anomen

jennabard · Post by **jennabard** » Tue May 01, 2001 5:47 pm

since he is the only love interest for a female pc, i want to open this thread to discuss opinions and various problems on him.
there have been problems with a bug that seem to reset the romance. i've only been wooed once and then the next time he talked he went back to bragging! once i went to the pirate island he never spoke to me again!

as an npc he is a great tank and i tend to pair him with mincs and watch them make the bad guys explode. as a cleric in a good align party ( after he gets his knighthood) he's better than aerie.

dragon wench · Post by **dragon wench** » Tue May 01, 2001 6:11 pm

Hey good idea, I'd also been thinking of starting a new thread on this topic, especially since there are so few out there!

I'm wondering, since both this romance and Jaheira's do not actually end if they share the same number of bugs. Did you dowmload the official patch? I did, perhaps it makes a difference. Or maybe I just got lucky re:the dead father thing. Bizarre.....

Drakron Du´Dark · Post by **Drakron Du´Dark** » Tue May 01, 2001 6:34 pm

I play the romance and never found any bugs, remenber that during chapter 4,5 and 7 many of the romances stop for some reason, also how far are you into to the romance? Anomen romance becames tied to the "join the order", if you go to the island before that happening you will get the "messanger form the order" annoying oversight (Anomen have 1 day to go to the order and its not possible because of the time that takes to get to Athkatla), also there is the "romance dialogue at sleep" flagg that you get with Anomen, I think that there is two romance dialogues that you can only get at resting (there is also the infamouse "I rest and the game pauses" romance dialogue oversight/bug, if you get a pause game after pressing the rest button simply unpause the game).
Also dont confuse "romance dialogues" (it have a special music in the background, diferent for every romance) with normal dialogues, I belive that is a programing oversight, the "bragging" Anomen dialogues sould NEVER be played after the knighthood but some times it does (like Jaheira saying something about Imoen and she is already in the party) because we never seen those dialogues before.

jennabard · Post by **jennabard** » Tue May 01, 2001 8:28 pm

i think i'll go ahead and download the patch and see what happens.

dragon wench: got your letter, sorry if i wasn't any help. i didn't know you e-mail so i'd just sent a reply. hope you got it.

scully1 · Post by **scully1** » Tue May 01, 2001 8:45 pm

Just a comment...I am SO glad to see this thread, thank you jennabard for starting it...

dragon wench · Post by **dragon wench** » Tue May 01, 2001 8:54 pm

Jennabard,
no problem re:the letter.
It's kind of funny, I start out asking questions about this damn romance and it turns out that I've actually had better luck than others have had.
I also had another thought about the bug. As I think I mentioned, the relationship was consumated down in the sewers beneath the temple district. I was in the process of doing the seeing eye quest. Now this quest is a cleric's quest (as is Anomen of course), I wonder if this triggers the other stuff in the romance. And it was when I surfaced, after completeing the quest, that the messenger appeared re:Anomen's father's death. I know that this does not sound very logical (although bugs seldom are)but I've read in other postings that romance dialogue/events do not generally occur in dungeons,and I think that the temple sewers would count as such. If that is the case, than this does perhaps suggest a trigger of sorts. Also, on the same line, unlike the other two female romance choices, Viconia's continues/is consumated in the Underdark (she's Drow afterall, and this is also something of a dungeon). So maybe the race/class of the pc in question and the location/quests of the party also influences romances?????
I'm curious to see what happens when I finally confront Bodhi in ch.6. From the incident in the Spellhold Dungeon (in "stupid character" thread) I got the very clear sense that the romance is still active, so we'll see I guess.

jennabard · Post by **jennabard** » Tue May 01, 2001 9:07 pm

don't worry about chapter 6

just kick the vamps a$$, the romance is very active just in silence mode.

this is the first time i'm downloading a patch, is there anything i should know or does it come with directions?

dragon wench · Post by **dragon wench** » Tue May 01, 2001 9:53 pm

Re: the official patch. Well, it seemed to be self- extracting/self-launching,step by step type, and I ""think"" it's working fine. But I'm hardly a computer techie (it took me hours to figure out how to properly unzip and install the bonus merchants, a different download)so I'm probably not the one to ask. Maybe start a thread? I'm sure that lots of people here have downloaded it.

