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Vapourware Zodiac Legion - X-COM and dungeons

Galdred

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
Move camera to acting character, but stop the movement if player moves it on his own. Don't change any camera settings.
OK, I did just that.

Now when it comes to color coded hitpoints, I don't know how best to do it:

ZcW6T32.png


The smaller blue pips for health easally get mistaken for mana.
I tried using gold for mana, instead of purple, but it is too "flashy", and doesn't work too well with blue:

hIyeJPA.png


Should I invert the size and position of life and mana?
Which colors would you recommend using?

XCOM uses red for opponent and blue for characters, without mana bar.

thumbnailer.php

PP does the same, and the mana bar can only be seen for the current character :

xmh6YMA.png

Even Dawn of War 2 uses color coded health bars.
ss_9ffb8805db7852bfcc484817483e36f7877778fe.1920x1080.jpg

allies also have a purple morale bar.

Given that the game will mostly be about 64 pixels dudes in armor fighting each other, using uniform colors (like in JA2) wouldn't work.

b6t6qx.png

While X-COM: UFO Defense uses very different sprites for opponents:

maxresdefault.jpg

Which color combination do you think would work best here?
 

Jimmious

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
I can only say that red for HP and blue for mana is the "convention" I'm used to..

*Btw these "fire stands" have a bit too much "yellow glow/blur" on them, no? I'd make it a bit less since the a actual sprite for them looks good
 

CryptRat

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Have you tried green instead of blue for party hps?
Because I think the gold mana bar looks good but the first impression is really not that it's mana, blue or purple would be better at that.
 

Galdred

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
That is a good point: Red/Green makes a lot of sense. I was weary of using green because of colorblind people, but I will add an alternate colorset for them (aesthetic probably works differently for them in the first place).
 

Zep Zepo

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I'd say Red or Green for HP/Health, Blue for Mana/Magic/Other Fantasy Faggoty Wizard shit.

It's been this way for years and years...Y U TRI BUC TEH SISTEM????

Zep--
 

Reinar

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Or call it stamina instead of mana (or some other name like willpower or energy).


BTW about colorblind people:
KTAnA_rCZuYsMDyQPLD5O6noIh2zeKpfOePqXvyFu_E.png


I think most of them are deutan, but I haven't made any research into this.
 

Galdred

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
Or call it stamina instead of mana (or some other name like willpower or energy).
It is actually both (more or less):
using magic depletes your max stamina pool (which is the blue pips shown here).
Some classes will have a "mana buffer" : aka, some casting points that get exhausted before depleting their max stamina.
The only way to recover your max stamina is to use a mana fountain. That allows a better control of the strongest spells (like opening a path through a wall).
 

Zombra

An iron rock in the river of blood and evil
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Make the Codex Great Again! RPG Wokedex Strap Yourselves In Codex Year of the Donut Codex+ Now Streaming! Serpent in the Staglands Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 BattleTech Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Pathfinder: Kingmaker Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag. I'm very into cock and ball torture I helped put crap in Monomyth
Hit points and mana should be the same color for everybody. Don't create confusion about blue hit points vs red hit points, it implies the rules are different.

Instead use different borders and icons to differentiate teams.

1LBEEDX.jpg


Different icons will also solve your color blind problem.

Red for hp and purple for mana/stamina looks great by the way, stick with it. Blue mana of course is what people are used to and expect so that would be fine too.
 
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Galdred

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
I guess letting the player customize it would be the best option then (I mean, it is already just a configuration setting).
Maybe if I paint the whole hex depening on the side of the character (like the blue and orange overlays), it would be good enough.

The thing is, it would be nice if you could tell at a glance what is happening, and who is controlling what at max zoom, because the fighting is supposed to take place all over the map (aka no pods, pulls, or whatever it is called. opponents will be actively trying to engage the characters, and theee will be good reasons to split the party).
 

Citizen

Guest
The colourful red armor sprites you are using and the title reminds me of this:
m1000x1000

Really hyped for this.
 

Zep Zepo

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I guess letting the player customize it would be the best option then (I mean, it is already just a configuration setting).

Oh...get rid of the green smiley face thing (or whatever it is) on the friendlies .. looks ridiculous.

Edit: Nevermind..I see that was Zombra's stupid idea.

Zep--
 

Reinar

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The thing is, it would be nice if you could tell at a glance what is happening, and who is controlling what at max zoom, ...
For this exact reason I think team-colored HPs are good. But if you make the HPs gold and mana blue for everybody and use different icons for teams, it will still look good while keeping it consistent and ready for color blind people without additional work - just 1 new icon for player (enemies: skull, player: shield, maybe?).
 

