Orpheus Lupus
The Pretty-Okay Doctor
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Orpheus Lupus' RPG Project
I mentioned this over at the Assasin's Creed forum, then proptly realized I should spread the love.
After people read this post, there will be exactly two message boards that know about this, and the other one's a Star Fox/Lylat Wars forum. That's a little bit bizarre.
Anywho.
I've been trying to work on a game since about the middle of last year...It's still in the planning and, er, some initial coding (such as it is...You'll understand what I mean in a moment) so there's no screen shots yet. Hey, I'm just a guy, not an entire company
***Discalimer: All of this is subject to change. I'm almost as bad as Peter Molyneaux.***
The game itself is based upon my novel (click the link in my signature to read the very, very beginning of the first chapter), but inspired by a strange but potent combination of Fable, KOTOR (and NWN), and a bit of Elder Scrolls. The game's attitude towards things is probably more Fable like, though if we go beyond just video games my universe tends to be compared to Discworld (by Terry Pratchett). The actual battle system has more in common with KOTOR, but I'm focusing a lot more on character interaction (though there won't be any toilet usage. Well, there will probably be, given my sense of humor, but not required at regular intervals. I mean, if there were a timed quest that game as a result of eating something you shouldn't have...) and "Life Itself" more than in those games.
To start off with, I think it'll help if I describe the process of and other thoughts I've had on general character creation:
Race - Okie dokie, this is a long one, because there's MANY races I'd like to include that are in my novels, but I might not be able to get them all in >_<" Here goes:
Human - You know 'em, you love or hate 'em, you ARE one. Probably. If not, hopefully you come in peace. Comes in several skin and hair colors. Maybe. We'll see. Very flexible stats, but not exactly exotic. Oddly enough, most people will look upon you with disdain initially if you choose this race, but that's a different story for another time. There are many humans in the TCDA universe, most notably Prince Gideon Morelia. As far as dieties go, they're based off the head of the pantheon, a strangely familar and more or less benevolent fellow known as the All-Father (he's not Odin XD). Come from a dead planet often referred to as Humus. Or, more accurately, Posthumus.
non-spoiler Sub-races: Vampire - Probably won't be available to start off with, but you could always become one. Vampires are somewhat unusual in this particular universe, but not THAT unusual. Oddly enough, some people seem highly attracted to them. The principal TCDA vampire right now is a woman fondly known as the "Vampire Queen" because she more or less gave birth to Gideon's otherwise human bloodline. Vampires are very dry-witted but tend to have fake accents and flashy outfits.
Shape-shifter: Not so much a sub-race as a combination, these guys are responsible for were-legends. They come in a number of flavors and apparently share DNA with both Humans and Fuizans (see next "species"), leading some cheeky people to refer to them as Huizans or Fumans. They can shift between an almost completely human form (there's still something about the eyes...), a canine form of some sort, and several states in-between including a very Fuizan-like state. These guys are VERY rare; most people who know one will never find out in their lifetime. Their very nature is hiding from people, unlike vampires who tend to flaunt themselves. Very little is known about them at all, and much of it is technically racial prejudice. They can, however, mate with extremely open-minded humans AND fuizans. The principal Shape-Shifter in the series is Kiatra Delinassa, a rasberry-eyed "Golden Fox" and thief extraordinaire.
Cyborgs - A strict don't ask, don't tell policy of a different sort is involved, but suffice it to say you can probably tell just by looking. Absolutely suck at magic.
Fuizans- The next real species on our list, the Fuizans are the second most powerful race in the galaxy. There home planet is a vaguely magical world known as Fuiz; the general climate of the planet could be described as "Rather Damn Cold, Don't You Think?" but not quite snowing. Fuizans are believed to have been created by Anubis, sort of the Angel Of Death in this particular universe for plot reasons, with the All-Father's permission as a connection to this world. As such, Fuizans have the strange tendency to hear the voices of their ancestors on an constant basis. All the time. Fuizans are both described as the only species who can argue that the voices in their head really did make them do it, and also as the only species who knows not only EXACTLY where they're going in the afterlife, but also the current climate and how the All-Father in all His glory is getting along these days. They have a very, very strong family connection and their home planet is divided not by countries but by gigantic family clans. This has little effect on the player's game, but a knowledgeable player could pick one of the clan names and role-play that way I would guess. The sub-races are little more than visual differences this time, though there's a class distinction on their home planet. They're not really just canines, but rather also vulpines as well as various similar creatures:
Wolves
Foxes
Dogs (varies)
Jackals
Hyenas (Don't Ask Why)
Shape-Changers (Fuizan variant)
Werehumans (unselectable, mostly just for comedy purposes)
as well as a possible few others
I'll just proceeded quickly through the rest of the races:
Katrals - Cat people, essentially. They live on a more humid, jungle-like planet and the female is generally considered the stronger of the two sexes, with the males being either strangely effeminate or enslaved depending on the particular female.
