These thieves must have been dragons...
...because they dropped scale armor.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: Playing the Scales
These thieves must have been dragons...
...because they dropped scale armor.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: Spell Level Two
From Elena's Journal:
The Review Board has granted us all another level of experience. Sai and I have advanced to the point where they will teach us a new spell level's worth of conjuration and magic. However, as we learned a bit too late, they charge for this service.
I don't know how exactly, but the sages knew instantaneously we didn't have enough gold. They didn't ask or check us or anything. They just... knew. I think that's a little strange, and honestly, I'm a trifle offended. Do I just look like someone who wouldn't have a thousand gold?
Regardless, we pooled our gold once again and had enough to pay for both our lessons.
One interesting thing I noticed during the lesson was the Word of Healing spell. "With the utterance of a single word, heal a party member's minor wounds."
This is a major boon to our quest, as now we won't have to constantly pay temples for healing our scrapes and scars. Bluey and Darkmoon have been sharing jokes about what the eponymous word of healing is. Hmph, as if I could heal wounds by saying the names of female body parts...
The Review Board has granted us all another level of experience. Sai and I have advanced to the point where they will teach us a new spell level's worth of conjuration and magic. However, as we learned a bit too late, they charge for this service.
Regardless, we pooled our gold once again and had enough to pay for both our lessons.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: The Samurai Statue
From Elena's Journal:
There is a statue of a samurai on Rakhir Street, between us and the Scarlet Bard. Has this always been here?
It blocks the street completely. Darkmoon kicked it out of frustration, and as we turned to leave...
It came to life and attacked!
Its first move was to knock Bluey aside.
But Darkmoon and Bluey were able to fell the enchanted statue.
I must admit, the statue coming to life gave me quite a scare! Will this become a regular obstacle, these statues? Once again, I curse Mangar's dark sorcery as we head back to the Thief Temple to heal.
There is a statue of a samurai on Rakhir Street, between us and the Scarlet Bard. Has this always been here?
It blocks the street completely. Darkmoon kicked it out of frustration, and as we turned to leave...
It came to life and attacked!
Its first move was to knock Bluey aside.
But Darkmoon and Bluey were able to fell the enchanted statue.
I must admit, the statue coming to life gave me quite a scare! Will this become a regular obstacle, these statues? Once again, I curse Mangar's dark sorcery as we head back to the Thief Temple to heal.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: Skara Brae at Night
"The Review Board is closed for the evening. The guild leaders will meet with you in the morning."
"But you haven't reviewed me yet!" Bluey sputtered.
"Reviewing takes time," one of the sages said. "You should've spoken up. Come back tomorrow."
The party stepped outside as the review board locked its doors. Bluey growled at the doors until Elena stepped up and pulled him away.
"It's not fair," Bluey said, staring at the ground. "I feel so weak compared to you guys."
"It's because you are," Darkmoon replied. Bluey shot him a glare that could've melted castle walls.
"I don't like being out at night," Sai said, staying close to Elena. "C-Can we please go home?"
"That's where I was heading," Darkmoon said. "No use staying out when I can't see-" He grunted as he ran into something.
Darkmoon's eyes widened as he looked up at the zombie, who was moaning and staring at him with dark eyes. The zombie had three fellow zombies shuffling along behind.
"And this is why I don't like being out at night!" Sai whimpered, hiding behind the conjurer.
The two parties stood in front of each other for a moment. Bluey's party was in stunned, scared paralysis; the zombie party was trying to decide who to bite first. Finally, Elena broke the silence.
"RUN!"
Bluey's party turned tail and ran as fast as their legs could carry them. They didn't stop until they were safely back at the Adventurer's Guild.
The next day...
"The guild leaders deem that the warrior Bluey hath earned a level of advancement..."
"But you haven't reviewed me yet!" Bluey sputtered.
"Reviewing takes time," one of the sages said. "You should've spoken up. Come back tomorrow."
The party stepped outside as the review board locked its doors. Bluey growled at the doors until Elena stepped up and pulled him away.
"It's not fair," Bluey said, staring at the ground. "I feel so weak compared to you guys."
"It's because you are," Darkmoon replied. Bluey shot him a glare that could've melted castle walls.
"I don't like being out at night," Sai said, staying close to Elena. "C-Can we please go home?"
"That's where I was heading," Darkmoon said. "No use staying out when I can't see-" He grunted as he ran into something.
Darkmoon's eyes widened as he looked up at the zombie, who was moaning and staring at him with dark eyes. The zombie had three fellow zombies shuffling along behind.
"And this is why I don't like being out at night!" Sai whimpered, hiding behind the conjurer.
The two parties stood in front of each other for a moment. Bluey's party was in stunned, scared paralysis; the zombie party was trying to decide who to bite first. Finally, Elena broke the silence.
"RUN!"
Bluey's party turned tail and ran as fast as their legs could carry them. They didn't stop until they were safely back at the Adventurer's Guild.
The next day...
"The guild leaders deem that the warrior Bluey hath earned a level of advancement..."
Let's Play Bard's Tale: Our First Level-Up
From Elena's Journal:
The guild leaders peer at us down from their pedestals. They impose a strange measure of valor and battle skill called "experience points" that I've never heard of. Then they pick arbitrary numbers of these points for us to gain before they give us advancements, measured in "levels". Strange, but I suppose whatever it takes to streamline something so subjective as adventurer worthiness.
Despite this, we seem to have met their requirements this time.
Darkmoon was first to step forth. They gave him more dexterity.
Selendro requested a review after the monk. He got more dexterity.
I stepped forth next. They awarded me with more dexterity.
I pushed Sai up after me. They gave him, surprise, more dexterity. We must have caught the board in a "faster adventurers" mood.
And finally, our paladin. He received more intelligence. A bit random, I must say, considering the four advancements before him.
Then I noticed the light of the moon wafting in through a window...
The guild leaders peer at us down from their pedestals. They impose a strange measure of valor and battle skill called "experience points" that I've never heard of. Then they pick arbitrary numbers of these points for us to gain before they give us advancements, measured in "levels". Strange, but I suppose whatever it takes to streamline something so subjective as adventurer worthiness.
Despite this, we seem to have met their requirements this time.
Then I noticed the light of the moon wafting in through a window...
Let's Play Bard's Tale: Talk Ain't Cheap
From Elena's Journal:
The Scarlet Bard has become our unofficial base of operations. It's where we go to rest, share stories with other tavern-goers, and revitalize Selendro's voice. The other five were off doing assorted things in the tavern while I sat at the bar, pondering what to do next.
"You look like something's bothering ya," the barkeep said, washing out a used flagon with a rag. He was a tall red canine who looked vaguely familiar.
"You could say that," I replied. "We've been fighting monsters all week, but we don't seem to be any stronger. I thought practice made perfect, but..."
