Our community module

[Canderel]

Myself and DarkGod has expressed the wish for another fairly full fledged module available for the t-engine.

We should initially focus on the basic premise/milieu and getting the basic prototype to work before embarking on grandoise thing such as plot.

I believe we should intentionally do things different fromd tome so as to give the game a distinct feel.

---------- end of post -----------

my personal vision is to have something less complex with only 3 or 4 primary statistics. Less resists, less classes but wider variety of viable builds.

That is my vision but it is our project and i will only try to facilitate a shared vision for the project.

[yufra]

I am happy to help out as I can. How do you propose we proceed? Maybe we should start with a setting?

[Devorius]

Perhaps more zone randomization, maybe even fully random zones that could spawn?

What about the premise of a world that is in chaotic flux due to some reality-shattering event. The overarching goal could be to stabilize the world (or destroy it, sort of a good/evil path. Though I would really like to see something with more variety, like different organizations/groups/sovereign nations, etc.)

However, I think that things that would effect the game's plot or world should be tied to specific actions taken, rather than solely based on which plot thread the player chose to follow thereby allowing greater freedom of choice, which is one of the best aspects of roguelikes in my opinion. I would have it setup so that taking certain actions would restrict or eject you from said factions, also require prerequisite actions be taken prior to being allowed membership or even knowledge (secret guilds are always fun; perhaps offer more robust abilities and advantages to hidden guilds, also unique (read: novelty) classes; which could be very interesting given the chaotic nature of the world, and some other aspects I'll mention below).

Alternate planes to travel to: not just seperate zones, but overlapping planes. For example: an astral plane that would be tied to the normal world. I was thinking of that could be part of the plot, requiring you to travel to the astral plane in order to - fix/destroy/alter/assorted other goals - the normal world; also, linking locations in the astral plane to ones on the physical i.e. gates located throughout the astral plane that link to various places in the physical world, and vica versa.

[bricks]

Sci-fi could be a fun setting, and it's definitely apart from ToME's setting. I have a ton of concept, story, and gameplay ideas for a sci-fi roguelike sitting around, if things go that route.

If this module is meant to be more streamlined, how about introducing more classes, but with smaller development paths? If classes are tightly defined and numerous, you can start building your world, the zones, the factions, and monsters around those classes. Multi-classing is another possibility with this method; in this case, you'd start out with one talent tree unlocked, and then at certain points (every ten levels, for example) you can unlock another tree. Having small classes with lots of options would also make it easier for people like myself (who can't program at the engine-level very well) to introduce decent-sized addons as new content.

Which brings up another point - the addon system should be used to its fullest.

[darkgod]

I approve of the making of a new game

PS: scifi all the way!

[Goblinz]

This looks like a lot of fun and the t-engine could definitely use more modules. Something I would like to see are dynamic environments. So having snow accumulate and water flow seems like cool possibilities. Having destructible terrain is another good idea. Since we want this to be different from tome I think consumables and more traditional items would make since (potions and scrolls). If there are consumables a crafting system would be appropriate. Also having a working faction system would be nice.

A little random idea is that any monster should be a threat. So the player should never get to powerful

So is anyone in charge? I think having a manager/orginasier is VERY good idea.
This is a great Idea and I am willing to participate.

Edit -
Another random idea. A stealth system that everyone can use. I think stealth should always be an option

[Grey]

I'd love to contribute, but I'd say the concentration should be on a small simple game to start with. First and foremost thought is how the combat should be unique, and how the game will be fun from turn to turn.

[yufra]

Having a manager does seem like a good idea, but is a duty that I am poorly suited for. I do think a sci-fi setting would be a nice change from ToME, so +1 from me.

One of the technical challenges in changing setting to modern/sci-fi is that new map generators will need to be created. I have a few ideas about how to do that in an intelligent manner for indoor buildings, particularly using standardized room sizes and a BSP tree, but nothing developed yet.

