The Magician's Burden

Is there any way to save Mowbow?

Nope. :confused:

Very frustrated with the stat checks in this. I had to restart several times just to get a build to do most of what I wanted just to get crapped on in the last chapter. If you don’t build your stats a certain way then there is nothing you can do. It was a good story up until this point, but this really killed it for me.

Do I need to summon Mysterion?

Very salty at the moment, I spent several hours trying to get a good playthrough and thought I had it right, but nope I got crapped on by the big bad because I focused on different stats then the three checks available.

I’m going to disagree and argue that I actually give the design extra points because the thing you’re describing is consistent with, and reinforces the title of the story. I mean, it’s The Magician’s Burden after all, right? :wink: It takes some neat design to allow the player to experience “burden” and all of what that means.

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Yes because that’s why I spend my money, to get annoyed at my purchase. Like I said it was a good story but you have to build a specific way or you’re screwed.

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You don’t have to build a certain way but you have to commit to who you want to be. And living with that commitment is part of being a realistic character and not a Mary Sue jack of all trades.

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I had a very high strength that ended up doing nothing in the end. Its not being a mary sue, its the fact that the stats I focused on didn’t mean anything in the last chapter. It’s frustrating to have to play a specific way to get good results. Strength is a combat stat in all fights except the one against the big bad I guess. After seeing nothing but greyed out options it became an issue for me. Thats like telling me I’m playing wrong and shouldn’t have built this way, when its worked in everything else in the story.

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Is that the chapter with a demon who’s strength could literally turn you into an accordion?

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It had options to distract/fight it, but they were all pretty high and greyed out for me. If they were just false choices that’s even worse. Could have just opened up the chapter and said there is nothing you can do everyone dies the end. That’s what false choices are imo. Found in annoying in Choice of Romance too.

I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy The Warrior’s Burden… Wait I mean soldier’s Burden… Knight’s Burden…barbarians burden… Fighters burden… Damn it I forgot …

And you prove my point. I played a light mage with a strength/speed build because light magic is not combat magic.

When reading a lot of different CoGs like, for example, The Hero of Kendrickstone, I became very bored and annoyed with the stat mechanic where there are 4 skills and in each choice there are 4 options, and then later on, each stat check corresponds with…you guessed it, those 4 skills. That design basically makes it so that you can ignore every other skill and just become a god at one particular one, and easily wreck the whole game.

That’s not how real life is, and that’s not how I want my games to be. So, to make it more realistic and interesting, I decided that each stat check would have different stats needed. It switches up all the time so that if you just focus on one stat, it would be impossible to pass every stat check.

The fact that Strength isn’t used against Kihbok in no way means that it was a useless stat or that I am telling my readers to not use anything but those three stat checks needed in the direct fight against her…it just means that those are the most realistic and effective options in that situation.

The most powerful demon that Orilon has ever seen has just killed or nearly killed several people, and then charges you. A blast of fire, a barrage of rocks, or a swordfight would all work much more than punching her, or even trying to fight her with the strength weapon, a club.

All that aside, defeating Kihbok is impossible, and I stand by this decision. If an average Joe who only a few days before had a much, much weaker person (Killian) as their main enemy, just smacked on someone who was 10x more powerful, that would just be silly.

TMB is an underdog story, not a power fantasy. If it’s any consolation, though, I will say that when you meet Kihbok again in Volume 3, you’ll be more powerful than she is.

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I was super frustrated because of restarting a lot to meet stat requirements I was missing by a few points. I adjusted and then except for the fight in the MCs house couldn’t do anything in the last chapter. This compounded my frustration and that’s why I’m here posting. I guess the MC was meant to be crapped on if the fight was unwinnable from the start. But after going through it for several hours to get a build that seemed to work only to hit a wall in the end made me want to stop. So I guess these are partially vent posts. I did enjoy the story, but it was frustrating in the end to not be able to do anything other than suck.

Yes, I’ve read your past ten posts. As far as interactive fiction goes, this is more novel than game. I’ve suggested to my readers before to focus on enjoying the actual story rather than trying to stat grind. Not passing checks doesn’t make the final chapter a bad part of the story. In my opinion, it’s the most emotional stage, and it’s certainly the most exciting.

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I really liked the game, it was one of the few, in which I found Min/maxing not necessary. I played a healer and survived. I was very sorry, I couldn’t save my dad, but thats the way it is. Not getting the end, one wished for, doesn’t make the game Bad. If the Rest was entertaining, so why should I regret buying it?

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Just saw a review that said things are “informed instead of shown, like with Theyo’s alcoholism.”

Yeah…he’s definitely not drunk in every scene he’s in. :roll_eyes:

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lol, Seriously? I mean I am not native and sometimes I skip text but the fact the father was an alcoholic and the mother is a wasted shopping. Is clear and in the way lityle bro behaved. That an normally parents don’t send their kids away one night saying Fuck you go sleep outside looser I stuff to do. More if I am doing more for the shop than them. Their issues are clearly visible in several scenes .

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Oh dear. :face_with_monocle: Slightly worried about the future of the human race if people see it like that.

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