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Eukara Vox -> Issue 40 - I'm Selling You No Blarney (Rimblade) (3/11/2009 16:03:45)
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I'm Selling You No Blarney
By Rimblade
What is luck?
That's a pretty silly question, isn't it? You don't even have to think about it, and you can nod your head wisely and use it correctly in a sentence. If you were pressed further, you could probably vocalize a fair approximation of the concept, as in 'When chance comes out in your favor', or perhaps 'When things beyond your control go well for you.' The dictionary definition is, 'a combination of circumstances which work without human agency to bring good to a person'.
Fair enough.
Now that we've got the concept, let's go off-topic for a moment. When you train up stats in Battleon, or head to the stat trainer in Falconreach, what do you focus on? As a warrior, I like to beef up on the strength, and lots of it. I also like the intellect, because there is simply no such thing as too much mana, unless you happen to be Warlic, but I feel that his ability to beat down the combined might of the elements is sufficient as a trade-off for him. Back on topic, I also like large amounts of charisma, because while I don't care much for my pets, the ladies love a man who is suave and smooth.*
But what about luck? I have asked what luck is, and I do it again: seriously, what on LORE is this thing?!
I suppose we should look at the technical answer to that first. Luck as a stat gives a little boost to everything. Maxing out your luck stat isn't going to mean that you're now a warrior/mage/lord of the apes, but it provides a nice boost to whatever stats you really are going for. I have to assume that it works kinda like this:
Warrior: Gadzooks, but this monster is particularly adept at dodging! My strikes meet only air!
Croaker: Raugle raugle raugle!
Warrior: Oh, alas, for I am doomed. This mighty beast is of a power far beyond anything I can match.
Croaker: Ragule ragule ra-rrgh!
Warrior: Look! As I swung downward, expecting only sad defeat, the beast tripped and fell, allowing me to land a blow! Also, I got it in the head which means extra damage!
Yes indeed, a useful edge in pitched battle against such terrific abominations as croakers. But wait! Luck also provides an advantage on certain rolls, allowing the canny adventurer to swiftly accomplish a task which might otherwise prove lengthy and boring. Well then, that's all fine and dandy, three cheers for the luck stat! Hip hip hurray! Hip hip hurray! Hip hip hu- oh wait just a moment, I've remembered where I was going with this.
HOW?
Alright, so let's accept for the moment that my luck means that monsters are tripping onto my blade, accidentally aiming for my shield and my fireballs will sometimes hit invisible clouds of extremely inflammable gasses. Good work, stat, but how do you do it? Am I subliminally contacting monsters and unbalancing them? Do I radiate an aura of increased accuracy? This is a question which has bothered those of an inquiring nature since time immemorial, and so it must be approached in a scientific manner.
This could take some time, so please be patient.
Okay, done. I should have expected no less, given that my crack research team consists of such minds as Dr. Twig (PHD ice cweam), Professor Z.A.R.D.I.S (MD, astrophysics) and the evil cauldron of candy-making who began Mogloween (MD, pure and unstoppable evil). While this question proved at first difficult to approach, we opted to adopt a strategy of MSU**, via ETMC*** and LOY**** processes to end up with a final WMG*****. For those worried about the scientific integrity of our study, rest assured that it was a double-blind study, and no more than fifteen animals were harmed during the proceedings, assuming we're excluding really annoying animals.
The result was this: general likablility. Training the luck stat actually involves making yourself more presentable, as it were, to those cosmic forces which dictate the proceedings of mere mortals. It's much like keeping clean and dressing well to impress a date, except that your date has limitless power, and also will only aid you in ways which appear to be pure chance. This applies to lucky items too- it's not obvious, but the universe really doesn't like rabbits all that much, and is happy to see you carrying about the feet of said bunnies. Three-leaf clovers we cannot explain, except to say that maybe the universe is an herbivore, and thinks that those are a much more delicious snack than the ordinary four-leaf kind.
Actually, my colleage Professor Z.A.R.D.I.S was of the opinion that it was all down to invisible fairies, Dr. Twig refused to stop talking about magical ice-cream fish in the sky, and that cauldron kept sulking because we were using it to store the huge bags of money we requisitioned from the townsfolk (materials for coin-flipping experiments), but I'm sure I've represented what they would have said if they were slightly more sensible.
*In theory. In actuality, I'm gonna trade that in for dexterity, because it turns out that getting a date is no good if you're incapible of opening doorknobs or tying your shoes.
**Making Stuff Up
***Eating Too Much Candy
****Lots Of Yelling
*****Wild Mass Guess
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