Fable: The Lost Chapters

[skipclarke]

I have a few random gameplay questions for anyone who is currently playing this game.

1. What graphics settings are you running it on?

2. How do I collect all the blue mushrooms for the sick child?

3. A minor gripe: Is there any way to make the in-game menu mouse less "swimmy"? Everytime I enter the inventory/options menu during play the mouse seems to move sloooowly.

4. What weapons do you primarily use? Any benefits to being one over the over?

5. What about those scars? Do they fade over time?

6. Are you good :D or evil? :twisted:

[1000]

Can't answer all your questions because I've only played it for around 1 hour so far but I also have the wierd mouse movement in the menus (like options menu etc).

I have 4600+ x2, 1gig and a 7800gtx and can run all settings at their defaults with a res of 1920x1200.. runs perfectly. If I jack up quality settings the sucker slows up considerably.

1000

[skipclarke]

Thanks for the feedback, 1000. I'm glad to hear i'm not the only one experiencing that mouse slowdown with the menus.

Hey do me a favor - try disabling shadows in game and tell me if anythings seems to be smoother. I was scrolling through some of the Microsoft support documents on Fable: The Lost Chapters the other day, and one of the things they mention as being specifically CPU intensive is the use of shadows.

Interestingly enough, the graphical oomph with shadows seems to be the same on other games troubleshooting manuals. It must be tough to render.

[nightrider]

The mouse lag on Interface reminds me so muich of battlefield 1942 (and more recently battlefield 2) ...

I havent played fable mind you, just sounds similar ;)

Is it a good game? worth my checking out ?

[insurgent]

1. What graphics settings are you running it on?

I'm playing at 1680x1050 (2005FPW/ATI AIW X800XT).
Max settings in game except shadows. FPS is consistently better than FEAR, the only time there's a noticable slowdown is in Bowerstone south but it's bearable.

2. How do I collect all the blue mushrooms for the sick child?

I haven't finished the game yet but I'm quite sure I'm near the end. It's taken almost that long to finish that quest.

3. A minor gripe: Is there any way to make the in-game menu mouse less "swimmy"? Everytime I enter the inventory/options menu during play the mouse seems to move sloooowly.

Yea, it's terrible for me as well. I haven't played with setting to see if I could improve it as the rest of the game is fine and looks sooo good.

4. What weapons do you primarily use? Any benefits to being one over the over?

I've ended up using the Katana exclusively (finally got the "master" katana) and a little bow/crossbow. I have slow time and multi-strike maxxed...a hell of a combination!

5. What about those scars? Do they fade over time?

From what I've read, no. They are there forever. My guy is very scarred up all over his body because I don't have a middle mouse button so I never block. I don't think I've gotten my combat multiplier above 20!
I just remapped it last night to the space bar for the fist-fighting mini-quests so maybe I'll do better.

6. Are you good Very Happy or evil? Twisted Evil

I've been a serious goody-two-shoes...I got a halo that floats above me! I'll probably re-play and see just how bad I can be just for fun.

Beautiful, rich game. Anyone who blows through it in 10 hours and complains it's too short have no appreciation for the work those fine folks Lionhead have done. Take your time, take all the quests you can. Re-visit already visited areas. Take in the scenery. Get married, kick some chickens...

[skipclarke]

Cool deal Insurgent! Thanks for answering my questions. :D

I'm playing at 1680x1050 (2005FPW/ATI AIW X800XT).
Max settings in game except shadows. FPS is consistently better than FEAR, the only time there's a noticable slowdown is in Bowerstone south but it's bearable.

Yes, now that you mention it, I think Bowerstone South was what got me thinking abou graphical settings in the first place. A bit of chugging - not a lot, just a little - but of course i'm a perfectionist when it comes to framerate.

I haven't finished the game yet but I'm quite sure I'm near the end. It's taken almost that long to finish that quest.

That's also good to hear. I've only gotten one (bought it for around 1000 gold pieces from a trader). I thought it was one of those preliminary quests that needed finishing up, but i'll relax about it now.