The barkeep chuckled. "Have you been to the Review Board?"
"The what?"
"I would've figured a conjurer like you would know this! The Review Board is a council of guild leaders who look over prospective adventurers and decide if they're worthy of advancement. If they think you are, you're instantly much better at what you do."
"Interesting!" I smiled. "Where do these leaders join?"
"Now that is something you're supposed to find out on your own," the barkeep smirked, leaning in. "But maybe I could let you in on the secret, for... maybe ten gold pieces?"
I have always been against the prospect of paying for information, much like I have been against the prospect of paying for air to breathe, but this sounded quite important so, reluctantly, I handed over ten gold pieces that we had liberated from a pair of unruly kobolds just an hour earlier.
"Trumpet Street's your answer," the barkeep said, a smile on his face from being ten gold richer. "Look for the first building with white columns."
I thanked the barkeep kindly and gathered up the party to head to the Review Board first thing. It was at that point Darkmoon let me know that the barkeep was his father, and he had known where the Review Board was all along. Precisely why I do not like paying for information...
The Scarlet Bard has become our unofficial base of operations. It's where we go to rest, share stories with other tavern-goers, and revitalize Selendro's voice. The other five were off doing assorted things in the tavern while I sat at the bar, pondering what to do next.
"You look like something's bothering ya," the barkeep said, washing out a used flagon with a rag. He was a tall red canine who looked vaguely familiar.
"You could say that," I replied. "We've been fighting monsters all week, but we don't seem to be any stronger. I thought practice made perfect, but..."
The barkeep chuckled. "Have you been to the Review Board?"
"The what?"
"I would've figured a conjurer like you would know this! The Review Board is a council of guild leaders who look over prospective adventurers and decide if they're worthy of advancement. If they think you are, you're instantly much better at what you do."
"Interesting!" I smiled. "Where do these leaders join?"
"Now that is something you're supposed to find out on your own," the barkeep smirked, leaning in. "But maybe I could let you in on the secret, for... maybe ten gold pieces?"
I have always been against the prospect of paying for information, much like I have been against the prospect of paying for air to breathe, but this sounded quite important so, reluctantly, I handed over ten gold pieces that we had liberated from a pair of unruly kobolds just an hour earlier.
I thanked the barkeep kindly and gathered up the party to head to the Review Board first thing. It was at that point Darkmoon let me know that the barkeep was his father, and he had known where the Review Board was all along. Precisely why I do not like paying for information...
Monday, October 12, 2009
Transparency of Writing in Video Games
Let me tell you about something that is important to me: writing in video games.
Early arcade games were light on writing. There was some text on the intro screen, maybe listing out the enemy names and telling how many points for an extra life, but besides that the game was self-contained and there was no more writing. That was fine back then, because video games were new and strange and cool.
But nowadays there is no excuse for having no or bad writing in games.
Bard's Tale was cool because it told a story. It was simple and unobtrusive, but there was a story. And even when you weren't following the story and just messing around the town, there was writing. There was descriptive text every time you fought monsters. Each tavern had a different name and each tavernkeeper had different things to say. You'd find inscriptions and messages strewn about the dungeon walls. When you fought King Aildrek, the game would explicitly break the fourth wall and say "I think you're in trouble."
I like it when games have things for me to read. Resident Evil's long tradition of plot-related files. Oblivion's many books and scrolls. Paper Mario and Mario and Luigi's comedic dialogue. Bionic Commando Rearmed's comm center hacking. Castlevania and Dark Spire's flavor text for each and every monster and item.
One of my biggest goals in game design is to make writing oblique. Put it at the forefront, right there on the main screen's UI for the player to see. Most of my game ideas employ a "narrator" that details actions in descriptive format for almost everything: healing, attacking, investigating items, et cetera.
It's not realistic, I will admit. Some games seem to be obsessed with being 'realistic' and giving the player no information on the main UI. That's fine, if it's done right. But Forcastia isn't supposed to be super-realistic. I don't think you can make a game where you play a giant cartoon dragon super-realistic. Forcastia's a fantasy story, and I want players to feel like they're writing a fantasy story just by playing, by seeing the text scroll up on the little status bar. Not realistic, but fun.
Early arcade games were light on writing. There was some text on the intro screen, maybe listing out the enemy names and telling how many points for an extra life, but besides that the game was self-contained and there was no more writing. That was fine back then, because video games were new and strange and cool.
But nowadays there is no excuse for having no or bad writing in games.
Bard's Tale was cool because it told a story. It was simple and unobtrusive, but there was a story. And even when you weren't following the story and just messing around the town, there was writing. There was descriptive text every time you fought monsters. Each tavern had a different name and each tavernkeeper had different things to say. You'd find inscriptions and messages strewn about the dungeon walls. When you fought King Aildrek, the game would explicitly break the fourth wall and say "I think you're in trouble."
I like it when games have things for me to read. Resident Evil's long tradition of plot-related files. Oblivion's many books and scrolls. Paper Mario and Mario and Luigi's comedic dialogue. Bionic Commando Rearmed's comm center hacking. Castlevania and Dark Spire's flavor text for each and every monster and item.
One of my biggest goals in game design is to make writing oblique. Put it at the forefront, right there on the main screen's UI for the player to see. Most of my game ideas employ a "narrator" that details actions in descriptive format for almost everything: healing, attacking, investigating items, et cetera.
It's not realistic, I will admit. Some games seem to be obsessed with being 'realistic' and giving the player no information on the main UI. That's fine, if it's done right. But Forcastia isn't supposed to be super-realistic. I don't think you can make a game where you play a giant cartoon dragon super-realistic. Forcastia's a fantasy story, and I want players to feel like they're writing a fantasy story just by playing, by seeing the text scroll up on the little status bar. Not realistic, but fun.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: Dissention in the Ranks
From Darkmoon's Journal:
So Bluey died again.
Bluey almost got his head caved in by this barbarian and was basically real close to dying. Like 1 HP close to dying. We don't have any money since we spent it all resurrecting Camis for the second time in two days, so we do Elena's 'pretend-fighting' plan all morning to heal Bluey up. We point our swords at each other and shout battle-cries while Selendro sings some folk tune that I don't think comes from this plane of existence.
Trouble is, the wacko can't hold a tune to save his life and loses his voice after like five seconds. Then we have to go to a tavern and get him a drink, and I'm like "Maybe you can just have some water" and he shakes his head and points at the strongest ale they've got. And I'm like dude there's no reason to get drunk off your ass, you just lost your voice you don't have some crazy memory you're trying to forget, but no, it's gotta be ale and it's gotta be strong.
I guess that's where bardic magic comes from after all, being drunk all the time.
