Gnoll race questions

Elysian_Guardian · Post by **Elysian_Guardian** » Sun Jul 18, 2004 11:07 pm

When my application is finally accepted, i plan on playing as a gnoll...i've always wanted to play servervault non-player races, and this is great that things such as gnolls and goblins are offered. Considering i've read everything i can about most of the monster from v3.0 and v3.5, i hope i'm well prepared for the experience.

however - i have a question regarding the gnoll race. i read on one of these threads that certain custom races do not use character models, and use the typical NwN monster models - therefore armor does not show up on them.
The ones listed were orc, lizardman, kobold, etc. but there was NO mention of gnolls, which leads me to believe that gnolls use a special character model from a hak instead of the monster model.

Is this the case? will armor and helmets show up on gnolls? that'd be spectacular to see, but i'm really not sure if its the case....

if its not the case, and the monster models are used and the 'gnoll' race was left off the list of employed monster models - which gnoll model is used? the gnoll shaman or the gnoll ranger?

Jordicus · Post by **Jordicus** » Sun Jul 18, 2004 11:15 pm

currently gnolls have static models. I believe with our next update they will have dynamic models, but I would assume only for new characters. may be able to convert old ones over though, but not sure.

Elysian_Guardian · Post by **Elysian_Guardian** » Sun Jul 18, 2004 11:18 pm

Jordicus wrote:currently gnolls have static models. I believe with our next update they will have dynamic models, but I would assume only for new characters. may be able to convert old ones over though, but not sure.

fair enough. when is the next update planned, or is there even an ETA for it? if its not too far off, i may start a temporary RP character just to get a feel for the server when my application is accepted(i'm starting to get worried, it seems like its been a while since i sent it in, but in actuality its only been 36 hours

)
if a conversion is possible, would it be done by me in-game, or would a staff member have to do it manually?

EDIT:

oh ya, and which static model is currently used? gnoll shaman, or regular gnoll(ranger)?

BlueCougar · Post by **BlueCougar** » Sun Jul 18, 2004 11:27 pm

I would be interested to know more about this as well. I've got a few months in now in a Gnoll character and actually thought it would be included in the update with dynamic models only without the custom choices. It would be a shame to have to abandon such a good character that has made alot of contacts and connections just to have him match the "new" Gnolls"...but it can be done I guess...or just remake him and start all over again with the same contacts, would that be appropriate?

Jordicus · Post by **Jordicus** » Sun Jul 18, 2004 11:46 pm

Elysian_Guardian wrote:if a conversion is possible, would it be done by me in-game, or would a staff member have to do it manually?

IF we decide to do it, it would have to be done by a Team member

Elysian_Guardian wrote:oh ya, and which static model is currently used? gnoll shaman, or regular gnoll(ranger)?

Ranger

Gimlor · Post by **Gimlor** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 12:00 am

The next update will have dynamic models for the non standard races. These will most likely be new Monster models. I "could" make it so that the Gnolls, Lizerdmen etc are overwritten with the new dynamic models, but this would most likely but a huge burden on the team. The update will come when Avlis updates to 1.63

Sunscream · Post by **Sunscream** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 12:30 am

Will robes show up fine on the new dynamic models?

Psyco · Post by **Psyco** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 12:31 am

and 1.63 is currently in internal testing, after it has got through that it will go to a public beta, then once it has made its way through that it will be released.

Once it has been released it is normally a few weeks or so before Avlis/CoPaP updates, this time is used for working out what the patch will break so that there are as few problems as possible once it does go in.

Gimlor · Post by **Gimlor** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 1:14 am

Sunscream wrote:Will robes show up fine on the new dynamic models?

Im looking into that. At this time, probably not. we will have to see

BlueCougar · Post by **BlueCougar** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 2:37 am

Is there anyway to find out how many active Gnoll PC's there currently are? I've only run into 3 and one of them happened to be a changling that copied my form.

Elysian_Guardian · Post by **Elysian_Guardian** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 11:36 pm

*laughs*

well, i get my application accepted right before i have to go out of town...i finall get back in town about 30 minutes ago, and log in to make my gnoll.
when i make him, something doesnt seem right...and then i realize that the stat adjustments listed are INCLUDING those given by the half-orc race. the -2 INT and CHA, and 2 of the STR are already taken into account...

so i had overadjusted for the stats and had a way too balanced(13 to each stat, practically) gnoll.

i try to relog to make a new one, one who's more combat oriented, and voila! LeOr is down.

anyway, i thought i'd post it here that the stat listings need to make newbies aware that they dont take the initial race bonuses into account.
if you make a gnoll - half orc race - expect only +2 STR, and +2 CON...and the gnoll bonus feats.
i'm assuming the same is the case with the other subraces, so if its possible, can a moderator edit the non-standard race post to reflect this?
thanks, and i look forward to roleplaying on the CoPaP servers.