Yea, it's terrible for me as well. I haven't played with setting to see if I could improve it as the rest of the game is fine and looks sooo good.

I'm not sure why, but the slow mouse movement bothers me. I'm glad its not an issue specific to my PC. One 'slight' workaround i've come across is the ability to use WASD to navigate through the menus. To activate your final choice in the menu tree, all you need to do is press D.

I've ended up using the Katana exclusively (finally got the "master" katana) and a little bow/crossbow. I have slow time and multi-strike maxxed...a hell of a combination!

Shaweet! Originally I wasn't sure if this was going to be a scenario where i'd have to ditch one talent tree in favor of another, or risk being weak all around. So far i've noticed that its almost impossible to get by without your melee weapon, so being handy with that katana is something that really, well, comes in handy. :wink: I also like those magic spells too. Its fun doing melee, blocking, and then wacking a Bavlervine with a fireball, hehe.

From what I've read, no. They are there forever. My guy is very scarred up all over his body because I don't have a middle mouse button so I never block. I don't think I've gotten my combat multiplier above 20!
I just remapped it last night to the space bar for the fist-fighting mini-quests so maybe I'll do better.

Oh man. I'm barely a quarter of the way through and my poor Fable dude is already starting to look beat up. :shock: Time for a new hairstyle, maybe.

Curious - is the system tied in to how often you block? I mean, if you are successful at parrying could you avoid getting battle scarred?

I've been a serious goody-two-shoes...I got a halo that floats above me! I'll probably re-play and see just how bad I can be just for fun.

Beautiful, rich game. Anyone who blows through it in 10 hours and complains it's too short have no appreciation for the work those fine folks Lionhead have done. Take your time, take all the quests you can. Re-visit already visited areas. Take in the scenery. Get married, kick some chickens... .

I agree - do gooder all the way. It'll be interesting to see how the game plays out with an evil persona. And you're right - its a beautiful game. Everytime I play I can't help of thinking about the possbilities of "Fable Online" :wink:

[OxfordDon]

I'm on my 3rd play through. First time I was a goody goody using a massive sword and a halo, second time I was beelzebub using magic only and with hideous horns, and this time I'm kind of a sneaky archer thief type somewhere in between.

IMO magic is by far the most powerful and spectacular way, bit tricky early on with mana, but later with some of those monstrous spells maxed out, untouchable.

Never did find all the blue mushrooms, maybe this time around :roll:

Running at 1920x1200 with dual 6800ultras on a 2405, pretty much maxed out.

[1000]

Maybe it was the shadows that were stressing my system when I tried jacking up all the settings.

I'll max everything out except shadows and report back


1000

[skipclarke]

IMO magic is by far the most powerful and spectacular way, bit tricky early on with mana, but later with some of those monstrous spells maxed out, untouchable.

Yea, good point. I'm at the point where I just acquired the force push spell, and aside from making me feel a bit like a jedi it's invaluable for knocking large groups back. time it right and even multiple enemies will have a hard time touching you.

Maybe it was the shadows that were stressing my system when I tried jacking up all the settings.

Shadows are an interesting thing. Hm. In the few portions of the game where I tend to notice a bit of slowdown (and of course, i'm very picky about these things, so slight slowdown stands out more to my eyes) I've noticed that disabling shadows brings the frames back up so that its nice and smooth. I may just try and living without them for a while and see if it makes a big diff.

Also, I've got two more questions, hehe.

1. How do you sneak past those darn annoying guards to get into the bandit camp? Everytime it seems like they home in on me. :?

2. Where should I dig with my spade to help that ghost near the chicking punting contest?

[OxfordDon]

Sneaking past the guards I found to be the trickiest and most annoying part of the game. I spent ages first time trying all sorts of methods, in the end I think it's just down to timing and a bit of luck. I hid behind the big rock in the corner, waited for the three guards to go past. Two of them go out of the picture, but the third loiters near where you hide. Trick is to sneak back round the boulder and down the path towards the gate, then run when you figure he won't notice you, a frustrating process of trial and error.