Galdred

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
I want to start doing a few videos, to make the game appear less static, but I don't know which would be the best format. Would you have cool video devlogs/ developer let's play or any other non hype developer video to recommend me?
 

Galdred

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
I'll be at the Play By Pax in Paris (21st and 22nd of April) if someone wants to test the current build.
The UI and AI still need some work, but it is playable now :)
I also took part in a Live Playtest:
DYgU_faXcAEDaSo.jpg



Basically, an interview while someone plays the game on the screen. Fortunately, no critical bug occured, and the skeletons won the day against the playtester, but I was way too tense during the interview (I was worried about the build exploding live as I had introduced a last minute memory leak into it).
 

Galdred

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
I'm thinking about doing a FAQ, as the page really lacks relevant information about the game (and features a lot of outdated visuals, but this is another story...).
Do you have any questions I should add there?

So let's start with the obvious:

Release Date?
The answer has not changed for the past 3 years: the game will be ready in 18 month!
Basically, when it is done, but it is currently in a state similar to the Battle Brother combat demo.

What's next?
I will "soon" create the Steam Page, then put a demo online.
After that, I will probably launche a KS campaign, unless I don't have the time and don't need the money anymore (if I end up with "too much" contract work).
Also, not doing a KS would make expectation management much easier :)
Early Access should happen in 2019.

Team?
I work alone with occasional help and awesome contractors (for art, writing, and music) hence the slow progress.
I work almost full-time on it, but I have to dedicate some time to avoid starvation by applying to various programming jigs, usually not game related (because it pays badly, and everyone is looking for Unity developers when it comes to contract work).

Engine?
Moai, because Invisible Inc is awesome. Also, I like being able to tinker with the engine. That said, the lack of tutorial and online presence can slow things down at time.
 
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PanteraNera

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Probably some of these questions will be answered by your kickstarter description text.

How exactly has X-Com and Jagged Alliance been inspired you and what similarities are there?

What stats/attributes will the heroes/enemies have?

How many hero classes will be in the game?

Do heroes have skills and how do they work?

How is armor going to work?

How is magic going to work? Does every of the thirteen different zodiacs go accordingly to the four elements and how do they differ? What is the 13ht zodiac?

How will leveling be handled? (skills, perks, traits, increasing stats)

How is mana working? How is it connected to stamina?

How many weapon classes will be in the game and how many in total? What stats do they have? Can you enhance weapons? Are there unique/legendary weapons? How many weapons has the game in total?

How will tactical battles play? (explanation how many actions a hero can do in one turn, initiative?)

How will the strategic layer work? (diplomacy, events)

How is research going to work?

Is base building in and how does it work?

How far is game development? May there be big/drastic changes like features getting cut or completely changed?

How many different mission types will the game have and how do they differ?

How many different enemy types will be in the game? Are there bosses?
 

Galdred

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
Thanks for the questions, PanteraNera
I will try to give some more concrete examples to some of them.

How exactly has X-Com and Jagged Alliance been inspired you and what similarities are there?
Is base building in and how does it work?

X-COM mostly inspired the "meta" element of the game: the focus on research and base building. I also want the game to be close to its spirit by letting you throw endless warriors into the meatgrinder to solve problems.
Territory control will work a bit like in JA2: once you get a region (by first weakening its opposition through some raid missions, then assaulting its castle), it produces resources for you, but it can be retaken. There will be some allied forces that will play the same role as Jagged Alliance militias (aka, serve as speedbumps), or provide you with an endless supply of redshirts in some missions.
You will also mostly be able to do some assault missions proactively.

Your main base will be the only one with magic reasearch and enchantment capabilities.
Think of the other ones as outposts (or interceptor bases), that provide a teleportation relay, and let you see mission opportunities around.
Both the main bases and the outpost can be fortified, but as much as I would have loved that, you won't be able to choose the wall layout. You will only be able to choose the type of fortification (like in Lords of the Realms 2 and not a detailed castle plan like in LOTR1).

How will tactical battles play? (explanation how many actions a hero can do in one turn, initiative?)

There is no initiative in the game: One side moves entirely, then the opposing side does the same.
Each character can move and perform a single action per turn.
As in XCOM, there are two movement ranges. The standard one allows you to perform most actions, and the extended movement range cost stamina, limits the actions you can perform, and gives you an ATT and DEF malus for the turn. It also removes your zond of control.
Some actions (like shooting with a bow) get a penalty as soon as you move. Other require you not to move at all. Some spells require you to concentrate one turn before being able to cast them.
There is no facing, but characters have a zone of control: It costs more movement points to leave a ZOC, and give the leaving character a malus.
Being in the ZoC of 3 opposing characters that are not in any of your allies's ZOC gives you an ATT and DEF malus.
A character is flanked when there are no tiles that are not in an opponen ZoC around him. Being flanked gives an ATT bonus to the opponents.

