Zonorhc

I doubt that. A halberdier in Runescape doesn't get hit, but neither does he spend money on runes or ammunition. What I'm getting at here is that this weapon has no actual reason to exist. The "high-tech" stuff like multicannons are understandable, because the dwarves invented them to kill masses of goblins, if I remember correctly. They have a reasonably plausible excuse for existing in the game, however, halberds do not because they are anti-cavalry weapons.

It's been bugging me for a while, but why ARE there halberds in Runescape? Historically, halberds were developed as a weapon for use against cavalry, because they could be set against a charge like a spear, hack through plate mail with their heavy blade, and pull riders off horses with the fluke behind the blade. So why are they in the game? As JAGeX has said in the letters, there aren't any horses in Runescape.

I assume you mean lances vs. halberds? I don't think I've ever seen any sources depicting knights on foot wielding spears like peasants. Come to think of it, I've never seen anything like an eighteen-foot-long halberd. 18 feet is a ridiculous length for a halberd. Seriously. What you look for in a halberd is a haft that's little more than eight feet long, with a heavy axe blade, a [bleep]e for thrusting, and a fluke behind the blade to unhorse knights. The purpose of a halberd is to use them en masse against cavalry charges, much like the pike - hence the [bleep]e on top. However, unlike the pike, once the charge pushes through, the halberd can still be used to hack up horses and pull knights to the ground. The main disadvantage of the halberd vis a vis the pike is the length, seeing as the pike was a sixteen-foot-long piece of sharp wood. I would say no to that. The man using the pickaxe has one swing before the one with the dagger is well inside his guard. The pickaxe was never intended to be a weapon, hence it is not balanced properly for use in combat, and the head is designed to be heavy in order to impart more kinetic energy through a focal point. A dagger, however, is a tried-and-true weapon of war, brawling, and everything in between.

I can't for the life of me recall when JAGeX specified that the Ranged skill was in fact only for archery, since, you know, you use it for darts and other throwing weapons. Oh wait, they never said that. Looks like you made an assumption. I don't see YOU complaining that they don't make separate skills for swordsmanship and dagger use, or even separate skills for proficiency in plate mail and leather armour. Contrary to what you may believe, there are huge differences in using those pieces of equipment, and you need to train with them to be able to use them to their fullest potential. Or maybe the skills in Runescape are more abstract than that? Think about it. Oh, and by the way? Range isn't a verb when you use it in that context. The only time it'd be a verb is when you use it to refer to an outdoor activity relating to movement for the purpose of hunting or gathering. Shooting is the correct verb in the context of all projectile weapons, so your point on that is moot. I don't know what you think of when you refer to a "weapon club", but it sure as hell doesn't just mean a rifle club as you imply it is.

I actually like how you have to manually reload the weapon - it means that while someone will be able to reload faster than someone else because of experience in using the weapon, to be able to use it effectively as a group, they will have to learn to time themselves to be able to fire in synchronised volleys. I think, though, that ten squares is too long a range in Runescape. It annoys me too, but six squares is about the range of a longbow, which can be used more accurately than an arquebus. To stop it being too ridiculously overpowered, you might want a minimum range of one square, since firing one in hand-to-hand combat will just result in ridiculous inaccuracy and having your head split open. Heck, that should be the case with all ranged weapons, actually... The formation aspect of it is excellent - I've always been for the introduction of actual tactical formations in combat, and you can even extrapolate the idea for use with longbows. Not shortbows, though, for balance reasons. Also - the damage. It shouldn't be too obscene, since the earlier arquebuses didn't really pack the same punch as a crossbow, and while they had the POTENTIAL to be more deadly, they couldn't hit with the same precision or consistent power. It's a weapon that is INTENDED for use in huge groups. Of course, it won't be too popular to begin with because you have to reload manually, but once a few people get it in their heads to practice reloading in unison and stagger firing volleys into two or three ranks, then it will be nuts. One rank fires and then moves back as the next line moves forward to fire, while the line after that is finishing their reload cycle. That's the kind of thing that we need to make combat interesting. Then you have a few people with greatswords getting inside your minimum range and wreaking havoc in your ranks from behind.

you do realise what procrastinate means right? cos thats the wrong word to use lol as for picture, add more detail in like hills etc, rather than letting ths un take up all the room Well, I needed to put off doing something, so I occupied myself with something else in the meantime. That's procrastination. =P I didn't want much focus on the terrain, since it's mainly an atmospheric piece. Thanks for the comments, guys, and keep them coming.

Well, I'm back onto Terragen. Somewhat. I needed to procrastinate, so I came up with this after a bit of experimentation with atmosphere and water effects. http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/30613819/ Post comments and constructive criticism either here or on DeviantART. I'd put up the image itself here, but most people have this thing against clicking on a thumbnail.

