Mordor XP: The Demise of Dejenol August Update, 2007 Options

[Crusher Junior]

August Update
Welcome back for another update. We were quite busy in June, though I admit production was temporarily halted in July with vacations and summer holidays rolling around for several of us.

Let's try something new this time. Let's pretend that we have just entered town.

Welcome to Marlith!
You are immediately greeted by a show of lively music. The local band plays a tune or two for the townsfolk. Looking left and right, you spot a new interface. Again? Well, it's definitely a change for the better. A recommended resolution of 1024x768 gives pretty results, but we are working to support 800x600 resolution as well. We are hoping to properly fit everything in 800x600, even with the taskbar showing. As you can see, there are still some issues with the text getting partially cut off with all of these resolution adjustments. The windows are set in place and can't be moved. It certainly takes some getting used to, but the new placement of the windows is a huge improvement, especially in terms of convenience. Dragging and dropping items or monsters in the store or confinement is slightly easier now. Similarly, spotting messages while walking through the dungeon is more convenient as well. If you take a look at the screenshot below, you will notice that the windows are much cleaner, particularly the character information window. It no longer takes up massive amounts of space, which leaves a lot more room for the other windows.



The first thing you decide to do is enter the dungeon. As you travel around, you notice several...

Gameplay Tweaks
We have made a lot of small changes to the game. But these small changes add up to a much better overall experience. For this update, we will begin with three new additions.
The first thing you may decide to do, if, that is, you have a spell caster by your side, is to cast a handful of party-friendly spells. As you cast 'Feather Essence,' 'Sight Veil', and 'See Invisible,' these beneficial attributes will immediately appear in blue in the Character Statistics window. As you travel through the dungeon and encounter monsters, you find yourself poisoned, diseased, and even paralyzed at times. These harmful attributes are conveniently displayed in red to easily distinguish them from beneficial attributes.
Glancing at your hit points and inventory, you may realize that color changes have been made to item usage and health status as well. For example, items you can equip are displayed in normal black font. If your guild level is too low to use an item, it will be displayed in red. If an item is grayed out, it means that your current guild cannot use this class restricted item. Items that are not fully identified are bold.
If you have full hit points, they are displayed in black. If you are slightly damaged, the font color changes to purple. Take more damage and it turns green. A handful of hit points less and you're down to a dark yellow-ish color. Meet up with some nasty critters and you'll be down to maroon next. But if your hit points turn red...run! That is the signal that you are in danger of dying.
We've made a major change to the hit point system. You no longer gain bonus hit points only from having a high constitution while you are still leveling up to your max hit point level. Instead, if you manage to increase your constitution even if you are at level 60, the next time you level up, you will gain the bonus hit points that you would have potentially missed early on.
We won't reveal all the changes we've made, but the last one listed here is the best change of all (at least to me). The inventory and character information windows immediately refresh when you switch characters now. If you switch from one character to the next, all the information for the second character automatically refreshes and updates, which is a huge relief compared to the old version in which the windows would not refresh unless you clicked on the second character twice.

As we move through the dungeon, we find ourselves exploring new territories. What lies behind the next door? A new monster? A trap? No - it's a teleporter!

Danger!
We are lost! Be on the lookout when you are traversing throughout the dungeon. We are fiddling with new ideas on how to find yourself after you've become lost, but we'll see what happens with that in the future. But for now, here's something fun for you all. If you get lost in the game, the automap will be replaced by a funny image, which you can see in the screenshot below.



Continuing on in the dungeon, you bump into a bunch of...

New Monsters
You may be wondering what ideas are brewing. Don't lose your head thinking about it too much, but keep in mind that creatures won't quite be the same anymore. For some monsters, you won't want to simply hack away - strategy will come into play when you least expect it. Deadly creatures will show up unexpectedly (and inconveniently) with a different set of companions each time. My lips are sealed for the time being though.

Let us assume that while struggling to find your way back to town in this un-mapped territory, a fatal blow connects and leaves you dead. All that plays in your head, and in the game, as you lay there waiting to be rescued, is a mournful

Requiem

And that concludes our brief journey in the dangerous mines below Marlith.

Interested in joining the project?
As usual, we're always looking for talented graphical artists and other talented people to join our cause. Look in the new recruitments thread thread for details.

[Nappa]

Looking more promising each update! Keep up the good work! k:

[safari]

awesome , the game is really looking up, man i really want to play this now, great update .

[gsman]

nice lost pic for the map!

[Hunter]

nice lost pic for the map!

I second that.

[Dreamless]

Looks good!

[Gigo man]

as always, look awesome. keep up the good work! k: .... now doesn't that seem like a... normal? compliment. (rhetorical question)

[ironguardian]

Very nice

This is turning out better than anyone ever expected it to be.

[grobblewobble]

Looking awesome!

