1One helpful thing that you should try if you are playing Baldur's Gate is to save the game after your character has achieved a new level but before you accept that new level. The reason for doing this is that after accepting the level and you are not satisfied with the amount of new hit points the "random" die-function gave you, you can re-load the game and try again. This way you can maximize your characters' hit points. They have fixed this glitch in Baldur's Gate II. Whatever you get the first time is it, no matter how many times you re-load the game and try again. Suck on that!
Alex 10/29/01
2When playing D&D, remember that the Barbarian character has many thief-like attributes (i.e. hide in shadows). The ability to surprise, coupled with strength, makes barbarians worthy party members.
J-hole 11/01/01
3Tip for Red Alert 2:
For those as obsessed with this game as I am should know a neat trick if you play any Soviet team; First you make a Yuri unit, have Yuri go out, find a cow and mind control it. A farmer will do splendidly as well. Then get a Crazy Ivan unit ready; Have Ivan load up the cow or farmer with dynamite and send him into an enemy camp.....KABOOM! And quite a creative one at that! The Enemy camp will just think it is a cow passing through!
Andy K. 11/08/01
4In the D&D Module - Curse of the Reptile God - make sure that the DM makes the Naga powerful. If a strong party gets a few lucky shots - she's finished. So don't be afraid to double or triple her hit points if you're the DM.
J-hole 11/03/01
5Tip for Red Alert 2,
I have good luck using the Frogs even though they are basicly all latent homosexuals. What I do is capture a tech biulding near an enemy controlled ore field and fortify the shit out of it with mirage tanks an pill boxes first. I do this because they have no range and may not disturb the enemy passing by at first. Then I put a shroud generator there and 2 grand cannons. Then perhaps a few prism towers and patriot missiles also if deems proper. This provides a staging area for blitzkriek style invasion (gives me a woody) and blows the shit out of all of the enemy oretrucks. This also crushes their morale and stikes fear into their bones, making them run screaming like frightened, cowardly, children (I wish).
8ball 11/12/01
6I just want to say that I really enjoy the web site and look at it often. Here's a tip for older gamers with wives and kids and want to continue to play D&D:
As you know as we get older, married, and have children, it makes it very hard for us to find time to play D&D. I manage to play for a whole weekend once every two months and here are some of the tricks I do:
1) I plan my D&D weekend well in advance, so my wife knows when I plan on playing. This way I can say to her, if you want to go away with your friends for a day or two, go right ahead.
2)The week before my weekend, I make sure I spend lots of quality time with her and my son. (Kind of brown nose a bit!) Don't get me wrong I enjoy spending time with them very much, but this makes them feel very special!
3)Two days before my D&D weekend I arrange for my mother to take care of my son for the evening and take my wife out on a "date"
4)The day I'm about to leave for my D&D weekend, I buy my wife a dozen roses! (This works like a charm!
5) The day I return from my weekend, I make sure I get home early enough to make supper and put my son to bed that night!
Well this is just a few tips that I can suggest for us married guys to get out and play D&D. If you have any more I would love to hear them. Or if you use these tips let me know how they work!
John 11/14/01
7For anyone interested: Here is a magic sword I created that was used in the last adventure conducted. Feel free to use it / change it as you see fit.
“The Sea Serpent” Aqua Sword “Wave Roarer”
Two Handed Sword +3
Alignment: LG
Powers:
Water-breathing
Telepathic Communication with wielder
Calm Rough Waters once per day (1 mile radius) Command word *Kratu*
Command Aquatic Animals 60 ft. radius once per week Command word *Piski*
Purifies water by touch.
Wave roar (See below)
This sword is a remarkable weapon forged at an unknown time. It is even thought that the god Poseidon forged the blade with the assistance of Hepaestus. The Sea Serpent was said to be made for a champion called Terius. Legend Has it that Terius lost favor with the Gods and they ripped the sword from him, casting him to the ocean floor to his demise. The Sea Serpent is a pale blue color and if the blade is looked at closely, breakers and waves appear as if one were gazing upon the ocean
In the hands of anyone other than good alignment it acts as a +1 two handed sword.
Aside from the attributes listed above, when the wielder has a strength of 17 or greater, the Sea Serpent has a ‘Wave Roar” 2 times per day Command word *Kaliman * When the sword is swung, regardless if victim is hit all beings in front of the wave up to 40 ft must save vs breath weapon or be stunned for 1-3 rounds. A second save is needed to see if the person falls to the ground taking 1-4 hp of damage. If the save is made deafness occurs to the victims for 2-8 rounds and the victims will be pushed back 10 ft, stumbling considerably, losing initiative.
