, read up on angaran law, chatted with Avela and drunk Peebee at the museum, said hello to Evfra and the local crazy AI, then headed out to meet the Moshae at the vault.
Got a plan to head to Kadara but first needed to make a stop at the Nexus.
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Post by colfoley on Jan 6, 2018 7:43:16 GMT
Personal Logs, Robert Ryder, Pathfinder. Mission Day: 67.
The Angarra ambassador had a lot of concerns. I can't blame them. They wanted the right to keep their weapons on their guards while still on the Nexus to guard them and protect them from us, or any other threats, which could materialize. Its natural. Its common sense. Given their history with the Kett and given just plain common sense, I wish I could let them have them. But the Iniative disagrees. So I had to convince them of the righteousness of disarming...this I did...and now I need a drink.
Another problem with the Iniative though is Sidaris...the sister of Vetra...reported that some rebel group has been hitting Iniative supplies, raiding them and ambushing them. She thins that someone in the Iniative is betraying us...which isn't exactly a surprise but she has no proof.
Still, we have more important things to worry about. A woman named Ruth Becker has a very contagious, very lethal disease. It makes me wonder why I haven't heard of it before, if its this bad...but regardless. We are having to follow her in the Tempest, she managed to steal a shuttle. We have tracked her down over the last few days onto the surface of Kadara. I only hope we find her before it is too late.
***
You know, and I know, a lot of people complain about the side quests in this game. But even now, in my fourth playthrough, I get a little bit overwhelemed at the amount of missions I want to play and even consider vital to playing. Like Contagion...and the Firefighters...doing them both at once.
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melbella
N7
Trouble-shooting Space Diva
Games: Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, KOTOR, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
Origin: melbella
Prime Posts: 2186
Prime Likes: 5778
Posts: 8,207 Likes: 25,393
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Trouble-shooting Space Diva
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Post by melbella on Jan 6, 2018 17:07:27 GMT
Once Kadara opens up, the side quest meter skyrockets. All roads lead to Kadara!
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Post by dazk on Jan 7, 2018 0:04:19 GMT
Personal Logs, Robert Ryder, Pathfinder. Mission Day: 67. The Angarra ambassador had a lot of concerns. I can't blame them. They wanted the right to keep their weapons on their guards while still on the Nexus to guard them and protect them from us, or any other threats, which could materialize. Its natural. Its common sense. Given their history with the Kett and given just plain common sense, I wish I could let them have them. But the Iniative disagrees. So I had to convince them of the righteousness of disarming...this I did...and now I need a drink. Another problem with the Iniative though is Sidaris...the sister of Vetra...reported that some rebel group has been hitting Iniative supplies, raiding them and ambushing them. She thins that someone in the Iniative is betraying us...which isn't exactly a surprise but she has no proof. Still, we have more important things to worry about. A woman named Ruth Becker has a very contagious, very lethal disease. It makes me wonder why I haven't heard of it before, if its this bad...but regardless. We are having to follow her in the Tempest, she managed to steal a shuttle. We have tracked her down over the last few days onto the surface of Kadara. I only hope we find her before it is too late. *** You know, and I know, a lot of people complain about the side quests in this game. But even now, in my fourth playthrough, I get a little bit overwhelemed at the amount of missions I want to play and even consider vital to playing. Like Contagion...and the Firefighters...doing them both at once. The good thing about the ide quests in MEA most of them have a meaningful connection to the overall arch of the game. Contagion was probably the most tedious but it highlighted an important concern for the Initiative and the Angara. Playing AC Origins, some of the quests are just plain stupid, tiresome or tedious (or all 3) and I just don't see the relevance of them to the game. I think its mainly as the main story is way too short and the game is bloated with side quests and a lot of them are copy and pastes of earlier ones but just higher level enemies. I am still not sure why I am attacking Roman forts, if the history has been spelt out earlier I must have missed it and not having any knowledge of this part of history it makes little sense to me.
