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Some non-game changing ideas

Unstructured ideas, requests and suggestions for the development of the game.
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rijackson741
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Re: Some non-game changing ideas

Post by rijackson741 »

QQkp wrote: Sat Aug 29, 2020 11:01 pm I've been thinking about #4 - there's a sort of snag here that I'm worried about. In some cases, enemies that appear indistinguishable to the player are distinct in the code.

For example (spoilers: Stoutford):
In the Stoutford castle there is an enemy called "Erwyn's soldier". When you initiate combat with them, there are 3 possible dialogs:

"What do I seee? A mortal? Your bonesss shall be clattering on the ground soon enoughhh!" -> "How about you show me what that would look like?"
"Ah, your ssskull will be my favorite cup!" -> "Yes, but I also like it very much. So I'd rather keep it."
"Bonesss! Niccce little bonesss!!" -> "But not for you, sorry."

It turns out that in the game data, these are actually 3 different NPC types (erwyn_soldier, erwyn_soldier2, erwyn_soldier3 in monsterlist_stoutford_combined) with identical stats and identical name, but a different dialog.

Lord Erwyn himself is also implemented as 2 different enemies - one that reincarnates if you fight him before you get Tahalendor's coins, and one that dies permanently after you get Tahalendor's coins. The same is true for the guards at the deserter camp just north of Stoutford.
There may be other cases of this, but I'm not aware of them offhand.
There are indeed other cases of this. It's necessary for the game play. However, such NPCs either can't be engaged in battle, or are unique, so you can either kill none of them, or only one.
Level:71, XP:6493739, PV:608, FQ:84
HP:210, AC:212, AD:58-77, AP:4, ECC:16%, CM:1.5, BC:188, DR:3
Gold: 237559 | RoLS:1, RoL:1, GoW:1, VSH:1, RoFLS:1, WoB:1
HH:1, WA:1, CS:2, Cl:1, IF:4, Ev:3, Re:2, WP:DA:1, WP:1S:1, WP:B:1, AP:L:1, FS:DW:2, S:DW:1
Lich King
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Re: Some non-game changing ideas

Post by Lich King »

I also have some non-game changing ideas:

1 ) Naming of monsters: this game world looks like it has a much worse problem than all those Kazaul and Hirazinn and such demons. A problem no one talks about: a rabies pandemic! All the forests, all the fields are full of lurking rabid beasts. Even small puppies are infected by the hundreds. And our hero takes their meat and eats it! S/he also gets bitten by them all the time!
Really, having this many rabid beasts is stupid, rabies is no joke, IRL one bite can get you infected and it's 100% lethal. Let's call them something else, maybe "angry" or something.

2) Naming of conditions: what are all these "minor fatigue" and "weak poison", etc? I presume, early in the development the idea was to have minor and major versions of them, but it was released later that it's more simple to just multiply the same condition. But now this naming makes no sense, they should be just simply "poison", "fatigue", etc.
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rijackson741
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Re: Some non-game changing ideas

Post by rijackson741 »

1). Good point. "Rabid" is perhaps not the best choice of word, but according to Google, the fount of all knowledge, Rabid can mean (in fact it is given as the first meaning, before the disease): "Having or proceeding from an extreme or fanatical support of or belief in something."

2) There is still much of the game to build. They will be there. You will not like them when they appear :twisted:
Level:71, XP:6493739, PV:608, FQ:84
HP:210, AC:212, AD:58-77, AP:4, ECC:16%, CM:1.5, BC:188, DR:3
Gold: 237559 | RoLS:1, RoL:1, GoW:1, VSH:1, RoFLS:1, WoB:1
HH:1, WA:1, CS:2, Cl:1, IF:4, Ev:3, Re:2, WP:DA:1, WP:1S:1, WP:B:1, AP:L:1, FS:DW:2, S:DW:1
Lich King
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Re: Some non-game changing ideas

Post by Lich King »

Yet another idea, that I think would be very useful for beginners: at the start of the game, let you father explain in his introductory speech, that you DON'T have to spend your skill points right away when you get them, and in fact it is often better to wait until you can spend them better! (Maybe even hint at IF at lvl 5.)

