Silver Town (Final Version)

Thanks, but there have been a ton of changes since last build.  Graphical and otherwise.

I'm hoping that September things will move over to project development.  Right now it's balancing encounters that's taking up a majority of time in the current GMD, and I've taken to reducing both casters mana pools again to give them both mana re-gen abilities.  

Heya guys!  Time for a bit of major revamping for battle and an amendment to the lackey fight!  But first some new graphic and animation materials:

Rainbow is together:  Enjoy!  Grandma Deb has a copy as well to share.  I learned the hard way that gifs don't like transparency.  so no workable sample to show outside of this desktop capture.  (This is the first 15 frames from the "Glitch" Resources that were released into the public domain in a usable RPG maker animation format).  Queen lite has this as her main attack now and Willard sport it with his revised blind spell and a new prism icon.



Here is a sample of the rainbow in action.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0ByuTxMPbRZgjeklldlZ5Z05iOXM/edit?usp=sharing

 

Edit: Minor fix-



Stair case now submerges in water with proper highlight.

 


Are you having difficulty with the Lackey fight?  No more.

*

I added a continue when loser condition for the Lackey Fight.  It shows a secret cut scene if you fail the fight, which is aside from the things you get if you happen to power on through and win.  

 

In my opinion it is better than if you win for the sake of story over the items won.(But you now get double boss exp and triple treasure reward if you do).  

 

To this day no one has had pleasant memories of the Lackey fight.  I've taken out the surprise round and it can still kill me play testing.

 

Originally my play testers taunted me and goaded me telling me he was the easiest fight in the game, so I beefed him up one night and it seems I took it way too far with that surprise round along with his scripted damage.  If you can't handle the fight it's no longer a game over.

He use to have a recursive heal as well, this version (Alpha .25) will be his tenth incarnation.

*

Battle mechanics have changed substantially.  

 

Battle is now more engaging, and it has been balanced.  

 

Both casters now have a mana regen mechanic and have had their mana pools halfed again.  Quality over quantity is the new mantra.  

 

Enemies no long appear in packs of three.  2 or 1 enemies a troop with boosted hp, stats, and exp will do.  Seeing it first hand play testing another person's game reinforced this lesson the with 9 rats I originally had in one group.  Time spent with trash is never a good memory.

 

Gold generation from vendor trash is too high.  I'll be lowering it, and making consumables more attractive.  

New Icons have been added.  Willard's spell list has been substantially cut down.  Shade's spell "Haste" will now affect the entire party when cast.  Haste II and Haste III have been cut.

 

Libra is now instant cast and will not take a turn.  Finding out an enemy's hp will also debuff them as well as trigger Arcane Resonance which will regen her MP. (Currently 20% to be reduced upon playtester feedback).

Casting a TP ability on Willard will trigger Wisdom, regaining his MP.  (Currently 20% to be reduced upon play tester feedback).

 

Casting from both spell lists for MP and TP is encouraged to keep both resources high.

Gale's Tile set is being reset to solve the unwanted swap that happened to change items into unintended graphical errors.  

 

Various missing database entries that were purged caused a number of game stopping bugs past Wolfe's joining.  This is being solved and is nearly complete.

 

Icons are being slowly added on a needed basis, and I've found ones for gemstones and other various vendor items.

It should be noted in DnD when you didn't want to give the players gold, you have them gemstones instead.  These are meant to represent wealth and not a crafting system.  Gems serve no purpose other than to make your rich varying on their rarity.  This includes pieces of art like the mermaid statue, etc.  Since it's causing confusion, and people want purposeful items I am looking into expendable battle items.  The possibility of wands for Shade like staves for Willard is not out of the question.

 

Willard exposure is coming.  In the optional continue when lose against Lackey scene you see another part of him.

Emmet is no longer an impenetrable fortress in battle.  He takes damage, and his buffing abilities reduce his defenses at the boon of raising his attack.

 

Wolfe's purpose story wise has been added and will be exposed along side Willard's secret.



Lots left to go.  I've more than I've bargained for.  Right now B.Ultimas is going to be preoccupied so I'll switch gears to more DS material and sprites for a side project.  