jennabard · Post by **jennabard** » Wed May 02, 2001 5:27 am

the patch went aokay, thank god it installed on it's own.

back to anomen, going through the beginnigs of the romance a second time, i've come to realize one thing. how much he accomplished on his own. he is disowned by his alcoholic father who he loves and hate at the same time. mother died but gave him the chance to get out from under his father, and a beloved sister that he worries so.
without money, working himself to the bone trying to become a knight, the opposite of what his father is, and all this time scared that he'll end up like is father. which i think is his greatest fear.
he doesn't need a lover, he needed a good listener who doesn't judge him.

on another note, i haven't done the jaheira romance yet, but don't you think that for her to actively pursue a romance so soon after kalid's death, well...quick?

Drakron Du´Dark · Post by **Drakron Du´Dark** » Wed May 02, 2001 7:44 am

All triggers are 30 minutes real time, some only happens at rest but even for those you had to have a romance dialogue 30 minutes before.
And no, the unseeing eye is not tied to Anomen romance in any way.
The mensagers must always come up upon loading a new area, that is the way the engine works, (mensagers dont show up in dungeons maps, like the underdark, sewers, etc..)

Loredweller · Post by **Loredweller** » Wed May 02, 2001 8:16 am

Originally posted by jennabard:

on another note, i haven't done the jaheira romance yet, but don't you think that for her to actively pursue a romance so soon after kalid's death, well...quick?

Rather not, if you haven't installed some unofficial patch. Jahera's romance is so long lasting till it comes to some end through-runners might never get it finished. BTW, it should reach lovetalk 70 before final battle with Bodhi, so there definitely shouldn't be any haste. I got the fight with Dermin's company after 200+ days...

With Kevin's or multiromance patch it runs faster, nevertheless there still is lot of events and talking, and answers sometimes should be chosen very carefully. IMHO, it's richest storyline in the game. (Never had Vic, though.)
Compare with Arie, what stops at lovetalk 24

L.

scully1 · Post by **scully1** » Wed May 02, 2001 8:17 am

1. Question re the Slayer change and how it affects the romance...that's very interesting. I played through Spellhold once before, rested at some point after the change, and didn't get that dialogue. Does anyone know what happens to the future of the romance if that dialogue (and ensuing attack) occurs?...

2. I've had plenty of romance dialogues in dungeons. In fact, that flower thing happened immediately after we killed Thaxill what's-the-name there in the Temple Ruins. (Heh, Anomen is pretty good, eh? -- manages to find a flower in a pile of underground ruins and waits all through a dragon battle with it, and springs it on me when we're all half-dead...) Perhaps the dungeon thing is only tied to certain other romances?...

3. I agree with what jennabard says about Jaheira. I thought that was pretty callous. Also kind of weird, considering she started out as the PC's guardian, and I always pictured her and Khalid as much older, say in their 40's. If Gorion wanted them to take care of the PC, they'd have to be mature enough to do that...

Sorry for the long post

dragon wench · Post by **dragon wench** » Wed May 02, 2001 8:32 am

Ah...so maybe it is the patch that makes the difference. Let's hope so! I read in the readme file that it is supposed to solve the kinks in the Jaheira romance, and other possible problems not listed.
And yes, speaking of Jaheira, I agree with you Jennabard, the mourning period does seem unusually brief. I think that any number of explanations are likely.It could be a cultural thing, she is elven and Druid afterall. Elves are of course myth, but I seem to recall that Druidic society (from the little that's known about it anyway)viewed life and death much differently, as a natural cycle. Death was not so much a sad event, or a conclusion, but rather part of a never ending process. Indeed, sometimes it was viewed as a sort of renewal. I don't know if you're familiar with tarot cards, but the death card actually symbolises new beginnings. I sometimes wonder if the Irish wake is a holdover from those old beliefs.

It could also be that different people deal with grief in different ways. Personally, I tend to internalize grief, and do almost whatever I can to distract myself.

Or it could be a simple case of oversight on the part of the game developers. In their zeal to make Jaheira a romance interest, they overlooked some of the potential ethical issues.

