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In the ancient days, magic was a myth, a story told to frighten children and fleece fools out of their hard earned silver. Not all stories stay myths forever, though, and the world changed when a new moon appeared in the sky, bringing with it a very real power... and a very real cataclysm. From the ruins of the old orders arose new ones, who struggled against one another until a balance was found. Eventually, peace replaced war, and magic found a place in society outside the dark corners of the land.

Moonsong begins alongside great events which will undoubtedly change the world once more. Take control of a band of outcasts as they struggle to understand their role in the conflict and the scope of the perils which face them. From humble beginnings in the back country of a mighty kingdom, they will embark on an adventure that will take them all across the land- and through no shortage of danger- as they attempt to counter the growing darkness.


I started this project many years ago (perhaps a decade?), but it sat on a shelf for a very long time. Last fall I decided it was time to pick it up and dust it off, and in doing so I found the kernel of a promising project. Unfortunately, I'd done less work than I'd thought, but with my shearing scissors in hand a LOT of elbow grease I've gotten it up to a playable state: certainly worthy of a demo release. I've trimmed out the things that I could never finish, culled the story, and reined in my lofty, impossible ambitions to put together a short, atmospheric quest that I hope you'll all enjoy.

Key features include:
- Choose 3 of 6 characters to form your party.
- Each of the 6 can choose to change class later in the game, offering numerous combinations to suit your playstyle.
- 6 unique skilltrees (one for each character) which let you spend ability points earned from monsters however you like, letting you customize your party.
- A linear story with lots of exploration, with ample treasures to reward perceptive players.
- An interconnected world where every step is shown off in high-detail maps.
- A mix of custom, edited and ripped graphics that all work together to form a cohesive aesthetic.

I hope you'll all enjoy this project from yesteryear: it took a lot of work to revive it, but I think, in the end, you'll agree it was worth it.

Latest Blog

Moonsong v1.3 update is here!

The third update is here! And it's a doozy. The end of the game has been completely rebalanced to increase difficulty and the mid game has been changed to be more challenging, as well. A new type of equipment has also been added!

There will be small save inconsistencies with earlier versions, but only because the light armour characters (Siegfried, Amelia and Elle) can no longer equip shields. Saves should load fine, but shields will need to be unequipped to update correctly. Khalid can equip both shields and the new book-type item which replaced shields for magic-focused characters, so he'll be fine either way.

One major thing of note: please uninstall the old Moonsong.fon font after downloading the update and then reinstall the one included in 1.3's folder. The font must be deleted before installing the new version, otherwise it won't update correctly (a restart might fix this, but this is a Windows bug so I have no control over this). The new version of the font fixes certain unicode characters and adds Spanish text support. If this is your first time installing the game, simply right clicking on the Moonsong.fon file found in the main directory of the game and selecting "install" will fix the font in game!

Anyway, please let me know if you have any problems with old save games other than the shield thing!

Change list:

  • Fixed font to show Noëmi's name correctly.

  • Added unicode support for Spanish text.

  • Rebalanced mid- and late-game monsters to have more HP and deal more damage. This change is especially noticeable in the desert and snow areas. (thanks to everyone!)

  • Changed some resistances for late-game monsters to make monster groups harder to eliminate with a single poweful attack.

  • Removed shields from the light armour characters.

  • Added a new off-hand slot item for Amelia, Khalid, Elle and Siegfried: the book. Books act like shields, but offer less defense. Instead, they increase intelligence and give a small attack boost.

  • Added new merchants in all cities in the game to sell the new books.

  • Magic gear (light armour, books and staves) can now be found for sale in all towns at new merchants denoted by a moon icon on their vendor sign (except Ebora, where it is sold by the quartermaster).

  • Updated one of the NPCs in Ebora to give you your first book for free if you find her.

  • Added a small number of extra equipment pieces for balance.

  • Fixed a difficult to trigger but serious pathfinding issue in Karnev. (thanks to grayshadow)

  • Changed the contents of a small number of chests.

  • Changed font to be brighter and more readable.

  • Finally added a custom icon (it's simple, but it's something!).


If you notice any issues with this new update, feel free to let me know! Any feedback on the updated balancing would be especially helpful.

Tags

Posts

author=LordBlueRouge
I've only played like, a handful of rpgmaker games that use Romancing Saga 3 sprites, but I gotta say the mapping here is really good! There's a clear yet distinct direction of where to go, while also being characteristic - worn out paths will fade only to show up again and carefully following them will often lead to treasure or hidden areas - this is very hard thing to pull off right, but it's done extremely well here. Very very cool.


I wanted all the ruins (which includes the flagstone roads, which are supposed to be like old Roman roads still in use) to seem like maybe someone lived there once and they had places to go, but maybe they were places that didn't always line up with the modern traveller's ideas. I thought it would be a good place to hide some treasure, so I combined my two loves to encourage exploring.

