What does "bound" mean in Morrowind

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

Hi,

I got Morrowind with a video card I bought but with no manual
and I've been reading in this newsgroup about bound weapons but I have
no idea what bound means in this game.

Can anyone help me to understand.

Thanks,
Peter K.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

Okay, there are otherworldy creatures in Morrowind called Daedra. They come
from another plane called Oblivion (the title of the next game), which is
essentially Hell in the Elder Scrolls, so you could call them Demons, I
guess. But not necessarily all of them are so bad. The ones I can remember
off the top of my head are Sheogorad, Molag Bal, Beothiah and Mehrunes
Dagon. Each of these beings seem to have a certain characteristic they
favor, as well as their followers. A sort of virtue or inspiration. Like
Sheogorad, I believe, is a little off in the head. Crazy. And his minions,
or even his daughters, are Golden Saints. You'll see them if you play long
enough. In fact, they're one of two creatures that provide a soul strong
enough to create constant effect enhantments.
Anyway, mages and sorcerers can summon Daedra to serve them. You can conjure
Golden Saints, Dremoras, Scamps, Atronachs--all Daedra, to fight for you. Or
you can summon a Daedra's spirit in the form of armor and weapons. They are
bound to you for the duration of the spell, no matter what form they take.
In Oblivion they are essentially without flesh, so I assume they can take
whatever form your magic allows. Bound weapons and armor are pretty much
these beings in the shape and form of weapons and armor, and it is treated
as Light Armor and uses the Light Armor skill, except these items have no
weight. Yet, they are basically the best heavy weapons and armor--Daedric.
It's good stuff, but I think they are a little buggy because sometimes when
the spell wears off, the items remain, and you cannot drop them so you are
pretty much stuck with them forever. Unless they disappear when their
condition reaches zero, I can't remember.

> Hi,
>
> I got Morrowind with a video card I bought but with no manual
> and I've been reading in this newsgroup about bound weapons but I have
> no idea what bound means in this game.
>
> Can anyone help me to understand.
>
> Thanks,
> Peter K.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

Simmie Simmerson wrote:
> Okay, there are otherworldy creatures in Morrowind called Daedra. They come
> from another plane called Oblivion (the title of the next game), which is
> essentially Hell in the Elder Scrolls, so you could call them Demons, I
> guess. But not necessarily all of them are so bad. The ones I can remember
> off the top of my head are Sheogorad, Molag Bal, Beothiah and Mehrunes
> Dagon. Each of these beings seem to have a certain characteristic they
> favor, as well as their followers. A sort of virtue or inspiration. Like
> Sheogorad, I believe, is a little off in the head. Crazy. And his minions,
> or even his daughters, are Golden Saints. You'll see them if you play long
> enough. In fact, they're one of two creatures that provide a soul strong
> enough to create constant effect enhantments.
> Anyway, mages and sorcerers can summon Daedra to serve them. You can conjure
> Golden Saints, Dremoras, Scamps, Atronachs--all Daedra, to fight for you. Or
> you can summon a Daedra's spirit in the form of armor and weapons. They are
> bound to you for the duration of the spell, no matter what form they take.
> In Oblivion they are essentially without flesh, so I assume they can take
> whatever form your magic allows. Bound weapons and armor are pretty much
> these beings in the shape and form of weapons and armor, and it is treated
> as Light Armor and uses the Light Armor skill, except these items have no
> weight. Yet, they are basically the best heavy weapons and armor--Daedric.
> It's good stuff, but I think they are a little buggy because sometimes when
> the spell wears off, the items remain, and you cannot drop them so you are
> pretty much stuck with them forever. Unless they disappear when their
> condition reaches zero, I can't remember.

That was probably much more detail than he was looking for, but it was a
nice explanation.

I tend to differ, however, with the idea that they are demons and that
Oblivion is Hell. In "Aedra and Daedra", a book in TES3:Morrowind, it
is written that Aedra basically means "ancestors", whereas Daedra means
"non-ancestors". The Dunmer specifically worshipped their ancestors and
the beings known as Daedra before the demi-gods known as the Tribunal
came into being.

