FayAngband 1.1, "Tough but Fairy"

[Mikko Lehtinen]

cave lore (which I've never used)

I'm using Cave Lore mainly because it gives a bonus to your next mapping check. It's subtle but it works.

Perhaps the bonus should apply to all your mapping checks until you finally make your way back to town. That way you could use Cave Lore every dungeon level to secure an eventual escape to town.

I should probably add trap detection to Cave Lore. At the moment only Dungeon Lore has it.

[buzzkill]

I'm using Cave Lore mainly because it gives a bonus to your next mapping check. It's subtle but it works.

It's not that I think it isn't useful. It's just that I always need to ID something.

[Mikko Lehtinen]

Here's another, very simple implementation:

Reading any common spellbook that you cannot cast spells from for the first time lets you use a Lore proficiency for free. You need to already have Lore for this to work.

Reading any rare spellbook that you cannot cast spells from for the first time lets you use a *Lore* proficiency for free. You need to already have *Lore*.

Unread common and rare books are shown in a different colour.

Note that you will often end up reading difficult books in a Circle of Knowledge which gives +7 to Lore table.

buzzkill, what do you think about this?

[Mikko Lehtinen]

I decided to put most of the new ideas under the same roof.

Library doesn't fit in. I'll probably implement the previous idea that reading new books lets you use Lore proficiencies for free.


The Guild House

(r)elax at the bar
(p)ractise weapon tricks
(h)ealer: restore stats and cure disease
(d)onate an instrument or an ego/artifact melee weapon
(f)ire a musician

Bards have an extra option:
(j)am with the band

Relaxing, jamming, practising, and seeing the healer take time. You may only do one of these every time you visit the town.

Donating ego melee weapons adds their weapon tricks to your repertoire, like Slash for swords. Donating artifact melee weapons adds more powerful versions, like *Slash*. The only difference between them is that Slash only works half of the time.

Practising weapon tricks activates all weapon tricks in your repertoire for your next dungeon trip, until you return to the town next time. Relaxing and listening to the music at the bar works the same way except that it (sometimes) gives a morale bonus to one stat, determined randomly among the band's instruments.

[buzzkill]

Here's a big annoyance that needs addressing. When under the influence of protection from trap, please, please, please suppress the "do you really want to step on this trap (y/n)?" prompt.

[Mikko Lehtinen]

The trap warning has added tons of annoyances like that. I'll fix them all.

I think I finally solved the conflict between your flavourful Library idea and Circles of Knowledge that are already implemented in the development version. That's how my game development happens: most ideas go though tens of iterations before they feel "right". It's a bit weird to be doing it in public.

Numbers are still subject to tweaking but the basic mechanic could be this:

For every five new spellbooks you donate to the Library, you get +1 to the Lore table when visiting the Library. Or maybe your original method of counting points is better.

In any case, you get double that bonus when standing in a Circle of Knowledge. "With a terrifying clarity you suddenly remember every book you've ever read, and all the mystical teachings of the sages..."

The Library may end up being the only new building in the town after all. Different kinds of super attacks for melee weapons will be implemented but in a form that doesn't require a new building or using a proficiency.

I realized that giving stat bonuses for donating instruments in the tavern competes with deity bonuses (also already implemented in the development version) in a bad way. I have to kill that darling.

[buzzkill]

I think I finally solved the conflict between your flavorful Library idea and Circles of Knowledge that are already implemented in the development version.

Sounds good.

I realized that giving stat bonuses for donating instruments in the tavern competes with deity bonuses (also already implemented in the development version) in a bad way. I have to kill that darling.

Yeah, I though you went way -----> out on a limb with the 'band manager' minigame. It would be nice if instruments, like spellbooks, could make their way back to town somehow, for something. My weak and only current idea is to make instruments sell-able for all classes (except bards of course).

[Mikko Lehtinen]

Yeah, I though you went way -----> out on a limb with the 'band manager' minigame.

That's what usually happens in the brainstorming phase.

It would be nice if instruments, like spellbooks, could make their way back to town somehow, for something.

I agree. It's bad to have an item class that only matters to one class.

But after Library, I don't really want to add another item that you need to bring back to town.

I've had lots of ideas for instruments, but none seem to actually improve the game.

I've actually considered removing Bards entirely. I mean, Bard is great in EyAngband, but he's been a second class citizen in Fay. When balancing classes, I've never really known what to do with Bard.

[Mikko Lehtinen]

Let's try another round of brainstorming for instruments, though.

One thing that I haven't considered earlier is this: what if you could throw instruments at monsters for a ball of instrument-specific effect? "Cacophony fills the space as the enchanted instrument breaks!"

That could be interesting. Radius of the ball would be the equal to the instrument's bonus.

Throwable instruments would be different enough from powders to be worth implementing:
- they weigh more and you need more strength to throw them far,
- they don't come in piles,
- they always have a radius.

I have no idea what the effects would be, but heavier instruments should probably have better effects:

Flute 1.5 lbs
Horn 3 lbs
Lute 4 lbs
Harp 4 lbs
Lyre 4.5 lbs
Drum 5 lbs

[Mikko Lehtinen]

Perhaps two alternative uses for instruments:

1) Scroll of Music & Staff of Music: choose an instrument in your inventory to cast one spell out of it for free.

2) Instruments may be thrown at enemies for a Ball of Sound. Damage depends on the instruments weight, and radius is equal to the instrument's bonus. (Sound may stun enemies.)

[buzzkill]

Might be best just to shelve the concept until inspiration strikes. It's not like the game is broken as is.

[Mikko Lehtinen]

Might be best just to shelve the concept until inspiration strikes. It's not like the game is broken as is.

I found the simplest solution so far, and one I instantly like. I'm going to let the player sacrifice instruments to deities.

Non-priest characters can normally sacrifice only ego items and artifacts. From now on in the development version +2 and +3 instruments count as ego items, and +4 or better count as artifacts.

Done.

[Mikko Lehtinen]

Those days are over - we're stealing from V/v4 now.

@Mikko - for the monster list, you just need to add a command to run your subwindow monster list routine (display_visible) in the main window. Fay doesn't have an object list subwindow, so you would have to steal that; FA 1.1.6 might be a good place.

I've had too much coffee and can't sleep, so I decided to code the monster list. Ha! That was easy. Thanks Nick!

[Mikko Lehtinen]

I found the simplest solution so far, and one I instantly like. I'm going to let the player sacrifice instruments to deities.

Non-priest characters can normally sacrifice only ego items and artifacts. From now on in the development version +2 and +3 instruments count as ego items, and +4 or better count as artifacts.

Done.

Playtesting proves that this is the perfect solution, making both instruments and altars more interesting.

EDIT: All my deities are goddesses, and they they can be thought of as the "five muses", so this is a good fit thematically, too.

[Artagas]

This variant made me start playing again after years of break from the genre. 2x thumbs up Mikko.