"Realms Beyond: Ashes of the Fallen" Now on Kickstarter

[IndiraLightfoot]

I just got this reply from a Ceres Games dev on exploration and level scaling in their game, and it was a fantastic answer:

"We don't have any level scaling planned, everything is hand-placed in our game. Of course, there will be a natural progression based on region - the quests in Sabag-Hirar will be overall a little more difficult since it's the last region you're likely to visit, compared to the quests in Cormac which is the region you're starting in. But we don't want to have a world where just due to the order in which you visit the regions, the monsters are weaker or stronger: closer to civilization, you will find less dangerous areas, while deep in the wilderness you will find more dangerous areas. There will be high level dungeons in Cormac, too - the kind of dungeon you remember as being too hard to attempt now, and will return to tackle after you've gained a couple of levels elsewhere.

What the freedom of our structure allows for is that the player can tackle a questline that is above his level range if he wants to. It's going to be a lot more challenging, but you can attempt it anyway. The Wildlands is one of the most dangerous areas of the game, for example, and its main questline involves plenty of hard battles. Attempting it at low levels would be suicide, but if you really want to you can travel there right away after starting the game.

It's kinda like in Morrowind and its expansions: the Bloodmoon expansion adds a whole new island filled with high level enemies, but the player can go there at any point of the game, even at level 1. He's unlikely to survive, but the option is there. In Fallout 1, there are only three things a player has to do: get the water chip, destroy the military base, confront the Master. It's almost impossible to do only these main quests without doing any of the sidequests, because that will leave you severely underleveled, but if you want to go for a speedrun you can try it.

This is the kind of structurally open non-linearity we want to go for. Instead of rigidly forcing the player to do things in a certain order, we allow the player to jump around and tackle the major questlines in the order he sees fit.

It will be a lot of work for us to balance it properly, but we won't implement any kind of level scaling. That's completely out of the question since it ruins the integrity of the game world and kills some of the fun of exploring and leveling up."

[IndiraLightfoot]

C'mon folks! Let's get lots of beer mugs! Spread the word!!

 

 

 

Twitter  Facebook - Read more information about the social goals in the related update here

[rjshae]

"Micro" update #3 announced the first stretch goal as a world map by an artist named Francesca Baerald:

 

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ceresgames/realms-beyond-ashes-of-the-fallen/posts/2323380

 

I checked out her web site and she's produced some pretty authentic-looking medieval maps for fantasy settings:

 

http://www.francescabaerald.com/maps/

[Dark_Ansem]

Just backed: it's absolutely brilliant!

[Volourn]

How so? It's just another D&D game. Nothing really special about it. I'll back it but only if they add the things I requested earlier. But, brilliant' is noi fitting.

[Dark_Ansem]

How so? It's just another D&D game. Nothing really special about it. I'll back it but only if they add the things I requested earlier. But, brilliant' is noi fitting.

 

And what is that you requested?

[Volourn]

Teleport. (and spells like it).

 

Subraces.

 

Those are the main ones.

[rjshae]

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ceresgames/realms-beyond-ashes-of-the-fallen/posts/2325048

 

The rendered areas are top notch quality-wise. I wonder where they got all their assets?

[InsaneCommander]

Definitely worth backing imo.

[AwesomeOcelot]

No dongs in the baths, literally unplayable.

[Dark_Ansem]

Teleport. (and spells like it).

 

Subraces.

 

Those are the main ones.

 

Because they just have to be at launch, they can't be added at a later date ofc.

[Dark_Ansem]

Teleport. (and spells like it).

 

Subraces.

 

Those are the main ones.

 

And of course, now they confirmed that they will be either in-game or possibilities for modders. Whoops.

[Fenixp]

possibilities for modders

'Possibility for modders' isn't really saying much. I mean, piloting a flying saucer is a possibility for modders in Skyrim.

[Dark_Ansem]

 

possibilities for modders

'Possibility for modders' isn't really saying much. I mean, piloting a flying saucer is a possibility for modders in Skyrim.

Thing is, in Skyrim it happened. Not a flying saucer, but a Dwemer airship. In Pillars of Eternity, nope.

[Volourn]

"Because they just have to be at launch, they can't be added at a later date ofc."

 

At a later ate doesn't count. Modders don't count. They have to be in the game at start. PERIOD. Have they confirmed them as being in the game at launch? If not, no dice.

 

 

DO. NOT. TELL. ME. HOW. TO. SPEND. MY. MONEY.

 

Shaming or browbeating will not work.

 

EVER.

[Fenixp]

In Pillars of Eternity, nope.

Eh, fair point

 

Have they confirmed them as being in the game at launch? If not, no dice.

FAKE NEWS

Dice exist regardless of teleporting being in game at launch.

Edited October 26, 2018 by Fenixp

[Dark_Ansem]

"Because they just have to be at launch, they can't be added at a later date ofc."

 

At a later ate doesn't count. Modders don't count. They have to be in the game at start. PERIOD. Have they confirmed them as being in the game at launch? If not, no dice.

 

They have been confirmed. So, yeah, plenty of dice.

[IndiraLightfoot]

Another quest related question: can you solve quests/gain xp also without combat eg through social stats? How much percent is each of the three pillars combat, exploration and social interaction/role-play??