So I think Daedra are more like gods, and are both good and bad. I
don't think "god" is completely accurate either, as I think they're just
powerful beings from another plane (oblivion) that seem godlike to
natives of the mortal realm, similar to the "deities" of the Cthulhu
mythos for those Lovecraft fans out there. But anyway, I think "god" is
more accurate than "demon". There is also the gods of the Empire, the
Nine Divines, which are also deities, which if I remember correctly are
traditional gods of various regions/provinces of the Empire. In the
Western parts of the Empire (as depicted in Daggerfall), there are
temples to each of these Nine Divines. The religion of the Empire is
far less popular in the province or Morrowind, hence the vastly
differing religious beliefs and the dominant position of the Daedra.

I hate to bring up TES2aggerfall again, but it is interesting in that
you can summon Daedra, but must first find witch Covens, and must try on
the right day. I find this more interesting than simply talking to
Daedra statues as in MW. It feels more like dealing with other-worldly
beings than doing just another quest for a nifty item. I may be wrong,
but I think that there are more Daedra that you can directly deal with
than in MW as well. Many of the Artifacts are the same in DF and MW,
though...things like Azura's Star, Chrysemere, the Masque of Clavicus
Vile, etc.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

Peter Kaye624 wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I got Morrowind with a video card I bought but with no manual
> and I've been reading in this newsgroup about bound weapons but I have
> no idea what bound means in this game.
>
> Can anyone help me to understand.
>
> Thanks,
> Peter K.

It means that they are summoned weapons. Like summoning a Daedric
servant you can also summon a weapon or piece of armour. If you summon
for example a longsword, you will temporary get a daedric longsword,
which reases your longsword skill. Same goes with armour

Chris

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

Hm I heard that before, too, I think. That and something about your
birthsign, and looking for specific constellations in the sky. I can agree
with you there, I wish Morrowind were a bit more involved. Some things are
just too static, in my opinion. Vegetation doesn't move, people walk around
randomly and spout something as you walk past... was DaggerFall like that? I
read that Oblivion will be much more life-like...
I did read most of the books, and I remember Aedra meaning "Ancestors" and
Daedra meaning "Not-Our Ancestors." Since the Imperial Cult's religion seems
to follow... well, I *think* they follow the spirits of long-dead heroes,
but I could be wrong. I mean, isn't Tiber Septim one of the gods now? I
thought he was the founder of the Empire... I always took Aedra to mean
"Once Like Us, But No Longer", like they have ascended to immortality and
god-hood. But I honestly have no idea, haha! Daedra don't really look like
anything living in Morrowind, so I always assumed they were always in that
state, they didn't ascend to their next stage of existence. Or maybe they
did, but not from a Dunmer or Dwemer. Dremoras look like demons, but they're
the only ones who do to me. The rest might pass for Avatars or just plain
viscious beats. Damned Clannfears and their razor claws, the bastards. I
hate em. LOL. Destroy my armor.
Anywho, the lore of this game is a great part of the enjoyment for me. The
stories run deep, and honestly if that weren't in the game I doubt I could
like it as much as I do. Lot of creative people over at Bethesda. You'd
think they could have added more than 3 ways to swing your weapon? j/k

> That was probably much more detail than he was looking for, but it was a
> nice explanation.
>
> I tend to differ, however, with the idea that they are demons and that
> Oblivion is Hell. In "Aedra and Daedra", a book in TES3:Morrowind, it is
> written that Aedra basically means "ancestors", whereas Daedra means
> "non-ancestors". The Dunmer specifically worshipped their ancestors and
> the beings known as Daedra before the demi-gods known as the Tribunal came
> into being.
>
> So I think Daedra are more like gods, and are both good and bad. I don't
> think "god" is completely accurate either, as I think they're just
> powerful beings from another plane (oblivion) that seem godlike to natives
> of the mortal realm, similar to the "deities" of the Cthulhu mythos for
> those Lovecraft fans out there. But anyway, I think "god" is more
> accurate than "demon". There is also the gods of the Empire, the Nine
> Divines, which are also deities, which if I remember correctly are
> traditional gods of various regions/provinces of the Empire. In the
> Western parts of the Empire (as depicted in Daggerfall), there are temples
> to each of these Nine Divines. The religion of the Empire is far less
> popular in the province or Morrowind, hence the vastly differing religious
> beliefs and the dominant position of the Daedra.
>
> I hate to bring up TES2aggerfall again, but it is interesting in that
> you can summon Daedra, but must first find witch Covens, and must try on
> the right day. I find this more interesting than simply talking to Daedra
> statues as in MW. It feels more like dealing with other-worldly beings
> than doing just another quest for a nifty item. I may be wrong, but I
> think that there are more Daedra that you can directly deal with than in
> MW as well. Many of the Artifacts are the same in DF and MW,
> though...things like Azura's Star, Chrysemere, the Masque of Clavicus
> Vile, etc.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