If you can't stab/slash with your current weapon in real life, or you don't have one, shield bashing isn't a bad idea. It can throw one's opponenet off balance, knock them to the ground, etc. Shields aren't all defensive. too many movies? :lol: melleing someone with a shield is well... impossible to do with impact enough to be compareable to a actual weapon. throwing a shield would be pretty dumb, it leaves you defenceless unless Jagex makes a boomerang shield :roll: It's standard practice in SCA sword and target combat to use your shield to obstruct your opponent's vision so you can attack from any quarter. You can also use the shield as a tool for pushing against your opponent to throw him off-balance or at the very least force him backwards. Besides that, you can still deliver a nasty bruise if you hit someone with the edge of it, or just plain smack them across the face with a buckler.

Love the Elder Scrolls reference. What's the second character going to be wearing? Ebony? At least have Dwemer armour in there somewhere. My god that stuff looks awesome.

That's a non-issue. If you haven't got the sense to realise that it's a bluff, then it's time you learnt. How about "Rule 14: You must not butcher the written form of a language"?

Emphasis mine. Where have YOU been living for the past ten thousand years?

Try "hypocrite". Also try "spelling". It was valid since it was never actually specified that it returned 60% of the gold piece value. It may be obvious to a Runescape player, but clearly, it was an issue of semantics and thus you have no strong base from which to criticise. Firstly, hitpoints are not a solid representation of your toughness, rather a sort of "battle luck". Hitpoints represent how well you can turn your body to make a potentially lethal blow into a light graze. They represent how well you parry to avoid getting a sword in your gut and instead get it in your arm, or any number of other abstract concepts of combat that cannot be accurately represented in a game. Not entirely true. It depends on the situation - engagement range, status of the combatants, amount of armour, environmental conditions, what-have-you. Then there's also our good friend "suspension of disbelief". The whip is a part of some abyssal monster, that probably still has some of its former owner's consciousness still driving it to try and kill things. It's an explanation that works because it was never specified to be a whip as we would know it in real life. Hell, it doesn't even LOOK like a real whip. I point you to the axes used by Danish Housecarls. Suspension of disbelief. Oh, and you don't drink the vial. That would involve melting it down and swallowing hot slag.

A character! Name: Rheegan Kell Race: Human Build: 5'7", 128lb., slim. Age: 38 Alignment: Neutral Occupation: Dictator for hire Skills: Diplomacy, charisma, and a one-man bureaucracy Weapons: A pen and a sharp tongue Armour: Diplomatic immunity. Most of the time. Starting region: Misthalin Details: Slim, not entirely tall, and with a nasty streak of cynicism and a dry sense of humour, Rheegan counts on first impressions, which usually come after he commandeers a government. So far, he's done that three times. He is disturbingly intelligent, and prefers silence. Bio: Rheegan graduated from Varrock University two years after enrolment, sporting a degree in psychology and a bachelor of arts in opression. Before this, he grew up in the sort of family that made too much noise for him to properly think or write his theses on several subjects of varying importance. So he dug up some obscure laws and had the whole family bar himself evicted, leaving him with a generous cash settlement to go with it and a set of very angry relatives. He was seventeen at that time. He spent the next three years in peace, writing freelance for the Varrock Herald and working part-time as the sole administrator for finances for both the Black Arm and Phoenix gangs, with even more side-jobs, many of which involved playing with large sums of money or the nature of human thought. After graduation, he found his first big break when he conducted his first "experiment", as he called them, and succeeded in single-handedly usurping the administration of the Duchy of Lumbridge, whereupon he strengthened trading relations with the regions south of Al Kharid and the western realms. He also reworked the entire administrative system of the duchy to make it four times more efficient with paperwork, tax collection and internal security, along with successfully managing to impose regulations on crime throughout the duchy. He did much the same thing with Draynor before handing power back to the Count. Now, he has taken control of Varrock, with the support of the king himself - in secret, of course, so as not to offend the nobles who are officially in power. He has streamlined the bureaucracy and reorganised the guardsmen, rebalanced the financial accounts of the city, and is now working on bringing all the crime in the kingdom under the control of the government, which he sees as the natural hub for all criminal activities anyway. I might come up with some other submissions later. I see, though, that the only options for "occupations" you have are the three combat "classes" and merchants. Maybe ask for more diversity? I took the initiative here and went out of the box.

And your proof that this has been done is what? Iron is strengthened and purified by the addition of coal to the smelting process because: a) The coal acts as added fuel for the furnace that allows the fire to burn hotter, thus burning away more impurities in the iron ore; and B) The coal's carbon content is added to the molten iron (which is a ferrous, not carbon-based metal) and strengthens molecular bonds, resulting in a stronger metal - steel. It won't work for obsidian because for one thing, they're both carbon-based substances and after melting down obsidian and burning coal with it, you'll just end up with glass after it cools. Obsidian is not a metal to begin with, so why do you assume that burning coal with it will get the same results as it would with iron? Again, why do you assume this for a substance where your comparison is that of another substance with a wholly different structure and composition?