The first thing I thought after reading the posts by bricks and Goblinz was to completely remove leveling from the game, which again is different from ToME. Instead we can have modular talents, similar to the ToME inscription set up where you can use a limited number of talents at any given time. This could be cast in a few different forms, for example a robot where the talents are actually different interchangeable parts, or an organic lifeform that splices its genetic material to change its abilities. A modular approach would trivially increase the diversity of play, although it could make balancing more difficult to avoid a limited number of optimal min-max play styles.

I love the idea of more interactive and dynamic terrain, and the suggestion from both Devorius and Goblinz to have the player's specific actions influence the game more would be a nice end goal, too. Mechanics first, story second is a good way to proceed, though, and doing the reverse is one of the reasons my personal module slowed down.

And finally, I defer to Grey's large rogue-like knowledge to define what a unique combat system would be like. Do you mean eschewing the old "damage subtracted from health" model? Or do you mean how combat actually plays out? If we choose a robot-themed setting I can imagine the classic "health" but also security (of your CPU) and power, all of which would be feasible ways to defeat something by.

[Dekar]

I would like to see sci-fi too, can't promise helping with it though.

[tiger_eye]

I think it could be really cool for a module to use the random world generator that asthmatic_thematic created here:

http://forums.te4.org/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=24816
and
http://forums.te4.org/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=25294
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And now for something completely different

Here's an off-the-wall suggestion for "a small simple game to start with": Bugs in a Barrel! The premise is that you are one of many bugs in a barrel that begins to roll down a hill. It is you vs. the environment as well as you vs. other bugs. The map scrolls slightly--slowly getting faster and faster--representing the rolling of the barrel, and if you don't keep pace with the rolling, then you'll fall off the side back into the barrel somewhere else unless you have a good grip. You can befriend other bug factions by saving them (or enslave them via intimidation), and your allies can perform favors for you and each other. Different types of bugs can do different things, of course, such as repairing holes that the barrel gets while rolling, making webs to catch stuff, enslaving other bugs, fighting off dangers, recovering after catastrophic events, etc. Anyway, this is a lot more fleshed out in my head (okay, maybe not a *lot* ), and there's a definite plot progression that a tumbling barrel can go through. For me, at least, this premise elicits a lot of creative and possibly interesting mechanics. Thoughts?

[yufra]

I think Bugs in a Barrel would make for a great 7DRL, but I don't know about a longer term game. Although the more I think about it...

[Mithril]

I think it could be really cool for a module to use the random world generator that asthmatic_thematic created here:

http://forums.te4.org/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=24816
and
http://forums.te4.org/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=25294
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I would love a scifi setting and a random world. Maybe one could explore different planets that are generated randomly?

[Canderel]

I'd be happy to be the 'manager' though I have a couple of difficulties ahead.

1. I'll be on leave soon, part of which I'll be offline.
2. The forums are blocked at my work, so I'd like to move the brainstorming and documentation elsewhere, as typing on my phone (decent as the I9001 may be) is not sufficient for the typing I imagine will be required.

It would seem Scifi will be where we go, but perhaps bugs in a barrel could be a nice start to just get the barrel rolling.

[Mithril]

Another idea would be a space explorer/trader game. See here for a decription:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_flig ... _simulator

This is a proven interesting concept with many successful games. However, they are realtime so a turn-based, complex version would likely appeal to the roguelike crowd. Could be combined with planetary exploration which function similarly to roguelikes with a character exploring the planets.

[yufra]

In regards to player motivation, I think something that would fit in nicely with both the sci-fi setting and random world emphasis would be exploration. If we want to have random NPC generation as well I suggest we take the gene-splicing approach I mentioned above. This would let us code various abilities and have the game engine combine them on the fly. I am all for Canderel taking point, and I don't know how bad it would be for limited connection during the holidays since most people will probably be quite busy. Would Google docs work as a base for development of ideas/design docs?