On Mon, 13 Jun 2005 08:35:02 +0200, Chris van Bladel
<chbEDmicrofixPUNTnl> wrote:

>reases your longsword skill. Same goes
Thanks for the explanations everyone. It's more involved than I
thought, I guess I'll just have to try it when I get stronger.

Peter K.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

Simmie Simmerson wrote:
> Hm I heard that before, too, I think. That and something about your
> birthsign, and looking for specific constellations in the sky. I can agree
> with you there, I wish Morrowind were a bit more involved. Some things are
> just too static, in my opinion. Vegetation doesn't move, people walk around
> randomly and spout something as you walk past... was DaggerFall like that? I

Yes, this is the main problem: MW is far too static, within a given
game, and from game to game. You can pretty easily see most of the
points of interst in a game or two. In Daggerfall, it would take years
if not decades to see everything (if it's even possible), but admittedly
most stuff in Daggerfall was kind of "samey". Of course, Vvardenfell is
a much more diverse place than High Rock and Hammerfell. I really hope
that TES4:OB strikes a balance between the randomness of DF and the
hand-designed coherence of MW. MW was far too *un*random.

Townspeople would stop walking and look at you, but since there was no
speech in DF, they didn't say anything. I agree that it's annoying when
I'm trying to walk by someone and they say "*sigh* What do you want
now?" or something similar.

> read that Oblivion will be much more life-like...
> I did read most of the books, and I remember Aedra meaning "Ancestors" and
> Daedra meaning "Not-Our Ancestors." Since the Imperial Cult's religion seems
> to follow... well, I *think* they follow the spirits of long-dead heroes,
> but I could be wrong. I mean, isn't Tiber Septim one of the gods now? I

Yes, this is correct, but I don't remember hearing anything about him
being an actual god until TES3:MW. TES2F deal in part, with how he
used the Heart of Lorkhan (the same artifact that made the Tribunal
immortal) and an ancient Dwemer golem to conquer all of Tamriel and
create the Empire.

But I think I read somewhere about how the Imperial gods came from the
local religions of various regions of Tamriel. This would make sense,
as the Empire could adopt aspects of the local religions to make being
part of a continental Empire more palatable. The Romans did this, and
accepted many foreign gods, including the main ones, which were "stolen"
from the Greeks.

> thought he was the founder of the Empire... I always took Aedra to mean
> "Once Like Us, But No Longer", like they have ascended to immortality and
> god-hood. But I honestly have no idea, haha! Daedra don't really look like
> anything living in Morrowind, so I always assumed they were always in that
> state, they didn't ascend to their next stage of existence. Or maybe they

I think they're just otherplanar beings that seem godlike, so yeah, they
definately didn't come from human or elves.

> did, but not from a Dunmer or Dwemer. Dremoras look like demons, but they're
> the only ones who do to me. The rest might pass for Avatars or just plain
> viscious beats. Damned Clannfears and their razor claws, the bastards. I
> hate em. LOL. Destroy my armor.
> Anywho, the lore of this game is a great part of the enjoyment for me. The
> stories run deep, and honestly if that weren't in the game I doubt I could
> like it as much as I do. Lot of creative people over at Bethesda. You'd
> think they could have added more than 3 ways to swing your weapon? j/k

This, along with the open-endedness is one of the main trademarks of the
ES series. The very detailed world/setting/history/etc adds very much
to the immersion, IMO.

