After 5 days of work (around 30 hours all together) I feel like I have enough info to make a proper game promotion topic. As of this topic, the game is about 35% complete (so says the database and I find that an accurate representation). There's a .0005% chance that I'll release a demo. I want this to be the first full-length complete rpgm3 (by full-length I mean longer than 2 hours). I'm going to try and make this short as possible but this is a HUGE game so there's a lot of information.
Paperbag Fairy Tale: A Dashing Endeavour
Note on the title: Paperbag is a term that I use when discussing something that's widely known yet radically different. This game, at a glance, is a traditional fairy tale yet it's twisted with many modern elements and ideas.
Toolset: Rpg Maker 3
Recommended Age 13+ for mild profanity, violence, suggestive or sexual material, adult themes, and the use of tobacco and alchohol (standard pg-13 movie)
Release Date: Q4 2005 (hopefully before the end of october)
Expected Gameplay Time: Approximately 10-15 hours
Plot Synopsis: Once upon a time, within the vast empire of Birmingham, there exists a small peninsula province known as Aiurland (pronounced Ireland). For centuries this province has been cursed with rich resources and easily defensable locations. How is this a curse you ask? For over 200 years a demon from the depths of Stygia, Ogrim the Deceptionist, has attempted to bring the province to it's knees. There was once a time when his battle was almost won if it hadn't have been for the efforts of a man named Frederick Dashing.
Frederick, who had recently fled his country and deserted his people, came upon a sword stuck in the ground named "Guy'm'locke, Gift of Earth." Pulling the sword from the ground, he wept over his cowardice yet mustered the strength to gather an army large enough to take on the demon's. Thirty days of fighting later, Frederick held his sword above his head and shouted "As long as you exist, foul beast, my blood shall battle yours!" and plunged the sword into Ogrim's foul heart and banished him to Stygia. With the Dashing family forever cursed until Ogrim was destroyed, every generation of Dashing youth was tasked to battle the demon and for 10 generations it was so.
Now, it is time for Alexander Dashing, the 11th son in the Dashing family line, to take up his sword and battle the demon. Tasked on the quest to recover the 4 elemental artifacts to restore Guy'm'locke, Alexander travels Aiurland with his friends in hopes to carry on the family legacy and, with luck, end the curse forever.
And yet... all does not seem right. Alexander is the youngest Dashing to take on the quest and things don't "feel in place." Alexander finds he's the only one who seems to notice how formulaic their lives are as if they're being controlled by an outside force. What is Ogrim, the lord of deception, up to? What is this strange feeling he, and only he, harbors in his heart. Is life really a simulation; a game designed to please another being? Are you ready to take up the life of Alexander Dashing and complete his aquest? Only time will tell the tale...
Cast of Player Characters
Alexander Dashing
Age: 27
Class: Dashing Hero
Fighting Style: Swordplay and some minor transmutation spells
Starting Skills: Heroic Strike (a powerful attack) and Stylistic Pose (raises everyone's skill power)
Synopsis: Alexander Dashing is the 11th son in the Dashing line and the youngest to take on the quest to defeat Ogrim. He's generally loved by the public and has a strong "entourage" made up of his closest friends Archibald, Shalazar, and Maria. Alex is quick to action, reckless, and full of pride in front of his friends and strangers but in front of authority he often shows a sense of nervousness, respect, and naivety. For some odd reason, Alex has the most "awareness" out of all the Dashing's and he's the only one in the family line who seems to be aware that this long line of quests is somehow "not right."
Archibald "Archi" Arcanix
Age: 22
Class: Spellslinger
Fighting Style: Archery and magick
Starting Skills: Vitriol Arrow (poison), Force Missile (damage), Power Armor (def up)
Synopsis: A close childhood friend of Alex, Archi is a young and budding magick user and the first in his family to take up a weapon other than the staff. Archi is the most intelligent of the group but he's not a bookworm; he feels that true knowledge can only be obtain with a balance of spending time in battle and in the dusty room of a library. He happens to watch over his father, Marilus', library and conducts research and experiments on his own free time. Although he's not prone to speaking out of turn, his conversations usually revolve around something completely random often throwing people off the fact that he's smarter than he puts on. The Arcanix family is also a part of Frederick's curse and Archi takes up his bow and helps his friend on his quest.
