A Twist of Fate - Announcement

[Hogulus]

Yeah, the current state of Chronomancy is that it can only go back as far as the Spellblaze - but that's with the standard method, and it's with the way things are now. Perhaps there would be some other method of Chronomancy, powered by some rift other than the Spellblaze, discarded timelines rebounding into ours, some form of magic or divine power we haven't seen before, the wound of the Spellblaze being pried open by some rogue chronomancer and spreading further into the future and past... It doesn't mean it's impossible, just that you need to think of a plausible way to address it (probably more plausible than the ways I suggested here).

[Chronosplit]

Interesting point: there are two versions of Time Shield, one that runs on Mana and one that runs on Paradox.

Perhaps it's roots all ran on Mana before the Spellblaze like most magic, but it was extremely unstable? Like there were limited ways of bending time but it could never be at the point that Chronomancers could manage, and only one of great skill could pull it off.

[rexorcorum]

The idea sounds delicious and if it gets going, I might be tempted to do some art stuff, when the need arises . Cheers!

[XLambda]

Thanks for the good ideas, everyone! For now I plan to stick to the established lore, so pre-Spellblaze events are off-limits at the moment. Concerning the idea of a second spellblaze ripping the space-time fabric to pieces that someone brought up, the temporal cataclysm is meant to be just that. Both the cause and intended purpose of this event are left open for now, though I have some pretty concrete ideas for it.

Actually, the term ekpyrosis might be a better fit than cataclysm. Considering the latter linguistically refers to water (as in Tar'Eyal's cataclysm), while the former is associated with fire, much like the Spellblaze. I think that's what I'll be using.

The idea sounds delicious and if it gets going, I might be tempted to do some art stuff, when the need arises . Cheers!

Thanks, I appreciate it.

As for the getting going, I've begun coding the first few zones. A very satisfying experience, to be walking around in a dungeon of your own design. I've just now begun to appreciate how cool the ToME module/addon code is! So let's keep things going forward. Or, as a certain chronomancer used to say, allons-y.

[darkgod]

If you want more creative space; there are many many worlds out there (though try to avoid those of the Shandral system itself, I have plans )
Many of which most likely have a farportal or two and some of which had ripples from the spellblaze.

Do you want a git account on git.net-core.org to host it ?

[XLambda]

If you want more creative space; there are many many worlds out there (though try to avoid those of the Shandral system itself, I have plans )
Many of which most likely have a farportal or two and some of which had ripples from the spellblaze.

Ah, thanks for the information! I'll be sure to not step on your toes lore-wise.

Do you want a git account on git.net-core.org to host it ?

That would be quite useful, thank you.

[xnd]

hi. i just visited back since i noticed a new tome version out. i stopped playing a half year or more ago i think it was, since so many game bugs kept wrecking games for me, and i didnt like the ai's, and some other things i posted about at the time, but...,

i still have the chronoxorn i was trying to code while not knowing how to code. it has some good things made for it if you wanna look since you can code. i like chronostuff and had put a lot of hours into trying to get it to work but still had some issues and never finished it. it might take a bit to understand the thought process through my messy code attempts. often i couldnt get to work what i tried and so then tried to stick workarounds elsewhere lol to maneuver the concept in another way.

basic concept if i recall is a 4-D dualself body and some balancers where enemies you fight more than one temporal version of each enemy and they also call others and mob on you and you wield double item slots and various abilities but the coding was hard for me.

if you have interest and wanted to help me finish it..., but if the game still has so many bugs and issues i had posted about, i lost motivation because of all that and havent been playing.

i did enjoy playtesting the chronoxorn in the ID and think it offers some fun unique experience and chrono concepts.

[XLambda]

Progress is being made! I've been working on the starting area, putting together the first few zones the player will go through. Also, I am happy to announce that the first time window has been decided on. This time, the temporal portal will take us back to the Derthfields during the Age of Dusk, when the great necromancer Kor'pul terrified the local townsfolk, terrible plagues spread across the lands and the secret mage haven Angolwen was being established in the mountains to the southwest.

If you want to follow the development, keep an eye on the repository at http://git.net-core.org/community-addons/twist-of-fate.

i still have the chronoxorn i was trying to code while not knowing how to code. it has some good things made for it if you wanna look since you can code. i like chronostuff and had put a lot of hours into trying to get it to work but still had some issues and never finished it. it might take a bit to understand the thought process through my messy code attempts. often i couldnt get to work what i tried and so then tried to stick workarounds elsewhere lol to maneuver the concept in another way.

[...]if you have interest and wanted to help me finish it..., but if the game still has so many bugs and issues i had posted about, i lost motivation because of all that and havent been playing.

Hah, sorry, I must have missed your post. I really appreciate your offer, but new races or classes aren't really the focus of the project right now. I have a lot to do already with coding new zones. Also, to be completely honest I think my knowledge of the ToME code really isn't sufficient to realize such a complex concept

[tylor]

Is it possible to make a campaign intended to be played by more than one character? Not at once, taking turns, but sharing gear and gold between them, maybe lives too and have some other way to effect each other.