About the weapon swinging, I kind of like the way DF did it better.
You'd click and hold the "weapon swing button" and then drag it in the
direction you wanted to swing. So moving it up was a thrust, sideways a
slash, down a chop, diagonal a diagonal chop, etc. I think this is more
intuitive than having to move in a direction to do a different swing.
But I guess this is a concession made to the XBOX controller.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

XBOX. Yuck. I still haven't gotten around to buying that wretched thing. Not
enough that Bill Gates has monopolized the operating system aspect of PCs.
Aside from Unix/Linux, Windows is all we get, and it's soooo stable!
(sarcasm). Oddly enough I've been into computers before Windows even came
out. It was just DOS at the time. When I first got into computers, my first
games were all Sierra games. King's Quest, Hero's Quest, Space Quest...
Leisure Suit Larry... haha! And then I recall somehow getting Ultima
Underworld: Stygian Abyss. Now, that game is what forever sparked my undying
passion for RPGs. Somehow I missed the other Elder Scrolls games, I guess
there was that period in between the last ten years, been moving around a
lot and just now got back into it. Just in time for Morrowind, Baldur's Gate
I & II, Icewind Dale... now Oblivion. Looking forward to that.
Well, I started playing Morrowind again recently, just got this feeling to
start playing again. Could have been subliminal messages in that Oblivion
movie I downloaded. I'm starting over as a high elven mage. Something new
for me. By the way, what kind of character do you like to play the most? I
usually prefer Stealth--bows, sneaking, acrobatics, fun skills to have. I
thought I'd try something different though, but I will always like being an
assassin. Dark Elven assassin (they just look like the kill without it being
personal type).

> About the weapon swinging, I kind of like the way DF did it better. You'd
> click and hold the "weapon swing button" and then drag it in the direction
> you wanted to swing. So moving it up was a thrust, sideways a slash, down
> a chop, diagonal a diagonal chop, etc. I think this is more intuitive
> than having to move in a direction to do a different swing. But I guess
> this is a concession made to the XBOX controller.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

Peter Kaye624 wrote:
> On Mon, 13 Jun 2005 08:35:02 +0200, Chris van Bladel
> <chbEDmicrofixPUNTnl> wrote:
>
>
>>reases your longsword skill. Same goes
>
> Thanks for the explanations everyone. It's more involved than I
> thought, I guess I'll just have to try it when I get stronger.
>
> Peter K.
You should give it a try. By enchanting a exquised (sp) (the most
expencive ring or amulet) with constant effect (CE) with bound cuirras,
boots, helm, gauntlets and shield. You now have a compleet set of armour
with fortify (alot of skills)

Chris

 

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Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

Simmie Simmerson wrote:
> XBOX. Yuck. I still haven't gotten around to buying that wretched thing. Not

Neither have I; nor will I ever. I'm not a fan of Billy Gates, and the
XBOX is basically just a PC in a big, ugly box with a big ugly
controller. Most good XBOX games come out for either PC, PS2 or
Gamecube anyway, which I own all of.

> enough that Bill Gates has monopolized the operating system aspect of PCs.
> Aside from Unix/Linux, Windows is all we get, and it's soooo stable!

If it weren't for the majority of games being written for Windows, I'm
be perfectly happy using only linux. I currently have both, but Linux
is clearly the superior operating system. It's getting much easier to
use as a desktop Windows replacement as well. It's even got Windows and
DOS emulators, but from what I understand, it still doesn't play all the
games correctly, so I'm stuck using Windows or consoles for games.

> (sarcasm). Oddly enough I've been into computers before Windows even came
> out. It was just DOS at the time. When I first got into computers, my first

I'm been using computer since I was 3 or 4 years old (1983/84). I
remember my first computer; It was an IBM PC jr. with no hard drive and
two 5.25 inch floppies. And yeah, it was DOS all the way. I used only
DOS until I finally switched to Win95. I skipped 3.1 completely.