Shalazar Atabek
Age: 27
Class: Professional
Fighting Style: Daggerplay and espionage
Starting Skills: Backstab, Heelsplitter, Evade (high evade rate), Hunt (low evade rate), Disarm (disarms traps)
Synopsis: Shalazar is the newest of Alexander's friends and recently moved into Dashingham from his home desert town of Akalabek with his father. They opened up an employment office titled (cleverly... or not) Income Loanshark that deals in export, trade, and employment within Dashington, Aiurland's capital city. Shalazar is a very secretive person; he doesn't like discussing his business or even his name. It's hard for him to earn the trust of other people and he has a nasty attitude. He's very loyal to his friends, but his sour mood is often a put off. He only travels with Alex and co for the "money" and he often hordes money in a personal stache although he never spends it. Exactly what he does with this money is a complete mystery but he's very protective of his businessman and other people's opinions of him.
Maria Malubex
Age: 25
Class: Trendsetter
Fighting Style: Staffplay and Miracles
Starting Skills: Holy Might (raises attack), Enfeeblement (lowers attack), Divine Aid (restores hp)
Synopsis: Despite her nun vestments, Maria isn't really a sister but a live in maid and health advisor at the temple of Umex. In actuality, her religious beliefs (or spiritual if you want to be technical) are a combination of Christian, Wiccan, and Bhuddist as she calls herself a Wichriddist (although no one in Aiurland knows what the hell she's talking about). She enjoys organic foods and excercise believing that a healthy diet and activity is the only way to achieve longevity. She's the most rationale of Alex's friends and she reserves judgement on people until she truely knows them. Her only downfall is her eagerness to move forward often resulting her eagerness to be mistaken for a bloodthirsty machismo. In other words, when angry, she gets REALLY angry and when motivated, she becomes boderline obsessive.
Cast of Side Characters
Dorigel Delrose: A freelance adventurer shrouded in mystery. She shares an intense rivalry with Alex and appears to be related to him in some way. Despite the fact that she was hired to aid Alex, she often appears at the worse moments to slow Alex and his friends down in their quest. She seems to have an ulterior motive and she isn't what she seems. Either way, her smart personality and viscious wit throw people off more than her skills with the sword.
Mirgo Maggo: A mysterious young boy with incredibly powerful magickal powers despite his relatively young age. Nothing is known about him except he stutters when he speaks and has a very strong relationship with Dorigel. He acts as Dorigel's means of transportation and conveyence but she rarely speaks to him or even acknowledges his presence despite the fact that he's basically a mule to her.
Baron Roderick Dashing: Alexander's father and the giver of Alex's quest. He rules over Aiurland and was the previous Dashing to defeat Ogrim. He gives Alexander advice when needed but otherwise spends his time fighting bandits or counting taxes.
Emperor Darius: Ruler of the only empire in the world, Birmingham, Emperor Darius is what people call a "hands on ruler" in the fact that he HATES sitting on a throne all day. He's rarely in one place for more than a day and often travels around his empire to make sure things are in order. Even though his advisors have a say against it, Darius is a very powerful individual and few creatures in the world can withstand his might. He happened to be passing through Aiurland to pick up pastries (the best in this side of the world) in the nearby town of Coolridge when he decided to pay a visit to Roderick. Having financially helped Roderick in his quest, Darius gives advice to Alexander and also lends him a good luck charm. Several conspiracies about Darius float around about him and his hatred for Knavesmire (the only free country outside his rule) but all of these rumors are quickly silenced.
