Nothing exciting to report yet. We worked our asses off (12-14 hours a day avg) getting Maadoran and related areas (the mountain pass, the Ordu camp, Darius' tomb, the Abyss, Red Gracchus' raiders camp, and the tower of Zamedi), which is a LOT of content. We wanted to start testing earlier, but decided to take more time.
We started Teron's beta-test earlier than we should have and kept adding/tweaking things as the test went on. As a result the test was long and the testers started running out of steam at some point, which is understandable, of course. So, we want to make sure this test goes faster and smoother.
So, in the mean time, let's talk about R4. Upcoming changes:
1) Switch to 1-10 skill system as outlined here - link
2) Chargen changes as outlined here - link
3) Bonuses and penalties won't be applied to skills but to the derived stats - attack and defense
Attack Modifiers
- Perception (Bonus and penalty)
- Weapon THC (Bonus)
- Shield and Helmet (Penalty)
- Attack types (Bonus and penalty)
- Nets (Penalty)
- Neurostymulant (Bonus)
- Berserk (Penalty)
- Arm Injury (Penalty)
Defense Modifiers
- Armor (Penalty - Dodge only)
- Nets (Penalty)
- Bolas (Penalty)
- Consecutive Defenses (Penalty)
- Leg Injury (Penalty - Dodge only)
- Knockout (Penalty)
- Mobility (Bonus or penalty - Dodge only)
4) MORE info displayed!
5) New special attacks:
- Knockdown. Formerly, hammer's passive ability, now it's a 'hammers only' attack. Some people liked the passive ability, some didn't, so instead of forcing it on everyone, now it's up to you whether you want to knock some people or not. Hammers got a new and fairly realistic trait called Ground Slam! No, not really. Hammers' new passive makes them more effective against armor as it should be.
- Split shield - same deal. It's a new 'axes only' attack. Axes got a new passive-aggressive.
- Arterial strike - daggers and swords only, helmet DR/vsCS, +2 AP , -20 to THC, Power Damage, CS x 1.5.
Now, two-handed weapons didn't get enough love previously. They are big and heavy and you can't do much but swing them once per turn. Not anymore!
- Swing - poor man's whirlwind! It covers 3 tiles, cost 8AP, does regular damage, has a modest 10% to-hit penalty.
- Cleave - single enemy, 8 AP, -20% THC, power attack damage, +20% critical chance, DR/3.
- Double Tap - two consecutive attacks on a single enemy, +10% THC, fast attack damage on the first attack, reduced damage on the second, -10% critical chance, 9 AP
6) Changes to Counter Attacks (due to the fact that counter attacks were next to useless with some weapons)
- 6 AP Weapons: Fast attack.
- 5 AP Weapons: Regular attack.
- 4 AP Weapons: Power attack.
- 3 AP Weapons: Flurry.
7) Changes to CS.
The new passive effect is bleeding, which causes 2 points of damage for 4 turns. The damage is not affected by DR.
Natural CS now comes from Constitution. It gets 5 points for every Constitution point over 4. Ranges from 0 to 30. Now vsCS are cumulative, but still get a distinction of body/helmet. All attacks except the ones aimed at the head check for Armor + Natural + Shield. Attacks to the head check for Helmet + Natural + Shield.
8) The balanced technique no longer lowers the weapon AP, but adds THC.
9) Inventory access - opening up your inventory costs you nothing. Accessing unequipped items cost something, based on the item type. You can't remove armor, while accessing items in the belt bags is free, so you can put there bombs and potions. There is a "counter" that shows your available AP and how you spent by moving things around. The amount gets deducted once you close the screen (if you have enough, of course).
10) Changes to Dodge - dodgers get a penalty for each tile around them that's not passable (except for one). So the penalty would range from 0 to 7 tiles (being fully surrounded). So, um, don't get surrounded? There is a new ability called Feint that allows you to feint an attack and trade places with your attacker.
Plus, a few little things here and there.
Legendary Warriors
Last, but not the least, there is a new in-game lower difficulty mode. If your reputation is high enough, you can summon Legendary Warriors to fight by your side, after which the reputation is reset.
