What can change the nature of a man? Let's Play Planescape: Torment!

This game is by far #1 on my list of "games that I'd rather watch someone witty and competent play rather than actually play it myself".

Also, Option 1.

This (relative) spread of votes makes me wonder if I should create a system that "rewards" those who lose the vote? Like, +1 to your next vote weight if your choice isn't picked (cumulative)?

Raven: I'm not very witty but will try and be competent.

Everyone: I'll create a big post about alignment with the next update, and get everyone properly sorted on the spreadsheet. We'll see how the TT's alignment matches the Nameless One's (eventual) alignment!

Technically, wouldn't coming in after the vote count be the most chaotic neutral way of going about it? It's certainly neutral and it implies a certain amount of chaos...
Missed the whole thing, whoops!

But for the sake of the spreadsheet, might as well register my vote for Chaotic Neutral here...

I haven't posted a final tally, so I'll put you down for "4".

Hey bro, how about not mentioning what alignment each option leads to, let us know after the fact? I think it'd be more interesting!

p.s. OPTION 5.

Be a dick just for the hell of it, choose option 2!

That's what the game does, but on the other hand, alignment is a very "real" thing in Planescape. Does anyone else feel the same way? Should I just present the options and let everyone decide which to pick without the knowledge of how it will affect the Namless One's alignment?

I'm going to close voting with this one!

Option 1: GET THE CHANT ON ESCAPING (5 votes; Dawnswalker, Soren Highwind, Loki, Mogri, Raven)
Option 2: BE A KNIGHT-OF-THE-CROSSTRADE (1 vote; Olli T)
Option 3: GET HIM SCRAGGED (1 vote; Brickroad)
Option 4: PEEL THE BERK (6 votes; Heffenfeffer, Gerad, Destil, Austin, Phil, Teaspoon)
Option 5: THREATEN HIM (2 votes; JFink, MoneyCityManiac)

Option 4 wins!

Dawnswalker, Soren Highwind, Loki, Mogri, Raven, Olli T, Brickroad, JFink, and MoneyCityManiac have their votes counted as "two" votes for next time (everyone else's vote will be +1).

Nah keep doing what you're doing.

Don't worry about it. I like knowing more about games than less. Keep the course.

Keep doing what you're doing, especially if I get more votes when you do it!

CHAPTER 1: DEATH AND TAXES, PART 2

In which our hero fools an Anarchist, breaks and enters, and meets a scorned lover

************************************************** **************************************************

I don't know who this "zombie" is exactly, or why the group he works for is so interested in spying on these Dustmen, but he was easy enough to fool. The items he gave me aren't worth much, but knowing how to get out of this crypt is a big relief.

Morte is rolling his eyes at the thought of being a zombie, but if it worked for this idiot for so long, then it might serve me well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Editor In case you didn't read the title above, this guy is a member of the Revolutionary League - an Anarchist - who was keeping tabs on the Dustmen. The Revolutionary League is dedicated to bringing down the other factions: as stupid as this guy seems, his dedication to finding a weak link in the Dusties is kind of admirable. He gives you: 3 Bandages 1 Needle & Thread (healing item) 1 Embalming Fluid (near useless) 1 Knife (weaker than the Scalpel we're carrying) But at least they're free!

As soon as he finished with the last stitch, I knew this disguise wouldn't fool anybody. I didn't look like a zombie... I looked like a guy covered in embalming fluid.

I shuffle out of the room and immediately rip the stitch out and cleaned the fluid off with a rag; I would rather rely on my wits than this shoddy craftsmanship.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Editor Being a "zombie" means you can't run, which makes moving around a pain. I did this purely for the experience points.

I find a locked drawer on a table next to the stairs that Morte is kind enough to open for me. Inside is a strange earring, likely the one mentioned in the ripped out page I found earlier, which probably means it's supposed to be mine.

The earring does not appear to have any means to actually attach to an ear. There are markings on the earring that are strange; I have a clue related to it - a zombie marked "#79". I will find this zombie before messing too much with the earring in case it holds additional properties I might not wish to "unlock".



I feel a dry heat as I took my first step up; do they perhaps cremate bodies here as well?



The heat intensifies as I made my way up a spiral staircase. I can see the air begin to haze and shimmer as I approached an archway out of this room.

I am immediately stopped by a man - one of these Dustmen - pertaining my presence. I take his tone to be adversarial, so (finally) take Morte's advice to not play too friendly with him.




Adahn? I try and come up with a name and I pick an obviously fake one. Who in their right mind would name themselves "Adahn"?

Well, not that I can speak of course, not having a name myself. I resolve to simply lie and tell them I'm looking for Dhall from hereon.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Editor If you've got a high enough Dexterity, you can take these Dustmen by surprise and snap their necks. I don't have a high enough dexterity, so I just choose to just talk my way out of it. These Dusties will refuse to answer questions otherwise. They'll call guards if you suggest you're not supposed to be there.

