JOG wrote:PhilosophiX wrote:I'm not missing the point. As far as I'm concerned poisonous Hive Drones makes about as much sense as poisonous badgers.
Of course. Badgers aren't
poisonous, neither are bees, but since nobody wanted that you die from eating a giant-bee corpse, we're talking about
venomous animals here, and bees belong to that class just like a black widow or a rattlesnake.
Badgers don't use venom, but the bee does. The only Apocrita that doesn't use a toxin is the ant, the ant injects formic acid to incapacitate enemies by pain. Bees and Wasps use a mixture of enzymes that disturbs the bodies hormonal balance (and thus causing extreme changes in pulse and blood pressure) or paralyze nerves (and thus stop the victim's heart or breath)
When the insects grow larger, the bees won't find enough pollen to feed their brood, and so they'll re-evolve to wasp-like predators that hunt for fresh flesh to feed their larvae. And a man-sized wasp will have a poison potent enough to incapacitate man-sized prey.
Using science to further your agenda for giant, venomous wasps, is an absolute joke! You're ignoring the fact that scientifically giant insects are
impossible due to the way tracheal breathing works. Wasps with a wing span of 2 feet would be scientifically possible supposing the ratio of oxygen in the air was much higher, but then every campfire in Thaermore would turn into a raging inferno and burn down the Tangletree forest due to the high oxygen content!
This is a fantasy world, science has nothing to do with it. I'm not saying that wasps aren't venomous, I'm not even saying that they aren't dangerous to humans in general, I'm saying that in the grand scheme of things a single bee sting isn't as big a deal as a sting from a poisonous snake, or a poisonous spider, unless you're allergic to them. I'm very happy with the way it's implemented in the game.
We are talking about a scale here, not scientific nitty gritty but sweeping generalizations; this is a fantasy game, remember, not science fiction!
I like the fact that the Hive Drones sting you for damage and don't leave you with the lingering effect of poison
in the game. I think the loss of health suffered each time a Hive Drone stings is more than representative of any ill effects that the stinger has.
Adding a poison penalty is going overboard, I think that the fewer creatures which have poisonous effects the better! If every other creature has poison then you're going to be reminded at every turn that you should carry a ton of detox potions about! Since there are few creatures with poison in Book I there is the chance that you might get lax, forget to bring some, get caught out - isn't that more fun than always having to deal with poisonous creatures?
Personally I don't like it when games have too many poisonous creatures. Saddling everything with poison is not much of a solution, and doesn't make the game more exciting it just makes it a pain in the a** having to buy expensive detox potions or spend time waiting out the effects.
I mentioned badgers for a reason, and I knew you would take the bait. They aren't poisonous, but the game does handle diseases, and any mammal may harbor diseases (rats/dogs/bats etc). Once you start arguing for silly things like poisonous wasps where do you stop? Shouldn't blood sippers have a chance to disease you? Lizards are well known for that, they harbor extremely potent bacteria in their mouths which, like venom, has severely detrimental effects upon their victim. Might as well give Salamanders the chance to disease you as well. Come to think on it, given their size, Noximanders should be able to pw0n level 20 masters, with a single bite!
But thankfully they don't because it's just a game, and science has nothing to do with it, it's all about balance!
What is a man, If his chief good and market of his time Be but to sleep and feed? a beast, no more. Sure, he that made us with such large discourse, Looking before and after, gave us not that capability and god-like reason to fust in us unused.