I am really happy to hear you say that you noticed this and liked it!
author=Lion786
The text is really hard to read.
author=Liberty
Try installing the font patch: https://rpgmaker.net/engines/rt2k3/utilities/1/
You shouldn't need to install the font patch, although it's probably a good idea to grab those fonts as well. Moonsong uses a custom font that I made: it's included with the game (it's in the main directory). It's called Moonsong.fon. Right click on it and select "install" and then run the game and it should appear correctly after that.
author=Lion786
The text is really hard to read.
Yeah, as Kaempfer said just double click on MoonSong.fon and click "install" and restart the game, it should fix this issue:



The hardest thing about rpgmaker font checks is that, there's no way to check if a font is installed correctly, unless you have a spare computer without the fonts installed. You may want to pop this image into the game folder and label it as "READ ME FIRST FONT FIX" in the next update, or something.
Why does Ignite only damage when it causes Burn?
I started with Elle's story and no damage with a fire spell is bad - at least I have one party member with me that can cast magic damage (I am currently in the cave with the slimes).
At the farm is a NPC that looks only to the front what looks funny when he moves.

The corpse in the cave in the outskirts of Ebora, is there something to do later or depends it on the party members I have chosen (currently Amelia and Leonov)? My suggestion is Magnus as he is a necromancer.
And I was able to enter the house further south with those party members but the one to the north is still locked (and I can't enter the basement with the vermins).


And I started to write a guide, so I apologize for strange questions.
But I haven't tried all possibilites at the Quartermaster, if you want to tell me all, I will add them.
LordBlueRouge saves the day again!

And it looks like Firefly84 is on the case for another of her great Walkthroughs. Someday, I hope to get one too.
First I have to make something worthy of one though B)
author=Firefly84
Why does Ignite only damage when it causes Burn?
I started with Elle's story and no damage with a fire spell is bad - at least I have one party member with me that can cast magic damage (I am currently in the cave with the slimes).
Kindle's sole purpose is to inflict Ignite I-IV, which can deal extremely high damage over time at higher levels (although it's less reliable than poison, as it can extinguish only after a single turn). Elle can later learn actual fire spells which deal direct damage. She should also start with the ability to use a magic spell that she gains via an item, which can be used to kill the slimes as well.

The corpse
That corpse is part of Amelia's introduction.

The locked house
The locked house is a part of Magnus's introduction, and is locked for everyone else.

The vermin basement
This is cut content, I'm afraid. It was used in a later questline, and has been dummied out since it was incomplete and didn't fit within the scope of the game.

And I started to write a guide, so I apologize for strange questions.
Very cool, ask away!

But I haven't tried all possibilites at the Quartermaster, if you want to tell me all, I will add them.
Spoiler for those who wish for the quartermaster items to remain a mystery:
Weapons:
Leonov gets the Guard Spear, which grants bonus defense.
Elle gets the Dirk, which attacks twice.
Khalid gets the Scimitar, which deals more damage than other available swords.
Siegfried gets the Poison Knife, which inflicts low-level poison.
Magnus gets the Notched Axe, which deals very high damage for its level.
Amelia gets the Oak Staff, which offers a lot of bonus defense.
Armour:
Leonov gets the Guard Helm, which halves the chance of being Addled (silence).
Elle gets the Walking Boots, which offers immunity to Slow.
Khalid gets the Lined Gloves, which resist Cold damage.
Siegfried gets the Court Robes, which half the chance of being Poisoned.
Magnus gets the Sharp Shield, which adds bonus damage.
Amelia gets the Tracker Hood, which offers immunity to Stun.
Items:
Leonov gets the Captain Medal, which prevents critical hits.
Elle gets the Voice Amulet, which halves the chance of being Addled (silence).
Khalid gets the Contender Ring, which claims to offer half lock but actually does nothing, since lock does not exist. Do not choose this until I fix it in v1.2.
Siegfried gets 3 Arsenic, 1 Knockout, 1 Cripplegas and 1 Rosewater potion, which inflict Poison II, Sleep II, Weak II and Charm II respectively. It claims you receive an Ink potion, but that was dummied out because the Blind condition is mostly useless in RM2k3.
Magnus gets 3 Health potions, 2 Serums and 1 Revive, which restore health, cure poison, addle and paralyze and bring a KO'd member back to life, respectively.
Amelia gets the Herbalist amulet, which halves the chance to be poisoned and resists Earth.

You get one choice of either Weapon, Armour or Items per character, for anyone reading this who hasn't played the game yet.


If you have any other questions, just let me know!

Karnev, Barman/Shady Man quest: I already delivered 10 packages. Is there an end to this quest (it is getting boring)?
author=Firefly84
Karnev, Barman/Shady Man quest: I already delivered 10 packages. Is there an end to this quest (it is getting boring)?

There is no end. It is an infinitely repeating quest to ensure that people do not get stuck in Karnev with no money (as they need 300 to leave and there are no random encounters).

