After some lively discussion on Discord, it was recommended that I post this suggestion request on the forum.
So, now I have a forum account! I feel like I'm really part of the family now.
I suggest an alternative debuff on the animal companions for Druids & Rangers. (Familiars as well, assuming they currently work on the same system.
I also want to state that I learned information and gained insight about this specific feature; previously being a character XP loss in earlier iterations etc. from the great players & DMs who form the Discord community.
Everything I learned from these conversations indicates that this has been something the module dev's have been progressively iterating on to achieve the proper balance, and I appreciate the effort and nuance involved.
No more icing; get to the cake! I present an alternative "injury path" below followed by brief reasoning.
Currently -
1st death:24 hours real time respawn timer to summon the creature.
Suggested change-
Injury & Recovery
-1st death: "Wounded": Recall the companion after a rest per standard, but it has a penalty to CON reducing it 1/2 HP. Lasts 2 hours.
-2nd death: "Badly Wounded": As above & is also "Slowed". Lasts 5 hours.
-3rd death: "Severely Wounded": recall after 1 real hour & creature has 1HP, Slowed and deals 0 damage. Will not engage in combat even if attacked or commanded to attack. lasts 8 hours.
-4th death: "Gravely Wounded": 24 hour respawn (as current).
[Optional: Once per Injury Stage, the companion can be Tended. A character with at least 1 base-rank in Heal can make a Heal skill check with increased DC for each stage of injury. If the character has at least 1 base-rank in both Heal & Animal Empathy, they can add the Animal Empathy skill total as a bonus to the roll.
Success reduces the duration of the penalty by 1/2 the original duration for that stage. Any character can make this Heal check. Failure reduces the duration by 15 minutes per stage of the Injury (15/23/45). Gravely Wounded companions cannot be Tended and must hibernate until fully recovered.]
Instead of a prohibitively long cool down to respawn a "knocked out" companion, I propose a series of debilities leading to a "doom state" threshold.
During these stages, the player now has to actively decide how to use the minion:
-dismiss it to "rest,"
- engage with some skills to reduce the cooldown,
-avoid entering combat areas (causing the player to go decide if they want to engage in crafting, socialization etc.)
-continue trying to fight with the companion
The latter, most reckless option is a foregone conclusion of the companion dying again; more quickly, while being less effective in the meantime, all the while having longer cool-downs in between until reaching the 24-hour mark. Note that the amount of time between each recalling is progressively longer so a player who might simply want an "hp sponge" (you monster) gets less of what they're after while a player who wants a companion gets more game time with the companion; while the latter also has an opportunity to enjoy the class fantasy even more from the built-in immersion of actually caring for the animal.
The intention behind my suggestion is, obviously, for the ability to RP and utilize the companion during the 24-hour window it is currently unavailable.
Placing debilities on the pet also causes a visceral reaction - seeing a once-dignified cheetah reduced to limping along at a walk gives a sense of feedback that "my pet is hurt and needs help!" rather than it becoming a non-entity in practical terms; an off-screen character. In a phrase: higher stakes.
Having it become non-existent for an entire day of play, while preventing players from exploiting the minion for mechanical purposes, also punishes people for "playing wrong" by putting them in "time-out" from using a core feature of the class fantasy that resulted in the companion being reduced to 0 hp.
notes:
1. This idea is intended originally just for Druid and Ranger companions, though it could conceivably apply to the Houndmaster Fighter perk or Familiars as well, with the exception that instead of being "Gravely Wounded", the dog is simply dead and the next recall will be a new puppy. Companions are typically magical in nature and are watching you with ill-intent while you sleep, anyway.
2. The idea of the Optional Skill challenge to "Tend" to the companion was inspired by a Discord user who mentioned how one could or should open an in-game Veterinary Clinic to care for the wounded animals. Thus, a character with both high Animal Empathy and Heal skills will have the greatest chance of success at maximally reducing the cooldown penalty. This is most likely to be a Druid, followed by a Ranger. A Houndmaster is unlikely to have the skills to succeed at the Skill Challenge. The obvious remedy: less skilled characters must now seek out one who specializes in these skills (AKA "the VET") which creates further opportunities for trade, socialization, and story-telling.
3. The numbers and mechanics of this are all theoretical as I have no knowledge of working in the NWN game engine. I present them and the slightly more involved Optional: Companion Tending tool as an option because I don't believe in presenting what I think is a problem without offering a solution. If it gives the dev & DM team inspiration, options or ideas for this or some future endeavor, then I consider the time spent in writing it a success.
4. Even if there is no change, for whatever myriad reasons, it was at least fun to come with the idea! I might steal it for myself for some undreamt-RPG about Dr. Doolittle.
