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Take a gaming journey in time with a set of gems from Strategic Simulations brought back to you thanks to Forthright Entertainment:

Questron II (-20%)
Sword of Aragon (-20%)
Wizard's Crown (-20%)

Rediscover these timeless classics before 30th December 2021, 2 PM UTC, when their 20% discounts fade away.

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dtgreene: Is healing your party as annoying as it is in Pool of Radiance?
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Gudadantza: I you mean the lack of proper "fix" command, yes, it is the same but I don't know why the system is more straighfrward being even more complex. Anyway it has a button for eal everything or something like that, so i'd say it is a fix of some kind with the difference that it does spend energy used to cast spells, combat etc... It is not free.

Now you need to cure bleeding and wounds as different entities, not counting the classic poison. and every one has low, medium and hard levels. So in the last notes of the manual (manal not available in the GOG version, please OOG fix this) the developers encourage you to maintain in your eight people party at least two priests, healers and double classes everywhere. With priests the healing options in the camp menu are expansive, giving you more flexibility than in Pool of Radiance.

But basically the micromanaging, inventory, markets, trade and coins system is like a proto Pool of Radiance, but less polished. So if anybody loves that micro, will love the game the same as Pool of Radiance.

And the same with the combat system, but expanded and even more detailed. Facing Combat Based, Three or four types of attack, each one with its advantages and disadvantages depending the situation (attack, defensive attack, attack to kill, mark the target to attack later) three possitions (guard, stand, prone...) A system of a point person leading at the start of the combat to evade ambushes, to ambush or to detect the facing and the possition of the enemy.
And more. The options available in combat are very detailed.

For a 1985/86 game it was more tactically advanced than a lot of modern examples.

Greetings
It's not just the lack of a proper "fix" command; Pool of Radiance has other issues that contribute to it.

If using magic to heal:
* Cure light wounds is extremely weak. It only heals 1-8 HP, and it's quite possible that you might get only 1 HP. When fighter-types can realistically reach tue upper double digits, this is so weak it's practically 0.
* So, maybe try using a stronger healing spell? Except that you *can't*, as CLW is the *only* healing spell in the game.
* Now that you've cast the spell, getting it back isn't as simple as resting. No, you have to explicitly go and re-memorize the spell (side note: why should I have to memorize a spell more than once? Shouldn't "memorizing" mean learning the spell permanently? (33 D&D changed this to "prepare", which is a much better term for this)). Hence, this means more menuing.
* And that rest? No, you don't get a full heal. Rather, you get like 1 point of healing for your whole party.
* As a result, the fastest (real-time) way to heal your party is to rest for weeks at a time, and that's just ridiculous.

Even Wizardry, with its weak healing until MADI and its trap option of resting at the inn (except in the stables) was better than Pool of Radiance, because at least Wizardry would eventually give you a good healing spell; Pool of Radiance did not. (Then again, Wizardry 6 and 7 have major healing issues in the late game.)

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Gudadantza: Anyway it has a button for eal everything or something like that, so i'd say it is a fix of some kind with the difference that it does spend energy used to cast spells, combat etc... It is not free.
That's OK (assuming there's a way to reagain that energy in a reasonable amount of real-time, at least in a safe space). What's not OK is having to spend lots of real-time going through the cumbersome process of casting an absurdly weak healing spell because it's the only option, remembering to re-memorize the spell, and then resting to get the spell back.

There's a reason Dragon Quest (and Might & Magic) made it so that a single rest brings you back to full strength.
Post edited December 03, 2021 by dtgreene
Saw a few asking about Questron 1, found this link at GiantBomb that includes monster descriptions. Those were my favorite part since it was clear they got bored partway through and some of them are just hilarious :)

https://www.giantbomb.com/questron/3030-18491/

Pretty sure I still have my old manual from when I got Q2 for Amiga around in a box somewhere!
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Gudadantza: I you mean the lack of proper "fix" command, yes, it is the same but I don't know why the system is more straighfrward being even more complex. Anyway it has a button for eal everything or something like that, so i'd say it is a fix of some kind with the difference that it does spend energy used to cast spells, combat etc... It is not free.

Now you need to cure bleeding and wounds as different entities, not counting the classic poison. and every one has low, medium and hard levels. So in the last notes of the manual (manal not available in the GOG version, please OOG fix this) the developers encourage you to maintain in your eight people party at least two priests, healers and double classes everywhere. With priests the healing options in the camp menu are expansive, giving you more flexibility than in Pool of Radiance.

But basically the micromanaging, inventory, markets, trade and coins system is like a proto Pool of Radiance, but less polished. So if anybody loves that micro, will love the game the same as Pool of Radiance.

And the same with the combat system, but expanded and even more detailed. Facing Combat Based, Three or four types of attack, each one with its advantages and disadvantages depending the situation (attack, defensive attack, attack to kill, mark the target to attack later) three possitions (guard, stand, prone...) A system of a point person leading at the start of the combat to evade ambushes, to ambush or to detect the facing and the possition of the enemy.
And more. The options available in combat are very detailed.

For a 1985/86 game it was more tactically advanced than a lot of modern examples.

Greetings
avatar
dtgreene: It's not just the lack of a proper "fix" command; Pool of Radiance has other issues that contribute to it.