Ogrim, Lord of Deception: Ogrim is the 22nd Demon General of Stygia. While he is definitely not the most powerful of the 50 demon generals, especially among some of the lower ranking demons, Ogrim is the most cunning, shrewd, and knowledgable. His powers in deception, mind reading, and possessing are almost unequaled and have made him a target by the higher demons. No one knows exactly why he wishes to take over Aiurland despite the fact that the province has a good amount of resources. The fact that he's failed 10 times has had him come under attack yet the wisest demons understand that the cunning beast has a trick up his sleeve and the youngest and most impressionable of the Dashing's appears to be his prime target.
There are several other minor characters but they are too numerous to give mention
Screenshots
Note: I'm new at taking pictures of tv screens. I took these on my big screen and threw a blanket over my window so hopefully the quality is good.
A rather (poor) shot of Dashington from the entrance
Another shot of Dashington from the castle entrance
A shot of the bandito cave (the first dungeon in the game where you find Ogrim)
Entering the little shack of the former foreman for the Coolridge mines. He gives up the Coolridge key if you go on a scavenger hunt to find the missing seedlings he lost when his killer chickens tore into his stock
The best view in Dashingham; standing ontop of the volcano mountain Hohoh. You can see castle dashington on the right and the redwood forest on the left.
A valley in the desert wasteland of Akalabek.
Just a random shot of a battle for no real reason
A shot of my gameover storyteller taken for no real reason other than filler. The man is the chronicler, a traveling man who wishes to gain all the knowledge in the world.
The World:
Aiurland is a peninsula located off the main continent of Birmingham (which is also the central location of the Birmingham Empire). It has a strong mix of arid, arctic, and temperate regions. It is broken up into 3 provinces ruled by a single Baron.
Dashingham: The capital province and the most temperate zone. There's a mix of mountaineous regions, rolling grasslands, and dark forests. It also happens to be the most resource rich of the areas and has a strong mining and forestry trade.
Areas of Interest:
Dashington: Capital city and location of Baron Dashing's castle.
Coolridge: Head mining town located in the mountains
Redwood: A provincial forestry town full of spiritualists and loggers
Streganona's Hut: An ancient witch who watches over the forest
Foreman's House: Former Foreman of the mining operations in Coolridge.
Coolridge Mines: Mines located near the Hohoh volcano.
Dashingham Air: The main aerial flight service in Dashingham.
Akalabek: A desert region, Akalabek is mostly uninhabitable but buried within the sand dunes and plateus are several hundred ruins that harbor infinite amounts of magick energy making this area a key target by traders and brave adventurers (who can survive the heat).
Areas of Interest:
Akalabek: City full of corruption and seedy merchants.
Akalabek Skies: Main aerial flight service in Akalabek.
Trader's Camp: One of the most sought after trading camps in the world; full of (expensive) powerful junk located in an oasis.
Arx: The only settlement made from a discovered ruins.
Artifact Ruins: mysterious ruins scattered across the land.
Lake Akalabek: The areas only source of water; recently became poisoneous
Grotznigru: An arctic wasteland, Grotznigru is a sought after land because of it's "Eternal Borealis", an endless magickal aura that provides a source of raw energy that can be harvested to power weapons and alien technology.
Areas of Interest:
Fort Grotznigru: A fortress that protects the warp pad to New Rolo
New Rolo: A floating city crafted from the energies of the Aurora
Nomad Camp: The nomad's are hostal towards the civilized people and believe the land of Grotznigru is theirs and theirs only.
Important Gameplay Elements
-A random quest generator (I won't give away my secrets yet hoho)
-Open ended gameplay; find the 4 artifacts in any order
-Tons of secrets like legendary weapons such as Legbitr and Atenthal and hidden dungeons
-A skill and stat increase system based on acquiring trainer passes
-Approximate 10-15 hours of gameplay (hopefully)
-A twisting story that merges fairy tale elements with modern storytelling
-A well balanced combat system with character stats based on D&D point based system
-Over 200 items to find and utilize
-Devious dungeons with cunning puzzles
Whew, what a long topic. Hopefully this game makes it all worth it. Check it out near the end of October or sooner! If you guys have any questions about the game or how I did (or will be doing) certain things, feel free to ask and I might talk about it unless I want to keep it a secret
Paperbag Fairy Tale: A Dashing Endeavour
Note on the title: Paperbag is a term that I use when discussing something that's widely known yet radically different. This game, at a glance, is a traditional fairy tale yet it's twisted with many modern elements and ideas.
