Now at first this is going to seem like an odd question... thats because it is, all my questions are odd but you will get used to it :D

I was considering (out of pure boredom) writing another short story. This one will be a combo of the popular reality TV show Survivor and the equally popular game BG2. Image this - The next series of survivor is on a tropical island and the contestants are the BG2 NPCs.

I will be writing the story from the beginning (choosing of tribes) to the end (winning 1 million gold). The question is who do you think would win?

NPCs
</font>

• Aerie</font>
• Anomen</font>
• Cernd</font>
• Edwin</font>
• Haer'Dalis</font>
• Imoen</font>
• Jaheira</font>
• Jan Jansen</font>
• Keldorn</font>
• Korgan</font>
• Mazzy</font>
• Minsc</font>
• Nalia</font>
• Valygar</font>
• Viconia</font>
• Yoshimo</font>

Now survivor is not just a game about surviving, its about stratgy. The first survivor was one by someone solely because they kept up an allience. Betrayal, strength or likable personality can win the game so who do you think would walk away with a million?

Now here is my logic (this is probably not how the story will go but just running it through my mind).

I personaly couldn't stand being stuck on an island with anomen or aerie so they are out straight away for pure annoyiness factor.

Hmm, Cernd... well if I had to survive on a tropical island I would want to keep a druid around.

I hate to say it but Edwin would manage to annoy everyone... actually all the evil aligned characters would (unless they managed to keep an alliance together... phh HA) so they are gone.

Haer'Dalis, smooth talker, bard... I am sure he could manage the betrayal and alliance rather well.

Imoen - Nice gal but no real reason to keep her around, I mean there are better mages available and what do you need a thief around on a tropical island for?

Jaheira - Another druid, and a strong one...

Jan - Either people would keep him for his humour and personnaly or vote him off for the same reason.

Keldorn - Old fartherly type, good strength.

Mazzy - Strong, probably wouldn't need much food or take up much room [img]smile.gif[/img] .

Minsc - Very useful for strength, easy to take into an alliance (aka idiotic) and if worst comes to worst they could always eat Boo.

Nalia - Useless

Valygar - A ranger could be useful.

Yoshimo - A bounty hunter... on a tropical island... yeah that would work...

So
<s>Aerie
Anomen</s>
Cernd
<s>Edwin</s>
Haer'Dalis
<s>Imoen</s>
Jaheira
Jan Jansen
Keldorn
<s>Korgan</s>
Mazzy
Minsc
<s>Nalia</s>
Valygar
<s>Viconia
Yoshimo</s>

Thats a hard question to answer with just one name. It tends to come down to which girl is getting her kit off the most as to who stays on the island (in the British version anyway). I reckon Viconia would win it for that reason. You can also imagine her being the bitchy one turning the others against each other.

Aerie, Anomen, Cernd, Jaheria, Nalia, Imoen, Edwin, wouldn't stand a chance coz I think they would moan too much.

You guys are totally wrong about Edwin. He is smart, he is lawful, he is evil. He will put people up against each other, he will make sure he is popular everywhere, he will backstab, he will win.

As much as I would love to see Edwin win...
Come on he couldn't keep from offending people no matter how hard he tried, he might be able to hold off for a few days but after a while he would resort to his usual comments.

Id say Haer'dalis would win...hes a chaotic personality, so he wouldnt mind betraying his uncles toe-nail polisher( [img]graemlins/erm.gif[/img] ) if it would benefit him, yet he wouldnt mind allying with him either. being a smooth talker and a good(probably) singer, he could be the "mood-lightener", which alone could get him the mil. also, his magical talents, intelligence and wisdom would definately benefit him, as would his strenght. the only downside would be his low constitution, which might result in him getting sick easily, but there are clerics/rangers/druids there to cure him [img]smile.gif[/img]

Viconia might win by gaining the favor of the males(mainly by sleeping with them :D )...shes also a useful cleric

well, if shadowhound is really going to make it like the show, then the people you don't want to win and really shouldn't, will.

Well the first to get voted off are always those that are both weak AND annoying. Which means the first two to go would be:
Aeire
Jan

Anomen may be annoying but he is strong so would survive at least until the merge.

Those in danger in of getting voted off next:
Edwin
Haer'Dalis
Imoen
Viconia
Nalia
Yoshimo
None of these are terribly strong, survival at this stage would depend on combination of their intelligence and charisma.

The four I think likely to go:
Viconia - She is neither a nice person or strong one, Making her a liability for her tribe. Worse her attitude and her mouth would get her voted out fast.
Nalia - she has similar problems to Viconia, she can be way to pushy and far to opinionated. All in all she is not the best person to form alliances with.
Imoen - No reason to hate her, no reason to love her.
Yoshimo - because Edwin is smart enough to work against him and Haer’Dalis has enough charisma to last until the merge

So at the merge we have
Anomen
Cernd
Jaheira
Valygar
Keldorn
Haer'Dalis
Korgan
Mazzy
Minsc
Edwin

Once the tribes merge physical strength becomes a liability and one’s alliances are what help you.