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Post by dazk on Jan 7, 2018 0:05:29 GMT
Once Kadara opens up, the side quest meter skyrockets. All roads lead to Kadara! Yeah I remember dreading going to Kadara for that very reason, just got my journal under control and then BAM
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Post by colfoley on Jan 7, 2018 0:21:39 GMT
Personal Logs, Robert Ryder, Pathfinder. Mission Day: 67. The Angarra ambassador had a lot of concerns. I can't blame them. They wanted the right to keep their weapons on their guards while still on the Nexus to guard them and protect them from us, or any other threats, which could materialize. Its natural. Its common sense. Given their history with the Kett and given just plain common sense, I wish I could let them have them. But the Iniative disagrees. So I had to convince them of the righteousness of disarming...this I did...and now I need a drink. Another problem with the Iniative though is Sidaris...the sister of Vetra...reported that some rebel group has been hitting Iniative supplies, raiding them and ambushing them. She thins that someone in the Iniative is betraying us...which isn't exactly a surprise but she has no proof. Still, we have more important things to worry about. A woman named Ruth Becker has a very contagious, very lethal disease. It makes me wonder why I haven't heard of it before, if its this bad...but regardless. We are having to follow her in the Tempest, she managed to steal a shuttle. We have tracked her down over the last few days onto the surface of Kadara. I only hope we find her before it is too late. *** You know, and I know, a lot of people complain about the side quests in this game. But even now, in my fourth playthrough, I get a little bit overwhelemed at the amount of missions I want to play and even consider vital to playing. Like Contagion...and the Firefighters...doing them both at once. The good thing about the ide quests in MEA most of them have a meaningful connection to the overall arch of the game. Contagion was probably the most tedious but it highlighted an important concern for the Initiative and the Angara. Playing AC Origins, some of the quests are just plain stupid, tiresome or tedious (or all 3) and I just don't see the relevance of them to the game. I think its mainly as the main story is way too short and the game is bloated with side quests and a lot of them are copy and pastes of earlier ones but just higher level enemies. I am still not sure why I am attacking Roman forts, if the history has been spelt out earlier I must have missed it and not having any knowledge of this part of history it makes little sense to me. ACO probably treats its side quests as episodic side missions that have nothing to do with anything. Fun little tasks you can do to kill time and have 'fun.' But Andromeda, and Witcher 3, often treated its side quests like they were their own arc which then connected to the overall plots/ themes of the game and thus were far more important.
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Post by dazk on Jan 7, 2018 0:49:47 GMT
The good thing about the ide quests in MEA most of them have a meaningful connection to the overall arch of the game. Contagion was probably the most tedious but it highlighted an important concern for the Initiative and the Angara. Playing AC Origins, some of the quests are just plain stupid, tiresome or tedious (or all 3) and I just don't see the relevance of them to the game. I think its mainly as the main story is way too short and the game is bloated with side quests and a lot of them are copy and pastes of earlier ones but just higher level enemies. I am still not sure why I am attacking Roman forts, if the history has been spelt out earlier I must have missed it and not having any knowledge of this part of history it makes little sense to me. ACO probably treats its side quests as episodic side missions that have nothing to do with anything. Fun little tasks you can do to kill time and have 'fun.' But Andromeda, and Witcher 3, often treated its side quests like they were their own arc which then connected to the overall plots/ themes of the game and thus were far more important. I'll spoiler this as its off topic: Normally Assassins Creed game side missions have objectives that align with the overall story, there is usually a clear link back to the main theme. or they are there purely for entertainment, for example in AC 3 there were a whole set of fun quests based on urban myths such as Sasquatch, the headless horsemen a UFO sighting etc. In previous games you also always knew who the enemy was, The Templars and whoever they were aligned with in the particular historical period it is set.
ACO seems very rooted in the protagonists personal pursuit of vengeance and his role as a Medjay. His role as a protector means he does a lot of quests that fit that but to me personally most just aren't particularly interesting and have little or no challenge. It seems everyone is the enemy in this game, Egyptians, Greeks and Romans. I think I need to read some stuff about the time period I think I am just not getting the context of the era.
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melbella
N7
Trouble-shooting Space Diva
Games: Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, KOTOR, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
Origin: melbella
Prime Posts: 2186
Prime Likes: 5778
Posts: 8,207 Likes: 25,393
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Trouble-shooting Space Diva
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Post by melbella on Jan 7, 2018 2:05:29 GMT
Roaming Kadara still, just about to enter the vault. I decided to do as much as I could on my first swing through the place since after heading back to the ship with the transponder I'll have 5000 new places to go and things to do. It's annoying driving by the Remnant site where Peebee's tech is located but not being able to get it since I don't have the quest yet.
Ironically, I was finally gonna take her up on her zero G fun offer, but I took the flirt line and ended up saying, "No thanks, maybe later," instead. That's what I get for wanting strings.
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Post by dazk on Jan 7, 2018 5:25:19 GMT
Roaming Kadara still, just about to enter the vault. I decided to do as much as I could on my first swing through the place since after heading back to the ship with the transponder I'll have 5000 new places to go and things to do. It's annoying driving by the Remnant site where Peebee's tech is located but not being able to get it since I don't have the quest yet.