Xiaou · Post by **Xiaou** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 11:58 pm

With a board namre like that you should so be playing a half-nymph(?) champion of O'ma

Elysian_Guardian · Post by **Elysian_Guardian** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 3:08 pm

heh. i've had this account name for a while, it was from my first non-standard raced character - an ursinal(they're bearlike celestials, scholars mostly).
the word 'nymph' kinda makes me move away from it though. sounds like an invitation to cyber.

Kroax · Post by **Kroax** » Mon Sep 13, 2004 8:13 am

Are there any updates on this subject?

Will the ones who created a gnoll before the update get dynamic models?

Are there any screenshots of the new models?

Will we get robes?

When will the update be?
Please don't kill me.

Nzifklm · Post by **Nzifklm** » Tue Sep 14, 2004 12:59 am

As long as we're asking about dynamic models, will all the custom races be getting them? It could be said that I'm taking advantage of an exploit with my Half-Ogre Ranger dual-wielding but only one weapon being shown...but there is nothing i can do about this

Fuzz · Post by **Fuzz** » Tue Sep 14, 2004 1:35 am

[StrongBad Voice]
I think they gonna look-a something like-a thise...
[/StrongBad Voice]

Edit: Forum formatting be damned!

Nzifklm · Post by **Nzifklm** » Tue Sep 14, 2004 2:05 am

OOH OOH WHEN WHEN WHEN? heh

Those look very very nice...now if something similar could be done for lizardmen i would be a very happy reptile

Drysh · Post by **Drysh** » Thu Nov 25, 2004 10:22 pm

Gimlor wrote:The next update will have dynamic models for the non standard races. These will most likely be new Monster models. I "could" make it so that the Gnolls, Lizerdmen etc are overwritten with the new dynamic models, but this would most likely but a huge burden on the team. The update will come when Avlis updates to 1.63

Is it working now? Since the custom character creator is not working it's not possible to see if there is a new model for them. Do you have any plans to update the old characters with dynamic models?

Wokman · Post by **Wokman** » Thu Nov 25, 2004 11:27 pm

They look awesome those pic's, I want one!

Wok.

Salas · Post by **Salas** » Tue Jan 04, 2005 8:32 pm

Fuzz.

Hyperlink.

Drysh · Post by **Drysh** » Sat Jan 08, 2005 10:47 pm

Orleron,
These are some questions and suggestions for the gnoll race. Use what you want. If you think I'm out of track here, please tell me (and use the rule-0 of RPG: the DM is always right).
Thanks for the recent posts describing each race. They are great!

____________________________________________________________

I guess someone casted confusion on me. I'll try to put all the information together, and the questions at the end.

From the Avlis Player Guide, about goblins, kobolds, & gnolls:
These races are sometimes called the lesser evil humanoids. They form societies and tribes, but have yet in the history of Avlis to be able to found their own nations.
All three of these races are used as slaves by the lizardmen of Drotid. Goblins, kobolds and gnolls are also populous in the Orc nations of Brekon and Dubunat, but
they can be found all over Avlis. Goblins, kobolds and gnolls are all available as custom PC races.

- Xenon is CE.
- Maleki is CE.

- Gnoll's favorite class is ranger.

- The gods that have druids are: O'Ma, Dru'El, Pelar, Dre'Ana, Titanea, Dagath, Skern, and Verossa.

Orleron's post about gnolls says:
(...) Gnolls tend to be lawful. (...)
Religion: Gnolls think little about religion unless something happens that demonstrates its power to them. For the most part, they venerate the pack leader
who controls everything in their lives. They are not known to have ties to Maleki or Xenon per se, but will worship these gods if given reason to.

Questions & Suggestions:

- Aren't there more gnolls in Drotid then anywhere else? Followed by Brekon and Dubonat? The text from the players guide suggests that.

- Since a lot of gnolls should be rangers, wouldn't they have a more religious nature? I mean, shouldn't they have a god that gives them the rangers abilities?

- On a related matter, there are no god (except Dagath) for a LE ranger. And I cannot see Dagath as an important god for gnolls (the philosophy is to complex for
a race that receives -2 to intelligence). The only evil god that will give powers to rangers is Verossa. It would be good to have a NE god for rangers and druids.
Aarilax could have the natural selection, the nature that kills the weak and favors the strong added to his portfolio; using key words: natural selection, extinction
and abusive hunt.

I really don't understand why would Maleki create a race like the gnolls (specially if they are LE). They are much closer to Aarilax: grow stronger and kill the weak.

- The description of the gnoll's mentality is not exactly lawful. It lacks the organization of a lawful society. Wolves and dogs on the real world would be closer to a
neutral alignment. The gnolls are not a race that would look for flaws on the laws to benefit from it. They will follow the group, but they will betray if given the
opportunity to be the chief. Individualism in an organized way. Freedom within the law. That's neutral. (My monster manual says they are CE, but I think Orleron's
description is closer to NE.)