So, now I have a forum account! I feel like I'm really part of the family now.
I suggest an alternative debuff on the animal companions for Druids & Rangers. (Familiars as well, assuming they currently work on the same system.
I also want to state that I learned information and gained insight about this specific feature; previously being a character XP loss in earlier iterations etc. from the great players & DMs who form the Discord community.
Everything I learned from these conversations indicates that this has been something the module dev's have been progressively iterating on to achieve the proper balance, and I appreciate the effort and nuance involved.
No more icing; get to the cake! I present an alternative "injury path" below followed by brief reasoning.
Currently -
1st death:24 hours real time respawn timer to summon the creature.
Suggested change-
Injury & Recovery
-1st death: "Wounded": Recall the companion after a rest per standard, but it has a penalty to CON reducing it 1/2 HP. Lasts 2 hours.
-2nd death: "Badly Wounded": As above & is also "Slowed". Lasts 5 hours.
-3rd death: "Severely Wounded": recall after 1 real hour & creature has 1HP, Slowed and deals 0 damage. Will not engage in combat even if attacked or commanded to attack. lasts 8 hours.
-4th death: "Gravely Wounded": 24 hour respawn (as current).
[Optional: Once per Injury Stage, the companion can be Tended. A character with at least 1 base-rank in Heal can make a Heal skill check with increased DC for each stage of injury. If the character has at least 1 base-rank in both Heal & Animal Empathy, they can add the Animal Empathy skill total as a bonus to the roll.
Success reduces the duration of the penalty by 1/2 the original duration for that stage. Any character can make this Heal check. Failure reduces the duration by 15 minutes per stage of the Injury (15/23/45). Gravely Wounded companions cannot be Tended and must hibernate until fully recovered.]
Instead of a prohibitively long cool down to respawn a "knocked out" companion, I propose a series of debilities leading to a "doom state" threshold.
During these stages, the player now has to actively decide how to use the minion:
-dismiss it to "rest,"
- engage with some skills to reduce the cooldown,
-avoid entering combat areas (causing the player to go decide if they want to engage in crafting, socialization etc.)
-continue trying to fight with the companion
The latter, most reckless option is a foregone conclusion of the companion dying again; more quickly, while being less effective in the meantime, all the while having longer cool-downs in between until reaching the 24-hour mark. Note that the amount of time between each recalling is progressively longer so a player who might simply want an "hp sponge" (you monster) gets less of what they're after while a player who wants a companion gets more game time with the companion; while the latter also has an opportunity to enjoy the class fantasy even more from the built-in immersion of actually caring for the animal.
The intention behind my suggestion is, obviously, for the ability to RP and utilize the companion during the 24-hour window it is currently unavailable.
Placing debilities on the pet also causes a visceral reaction - seeing a once-dignified cheetah reduced to limping along at a walk gives a sense of feedback that "my pet is hurt and needs help!" rather than it becoming a non-entity in practical terms; an off-screen character. In a phrase: higher stakes.
Having it become non-existent for an entire day of play, while preventing players from exploiting the minion for mechanical purposes, also punishes people for "playing wrong" by putting them in "time-out" from using a core feature of the class fantasy that resulted in the companion being reduced to 0 hp.
notes:
1. This idea is intended originally just for Druid and Ranger companions, though it could conceivably apply to the Houndmaster Fighter perk or Familiars as well, with the exception that instead of being "Gravely Wounded", the dog is simply dead and the next recall will be a new puppy. Companions are typically magical in nature and are watching you with ill-intent while you sleep, anyway.
2. The idea of the Optional Skill challenge to "Tend" to the companion was inspired by a Discord user who mentioned how one could or should open an in-game Veterinary Clinic to care for the wounded animals. Thus, a character with both high Animal Empathy and Heal skills will have the greatest chance of success at maximally reducing the cooldown penalty. This is most likely to be a Druid, followed by a Ranger. A Houndmaster is unlikely to have the skills to succeed at the Skill Challenge. The obvious remedy: less skilled characters must now seek out one who specializes in these skills (AKA "the VET") which creates further opportunities for trade, socialization, and story-telling.
3. The numbers and mechanics of this are all theoretical as I have no knowledge of working in the NWN game engine. I present them and the slightly more involved Optional: Companion Tending tool as an option because I don't believe in presenting what I think is a problem without offering a solution. If it gives the dev & DM team inspiration, options or ideas for this or some future endeavor, then I consider the time spent in writing it a success.
4. Even if there is no change, for whatever myriad reasons, it was at least fun to come with the idea! I might steal it for myself for some undreamt-RPG about Dr. Doolittle.