What's the point of HOF in Black Isle's view?

Remove all ads!

Is it an extreme mode intended to push powergaming, or at least hyper careful planning which borders on powergaming? Or maybe it was intended to have parties rebuffed at every pull (well, that's what happens...) and then mass resurrections because it was actually planned to have a player body count?

I remember HOF from IWD1 and it wasn't so difficult. I think it was mainly about enemy hp skyrocketing, which ate more into your time than lifebar. Like this, it's kind of discouraging having to throw away your RP parties which didn't suck after all... but can't make the jump.

And on the pragmatic side, I've noticed the "Suppress Extra Difficulty Damage" option in the .ini as well, but goblins in targos still seem to hit like trucks. Cry moar!

 

There was the super roleplay IE game (Torment) the balanced series (BG) and the hack and slash series (IWD) HoF was popular in Heart of Winter with its added challenge and 'secret' items dotted around, I think there would have been disappointment if it did not appear in the sequal. I know I enjoy it, and I roleplay... and run away and die a lot

 

HoF mode didn't add extra items in HoW, the extra HoF items were introduced in IWD2.

Consider HoF mode as extra challenge and a way to reach high levels legally for powergamers. Just a bonus for those who like it very hard. I'm sure your RP party can beat HoF mode.

The game is perfectly balanced for roleplaying at normal or easy difficulty depending on your skill. No metagaming or cheese abusing required like in the BG games.

 

HoW HoF added some rare drops when you killed monsters. I remember being incredibly surprised by the find but remember it clearly nontheless. (A fiery spear in particular was the first one I found - In the prologue on one of the Orc Shamans.)

 

Those game modes make things more epic!

 

It's not really all that different from having both Nightmare AND Hell difficulty modes for Diablo. Bigger, badder monster with better loot so that you get a better excuse to replay it. Compared to just doing another playthrough in Normal mode, that is.

 

I like it because it makes familiar battles (from normal mode) a lot more challenging. What I mean, is that halfhearted, casual, stingy, inefficient and poorly devised tactics which may have got you by in normal mode, won't do for the challenges in HoF. Which means you need to really think about things:
-Is it most important to immobilize the enemy warriors or clerics first?
-Is my buff effective for protecting from my opponent's main damage type?
-What will the weakest saving throw of this group of enemies be?
-Am I strong enough to take them on in melee, or should I avoid it?
-Maybe I should do something else with my bombardier other than evocation, because it's not doing enough damage...
etcetera. I liked it. It forced me to become well-acquainted with the game mechanics.

 

Must be mod related. In unmodded IWD you get the same random drops both at normal and HoF mode and definitely no fiery spear in the prologue (there's a chance to get a fire dagger).

 

It gives us power gamers a challenge.

 

In before the obvious: Whoever comes with the idea that HoF mode "isn't really roleplaying" should be humiliated in public. It never was and never will be what HoF mode is for. It's for putting your newly minted level 16-17 characters from normal mode playthough (or, gasp, fresh level 1 newbies) in for a world of hurt just to see if they can do it.

Considering there's no "auto-release 10+ layers of invincibility on sight with instant sequencers and start spewing instant death" enhanced enemies like in some of the more difficult mods for Baldur's Gate series, HOF is still easymode for a seasoned powergamer. But it's a nice playground mode setting nevertheless.