Ironically, I was finally gonna take her up on her zero G fun offer, but I took the flirt line and ended up saying, "No thanks, maybe later," instead. That's what I get for wanting strings. Yeah Kadara has a few things like PeeBee's mission where you have to go back there? Oh man aren't you going to romance her, can't believe you passed on the Zero G fun
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melbella
N7
Trouble-shooting Space Diva
Games: Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, KOTOR, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
Origin: melbella
Prime Posts: 2186
Prime Likes: 5778
Posts: 8,207 Likes: 25,393
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Post by melbella on Jan 8, 2018 1:23:52 GMT
Arrival on Elaaden
So far I've met Morda, explored the derelict Remnant ship (ha, I almost typed Reaper instead of Remnant!), found the drive core, cleaned out the Flophouse, and activated 2 of the monoliths. The third one is in the other direction, so I'll head there after delivering the drive core. I'm on my way back now, but have a couple of stops along the way first.
When I loaded up the game, for whatever reason the last manual save I had was not the last save I made yesterday. The loaded save put me back on the ship just after leaving Kadara, but I had already ran around talking to everyone (except Gil), read my email, crafted the hamster trap, and gone back to my room for the night. So, I had to do all that again today. I fast-forwarded through everyone's dialogue. I know I saved my game before exiting (and seriously, NO auto-saves during all that?!) but maybe I exited before it saved properly. Still doesn't explain no auto-saves after the last manual save though. They were all from before it.
I didn't know this, but there are 4 places to scan cereal crumbs - the kitchen counter, 2 on the floor, and the nest. I'd never found the two on the floor before. Anyone know if there are any more places than those 4?
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Post by dazk on Jan 8, 2018 2:18:20 GMT
Arrival on Elaaden
So far I've met Morda, explored the derelict Remnant ship (ha, I almost typed Reaper instead of Remnant!), found the drive core, cleaned out the Flophouse, and activated 2 of the monoliths. The third one is in the other direction, so I'll head there after delivering the drive core. I'm on my way back now, but have a couple of stops along the way first.
When I loaded up the game, for whatever reason the last manual save I had was not the last save I made yesterday. The loaded save put me back on the ship just after leaving Kadara, but I had already ran around talking to everyone (except Gil), read my email, crafted the hamster trap, and gone back to my room for the night. So, I had to do all that again today. I fast-forwarded through everyone's dialogue. I know I saved my game before exiting (and seriously, NO auto-saves during all that?!) but maybe I exited before it saved properly. Still doesn't explain no auto-saves after the last manual save though. They were all from before it.
I didn't know this, but there are 4 places to scan cereal crumbs - the kitchen counter, 2 on the floor, and the nest. I'd never found the two on the floor before. Anyone know if there are any more places than those 4? That's weird re the save cause I thought it auto-saved when you exit!!!!!! It took me a couple of games to realise there were more than one set of crumbs near where the trap is set cause for some reason I always seemed to not come across the others and just clicked the one closest to the nest then found the nest.
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melbella
N7
Trouble-shooting Space Diva
Games: Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, KOTOR, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
Origin: melbella
Prime Posts: 2186
Prime Likes: 5778
Posts: 8,207 Likes: 25,393
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Trouble-shooting Space Diva
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Post by melbella on Jan 8, 2018 5:32:29 GMT
Still on Elaaden - it's a big place!
Activated the vault, set up the outpost, and now doing some map cleanup. Deactivated all the remnant cores so scavengers can't mess with them and found all the stolen medical supplies. Going to look into the water situation next. Think I'll lord it over Annea and tell her to get lost. Everyone needs water, not just the people she likes.
I wanted to do Drack's loyalty mission while I was here but can't since I haven't talked with Spender yet or found his Kadara recording. I came to Elaaden right after Kadara - no Nexus stop in between since I know I've got a ton to do there and was avoiding it.
