Neverwinter Nights/Fridge
Fridge Horror
- In Neverwinter Nights, we have a possible love story. Some had followed it, others didn't or couldn't. In short PC can make effort to make Aribeth redeem herself by telling her that he loves her, and get loved back. Sure in the end it doesn't matter, since we never learned what happened to the Savior of Nevewinter. Except, in one of Addons obviously another PC visits Hell, where he can find enraged spirit of Aribeth, he can save her and even ask her to join him in his journey. So, how did she ended down there? Was she killed, and not redeemed? Or was she executed after PC saved Neverwinter? And there goes romance?
- However, in the Hordes of the Underdark expansion, Tomi Undergallows informs us that Aribeth was executed by the city of Neverwinter for treason despite her possible redemption by the player, hence why she is in Hell. Which then leads to the conclusion that if the player in Neverwinter Nights did love her, then they would've had to watch the city they fought so hard to save, string up and hang their lover even after they had repented. Double Fridge Horror.
- Triple Fridge Horror: Which is exactly why Aribeth joined Maugrim in the first place; because she'd seen Fenthick, her lover, lynched and hung by the city he'd tried to save. And considering how strong-willed Aribeth was, who's to say the player character wouldn't go mad with grief in exactly the same way?
- 'cause the city's still standing? Given that, by the end of the game you've single-handedly beaten back an army with summoned demons and invincible golems, a fallen paladin who was the city's main protector, a high-level archmage and a old god, if you had gone mad then there would have been quite literally nothing to stop you killing every man, woman and child (besides Infant Immortality) in Neverwinter. The army was gone, the militia and guards more-than-decimated, and most of the heroes and adventurers were dead. The player character could, quite simply, wipe out the entire city by himself, and nothing could have stopped him. While this might seem to fix the above Fridge Horror moment, it does bring up another one: did the city government not learn from the first time? Were they so stubborn or Knight Templar that they were willing to risk having the entire city killed? Remind me, why are they in charge of the city?
- It's all because the judicial system in place in the city of Neverwinter is nothing short of medieval. If you actually pay attention to your surroundings when you're brutally suppressing the riot in the Peninsula District Prison, the whole prison is nothing short of a dungeon, just like any you might find in the possession of any of the setting's Lawful Evil bad guys. They have outright torture equipment hanging from the ceilings and the conditions in the cells are appalling. It's absolutely no wonder the prisoners rioted when they were given the chance, and it makes the player ask themselves if they're really doing what's right and good and just, or if they're simply slaughtering their way from plot point A to plot point B and collecting loot and XP along the way.
- 'cause the city's still standing? Given that, by the end of the game you've single-handedly beaten back an army with summoned demons and invincible golems, a fallen paladin who was the city's main protector, a high-level archmage and a old god, if you had gone mad then there would have been quite literally nothing to stop you killing every man, woman and child (besides Infant Immortality) in Neverwinter. The army was gone, the militia and guards more-than-decimated, and most of the heroes and adventurers were dead. The player character could, quite simply, wipe out the entire city by himself, and nothing could have stopped him. While this might seem to fix the above Fridge Horror moment, it does bring up another one: did the city government not learn from the first time? Were they so stubborn or Knight Templar that they were willing to risk having the entire city killed? Remind me, why are they in charge of the city?