Satyrs - oftenstrangely tall Goat-warriors who seem to be addicted to adrenaline and strange foods. There's also the less awesome power-wise but infinitely cuter (or in a few slightly eerie cases, disturbingly and frighteningly attractive to certain sorts of people) sheeps.
Hreshnans - Short pig-people who live on a strangely lavish and expensive homeworld. Have a strange fondness for both looking extremely rich and high-class AND playing in mud and dirt (physically and metaphorically). Often involved in politics.
Avins - Actually one of the more important species. They're bird people who don't really have a lick of sense. They're highly caste-based (with Hawks and Falcons at the top and things like parrots and canaries at the bottom as slaves) and utterly ignorant. And their world was just conquered by someone else. They're barrells of fun! And honestly quite likely to cause the end of the universe as we know it.
Phrynosans - Lizard-people. Most of them don't speak "human" languages very well and tend to either slur their words or replace the "s" with a "z". Half of them are VERY funny, and the other half really honestly don't know what a sense of humor is. No, really. They don't comprehend it. Trust me. You'll see. Live on a world of massive trees, making them kind of like wookies but without the fur. They don't get involved in the rest of the universe's problems, preferring simple carefree lives with the occasional misstep and five thousand foot drop.
Basians - Live on a desert planet called Base, which is ironic as they have an acidic substance in their body. They are giant snakes with limbs. Magic is EXTREMELY harmful to them, occasionally causing rather gastly and strangely organic explosions.
Dungeinians - Extremely powerful, telepathic/telekinetic underwater-dwelling, uh...Sea horses. Fortunately for the rest of us, they rarely leave the ocean of their world, Dungein, and are strangely superstitious.
Insects - Name undecided. This species operates mostly via Hive Minds and Queens, and as such each particular group thinks it's the same person. A few of them are occasionally given their own unique personality and will, though...
Dragons - Once the second most powerful race, dragons were long ago the "brothers" of the Human race, with the same homeworld et al. But long ago a dragon calling herself "Mother" overthrew their current Queen and began a long war with the Humans that eventually spanned many systems across the galaxy. She was eventually felled by an unlikely group of heroes on the planet Reath about 800 or so years ago, but the damage had been done to the Human's collective psyche long ago...
Nowadays, dragons are few, and their children are even rarer. Most dragons live in complete isolation from one another, often either out of a lack of social skills or a fear that Mother would come back and control them all in some form or another. They come in many varieties, but the only one playable by the PC is the humanoid, vaguely human-sized variety...The others won't fit in doors. Dragons are extremely tough skinned and extremely powerful, but, ah, some people will react to you oddly. Don't say I didn't warn you.
That about wraps it up for race...Moving on:
The second most important part of PC creation is picking an element. There are Ten "main" elements, with the universe's scientific reference for some of them:
Light
Shadow
Fire (chemical changes)
Earth (rocks, minerals, "normal" elements in general)
Water (liquids)
Wind
Ice (state changes)
Electricity (energy)
There's also a nifty part about picking a background and parentage and home planet, but I'll have to get to those later:
Here's my problem and the reason why there's no screen shots yet; I can't firmly decide what to do it in. There's RPG Maker, but people would be forced to buy or illegally download something they would probably never use again. There's Neverwinter Nights total conversions, and then there's Elder Scrolls Total Conversions...In reality, I've been looking at things and I'm pretty sure most of the ideas I'll get to later are "doable", but there's a different difficulty in each one...For example, the Elder Scrolls will have "issues" as far as party members goes, and RPG Maker will...Well, I can't draw very well, let's put it that way Plus there's the problem with finding people to do it and such...
Anywho, in my next post, I'll explain about the worlds and their current situation and finish up character creation. That's about it for now, though.