I have a morbid desire to tests the limits of my own curiosity, but I think the time and place to test it does not lie in a giant furnace.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Editor NERD FACTS: This is likely a gateway to the Elemental Plane of Fire. You can't actually enter it, so sorry if you were hoping to immolate the Nameless One.

Searching the shelves for a way down to the first floor, I come across some worthless junk. As payment for the crack about stitching my lips tighter from earlier, I make him carry it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Editor We'll need one of these later.

Heading south, I come across a storage room with what looks like three "inactive" undead creatures inside: two zombies, and a skeleton. Searching the shelves, I come across a prybar, which should be handy for opening locked boxes I come across.



Like this one.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Editor The Iron Prybar gives you a +10% chance to bust a lock. With our party's pitiful strength (9 and 12 respectively), we won't be able to break into any of the locked chests on this floor, so we'll need this. The shelves and chest in this room hold the following: 2 Clot Charms (Healing item) 33 Copper Commons 1 Dustman Request:

Quote:

Originally Posted by DUSTMAN REQUEST A note written on a scrap of dry parchment: "Contact the necromancer responsible for Raising contractual worker 42. I know he's examined the skeleton before, but I am certain the initial Raising of the body was warped. The worker still responds to comands, but when it has completed a task, it resumes pacing in the same circular pattern as it did before. "Dhall recently informed me that worker 42 exhibited that same walking pattern when it was a zombie decades ago. There may be a soul echo in the marrow or the skeleton's age may have caused the magic animated him to decay. One of the initiates suggested it may be following an order issued by a higher-ranking Dustman in the past, but I have found no records of such an order. "Whatever the reason for its behavior, the matter is to be resolved or the worker replaced."

It appears that zombie I remembered while watching the tiefling earlier now looks like a skeleton.




This is the zombie connected to that earring I found not too long ago. I take the piece of jewelry out and try and figure out its "trick":



A neat earring, but ultimately just a trinket unfortunately. It might fetch a few copper at least. I start checking out the other undead in this room:




I think at this point, Morte's only making these comments to make fun of me.




Whoops!



Curiosity just got the best of me!

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Editor You can do this to most skeletons in this place; they'll leave behind a junky item that's not worth taking.

Heading north, I discover a skeleton that is somewhat... familiar...





A strange fear takes hold of me: did I put such an item here knowing I would be needing it to escape in the future? How chaotic is my life that I apparently find it necessary to seed items for future deaths?

I must find my journal.



A shelf nearby has a key that should allow me access to the first floor. I quickly snatch it when the Dustman looks away, and then head to the north section of this area.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MORTUARY REMINDER MESSAGE This rolled up piece of parchment appears to be some sort of message the skeleton in the Mortuary was supposed to deliver: "This is the third and *last* request for the prybar; if it has been misplaced, *tell* me and I shall go to the Hive market and purchase another. I have no objection to maintaining the contracted workers, but I've been trying to repair the skeletons, and the bolts are wedged in so tight I can't get them out. "Also, some of the locks on the storage cabinets on the third floor have become stuck again due to the heat, and I need the prybar to snap them open as well. If the prybar is indeed lost, I will see about procuring the services of a locksmith and having the cabinet locks replaced. "Your aid in this matter would be appreciated, An unreadable signature has been scrawled beneath the message.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Editor This note is here to tell you that you can use the iron prybar in the south room to break into stuff. This is actually unnecessary in the un-fixpatched game; breaking into chests in this game was apparently very easy to do!

I break up the locked chest here and ransack the room. Along with a few strange items and some copper, I find a charm that is shaped like a finger bone. Perhaps this is the item that fake "zombie" downstairs was talking about?

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Editor If at first you don't succeed at breaking into a chest, try, try, again. This room contains: Dustmen Embalming Charm, Lesser (increase hitpoints and AC temporarily) Clot Charm (healing item) Bandages (healing item) Needle and Thread (healing item) Corpse Fly Charm (invokes a spell that hinders spell casting) Bone Charm (temporarily raises AC and resistance to crushing damage) 33 Copper Commons and a Mortuary Task List:

Quote:

Originally Posted by MORTUARY TASK LIST Someone has penned a series of tasks in red ink on this scrap of parchment: - I would like the Contracted Workers to be inspected thrice-daily, at the end of each work shift when the new Initiates come on duty. We have experienced too many Contracted collapses while engaged in heavy labor as of late, and I fear the embalming enchantments initially used on the corpses may be decaying or may have been warped somehow. - If the Contracted workers could be inspected every eight hours and Raised if they have collapsed, then this would prevent the backlog of shells in the Preparation Rooms and free up more Contracted workers for other duties. - I have included spare embalming charms within the shelves for the Initiates on duty. They are to be used only when the shells cannot be repaired with stitching, bandaging, or applications of embalming fluid.

With the keys I need, I unlock the door to the west room and head down the stairs to the first floor. A Dustman - a guard by the looks of it - stops me immediately.