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Post by Element Zero on Jan 8, 2018 6:17:56 GMT
dazk regarding your ACO observations, I’ll include some historical context in an sblock. I think ACO’s side quests are very similar to MEA’s. All tie to the plot in some direct way or in a thematic way. They either give crucial info, or paint a picture of the people and times. I think they’re more essential than MEA’s because so much of the main plot is tied to them. If you skip all of MEA’s side quests, you miss a lot of fun, but you still get the story. If you skip ACO’s side quests, you’re left with a bare bones story. I don’t love that design, but it does make a certain amount of sense for an open world game. It makes nearly any given quest relevant. The game could’ve done a better job explaining the antagonism between factions, I guess. Leaving any of the details of this era open for the player to fill in is probably a bad idea. It’s hard for me to tell which quests you’ve done or not done, because our opinions are so divergent. All of your questions are addressed in-game via quests, but you may not have played said quests. I’ve repeatedly expressed the opinion that this game won’t hold up well for non-completionists. So much plot- and setting-critical stuff happens during the side quests. I’ll give a brief historical overview with zero/minimal spoilers.
Ptolemy XII Auletes was father of Cleopatra VIII Philopator, Ptolemy XIII Philopator and Arsinoe IV. (These are our Cleo and Ptolemy. They didn’t bear numerals in their era. It’s a modern labeling thing.) Auletes was not a very good ruler, and brought Egypt to the brink of ruin. He had to turn to Rome for support, which is why they’re already a huge presence in this era. The Greeks ruled and culturally oppressed the native Egyptians; and they in turn resented Rome’s obvious designs on Egypt. The Gabiniani are a group frequently mentioned and barely explained. They were Roman soldiers who’d been left behind to “protect” Auletes’ rule. The famously “went native”, a huge no-no among Romans, and essentially became Egyptians of Roman decent. They’re a player in the drama, and come to the fore with Aya’s plans.
Cleopatra and her younger brother married in their teens (not uncommon) and “ruled” jointly for a time. It didn’t work, because he was a kid with whom she had no intention of sharing power. Quite unlike the opium-using seductress of Roman propaganda (and this game), she seems to have been very intelligent and astute. (She apparently spoke 9 languages, amongst other things.) Anyway, the struggle between these three Greek siblings (Arsinoe is barely even cited in the game) went on for years. Common folk never fare well under such conditions. Ptolemy and Cleopatra each tried to ally with Rome, and Cleo won that battle. She was an intelligent, competent politician; while Ptolemy seemed always out of his depth.
In-game, your ethnically Egyptian foes are generally bandits and criminals. Law-abiding Egyptians are happy to see Bayek. He’s a symbol of their ever-fading culture and rights. Those who ask for the Medjay’s help are often quest-givers, as you noted.
Not all Greeks are enemies. They’ve been in Egypt for centuries, after all. The story in the Faiyum does a great job of showing the good and bad of that relationship. Abusive, wealthy Greeks stealing Egyptian livelihood earn Bayek’s ire. And, of course, Ptolemy XIII’s soldiers can become the enemy at a moment’s notice.
The Romans are a looming enemy. Not all are bad, as the game shows. Everyone knows Rome is preparing to fully subjugate Egypt, though, and soon. For this reason, weakening their grip in Libya and the borderlands is a thing Bayek will gladly do.
All of this is addressed in-game, but it’s not given a full, explanatory treatment. Some of it is intrinsically woven into the main plot. Other parts are covered via side quests and their associated conversations. It’s easy to miss the nuance and details if you’re not familiar with the era. It’s a prime setting for an AC game. The choice to go fully open world, though, rather than more strongly story-focused, led to much of the meatiest stuff being a murky side story. This is okay, I guess, since Bayek is not an Assassin; he’s a father/medjay on a quest. Still, a focused Assassin-story could’ve been brimming with intrigue in this era. It reminds me of how Unity, while very good, somewhat rendered the Revolution a backdrop rather than a focus.
Overall, I like the choice of this era of history for this game. It’s extremely rich and active. I have a lot of ideas/conjecture for the DLC. I’ve avoided discussing it on the BSN because most of you haven’t yet finished the game.
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Post by colfoley on Jan 8, 2018 6:24:51 GMT
Personal Logs: Robert Ryder, Pathfinder. Mission Day: 68.
I am beginning to think that I should have us, or maybe the Iniative feed ourselves and bolster our dwindling supplies. I killed like four of the suckers on Kadara today. Still, Lexi tells me with the poisoned water we would have to purify them before ating. That and it would be hard to get them off Kadara with the current political situation.
Stumbled on the Cache of weapons the Raiders have been keeping on Kadara, they dropped heavy weapons on us. Hydra mechs. The only real heavy weapons equipment we bought with us from the Milky Way, which, kind of sucks considering apparently the Exiles stole them, or have the plans. They took out Jaal and Vetra in short order and I had to use RPGs to destroy them, but we still managed to prevail and defeat them.