I mentioned this over at the Assasin's Creed forum, then proptly realized I should spread the love.
After people read this post, there will be exactly two message boards that know about this, and the other one's a Star Fox/Lylat Wars forum. That's a little bit bizarre.
Anywho.
I've been trying to work on a game since about the middle of last year...It's still in the planning and, er, some initial coding (such as it is...You'll understand what I mean in a moment) so there's no screen shots yet. Hey, I'm just a guy, not an entire company
***Discalimer: All of this is subject to change. I'm almost as bad as Peter Molyneaux.***
The game itself is based upon my novel (click the link in my signature to read the very, very beginning of the first chapter), but inspired by a strange but potent combination of Fable, KOTOR (and NWN), and a bit of Elder Scrolls. The game's attitude towards things is probably more Fable like, though if we go beyond just video games my universe tends to be compared to Discworld (by Terry Pratchett). The actual battle system has more in common with KOTOR, but I'm focusing a lot more on character interaction (though there won't be any toilet usage. Well, there will probably be, given my sense of humor, but not required at regular intervals.
I mean, if there were a timed quest that game as a result of eating something you shouldn't have...) and "Life Itself" more than in those games.To start off with, I think it'll help if I describe the process of and other thoughts I've had on general character creation:
Race - Okie dokie, this is a long one, because there's MANY races I'd like to include that are in my novels, but I might not be able to get them all in >_<" Here goes:
Human - You know 'em, you love or hate 'em, you ARE one. Probably. If not, hopefully you come in peace. Comes in several skin and hair colors. Maybe. We'll see. Very flexible stats, but not exactly exotic. Oddly enough, most people will look upon you with disdain initially if you choose this race, but that's a different story for another time. There are many humans in the TCDA universe, most notably Prince Gideon Morelia. As far as dieties go, they're based off the head of the pantheon, a strangely familar and more or less benevolent fellow known as the All-Father (he's not Odin XD). Come from a dead planet often referred to as Humus. Or, more accurately, Posthumus.
non-spoiler Sub-races: Vampire - Probably won't be available to start off with, but you could always become one
. Vampires are somewhat unusual in this particular universe, but not THAT unusual. Oddly enough, some people seem highly attracted to them. The principal TCDA vampire right now is a woman fondly known as the "Vampire Queen" because she more or less gave birth to Gideon's otherwise human bloodline. Vampires are very dry-witted but tend to have fake accents and flashy outfits.Shape-shifter: Not so much a sub-race as a combination, these guys are responsible for were-legends. They come in a number of flavors and apparently share DNA with both Humans and Fuizans (see next "species"), leading some cheeky people to refer to them as Huizans or Fumans. They can shift between an almost completely human form (there's still something about the eyes...), a canine form of some sort, and several states in-between including a very Fuizan-like state. These guys are VERY rare; most people who know one will never find out in their lifetime. Their very nature is hiding from people, unlike vampires who tend to flaunt themselves. Very little is known about them at all, and much of it is technically racial prejudice. They can, however, mate with extremely open-minded humans AND fuizans. The principal Shape-Shifter in the series is Kiatra Delinassa, a rasberry-eyed "Golden Fox" and thief extraordinaire.
Cyborgs - A strict don't ask, don't tell policy of a different sort is involved, but suffice it to say you can probably tell just by looking. Absolutely suck at magic.
Fuizans- The next real species on our list, the Fuizans are the second most powerful race in the galaxy. There home planet is a vaguely magical world known as Fuiz; the general climate of the planet could be described as "Rather Damn Cold, Don't You Think?" but not quite snowing. Fuizans are believed to have been created by Anubis, sort of the Angel Of Death in this particular universe for plot reasons, with the All-Father's permission as a connection to this world. As such, Fuizans have the strange tendency to hear the voices of their ancestors on an constant basis. All the time. Fuizans are both described as the only species who can argue that the voices in their head really did make them do it, and also as the only species who knows not only EXACTLY where they're going in the afterlife, but also the current climate and how the All-Father in all His glory is getting along these days. They have a very, very strong family connection and their home planet is divided not by countries but by gigantic family clans. This has little effect on the player's game, but a knowledgeable player could pick one of the clan names and role-play that way I would guess. The sub-races are little more than visual differences this time, though there's a class distinction on their home planet. They're not really just canines, but rather also vulpines as well as various similar creatures:
Wolves
Foxes
Dogs (varies)
Jackals
Hyenas (Don't Ask Why)
Shape-Changers (Fuizan variant)
Werehumans (unselectable, mostly just for comedy purposes)
as well as a possible few others
I'll just proceeded quickly through the rest of the races:
Katrals - Cat people, essentially. They live on a more humid, jungle-like planet and the female is generally considered the stronger of the two sexes, with the males being either strangely effeminate or enslaved depending on the particular female.