They're even worse at their job than the regular Dustmen. Perhaps these fellows really do care more about the dead than the living...

The centre of this floor contains four gigantic skeletons, armed and armoured to the teeth. Like all the undead here, they don't seem hostile, but they're clearly not here to do menial work.




These skeletons are fascinating, but I don't really have the time. I continue east.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TOME OF BONE AND ASH This worn leather-bound tome lists diagrams and charts detailing several minor wards and enchantments. There are numerous drawings of skeletons, bones, and the manner by which they may be preserved over time. Of particular interest is the section regarding "guardians". Apparently, the Dustmen animate corpses of fallen giants to serve as guardians for the Mortuary. To make them even deadlier, armoring enchantments are woven into their breastplates to help shield them from attacks. The book is much too complex for you to absorb all at once, but it looks as if you could refer to certain sections when the need arises.

This might give a clue to those giant skeletons, but escape is my main concern at the moment.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Editor You can either use this book or have an Intelligence of 16 to "dismantle" the four Giant Skeletons, nabbing a cool amount of experience and some minor magical spells. I want to wait until I've switched into the Mage class so it can get the experience instead, so we'll just tuck this away and come back later.

As I make my way to the location the "zombie" on the second floor alluded to, I notice a giant tomb. Dhall had mentioned it. He said this belongs to a companion of mine?



As I step forward to take a closer look, a spirit appears before my eyes!








This woman... did I once love her too, or is my amnesia hiding my own troubled scorn for her as well? Her feelings for me are apparently quite complicated.

She does not appear to wish to harm me, but I'm afraid I might have harmed her. Her information about these... portals... perhaps the "escape" route the fake zombie mentioned is one of these portals, and this bone charm, the "key"?

But is a glimpse into my future worth promising this... Deionarra... the price she asks?

Quote:

1) Convince her that if she *loved* you, she would tell you (more evil) 2) Refuse her offer 3) Lie to her (more chaotic) 4) Refuse to bargain, demand she tell you (more lawful) 5) Be non-committal, but honestly consider her offer (more good).

This, this is the very most best. As if you hadn't given us enough with FFT, now... you give us this.

Option 1.

5! CG forever.

Mmm... option #3.

A bit odd that appeal to emotion is evil, but lying is chaotic.

The thing to recognize with the first option is that you barely remember her. She obviously loved you, but can you honestly say you ever loved her? You're not playing with her emotions for kicks, you're playing them because it will get you something, and that's why it's "evil".

Lying is pretty much always chaotic in this game; it represents that you're refusing to be bound to any promise, pledge, or (in some cases) law.

Option 5. We don't even know who she is at this point, but her initial reaction suggests that some extremely traumatic things have happened to her entirely through our protagonist's doing and the least we can do is help her out if we can work out how to do so. And if we find out she's making it all up, the wording doesn't tie us to anything.

Option 5. Clearly she has suffered enough already.

Option 3. We are the lyingest liar that ever lied.

Love is a great sensation as well! Option five, of course.

Option 2: Je refuse!

Pretty sound reasoning, this. I'll go with option 5 as well.

I agree. Plus, if she takes it harshly, what's she going to do... kill us?!

So, put me down for Option 5.

Option 1. Needy ghost shouldn't be so uppity.

Option 5

It's not like we won't be back for the skeleton guards, right?

Option 5
I don't like the chaotic or evil choices since a former nameless one seems to have put her in this condition. But that promise... I prefer to keep my options open...

For those interested: GOG.com is running a "D&D Dynamo" Weekend Promotion where the following games are 40% off (sale prices shown)...

• Baldur's Gate 2 Complete ($5.99) MC: 95
• Baldur`s Gate: The Original Saga ($5.99) MC: 91
• Icewind Dale Complete ($5.99) MC: 87
• Icewind Dale 2 Complete ($5.99) MC: 83
• Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone ($5.99) MC: 69
• The Temple of Elemental Evil ($3.59) MC: 71
• Dungeons & Dragons: Dragonshard ($5.99) MC: 80
• Neverwinter Nights: Diamond Edition ($5.99) MC: 91
• Neverwinter Nights 2: Complete ($11.99) MC: 82
• Planescape: Torment ($5.99) MC: 91

... with each additional title you purchase giving you further discounts to all the titles selected. If you grab all 12 titles above, you can take an 80% discount on all of em. If you've ever purchased any of the above titles before from GOG.com, they still count towards your purchase.

I can't recommend all of the titles, but have listed their Metacritic score above so you can get an idea of how well they were received. Many of the titles above have received mods that would "bump" up their scores a bit, but I also think games like the original Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter Nights have aged badly. Still, even a game that has aged badly is likely still worth it when it's only a few dollars! Purchasing all of the games above comes out to about $21 with the massive 80% discount, which is probably a steal considering all the good found above.

Neverwinter Nights 2 is a really good game.

Especially the first expansion pack, Mask of the Betrayer.