 

Alpha .25 will be along by the week's end and have the transfer issues finally fixed as well along with everything previously mentioned the last two weeks.

Uah, I'm slowly finding time to play. At least I can finally boast to have made it past the fairy battle without that game over crash! A few tiny things I can point out so far, that may or may not have already been mentioned.

Wait, I don't think I gushed enough about Willard in this post. Gah, that little glasses push up animation in your signature has been staring at me the whole time I type this. Stop it, man! Stop looking so darn fabulous.

I'm very pleased you were happy with the changes you've seen.  Hopefully if you manage to get the undead nexus you will see the pulsating veins etc.  I am overjoyed the remapping was worth it.  I was so unsure after the first Let's Play if I had it in me to redo everything from the ground up, but I managed.  It makes me wish Chris was still around to see it.

 

Yea, I need to get a friend to proof read.  I have an English major hidden away.  I'll need to bug him again when he isn't serving coffee or fixing computers.

 

Much obliged you'd have time to spend with my project, as you have so much going on yourself with the online comic and the fully engrossed game.  Please tell Rachael hi for me, I rarely see her outside of the script sections.  

 

I think Jura appeared that way since the GAB is set before the dialogue.  So you can read ahead and get him to talk even though the separate thought comes afterwards with no wait attached, so I can amend that tag.  No prob, some people read faster than others and some dwell on certain dialogue they like.  I'll need to consider that.

 

Ah I think I can adjust the cut scenes in a way no matter who is in front Emmet is displayed, or better yet simply transparent the player and then set Emmet as an event himself without removing anyone.  Yeah, I've gained enough experience I can fix this no sweat .

It's a magical flower!  *fixes*  Yeah no one likes this poison pit thing.  I am nixing it next build for something everyone can like, like the magic circle hurdle.

 

I'll be further adjusting battle due to the last Let's play's feedback along with one of the cut scenes.  I am glad Willard didn't outshine anyone this time around =3  He's getting a skill purge next version, and it's going to topple his ability to negate most damage types.  I'll keep his protection from fire etc on staves, but all his shield of light and shield of faith spells make him to good when fed TP from Emmet's Roar.  

 

We're at the point were even Shade has 30+ TP per turn to pump out magic missiles instead of MP spells.  So unfortunately I am still getting reports of steam rolling enemies.  We'll fix that soon enough.

Next build you may feel the need to use Emmet even more.  Obliterate is changing into a group smite.  Much more efficient.   Leonic Strength will replace Iron Body with it's own custom icon and animation, and Willard will have a new mana regen mechanic to encourage TP and MP usage in succession.  

 

That Tint issue is something that bothered me a great deal, and I thought I had dealt with it.  I'll try it out again today and try to nix it again.  Thank you for the heads up.  You've been extremely helpful in terms of noticing details like Dalph and Arkecia. 

That orc and lackey are getting major revisions this future build.  Though I highly recommend you blind him before he melees.  All his attacks are physical and he quickly fizzles if you cannot be seen =D

 

Church Lady? All the play testers call her "".  I don't think anyone has bothered to remember Nidale's name despite her more pleasant demeanor this time around.  I see I will have to endear her a little despite that distance I want till a certain point.

She also can't seem to gain presence even giving Emmet money or aid with a friend.  I'll have to think on it.

 

Ah good catch on the fireplace.  My play testers are in Dark Souls 2 and FF 14, so they tend to do speed runs now.  They will get bored enough before Dragon Age 3 comes out I hope to properly break things.

Lion King, I'm back! I had\still have some RL issues that's why I was away for 6 days.

I don't know where is Arkecia however, it's been two weeks and I haven't heard about her anymore, we used to talk a lot on Skype...I just hope she's alright.

I'm really glad that you enjoyed our reports btw, I'm looking forward to see the updates (and play the game again when I find some spare time).

I think I'm the only one who likes Nidale and remembers her name here...ahahah!