Korgan would be kicked out and kicked out fast. He is loud, rude, annoying, abrasive and generally unpleasant. Who would want him around if they didn’t have to have him? Who would be foolish enough to form an alliance with a chaotic evil individual in the first place?

The next two in danger:
Cernd - I can’t see this guy forming any sort of alliance.
Minsc - Minsc is just too strong physically and therefor a significnat threat to the others, he woudl not survive in this portion of the game.


I do see an alliance shaping up featuring Mazzy, Keldorn, Valygar and Anomen. With a solid voting block of 4 the next three voted out block would be:
Edwin
Haer’Dalis
Jaheiar

Of the final four (Mazzy, Keldorn, Valygar and Anomen) I would have to pick Valygar as the winner. He is strong enough to survive the first half but not so strong to be a particular threat in the second. He isn’t particularly annoying and would be loyal to his alliance; he is generally inoffensive (except to magic users) so no one will outright hate him. He is also morally flexible enough to backstab one or two of his competitors to get ahead.

Jury break down: Cernd, Jaheira and Minsc would likely vote for Valygar over any of the others, his status as ranger would appeal to all three of these jury memebers.
Even if Valygar backstabbed Edwin at some point then Edwin would still likely vote for Valygar because I think even Edwin would appreciate someone who could betray him and do it with style, besides the other three possibilities Keldorn, Mazzy and Anomen) are annoyingly wholesome and Edwin would never stoop that low. That is four votes and enough to win.
If Mazzy did not make it to the final two she would also likely vote for Valygar.

IronDragon I like your logic, but what no one has taken into consideration are the immunity challenges. Before the merge they will be playing for group immunity and some individuals (no matter how annoying) may very well make it to the merge. After the merge they are playing for individual immunity so whoever wins the challenge will not be voted off. If the challenges are physical then either the strongest or most dexterious compeditor will probably win. If its mental then a high intellegence/wisdom will come into play.

EDIT: Out of curiousity what instrument do you think Haer'Dalis plays?

[ 09-28-2003, 08:51 PM: Message edited by: shadowhound ]

Well I have started writeing and I have hit a bit of a snag. I have devided them into teams (there should be some "interesting" events with the teams I chose) and now I am having trouble picking the luxury items. Each challenger on survivor gets to bring one luxury item with them, now by general rules there are no food, weapons or fishing rods (etc.) but I have no prob changing the rules a bit.

These are the ones who have no luxury item yet:

Aerie
Cernd
Nalia
Imoen
Jaheira
Keldorn
Anomen
Mazzy
Yoshimo
Valygar
Viconia

Hm...definately like a lyre playnig bard...Yeah, because i've always seen him singing and playing his lyre at the same time, walking with the protagonist and singing Monty Python and the Holy Grail like songs...

I think Yoshimo would win because of how deceiving he can be. Will we get to read your story (I am very interested)? Let me guess Minsc's luxury item is Boo? Um, well I don't think Valygar would bring anything cause he's a ranger and likes to live off the land. As for the others I'll have to think about it.

I'd say the concept of a Battle Royale with all the BG2-characters is far more interesting than Survivor, but oh well. ;)

<font color=deepskyblue>A very interesting concept, <font color=gray>shadowhound</font>. I've never watched ANY of the "Reality Shows", so I don't know exactly how the rules worked on Survivor. Out of all the suggestions so far, I have to agree that <font color=white>IronDragon's</font> logic seems to be the best - although I still disagree with one of his final choices.

As you mentioned, NOBODY in the viewing audience liked Richard in the original show and everybody wanted him voted off...but he used strategy and made alliances to win the game. So here are the few changes I think I would make to what <font color=white>IronDragon</font> said.

Edwin - I simply cannot see him making it to the final round. In fact, I think he would be one of the first voted off. He is NOT into alliances because he thinks he is superior to everybody. Anomen and Aerie may be annoying, but they can't match Edwin's supreme and overriding arrogance. Edwin is physically weak and wouldn't be much of a contribution in finding food or shelter. Plus he would be insulting everyone in his tribe from Day One. I think he would be gone quickly. (And he would NEVER survive past the merge, because Minsc HATES him and would eventually just kill him).

