Book III - "Official" comments

[SpottedShroom]

The Reveal Map spell is a real cool way that magic-using characters can get around the need for the Cartography skill (allowing them to spend those precious Skill points elsewhere!) - I would definitely not be in favor of doing away with it. (Which is not to say that I don't want to see it revised! - I personally want to see its duration increased to a flat 100 or 160 turns per casting rather than leaving its duration 'casting-level dependent'...)

Even as a full mage character, I still end up taking Cartography. Re-casting reveal map continuously is way more annoying than spending a few points or buying a few levels from a trainer. What I'd really like to see is cartography removed as a skill, everybody gets automap for free, and the spell just does the enemy detection thing.

[CrazyBernie]

I wouldn't be adverse to providing a basic auto-map, and requiring skill points be put into Cartography to provide more detail. Better yet... have there only be about 5 levels of Cartography, and make it a Trainer-Only Skill... the only way to increase the levels is buy finding/paying/questing for a trainer. However, I definitely would reserve enemy tracking for a spell or enchanted object.

Developing an innate, psychic ability to sense enemies on your map is just too weird for me.

[Kreador Freeaxe]

Developing an innate, psychic ability to sense enemies on your map is just too weird for me.

Maybe it's one of those things you always had, but forgot after drinking that untested memory wiping potion.

[Evnissyen]

Developing an innate, psychic ability to sense enemies on your map is just too weird for me.

Maybe it's one of those things you always had, but forgot after drinking that untested memory wiping potion.

Awesome: note that for the Book3 story!

[AXS]

I agree ,with the idea of working more in the content and doing only a few changes to the engine and game mechanics (rebalancing and correcting skills above all).although it has a more than decent playing time , it just feels too short, and needs more quests and sidequests.

If it could be, and required minor time to do ,i would like to see some more stat illness and effects,to be added (or not) as hard core mode.


I´m reposting an old post ,with a pair of ideas:

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Expanding the hardcore mode would expand replayabilty to the game, a newbie, would start with one or none rule, and once mastered could add more and more ,until a master would take all of ´em.

How about a:

-Bleeding mode: A kind of damage equal or a little higher as poison , that works like it, damage every turn .

How to cure:can be cured with:

·high medecine skill(when resting every 20 turns you have a % of cure yourself equal as twice your medecine skill plus 10,but is very risky ,you can bleed to death easily).

·clerics.(cheap)

·specific spell (heal wounds,wouldn´t give HP,only cuts the bleeding)

·specific item such as needle and thread (expensive)

· powder and fire (easy to find an cheaper) , but would inflict damage to heal it!.

Calculating bleeding wounds, you recieve a bleeding if:

¬Recieve a critical blow ,endurance can save against it, your % chance to save is equal your endurance plus half your concentration.

¬With a piercing trap sprung called "red rain " 50% chance

¬Normal attacks have a really low possibility to deliver a wound (only a 5% or so ), but...
Every 3 points of losed HP´s your chance will go up a 1%.so if have los 30 hp ----> 15% , 60 hp -----> 25 % ,and so on.as same as above you can save against it with the endurance/concentration check).

¬with the sunder flesh spell(not aplicable to EBII though,no cleric enemies)if you recieve this kind of attack, your chance to suffer wound is 6% per casting level , 6%, 12%, 18% ,24% , 30% , 36%, levels 1 , 2, 3 and 4 can be saved with a check , 5 and 6 CANNOT be saved against.

#Recieving damage: Every time you get a bleeding wound you go up a level in it, up to five.

| level 1: 2 Hp / 5 turns. in 25 turns = 10 Hp.
| level 2: 3 Hp / 5 turns. || = 15 Hp.
| level 3: 3 Hp / 4 turns. || = 18 Hp.
| level 4: 4 Hp / 4 turns. || = 24 Hp.
| level 5: 4 Hp / 3 turns. || = 32 Hp.

+medecine skill would reduce a point in damage in 5 , 15 levels and add a turn to recieve damage in 10 and 20 level of skill.(minimum of 1 point of damage )

~Conclusion: Needless to say , high level wounds are essentially mortal unless a high level characters with high skill if you are not well prepared.but as said this would complement a SUPERHARDCORE MODE not a cakewalk one.


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-Burned mode: burned would be a pain penalty consisting in a small penalty to one of these: dexterity , damage penalty , concentration , endurance, armor rating ,and to hit.

How to cure:can be cured with:

-Medecine skill : Your % chance to cureyourself a burn level while camping is 3 times your medecine skill plus 10 every 30 turns while resting.

·specific item:cataplasm (somewhat cheap)

·spell (refreshing touch,doesn´t give any HP)

·clerics (really cheap)


Calculating burn wounds:

You recieve a burn wound if:

¬ if you don´t pass a burn check (half of your elemental resistance plus half you endurance.when recieving fire damage in any way.

¬ using powder and fire metode to cure burns ,mentioned above.can be saved

¬ steam traps have a 20% to inflict ,and explosions and fire a 35% , and the "HOT HOT HOT" trap a 50 %.can be saved

¬ a fire dart spell has a 3% per casting level , fireball a 6% per casting level.


# Recieving penalties :

The burn penalties are accumulative and essentially random up to 5 levels of it . every level adds a little penalty ( 1 to 3) into a random attribute . example:

At level 1 you could recieve a penalty to -2 endurance ,level 2 : -1 concentration ,level 3 : -3 damage. etc etc


~Conclusion : Burn are random nuisances that you can get while playing with fire , they bothersome but nothingless.and would add an extra interest to the medecine skill.

Edit: Just forgot to say that, fireball levels 4 , 5 and 6 , CANNOT be saved against .


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Another idea for a playing mode would be a cakewalk mode:

I remember the first times i played eschalon I ,and didn´t get the game mechanic , i died NONSTOP. i was about to give up with it.an easy mode could be useful for newbies, as an accesible learning curve.

If a player selected the cakewalk mode ,in level-ups would recieve 5 instead 3 points to distribute (skills and stats) the game would lose it´s balance?? sure , but the drawback of it would be that YOU CANNOT get the true ending if it´s enabled or maybe you just could not enter the final dungeon ( just like old genesis , snes games).


P.S. Glad to hear that eschalon II has sold more than I , in the same time