We've made a major change to the hit point system. You no longer gain bonus hit points only from having a high constitution while you are still leveling up to your max hit point level. Instead, if you manage to increase your constitution even if you are at level 60, the next time you level up, you will gain the bonus hit points that you would have potentially missed early on.

An excellent decision, imho.

[Straxx]

Looking good!

I haven't been to this site, or even played Mordor, for over a year but once you're done I probably won't be able to stay away.

One of the main things which used to bug me in the original Mordor was casting spells on your party. Will you include some sort of customizable "spell" which casts, for example, resist spells, levitation and invisibility on everyone in your party? A drag-and-drop macro spell if you will. It was always a pain using a separate program to macro my buffs every time I entered the dungeon. Or will spell effects expire after x minutes rather than whenever you enter the town?

Keep up the good work!

[Crusher Junior]

One of the main things which used to bug me in the original Mordor was casting spells on your party. Will you include some sort of customizable "spell" which casts, for example, resist spells, levitation and invisibility on everyone in your party? A drag-and-drop macro spell if you will. It was always a pain using a separate program to macro my buffs every time I entered the dungeon.

We are looking into doing something along those lines.

[quaker0]

Freaking awesome. And the "lost" post-it is hilarious.

[Sable]

As always it's looking better and better!
Brilliant!!
Wow! Love the lost map... adds some extra fun to figuring out where you are, .
And as always can't wait for the finished game!!!
Keep up the hard work guys!!!

[Magnetic]

To be critical, I am not liking part of the items frame. Specifically, the buttons on the side (equip, use, drop, and info) really seem weird, because there's all that empty space under them now.

Other than that, all I can say is that I cannot wait to play.

[Brizar]

It's been over a yr since I last checked in and things are progressing very nicely. Looking forward to the "Come try Mordor XP, now" message.

Keep up the good work k:

[Direnar]

I haven't been here for months, i come for updates
Good to see the project in capable hands
Keep it up guys, miss ya all

[Starker]

I haven't seen this question asked yet and this thread seems as good as any to ask...

Will you use ideas and concepts from Avatar that were left out in Mordor?

First thing that comes to mind is the borderless dungeon, but there were also lots of items, abilities, spells and more that was left out in Mordor.

Oh... and the project is looking great btw.

This post has been edited by Starker: Aug 29 2007, 10:21 PM

[aardless]

None of us has played Avatar, AFAIK, so unless it is stuff mentioned in one of the more obvious Avatar sites, I'm afraid not. But you could just make a wish-list of what you'd like to see added in-game, and we might consider adding it in.
By borderless dungeon do you mean a non-square shape of explorable areas?
I was under the impression that Mordor had quite a bit more items than Avatar. And what abilities and spells were left out, exactly?

[Starker]

None of us has played Avatar, AFAIK, so unless it is stuff mentioned in one of the more obvious Avatar sites, I'm afraid not. But you could just make a wish-list of what you'd like to see added in-game, and we might consider adding it in.
By borderless dungeon do you mean a non-square shape of explorable areas?
I was under the impression that Mordor had quite a bit more items than Avatar. And what abilities and spells were left out, exactly?

I haven't played the original Avatar either, but another, reportedly a very similar version of it -- so some of the stuff there might have been added later, after Mordor was finished. Also, after having another look at Mordor, I realised that some of the things I thought were missing were simply renamed.

Anyway -- some ideas I took directly or derived from Avatar and the likes:


* Wearing multiple rings

Basically, the rings would have ring points based on their power/usefulness -- rings, that give Att/Def or have useful spells or abilities, would have higher ring points. For example -- if one could wear multiple rings with a total worth of say... 5 ring points, one could choose between different sets of rings.


* Spellcasting from items

Spells cast from items (such as rings) consume spell points and the items can be recharged in the city for gold. Some spells can only be cast from items. Could be further limited by items being class restricted.


* Ability: damage absorption.

An ability that could be increased by wearing armor or certain high level rings for example. Could also be a racial intrinsic -- some races, like trolls, have thicker skin. Decreases the amount of physical damage taken by a percentage. Could be further complemented by another ability -- damage reduction, which subtracts a fixed, but small amount of damage.


* Ability: luck (mostly for balancing/tweaking, really)

Racial ability that helps out weaker races in several ways -- for example by helping them to avoid hits or finding treasure. Could also be used for classes/guilds.


* Ability: amphibiousness

Helps in underwater rooms where drowning can't be avoided by levitating. You'd need a spell, an item or an ability to survive there comfortably.

Examples:
- Spell: Amphibious Essence -- cast by a class or from an item (e.g. ring of magical breathing).
- Item: Helm of Underwater Breathing.
- Racial ability: amphibiousness.


* Spell: Shadow Hand

Allows to get an item from a chest without opening it -- basically a disarming spell. A high level spell (perhaps for ninjas/villains?). Could be a class spell or cast from an item only.