... What? I don't know WHICH planet you come from, Paw, but you don't melt down granite. That's a process that would be far too expensive for such limited application that doing it just to strengthen obsidian is just stupidity at its worst. Granite is too absurdly dense a rock to be melted artificially. Furthermore, why would you burn up coal for its carbon content to introduce to melted volcanic glass? Why would you introduce more carbon to a carbon-based substance just to make it stronger? Now, I've not head for science, since I decided to drop it for years 11 and 12, but I'm pretty sure that you can't do much to a brittle crystalline structure such as obsidian by melting it down and adding carbon from coal to it. Much less from melting down granite.

Oh? One of the most poorly-designed pieces of machinery I've ever had the misfortune to lay eyes upon? I'd be surprised if it doesn't tip over the moment it tries to swing at anything, let alone support its weight on such small legs. I could see it going up against a Space Marine (not a commander, just a battle-brother). *Golem swings* *Battle-brother grabs an arm, climbs up to the joint, RIPS IT OFF WITH HIS TEETH JUST BECAUSE HE CAN, then beats the poor thing with it.* That's assuming he doesn't just put a bolter shell into the thing. Face it. When it comes to sci-fi and fantasy entities, almost nothing out-fights anything from Warhammer 40k. Space Marines aren't disabled by having HALF THEIR TORSO BLOWN OFF, and they still keep fighting after that. And that's a grunt. Without power armour.

So, you're basing Runescape abilities on real life experience? H'okay. I'd like to see your RL runecrafting ability. Suspension of disbelief, Bubsa. I would call bollocks if such a thing is implemented. Twin hammers is bad enough. Though I suppose JAGeX already has a record for defecating on SoD. Hey, I should write an article on that sometime...

Captain Gabriel Angelos from Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War. Because, you know. He's a Space Marine. Master Chief can shoot him all he wants. Space Marines can eat rocks and tear their own tanks apart with their bare hands, for crying out loud. Greater daemons? Morning practice for a Space Marine Commander. Let's not get started on Librarians. But if it's strictly RPG-wise... Then Brix, my wizard from Dungeons and Dragons. Because, you know, the ability to blow up cities isn't something Runescape characters can really contend with.

You know, if that was actually the case (obviously, it isn't, because of the URL), then I think I will switch to making fun of the British rather than the French.

Pardon? The only reason why it would take a noticeably longer amount of time to type this out properly is the fact that people are too used to typing lazily. If you put some effort into typing properly to begin with, you'd type fast enough to make using needless abbreviations redundant. Frankly, I use acronyms. I'm not ashamed to admit to using acronyms. Things like "brb" are fine when I REALLY only have the time to hit four keys. They're necessary because the action they're describing is something that may sometimes actually be urgent and/or important. What ISN'T fine are things like "lyk dis is awesome...........ma fwendz n i did dis.........." or "zammy ownz u noob". The latter is one of the examples that frustrates me in RS. "Zammy", "Sara", "Scimmy". To be honest, they sound bloody stupid. They don't save you much time, either, and frankly, they're against the spirit of the game. The first two are GODS, for crying out loud, even if they are fictional (as in, as opposed to real-world faiths, my own agnostic opinions aside). You'd think they deserve at least SOME respect for their names. I mean, you don't go and call Allah "Al". Frankly, I'm surprised this is still going after a week or so.

That's not an update. Your sig is too big. Learn to type. Grow an IQ.

Not this one, at any rate. I might consider making more later.

Well, I was bored of my old one, and I really felt like trying out how to paint clouds in Photoshop, so I did this: In sig size: Crits, please.

The string is drawn, yet the bow isn't bending? Something is fundamentally wrong here. If the bow wasn't in use, that string would be loose to the point of being useless. Bows work on tension, and you don't get that with a loose string. Add some curve to the bow. His bow-arm's position would indicate that he would be aiming downwards, yet he seems to be supporting the bow with his wrist. Your arm should be straight when you fire a bow, otherwise it wouldn't be able to take the pressure created by the string being drawn back. Also, unless he's left-handed, he shouldn't be holding the bow with his right hand and drawing with the left. Most people draw with their dominant hand. His posture is terrible as well - you should be leading with the bow-arm rather than facing your target. Arrowhead is too big unless you're going to use a hunting arrow, in which case it's the wrong shape. I'm really irritated by all these depictions of archery using Runescape's *amazing* accuracy as a reference.

Yes. I'm actually quite surprised that a lot of the comments being made here are by new accounts or old accounts that have very few posts. I'm getting the impression that I managed to provoke quite a bit of interest with that article. It's nice to see the mix of, ah, opinions on the intarwebz [sic].