We then went to go track down the lead for Remi Temayo, she had been given to a group of canibals. We killed them all...stopped them. But, it was hard to watch. Even with everything I have seen since coming here, this was the most heartbreaking. I couldn't believe it. Yes. I get it. These are desperate people. But there are only 50000 of us, less then fifty thousand of us. And they are killing us. It just drove the whole thing home. And besides, they were eating people.
Finally though in the little shop of horrors from Kadra, ran into Cerberus...they were running mind control experiments on people. I did not know what to do, so I stopped it. I turned it off, and let the people go. I told Reyes and Sloane and the Iniative about the situation, so they will keep an eye out for them in the future to try and make sure they won't do it again. I had heard of Cerberus in the Milky Way. It was hard not to in my line of work, in my N prepaatory peacekeeping force. Both official sources and the constant conspiracy theories debated amongst our members. Anything from a shadowy terrorist cell to Alliance blackops to someone selling sodas to a group that is just made up to justify Alliance shadow ops. I never ran into any of them...until then. Makes you wonder what else came to Andromeda.
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Post by dazk on Jan 8, 2018 8:24:23 GMT
dazk regarding your ACO observations, I’ll include some historical context in an sblock. I think ACO’s side quests are very similar to MEA’s. All tie to the plot in some direct way or in a thematic way. They either give crucial info, or paint a picture of the people and times. I think they’re more essential than MEA’s because so much of the main plot is tied to them. If you skip all of MEA’s side quests, you miss a lot of fun, but you still get the story. If you skip ACO’s side quests, you’re left with a bare bones story. I don’t love that design, but it does make a certain amount of sense for an open world game. It makes nearly any given quest relevant. The game could’ve done a better job explaining the antagonism between factions, I guess. Leaving any of the details of this era open for the player to fill in is probably a bad idea. It’s hard for me to tell which quests you’ve done or not done, because our opinions are so divergent. All of your questions are addressed in-game via quests, but you may not have played said quests. I’ve repeatedly expressed the opinion that this game won’t hold up well for non-completionists. So much plot- and setting-critical stuff happens during the side quests. I’ll give a brief historical overview with zero/minimal spoilers.
Ptolemy XII Auletes was father of Cleopatra VIII Philopator, Ptolemy XIII Philopator and Arsinoe IV. (These are our Cleo and Ptolemy. They didn’t bear numerals in their era. It’s a modern labeling thing.) Auletes was not a very good ruler, and brought Egypt to the brink of ruin. He had to turn to Rome for support, which is why they’re already a huge presence in this era. The Greeks ruled and culturally oppressed the native Egyptians; and they in turn resented Rome’s obvious designs on Egypt. The Gabiniani are a group frequently mentioned and barely explained. They were Roman soldiers who’d been left behind to “protect” Auletes’ rule. The famously “went native”, a huge no-no among Romans, and essentially became Egyptians of Roman decent. They’re a player in the drama, and come to the fore with Aya’s plans.
Cleopatra and her younger brother married in their teens (not uncommon) and “ruled” jointly for a time. It didn’t work, because he was a kid with whom she had no intention of sharing power. Quite unlike the opium-using seductress of Roman propaganda (and this game), she seems to have been very intelligent and astute. (She apparently spoke 9 languages, amongst other things.) Anyway, the struggle between these three Greek siblings (Arsinoe is barely even cited in the game) went on for years. Common folk never fare well under such conditions. Ptolemy and Cleopatra each tried to ally with Rome, and Cleo won that battle. She’s an intelligent, competent politician; while Ptolemy seemed always out of his depth.
In-game, your ethnically Egyptian foes are generally bandits and criminals. Law-abiding Egyptians are happy to see Bayek. He’s a symbol of their ever-fading culture and rights. Those who ask for the Medjay’s help are often quest-givers, as you noted.
Not all Greeks are enemies. They’ve been in Egypt for centuries, after all. The story in the Faiyum does a great job of showing the good and bad of that relationship. Abusive, wealthy Greeks stealing Egyptian livelihood earn Bayek’s ire. And, of course, Ptolemy XIII’s soldiers can become the enemy at a moment’s notice.
The Romans are a looming enemy. Not all are bad, as the game shows. Everyone knows Rome is preparing to fully subjugate Egypt, though, and soon. For this reason, weakening their grip in Libya and the borderlands is a thing Bayek will gladly do.
