My NWN O.C. run is progressing nicely. I completed the trial quest in Chapter Three today and it was such a welcome change from the usual explore-every-area, open-every-chest, find-the-doohickey, kill-the-boss quest template. I rate it higher than the often lauded Charwood quest.

The trial quest involves defending someone accused of murder and the outcome hinges on the right statements being said and the right questions being asked during the trial. As a twist, players weren’t allowed to repeat the conversation to find the optimum node and thus, in another welcome change, you have to think when selecting your statements and questions.

I especially liked the fact there were various degrees of success for the quest. My first attempt resulted in the defendant being acquitted but with lingering doubts about his innocence and it encouraged me to replay the quest to get the optimal outcome.

Here’s hoping there are more creative quests in the game because I’m planning on replaying the O.C. as a Rogue after reading Ross Glenn’s well-written Rogue primer. An excerpt:

You are the Rogue. You don’t have to wield spells or mighty weapons. You can wield PEOPLE instead.