Runelords: Atramentus Rising

Hiatus

Yeah, I'm trying

Runelords was my first public attempt at RPG making (I had two earlier projects, both started in RM2k. One I renamed Kentonia (posted here!) and one who's name I can't remember, and whose project I've lost).

Anywho, Runelords was victim to firstprojectitis, in that it was overly ambitious, inconsistent graphically and containing a hodgepodge of gameplay elements, sidequests and equipment. But I was still pretty happy with the main story arc (1000 year old prophesies and all!).

In my effort to finish this off, I've cut out the bevy of "systems" (leaving only the Rune system), dropped the CMS, cut out the non-sensical (and non-plot advancing) sidequests, reworked the dialogue, recoded the battles and enemies, and fleshed out the gameplay in ways that are suited to the story.

So, this will be my attempt at creating a story-and-character-centric RPG. Wish me luck!

Humanoid characters:
Stance - Description - Bonus - Penalty - Acquired
Basic - Standard weapon & shield stance - Can equip any equipment - None - Innate
Two Handed - Equip 1-handed weapons using both hands - Damage bonus - No 2-handed weapons,No shields - Innate
Dual Wield - Equip two 1-handed weapons at once - None - No 2-handed weapons, No shields - Innate
Defensive - A conservative stance - Mighty Guard when defending, Defence bonus - None - Mastered the rune Shiva
Powergrip - Equip 2-handed weapons with a powerful grip - Damage bonus - No 1-handed weapons, No shields - Mastered the rune Thora
Precise - Unarmed attacks are critical - Critical hit % greatly increased - Cannot equip weapons - Mastered the rune Oli
Fleet - A stance made for speed - Increased agility - Cannot equip heavy armor
Cannot equip heavy shields - Mastered the rune Trigvi
Flurry - Multiple unarmed attacks per round - x2/x3/x4/x5 attacks per round, depending on character level - Cannot equip weapons - Mastered the rune Tjorvi
Mantra - Focus on training during battles - Receive bonus EXP and MGP after battle, Increased magic power - None - Mastered the rune Solvi



Animal characters:
Stance - Description - Bonus - Penalty - Acquired
Basic - Standard stance - - None - None - Innate
Fierce - Aggressive stance - Damage bonus - Defence penalty - Innate
Rapid - Multiple attacks per round - x2 attacks per round - Damage penalty - Innate
Defensive - A conservative stance - Mighty Guard when defending, Defence bonus - None - Mastered the rune Shiva
Crowd - Handle groups of enemies - Attacks all enemies - Damage penalty - Mastered the rune Thora
Precise - Unarmed attacks are critical - Critical hit % greatly increased - To Hit % penalty - Mastered the rune Oli
Fleet - A stance made for speed - Increased agility - Defense penalty - Mastered the rune Trigvi
Flurry - Multiple unarmed attacks per round - x2/x3/x4/x5 attacks per round, depending on character level - Damage penalty - Mastered the rune Tjorvi
Mantra - Focus on training during battles - Receive bonus EXP and MGP after battle, Increased magic power - None - Mastered the rune Solvi


*This is all in the design stage right now. I have not implemented them yet.