Anyway we do this for a couple hours and then we realize this is stupid and we just count all our money. We've got just enough to heal Bluey and Camis both up, but it'll leave us totally broke. But whatever, if we're fighting fit we can just take the lunch money off some stupid kobold right?
So we do that and they're both at full health and looking fine. And as soon as we step out of the friggin' temple, eight dwarves march up. I guess 'dwarves' is kind of a mean term since they were more like mountain charrs with fake beards, but they march up and encircle us and don't let us get away. They start poking at us with their pointy-stick things and demanding gold. Well too late you bunch of midgets, we don't have any. So they want blood instead. Then we fight and Camis gets really hurt and Bluey - Bluey friggin' dies.
We finally manage to worm our way out of there and sneak back to the Adventurer's Guild. So we've been sitting here trying to think of something to do. I'm just pissed because we spent all that money healing Bluey and he dies anyway. That's just inconsiderate.
The weird thing is... I've been getting these weird shivers as I write this. They get really bad when I try to write Bluey's name. It's like he's... y'know, haunting me.
But that's silly. Ghosts aren't real.
...Right?
So Bluey died again.
Bluey almost got his head caved in by this barbarian and was basically real close to dying. Like 1 HP close to dying. We don't have any money since we spent it all resurrecting Camis for the second time in two days, so we do Elena's 'pretend-fighting' plan all morning to heal Bluey up. We point our swords at each other and shout battle-cries while Selendro sings some folk tune that I don't think comes from this plane of existence.
Trouble is, the wacko can't hold a tune to save his life and loses his voice after like five seconds. Then we have to go to a tavern and get him a drink, and I'm like "Maybe you can just have some water" and he shakes his head and points at the strongest ale they've got. And I'm like dude there's no reason to get drunk off your ass, you just lost your voice you don't have some crazy memory you're trying to forget, but no, it's gotta be ale and it's gotta be strong.
I guess that's where bardic magic comes from after all, being drunk all the time.
Anyway we do this for a couple hours and then we realize this is stupid and we just count all our money. We've got just enough to heal Bluey and Camis both up, but it'll leave us totally broke. But whatever, if we're fighting fit we can just take the lunch money off some stupid kobold right?
So we do that and they're both at full health and looking fine. And as soon as we step out of the friggin' temple, eight dwarves march up. I guess 'dwarves' is kind of a mean term since they were more like mountain charrs with fake beards, but they march up and encircle us and don't let us get away. They start poking at us with their pointy-stick things and demanding gold. Well too late you bunch of midgets, we don't have any. So they want blood instead. Then we fight and Camis gets really hurt and Bluey - Bluey friggin' dies.We finally manage to worm our way out of there and sneak back to the Adventurer's Guild. So we've been sitting here trying to think of something to do. I'm just pissed because we spent all that money healing Bluey and he dies anyway. That's just inconsiderate.
The weird thing is... I've been getting these weird shivers as I write this. They get really bad when I try to write Bluey's name. It's like he's... y'know, haunting me.
But that's silly. Ghosts aren't real.
...Right?
Today's Spell: Arc's Frost
Arc's Frost
Aura Cost: 3
Spell Code: ARFI
Class: Layman Conjurer (Level 1)
Scope: One Foe / Instant
"Hit a single enemy with a burst of pure cold, dealing two to six points of ice damage, times the caster's courage level."
Forcastia Tales draws heavily from The Bard's Tale, and some parallels can be drawn between their item and spell lists. Arc's Frost is a spell designed specifically to seem familiar to Bard's Tale veterans. Conjurers fresh from the character creation process can cast Arc Fire, with the spell code ARFI. In Forcastia Tales, novice conjurers can cast Arc's Frost instead, with the same spell code and point cost. Arc's spells also become a prominent force in the conjurer's arsenal, as they get upgraded into group attack and multi-group attack versions as the conjurer progresses.
Aura Cost: 3
Spell Code: ARFI
Class: Layman Conjurer (Level 1)
Scope: One Foe / Instant
"Hit a single enemy with a burst of pure cold, dealing two to six points of ice damage, times the caster's courage level."
Forcastia Tales draws heavily from The Bard's Tale, and some parallels can be drawn between their item and spell lists. Arc's Frost is a spell designed specifically to seem familiar to Bard's Tale veterans. Conjurers fresh from the character creation process can cast Arc Fire, with the spell code ARFI. In Forcastia Tales, novice conjurers can cast Arc's Frost instead, with the same spell code and point cost. Arc's spells also become a prominent force in the conjurer's arsenal, as they get upgraded into group attack and multi-group attack versions as the conjurer progresses.
Let's Play Bard's Tale: Party Attack
Bluey whimpered as he trudged along, clutching his stomach with his left paw. "This is all your fault, Darkmoon."
"My fault?" Darkmoon growled, having to hold up his robe's left sleeve because of a gash on the shoulder. "And why's that?"
"Because you thought we could take on those mad dogs."
"We did! They were no problem."
"And then that mercenary."
"He was holding his sword backwards. He was obviously an idiot."
"That's because it was a dirk! That's how you hold daggers!"
Camis stepped up and stood between the warrior and monk. "Please, stop fighting!"
Darkmoon looked away and made a dismissive snort. "I dunno if I can trust blue dragons anymore."
Before Bluey could respond, Selendro piped up, "Hey, what'd I do?"
Darkmoon rolled his eyes. "Not you. Bluey! He calls himself a warrior and then can't kill a kobold."
Bluey snarled. "You're the one who never manages to kill anything on the first blow!"
Elena and Sai exchanged worried glances.
Darkmoon stopped, and turned to face Bluey. "Okay. That's it! We'll settle this here with a duel."
Bluey just gave Darkmoon a wary look. "We don't have time for this, Dark. We need to get to a temple before the sun goes down."
"No! I'm not moving until one of us has fallen in single combat!"
Bluey sighed and unsheathed his sword. "Okay, Darkmoon. If you want to be insane, be insane." He clumsily raised his sword in an attacking stance, his left paw still over a wound on his stomach.
Darkmoon raised his paws, letting his torn sleeve fall to the ground. He crouched down, picked the sleeve back up, and held it in place with his right paw, not taking his eyes off Bluey.
Selendro watched with a slight smirk on his lips. He sat down and got out his mandolin.
"How are you going to fight me like that, Darkmoon?" Bluey asked.
"I can still kick, can't I?" Darkmoon spat.
Selendro began to strum the mandolin. "One is red, the other blue, which one could have knew? That as they stand, I have a plan, to forge flesh anew!"
Bluey and Darkmoon slowly turned to stare at the bard. "What in the Twelve's name are you singing?" Darkmoon asked.
"The Badh'r Kilnfest," Selendro replied. "Ancient fairy melody. It'll heal the singer as he travels. But when the singer's allies are in battle, it'll heal them too. Of course, it doesn't say anything about the allies not fighting each other."