Nidale = Nidalee from LoL, easy to remember ^^

Played the updated build, I have to admit its a lot better than the one I played before. Still a few minor grammar issues and stuff here and there, but otherwise, coming along well! I'm interested in that spirit living in the well near the lighthouse. Will there be other small "side quest" things like that?

 

I wouldn't be against it.  I am more than willing to do so, but for right now let's concentrate on the main story line.

 

For a side quest I'd more than likely do a "repel an invasion force", as gathering the virtues and sealing temples wouldn't sit well with players doing homework.  I originally wanted to do a big dungeon for the catacombs beneath the Church of Pelor, and have KitKat involved more.  

 

I could also potentially add "Gate\Planar shift" to allow them to go to another plane, and teleport to another city or country, but that is best left for another game really.  Lots of options, but only so much time.   Also I had the tower of Illusions were the group would go into other RM games and basically help out or ridicule things.  Seven Towers, Hier of the Kind, and a few others for a couple of quick laughs.  Things everyone is familiar with. 

 

Please let me know what you would prefer.

 

The spirit will have a pivotal role in Emmet's quest, and offer up a big piece of Nidale's involvement with him.  

 

Thank you so much for taking another look Yank =3  The fact that people like you returned to see what had been changed is very uplifting.  I'll have a few more fixes etc to go for next time once these portraits get a handle.  That's what is taking up so much time right now, aside from making battle more engaging.

 

Yeah, and Nidalee from LoL is friggan annoying with the spear throws in ARAM.  >< UGH.

 

Yup- I remember initially you said you'd be away ten days so I figured it would be a bit.  Glad you are back and that your Uncle was able to get some assistance with his situation.  I know how it is to provide care.  I can't imagine you had much free time the past week.

 

Please do let me know if there is something I can do.  I am happy to see you again =D

 

Thanks Dalph, it is much appreciated.  Nidale is someone who is a whole lot more likable compared to her former self. She gives Emmet stipends, advice, a few minor jokes, and even says she cares about him now.  I'll have to do more adjustment to her without giving away her relation to the plot.

 

I am currently working on these:



They are a nice little trinket, and I was considering them to be added in as Undead Castle Security system left in place.  Though I am still working with getting the animation for the spotlight etc together, it may just be a inactive object the player can interact with.  We'll see.  FSM is a nice repository for everything, and these are recolors of the originals.



I have a lot of pain killers right now, so everything is very relaxed and pleasant.  I may even get to some things tonight pending the puffiness.

hahaha oh Nidale. I'd certainly not classify her an ... erm ... 'itchy bee' hahaha poor thing. I mean, she seems quite terse and direct, but I've nothing against her; from what I've seen she is in a rough position balancing all those opposing forces and trying to get things to be better for the town and such. That's likely stressful and demanding, and also likely a position that requires such a personality to handle. Oh, but I've got a thing for ladies in positions of power, so maybe my opinions are quite jaded by that. Either way, for some reason, her name slips my mind a lot. Maybe it's simply because it isn't used in dialogue as often as some of the other names. Maybe it's simply because she isn't Willard. I have a pretty horrible track record with remembering names outside of the illustrious position of 'that character I latch onto for unexplained reasons *cough-glasses-cough*'


and I'll pass your hello onto Rach. :)

@palladinthug:

Thanks a lot man, you're so awesome and yes my uncle feels a bit better now (but he still needs help) and I really hope your father feels better too. Tbh Nidale is my 2nd favourite character after Shade (I have weird tastes I know), also I think you were bang on with her development, I dunno why but her attitude fits so much on that RTP sprite and faceset.

Also kudos on the trinkets, neat animation work there.

Waiting for Rach so we can go shopping has given me more time to play! And by more time, I mean, I finished the demo. :( Now I have no more Silver Town to play. So, I'll round out with a few more comments!


First a tiny thing, Willard's Aegis of Light spell has no cast dialogue. So, when I used it it just said 'Willard' at the top of the screen. Truly, this spell understands what really matters in life.

