Baldur's Gate : The Sword Coast Chronicles : NWN2 Persistent World

Should we start an "UD players, what are your playtimes?" thread?

Nice, more random events in the UD would be great. Over the year and slightly beyond, I've only been apart of 3 "real" UD events. Sure, maybe I missed some, but compared to the surface and their every-other-day events, that's saying something.

Also, playing an UD character can be hard sometimes when searching out non-drow related RP, so it shouldn't be unusual to see UD char's on the surface due to RP. Yesterday, while waiting for a contact on the surface, my character was ninja teleported from the surface and back to the UD. At the time, the UD was empty, so I logged.

I was playing a drow wizard. He is level 9 now, was halfway to 10 until a series of unfortunate deaths brought him back down to 55k xp. Since this misfortune I haven't played him.

I was able to play with an orc cleric for awhile, but he seems to have quit. Since then UD players are rare, and not near my level, and the DM's are busy running things on the surface.

Its not easy soloing as a mage, probably isn't for any low hitpoint class. Especially with an ECL +2, you have to grind so much longer. And let's be honest, the only option for a new player in the UD is to grind solo.

The traps and monsters are just lethal, far more so than their CR justifies. The escaped slaves, a seemingly level 1 or 2 area, have will saves of +8, and can kill with one blow. It doesn't get easier: hard hitting myconids with low ACs and great spot checks, displacer beasts with 50 % concealment. Then you get the hasted goblins that explode, taking out your summons, or you. Etc. etc.

Some of the traps though: they can spawn right under your feet. Happened a few times to me, hit me for 30 damage (my mage has less than 60) and paralyzed me. My other favorite trap: open a chest that doesn't appear trapped and it is, failed the fortitude save (of course, he's a mage) and he gets hit with constitution poison, dropping it by 8 points (making his con 2). Another trip to Fugue and another big xp hit.

It's just not fun dying all the time and actually losing more xp than I gain in the Underdark.

Huge difference when I gave up on the UD and went to the surface. I've died 46 times with my mage in the UD. On the surface with my warrior, who actually made it to level 10, I've died a total of 6 times (I think most of those six deaths there was someone around to get me raised too, which almost never happens in the UD). I've actually been apart of events on the surface, while never in the UD. I've made plenty of friends on the surface, I had one friend in the UD that quit.

To sum it up: it feels punishing to play in the UD and rewarding to play on the surface. That's my experience, take it as you will. In my opinion, the UD really could use some overhauling of the existing lower level areas if you want to have people stick around.

Dont compare apples and nuts.

Start off a fighter in the ud, solo a wizard at lv 1 in the graveyard. Think your thesis would change? I do.

The only mechanical difference between a surface toon and a ud toon is that a ud toon has to be played to its strengths at lv1 and beyond. Anyone starting of as a drow with low hitpoints isnt exactly making its life easy due to the ecl +2.

But any class can solo the Ud.

It's not easy to start solo in the UD, but it is doable if you do it right. I was able to solo the escaped slaves with a lvl 1 wizard. But I wouldn't recommend it.
The myconids might be very hard for any character below lvl 3.
And a fighter at the surface gets a very easy start at the surface.

But all in all, I think as well that the UD must be very frustrating for new players there, that have no idea where to start.

Somehow I got a drow to level 30 without RCR whitin two months or so, and I can't do a damn on the surface.

There's places in the UD that are really good for warriors who knows how to pump their AC up with UMD.

The goblins at around level 5-6 especially. The little goblins, then the flaming goblins until level 12. After that, the duergars at the mines until level 20.

I don't know why but everything went real fast there for me. On the surface I somehow have troubles to get past level 10. I'm not playing a fighter build though, might be why.

How about to get to 5? yet alone 3? I just had my first rp, xp, after 2 weeks of being in the ud, not because I do not rp, NO ONE TO RP with. fishing ? or more quest? just to get to 3 or so?

Teleporting wizard is gone?

To get to 3 I went to the slaves, did the quests. Got some buffs from higher levels hanging out in Sshamath, though. It didn't take so long.

beating a dead horse or dead slave.. here, but .. "got buffs from higher levels" you need higher levels to be on for those buffs.

There's often people in the Glouras.

Passiflora wrote:There's often people in the Glouras.

Not during my playing times. I would just take on the sewers or the things in Varralla's passage to advance in some levels. Even if the XP aren't that great, they are still XP. And if you don't die, it will sum up.

Come on people...

1. Make a shit character on the surface. Level it to 8 in a matter of two hours of quests and grinding or until reset.

2. RCR stupid non-ECL character to level 4 ECL +2 drow.

3. Profit.

That's nearly 4 levels of an ECL +2 race for only 2-4 hours of work on the surface. If you really want to be lazy and not subject yourself to the challenges of leveling in the UD at lvl 1. Some think it is a badge of honor, but if your not a sadist/elitist you have options.

TheVoid wrote: 1. Make a (#2) character on the surface. Level it to 8 in a matter of two hours of quests and grinding or until reset.

Oh come on. Took me four months to get to level 7 on surface with Cedric! ..And my other characters ain't there yet!

1. Make a (#2) character on the surface. Level it to 8 in a matter of two hours of quests and grinding or until reset.

2. RCR stupid non-ECL character to level 4 ECL +2 drow.

3. Profit.

That's nearly 4 levels of an ECL +2 race for only 2-4 hours of work on the surface. If you really want to be lazy and not subject yourself to the challenges of leveling in the UD at lvl 1. Some think it is a badge of honor, but if your not a sadist/elitist you have options.

Pardon me, I'm new here, but doesn't the idea that creating a Surface character and grinding them for two hours to bypass a perceived problem that UD players face just kind of point out how big that perceived problem is? Two hours for any surface character translates to potentially days for an Underdark character to gain the same amount of experience. No wait, actually the surfacer has managed to accrue twice the experience count, so bump up the UD time from a couple days to maybe a week. If they're determined/dogged/a few other D words enough to keep playing through all the frustration of dying repeatedly to mobs that give them somewhere between 5-15 XP per kill.

I got lucky. A nice level 10 player happened to be on (and it was pretty much me and them in the UD, no one else at the time) and they took me on a trip to those Goblin Sappers and got me 60+ XP per kill until I popped level 2. Then just today I managed to get a group of 4 going and we went and did some killing of everything we came across for an hour or so and got me to level 3.

Not everyone is so lucky on finding partners, and trying to solo beetles for 16 xp a kill and having to run every time an adult beetle spawns or you die outright sucks.


All that above is simply to point out that from a newbie's perspective; The UD is frustrating to start a character in.

I feel it could be easily remedied. I noticed that there is a guide for leveling for surfacer characters. Couldn't someone make one for the UD? (I don't know enough yet or I would)

No, it solves the problem of ecl it has nothing to do with the environment it's the same CR as the surface. Take any 1at level surface toon down there with no ecl and it will level just.as fast than on the surface.

It's the ecl that makes it impossible and a very long grind to level. Ecl basically prolongs the grind and heightens the rage when you get pwnd, it's basically.the noob killer of the ud.

Ecl is not our problem.