Bluey looked down at his stomach, where his wound was slowly closing up and healing. He felt a faint warmth all over. Darkmoon was feeling the same, and his robe was even knitting its sleeve back together.
"Just don't actually hit each other, 'cause you'll undo the healing," Selendro said between verses of his song.
"Great idea, Selendro!" Elena smiled. "We could try faking a battle between ourselves when we need healing. It'll be slow, but every piece of gold we save is a piece of gold we could use for equipment and resurrect -"
Selendro interrupted Elena with a loud squeaking noise and coughing. "Lost... voice..." he wheezed.
Elena covered her face in her paws and the party detoured for the closest tavern.
"My fault?" Darkmoon growled, having to hold up his robe's left sleeve because of a gash on the shoulder. "And why's that?"
"Because you thought we could take on those mad dogs."
"We did! They were no problem."
"And then that mercenary."
"He was holding his sword backwards. He was obviously an idiot."
"That's because it was a dirk! That's how you hold daggers!"
Camis stepped up and stood between the warrior and monk. "Please, stop fighting!"
Darkmoon looked away and made a dismissive snort. "I dunno if I can trust blue dragons anymore."
Before Bluey could respond, Selendro piped up, "Hey, what'd I do?"
Darkmoon rolled his eyes. "Not you. Bluey! He calls himself a warrior and then can't kill a kobold."
Bluey snarled. "You're the one who never manages to kill anything on the first blow!"
Elena and Sai exchanged worried glances.
Darkmoon stopped, and turned to face Bluey. "Okay. That's it! We'll settle this here with a duel."
Bluey just gave Darkmoon a wary look. "We don't have time for this, Dark. We need to get to a temple before the sun goes down."
"No! I'm not moving until one of us has fallen in single combat!"
Darkmoon raised his paws, letting his torn sleeve fall to the ground. He crouched down, picked the sleeve back up, and held it in place with his right paw, not taking his eyes off Bluey.
Selendro watched with a slight smirk on his lips. He sat down and got out his mandolin.
"How are you going to fight me like that, Darkmoon?" Bluey asked.
"I can still kick, can't I?" Darkmoon spat.
Selendro began to strum the mandolin. "One is red, the other blue, which one could have knew? That as they stand, I have a plan, to forge flesh anew!"
Bluey and Darkmoon slowly turned to stare at the bard. "What in the Twelve's name are you singing?" Darkmoon asked.
"The Badh'r Kilnfest," Selendro replied. "Ancient fairy melody. It'll heal the singer as he travels. But when the singer's allies are in battle, it'll heal them too. Of course, it doesn't say anything about the allies not fighting each other."
Bluey looked down at his stomach, where his wound was slowly closing up and healing. He felt a faint warmth all over. Darkmoon was feeling the same, and his robe was even knitting its sleeve back together.
"Just don't actually hit each other, 'cause you'll undo the healing," Selendro said between verses of his song.
"Great idea, Selendro!" Elena smiled. "We could try faking a battle between ourselves when we need healing. It'll be slow, but every piece of gold we save is a piece of gold we could use for equipment and resurrect -"
Selendro interrupted Elena with a loud squeaking noise and coughing. "Lost... voice..." he wheezed.
Elena covered her face in her paws and the party detoured for the closest tavern.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: A Taste of Blood
From Elena's Journal:
We have dirtied our paws and gotten a taste of blood. Bluey and Darkmoon seem eager to fight everything they see, but I force them to stay their blades. As long as I am in the party, we fight cautiously and intelligently.
We only fight groups of one or two enemies at once, and run from battles that aren't in our favor. Selendro, Sai, and myself support the fighters as much as we can. Selendro takes out his mandolin and plays rousing ballads; I use Arc Fire to bathe troublesome enemies in blue flame. Sai seems to be content to chase butterflies and make his dagger glow with magelight - I usually have to rein him in and make him cast Vorpal Plating to strengthen our fighters.
Unfortunately, even with my shining example leading the party, Sir Camis was cut down by four nomadic warriors we could not escape from. We took refuge in the Adventurer's Guild for a while, where Sai cried on my shoulder. Finally, I stood up and told everyone to follow me.
I remembered seeing a temple south of the Adventurer's Guild, on Rahkir Street, near a statue of a samurai. The Twelve Crosses over the door eased my nerves. The banner reading 'Thief Temple', however, did not.
Hurriedly, I showed the priests Camis's lifeless body.
Nine hundred gold was steep, but most adventurers would pay anything to beat the cold embrace of death. The only question was: did we have nine hundred gold?
Bluey had everyone empty their purses and pooled our gold. We were surprised to find that between all of us, we had over two thousand gold! I noticed Darkmoon smiling sheepishly and looking away. I hesitate to think of where he's getting his extra funds.
We handed the nine hundred gold to the priests and they laid hands on Sir Camis. His body glowed, and then he opened his eyes once again.
"Where am I?" was the first question out of his mouth.
A small caveat that the priests didn't mention was that the nine hundred gold cost covered only the resurrection. He was alive again, but he was in critical condition and still in pain. To restore him to full health would cost an additional hundred and eighty gold. No wonder this place was called the Thief Temple.
Sai is especially ecstatic to have Camis alive again. He won't stop hugging the poor paladin. With everyone healed and in high spirits, we step back onto the cursed streets of Skara Brae.
We have dirtied our paws and gotten a taste of blood. Bluey and Darkmoon seem eager to fight everything they see, but I force them to stay their blades. As long as I am in the party, we fight cautiously and intelligently.
We only fight groups of one or two enemies at once, and run from battles that aren't in our favor. Selendro, Sai, and myself support the fighters as much as we can. Selendro takes out his mandolin and plays rousing ballads; I use Arc Fire to bathe troublesome enemies in blue flame. Sai seems to be content to chase butterflies and make his dagger glow with magelight - I usually have to rein him in and make him cast Vorpal Plating to strengthen our fighters.
Unfortunately, even with my shining example leading the party, Sir Camis was cut down by four nomadic warriors we could not escape from. We took refuge in the Adventurer's Guild for a while, where Sai cried on my shoulder. Finally, I stood up and told everyone to follow me.
I remembered seeing a temple south of the Adventurer's Guild, on Rahkir Street, near a statue of a samurai. The Twelve Crosses over the door eased my nerves. The banner reading 'Thief Temple', however, did not.
Hurriedly, I showed the priests Camis's lifeless body.
Nine hundred gold was steep, but most adventurers would pay anything to beat the cold embrace of death. The only question was: did we have nine hundred gold?
Bluey had everyone empty their purses and pooled our gold. We were surprised to find that between all of us, we had over two thousand gold! I noticed Darkmoon smiling sheepishly and looking away. I hesitate to think of where he's getting his extra funds.