All of this is addressed in-game, but it’s not given a full, explanatory treatment. Some of it is intrically tied to the main plot. Other parts are covered via side quests and their associated conversations. It’s easy to miss the nuance and details if you’re not familiar with the era. It’s a prime setting for an AC game. The choice to go fully open world, though, rather than more strongly story-focused, led to much of the meatiest stuff being a murky side story. This is okay, I guess, since Bayek is not an Assassin; he’s a father/medjay on a quest. Still, a focused Assassin-story could’ve been brimming with intrigue in this era. It reminds me of how Unity, while very good, somewhat rendered the Revolution a backdrop rather than a focus.
Overall, I like the choice of this era of history for this game. It’s extremely rich and active. I have a lot of ideas/conjecture for the DLC. I’ve avoided discussing it on the BSN because most of you haven’t yet finished the game. Thanks that really helps I did a bit of reading on the net and got the gist of the dynamics but the timeline through me a bit. The roman thing in particular because Bayek is working for Cleopatra yet she is trying to forge an alliance with Rome. But from your notes I can understand Bayek's willingness to kill roman's based on the subjugation part. Thanks again for being so generous in your willingness to help . I have been frustrated at times with the game and not understanding the history has been part of that so the extra info helps. For the record I am enjoying the game a lot more later in the game and most of the missions recently have been fun, educational and interesting. I think they made the game too large at this time and I wish that the story had been more pervasive in the game (if that makes sense) and that there had just been less repetition.
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ღ Voice of Reason
169
0
17,036
Element Zero
7,274
August 2016
elementzero
Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, KOTOR, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
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Post by Element Zero on Jan 8, 2018 8:27:21 GMT
dazk regarding your ACO observations, I’ll include some historical context in an sblock. I think ACO’s side quests are very similar to MEA’s. All tie to the plot in some direct way or in a thematic way. They either give crucial info, or paint a picture of the people and times. I think they’re more essential than MEA’s because so much of the main plot is tied to them. If you skip all of MEA’s side quests, you miss a lot of fun, but you still get the story. If you skip ACO’s side quests, you’re left with a bare bones story. I don’t love that design, but it does make a certain amount of sense for an open world game. It makes nearly any given quest relevant. The game could’ve done a better job explaining the antagonism between factions, I guess. Leaving any of the details of this era open for the player to fill in is probably a bad idea. It’s hard for me to tell which quests you’ve done or not done, because our opinions are so divergent. All of your questions are addressed in-game via quests, but you may not have played said quests. I’ve repeatedly expressed the opinion that this game won’t hold up well for non-completionists. So much plot- and setting-critical stuff happens during the side quests. I’ll give a brief historical overview with zero/minimal spoilers.
Ptolemy XII Auletes was father of Cleopatra VIII Philopator, Ptolemy XIII Philopator and Arsinoe IV. (These are our Cleo and Ptolemy. They didn’t bear numerals in their era. It’s a modern labeling thing.) Auletes was not a very good ruler, and brought Egypt to the brink of ruin. He had to turn to Rome for support, which is why they’re already a huge presence in this era. The Greeks ruled and culturally oppressed the native Egyptians; and they in turn resented Rome’s obvious designs on Egypt. The Gabiniani are a group frequently mentioned and barely explained. They were Roman soldiers who’d been left behind to “protect” Auletes’ rule. The famously “went native”, a huge no-no among Romans, and essentially became Egyptians of Roman decent. They’re a player in the drama, and come to the fore with Aya’s plans.
Cleopatra and her younger brother married in their teens (not uncommon) and “ruled” jointly for a time. It didn’t work, because he was a kid with whom she had no intention of sharing power. Quite unlike the opium-using seductress of Roman propaganda (and this game), she seems to have been very intelligent and astute. (She apparently spoke 9 languages, amongst other things.) Anyway, the struggle between these three Greek siblings (Arsinoe is barely even cited in the game) went on for years. Common folk never fare well under such conditions. Ptolemy and Cleopatra each tried to ally with Rome, and Cleo won that battle. She’s an intelligent, competent politician; while Ptolemy seemed always out of his depth.
In-game, your ethnically Egyptian foes are generally bandits and criminals. Law-abiding Egyptians are happy to see Bayek. He’s a symbol of their ever-fading culture and rights. Those who ask for the Medjay’s help are often quest-givers, as you noted.
Not all Greeks are enemies. They’ve been in Egypt for centuries, after all. The story in the Faiyum does a great job of showing the good and bad of that relationship. Abusive, wealthy Greeks stealing Egyptian livelihood earn Bayek’s ire. And, of course, Ptolemy XIII’s soldiers can become the enemy at a moment’s notice.