 

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  TharagavverugCollaborator:

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  Yes, you can also finish some quests with social skills and will gain experience for such solutions. Many quests will give you the option of different approaches - stealth (we will elaborate on our stealth system in a future update), diplomacy, combat. There will be several non-combat skills in the game and checks on these skills will appear in several dialogue - like in Fallout: New Vegas, for example, where every skill had a use in dialogues sometimes.

  
  

   

  
  

  As for the percentages, I honestly don't know. We don't design our content based on some formula, we design it based on what's fun and what feels consistent with the world and appropriate for the situation. Some sidequests will be pure combat crawls - deal with a bunch of demons rampaging through a village, for example. Other quests may only have non-combat solutions - reconcile an estranged husband and wife, for example. Most non-combat solutions wouldn't make sense in the first quest, and a combat solution wouldn't make sense in the second. But in a quest where different approaches would make sense - for example, deal with a group of bandits who have taken over a nobleman's castle, you can either fight them head-on, sneak inside and poison their supplies, or talk to them and try to negotiate - you will have multiple ways to solve the quest.

  
  

   

  
  

  In our quest design, we try to give the player as many options as we can think of, but we don't force a diplomatic option into a quest if it doesn't fit (or a combat option into a quest if it doesn't fit). We don't design our quests by any kind of formula or trying to aim for a certain percentage.

  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  

[Volourn]

L0L Dark Ansem wants me to back this game. He even asked about Teleport and subraces on my behalf. II noticed as I was checking to see.

 

 

So, yeah, Teleport is in.  Subraces are a little unclear. they say they're in for 'modders'. That is useless. But, they also say  They need tom be part of base game. But, Teleport was the HUGE one since that is a staple D&D spell that most D&D games skip on. That alone could make up for not having subraces. Subraces are cool but Teleport is even cooler espciially sicne dwarves are usually screwe dover subrace wise in CRPGs anyways.

 

However, I also read in their FAQ how they fubared the arcane. They have no wizards. their wizards are basically sorcerers with the wizard name. They doin't have to memorize spells just can cast what they want when they want like a sorcerer. Uber fail there.

 

Still, teleport..  On the edge of backing...

[Dark_Ansem]

L0L Dark Ansem wants me to back this game. He even asked about Teleport and subraces on my behalf. II noticed as I was checking to see.

 

 

So, yeah, Teleport is in.  Subraces are a little unclear. they say they're in for 'modders'. That is useless. But, they also say  They need tom be part of base game. But, Teleport was the HUGE one since that is a staple D&D spell that most D&D games skip on. That alone could make up for not having subraces. Subraces are cool but Teleport is even cooler espciially sicne dwarves are usually screwe dover subrace wise in CRPGs anyways.

 

However, I also read in their FAQ how they fubared the arcane. They have no wizards. their wizards are basically sorcerers with the wizard name. They doin't have to memorize spells just can cast what they want when they want like a sorcerer. Uber fail there.

 

Still, teleport..  On the edge of backing...

 

It's more about being irritated by people who lie deliberately.

[Volourn]

Who lied? Certainly not me. All I stated was if there was no Telport or subaces in the released game I would not back it. That's not a lie. It's their job to sell the game to me. You got them to confirm Teleport is in. That's good.

[Dark_Ansem]

Who lied? Certainly not me. All I stated was if there was no Telport or subaces in the released game I would not back it. That's not a lie. It's their job to sell the game to me. You got them to confirm Teleport is in. That's good.

 

You said "they aren't in the game". They are. Therefore you said something not true. Which is a lie.

[Volourn]

You are full of kaka.  They should be thankful I don't let psycho fanboys like you  determine what games I buy or don't buy.    You certainly can't be on their marketing team because you are horrid at it. L0L

 

But, keep up your delusion.  It is entertaining.

 

 

Nowhere did I claim that theyw ere 100% not in the game. What I said was, I would  likely back it if they were iun the game. But, continue your lies  and spreading FAKE NEWS on what I actually wrote. L0L

Edited October 26, 2018 by Volourn

[Dark_Ansem]

You are full of kaka.  They should be thankful I don't let psycho fanboys like you  determine what games I buy or don't buy.    You certainly can't be on their marketing team because you are horrid at it. L0L

 

But, keep up your delusion.  It is entertaining.

 

 

Nowhere did I claim that theyw ere 100% not in the game. What I said was, I would  likely back it if they were iun the game. But, continue your lies  and spreading FAKE NEWS on what I actually wrote. L0L

 

Yes well, you can use all the bold you want, that doesn't mean you aren't full of bullcrap and well, once you've been outed as a fake news spreader, you can rage all you want, you cretin.

 

Also, big deal "requesting" here - if you had actually moved that lazy fat arse and, you know, asked, you'd have spared yourself being embarassed in public. Your "I didn't say 100% not in game" isn't fooling anyone. You are an idiot who makes assumptions without evidence, and you should have the humility to admit you were wrong.

 

Ah and your embarassing edits only make your hole deeper.

Edited October 26, 2018 by Dark_Ansem

[Volourn]

Are you still crying?