> games were all Sierra games. King's Quest, Hero's Quest, Space Quest...
> Leisure Suit Larry... haha! And then I recall somehow getting Ultima
> Underworld: Stygian Abyss. Now, that game is what forever sparked my undying

Now you, sir, have an history of playing good games. I grew up on
Sierra adventure games, text adventures and old-school RPGs, including
Ultima Underwold (but the second one, I never played the first).

> passion for RPGs. Somehow I missed the other Elder Scrolls games, I guess
> there was that period in between the last ten years, been moving around a
> lot and just now got back into it. Just in time for Morrowind, Baldur's Gate
> I & II, Icewind Dale... now Oblivion. Looking forward to that.

Given games you have and do like(d), I'd like to once again recommend
DF. It can be kind of a pain to run on some modern OSes, but you can DL
DOSBox for free and it will play *any* old DOS program very nicely.

Arena is also available for free on the Elder Scrolls site. It's pretty
similar to Ultima Underworld in interface and graphics, but of course
it's a whole continent to explore instead of just dungeons. It too runs
under DOSBox.

> Well, I started playing Morrowind again recently, just got this feeling to
> start playing again. Could have been subliminal messages in that Oblivion
> movie I downloaded. I'm starting over as a high elven mage. Something new
> for me. By the way, what kind of character do you like to play the most? I

I usually play a guy named Kage Gerric that varies from game to game,
but in DF and MW he was mainly a stealthy sword specialist fighter with
some magic skills for fun. Custom class, of course.

Currently I'm playing a female mage/fighter type that's kind of a
artifact/ruins nut. She likes to explore Dwemer ruins and the like and
is obsessed with their culture and technology. Kind of a medieval Laura
Croft, I guess? She mainly prefers magic, but is quite able to defend
herself with weapons. She's also the first character that actually
finished the main quest in MW.

> usually prefer Stealth--bows, sneaking, acrobatics, fun skills to have. I
> thought I'd try something different though, but I will always like being an
> assassin. Dark Elven assassin (they just look like the kill without it being
> personal type).

Sounds cool.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

> Neither have I; nor will I ever. I'm not a fan of Billy Gates, and the
> XBOX is basically just a PC in a big, ugly box with a big ugly controller.
> Most good XBOX games come out for either PC, PS2 or Gamecube anyway, which
> I own all of.

Heh I got the Game Cube just so I could play the remake of Resident Evil.
Actually I never played the old one cuz I always ended up buying Sega
products. Then there was that very unpleasant thing that happened, the
Saturn sunk, then the Dreamcast sunk, and now it seems Sega is dead, or
owned by Nintendo. Not sure what happened. All I know is I wasted a whole
lot of money, grrr... though I did enjoy House of the Dead 2 once I got a
decent gun... no not really, the only gun I managed to get was a shotty
piece of plastic pea-shooter. But I still beat the game! Oh yeah...

>
>> enough that Bill Gates has monopolized the operating system aspect of
>> PCs. Aside from Unix/Linux, Windows is all we get, and it's soooo stable!
>
> If it weren't for the majority of games being written for Windows, I'm be
> perfectly happy using only linux. I currently have both, but Linux is
> clearly the superior operating system. It's getting much easier to use as
> a desktop Windows replacement as well. It's even got Windows and DOS
> emulators, but from what I understand, it still doesn't play all the games
> correctly, so I'm stuck using Windows or consoles for games.

I haven't used Linux since my Mudding days. Ever do that? Ah those were the
days. Got into MUDs around the same time I got my hands on Ultima
Underworld, I think. Around the time Wolfenstein 3D and DOOM was getting
popular. Heh, I remember reading these messages from ID Software saying they
would always be freeware, blah blah, but you know everyone succumbs to the
dark side, it's inevitable.

>
>> (sarcasm). Oddly enough I've been into computers before Windows even came
>> out. It was just DOS at the time. When I first got into computers, my
>> first
>
> I'm been using computer since I was 3 or 4 years old (1983/84). I
> remember my first computer; It was an IBM PC jr. with no hard drive and
> two 5.25 inch floppies. And yeah, it was DOS all the way. I used only
> DOS until I finally switched to Win95. I skipped 3.1 completely.
>

Unfortunately I had to use Windows 3.1, was a family computer at the time,
which means the parents were, ahem... too inept to use DOS, poor guys.