And back to Anomen, yes, he's done extroardinarily well under the circumstances. I agree that his initial attitude is very much born from profound insecurity and the fear that he could become his father (which of course happens if you don't do his tests, I think he becomes chaotic neutral and goes a little berserk). He's actually a very complex and interesting character, and I think that many people, because they're initially turned off by his arrogence, don't take the time to find out what happens if you take the time to listen and try to understand him. I think it's true about him moreso needing a good friend than a lover, during those dialogues I felt moreso that I was councilling a friend through difficulties than that I was engaged in "lovetalk." That is why I miss it during this silent phase, it was interesting to watch it develop. Needless, to say, ToB should be intriguing on this score.

Ok, now I really need to get on with my day!

Georgi · Post by **Georgi** » Wed May 02, 2001 8:45 am

About Jaheira, I think she's supposed to be mid-20s, but I always thought of her as older.

And about Anomen - I haven't had any problems with the romance. I think it "ends" after the stuff with Saerk. I finished the whole thing in chapter 2 (I did most of the quests), so I didn't hear anything about it after that until Bodhi, it was evidently still there at that point. I changed into the slayer once (by choice), and it didn't have any impact.

I agree with Dragon Wench - his arrogance is annoying to begin with, but underneath he's actually kind of sweet

And it's not really surprising after everything he's been through.

And I was impressed when he managed to find a rare flower... in the slums!!

Can't wait to see how it goes in ToB

scully1 · Post by **scully1** » Wed May 02, 2001 9:12 am

Originally posted by Georgi:
About Jaheira, I think she's supposed to be mid-20s, but I always thought of her as older.

Yeah, I always figured Gorion would have asked them to be the PC's guardians when the PC was still a baby, as insurance against something happening to Gorion in the immediate future. If Jaheira is in her mid-20's now, she would have had to be 5-7 years old when Gorion made that request

But if she and Khalid were both around 20 or even slightly younger, they would have had the maturity to accept. So either Jaheira was a very mature 5 year-old or she is indeed quite a bit older than the PC.

Re the Slayer change: apparently if you rest at some point in Spellhold a dialogue will automatically come up on waking and the change will happen against your will. I haven't experienced this yet, though...I'd like to see if it affects anything long-term...

[ 05-02-2001: Message edited by: loner72 ]

Georgi · Post by **Georgi** » Wed May 02, 2001 9:30 am

Actually, that slayer change happened to me in Spellhold. Not sure if it affects anything longterm (Anomen didn't seem to mind being beaten to within an inch of his life, bless his little cotton socks!), since I'm not sure if I subsequently died and had to reload an earlier save and it didn't happen again. I don't think it would make a difference, he just says something like he would have attacked if he didn't know it was unintentional and you really love him (only in a more heroic wording of course). Or something.

scully1 · Post by **scully1** » Wed May 02, 2001 9:37 am

Originally posted by Georgi:
Anomen didn't seem to mind being beaten to within an inch of his life, bless his little cotton socks!

LOL

How cute!! He's so understanding...

This is good to know, thanks. I'm going to try to get that dialogue this time around.

I guess if you have him cast Protection from Evil right away he wouldn't be injured?...at least not as badly?...

Georgi · Post by **Georgi** » Wed May 02, 2001 9:51 am

I don't know if you automatically go for Anomen if you turn into the slayer - could be he was just the first person in the line of fire. Maybe someone else can clarify..?

scully1 · Post by **scully1** » Wed May 02, 2001 9:57 am

Clarification would be good...Anyone out there know? What-all is up with Anomen and the Slayer change? (That sounds kind of like a rock group, doesn't it?...) I assume you have to rest in order to get that dialogue? If so, it makes sense that Anomen is the only (or first) one you attack, since he would be close by and in dialogue w/the PC. What's the timing -- before or after the Bodhi confrontation, or does it matter? And does Protection from Evil work as a defense without having to battle the transformed PC? Then the party could just wait it out while the Slayer fumes harmlessly??

[ 05-02-2001: Message edited by: loner72 ]

Georgi · Post by **Georgi** » Wed May 02, 2001 10:09 am

There is a group called Slayer...

I'm pretty sure it is triggered by rest - and there's a little dialogue beforehand "You're shivering, I'll stoke the fire"; "Keep away Anomen, I don't think I can control it" sort of thing...
I rested after I got out of Bodhi's labyrinth place, but before I confronted Irenicus. I think it has to happen after the Bodhi confrontation cos that's the first time the change happens (right?).

Just make sure you rest somewhere you can run away easily!! And keep running till it stops (it doesn't last too long).