We handed the nine hundred gold to the priests and they laid hands on Sir Camis. His body glowed, and then he opened his eyes once again.
"Where am I?" was the first question out of his mouth.
A small caveat that the priests didn't mention was that the nine hundred gold cost covered only the resurrection. He was alive again, but he was in critical condition and still in pain. To restore him to full health would cost an additional hundred and eighty gold. No wonder this place was called the Thief Temple.
Sai is especially ecstatic to have Camis alive again. He won't stop hugging the poor paladin. With everyone healed and in high spirits, we step back onto the cursed streets of Skara Brae.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: The Gathering, Part 4
From Elena's Journal:
Our party is coming together nicely. I must admit, I'm feeling more excited about this quest.
I was standing outside the Scarlet Bard when I heard someone screaming. It was faint, but distinct. It wasn't uncommon to hear adventurers crying out once they are ambushed by a pack of mad dogs, or a group of mercenaries or barbarians. But something about this scream send a shiver down my spine.
I hurried down an alley toward where the scream came from, and began to hear voices.
"Leave me alone! I don't have anything of value!"
"You got blood. That's good enough for me."
I turned a corner and saw a charr dressed in robes, cowering against a tall iron gate. A thief was advancing on him, a dagger raised high for a strike. The charr was much taller than the thief, towering at least a head over him, but the thief still advanced.
"You're a tall one! More for me to cut."
I called out and ran at the thief, tossing a barrage of Arc Fire immediately. "Pick on someone your own size!" I admit it may have sounded silly at the time, but it was something I had always wanted to say.
The blue flames singed the thief and made him shift his focus to me. He swung wildly, but I was able to dodge. I smashed the end of my staff against his knee, making him topple and drop his dagger. The thief scrambled up to his feet and tried to limp away. I picked up his dagger and threw it. The blade sank into his back and he fell to the ground, dead.
The charr had meanwhile curled up and was shivering with his paws over his head. I crouched down and patted his head. "Don't worry. You're safe now."
He slowly stopped shivering and uncovered his eyes. They were big and bright green. "I... I am?"
I smiled. "As long as I'm here, you're safe." I helped him up to his feet. "What's your name?"
"I'm Sai," the charr said.
"What were you doing in this alley?"
"I wanted to see what this big tower was... but I wasn't expecting a gate." He sniffled and leaned against me. "I just want to go back to the guild. I'm no fighter..."
I looked up over the gate and saw a tall amber tower. It's been in Skara Brae for longer than I can remember, and not once have I seen those gates open. "I'll take you back to the guild," I said. "By the way, my name's Elena." I smiled, putting an arm around the charr's shoulder.
"T-Thank you," Sai replied, smiling a little himself. "Are you an adventurer?"
"You could say that. I joined a party earlier today."
"You're in an adventuring party?" Sai's smile widened. "Would that party, by any chance, need a magician...?"
Our party is coming together nicely. I must admit, I'm feeling more excited about this quest.
I was standing outside the Scarlet Bard when I heard someone screaming. It was faint, but distinct. It wasn't uncommon to hear adventurers crying out once they are ambushed by a pack of mad dogs, or a group of mercenaries or barbarians. But something about this scream send a shiver down my spine.
I hurried down an alley toward where the scream came from, and began to hear voices.
"Leave me alone! I don't have anything of value!"
"You got blood. That's good enough for me."
I turned a corner and saw a charr dressed in robes, cowering against a tall iron gate. A thief was advancing on him, a dagger raised high for a strike. The charr was much taller than the thief, towering at least a head over him, but the thief still advanced.
"You're a tall one! More for me to cut."
I called out and ran at the thief, tossing a barrage of Arc Fire immediately. "Pick on someone your own size!" I admit it may have sounded silly at the time, but it was something I had always wanted to say.
The blue flames singed the thief and made him shift his focus to me. He swung wildly, but I was able to dodge. I smashed the end of my staff against his knee, making him topple and drop his dagger. The thief scrambled up to his feet and tried to limp away. I picked up his dagger and threw it. The blade sank into his back and he fell to the ground, dead.
The charr had meanwhile curled up and was shivering with his paws over his head. I crouched down and patted his head. "Don't worry. You're safe now."
He slowly stopped shivering and uncovered his eyes. They were big and bright green. "I... I am?"
I smiled. "As long as I'm here, you're safe." I helped him up to his feet. "What's your name?"
"I'm Sai," the charr said.
"What were you doing in this alley?"
"I wanted to see what this big tower was... but I wasn't expecting a gate." He sniffled and leaned against me. "I just want to go back to the guild. I'm no fighter..."
I looked up over the gate and saw a tall amber tower. It's been in Skara Brae for longer than I can remember, and not once have I seen those gates open. "I'll take you back to the guild," I said. "By the way, my name's Elena." I smiled, putting an arm around the charr's shoulder.
"T-Thank you," Sai replied, smiling a little himself. "Are you an adventurer?"
"You could say that. I joined a party earlier today."
"You're in an adventuring party?" Sai's smile widened. "Would that party, by any chance, need a magician...?"
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: The Gathering, Part 3
From Elena's Journal:
Just as I was wondering where we could find a bard, the Scarlet Bard's door swung open and a tall blue dragon stepped inside. He was wearing a tunic and a hat with a feather in it. He strummed his mandolin idly as he strolled to the bar.
Sir Camis tugged at the sleeve of my robes. "Lady Elena! That dragon over there - the stars led me to him! He will be our bard!"
I gave Camis a sideways look. "The stars led you to him?"
Camis shuffled his footpaws. "The stars told me to take whatever I can get..."
I walked over to the bar and tapped the dragon's shoulder. "Excuse me, are you a bard?"
"What tipped you off, the mandolin or the clothes?" The dragon tipped his feathered hat. "I am Selendro, the bard, at your service, m'lady."
I smiled at him. "Would you by any chance be looking for an adventuring party? The paladin Sir Camis is heading up the latest expedition to Mangar's Tower."
"Mangar's Tower, you say?" Selendro strummed his mandolin and gave me a big smile. "Going to break the curse of eternal semi-winter? An interesting proposition. What's your party like? Got all the basics covered?"
"We... have a warrior and a monk," I said, sheepishly pointing at the table where Bluey and Darkmoon were continuing their drinking contest.
"Spellcasters? You look like a magician."
"Conjurer, actually," I said.
"Ha! They both look the same to me." He worked his mandolin again and sang a short verse. "Use your spell points in a fight, they'll return to you in light."
"Er... well, will you accompany us?"
Selendro nodded. "Why not? I've got nothing else to do. There are plenty of bards in this town to keep every tavern entertained at all hours. And most of 'em aren't tone-deaf like me." He laughed and then stood up to shake my paw and bow. "I'll travel with you and Sir Camis and the two drinking fighters over there. At least, until I get bored and wander off." He winked.