What stats/attributes will the heroes/enemies have?
We decided to use a limited number of stats, and offload most of the bonuses to perks and skills:
Stats are:
- Health
- Stamina/Mana
- Move
- Attack
- Defense
- Damage
Weapons and armors also have similar stats: (max stamina/health modifier), and have the following stats (some characters/creatures may have natural pierce and armor).
- Pierce
- Armor
- encumbrance

How many hero classes will be in the game?

The game will feature the main 4 DnD archetypes: Warrior, Support, Rogue, and Mage
Each can then be specialized into one of the 13 zodiac classes.

Do heroes have skills and how do they work?

There are no skills in the PnP RPG sense. Skills work more like feats/character class abilities.
Passive skills can do things like add flanking damage (or limit it), give passive stamina regeneration, encumbrance reduction, or improve some of the base actions.
Active skills cover special attacks (some will only work with certain weapons), spells, and utility.

How are damage and armor going to work?

During an attack, the attack and defense rolls are compared. If attack < defense, it is a miss. If they are equal, it is a grazing hit. If att>defense, it is a solid hit, and if att>defense+2, it is a critical hit.
a grazing hit removes 2 damage from the attack, a solid hit deals normal damage, and a critical hit does additional effect depending on the weapon (bleed, stun, or just extra damage for example).
Armor is substracted from the damage, but unless the attack is a grazing hit, or the damage is below -1, the character will take at least 1 point of damage when hit.
Encumbrance is deducted from max stamina, and can also limit your movement range.

How is magic going to work? Does every of the thirteen different zodiacs go accordingly to the four elements and how do they differ? What is the 13ht zodiac?

Spells cost an action and mana to cast. Some will only trigger on the next turn (the delayed fireball has a larger AoE and damage than the regular one, but only lands one turn later).
There was a plan to tie each zodiac sign to its astrological element, but it might be too limiting, so we'll see about that.
The 13th sign is Ophiuchus.

How will leveling be handled? (skills, perks, traits, increasing stats)

Every level will provide a perk or trait. Some level will also let a character improve a stat. There will be some randomness on level up (like in Blood Bowl: you always have access to your regular skills, but you can also pick other skills instead depending on a random level up roll).
Stats will stay in the 1-10 range.


How is mana working? How is it connected to stamina?

When you cast a spell, you use mana if you have some. When you don't, the cost is substraced from your maximum stamina.
You can replenish stamina by using the rest action, but you cannot recover mana or go beyond your modified maximum stamina this way.
Some mana fountains let you replenish both mana and max stamina.

How many weapon classes will be in the game and how many in total? What stats do they have? Can you enhance weapons? Are there unique/legendary weapons? How many weapons has the game in total?

The weapons currently in game are:
axe/greataxe (versatile weapon against both unarmored and armored targets).
sword/greatsword (mediocre penetration, but good attack and defense values)
hammer/polehammer (good armor penetration, can stun targets)
bec de corbin (very good armor penetration)
halberd (reach, and supporting bonus to nearby friends).
flail (havles shield bonus)
cudgel (low tech/improvised weapon)
bow
scepter (grants casting benefits)
Shield (buckler, round, knight, kite, and tower shield).
As I said in the stats/Attributes, they have the following stats:
ATT/DEF modifier (def can be specific to melee, ranged or magic too).
Damage
Pierce
2 Hander usually have better attack, damage. They also have a good melee defense, while one hander+shield give better generic defense.
encumbrance (most weapons don't have any, but the heavier shields do).
they also have critical effects, and can be enchanted (to provide on demand elemental attacks).
Unique/Legendary weapons will be split in several parts that will need to be reforged.

How will the strategic layer work? (diplomacy, events)
This part is still evolving a lot. It will basically play a bit like Star Wars Rebellion (or Twilight Struggle):
You assign non combat characters and resources on missions (diplomacy, espionnage, ...), and the resolution of these missions will usually trigger a tactical battle whose difficulty and outcome will depend on the relative efforts deployed by both sides on the contested area.
Events will either trigger missions, alter some ongoing non combat missions, and usually present you with either a moral choice, or a choice between several options.
We try our best to make sure all options are reasonable under some circumstances (so that you can really choose to take option A because you need more manpower now over option B which would have given you more resources, at the cost of some of your soldiers and workers for instance).