As for the digging, if I remember correctly, it's to the left of the wooden pier on the other beach, mosey round there, and the dig icon should appear.

[skipclarke]

Thanks for those tips. I'll give them a try tonight. (crosses fingers) :wink:

[Cabezone]

Sneaking past the guards I found to be the trickiest and most annoying part of the game. I spent ages first time trying all sorts of methods, in the end I think it's just down to timing and a bit of luck. I hid behind the big rock in the corner, waited for the three guards to go past. Two of them go out of the picture, but the third loiters near where you hide. Trick is to sneak back round the boulder and down the path towards the gate, then run when you figure he won't notice you, a frustrating process of trial and error.

As for the digging, if I remember correctly, it's to the left of the wooden pier on the other beach, mosey round there, and the dig icon should appear.

I hid behind the same rock, I think. If you wait, the last guard will wander over to talk to the second guard, you can sneak past easily then.

[skipclarke]

woohoo! Success. :)

You guys were right. It did come down to timing and a bit of luck. I really enjoy seeing how this story unfolds. Maybe we should start a new thread or post here to show pics of our cool Fable Dudes.

Also, an interesting side note. I was able to play some Fable (original) on the Xbox, and it was really suprising to see some graphical slowdown, especially in the large towns like oakvale or bowerstone. You would think that the Xbox version would have been tailored to its graphical limitations, but it seems like there are some scenes that drive the console GPU nuts. :shock:

[Paradigm Shifter]

Some of the later (and therefore more intensive) XBox games really pushed the hardware inside it to the limit. Although with a couple of the games, I think it was just sloppy coding...

[skipclarke]

So to commemorate my 200th post and my defeat of the Bandit King Twin Blade, here are two pics of my Fable Dude, whom I have appropriately dubbed, "Fable Dude." :D

Here's a shot with bow:



And a close up:



His facial tattoos help to cover up the battle scars he acquired a result of a close encounter with a balverine. As you can see, his hair is still a rather neutral gray. I think the good blonde look has eluded him thus far, due to his propensity for crunchy chicks and smashing barrels that don't belong to him. He's a doo-gooder though, so eventually he'll get his halo.

Right now he has chain mail, a greatsword and longbow. He's good with his sword, and uses a mix of spells and bow for long range attacks. Both screens are, of course, in 1920x1200 widescreen. :wink:

[funch]

I just finished the game last night. And the game was longer than I thought.

Played it at 1920 x 1200 resolution on my 9300 Dell laptop. As for the blue mushroom, I bought one from a vendor and the other 3 shroom locations are given to you by vendor. I know one you have to fish to get it.

I went good but I will definitely try evil next and see how the plot line works. As for scars, I don't know if theres something you can take to make em go away. Maybe like the other poster said- tattoos are good to cover em up.

I think the weapon I had was a Avo's Tear longsword. I am not exactly sure but the one I had had mana/health augmentations which imo didn't do anything noticeable- I still had to use my potions as much as I did with lower end swords.

I really enjoyed this game and it ran wonderfully on a not-so high end laptop. I liked the humor a lot especially being able to fart on command in front of people.


Aloha to you,
Funch

[skipclarke]

And now back by popular demand, the continuing adventures of Fable Dude! :D

The life of a hero in Albion is fraught with peril - monsters, assassins, evil wizards, zombies and all various manner of evil creatures can make life pretty interesting for the aspiring do-gooder. Luckily our hero can always vent some steam in the Arena:



Of course, all work and no play makes Fable Dude a dull lad. Even the most ferocious of monsters can't compare with a beautiful damsel in distress, which is why our hero is glad that he has his trusty disco moves by his side when it comes time to woo the ladies:



After a hard days work of fighting monsters and wooing damsels, nothing beats coming home to our hero's custom bachelor pad, complete with a widescreen fireplace and Albionbox 360.



Stay tuned for the continuing adventures of....Fable Dude!