Bards are strange.
Just as I was wondering where we could find a bard, the Scarlet Bard's door swung open and a tall blue dragon stepped inside. He was wearing a tunic and a hat with a feather in it. He strummed his mandolin idly as he strolled to the bar.
Sir Camis tugged at the sleeve of my robes. "Lady Elena! That dragon over there - the stars led me to him! He will be our bard!"
I gave Camis a sideways look. "The stars led you to him?"
Camis shuffled his footpaws. "The stars told me to take whatever I can get..."
I walked over to the bar and tapped the dragon's shoulder. "Excuse me, are you a bard?"
"What tipped you off, the mandolin or the clothes?" The dragon tipped his feathered hat. "I am Selendro, the bard, at your service, m'lady."
I smiled at him. "Would you by any chance be looking for an adventuring party? The paladin Sir Camis is heading up the latest expedition to Mangar's Tower."
"Mangar's Tower, you say?" Selendro strummed his mandolin and gave me a big smile. "Going to break the curse of eternal semi-winter? An interesting proposition. What's your party like? Got all the basics covered?"
"We... have a warrior and a monk," I said, sheepishly pointing at the table where Bluey and Darkmoon were continuing their drinking contest.
"Spellcasters? You look like a magician."
"Conjurer, actually," I said.
"Ha! They both look the same to me." He worked his mandolin again and sang a short verse. "Use your spell points in a fight, they'll return to you in light."
"Er... well, will you accompany us?"
Selendro nodded. "Why not? I've got nothing else to do. There are plenty of bards in this town to keep every tavern entertained at all hours. And most of 'em aren't tone-deaf like me." He laughed and then stood up to shake my paw and bow. "I'll travel with you and Sir Camis and the two drinking fighters over there. At least, until I get bored and wander off." He winked.
Bards are strange.
Today's Spell: Raptor Strike
Raptor Strike
Aura Cost: 4
Spell Code: RAST
Class: Layman Warrior (Level 1)
Scope: One Foe / Instant
"With the ferocity of a raptor, attack an enemy for twenty percent additional damage."
Aura Cost: 4
Spell Code: RAST
Class: Layman Warrior (Level 1)
Scope: One Foe / Instant
"With the ferocity of a raptor, attack an enemy for twenty percent additional damage."
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: Getting This Party Started, Part 2
If I could continue speaking out of character...
I've solved my problem involving disks and hacks and et cetera. I went to Garth's Shop and managed to buy every non-starter item, including those damn Admt. Daggers and Brooms, and tossed 'em out back. So now the shop is reset. Then I sucked it up and re-rolled all the characters. They came out even better than the first time.
No idea why all my back-row characters have higher hitpoints than my front-row, but whatever. At level one you can have nine hitpoints or nineteen - you're going down in one hit either way.
And, thank God, the motherkoboldin' temples work.
I've solved my problem involving disks and hacks and et cetera. I went to Garth's Shop and managed to buy every non-starter item, including those damn Admt. Daggers and Brooms, and tossed 'em out back. So now the shop is reset. Then I sucked it up and re-rolled all the characters. They came out even better than the first time.
And, thank God, the motherkoboldin' temples work.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: Getting This Party Started
Allow me to speak out of character for a moment.
Getting this Let's Play/Let's Chronicle/Let's Whatever off the ground has been a major thorn in my side for the past week. One, it's the absolute only thing I want to do, which is strange, because I never show this amount of conviction over anything. Two, I've gone through about three parties.
If you somehow managed to find this blog and have been reading the adventure since the very beginning, you'd have noticed the starting party picture changed about two days later. There a few simple rules I laid down at the beginning of this adventure:
It wasn't. I discovered that the disk was home to a massive character editor that would have been quite nice if it were not in German and I could understand it. And, of course, if it worked. Normally I'd just ignore it and pretend it wasn't there, but something went wrong deep in the code. When I tried to use a temple for healing (the only way you can heal low-level characters, and the only way ANYONE can heal special status ailments like withering), the game would crash. Actually, that isn't entirely accurate: the Commodore 64's CPU would crash and everything would stop. This disk was unusable. There was no way I was going to just accept 'no temples' as a handicap. Besides, if temples are broken, what else was? Would the dungeons work? Would the Review Board work? What if I went all the way to Mangar only to find out his encounter was bugged?
I can't find any other versions of C64 Bard's Tale anywhere. People are happy to hand me images for the Apple II, or the Amiga, or DOS, but I simply do not want to play those versions. If there's an original disk of Bard's Tale 2 floating around, why not the first one? The first one was more popular! I can't believe there's not an image SOMEWHERE that hasn't been tampered with.
At this point my only course of action is to load up the less hacked of the two and manually reset everything. Use those characters with the two million gold between them and pay Garth a visit. I bought everything he had. Everything. Then I stepped outside and dropped it on the ground. I single-handedly destroyed Skara Brae's economy.
One problem though. Somehow, through either a fluke of the disk or some hacking, the Adamant Dagger and Broom items became flagged as infinite, so I can't manually remove them from Garth's Shop. I won't be buying them, of course (for one, it's against my rule, and two, they're not really particularly useful items), but it still frustrates me that they're there.
I intend on continuing this Let's Play however I can, though. Fifteen years and counting, Bard's Tale. I can wait another few days. I can wait.
Getting this Let's Play/Let's Chronicle/Let's Whatever off the ground has been a major thorn in my side for the past week. One, it's the absolute only thing I want to do, which is strange, because I never show this amount of conviction over anything. Two, I've gone through about three parties.
If you somehow managed to find this blog and have been reading the adventure since the very beginning, you'd have noticed the starting party picture changed about two days later. There a few simple rules I laid down at the beginning of this adventure:
- There needed to be absolutely no characters on the disk other than the six members I used throughout the game.
- Garth's Shop needed to be completely and totally devoid of non-starter items at the outset.
- There were to be no trainers, no cracks, no anything on the disk image that wasn't Bard's Tale.
It wasn't. I discovered that the disk was home to a massive character editor that would have been quite nice if it were not in German and I could understand it. And, of course, if it worked. Normally I'd just ignore it and pretend it wasn't there, but something went wrong deep in the code. When I tried to use a temple for healing (the only way you can heal low-level characters, and the only way ANYONE can heal special status ailments like withering), the game would crash. Actually, that isn't entirely accurate: the Commodore 64's CPU would crash and everything would stop. This disk was unusable. There was no way I was going to just accept 'no temples' as a handicap. Besides, if temples are broken, what else was? Would the dungeons work? Would the Review Board work? What if I went all the way to Mangar only to find out his encounter was bugged?
