Dungeoncrawler's Academy -- Discussion
So, you know me and my crazy ideas for games. Here's another one of those, which is inspired somewhat by Little Witch Academia and another somewhat by roguelikes (not the in-joke roguelike, the actual genre of game), though you need not necessarily be familiar with either of those things.
Essentially! Players will RP students at the Dungeoncrawler's Academy. A school built on top of The Great Dungeon, an enormous underground labyrinth that extends hundreds of floors and thousands of feet deep, and remains unmapped to this very day. Our story begins on the players' first true expedition into the dungeon, and will follow repeated trips until the players eventually become the first to reach the very bottom! Along the way acquiring lots of powerful magic items and shiny treasures.
Now, despite the clearly RPG-inspired settings, I haven't quite hammered out the mechanics yet, so currently this is more interest check than signup. I just wanted to pitch the idea and see if anyone would be interested.
APPROVED CHARACTERS:
- Belighor Sydoria (dmboogie) (x): Barrier Witch
- Nathan Coal (Icalasari) (x): Fire/Summoning Wizard
- Reina Tabarez (Schitzo) (x): Force Skald
- Demei Salaahh (Cynicalclock) (x): Water Skald
- N. Lancaster (Yarrun) (x)
- Kenneth Turk (Sredni Vashtar) (x): Fire Witch
- Lucretia Wenlock (Aliroz_) (x): Venom/Air Wizard
OFFICIAL ERRATA
- individual "turns" within a round are now officially known as "phases". This is relevant for a few monster spells.
- "non-elemental" damage is now officially known as aelemental damage. To distinguish it from regular "non-elemental damage", which is damage from an attack with an unbranded weapon. I'm aware that "aelemental" isn't a word and doesn't make much linguistic sense. I do not care. Aelemental damage is dealt in three cases:
- 1) when damage of a specific type is inflicted upon a creature that is immune to damage of this type. In other words, if you managed to deal Fire damage to a Fire Elemental, it would come out as Aelemental damage instead.
- 2) a subschool of Force Magic deals entirely Aelemental damage. So does the Ghostfire subschool of Fire Magic.
- 3) the Colorless Magic Passive converts all damage your spells deal to Aelemental damage, but decreases their damage dealt by one die grade.
- "Positive Energy Damage" and "Holy Damage" refer to the same concept, just under different names.
- PCs now have a chance to resist hexes based on their Mg.DEF stat. Certain armor brands can increase this chance.
- The terms "Degrade Die" and "Enhance Die" refer to die grades. Generally, this refers to damage dice. Thus, if one's damage die is 1d12, and it is degraded, it becomes a 1d10. Similarly, if enhanced, it becomes a 1d20.
- Non-magical special abilities that some monsters have now have a turn-based "Cooldown" instead of drawing from an EP bar, to better simulate the effects of non-magical inherent attacks. Examples include The Crystal Guardian's Mimicry abilities and various dragons' breath weapons.
- Spells with the Concentration descriptor ("this spell requires the caster to Concentrate") require their casters to spend the entire duration of the spell focused on keeping it cast. If they are struck during this time there is an 80% chance that they will be interrupted and cease casting. Aptitude Rings and other such artifacts do not decrease this chance.
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Comments
how late is "late April"? I don't want to wait too long but I can wait like a week or two.
sorry about my shitty timing. :(
Yeah I don't know what to do as far as systems go.
I was thinking mostly freeform but I want a simple dice mechanic to govern combat so no one goes too crazy. I'm just not sure what kind of dice mechanic.
I wish I knew more about dice mechanics. >_>
hm
I think I have some basics hammered out. I'm about to go on a brief excursion out of the house so I'll think on them more when I'm out.
also I should note that all your characters are "magic" in some capacity, but are not necessarily wizards/sorcerers/whathaveyou. A melee character would be using magic to enhance his close-combat abilities, and a sneak (a rogue sort of thing but not exactly) would use it for stealth.
on top of that there are two "caster" classes, wizards and witches. There's a small but important difference between them that I'm having trouble articulating at the moment.
also when you create your character you'll have to pick from a school of magic. I'm looking to make about twenty of them for each class (although wizard and witch magics will overlap for the most part).
back on TVT me and some folks had a game called Mythril Aces that ran on a mostly freeform system, I think we might be able to make something similar work here provided no one gets crazy.
I'm also working on the ever-important monsters and traps aspect. I've decided you'll all start with an item called a Guidebook that will serve as a sort of Pokedex equivalent for identifying the various baddies and items you come across on your journey.