This is my background for gnolls in Drotid (unofficial, since there was none when I started playing my gnoll):

The gnolls used to live in the few forests of Drotid, and on some islands that appears in the swamps. They avoid the swamps, because they are slow in the water.
That lack of mobilities made them an easy prey to the shaahesk, who captured or killed almost all gnolls in Drotid. The stories of these primitives free tribes became
a legend to the gnolls, and the memory of the battles lost in the swamp made the gnolls afraid of water ("There is always something dangerous in the water!").
Today, they are used as soldiers, guards, pets or hunting animals by the shaahesks. They aren't put to work because they are hard to control (the aggressive
instincts of the gnolls make them attack even their masters sometimes), and they tend to think that they are too good to work ("This is the job of a small kobold, not a
strong gnoll!"). They understand they cannot become a free person under the laws of Drotid, so their best hope is to become the personal guard or the pet of a Boyar.

Post by **Orleron** » Sat Jan 08, 2005 11:18 pm

First let me say that World Info forum takes precidence over Player's Guide, because World Info forum is all written by me, and Player's Guide had blanks filled in by team members who just guessed sometimes.

- Aren't there more gnolls in Drotid then anywhere else? Followed by Brekon and Dubonat? The text from the players guide suggests that.

See above. Gnolls are found in Drotid, but no more than anywhere else.

- Since a lot of gnolls should be rangers, wouldn't they have a more religious nature? I mean, shouldn't they have a god that gives them the rangers abilities?

Not necessarily. Also make the distinction between commoners and adventurers. Adventurers favor the ranger class because they need to survive on their own. Commoners do not need classes. Ranger is the preferred class for gnoll adventurers.

- On a related matter, there are no god (except Dagath) for a LE ranger. And I cannot see Dagath as an important god for gnolls (the philosophy is to complex for
a race that receives -2 to intelligence). The only evil god that will give powers to rangers is Verossa. It would be good to have a NE god for rangers and druids.
Aarilax could have the natural selection, the nature that kills the weak and favors the strong added to his portfolio; using key words: natural selection, extinction
and abusive hunt.

Gnoll commoners are LE. Lone gnoll adventurers are not necessarily LE. This is true of every Avlis race. The rule talks about the norm, not the exception. Gnoll rangers may take to worshipping Verossa if they are chaotic or even Aarilax if they are neutral. Lawful ones may opt for other gods, but there aren't too many LE gods on Avlis.

I really don't understand why would Maleki create a race like the gnolls (specially if they are LE). They are much closer to Aarilax: grow stronger and kill the weak.

It didn't say specifically that Maleki created them. It just said he had something to do with the story.

- The description of the gnoll's mentality is not exactly lawful. It lacks the organization of a lawful society. Wolves and dogs on the real world would be closer to a
neutral alignment. The gnolls are not a race that would look for flaws on the laws to benefit from it. They will follow the group, but they will betray if given the
opportunity to be the chief. Individualism in an organized way. Freedom within the law. That's neutral. (My monster manual says they are CE, but I think Orleron's
description is closer to NE.)

I disagree. Gnolls will benefit from their pack mentality if they can, but they are also accepting of power if it is lorded over them. Lawful evil wimps would believe in this way. They would accept their plight and not do anything about it until given the opportunity, and meanwhile they would respect the law of the pack. Individualism in an organized way and betrayal to be the chief are both lawful evil actions. They are selfish, yet orderly. Neutral evils will refuse to work with anyone else unless they absolutely had to, at which point they would give in. Gnolls would work with the pack whether they had to or not, because they believe in it.

At best you could say Lawful evil with neutral tendancies.

Drysh · Post by **Drysh** » Sun Jan 09, 2005 8:16 pm

Orleron wrote:Gnoll rangers may take to worshipping Verossa if they are chaotic or even Aarilax if they are neutral. Lawful ones may opt for other gods, but there aren't too many LE gods on Avlis.

Is Aarilax a god that rangers may worship? The list for Druids (from the players guide) includes O'Ma, Dru'El, Pelar, Dre'Ana, Titanea, Dagath, Skern, and Verossa. Should Aarilax be included?

What do you think of my idea of adding natural selection and extintion to Aarilax potfolio? Is it a valid aspect of Aarilax, or is there another god that already has it?

I mean: Could my gnoll ranger worship Aarilax as the god who teaches that nature kills the weaker and favors the stronger?

Gorgon · Post by **Gorgon** » Tue May 31, 2005 4:01 pm

Drysh wrote:
Orleron wrote:Gnoll rangers may take to worshipping Verossa if they are chaotic or even Aarilax if they are neutral. Lawful ones may opt for other gods, but there aren't too many LE gods on Avlis.
Is Aarilax a god that rangers may worship? The list for Druids (from the players guide) includes O'Ma, Dru'El, Pelar, Dre'Ana, Titanea, Dagath, Skern, and Verossa. Should Aarilax be included?

What do you think of my idea of adding natural selection and extintion to Aarilax potfolio? Is it a valid aspect of Aarilax, or is there another god that already has it?

I mean: Could my gnoll ranger worship Aarilax as the god who teaches that nature kills the weaker and favors the stronger?

Worth a bump since I'm interested in the answer as well.

Post by **Orleron** » Wed Jun 01, 2005 2:36 pm

Yes a gnoll ranger could worship Aarilax. The extinction/natural selection mantle is an interesting thought. I will consider it.