The Romans are a looming enemy. Not all are bad, as the game shows. Everyone knows Rome is preparing to fully subjugate Egypt, though, and soon. For this reason, weakening their grip in Libya and the borderlands is a thing Bayek will gladly do.
All of this is addressed in-game, but it’s not given a full, explanatory treatment. Some of it is intrically tied to the main plot. Other parts are covered via side quests and their associated conversations. It’s easy to miss the nuance and details if you’re not familiar with the era. It’s a prime setting for an AC game. The choice to go fully open world, though, rather than more strongly story-focused, led to much of the meatiest stuff being a murky side story. This is okay, I guess, since Bayek is not an Assassin; he’s a father/medjay on a quest. Still, a focused Assassin-story could’ve been brimming with intrigue in this era. It reminds me of how Unity, while very good, somewhat rendered the Revolution a backdrop rather than a focus.
Overall, I like the choice of this era of history for this game. It’s extremely rich and active. I have a lot of ideas/conjecture for the DLC. I’ve avoided discussing it on the BSN because most of you haven’t yet finished the game. Thanks that really helps I did a bit of reading on the net and got the gist of the dynamics but the timeline through me a bit. The roman thing in particular because Bayek is working for Cleopatra yet she is trying to forge an alliance with Rome. But from your notes I can understand Bayek's willingness to kill roman's based on the subjugation part. Thanks again for being so generous in your willingness to help . I have been frustrated at times with the game and not understanding the history has been part of that so the extra info helps. For the record I am enjoying the game a lot more later in the game and most of the missions recently have been fun, educational and interesting. I think they made the game too large at this time and I wish that the story had been more pervasive in the game (if that makes sense) and that there had just been less repetition. Agreed. It’s the downside of all open world games. MEA was hit hard by this, too. In regard to the Roman content, much of it is accessible too early. It makes more sense later. This is one of my big gripes regarding pacing. Kyrenaika, Marmarika and the rest of Roman Libya probably should’ve been gated by story progression.
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A blade answers only to the hand that wields it
3406
0
44,723
dazk
15,866
February 2017
dazk
Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
DazK1805
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Post by dazk on Jan 8, 2018 8:32:50 GMT
Thanks that really helps I did a bit of reading on the net and got the gist of the dynamics but the timeline through me a bit. The roman thing in particular because Bayek is working for Cleopatra yet she is trying to forge an alliance with Rome. But from your notes I can understand Bayek's willingness to kill roman's based on the subjugation part. Thanks again for being so generous in your willingness to help . I have been frustrated at times with the game and not understanding the history has been part of that so the extra info helps. For the record I am enjoying the game a lot more later in the game and most of the missions recently have been fun, educational and interesting. I think they made the game too large at this time and I wish that the story had been more pervasive in the game (if that makes sense) and that there had just been less repetition. Agreed. It’s the downside of all open world games. MEA was hit hard by this, too. In regard to the Roman content, much of it is accessible too early. It makes more sense later. This is one of my big gripes regarding pacing. Kyrenaika, Marmarika and the rest of Roman Libya probably should’ve been gated by story progression. Yeah that would make much more sense.
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Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Deleted
inherit
guest@proboards.com
7959
0
Deleted
0
January 1970
Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 8, 2018 15:30:42 GMT
My 11 yo had a blast with MEA character creator. She really loved it that she could customize her twin as well, and initially made him super-ugly because she wanted to be the "good one" (she is the only child, but I guess sibling rivalry still exist) until I told her that she will play a bit as him as well. Then she tried to make him look Okay. She was particularly excited about all the hair color options, and how the hair has the darker undertone and moves (I guess after the Inquisition). So, yeah, lots of squealing in delight, and she really, really loved her Plum Ryder (she went with lavender hair and purple eyes). The combat though scared her off, because she could not pause the game and creatures jumped out at her freaking her out. I am going to see if I can acclimate her a little to no pause, because I think otherwise she'll enjoy the game. I discovered that I can't remember the controls, shame on me She adored the jetpack, & was particularly excited when I told her there are jumping puzzles in the game - I know, it's not a commonly shared opinion, but my kid loves puzzles in the games. Raw Fade in the first DA is her favorite zone.