Also, dying in the dungeon won't kill you, you'll just get sent back to the beginning of the dungeon sans any treasure you picked up during your latest excursion down there. There's an in-story explanation for this but I'm not going to detail it here.
There are stats but I have not yet figured out how they work.
I'm thinking a pretty basic Atk/Def Mag. Atk/Mag. Def setup would work alright but I'm not sure yet.
I need to organize my thoughts better.
I think those four are good, plus agility / attack accuracy, and those can be the six basic "combat" stats... ummm maybe "magic defense" could be "spirit" or something, and "magic attack" could be "intelligence" kind of like in classic rpgs? It would kind of relate to the character's personality better. I don't know how in-depth you want stats to be, or how much we are using them.
Perhaps elemental attributes could be a thing? Also specific skills? *shrug*
Here's what I've got so far, this needs refinement/tweaking, but I think it's a good base.
Essentially, ATK and DEF (and MGATK and MGDEF) are matched against each other, and if the appropriate ATK stat is higher than the appropriate DEF stat, the attack hits. Damage is then done by rolling dice (what dice specifically will depend on the specific attack). If the ATK stat is lower, it "chips" the appropriate DEF, which temporarily lowers the DEF stat, this is also determined by a dice roll (generally on a way smaller die than a true damage roll).
It's a little hard to wrap one's head around, admittedly, but I think it works. The problem will be coming up with appropriate stats and damage/chip ranges for everything so it's not unbalanced. But this is what playtesting is for.
I also haven't quite figured out how dodging works yet. I'm thinking that "DEF" could hypothetically mean either simply enduring an attack or said attack missing entirely, so I might just leave that as is. I'm not sure yet.
I'm now going to be maintaining an official list of individuals interested in playing.
So, if you're still game, lemme know and I'll sign you up.
EDIT: character sheets may be submitted but please refrain from picking a class until I have all of the magic schools figured out. Background should be fill-outable pretty soon, I just have to get the actual introduction to the setting written.
character sheets should follow the format given below:
--------------------------------------------------------
NAME:
CLASS: leave this blank for now
SCHOOL(S): leave these blank for now, too.
AGE: (the academy caters to a fairly large age range, but don't get too crazy)
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: (hair, eye, and skin color, clothing, etc.)
PERSONALITY: (only a few sentences please, I'd prefer the characters to be fleshed out more thoroughly in-game)
BACKGROUND: leave this blank for now as well.
NAME: Sera Elisea Armitage
CLASS: leave this blank for now
SCHOOL(S): leave these blank for now, too.
AGE: 17
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Sera is a little taller than average, and leanly muscled. She has very short light lavender hair and grey eyes. Never seen without a pair of leather gloves on her hands. She is fair skinned and generally expressionless.
PERSONALITY: Sera is polite and stoic. She generally does not express emotion, and tends to be distant, if cordial with people. She is very focused on her arts and studies.
BACKGROUND: leave this blank for now as well.
Also a suggestion on spell/ability design: You may want to create some attacks that are classed as a physical/magic attack but use the other stat for some reason. For example, a magic spell that manifests as force and therefore is matched against the target's physical defense.
And I don't know how far you've gotten in making your system, but are you using mana/MP or magic levels?
it's similar to Rogue. Do you like games that are similar to Rogue?
they call those roguelikes in some places I've heard.
No, fuck you.
(yes)
Roughly equal amounts.
This is a thing I have thought about.
I'm not sure yet.
Basically at this point the problem is that I have a lot of mechanics and need to work on putting them together in a way that makes sense.
CLASS: Ranger (uses a crossbow and also has a backup dagger)
SCHOOL(S): Shadow Magic
AGE: 19
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Eris has naturally black hair that she dyes blonde, and totally doesn't want *anyone* know, even though her roots make it obvious. She usually wears pigtails for comfort and style. She has green eyes, olive skin, a taller than average height (*possibly* enhanced by taller than average platform shoes), and strong arms and legs from lots of running and climbing. She hates makeup! (but wears just a little bit of it secretly anyway because she hates her skin). She likes blouses and knee-length skirts, because they are un-restrictive but also un-revealing. She wears charm bracelets, high socks, and a necklace of a dragon emblem.
PERSONALITY: Eris feels threatened a lot of the time, and so is not the nicest or most social person. She likes dragons and similar beasts. She pushes herself relentlessly to achieve but can never please herself. She is a misanthrope. She thinks that *she,* more than *anyone* else, deserves to reach the bottom of the dungeon, if only she can reach her potential.
BACKGROUND: leave this blank for now as well.
CLASS: leave this blank for now
SCHOOL(S): leave these blank for now, too.