Command words are etched in the hilt with small images: Above Kratu is a set of wavy lines which become flat (~~~~____ ) Above Piski is a small fish, and above Kaliman is a small image of a tidal wave.
Andy 11/21/01
8The Allies have the ability to use Spies. Failing to use them when you can deprives you of one of your most potent weapons. You can run Spies into an enemy Barracks, War Factory, Refinery, Radar Tower, Tesla Reactor, Nuclear Reactor, or super weapon (Chronosphere, Iron Curtain, Nuclear Missile Silo, or Weather Control Device). Each of these has a particular benefit. Every time a Spy enters an enemy Refinery, you take 15 percent of the enemy's money. A Spy in an enemy Radar Tower resets the shroud and effectively blinds them. Entering any power facility shuts off the enemy power for about 60 seconds, while entering a super weapon resets the countdown. Getting a Spy into an enemy Barracks or War Factory allows you to create veteran infantry and vehicles, respectively. Very useful when you want to create a fresh squad of Prism Tanks, or create a powerful Tanya, Sniper, or Chrono Legionnaire!
I forgot to mention the Battle Lab! Spies have the ability to sneak into many enemy structures. One of the most useful is the Battle Lab. When you get a Spy into an enemy Battle Lab, you gain the ability to create a new infantry unit. There are four possibilities.
The most basic tactic is sneaking an Allied Spy into a Soviet Battle Lab. Do this, and you will be able to build Psi Commandos. These are a mix between Tanya and Yuri. They can use C-4 on structures like Tanya and control the minds of enemy units like Yuri, but they cannot give off a Psychic Wave by deploying like Yuri, or instantly kill units like Tanya, but there are ways to make them work. Put one into an IFV and use the ChronoSphere to teleport it into the middle of an enemy base right next to their Construction Yard, blow it with C-4 and use Mind Control to halt any attacking units. They are availible for $1000 bucks a pop.
Get an Allied Spy into the Battle Lab of an enemy Allied army and you get the ability to create Chrono Commandos. These units are loads of fun and extremely useful. They move across the map like Chrono Legionnaires, but otherwise act like Navy SEALs. They can use C4 on any nearby structures and kill infantry instantly. The problem with these guys is that when they travel long distances by chronoing around a map, they take longer to phase back in, and they can be killed while they are phasing back in. Availible for $2000 bucks a pop, and they are decent if you can keep them out of harms way.
A slightly more esoteric unit comes about when a Soviet player gains the ability to create Spies and gets one into an Allied Battle Lab. The new unit is the Chrono Ivan, a combination of a Chrono Legionnaire and a Crazy Ivan. This unit has all of the abilities of Crazy Ivan, but also can chrono across the map. Decent, but not as effective as a brick of C-4 and dual pistols of the Tanya fame. Also useful in the Mc-Bomb stratgey discussed by your brother, Andy.To get a Soviet Spy, you must get an Engineer into and Allied Barracks and Battle Lab. It also helps if the enemy has a second Battle Lab, preferibly Soviet, so you can get access to Yuri Prime, discussed later in this article. The Chrono Ivan is availible for $1500 bucks a pop.
The rarest unit is gained by getting a Soviet Spy into a Soviet Battle Lab. The result is Yuri Prime, a super-powered Yuri unit so deadly you can only have one on the battlefield at a time, unless you have a Cloning Vat, which gives you a freebie. I smell a Loophole!! Weel discuss it at the next GenCon. Wink wink!
Yuri Prime is really no different from a normal Yuri unit, but his range is much farther; he’s effective at about the range of a British Sniper, or almost a full screen away. His Psychic Wave is twice as powerful, expands to double the radius, and can be done three times instantly before there is a Mind Freeze as I like to call it. This is what happens when the normal Yuri deploys. He stops moving and this prevents him from using his Psychic Wave constantly. I have only been able to gain access to him once, so this fact must be tested. I can tell you this. He is not the same as the Yuri Prime in Yuri's Revenge. He cannot Mind Control structures. Thats not much of a problem though. He is availible for $2000 bucks a pop, and I suggest you have a Cloning Vat built before you create him, as mentioned above. This also works for Chrono Ivan.
Andrew "Mini-Wheats" Ames 5/5/03