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9,177
Curious Crow
Tripping through time
1,847
Jun 17, 2017 14:20:42 GMT
June 2017
kipper
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Post by Curious Crow on Jan 8, 2018 23:13:44 GMT
Was in the mood for a bit of Andromeda, so loaded up the game. Settled on following Elias through his journeys on Havarl. Nothing much of note happened except those gosh darned Eirochs. And there was a vault activation as well, but the blue menace was far more notable. Had been toying with the idea of fighting with an architect for once, but quickly laughed that idea away as everyone and their grandmothers were beating the snot out of me. Had a chat with the gang on the ship, eavesdropped on a vid call between Sid and Vetra and then bugged Jaal some before loading up Yasmine and chilling with her on Voeld.
Was all pumped up for some proper vanguarding and then she was a sentinel. Ooops. Gave her charge, just in case she needed to punch somebody, but ended up using her current combo of Overload, Pull and Throw. Which made many pretty explosions coupled with Drack's incinerate. Saved the caged angara and made a few failed attempts at touching the shield to the big tower. So I wont be tackling that anytime soon. But I really want her to meet Reyes to see how they gel, so might up making a desperate run to free the Moshae. Just need Clancy to hook me up with some Cobras and I should be fine.
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A blade answers only to the hand that wields it
3406
0
44,723
dazk
15,866
February 2017
dazk
Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
DazK1805
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Post by dazk on Jan 8, 2018 23:14:26 GMT
My 11 yo had a blast with MEA character creator. She really loved it that she could customize her twin as well, and initially made him super-ugly because she wanted to be the "good one" (she is the only child, but I guess sibling rivalry still exist) until I told her that she will play a bit as him as well. Then she tried to make him look Okay. She was particularly excited about all the hair color options, and how the hair has the darker undertone and moves (I guess after the Inquisition). So, yeah, lots of squealing in delight, and she really, really loved her Plum Ryder (she went with lavender hair and purple eyes). The combat though scared her off, because she could not pause the game and creatures jumped out at her freaking her out. I am going to see if I can acclimate her a little to no pause, because I think otherwise she'll enjoy the game. I discovered that I can't remember the controls, shame on me She adored the jetpack, & was particularly excited when I told her there are jumping puzzles in the game - I know, it's not a commonly shared opinion, but my kid loves puzzles in the games. Raw Fade in the first DA is her favorite zone. That's so cool, been trying to get my 14 year old daughter to play MEA, she's had a muck around playing one of my Ryders and has helped me create a few but she's not there yet. Those damn wraiths scare the hell out of me sometimes so I am not surprised your daughter got scared. Gotta have your head on a swivel
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inherit
A blade answers only to the hand that wields it
3406
0
44,723
dazk
15,866
February 2017
dazk
Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
DazK1805
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Post by dazk on Jan 8, 2018 23:18:54 GMT
Was in the mood for a bit of Andromeda, so loaded up the game. Settled on following Elias through his journeys on Havarl. Nothing much of note happened except those gosh darned Eirochs. And there was a vault activation as well, but the blue menace was far more notable. Had been toying with the idea of fighting with an architect for once, but quickly laughed that idea away as everyone and their grandmothers were beating the snot out of me. Had a chat with the gang on the ship, eavesdropped on a vid call between Sid and Vetra and then bugged Jaal some before loading up Yasmine and chilling with her on Voeld. Was all pumped up for some proper vanguarding and then she was a sentinel. Ooops. Gave her charge, just in case she needed to punch somebody, but ended up using her current combo of Overload, Pull and Throw. Which made many pretty explosions coupled with Drack's incinerate. Saved the caged angara and made a few failed attempts at touching the shield to the big tower. So I wont be tackling that anytime soon. But I really want her to meet Reyes to see how they gel, so might up making a desperate run to free the Moshae. Just need Clancy to hook me up with some Cobras and I should be fine. All hail The Great Cobra God My first couple of PT's I was selling them as I didn't know how to use them till cmoe told me how effective they were Now after several NG+ games and a mod I have 2,300 +
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Now with HESH rounds!
912
0
6,637
The Biotic Trebuchet
Stolen by inquisition forces.
2,616
Aug 11, 2016 22:59:51 GMT
August 2016
thebioticbread
Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, KOTOR, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda, SWTOR
Trebuchet_MkIV
[(e^x )- 4]
69
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Post by The Biotic Trebuchet on Jan 9, 2018 2:19:57 GMT
on (the) Edge
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inherit
A blade answers only to the hand that wields it
3406
0
44,723
dazk
15,866
February 2017
dazk
Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
DazK1805
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Post by dazk on Jan 9, 2018 2:41:19 GMT
on (the) Edge Love that planet:
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