AGE: 22
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Black hair, hazel eyes, fair complexion, roughly 5'7". Skin usually a bit ashen looking due to constant experiments with fire and machines. Blue jeans, black hoodie, steel toed boots, toolbelt or backpack on him at all times
PERSONALITY: A bit hot tempered due to being on the short side. He is inquisitive, more likely to try to set off traps on purpose to figure out what they do than to step away. Basically, give him a large space
BACKGROUND: leave this blank for now as well.
CLASS: Skald (Main Weapon: Two handed sword; Sub Weapon: Knuckle Duster/Iron Fist)
SCHOOL(S): Force Magic
AGE: 16
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Around 5"9', with a somewhat puffy build bordering on curvy. Has a bright red head of hair worn in the form of pigtails, with her bangs long enough to conceal the top half of her face, leaving only grins and nose-flaring to help her emote. Dons a ridiculous looking mink/fur sash alongside her red battle armor.
PERSONALITY: Quick to indulge in her impulses and overall has a voracious appetite. Although she is for the most part rather ditzy and has an air of vacancy about her, when she has a goal set in mind, her resourcefulness and determination tends to scare friend, bystander and worst of all, target.
BACKGROUND: leave this blank for now as well.
CLASS: Skald, main weapon a mace(If allowed), side weapon gauntlets
SCHOOL(S): Water magic
AGE: 18
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: 5"6', tanned skin with short dark hair color, green eyes, lean body type with practical clothing, black shorts, white top, black combat boots, as well as a bracelet with a sapphire engraved into it.
PERSONALITY: Very forceful personality, speaks her mind a lot, likes to goad other people into expressing their opinions, looks downs on people who look or act weak, and against people who betray others.
BACKGROUND: _____________(As well, for now)
Approved, for all y'all.
Sorry guys I was out all day.
Probably going to cap signups at eight.
meet your professor, natch.
NAME: Esmerelda D'Agnon
CLASS: Witch
SCHOOL(S): Summoning Magic
AGE: 37
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Professor D'Agnon is a tall, slim, paleskinned brunette with sharp blue eyes, thin lips, and an amusingly pointy nose.
PERSONALITY: D'Agnon is a very typical teacher in many ways, and often feels overwhelmed by her somewhat rambunctious class.
BACKGROUND: D'Agnon is a retired Summoner's Competition champion, and is actually among the most powerful magic-users at the academy. Her assistant--a Phantom Skull named Ibix--is a permanent summon of hers.
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class descriptions will be posted soon. Class names are Skald, Ranger, Wizard, and Witch.
CLASSES (Please pick ONE only):
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magic schools should be posted pretty soon. Tomorrow at the latest, I hope.
after that I'll explain the mechanics.
I'll make up a character after I know whether I'm allowed in this.
So, something not too demanding, please?
guys you realize this game is a dungeon crawl, right?
there's really not any secondary characters.
unless you mean like support casters or something
Assassin poems, Poems that shoot
guns. Poems that wrestle cops into alleys
and take their weapons leaving them dead
NAME: N. Lancaster
CLASS: Wizard (Backup weapon is a pen-knife)
SCHOOL(S): Barrier, Light
AGE: 17
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Dark-skinned, clean-shaven, brown-eyes, medium-sized afro. Tall, angular, skinny, always wears a dress shirt and tie, rectangular glasses. Think Laurence Fishburne from Apocalypse Now, but taller.
PERSONALITY: Analytic and aloof. Obsessed with studying magic and improving his skills. He only respects those who have 'earned' his respect. This, naturally, leaves him socially crippled. He's in the dungeon crawl for artifacts of great magical power (and to gauge the power levels of his fellows).
BACKGROUND: leave this blank for now as well.
Assassin poems, Poems that shoot
guns. Poems that wrestle cops into alleys
and take their weapons leaving them dead
Summer should be fairly light, so I should be fine until September.
well, OK.
approved tentatively.
There is one spot left, but Funnyguts hasn't signed up yet, so I'll make an exception if she shows up.
Schools of Magic & Spells
Schools of Magic are different categories of spells that a character may select. Individual spells are determined via a subjective method (eg. you describe a spell, and I will determine its "hard" effects. This requires some back-and-forth between the DM and players, but it makes for a more fluid and customizable gaming experience), but should fall within the guidelines of their respective schools. Keep in mind your spell ranges (determined by class, see the class page above) when describing spells. Monsters, on the other hand, stick to a (large, granted) precreated spell list.
Summon Magic -- Focuses on the calling of otherworldly powers to your aid. Generally in the form of independant creatures under your loose control. The summoned can be anything from a swarm of bees to floating skulls, but they always come from elsewhere and are always bound by a strict time limit. Summoners are also bound by a summons limit. Individual summon spells enable the summoning of a specific creature or group of creatures.
