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Messages - Ferret

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16
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: July 05, 2016, 03:18:06 PM »
Okay, so it was a bit more than a couple of weeks out from release. :D But, the Relic Upgrades build is finally done. :D You can grab the builds at the usual link here: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B-sx_4eW-B5hWnhNZlRPclZLeUU&usp=drive_web





Relic Upgrades are new summoner-only abilities that significantly change how basic mechanics of summoning work, either by tweaking existing abilities or adding entirely new ones. I gave some examples in my last post, but those are only a few of the nearly two dozen different upgrades available starting with this build.

Each relic has two starting upgrades, and you can add more upgrades of your choice after reaching specific levels. The starting upgrades for each Relic are:

Crown of Glory: Starts with Quick Summon and Quick Dismiss, which replace the turn cost of using Summon and Dismiss with 1 turn cooldowns instead.

Eye of the Dragon: Starts with Item Sense and S.E.P.I., which help you find more items and more Credits, giving you more resources to work with.

Faithful Heart: Starts with Revelation, which lets your demon allies learn powerful abilities, and Nightingale, which speeds up recovery rates for currently inactive allies.

Hand of the Dead: Starts with Consume and Recycle, which provide various benefits when you delete demon allies.

Orb of Power: Starts with Transpose Soul, which allows you to convert demon allies into very powerful abilities for your own use, and Translator, which significantly reduces the cost of learning abilities from your allies.

Titan's Fist: Starts with Fusion Saver, which reduces the cost of fusing demons together into new ones, and Soul Armor, which lets you sacrifice allies to gain their resistance, HP, and Speed modifiers.

Vodun Mask: Starts with Enemy Sense, which shows enemy positions on the map, and Far Summon I, which lets you summon allies 3 squares away instead of only being able to summon adjacent to you.

But, beware: enemy summoners also possess, and intelligently use, these new upgrades. :) Also, in order to preserve balance against non-summoner enemies, the starting stable size has been reduced from 8 to 6. (There is, however, a series of upgrades you can take that let you raise the limit back up to 8... or even higher, if you wish.)

Good luck in the Tower. :D

17
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: May 29, 2016, 05:05:20 PM »
Hello. :D

Finally far enough along on the next big feature in Demon to have a decent amount to show for it. :D
Introducing: Relic Upgrades!



Relic Upgrades are a collection of summoner-specific abilities that change how basic mechanics specific to the player work.  17 different upgrades (not counting ranks for upgrades that have multiple ranks) will be available in the build introducing them, with more to follow in future builds.

Here's a few examples of what these upgrades can do for summoners:


1) Enemy Sense

Enemy Sense provides two different benefits: primarily, it shows the locations of enemies on your map. But in addition to this, when you fully explore a level, it will perform a more through scan of the level, revealing hidden enemies that otherwise can be found, providing additional opportunities for recruitment and gaining experience.





2) Consume and Recycle

Consume provides you with HP and SP when you delete one of your demon allies. Since Delete Demon is a free action, this can provide a valuable emergency measure during a fight that isn't quite going your way. Recycle similarly grants you Credits when you delete a demon, which can provide one last use for allies you've outgrown (or had to hurriedly Consume during combat, since the abilities stack!) The strength of both effects is based off of how many levels the demon has gained since joining you however: new recruits won't provide much benefit.







3) Far Summon





Last of the examples today is Far Summon, a three rank upgrade that increases the range of your summon ability by 2 each rank. By default, you can only summon your allies into adjacent squares, but with Far Summon, you can place your allies much more strategically: you can summon melee allies much closer to their desired targets, make sure ranged allies have clear lines of fire and are safely out of harm's reach, etc.


This build is probably still a couple of weeks or so out from release, but I'm pretty excited about it. :) I'll post again later with more information about some of the other upgrades. :D Cheers!


18
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: April 26, 2016, 03:31:51 PM »
Hey. :) Thanks for checking Demon out, I'm glad you're enjoying it! Anomaly: 2 is pretty amazing for a first run. :D Congrats!

Re: Resting, Demon uses a bit of a different scheme than most roguelikes. There is no reason not to rest up between fights... but on the other hand, encounters are balanced assuming you've rested between them. Of course, that makes the timed recruitment events you pointed out require some pretty efficient conduct to succeed at (though in some cases, the thing you're trying to recruit is willing to help out.