>> games were all Sierra games. King's Quest, Hero's Quest, Space Quest...
>> Leisure Suit Larry... haha! And then I recall somehow getting Ultima
>> Underworld: Stygian Abyss. Now, that game is what forever sparked my
>> undying
>
> Now you, sir, have an history of playing good games. I grew up on
> Sierra adventure games, text adventures and old-school RPGs, including
> Ultima Underwold (but the second one, I never played the first).

Sierra was the sheyot, they always made games that appealed to me. Quest for
Fire was like Aladdin, and I loved playing a Thief, heh. Sneaking around,
picking peoples' locks. Hm that may be the game that got me into playing
thief-types in the first place. I can't believe I missed Daggerfall. It may
be good now, but it would have been THE game for me, and then you have
Morrowind and now Oblivion. Elder Scrolls is the shiz-nyte...

>
>> passion for RPGs. Somehow I missed the other Elder Scrolls games, I guess
>> there was that period in between the last ten years, been moving around a
>> lot and just now got back into it. Just in time for Morrowind, Baldur's
>> Gate I & II, Icewind Dale... now Oblivion. Looking forward to that.
>
> Given games you have and do like(d), I'd like to once again recommend DF.
> It can be kind of a pain to run on some modern OSes, but you can DL DOSBox
> for free and it will play *any* old DOS program very nicely.

DOSBox, hm... wonder if I could find the Stygian Abyss and play that too?

>
> Arena is also available for free on the Elder Scrolls site. It's pretty
> similar to Ultima Underworld in interface and graphics, but of course it's
> a whole continent to explore instead of just dungeons. It too runs under
> DOSBox.

I'll have to try that. Wish they'd put Daggerfall there too, but it's
probably too large.

>
>> Well, I started playing Morrowind again recently, just got this feeling
>> to start playing again. Could have been subliminal messages in that
>> Oblivion movie I downloaded. I'm starting over as a high elven mage.
>> Something new for me. By the way, what kind of character do you like to
>> play the most? I
>
> I usually play a guy named Kage Gerric that varies from game to game, but
> in DF and MW he was mainly a stealthy sword specialist fighter with some
> magic skills for fun. Custom class, of course.

Kage Gerric. That sounds familiar somehow. Did you ever play any online
games?

>
> Currently I'm playing a female mage/fighter type that's kind of a
> artifact/ruins nut. She likes to explore Dwemer ruins and the like and is
> obsessed with their culture and technology. Kind of a medieval Laura
> Croft, I guess? She mainly prefers magic, but is quite able to defend
> herself with weapons. She's also the first character that actually
> finished the main quest in MW.

Did you use the better bodies mod to give her huge Laura Croft boobs? Haha,
just kidding. :-D

>
>> usually prefer Stealth--bows, sneaking, acrobatics, fun skills to have. I
>> thought I'd try something different though, but I will always like being
>> an assassin. Dark Elven assassin (they just look like the kill without it
>> being personal type).
>
> Sounds cool.

One thing I like about Morrowind is that no matter what class you play, you
are still permitted to raise any other skill. So my mage could still wear
armor and use a staff, if I want. There's this one tomb near Hla Oad that
has 3 Daedra in it. It's very close to that docked ship in the House Hlaalu
quest. I kill them all, step out, step back in and they respawn. Sometimes I
feel guilty, but it does supply unlimited amounts of daedra hearts and void
salts for my restore magicka potions.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.morrowind (More info?)

Simmie Simmerson wrote:
> Heh I got the Game Cube just so I could play the remake of Resident Evil.
> Actually I never played the old one cuz I always ended up buying Sega
> products. Then there was that very unpleasant thing that happened, the
> Saturn sunk, then the Dreamcast sunk, and now it seems Sega is dead, or
> owned by Nintendo. Not sure what happened. All I know is I wasted a whole
> lot of money, grrr... though I did enjoy House of the Dead 2 once I got a
> decent gun... no not really, the only gun I managed to get was a shotty
> piece of plastic pea-shooter. But I still beat the game! Oh yeah...

