Let's meet the characters


Most progress since last update has taken place on the technical side of things, porting to mobile, something kind of dull and boring to do a devlog about. So let’s try something else.

I noticed that I’ve never really talked about the characters or the story or anything. Might be a good time to start. So let me begin by introducing the three first main characters in the party, while also sneakily using them as an excuse to talk about the gameplay and maybe lore.

(Also note that I’m no artist, so I’m afraid the art is what it is.)

 

The Herbalist

Now that really doesn’t look like a protagonist. The Herbalist is, well, an herbalist. In spite of the sinister getup, this is actually a fairly polite and well-behaved individual. He lives in a once abandoned mansion in the middle of a forest, offering apothecary services to anyone that might need them. Overall, he tries to stay away from conflict.

So why the creepy mask? Lore time. That’s an “Arche”, a unique kind of ancient artifact that grants their wielder diverse advantages, most notably immortality. Each Arche is modeled after a concept (in this case, Fear). An individual may only wield a single Arche, and those who do are known as “chroniclers”. Chroniclers are expected to sit on the sidelines and merely chronicle history without influencing it too much. Most chroniclers ignore that, but the Herbalist more or less follows that ideal. Or at least tries to.

The Arche of Fear is grafted onto its wielder’s face, becoming unremovable. Not necessarily something he wears with pride, but there isn’t much he can do about it. The mask subconsciously instills fear on others, which is just one of the reasons why he prefers to stay away from civilization. He counts among the oldest chroniclers in the continent.

Gameplay-wise, he’s the party’s main healer. RPG protagonists are almost always aces-of-all-trades or physical attackers. And yet it is the healer that usually is the most important character in a party, so why not make them the protagonist?

The game's combat takes place on a grid-based battlefield, with the characters using cards from a deck to execute their actions. The Herbalist can use Herb cards to heal, buff stats, and a few other weird things. Offensively, his choice of weapon cards allows him to attack some moderate distance away from the enemy. He’s actually a decent damage dealer, but cannot tank that many hits. He would really benefit from having some assistance. Speaking of which…

 

Fio

A manticore. Desert-dwellers, isolated from the rest of the world, and incredibly aggressive and territorial. She’s far more tempered than the average manticore, but that’s not really saying much. Not the most patient girl, but not quite a warmonger either. She chanced upon the Herbalist’s Apothecary and decided to stay to learn more about the many different species that inhabit it.

She owns the Arche of Diligence, which makes it impossible for her to feel tired. So she’s an immortal chronicler too. Most major characters are. She mostly avoids trouble out of respect to the Herbalist, but she’s not necessarily as inclined to peacemaking as he is.

In combat she’s more of an aggressive tank, dealing high damage and able to take it, but with limited range options. She can use Knives for high mobility but low attack, or Axes for the reverse, resulting in a very versatile character. Her specialty cards are Toxin cards, which can cause diverse negative effects on opponents, like lowering stats or the mandatory poison ailment.

Really, one of my main characters is a manticore, so I cannot not have poison in the game (also, I feel like poison is kinda broken in this game, but it’s usually useless in most RPGs so it evens out). However, Fio is severely lacking in ranged attacks. But the next one’s got her covered…

 

Roman

Just when you thought this game finally had a normal human character, you notice the sudden skeleton hand and ribs. Goodness. Necromancy-related mistakes, you see. But that’s a thing of the past. Roman is primarily a scholar, someone who wants to learn more about the world and how it works. Born in the eponymous Ubiquatopia, a megalopolis not too keen on the idea of free thought.

His Arche is Curiosity, which pushes him to always learn more and more. It causes him physical pain if he doesn’t expand his horizons from time to time. He left Ubiquatopia when he was young, and in his travels he eventually ended up at the Herbalist’s Apothecary. Since the Apothecary is a neutral entity that takes no sides in political conflicts in the region, and given that it houses the largest library in the continent, Roman thought it a good idea to stay for some time.

In combat, he prefers to keep his distance and attack from afar. He can use Knives to move great distances and Bows to attack from a safe place. Bows tend to have absurd Areas of Effect, which helps with crowd control. His Spellcraft cards also tend to have good AoEs, with occasional added benefits like causing ailments. Overall, he is a decent support character, although somewhat lacking in durability.

 

You know that fantasy cliché about the strong, ancient character that could easily solve all plot problems but refuses to act? This game is what happens when you get a few of them together in the same place. And then give them an excuse to actually have to act.


With a bit of luck the mobile port should be ready in the next few weeks.

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