Good luck on your second run. :D

19
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: April 22, 2016, 03:01:30 PM »
Builds with the new currency system have been released. :D PC, Mac, and Linux builds are all available here:  https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B-sx_4eW-B5hWnhNZlRPclZLeUU&usp=drive_web



With the new currency system, quite a few things have changed in Demon:

* As you explore the Tower, you will find caches of crystals that your summoning relic absorbs, recording the amount absorbed as Credits.
* Credits are used to perform advanced relic functions collectively called Transmutations.
* The available transmutations are Copy Ability, Delete Ability, Fuse Demons, Restore Demon, and Delete Demon.
* Copy Ability allows you to copy an ability from a demon ally to another demon ally, or (at increased cost) to the main character. It replaces both the Training Point system and the gradual passing on of abilities from demons to summoners that used to occur.
* Delete Ability costs no credits, and simply allows you to remove an ability from the target ally, should you find a reason to do so.
* Fuse Demons allows you to sacrifice one demon to give a modifier to another demon. Fusion is expensive in terms of credits, but modifiers provide powerful benefits to the recipient. This replaces the Silver and Gold Matrix items, which are no longer found in the game.
* Restore Demon allows you to revive a fallen ally, though it is quite expensive. This replaces the Spirit Chime item, which is no longer found in the game.
* Delete Demon costs nothing, and allows you to remove a demon from your party should you find a reason to do so.

In essence, Currency is being used to remove clunkier systems (Training Points :P) or stabilize previously overly RNG-reliant mechanics (having to find Matrix items to Fuse Demons), while at the same time giving the player more interesting choices to make (namely, how to divide a very limited resource that is now shared by all of these systems.)

So far, the regulars seem to be pretty happy with the changes, and so am I. :D If you give it a try, let me know what you think. :) Until next time, good luck in the Tower. :D

20
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: March 28, 2016, 02:21:02 PM »
Late Ferret is late, but a new build was released 3/23. :D You can grab PC, Mac, and Linux builds from the usual spot: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B-sx_4eW-B5hWnhNZlRPclZLeUU&usp=drive_web

This was a polish / tweak / re-balance build to take care of some outstanding issues before moving on to adding the currency system to the game. :D

Among the goodies added are:

* Cleaned up texture bleeding errors that were happening on a small number of machines.
* "Pacifist" demons now do a somewhat better job of not advancing into combat.
* Adjusted the early game slightly: 2nd and 3rd level come a bit more quickly, some demons (especially corporeal undead) have had their resistances adjusted, and a few of the more exceptionally deadly early encounters have been quietly toned down a bit.
* Four new items added: Magic Map (maps the current level fully), Calm Card (unsummons all allies as a free action), Zephyr Card (summons one ally to any space in range as a free action), and Guardian Gem (buffs Evasion and Defense for all allies)
* Auto-explore is now considerably more efficient.
* Bigger sprites on character sheets. Several players had mentioned wanting to see "big" sprites for all characters, not just ones you can negotiate with, so I changed character sheets to show them:



Next up will be the currency build, which will be a pretty significant change to Demon. :D See you then. :D

21
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: March 04, 2016, 05:33:03 PM »
New build is out. :D You can download the PC, Mac, and Linux builds here: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B-sx_4eW-B5hWnhNZlRPclZLeUU&usp=drive_web

This build includes Arcadia, the new one floor side forest-themed dungeon that sometimes replaces Tower: 1 & 1/2.



This build also has some other good tweaks and adjustments:
  • Slimes are no longer weak to Fire and Electricity.
  • Freybugs are now weak to Light instead of Fire.
  • Modifiers granted to demons now give stats focused more on the role the modifier encourages rather than just the abilities it can grant. (i.e.: Melee modifiers now grant more Agility and Vitality than before, for example)
  • Some small adjustments to Earth Break, Avalanche, and Bloodlust to bring other melee abilities back up to speed. (Yes, this means I nerfed those three things :P Sorry, had to be done! :P )
  • The new demons local to Arcadia can sometimes be found in the Tower itself, as early as Tower:4.
  • Adjusted the AI calculations for stagger/turn acceleration effects.