If using magic to heal:
* Cure light wounds is extremely weak. It only heals 1-8 HP, and it's quite possible that you might get only 1 HP. When fighter-types can realistically reach tue upper double digits, this is so weak it's practically 0.
* So, maybe try using a stronger healing spell? Except that you *can't*, as CLW is the *only* healing spell in the game.
* Now that you've cast the spell, getting it back isn't as simple as resting. No, you have to explicitly go and re-memorize the spell (side note: why should I have to memorize a spell more than once? Shouldn't "memorizing" mean learning the spell permanently? (33 D&D changed this to "prepare", which is a much better term for this)). Hence, this means more menuing.
* And that rest? No, you don't get a full heal. Rather, you get like 1 point of healing for your whole party.
* As a result, the fastest (real-time) way to heal your party is to rest for weeks at a time, and that's just ridiculous.

Even Wizardry, with its weak healing until MADI and its trap option of resting at the inn (except in the stables) was better than Pool of Radiance, because at least Wizardry would eventually give you a good healing spell; Pool of Radiance did not. (Then again, Wizardry 6 and 7 have major healing issues in the late game.)

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Gudadantza: Anyway it has a button for eal everything or something like that, so i'd say it is a fix of some kind with the difference that it does spend energy used to cast spells, combat etc... It is not free.
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dtgreene: That's OK (assuming there's a way to reagain that energy in a reasonable amount of real-time, at least in a safe space). What's not OK is having to spend lots of real-time going through the cumbersome process of casting an absurdly weak healing spell because it's the only option, remembering to re-memorize the spell, and then resting to get the spell back.

There's a reason Dragon Quest (and Might & Magic) made it so that a single rest brings you back to full strength.
The game is not based in D&D Rules. It is about spell difficult levels and chance of casting.

My guessing is that in Pool of Radiance they simplified and abandoned some things, specially in the combat system, and added different variables in other areas, probably to fit their D&D interpretation of the rules.

For example In Wizard's Crown with its expanded healing and wounds system if you heal somebody it is healed. And if you rest in a temple just entering and exiting your Karma points should be restored. At least it is the experience at he beginning of the game.
The time passes apparently, but it seems to be not really relevant.

Anyway it has its complexities. The game have its details and features to be learnt, indeed.
Post edited December 03, 2021 by Gudadantza
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dtgreene: * As a result, the fastest (real-time) way to heal your party is to rest for weeks at a time, and that's just ridiculous.
I don't think I ever used this. Even if cure light wounds doesn't heal that much at a time, the characters don't have many HPs during most of the game anyway, so two clerics handle the job just fine. Also I think one can heal in temples, although that's mainly relevant early in the game when money is scarce.
Post edited December 03, 2021 by igrok
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GOG.com: ...
I assume nobody will see this, but Questron II doesn't have boxart in the catalogue. Scroll down here:

[url=https://www.gog.com/games?limit=48&order=desc:bestselling&page=1]https://www.gog.com/games?limit=48&order=desc:bestselling&page=1[/url]
Post edited December 04, 2021 by tfishell
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GOG.com: ...
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tfishell: I assume nobody will see this, but Questron II doesn't have boxart in the catalogue. Scroll down here:

[url=https://www.gog.com/games?limit=48&order=desc:bestselling&page=1]https://www.gog.com/games?limit=48&order=desc:bestselling&page=1[/url]
Erm...
Attachments:
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tfishell: I assume nobody will see this, but Questron II doesn't have boxart in the catalogue. Scroll down here:

[url=https://www.gog.com/games?limit=48&order=desc:bestselling&page=1]https://www.gog.com/games?limit=48&order=desc:bestselling&page=1[/url]
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BreOl72: Erm...
it must just be in "list" mode.
Attachments:
questron.png (71 Kb)
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BreOl72: Erm...
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tfishell: it must just be in "list" mode.
Correct. I'm experiencing the same issue. Also only on List mode only.
Please fix this, GOG.
Post edited December 05, 2021 by karnak1
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tfishell: it must just be in "list" mode.
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karnak1: Correct. I'm experiencing the same issue. Also only on List mode only.
Please fix this, GOG.
Soon®
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Gudadantza: The apple II version does not look better at all, maybe the Commodore 64 and Amiga do. But the PC version is much better considering that the game had to switch discs and all these shit. A pain. Probably even for the Amiga version...
CGA graphics offered 300x200 resolution with 4 colours. Apple ][ hi-res offered 280x192 resolution with 6 colours (though with some restrictions - each 7x1 scanline segment could either have black, white, green and violet or black, white, orange and blue). So while the difference isn't huge, I would certainly argue that the Apple version looked better (though the Atari ST seems to have had the best graphics) - and Wizard's Crown on the Apple had an option to use 2 disk drives, so no disk swapping.

The biggest argument for the Apple (and C64) versions is that the sequel, The Eternal Dagger, was available too.

While having these games available certainly complies with GOG's original vision, the price seems ridiculous for games of this vintage. They should be in the $1-2 range at most - particularly since you can get them for free courtesy of the Internet Archive.
So… am I the only one who noticed that the store page descriptions for Questron II and Sword of Aragon have been copied from Underdogs? XD

(I didn't memorise her reviews, haha. But the writing style immediately rang a bell.)
Post edited January 07, 2022 by Anamon