I can't find any other versions of C64 Bard's Tale anywhere. People are happy to hand me images for the Apple II, or the Amiga, or DOS, but I simply do not want to play those versions. If there's an original disk of Bard's Tale 2 floating around, why not the first one? The first one was more popular! I can't believe there's not an image SOMEWHERE that hasn't been tampered with.
At this point my only course of action is to load up the less hacked of the two and manually reset everything. Use those characters with the two million gold between them and pay Garth a visit. I bought everything he had. Everything. Then I stepped outside and dropped it on the ground. I single-handedly destroyed Skara Brae's economy.
I intend on continuing this Let's Play however I can, though. Fifteen years and counting, Bard's Tale. I can wait another few days. I can wait.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: The Gathering, Part 2
From Elena’s Journal:
“But I want to see the rest of this adventuring party before I decide to go with you.”
Camis nodded. “I have a warrior and a monk waiting to go with me.”
The paladin led me over to where a blue dragon and a red canine were sitting at a table, both chugging from their tankards. There were several empty mugs scattered about the table. I picked one up and sniffed at it.
“Ginger ale?” I asked, incredulously.
The two obviously didn’t hear me, as the canine slammed down his tankard and laughed at the dragon. “I win again, Bluey! That’s four now!”
The dragon made a choking noise, and coughed. “No fair, you must’ve cheated! Yours wasn’t filled to the brim!”
I cleared my throat. “Excuse me?”
The two finally turned and noticed me standing there. The canine, wearing a black robe with silver linings, piped up, “Well, hey cutie. We don’t get many kangaresses around here. Maybe I could show you around?”
Unblinkingly, I enchanted the air around his muzzle to lash out with a slap. “The paladin Sir Camis here said you two were part of his adventuring party?”
The dragon, in a forest green leather tunic, nodded with a smile. “Aye, we’re with Sir Camis. Are you the conjurer he set off to find?”
I bowed. “I am. My name is Elena.”
“She is going to travel with us for a little while,” Camis said, pushing his helmet up. “Lady Elena, this is the warrior Bluey and the monk Darkmoon.”
“You have strange taste in adventurers,” I said, looking the dragon and canine up and down. “But I suppose if they can hold their ale, they must be able to hold their swords.”
Darkmoon answered me by pumping his fist, and Bluey answered me by belching and patting his belly. Chivalry must have been lost on these two.
“But I want to see the rest of this adventuring party before I decide to go with you.”
Camis nodded. “I have a warrior and a monk waiting to go with me.”
The paladin led me over to where a blue dragon and a red canine were sitting at a table, both chugging from their tankards. There were several empty mugs scattered about the table. I picked one up and sniffed at it.
“Ginger ale?” I asked, incredulously.
The dragon made a choking noise, and coughed. “No fair, you must’ve cheated! Yours wasn’t filled to the brim!”
I cleared my throat. “Excuse me?”
The two finally turned and noticed me standing there. The canine, wearing a black robe with silver linings, piped up, “Well, hey cutie. We don’t get many kangaresses around here. Maybe I could show you around?”
Unblinkingly, I enchanted the air around his muzzle to lash out with a slap. “The paladin Sir Camis here said you two were part of his adventuring party?”
The dragon, in a forest green leather tunic, nodded with a smile. “Aye, we’re with Sir Camis. Are you the conjurer he set off to find?”
I bowed. “I am. My name is Elena.”
“She is going to travel with us for a little while,” Camis said, pushing his helmet up. “Lady Elena, this is the warrior Bluey and the monk Darkmoon.”
“You have strange taste in adventurers,” I said, looking the dragon and canine up and down. “But I suppose if they can hold their ale, they must be able to hold their swords.”
Darkmoon answered me by pumping his fist, and Bluey answered me by belching and patting his belly. Chivalry must have been lost on these two.
Let's Play Bard's Tale: The Gathering, Part 1
From Elena's Journal:
Skara Brae is strangely quiet for a town under an archmage's curse. Huge snowdrifts block the city gates, yet the wind is not cold in any other part of the city. The taverns are still full and Garth is still in business. If anything, Mangar has brought this city to life, as now the place is bustling with would-be adventurers seeking to try their sword at ascending the archmage's tower and ending his curse.
No one ever makes it, though. Time and time again I hear stories of foolhardy adventurers falling in battle against monsters they had no hope of defeating. With the streets unsafe to travel, I can do nothing but sit here in the Scarlet Bard, waiting for someone to break the curse.
The barkeep had just lowered his hat in respect for some novice warrior and his hunter friend who had fallen in battle. I was still pondering over how they could have lost to three kobolds when a timid voice reached my ears.
"Hello?"
I turned and saw a wolf. Not your average wolf; this wolf was barely five feet tall, if even that. He was wearing chainmail, white with a red cross, except that it was all too big for him and he had to push his helm up before I could see his eyes. I tilted my head to the side as I looked at him, unsure of what to say.
"You're... a conjurer, right?" he asked.
I didn't know what tipped him off. Perhaps it was my light blue robes. Perhaps it was my old magus staff tilted against my seat. Perhaps it was the fact I was enchanting my pitcher of water into pouring itself by pointing at it.
"Yes, I am," I finally replied with a small nod.
The wolf slipped his helm off and lowered himself onto one knee, bowing his head. "My name is C-Camis. I'm a paladin... I-I would like to humbly request you... j-join my adventuring party," he sputtered.
"Oh, I couldn't do that, Sir Camis," I said, frowning. "I'm not much for adventur-"
"Please, I beseech you, dear conjurer!" The wolf looked up, clasping his paws together. "I n-need someone skilled in the arts of conjuring and healing to a-accompany me on..."
"Your quest to rid the world of the evil Mangar?" I finished for him.
"Yes! So you have heard!" He got back up to his feet, his armor shifting and rattling. "The stars have guided me here to meet you. Please, you must indulge a humble paladin, and join me on my quest..."
I sighed. “I suppose there’s no stopping you, if the stars have led you here. But I want to see the rest of this adventuring party before I decide to go with you.”
Skara Brae is strangely quiet for a town under an archmage's curse. Huge snowdrifts block the city gates, yet the wind is not cold in any other part of the city. The taverns are still full and Garth is still in business. If anything, Mangar has brought this city to life, as now the place is bustling with would-be adventurers seeking to try their sword at ascending the archmage's tower and ending his curse.
No one ever makes it, though. Time and time again I hear stories of foolhardy adventurers falling in battle against monsters they had no hope of defeating. With the streets unsafe to travel, I can do nothing but sit here in the Scarlet Bard, waiting for someone to break the curse.
The barkeep had just lowered his hat in respect for some novice warrior and his hunter friend who had fallen in battle. I was still pondering over how they could have lost to three kobolds when a timid voice reached my ears.
"Hello?"