Satyrs - oftenstrangely tall Goat-warriors who seem to be addicted to adrenaline and strange foods. There's also the less awesome power-wise but infinitely cuter (or in a few slightly eerie cases, disturbingly and frighteningly attractive to certain sorts of people) sheeps.
Hreshnans - Short pig-people who live on a strangely lavish and expensive homeworld. Have a strange fondness for both looking extremely rich and high-class AND playing in mud and dirt (physically and metaphorically). Often involved in politics.
Avins - Actually one of the more important species. They're bird people who don't really have a lick of sense. They're highly caste-based (with Hawks and Falcons at the top and things like parrots and canaries at the bottom as slaves) and utterly ignorant. And their world was just conquered by someone else. They're barrells of fun! And honestly quite likely to cause the end of the universe as we know it.
Phrynosans - Lizard-people. Most of them don't speak "human" languages very well and tend to either slur their words or replace the "s" with a "z". Half of them are VERY funny, and the other half really honestly don't know what a sense of humor is. No, really. They don't comprehend it. Trust me. You'll see. Live on a world of massive trees, making them kind of like wookies but without the fur.
They don't get involved in the rest of the universe's problems, preferring simple carefree lives with the occasional misstep and five thousand foot drop.Basians - Live on a desert planet called Base, which is ironic as they have an acidic substance in their body. They are giant snakes with limbs. Magic is EXTREMELY harmful to them, occasionally causing rather gastly and strangely organic explosions.
Dungeinians - Extremely powerful, telepathic/telekinetic underwater-dwelling, uh...Sea horses. Fortunately for the rest of us, they rarely leave the ocean of their world, Dungein, and are strangely superstitious.
Insects - Name undecided. This species operates mostly via Hive Minds and Queens, and as such each particular group thinks it's the same person. A few of them are occasionally given their own unique personality and will, though...
Dragons - Once the second most powerful race, dragons were long ago the "brothers" of the Human race, with the same homeworld et al. But long ago a dragon calling herself "Mother" overthrew their current Queen and began a long war with the Humans that eventually spanned many systems across the galaxy. She was eventually felled by an unlikely group of heroes on the planet Reath about 800 or so years ago, but the damage had been done to the Human's collective psyche long ago...
Nowadays, dragons are few, and their children are even rarer. Most dragons live in complete isolation from one another, often either out of a lack of social skills or a fear that Mother would come back and control them all in some form or another. They come in many varieties, but the only one playable by the PC is the humanoid, vaguely human-sized variety...The others won't fit in doors. Dragons are extremely tough skinned and extremely powerful, but, ah, some people will react to you oddly. Don't say I didn't warn you.
That about wraps it up for race...Moving on:
The second most important part of PC creation is picking an element. There are Ten "main" elements, with the universe's scientific reference for some of them:
Light
Shadow
Fire (chemical changes)
Earth (rocks, minerals, "normal" elements in general)
Water (liquids)
Wind
Ice (state changes)
Electricity (energy)
There's also a nifty part about picking a background and parentage and home planet, but I'll have to get to those later:
Here's my problem and the reason why there's no screen shots yet; I can't firmly decide what to do it in. There's RPG Maker, but people would be forced to buy or illegally download something they would probably never use again. There's Neverwinter Nights total conversions, and then there's Elder Scrolls Total Conversions...In reality, I've been looking at things and I'm pretty sure most of the ideas I'll get to later are "doable", but there's a different difficulty in each one...For example, the Elder Scrolls will have "issues" as far as party members goes, and RPG Maker will...Well, I can't draw very well, let's put it that way
Plus there's the problem with finding people to do it and such...Anywho, in my next post, I'll explain about the worlds and their current situation and finish up character creation. That's about it for now, though.