* Spell: Word of Recall

Similar to Sanctuary, but can't be cast in combat and ages the caster far less. Returns character and any party members to the town.


* Spell: Resist Breath

Grants resistance to breath attacks of monsters.


By borderless dungeon I meant a dungeon that wraps around it's edges (if you started going in one direction, you'd eventually end up where you started) and is designed as such. In Mordor the levels are basically designed as a box -- you can't get from one edge to another without using Ethereal Portal.

This post has been edited by Starker: Aug 30 2007, 02:38 AM

[aardless]

All this is just my opinion, I don't know what's the others take on these ideas. Thank you for elaborating, I always love to see new ideas. Some ideas are good, but I don't see how they could fall in the Mordor mold. Let's see:

Anyway -- some ideas I took directly or derived from Avatar and the likes:
* Wearing multiple rings

Basically, the rings would have ring points based on their power/usefulness -- rings, that give Att/Def or have useful spells or abilities, would have higher ring points. For example -- if one could wear multiple rings with a total worth of say... 5 ring points, one could choose between different sets of rings.

That is an idea that makes sense and has much merit. Personally I can't stand the idea that you can wear only a ring per hand in most RPGs, because "they would interfere with one another". I'd love to be able to wear one ring per finger, although it would require some serious playtesting and in fact dramatically reducing rings power. I'd love to see the idea in the game, but...

* Spellcasting from items

Spells cast from items (such as rings) consume spell points and the items can be recharged in the city for gold. Some spells can only be cast from items. Could be further limited by items being class restricted.

Some spells are already cast only from items. Some items can cast spells, quite a few in fact, but they do not drain SP. So the suggestion reduces to making item spells cost SP. Off-hand I don't see what that would add, apart from turning the use of Fate traps into more of a science than it already is.

* Ability: damage absorption.

An ability that could be increased by wearing armor or certain high level rings for example. Could also be a racial intrinsic -- some races, like trolls, have thicker skin. Decreases the amount of physical damage taken by a percentage. Could be further complemented by another ability -- damage reduction, which subtracts a fixed, but small amount of damage.

A bit D&D-esque, isn't it? 'Could work. Maybe. This strikes me as potentially heavily game-balance upsetting. It also doesn't really fall in the scheme of weapon resistance or immunity that monsters currently have.

* Ability: luck (mostly for balancing/tweaking, really)

Racial ability that helps out weaker races in several ways -- for example by helping them to avoid hits or finding treasure. Could also be used for classes/guilds.

Definitely not for guilds, as that would mean the more multiclassed you are the luckier you become. I haven't the foggest idea if that means altering every single formula in-game, but if it does, then it's probably a no. OTOH, if it doesn't, it could be very useful for balancing, as you say, provided the effect isn't too ample. Still, an interesting idea, IMO.

* Ability: amphibiousness

Helps in underwater rooms where drowning can't be avoided by levitating. You'd need a spell, an item or an ability to survive there comfortably.

Examples:
- Spell: Amphibious Essence -- cast by a class or from an item (e.g. ring of magical breathing).
- Item: Helm of Underwater Breathing.
- Racial ability: amphibiousness.

Hmm, that requires either having depth in the graphics engine, which we don't, or making a whole level underwater, or at least closed-off areas. It would stand to reason to have specific monsters items and spells. Sounds like a lot of work for a thing of fairly limited use.

* Spell: Shadow Hand

Allows to get an item from a chest without opening it -- basically a disarming spell. A high level spell (perhaps for ninjas/villains?). Could be a class spell or cast from an item only.

That would effectively make obsolete the most feared traps, since you'd use it only on chests that belong to monsters that you know drop good loot, and not open the others. If there was some price to pay to cast it, it would be nice, but the way you suggested it just breaks a feature, IMO.

* Spell: Word of Recall

Similar to Sanctuary, but can't be cast in combat and ages the caster far less. Returns character and any party members to the town.

I've used Sanctuary only once, I don't remember if it can be used in combat. I believe the team has a consensus to reduce Sanctuary's aging.

* Spell: Resist Breath

Grants resistance to breath attacks of monsters.

I like to have some attacks that can't be resisted, it makes players more cautious, the game more interesting, and helps cut the legs of munchkinism. *If* we are going to add new special attacks, the number of attacks "with resistance" will also probably increase. IIRC, currently the game uses half the character resistance for breath attacks, and that is a rather nice way of doing it, IMHO.

By borderless dungeon I meant a dungeon that wraps around it's edges (if you started going in one direction, you'd eventually end up where you started) and is designed as such. In Mordor the levels are basically designed as a box -- you can't get from one edge to another without using Ethereal Portal.

Oh, I see now. Hmm, I think it won't wrap. While it would be practical for a number of purposes, it's, well, unrealistic. OK, realism is an odd point to bring up in Mordor. But let's just say that I foresee more rock in MXP than in M1/M2, which would make edge wrap-around weird.