DM spice alert

[One_With_Nature]

I always though this was kind of done as a general rule, but could we recieve some kind of warning or alert if we're going to be spiced particularly on tough encounters. My most recent issue was on Kants where the boss was possessed and wiped most of the party with zero warning.

[Bobbybrown]

I know what you mean, I have had a few unpleasant spicing too, some of which a time ago destroyed all the loot, in 2 different quests >.>.

[SecretRangerGirl]

What would you do ICly different if you were OOCly warned?

[Ebok]

Likely be more attentive. >_>

[NetherGonnaLetYouDown]

The fight really was not that different from all the times it's been witnessed. If you ask me, I was not even sure if it was controlled by AI or DM, and it made little difference in that situation, because the guy does everything he did all normally.

[One_With_Nature]

DM controlled and normal AI is very different and given the power of that npc a curteous warning that it was possessed would have been nice. I won't discuss specifics of that fight but there are some major factors that come into play.

[BrittanyPanthas]

I'm not really a fan of alerting people that they're being spiced.  The fact that you act differently when you know there's someone up there controlling them compared to just mechanically crushing a quest you've memorized and mastered is comparable to metagaming, at least in my eyes.  I'd much prefer to reward people who just roll with it, and manage to overcome without foreknowledge.

Look at it this way.  It'd be like having the person who is about to PvP you alert you he's going to do it and ask permission before attacking.  Not quite on that scale perhaps as I'm not attempting to kill you when I spice, just challenge you, but its still something to think about it.

I'll let the other DMs weigh in on it, but that's my own personal viewpoint. My views don't necessarily reflect the collective opinion of the staff, or the rules, so don't take it as such.

[Big Orc Man]

I wasn't there, but out of curiosity, why are you so convinced that the DM possession was the key thing that crushed the party?

I've possessed Kant before and, often, doing so actually makes him -easier- because I can conveniently steer him towards the exploding pillars.

The standard Kant obliterates folks a-plenty.

[Spiffy Has]

Doesn't feel necessary to me.

[Diz-e]

I'm not really a fan of alerting people that they're being spiced.

I'm gonna side with Alyssara and BoM on this one. However, a good DM lets you know in very subtle ways that they're present. It's a technique I've seen that really makes me get ready to soil myself. Such things as the silent NPC suddenly giving emotes, or enemies giving dialogue that is way beyond scripted, etc etc are enough. I love that!

Stay on your toes and pay attention, and be thankful that your mindless grind is now a personal ass-kicking! Thank you DMs for keepin it immersive.

Sry OWN.

[Heavyfog]

Spice ROCKS, even if it kills you... :twisted:

[BrittanyPanthas]

Just to clarify though. If I intend the spice to be an overwhelming potentially party wiping challenge I typically give IC clues. But I don't do this unless they're players I respect, who respect me and the challenge they're receiving and are willing to use OMG supplies beyond the minimum to win. If they win their reward is typically amazing.

[wcsherry]

Sometimes the AI just runs completely wild and pwns your world at any rate lol. I've had it happen to me multiple times as a player.

[Anton]

The AI has been improved drastically in some cases from how it originally was. It could be much like what Wcsherry has stated.

[Cerberus]

In my experience it's not the boss possessions that effect my playing reaction. But the smaller NPC possessions that a bit of warning would be nice. As a for instance; (way back when) I once killed an ice mephit that flew up behind my PC unexpectedly. Only to find out later, when the party was kinda stumped as to what was happening, that the imp was going to give us a clue but I killed it before it could really talk.

The Minthrilsouls rocked by the way. Moral of the story; You shouldn't sneak up on a dwarf without warning.  ;)