How is research going to work?

It won't be overly original. You find scrolls or tomes, that can either reveal other mission locations, or help you advance your knowledge of magic/enchantment/alchemy.
Magic gives you more options for skill up.
Alchemy allows to to brew potions and explosives.
Enchantment allows you to improve your weapons.

One use items are still free to use (the in universe reason for that is that potions have a very short lifetime, so what limits them is your access to alchemical resources and your number of alchemists).

How far is game development? May there be big/drastic changes like features getting cut or completely changed?

There is no functionning geoscape to really show, but a tactical module that works relatively well. So the strategic part can still change a lot, but the tactical part will mostly get added content and balance.

How many different mission types will the game have and how do they differ?

This can still change, but the following missions are planned:
- Assassination
- item retrieval(artifact, scroll...)
- Take and hold
- Sabotage (ie destroy something and get out)
- escort
- Assault/Defense
- (Dis)Activate objective
Most missions have a soft timer (increasing enemy reinforcements over time).
Some will have a hard one (Hold objective for X turns, or kill opponent before he can get out).
Some will also give you friendly cannon fodder.
Retrieving an artifact obviously requires the character who took it to get to an exit.

How many different enemy types will be in the game? Are there bosses?

There will be 3 types of opponents:
- Humanoids (which will have character classes similar to the player), guardians (skeletons, golems, gargoyles), and demons (minotaurs/satyres, winged beasts, shades, fireball scorpion).
Humanoids threatens your borders, or defend them from your operations.
Guardians keep watch over old ruins and other places to loot.
Demons raid your own territory.

All of the enemy also have access to every weapons and most armor, so two sekeleton warriors can differ if one is in heavy armor with a two hander, and the second an archer without any protection.

Opponents also have color-coded elites.

Bosses would play like the lieutenants of Descent: They will give a bonus to their warriors for all battles happening around them, and can sometimes physically be present during missions.
But we don't have unique non humanoid characters yet (and all humanoid characters are paperdolled).
 
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ERYFKRAD

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Strap Yourselves In Serpent in the Staglands Shadorwun: Hong Kong Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag. Pathfinder: Wrath I'm very into cock and ball torture I helped put crap in Monomyth
Ok which Zodiac for the Warriors qualifies as the Barbarian class?
 

PanteraNera

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Wow, that was quick Galdred

here are some more ;) :

Are the maps (tactical and strategic) handcrafted or procedurally-generated?

How much story-driven is the game? Is it open ended / can you chose to not advance further in the story?

How is loot / loot-dropping handled? Will "dungeons" have treasures?

Will the tactical maps have buildings and to what extend? Will there be different height-levels?
 

Galdred

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
Ok which Zodiac for the Warriors qualifies as the Barbarian class?
It depends on your definition of barbarian.
The game takes place a long time after the fall of the not-Roman Empire, so barbarian is not a clearly defined notion anymore.
But 3 zodiac classes feel a need to ornate their helms with horns:
Taurus, Aries, and Capricorn, so they could qualify too.
 

Galdred

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
Wow, that was quick Galdred

here are some more ;) :

Are the maps (tactical and strategic) handcrafted or procedurally-generated?
They are currently handcrafted, but the goal is to make them like in UFO or XCOM 2: a procedurally generated map but from handcrafted presets.

How much story-driven is the game? Is it open ended / can you chose to not advance further in the story?
It is mostly a sandbox, so it is as story driven as JA2.

As long as you and your opponent both have your stronghold, the game should continue.
How is loot / loot-dropping handled? Will "dungeons" have treasures?
Most opponents won't ever drop anything. Some champions might drop something cool on death, but not the enemy fireball fodder. I hate when games bury the player under a mountain of useless loot to sell to the shopkeeper.
Most of the loot will come from chests.
Most chests won't be on the most direct path to complete the mission, so it is a risk Vs rewards tradeoff.
Loot will be either magic resources, "power-ups" like diablo gems(or XCOM 2 add-ons), Scrolls/grimoires, and artifact fragments (but these will be quest objectives rather than something you find by accident in a chest).

Will the tactical maps have buildings and to what extend? Will there be different height-levels?
There are only 2 tilesets at the moment.
Grasslands/forest and dungeon.
I plan to add buildings, and fortifications but that would require additional funding.
There would be elevation(for fortifications, hills, and cliffs) but only one height level per tile.
I don't want to have to deal with multiple height levels on the same tile UI wise. I find it always hard to get a good overview of who is where when there are.
 

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