Toolset: Rpg Maker 3
Recommended Age 13+ for mild profanity, violence, suggestive or sexual material, adult themes, and the use of tobacco and alchohol (standard pg-13 movie)
Release Date: Q4 2005 (hopefully before the end of october)
Expected Gameplay Time: Approximately 10-15 hours
Plot Synopsis: Once upon a time, within the vast empire of Birmingham, there exists a small peninsula province known as Aiurland (pronounced Ireland). For centuries this province has been cursed with rich resources and easily defensable locations. How is this a curse you ask? For over 200 years a demon from the depths of Stygia, Ogrim the Deceptionist, has attempted to bring the province to it's knees. There was once a time when his battle was almost won if it hadn't have been for the efforts of a man named Frederick Dashing.
Frederick, who had recently fled his country and deserted his people, came upon a sword stuck in the ground named "Guy'm'locke, Gift of Earth." Pulling the sword from the ground, he wept over his cowardice yet mustered the strength to gather an army large enough to take on the demon's. Thirty days of fighting later, Frederick held his sword above his head and shouted "As long as you exist, foul beast, my blood shall battle yours!" and plunged the sword into Ogrim's foul heart and banished him to Stygia. With the Dashing family forever cursed until Ogrim was destroyed, every generation of Dashing youth was tasked to battle the demon and for 10 generations it was so.
Now, it is time for Alexander Dashing, the 11th son in the Dashing family line, to take up his sword and battle the demon. Tasked on the quest to recover the 4 elemental artifacts to restore Guy'm'locke, Alexander travels Aiurland with his friends in hopes to carry on the family legacy and, with luck, end the curse forever.
And yet... all does not seem right. Alexander is the youngest Dashing to take on the quest and things don't "feel in place." Alexander finds he's the only one who seems to notice how formulaic their lives are as if they're being controlled by an outside force. What is Ogrim, the lord of deception, up to? What is this strange feeling he, and only he, harbors in his heart. Is life really a simulation; a game designed to please another being? Are you ready to take up the life of Alexander Dashing and complete his aquest? Only time will tell the tale...
Cast of Player Characters
Alexander Dashing
Age: 27
Class: Dashing Hero
Fighting Style: Swordplay and some minor transmutation spells
Starting Skills: Heroic Strike (a powerful attack) and Stylistic Pose (raises everyone's skill power)
Synopsis: Alexander Dashing is the 11th son in the Dashing line and the youngest to take on the quest to defeat Ogrim. He's generally loved by the public and has a strong "entourage" made up of his closest friends Archibald, Shalazar, and Maria. Alex is quick to action, reckless, and full of pride in front of his friends and strangers but in front of authority he often shows a sense of nervousness, respect, and naivety. For some odd reason, Alex has the most "awareness" out of all the Dashing's and he's the only one in the family line who seems to be aware that this long line of quests is somehow "not right."
Archibald "Archi" Arcanix
Age: 22
Class: Spellslinger
Fighting Style: Archery and magick
Starting Skills: Vitriol Arrow (poison), Force Missile (damage), Power Armor (def up)
Synopsis: A close childhood friend of Alex, Archi is a young and budding magick user and the first in his family to take up a weapon other than the staff. Archi is the most intelligent of the group but he's not a bookworm; he feels that true knowledge can only be obtain with a balance of spending time in battle and in the dusty room of a library. He happens to watch over his father, Marilus', library and conducts research and experiments on his own free time. Although he's not prone to speaking out of turn, his conversations usually revolve around something completely random often throwing people off the fact that he's smarter than he puts on. The Arcanix family is also a part of Frederick's curse and Archi takes up his bow and helps his friend on his quest.