(I assumed most people would give up after a few runs because of the pathetic reward, but I didn't account for stress-testers!)
In Marahas is a barrel under a tree saying "Testing Event" (next to the sweetcakes).
In the tunnels under Marahas is a monster group with 3 Goblins (one is a mage) and a Snail which you have to defeat twice.

And can you perhaps provide me with a map of the Lystra Sandsea?
author=Firefly84
In Marahas is a barrel under a tree saying "Testing Event" (next to the sweetcakes).

Oops! Luckily, this event does nothing but display text. Some of the testing events have catastrophic outcomes, so I'm glad I didn't leave one of those in (that I know of!).

In the tunnels under Marahas is a monster group with 3 Goblins (one is a mage) and a Snail which you have to defeat twice.

Also oops, I've fixed this.

And can you perhaps provide me with a map of the Lystra Sandsea?

If you get lost in the Sandsea,
go the cave entrance and move right until you cannot see any grey cliff tiles. Then move two tiles right and one tile down over and over until you see a solitary rock. From there, you can go straight right for an oasis or straight down the next dungeon. If you get lost in the desert, find the top left corner and search around until you see grey rocks- that will reset your position.
I just noticed, that there are even items hidden in boxes, not only barrels. Damn, I haven't investigated all of them.

Has anyone the answers for the Quizzer? (at least if there is a correct one)

Amelia has somehow the Crusader Profession in her skill tree. But she never can learn the required skills.

Currently I could use more Mastery Tokens...
author=Firefly84
I just noticed, that there are even items hidden in boxes, not only barrels. Damn, I haven't investigated all of them.

I think there only, like, three. I'll admit they were a bit of an after-thought. I'll try to track them down and report their locations to you.

Has anyone the answers for the Quizzer? (at least if there is a correct one)
Answer:
there is no correct answer. The Quizzer is a nod to a character in Villnoire, and to complaints that the RM2k3 text-input window is a hopeless mess.


Amelia has somehow the Crusader Profession in her skill tree. But she never can learn the required skills.

Whoops! I used Leonov's skills for a template in many instances, when I first started the project. I have fixed this error (it should read "Loremaster"). I also used the wrong "its/it's" in the Druid text, which is also bad (and fixed).

Currently I could use more Mastery Tokens...

You should have enough to master 4-5 skills per character by the end of the game.
Before I forget, I wanted to mention: the sprite edits are really good in this! I didn't think you could actually make a new character out of the Bard/Minstrel. Preemo stuff!
:thumbs up: :100!:
Hello there. A little question, after a few hours of play time: why the save points, if you can save anywhere? Did you forget to disable the feature in the last patch?… :)
author=Arcanod
Hello there. A little question, after a few hours of play time: why the save points, if you can save anywhere? Did you forget to disable the feature in the last patch?… :)

No, that isn't an oversight (but I can see how it might seem like one)! The save points are intended as a sort of a "challenge mode", and you can choose to use only them if you want a little more risk in your life. Being able to save anywhere was left in so that people could choose to stop whenever they want (like a quicksave), or to abuse the save system if they want by saving right before a boss. They also act as a reminder that you should save if you haven't done so in awhile. I wanted to give the player options on how they choose to play.
It ended just as the story was getting going D:
You'd better finish this. And Evoker too, but this for sure. I love what you did with the skill system. It's inspired me to make modifications to the skill development in my own little side project, should I ever get around to making it.
The difficulty curve was good for awhile, but got incredibly easy near the endgame. That might be because I'm such a 2k3 beast though.

My posse was Elle, Magnus and Leonov.

Oh, and congrats on the Featured Game. It's a little overdue :P
One day I'll return to this, honest! I've got lots of ideas of where it goes next, and the story is done (plotted, anyway). It'll be a chunk of work, though! Evoker takes precedence for now.

What made the game easy near the end? Was it skill damage/available EP, or sheer brute force? There are a lot of killer combos for characters to utilize but I don't want it to get ~too easy~ (which is currently is).

Also, thanks! I'm very happy to be featured!

If anyone new downloads the game, feel free to ask me any questions you might have, I'm always around.
author=Kaempfer
What made the game easy near the end? Was it skill damage/available EP, or sheer brute force? There are a lot of killer combos for characters to utilize but I don't want it to get ~too easy~ (which is currently is).


I had Magnus go Ulfzerfer for the doubled Attack, with Leonov using Hone on him and Elle using the Stat-Down song on enemies (I forget it's name). He was dealing upwards of 500 damage per hit. But again : I know what the effect of Hone (directly adding Attack) does in conjunction with a Stat-doubling condition because I know 2k3 like the back of my hand. A novice player might think "they do the same thing."
As Skill Points go, I had an excess by game's end. All skills were maxed out, and I didn't do any particular grinding. I'm the type of player who fights everything he encounters, and that's where I ended up.