On a more general note, I love all the characters so very much. The tongue in cheek humour and abundant references is so up there in my favourite kind of light hearted story telling. The frivolous 'what even is a fourth wall' nature of Shade especially makes me snicker quite often, and everyone plays off one another perfectly. <3 I mean, it was this that made me fall in love with the early build of this game, and it's really great to see that wonderful characterization getting paired up with the overhauled graphics and mapping and the far more entertaining battle system. I snarled loudly when I realized I was at the end of the demo. D: I can't wait to see how the story unfolds from this point on.


Keep up the fantastic work! gotta find the time to draw more willard fanart

Oh man.  ><  Yeah I am fixing that once and for all.  I'll make a Willard DS sprite so that will tide you over.  No more Willard Duping.  If you do I wouldn't be against it, just don't take time away from your own things.  I'd really love to see some more of Winter Blossoms, and hope you guys will update that thread soon with progress and maybe some current game play.  That might inspire me to finish up this fan art of Vonderverst I've got sitting in my SD drive.  (His father should be kidnapped by the Snow Queen and forced into servitude.  Shirtless servitude).

I am truly happy you feel so.  It makes me so pleased to know it hasn't been done to death.  People take for granted a lot of what criticism and feedback mean in terms of raging reviews for the sake of trend setting and entertainment. and loose a very special part of the material; in what was successfully done.  This is really driving me to finish and amend the errors, thank you.  The sort of motivation a few words can bring is really overwhelming when you're hit on all sides with work and intensive care giving.

I agree with you, as does everyone else ^^.  The art helps the section, but it really needs that new behavior interacting the two sprites as well as a little more motion between the dialogue to make it breathe.  I'm diligently working on- and it's the bane of the entire game really.  I am too static with cut scenes.  This scene in particular hasn't been successful in any build- and now I will be taking drastic measures to ensure it will stand out.

One of the new cut scene I am working on features the return from Thief Town before the Undead Castle where a discussion prompts Wolfe to be bored, and visually so as the others are more interested.  I am also working on some new behaviors as I enjoy all the Oxycontin I can hallucinate.   

Ah Shield of Faith and Shield of Light will no longer be in Willard's list and belong to monsters/bosses.  Willard needs less skills, as he has the most in the game, and on top of that his staves increase the number further.

I'm glad you mentioned it didn't work, it reinforces me to not settle.  You've always been a good judge of pace.  I found that while people do want to immediately jump to action, you reminded me to flesh out the intro and beginning for the sake of immersion.  I went too extreme here as well, I have not forgotten you were right with the start of the game rushing too.

I maybe work in a small cut scene, as fading immediately doesn't sit well with me at the moment.  Sort of a Shade forcing the boys to actually acknowledge what they accomplished and catch their breath, rather than just rush through everything.  It's her first real step out of town, and it's had an impact on her.  Perhaps I should play that up, and give her a serious moment before the future serious scenes force her to accept the new developments. 

Yeah Shade is akin to Lampshade.  She's not defined by her class and that is wonderful.  No one calls her the mage, and people know her name and personality. *bounces*  

Willard's story doesn't stop there.  You've yet to see him at his worst.  Though with the new riddles, I think you may take a liking to Wolfe more considering new content.  I'll be happy to spoil it for you privately if you like.

Wolfe does deserve a bit more.  I don't want people to get the impression he's an afterthought.  It might be a good way for Nidale to show some compassion as well.  This could be the solution to two problems at once.

*

I'd love to do a stream and draw out some more intro materials, and it's these issues that take the time away from me acting freely.  I cannot ignore feedback and they do demand attention.  Whether it's 1 or everyone saying it, I like to act on what people say even if I don't agree offhand.  

I cannot force something to work, and it's either cut or adjust.

Lamia no longer engages in combat, and there are no penalties for answering a riddle wrong.  You get entertainment/snippets instead:



You can imagine what Willard and Shade's hidden secrets revealed may look like.  I advise you consider getting the answers wrong for the varied responses, as it no longer hinders your progress.

Heya guys.  Quick update:



Here is Heathcliff's concept. He will have a dual colored mane/stripes of grey eventually.

I'll be having portraits worked on throughout the week.  My speedy recovery and lack of pain during my wisdom teeth extraction is letting me make more progress than I slatted.