Shalazar Atabek
Age: 27
Class: Professional
Fighting Style: Daggerplay and espionage
Starting Skills: Backstab, Heelsplitter, Evade (high evade rate), Hunt (low evade rate), Disarm (disarms traps)
Synopsis: Shalazar is the newest of Alexander's friends and recently moved into Dashingham from his home desert town of Akalabek with his father. They opened up an employment office titled (cleverly... or not) Income Loanshark that deals in export, trade, and employment within Dashington, Aiurland's capital city. Shalazar is a very secretive person; he doesn't like discussing his business or even his name. It's hard for him to earn the trust of other people and he has a nasty attitude. He's very loyal to his friends, but his sour mood is often a put off. He only travels with Alex and co for the "money" and he often hordes money in a personal stache although he never spends it. Exactly what he does with this money is a complete mystery but he's very protective of his businessman and other people's opinions of him.
Maria Malubex
Age: 25
Class: Trendsetter
Fighting Style: Staffplay and Miracles
Starting Skills: Holy Might (raises attack), Enfeeblement (lowers attack), Divine Aid (restores hp)
Synopsis: Despite her nun vestments, Maria isn't really a sister but a live in maid and health advisor at the temple of Umex. In actuality, her religious beliefs (or spiritual if you want to be technical) are a combination of Christian, Wiccan, and Bhuddist as she calls herself a Wichriddist (although no one in Aiurland knows what the hell she's talking about). She enjoys organic foods and excercise believing that a healthy diet and activity is the only way to achieve longevity. She's the most rationale of Alex's friends and she reserves judgement on people until she truely knows them. Her only downfall is her eagerness to move forward often resulting her eagerness to be mistaken for a bloodthirsty machismo. In other words, when angry, she gets REALLY angry and when motivated, she becomes boderline obsessive.
Cast of Side Characters
Dorigel Delrose: A freelance adventurer shrouded in mystery. She shares an intense rivalry with Alex and appears to be related to him in some way. Despite the fact that she was hired to aid Alex, she often appears at the worse moments to slow Alex and his friends down in their quest. She seems to have an ulterior motive and she isn't what she seems. Either way, her smart personality and viscious wit throw people off more than her skills with the sword.
Mirgo Maggo: A mysterious young boy with incredibly powerful magickal powers despite his relatively young age. Nothing is known about him except he stutters when he speaks and has a very strong relationship with Dorigel. He acts as Dorigel's means of transportation and conveyence but she rarely speaks to him or even acknowledges his presence despite the fact that he's basically a mule to her.
Baron Roderick Dashing: Alexander's father and the giver of Alex's quest. He rules over Aiurland and was the previous Dashing to defeat Ogrim. He gives Alexander advice when needed but otherwise spends his time fighting bandits or counting taxes.
Emperor Darius: Ruler of the only empire in the world, Birmingham, Emperor Darius is what people call a "hands on ruler" in the fact that he HATES sitting on a throne all day. He's rarely in one place for more than a day and often travels around his empire to make sure things are in order. Even though his advisors have a say against it, Darius is a very powerful individual and few creatures in the world can withstand his might. He happened to be passing through Aiurland to pick up pastries (the best in this side of the world) in the nearby town of Coolridge when he decided to pay a visit to Roderick. Having financially helped Roderick in his quest, Darius gives advice to Alexander and also lends him a good luck charm. Several conspiracies about Darius float around about him and his hatred for Knavesmire (the only free country outside his rule) but all of these rumors are quickly silenced.
Ogrim, Lord of Deception: Ogrim is the 22nd Demon General of Stygia. While he is definitely not the most powerful of the 50 demon generals, especially among some of the lower ranking demons, Ogrim is the most cunning, shrewd, and knowledgable. His powers in deception, mind reading, and possessing are almost unequaled and have made him a target by the higher demons. No one knows exactly why he wishes to take over Aiurland despite the fact that the province has a good amount of resources. The fact that he's failed 10 times has had him come under attack yet the wisest demons understand that the cunning beast has a trick up his sleeve and the youngest and most impressionable of the Dashing's appears to be his prime target.