It's good to finally begin to have enough content to be able to have some of it randomly selected each game instead of needing it to all be turned on. :D Good luck in Arcadia, and as always, I welcome any feedback. :D

22
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: February 23, 2016, 11:11:11 PM »
Getting close to the next major release, which will include Arcadia, a new side dungeon that has a 50% chance of replacing Tower: 1 & 1/2 in a given game. :D

Second pass of the terrain art: wall improvements to make it less hedge mazey and more foresty and maybe more "lone tree" art variety are the only major things left to do here:



An example of the sort of maps generated for Arcadia: The forest architect I made tends to create big semi-open areas with several offshoot areas. :D It feels fairly foresty to me, at least. :D



Probably a bit more than a week of work left on the build, but we're getting there. :D I hope to announce the release soon. :D

23
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: February 04, 2016, 02:49:20 AM »
Woo hoo, the 2/3 build of Demon is out. :D The Tower expands to 20 floors (not counting the side-dungeons that appear within it)!

Download link: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B-sx_4eW-B5hWnhNZlRPclZLeUU&usp=drive_web

Of course, it's a long way up. :) Less than 1% of games reach Tower:17. A great many end in this spooky hole on Tower:2...



It may seem strange to work on the "end" of the game given that, but I wanted to thank the players who are playing heavily managing to beat the current content with some new stuff to find up there. :D

Good luck. :D


24
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: January 30, 2016, 12:56:57 AM »
Whoops. :) I went dark here a bit longer than normal. In my defense, it's been because I've been buried in content land. :D

I'm getting close to releasing the next build, which will add floors 18, 19, and 20 to the Tower. Some of the demons lurking about up there may be a bit crazy...



(Note: Soul is a new cooldown type. It refreshes 1 point every 10% of a level the character gains. So, once Eternal Glory triggers, it's on cooldown for 9 levels.)

25
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: January 10, 2016, 02:43:56 AM »
That's right, the alternate character art set Geminimax is maintaining is new to you too. :D (If by some chance you want the old back, there's an options menu accessible with the - key that is probably also new to you. )

I'm glad you're enjoying the bumped up difficulty level. :) I don't remember where exactly it was at in your era since it's bee awhile, but I do know it's only moved in one direction for awhile now, so it's definitely higher than it was when you played last. :D

Thanks for playing again. :D I'm always happy when previous players visit again and like the changes they see. :)

26
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: January 06, 2016, 04:26:17 PM »
Oh, hey. :D

Please do, and lemme know what you think. :) Demon's a pretty different place since the last time you stopped by the thread. :D

27
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: January 02, 2016, 07:54:40 AM »
Demon's newest build has been released, featuring the new side-dungeon, the Anomaly. :D PC, Mac, and Linux builds are available at the usual link: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B-sx_4eW-B5hWnhNZlRPclZLeUU&usp=drive_web

The entrance to the Anomaly is fickle, sometimes appearing on Tower:5, sometimes on Tower:6, but the appearance of the warp leading to it is unmistakable:



Inside, you'll find new demons unique to the Anomaly, with new abilities. :) But.. other summoners have probably come to the Anomaly for the same reason.

This build also includes some balance changes based on feedback received over the course of the last month or so. :)

Enjoy, and good luck in the Tower... and the Anomaly. :D

28
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: December 22, 2015, 06:40:24 PM »
Getting closer to being finished with the new Anomaly branch and its content. :) Here's an art preview of the new characters (11 demons, 1 summoner) being added, and the 14 new abilities they will possess.



Characters from Top Left to Bottom Right (in left-to-right, top-to-bottom order): Gi, Ruhin, Fotia, Python, Fetch, Gremlin, Nero, Paracelsus, Aeras, Aithir, Blob, Chaos

Abilities (same ordering): Lifegiver, Twilight, Galvanize, Tackle, Void Touch, Winterkill, Flesh Rot, Light Dart, Lob Stone, Stone Stance, Bask, Blessweaver, Emit Spark, and Fan Flames.

29
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: December 11, 2015, 02:14:18 PM »
Hey. :) Been a bit longer than usual since I checked in, I've been busy happily buried in new content land. :D

Latest build ( https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B-sx_4eW-B5hWnhNZlRPclZLeUU&usp=drive_web ) doesn't include any of that yet, but it does include what was probably a long overdue feature: character dumping! (Well, party dumping, since this is Demon.) Pressing F10 in game, or automatically at the end of any game, will create a text file of containing details about your current party and their progress. The file is, at least in some ways, remarkably through: it even includes the descriptions of each ability every party member has.

Here's a brief sample of the sort of output it gives:

Code: [Select]
Demon Party Dump File
Version 12/3/2015, Scoring Model: 8/22/2015
Dump file created at: 12/3/2015 12:15:50 PM
 
 
Summoner Tremane...
was chosen by the Eye of the Dragon,
selected Fire and Mind as their starting elements,
is currently at Tower:1,
and is quite dead!
 