Fire Magic -- Fire Magic is one of the oldest schools of magic, dating to prehistory. Formal Fire Magic in the modern day generally revolves around offensive use of the element. Individual fire spells enable the pyromancer to enact different types of fire-based attacks.
Water Magic -- Another of the four basic Elemental Schools. Water Magic has a decent mix of offensive and defensive casting. Individual Water spells allow the aquamancer to enact different types of water and ice-based maneuvers.
Air Magic -- Air Magic is the third basic Elemental School, Air magic is based heavily around crowd control and inflicting status effects. Air Magic can be used to convert the air into poisonious gas, make it heavier, or turn it into an obscuring fog. Individual Air spells allow the Aeromancer to manipulate the air in different ways.
Earth Magic -- Earth Magic is the final basic Elemental School and focuses heavily on defense, as well as aiding movement through the Dungeon. Individual Earth spells will allow the Geomancer to enact new defensive maneuvers or manipulate earth itself in different ways.
Barrier Magic -- Barrier Magic is built solely around the raising of magical barriers and the destruction of nonmagical ones. Barrier Magic is most commonly employed defensively, and the shielding this school provides is some of the strongest in all of arcana. But the school's offensive powers--destroying enemy armor and weapons, for instance--should not be underestimated.
Force Magic -- Barrier Magic's equal and opposite companion. Force Magic consists of the manipulation of raw, percussive energy. Generally for offensive purposes.
Shadow Magic -- Shadow Magics are based on the manipulation of darkness, and sometimes its use as a physical substance. Shadow Magic is best used supportively, as it lacks strong offensive capabilities. Instead, Shadow Magic allows its users to be more stealthy, or to engulf enemies in shadow
Light Magic -- the counterpart to shadow magic, though the two are surprisingly dissimilar in application. Light magic is used to create illusions and trick enemies.
Venom Magic -- Venom Magic is technically an amalgamation of a number of different aspects of other spell schools, but functionally, all spells in this school focus around the poisoning of enemies, or the removal of poisons from oneself.
There are also a number of forbidden schools that are not available to players, but may be wielded by various enemies.
If you don't see what you had in mind for your character here, PM me and I'm sure we can work something out. Most likely, what you had in mind is workable into one of the above schools with a little logical finnegeling.
The specifics of some of the remaining mechanics will hopefully be hammered out fairly soon, but may take a little bit longer than this did.
Assassin poems, Poems that shoot
guns. Poems that wrestle cops into alleys
and take their weapons leaving them dead
Assassin poems, Poems that shoot
guns. Poems that wrestle cops into alleys
and take their weapons leaving them dead
Man, I am excited about getting this thing started.
Ehh, it's about time for people to become sick of the semester.
I've also noticed that none of the schools of magic covers healing. Maybe it's going to be a multi-school thing, which would be pretty cool.
Anyhow, here's my application.
Name: Rycan "Ry" Kinatt
Class: Ranger
Primary weapon: whatever this "magic driver" thing is, unless you're going to allow a stack of throwing-daggers or throwing-knives.
Secondary weapon: a dagger. or an all-purpose knife of some sort. Preferably one that's the same as the stack of throwing-blades, so it doesn't matter which one Ry chucks. Helps with versatility.
Age: 20
School of magic: Shadow
Appearance: slightly on the short side for a young adult male human. Wears mostly nondescript clothing (whatever is appropriate for the setting, such as a tunic and pants for a Medieval-European-type setting). Brown hair and brown eyes.
Personality: A relatively quiet and unassuming young man. A friendly and helpful person if you get to know him, but he typically just enjoys sitting on the sidelines and watching the people around him. Enjoys exploring odd nooks and crannies and being in places he shouldn't be, just for the sake of curiosity and possibility, which has lent him a need to be stealthy.
Backstory: [blank for now]
Trivia: Name based on a D&D character I've made before, named Nycar Tannik.
Let me know if you want me on board or not; I'm fine either way.
CLASS: Wizard
SCHOOL(S): Fire, Summoning
AGE: 22
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Black hair, hazel eyes, fair complexion, roughly 5'7". Skin usually a bit ashen looking due to constant experiments with fire and machines. Blue jeans, black hoodie, steel toed boots, toolbelt or backpack on him at all times
PERSONALITY: A bit hot tempered due to being on the short side. He is inquisitive, more likely to try to set off traps on purpose to figure out what they do than to step away. Basically, give him a large space
BACKGROUND: leave this blank for now as well