It would help a lot becouse to build a strong character it is essential to spend the first ~8 points very well. As leveling up gets harder and harder, these points become rarer and rarer, and every single one wasted will be missed dearly. And you can screw it up right at lvl 4 by spending your point right away. Wich every beginner does. But you can only waste it at that level, becouse every useful skill unlocks only later.

Let's have an example: some hardcore players consider IF a kind of cheating - I don't. Now if you wait until lvl 5, you can have it, and then at lvl 8 Regen. If you waste it, you won't get IF sooner than lvl 8, and Regen at 12. And you will miss the wasted point forever.
And becouse the more useful skills unlock only at lvl 30, you will have to spare all the rest of your skill points until that time, except for Combat speed 1 at 15 and IF 2 at 20. Do it any other way and you will have a very hard time getting all those skills you should get at 30.

Also, while it is more game changing, I still suggest what I have suggested in one of my first posts: let's get rid of a bunch of useless skills that are only there to trap a beginner into wasting their points! There are so many skills and yet so few of them worth the precious skill points!
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Nut
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Re: Some non-game changing ideas

Post by Nut »

No, we won't let Mikhail talk about skill points. This is some kind of meta information that would destroy the spirit of the game.

You are right that players probably chose skills on their first games not too wise. I did so myself. But that's a way to learn - you must be allowed to make errors and learn from them.
Unlike in real life players can choose to live with the consequences or start a fresh game.

It's a game for fun after all, no business, science or competition :)
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Re: Some non-game changing ideas

Post by Nut »

Btw your skill scheme is not the only way to build a strong hero.
E.g. I also start with IF and Regen, but then go for Taunt at level 36 (6 points in Dodge+Evasion are required and also useful). Taunt is very helpful especially against mobs - and I simply love it :mrgreen:

I have also read of other skill schemes, always depending on the player's preferences
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Lich King
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Re: Some non-game changing ideas

Post by Lich King »

but then go for Taunt at level 36 (6 points in Dodge+Evasion are required and also useful). Taunt is very helpful especially against mobs - and I simply love it
It is not exactly the topic to argue about builds, but I'd still like to tell that while Taunt is nice, it's prequisits make it totally not worth it. 3 in Evasion - a completely useless skill. Those could go to Combat speed and IF 2, and you'd have more health and could use 6 AP weapons. 3 in Dodge - spending them on Light armor mastery would get you more BC with the right equipment. I'm very pragmatic. In the end killing your enemies is much more efficient than taunting them.
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Re: Some non-game changing ideas

Post by rijackson741 »

Evasion is certainly not a useless skill.
Level:71, XP:6493739, PV:608, FQ:84
HP:210, AC:212, AD:58-77, AP:4, ECC:16%, CM:1.5, BC:188, DR:3
Gold: 237559 | RoLS:1, RoL:1, GoW:1, VSH:1, RoFLS:1, WoB:1
HH:1, WA:1, CS:2, Cl:1, IF:4, Ev:3, Re:2, WP:DA:1, WP:1S:1, WP:B:1, AP:L:1, FS:DW:2, S:DW:1
Lich King
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Re: Some non-game changing ideas

Post by Lich King »

rijackson741 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:25 pm Evasion is certainly not a useless skill.
It is. What, you have better chance to get away from a fight? Are you fighting a monster to run away or to kill that monster? If you'd allocate those skill points differently, chances are you wouldn't even need to run away, instead you could stand your ground and win. Definetly a useless skill for anyone but a Frenchman. Might as well also make a skill to surrender to a monster and wait for a stronger ally to beat the monster for you.
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Re: Some non-game changing ideas

Post by Soullessktty »

There are times you simply wants to avoid fights and moves away from monsters. Evasion may helps, though not all the time. Even a mere 10%, which needed for taunt, makes a lot of difference. Sometimes combat isnt what you want at that particular moment, and evasion helps.
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