There are several other minor characters but they are too numerous to give mention
Screenshots
Note: I'm new at taking pictures of tv screens. I took these on my big screen and threw a blanket over my window so hopefully the quality is good.
A rather (poor) shot of Dashington from the entrance
Another shot of Dashington from the castle entrance
A shot of the bandito cave (the first dungeon in the game where you find Ogrim)
Entering the little shack of the former foreman for the Coolridge mines. He gives up the Coolridge key if you go on a scavenger hunt to find the missing seedlings he lost when his killer chickens tore into his stock
The best view in Dashingham; standing ontop of the volcano mountain Hohoh. You can see castle dashington on the right and the redwood forest on the left.
A valley in the desert wasteland of Akalabek.
Just a random shot of a battle for no real reason
A shot of my gameover storyteller taken for no real reason other than filler. The man is the chronicler, a traveling man who wishes to gain all the knowledge in the world.
The World:
Aiurland is a peninsula located off the main continent of Birmingham (which is also the central location of the Birmingham Empire). It has a strong mix of arid, arctic, and temperate regions. It is broken up into 3 provinces ruled by a single Baron.
Dashingham: The capital province and the most temperate zone. There's a mix of mountaineous regions, rolling grasslands, and dark forests. It also happens to be the most resource rich of the areas and has a strong mining and forestry trade.
Areas of Interest:
Dashington: Capital city and location of Baron Dashing's castle.
Coolridge: Head mining town located in the mountains
Redwood: A provincial forestry town full of spiritualists and loggers
Streganona's Hut: An ancient witch who watches over the forest
Foreman's House: Former Foreman of the mining operations in Coolridge.
Coolridge Mines: Mines located near the Hohoh volcano.
Dashingham Air: The main aerial flight service in Dashingham.
Akalabek: A desert region, Akalabek is mostly uninhabitable but buried within the sand dunes and plateus are several hundred ruins that harbor infinite amounts of magick energy making this area a key target by traders and brave adventurers (who can survive the heat).
Areas of Interest:
Akalabek: City full of corruption and seedy merchants.
Akalabek Skies: Main aerial flight service in Akalabek.
Trader's Camp: One of the most sought after trading camps in the world; full of (expensive) powerful junk located in an oasis.
Arx: The only settlement made from a discovered ruins.
Artifact Ruins: mysterious ruins scattered across the land.
Lake Akalabek: The areas only source of water; recently became poisoneous
Grotznigru: An arctic wasteland, Grotznigru is a sought after land because of it's "Eternal Borealis", an endless magickal aura that provides a source of raw energy that can be harvested to power weapons and alien technology.
Areas of Interest:
Fort Grotznigru: A fortress that protects the warp pad to New Rolo
New Rolo: A floating city crafted from the energies of the Aurora
Nomad Camp: The nomad's are hostal towards the civilized people and believe the land of Grotznigru is theirs and theirs only.
Important Gameplay Elements
-A random quest generator (I won't give away my secrets yet hoho)
-Open ended gameplay; find the 4 artifacts in any order
-Tons of secrets like legendary weapons such as Legbitr and Atenthal and hidden dungeons
-A skill and stat increase system based on acquiring trainer passes
-Approximate 10-15 hours of gameplay (hopefully)
-A twisting story that merges fairy tale elements with modern storytelling
-A well balanced combat system with character stats based on D&D point based system
-Over 200 items to find and utilize
-Devious dungeons with cunning puzzles
Whew, what a long topic. Hopefully this game makes it all worth it. Check it out near the end of October or sooner! If you guys have any questions about the game or how I did (or will be doing) certain things, feel free to ask and I might talk about it unless I want to keep it a secret
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