I also have some more behaviors on the way.  

To help out another early concept thread I am thinking of doing another let's play by the weekend.  Right now Google drive is temperamental about letting people view the videos, so I am gonna try another service to display them.  I don't wanna use drop box, but they are better for letting people see videos instantly instead of downloading them directly which takes too long. 

I want to say the next version is looking like it will be June 15th for Alpha .3, and I want that to have all the new portraits.  What needs to happen in that time is the following:

Edit the Demon King Sprite (Mao) to give him a walk cycle.

Touch up and complete Protraits (Emmet's fixes are done along with his slight alignment and adjustments).

Notable changes to the next version:

Battle has had certain elements added to make it more engaging, and TP/MP usage will restore each other to keep you from running out of resources if you don't use either exclusively. 

Certain enemies now have resistances to make you prone to using Libra(now an instant cast) to find their weaknesses, and change your strategy.

Emmet's Obliterate is now a group attack smite, but it is still tagged as physical damage only.

Queen Lite's new ability "Solar Prism"/"Dark Rainbow" debuffs the party.

"Heat Glyph" The Spider boss's new ability now debuffs the party's magical defenses making her other abilities do more damage.

"Burning" debuff has been added to the Fire breath skill of the Spider boss which does damage over time.

Slime enemies are now weak against physical attacks and strong against magical\elemental spells.

Sprites will often have "First Strike".

Enemy troops have been reduced in number and the enemies have gotten a buff in hp/exp to make getting a battle more rewarding and quicker.

Undead enemies will resist Physical damage.

The level cap is now 20.

Various map and resource edits including those already mentioned in previous posts.

Multiple game crashing bugs fixed.

No new work on the intro has taken place, but I can slate some time this weekend if there are no more medical emergencies.  I'd like to have even the unfinished art debut and show in the intended manner.  New Animations are planned for the intro, but are subject to change.  I have the resources, and just need the time.

If you have a preference for the  *nudge nudge* I cannot officially make a you know what for, you can *hint hint* private message me the preference for the character. *wink wink*

wow this looks amazing

has a interesting plot

and characters

wish i heard of this sooner

thank you Haru : D

ill play this next

amazing work

i love when talented people use there

skill for things like this : D

Edit

after 2 hours of playtime,im still loving the game

theres some funny map glitches you can walk thru places

but that aside im loving it : D

I love the artwork! Graphically it blew me away. Story-wise I really enjoy how everything revolves around Silver Town and I like the characters. Overall my only complaint would be the battles. Took a while for any action to take place and when I finally got to fight they were way too easy. The challenge stepped up in the druid grove but still I felt it lacked overall strategy and could be overcome by grinding as I tried to figure out where to go... (for some reason I didn't think of going south in the poison field to find the entrance to the maze lol). But yes it is really a great job. Good dialogue and humor. There was a bug or two here and there but nothing game

breaking besides a crash to desktop when entering a battle though that could have been my own computer's fault. Following this so I can see when you get the new demo up!

request a free place to sleep,

like your house or the church

i mean if she really wants your help its the least she could do  o.o

That is a good point.  This is a good opportunity to show that Nidale cares again.  There is plenty of room in the barracks for Emmet and his party.  Unfortunately Emmet's house is a wreck with only one bed, so the barracks of the church will be a better choice.

Thank you for the compliments.  The story and art are my highest concern for an RPG.  I want people to walk away from this and have fond memories of what they saw.  I wish I did have skills ^^  All of what I am doing is guesswork and getting lucky sometimes.

Nidale does want to help you.  She really does.  Don't hesitate to mention how she could do so more, as it seems players are liking her adjustments.  Her role in the story is about to change, as well as her own secrets coming forward with her previous relation to the Empire and the "Avatar" of St. Cuthburt.  Part of what is tying her hands which has been made visible now with the destruction of Ivan's shop is that the people are panicking and starting to riot.  Yet another reason why useless the guard is there as well.  It makes the people feel more at ease.

Yes I was made aware of a few, but if you could recall any it would help me for the pass ability bugs.    

Much appreciated!