I turned and saw a wolf. Not your average wolf; this wolf was barely five feet tall, if even that. He was wearing chainmail, white with a red cross, except that it was all too big for him and he had to push his helm up before I could see his eyes. I tilted my head to the side as I looked at him, unsure of what to say.
"You're... a conjurer, right?" he asked.
I didn't know what tipped him off. Perhaps it was my light blue robes. Perhaps it was my old magus staff tilted against my seat. Perhaps it was the fact I was enchanting my pitcher of water into pouring itself by pointing at it.
"Yes, I am," I finally replied with a small nod.
The wolf slipped his helm off and lowered himself onto one knee, bowing his head. "My name is C-Camis. I'm a paladin... I-I would like to humbly request you... j-join my adventuring party," he sputtered.
"Oh, I couldn't do that, Sir Camis," I said, frowning. "I'm not much for adventur-"
"Please, I beseech you, dear conjurer!" The wolf looked up, clasping his paws together. "I n-need someone skilled in the arts of conjuring and healing to a-accompany me on..."
"Your quest to rid the world of the evil Mangar?" I finished for him.
"Yes! So you have heard!" He got back up to his feet, his armor shifting and rattling. "The stars have guided me here to meet you. Please, you must indulge a humble paladin, and join me on my quest..."
I sighed. “I suppose there’s no stopping you, if the stars have led you here. But I want to see the rest of this adventuring party before I decide to go with you.”
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Today's Spell: Mersane's Blinding Star
Mersane's Blinding Star
Aura Cost: 7
Spell Code: BLST
Class: Apprentice Conjuror (Level 3)
Scope: Group / One Round
"This spell conjures a bright, blinding flash that, if successful, will cause an entire group of enemies to miss the next combat round."
Aura Cost: 7
Spell Code: BLST
Class: Apprentice Conjuror (Level 3)
Scope: Group / One Round
"This spell conjures a bright, blinding flash that, if successful, will cause an entire group of enemies to miss the next combat round."
Monday, September 14, 2009
Let's Play Bard's Tale: The Beginning
Tales of the Unknown: the Bard's Tale is a fantasy role-playing game that came out in 1984. It's on a variety of 8- and 16-bit computers, and is one of my favorite games of all time. I've tried many times to play the game on my own, from start to finish, but I've never gotten very far. I was very close to finishing the quest on the Amiga just a few months back, but there was a disk error and I lost a very important character. Since this was the third error of its type (I thought emulators were supposed to fix stupid things like disk-copy errors), I gave up and turned my back on the Amiga, which had a strange version of Bard's Tale anyway - all the dungeons had the same wall design and Warriors didn't get multiple hits in their attacks.
This time, I'm playing the Commodore 64 version of Bard's Tale. It's the version closest to my heart, as it's the one my brothers and I owned back in the day. (We still have it, in fact, and I bet it still works.) This version doesn't punish you for not saving your characters when you turn the game off; the Amiga version would take every non-saved character's gold, and some versions would go so far as to return your characters dead when you loaded them next start-up.
I'll be using every dirty trick I know this time through. I'll be abusing save states and selectively save and load characters in order to get the optimum amount of hitpoints and spellpoints every level-up. I'll create dummy characters and take their gold if I'm ever in need of some quick cash. Bard's Tale doesn't pull any punches at the beginning of the game, when you're weakest, so I'll be more than glad to return the favor.
My party this time consists of Bluey, Darkmoon, and Elena, old standbys that you might recognize from other stories of mine. Joining the party are Camis, Selendro, and Sai, named after some good friends of mine. Warrior, Paladin, Monk, Bard, Conjuror, Magician. It's the party makeup I've used time and time again.
I'll be documenting the party's progress and making periodic updates to Project Empire about their quest to save the cursed city of Skara Brae. Hopefully they will succeed where others have faltered.
This time, I'm playing the Commodore 64 version of Bard's Tale. It's the version closest to my heart, as it's the one my brothers and I owned back in the day. (We still have it, in fact, and I bet it still works.) This version doesn't punish you for not saving your characters when you turn the game off; the Amiga version would take every non-saved character's gold, and some versions would go so far as to return your characters dead when you loaded them next start-up.
I'll be using every dirty trick I know this time through. I'll be abusing save states and selectively save and load characters in order to get the optimum amount of hitpoints and spellpoints every level-up. I'll create dummy characters and take their gold if I'm ever in need of some quick cash. Bard's Tale doesn't pull any punches at the beginning of the game, when you're weakest, so I'll be more than glad to return the favor.
I'll be documenting the party's progress and making periodic updates to Project Empire about their quest to save the cursed city of Skara Brae. Hopefully they will succeed where others have faltered.
Today's Spell: Wind Dragon
Wind Dragon
Aura Cost: 14
Spell Code: WIDR
Class: Expert Sorceror (Level 6)
Scope: Special Slot / Instant
"This spell conjures an illusionary dragon that will travel with the party and fight in its defense."
Aura Cost: 14
Spell Code: WIDR
Class: Expert Sorceror (Level 6)
Scope: Special Slot / Instant
"This spell conjures an illusionary dragon that will travel with the party and fight in its defense."
The Empire as a Whole
This post details every single ambition of Project Empire, and will be updated as the list changes.
-Games-
Secrets of the Sapphire Sword - action adventure, flagship
Legendary Knights - RE4/RE5-esque survival horror
As the Pages Turn - Castlevania-esque platformer
Thirteen Trials - Castlevania/MegaMan conglomerate
Ambidextrious - first-person shooter
Fires of Ambrosia - Duke Nukem 3D-esque first-person shooter
Economy of Scales - sandbox
Adventures: the Reluctant Weredragon
Adventures: the Twelve Crosses
Dungeon Dragon - Game Maker puzzle platformer
The House of Corinth - Game Maker top-down RPG
Tales - Bard's Tale-esque first-person RPG
[Roguelike]
-Interactive-
Self-Narrating Modules
-Books-
Bard of the Mines
[Superhero Story]
-Merchandise-
Risk
Playing Cards
-Games-
Secrets of the Sapphire Sword - action adventure, flagship
Legendary Knights - RE4/RE5-esque survival horror
As the Pages Turn - Castlevania-esque platformer
Thirteen Trials - Castlevania/MegaMan conglomerate
Ambidextrious - first-person shooter
Fires of Ambrosia - Duke Nukem 3D-esque first-person shooter
Economy of Scales - sandbox
Adventures: the Reluctant Weredragon
Adventures: the Twelve Crosses
Dungeon Dragon - Game Maker puzzle platformer
The House of Corinth - Game Maker top-down RPG
Tales - Bard's Tale-esque first-person RPG
[Roguelike]
-Interactive-
Self-Narrating Modules
-Books-
Bard of the Mines
[Superhero Story]
-Merchandise-
Risk
Playing Cards
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