It can be people recruited from different times and timelines, and/or even different versions of the same character.

[trenggiling]

I can help in what ever way I can.

Which is to say....
I can help with the visuals....
When I have the time....
And don't ask me to make any particle effects....
Because I can't...

Any way, on that note, do you have any use for a crocodile or a shark?
Cause I made these a while back, and they have just been gathering dust ever since.
(Note that I could give them normal, none glowing red, eyes if needed)

[XLambda]

Is it possible to make a campaign intended to be played by more than one character? Not at once, taking turns, but sharing gear and gold between them, maybe lives too and have some other way to effect each other.

It can be people recruited from different times and timelines, and/or even different versions of the same character.

Hmm. I think it would be possible, but not with ordinary campaign coding. You see, a campaign mostly just consists of zone definitions, with associated maps, NPCs, quests etc. To implement what you propose, one would have to tamper with the engine itself, and that's pretty difficult to say the least.

So yeah, I think it's possible, but it's way above my level.

I can help in what ever way I can.

Which is to say....
I can help with the visuals....
When I have the time....
And don't ask me to make any particle effects....
Because I can't...

Any way, on that note, do you have any use for a crocodile or a shark?
Cause I made these a while back, and they have just been gathering dust ever since.
(Note that I could give them normal, none glowing red, eyes if needed)

Thanks, I appreciate it. And hey, I basically work on this project whenever I can find the time. I perfectly understand the situation of being short on time. In fact, there's a good chance that you have more of it than me, lol. And yes, I actually do have a use for the sprites you offered. Very helpful, thank you! I'd like to take you up on your offer regarding the eyes, though there is no need to hurry and it's completely optional.

While we're talking about art assets, I think the best way to do this is that I will set up a public document or something like that, outlining which sprites the project needs, ordered by how important they are. That way any of you can look at it and see if there is anything you have the time, skills and motivation to work on. Again, I don't want to put pressure on anyone who wants to help with this project. Feel free to help with anything you like, whenever you feel like it. I'm super grateful for any contribution.

[trenggiling]

NP it was a quick fix.
But before I start on anything new I will have to first get caught up with my skill icon requests...

[XLambda]

NP it was a quick fix.
But before I start on anything new I will have to first get caught up with my skill icon requests...

Thank you, much appreciated!

[Fayd]

Just saying, my old class archetypes, Fated, of which the popular Wyrdthief belongs might be a thematically appropriate addition to this project. Though DarkGod may have conflicting plans for them? Dunno. Regardless, if you're interested, send me a PM and I'll explain. I'm on these forums rarely and the automatic email will ensure that I respond in a timely fashion.

[XLambda]

Okay, little bit of an update. While I've been coding zones for the first time window, I've worked out a bit more of the overall structure of the campaign. Right now I'm planning three to four time-windows (depending on how large these segments end up being, I'll most likely cut it down to three), a segment in the present (though under ... slightly different circumstances) and a furious finale in the far future. I'm also working out more of the individual dungeons. I'll post a bit more about all of this later, so people can see what's planned and where community ideas are needed. So keep an eye on this thread!

Right now I'm also setting up a little public spreadsheet so people can see which artwork is needed for the campaign. That's mostly the bosses, plus one or two NPCs. I'm doing it this way to make it the most easy and comfortable for any artists wanting to help out, because this project really depends on them. The idea is that I'll update the sheet over time as the project progresses towards completion, to give people as much time as possible. I know we're all short on time, so this is probably the most convenient way for all of us to handle the artwork side of the project.

Which leaves us with a major problem, that of artifacts. It would be a lot of fun to design new artifacts from all kinds of places and times. It would also make a lot of sense. Of course, I can always explain the existence of anachronistic artifacts with "a paradox mage / a temporal rift / the end of time itself did it", but bosses from a certain era should be likely to drop an artifact from that era. Unfortunately, it would also lead to two major problems:
1) The early-game zones are meant to be done more or less in any order, and for that purpose they scale. Artifact drops don't scale, though. If, say, a Lv12 boss has a high chance to drop a t3 artifact, that's not so good. If a Lv25 boss has a high chance to drop a t1 artifact, that's also not very good.
2) It would almost double the artwork needed for the project, and I already feel like I'm asking for way too much.
Any advice or ideas on this situation would be very welcome.

Just saying, my old class archetypes, Fated, of which the popular Wyrdthief belongs might be a thematically appropriate addition to this project. Though DarkGod may have conflicting plans for them? Dunno. Regardless, if you're interested, send me a PM and I'll explain. I'm on these forums rarely and the automatic email will ensure that I respond in a timely fashion.

Yeah, sure, let's talk about it. I'm not yet at the stage where adding new races or classes is really the focus, but it's definitely worth a discussion. I'll pm you in a bit. Of course, if DG has plans for the Fated, that would automatically have priority over ATOF.