Anomen and Aerie - I always find it amusing that most members vote these two as the weakest or worst NPC's simply because they can be annoying. As with most posts here, members vote based on their personal preference rather than on the characters actual strengths and weaknesses. I'll agree that neither of them would make it to the end, but I think both would last longer than most people think because they both have good services to offer the group. Aerie is weak, but she's a girl, so that can be overlooked. She has mage and clerical spells to offset her weaknesses. This keeps her around for a little while anyway. Same with Anomen. He can be annoying, but he isn't as arrogant and constantly insulting as Edwin. He has better physical strength, decent fighting ability (to help with killing animals for food), and the clerical spells for healing.

Also keep in mind that their are certain NPC's that absolutely would NOT work together.
Keldorn and Viconia
Minsc and Edwin
Korgan and Aerie
These 3 pairs will literally go at each other's throats before very long, so at least half of them would be gone by the merge.

Now then, the 3 I think would have the best chance of winning are.....
Valygar - his ranger skills would be invaluable to his tribe. He is already an expert at living off the land and surviving with just what he can carry on his back.

Yoshimo - he is also has good "survivor" skills, but his strength lies in forming alliances. After all, he manages to stay with the party in BG2 (at least the first time or two) even though he has betrayed them from the very beginning. He also manages not to be killed or attacked by Renal Bloodscalp, even though he has operated on his turf. Yoshimo is a master at making whatever alliances are necessary to save his hide. His traps would also be extremely handy in catching food.

Haer Dalis - Jack of all Trades. Lots of different skills to help in various areas and also sly enough to form whatever alliances are needed. And - let's not forget the possibility of using his instrument to simply "CHARM" his way to a victory. ;) .</font>

You've been assigned to "work" for Mae'Var, the head of a thief guild, for the sole purpose of getting the goods on him. To gain Mae'Var's trust, you perform a total of four missions. Mae'Var sends you on your first mission personally, to steal a necklace. Then, instead of giving you another one himself, he sends you up to his trusted lieutenant, Edwin, who gives you your next two missions. You perform those two (including a murder of a Cowled Wizard), and on the recommendation of Edwin, Mae'Var entrusts you with a final mission to eliminate a traitor. After completing that mission, you have Mae'Var's trust and return to Edwin for further missions. But lo and behold... you find that Edwin is not only aware that you are only working for Mae'Var to investigate and execute him, but to quote the man himself, "You're not the only one stepping over Mae'Var's bones for a profit."

Just something a few of you seemed to be forgetting about Edwin. Before he even opts to join your party, he has already demonstrated himself as someone willing to break an alliance for profit/gain. Moreover, he was cunning and convincing enough to create his own false alliance with Mae'Var in the first place... presumably without the help of another "trusted lieutenant" to recommend himself to Mae'Var. Now granted, Mae'Var isn't exactly the sharpest sword in the armory, but he has been successfully leading a criminal organization for quite some time. So I think it's fair to assume that Edwin posesses a good bit of savvy with regards to establishing trust as well as breaking it.

Cernd is too boring to last. [img]graemlins/survivor.gif[/img]
Aerie, Anomen whine. [img]graemlins/survivor.gif[/img]
Edwin/a would definately offend. [img]graemlins/survivor.gif[/img]
Valygar and Keldorn are good bets. Respectable and would probably start a strong alliance. Perhaps w/ Imoen which could save her butt.
Jaheira would start lecturing sooner or later. I love her, but not everyone does. [img]graemlins/survivor.gif[/img]
Jan Jansen, funny guy neat personality, but would be useless during challenges, and this would piss people off. [img]graemlins/survivor.gif[/img]
Haer'Dalis is a good bet, but the "good guy" alliance would get rid of such a renegade factor. [img]graemlins/survivor.gif[/img]
Everyone would try to keep Minsc around and manipulate him. Everyone would want to be there with just Minsc v. them in the end. Then he'd go. [img]graemlins/survivor.gif[/img]

Or Survivor is horrible and..well..yeah!

erm..where'd that bottle go..

Now that I started it looks like it is going to become not such a "short" story. I have only writin about the first day and already I have filled a few pages so I don't know if I am going to post it on IW or just give it a website or something.

Yes Boo is Minsc's luxury item :D

[ 09-29-2003, 07:13 PM: Message edited by: shadowhound ]

Well just keep us all updated okay? So when you do finish it I don't miss out. Thanks,

-Maj Green

Yes Boo is Minsc's luxury item :D </font>[/QUOTE] But doesn't Boo count as food? :D

You guys relate this too much to what they do in the game. Think about it, if it really mattered, Edwin would certainly NOT offend, he is smart enough for it. Come on, he is the most intelligent person on the island. He would not fight, he will try to become liked by everyone, only to stab em in the back when it's a good time. Again, if it really mattered, he would NOt offend people, in BG, there is no real NEED for him to stay with the party, so no need to keep shut.

Well its funny you mention that [img]tongue.gif[/img]