Sega is still around, they just do software only now--no hardware. And
yeah, Resident Evil is great. I have RE0, REmake, RE:CVX and RE4. I've
always been a Nintendo fan, but during the N64/PS/DC era I was PC only
and missed out on quite a few games because I didn't own any recent
consoles.

> I haven't used Linux since my Mudding days. Ever do that? Ah those were the
> days. Got into MUDs around the same time I got my hands on Ultima
> Underworld, I think. Around the time Wolfenstein 3D and DOOM was getting
> popular. Heh, I remember reading these messages from ID Software saying they
> would always be freeware, blah blah, but you know everyone succumbs to the
> dark side, it's inevitable.

Yup, I used to MUD obsessively, even ran a few (CircleMUDs mainly). I'm
currently writing one from scratch.

Wolf3D and Doom were never freeware, they were shareware. I wish there
were still shareware games, because they were cool. I remember scouring
BBSs and stuff for new shareware games I'd never played. You could try
them out and if you liked them, send $15 or so to the author and get the
full version. Those were the days.

> Sierra was the sheyot, they always made games that appealed to me. Quest for
> Fire was like Aladdin, and I loved playing a Thief, heh. Sneaking around,
> picking peoples' locks. Hm that may be the game that got me into playing
> thief-types in the first place. I can't believe I missed Daggerfall. It may
> be good now, but it would have been THE game for me, and then you have
> Morrowind and now Oblivion. Elder Scrolls is the shiz-nyte...

Yup, Daggerfall completely got me obsessed with the ES series. I'm very
glad I picked it off the shelf and bought it that fateful day. I think
the lich or whatever it is on the front of the box caught my eye.

> DOSBox, hm... wonder if I could find the Stygian Abyss and play that too?

Most likely. I've been able to play all kinds of old DOS games. I can
play DF and Arena, System Shock, Rise of the Dragon, all kinds of old
games on DOSBox. You can get a lot of old games for free now, since
the're abandonware. Check out Home of the Underdogs for lots of games.

> I'll have to try that. Wish they'd put Daggerfall there too, but it's
> probably too large.

Yeah, maybe they will eventually, but it is pretty big. DF is still
available in some stores in the bargain bin and on Ebay. Fortunately I
still have mine, but I'd like to buy a backup, just in case. There is
usually discussion about obtaining and running DF and Arena on the
www.elderscrolls.com forums under "past games".

> Kage Gerric. That sounds familiar somehow. Did you ever play any online
> games?

Yeah, I played MUDs among other things.

> Did you use the better bodies mod to give her huge Laura Croft boobs? Haha,
> just kidding. :-D

Damn skippy, I did. Along with the ladies at the House of Earthly
Delights. I don't usually use non-official mods, but I feel that the
better bodies one looks a lot better and doesn't affect the gameplay at
all. The only other one I use is the Book Rotate one, since my
character is a compulsive book collector and has quite a library.

> One thing I like about Morrowind is that no matter what class you play, you
> are still permitted to raise any other skill. So my mage could still wear
> armor and use a staff, if I want. There's this one tomb near Hla Oad that
> has 3 Daedra in it. It's very close to that docked ship in the House Hlaalu
> quest. I kill them all, step out, step back in and they respawn. Sometimes I
> feel guilty, but it does supply unlimited amounts of daedra hearts and void
> salts for my restore magicka potions.

Yup, that's another great thing about the Elder Scrolls series is the
skill system. You can do anything you want with enough practice.
Actually, I don't think Arena was like this--it was more traditional in
its classes and levels, but DF is very much like MW except that you have
three groups of main skills in addition to misc skills. There are also
language skills, climbing skills, etc. Yup, you could climb in DF. You
could also customize your custom class a lot more. You could have weird
abilities and disadvantages and stuff like accelerated healing in
darkness, or inability to cast spells in sunlight, etc. And of course
you could be a vampire, werewolf, or wereboar as well, but you couldn't
start out that way, obviously.