Thank you!  It's so wonderful to hear that after all the work involved with the story and graphics.  After 4 months of powering on through between programs and adjustments I am glad the hard and consistent work is paying off after the remapping.  Hopefully if I can get to work on Portraits soon, I'll have another update.   

Yes, the battle portion is my weakest aspect and this is where I am using my spare time when I am not at the hospital or assisting my father.  I would have had an update to show you today, but I spent almost 8 hours at the E.R. so the best I can tell you is that enemies of a certain family or type will get better statuses as well as racial abilities to force the player to adapt.  That is the best I can do atm without someone more experienced since I am an artist\storyteller and not an actual developer.  For the longest time, I thought that method was the method which governed players strength and progress.  

Working with other people and seeing criticism as well as playing other games here is making me more open minded. So I am trying a few things to make battle more difficult, but still preserve the fun.  To coordinate with this the player's abilities are changing and everyone is getting something new which helps keeps up resources.  Willard will also be loosing a few more spells like Lesser restoration which will no longer function as intended.  Blind, Poison, and other harmful effects will all end with battle to keep you moving forward.  Restoration as a magical skill may be lost as well to keep people using the Vigor spells which will cure all minor alignments.  I will also be making items available to resist states as well.

Shade is working on learning "Dispel" from Kendra's(Cut character) list in order to neutralize racial abilities, enemy buffs, and plot mechanics when appropriate.

Wolfe has a debilitating strike that will reduce physical damage, and a strike that will focus on magic user enemies.  They are planned to be different types of damage so they cannot swapped out for each other.  He will also be getting a sort of "Strength of the pack" which will buff him.  Wolfe also comes equipped with the only kit that allows players to gain the best items in the game now, and his back story has been reworked to make him at the center of everything involving him with Emmet, Willard, and Shade's past.

Emmet's Irony body and Ageis spells are going away and being replaced with Leonic Strength that will reduce physical damage.

Also enemies have gained spells that were dropped from the player list to make them more threatening.  This includes all the armor buffing, etc that cluttered Willard's list and made him a God of War. 

*I felt making the game easy enough to see content and enjoy was enough.  Now it's time to adjust to what the majority of people expect- and that is increase the difficulty of battle.

I cannot guarantee a success here on my first try, as I am constantly adjusting just the first dungeon to keep a 'pace' going.*

May I ask which battle was it that crashed you to the desktop?  A set battle or a random battle, and where?

My greatest hope of course is that I can show you more art when I get the chance.  Thank you everyone for the feedback, and I am working my best when able to move things forward.

We're nearing a milestone in production with the attention this project has seen and I am working on another special item for supporters.  

1.In the room where nidel(spelling)gives you the special armor you can walk thru the pillars.

2.in the church going to the vertical lines on the wall you can walk up them

and get on the roof.

//

as For her helping

Glitches

-In the swamp area(1st area after you get boat)

reading the tablet the word "poison" is spelled wrong.

*note about 4 other grammar issues 1 being the note in the light house

-after the battle with the emperors lackys(south of forest)

mushrooms spawn but if you exit north and come back b4 talking to the mushshroom on the bottom left

the bosy of the guy you just defeated will be there

with no mushrooms and no way to continue.

//

suggest-one of the most annoying things in rpgs is when you try to run away and it fails

unless its verse a boss this should never happen w/o some fair reason.

2-findable/buyable item that you can equip to a character that disbables random battles

while i do enjoy rpg battles

sometimes i just want to be able to relax and walk thru a area especially when trying to solves puzzles!

//

Got to the end of the official part of the demo.

at this point  with the complaints above aside

this was a rather enjoy able game.

ill wait for a updated version to continue the story

My playthru(up to "end" of demo)

Geez ! This game's views is over 5000! xD
Way to go, palladinthug!
Here's a fanart for you! I hope you like it! :)

looks nice,better then my abilty to draw(if only i had talent...so many monster girls id want to make...)and id be able to support projects like this.

but from what i do know of drawing

highquality pictures can take...at least 2-5 hours if not more dependeding on skill

heres a example of a speed picture

Homy says-Hora Hora