 
 
--==== Main Character ===--
 
Name : Tremane
Level: 1
MaxHP: 42
MaxSP: 100
 
Strength: 9
Magic   : 18
Vitality: 11
Agility : 7
Cunning : 10
 
Resist: Fire
Weak  : Ice
 
Abilities Known:
1) Heat Wave (Type: Slash, 20 SP. 85 Power attack split between Slash and Fire. Has a 33% chance to Ignite the targets, causing damage over a short duration.)
2) Fire Breath (Type: Fire, 30 SP. 0-85 Power attack, based on the user's SP (more SP = more Power). Has a 33% chance to Ignite the targets, causing damage over a short duration. Cannot miss. Cooldown: Breath (8))
3) Terrifying Cry (Type: Mind, 35 SP. 50% chance to inflict Panic on enemies, causing their actions to sometimes be randomized. Cooldown: Presence (12))
4) ------------
5) ------------
6) ------------
7) ------------
8) ------------
 
Inventory:
1 Heal stone
 
 
 
--==== Current Party ===--
 
Name : Gandayah
Level: 1
MaxHP: 35
MaxSP: 125
 
Strength: 9
Magic   : 14
Vitality: 18
Agility : 7
Cunning : 7
 
Resist: Electricity
Weak  : Fire
 
Abilities Known:
1) Cleanse (Type: Healing, 15 SP. Removes Poison, Infection, and Paralysis.)
2) Refresh (Type: Healing, 5 SP. Transfers up to 20 SP from the user to the target.)
3) Tireless (Type: None, Passive. Increases MaxSP by 25.)
4) ------------
5) ------------

As for the new content, that is coming along well. :) The terrain set is pretty close to done:



The new content for the first content push will be in Demon's first multi-floor side dungeon: the Anomaly: a part of the Tower that seems ... not quite right, to say the least. :) Though hints of Demon's not strictly fantasy nature are and have been available from the beginning (one need look no further than the death/summoning/unsummoning VFX used for demons), the Anomaly will be the first completely overt demonstration of it. The Anomaly, damaged in some way, is occupied largely by 'incomplete' demons... raw elemental forces (the building blocks other demons are made from, perhaps?), various demons without shape or form, etc. It will be encountered relatively early in the Tower, around Tower:5 or so, and is currently planned to have 3 floors, taking the game's total length in floors from 19 to 22. It's only a nudge, but it's a beginning, and I hope to be in full or mostly full content mode for quite awhile. :D

Next time, I should have some sprites of the Anomaly demons themselves to show. :) Until then, good luck in the Tower. :D

30
Early Dev / Re: Demon: A monster collection roguelike
« on: November 26, 2015, 04:40:53 AM »
Just in time for the Thanksgiving holiday here in the states, the 11/24 build is out: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B-sx_4eW-B5hWnhNZlRPclZLeUU&usp=drive_web

This build completes the review of capture mechanics and makes the following changes, some of which I discussed in my last update:
* The "Kill X in Y turns" capture mechanic now allows the demon to follow you to another level in many cases.
* The "Kill X in Y turns" capture mechanic also shows you the location of the nearest enemy on your mini map and full map.
* The "Protect for X turns" capture mechanic now supports spawning waves of enemies specifically to attack the protect target. Beware, as these are much more challenging capture attempts than they used to be.
* Capture mechanics that require you to have unsummoned your party now give you 2 bonus turns when they end to give you a head start on re-summoning your allies, since being alone in the tower for even a single turn is very dangerous. That said, this effect does NOT override Stun, Sleep, etc. so you will still need to be careful in the presence of these effects.
* Added 4 new unique demons to the tower: Two appear on Tower:3, two appear on Tower:13
* Support for a new, smaller resolution setting: 980x720. As before, Demon will continue to automatically run at the biggest resolution that can fit your desktop "comfortably", so you will only see this new resolution if you are playing on 1024x768 or similar/smaller resolutions.

With the release of this build, it is my intent to finally switch to significant content development for awhile. There are players with 4-5 consecutive clears of the Tower recorded, so it's pretty clear I need to get to work on adding more to do. :) I recognize there is still plenty of system and polish style work to do, but I feel it is necessary to try and balance these needs, and I've been on the system/polish side for a fair bit now. :D I'll be taking a short break for Thanksgiving, but I'll be back to full time development early next week. :D

Good luck in the tower, and as always, I'd love to hear feedback from anyone who's playing. :)

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