THEANNOYINGBUGBEAR'S PROFILE
Hello. I'm the Annoying Bugbear but you can call me 'Chief'. I have a fascination for orcs, bugbears and anthropomorphic characters that I want to create games featuring these creatures as playable characters. I write mostly gay fiction so don't be surprised that you'll see lots of gay romances in my upcoming game titles.
Why does my avatar look familiar?
My avatar is based on the Bugbear Chieftain from Dark Alliance: Baldur's Gate.
Why does my avatar look familiar?
My avatar is based on the Bugbear Chieftain from Dark Alliance: Baldur's Gate.
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The_Crystal_King_Logo.png
author=kentona
I love the colours!
Thanks kentona! I might redesign it later but I'm definitely keeping the color scheme!
PS: "Only 90's kids will like this admin" lol love that, Bugbear was born on 1991 baby.
Crystal King - Short break from gamemaking.
author=Kylaila
I totally missed this!
I am glad you are taking a break then. Health is wealth~
Also congrats on all the game progress!
Thanks Kylaila! I am so sorry that I haven't gotten back to respond. A lot has happened as of late.
I got the bad news yesterday about my grandfather. He passed away yesterday, he was over 100+ years old. That's why I had to take the extra break because of his health so I'm feeling a whole lot better for today.
And thanks again for leaving a review. I hardly recognize the demo lol because I keep constantly changing stuff! I agree with a lot of the points, it gives me a better idea on what I have to work on especially the growth system. I will say though that the treasure grid (the thingy with the stashes) has been heavily reworked into something else. So it'll be a surprise for the next game.
And again, I'm very sorry that I haven't responded earlier or react to the review as soon as possible. Now that the grim news is over, I can finally get back to game making. Just reading your review has made my morning today so thanks again for supporting the game!
P.S. I cannot believe I hit over 10,000 page views! You're making me famous Kylaila lol!
Crystal King - Aulmar K. Character Reveal
author=dasgibtesnet
Sorry I am late with my ideas but i was... distracted. Got a few new books and have spent all my time reading.
I am interested... how does he communicate with the party if he is mute? Do we know the sign language or is simply a feeling of "he might want to do that or that".
Hey, no problem. I got caught up with SC 6 for a while so no rush on the conversation. About how he communicates, I was thinking he could possess Worik so that he could have some sort of medium to talk through. It could set up some hilarious moments given that Worik is the comic relief.
author=dasgibtesnet
To make actual guesses I know far to little about the bugger apart from him beeing born mute (how did he survive his childhood if he was as hated and was blamed for every catastrophy? Was there a lack of catastrophes to blame on him? Where his parents royals or otherwise influental people that could keep him alive?). Who trained him? Someone must have taken it upon himself to train him... and he must have been paid well to train the one bringing misfortune, maybe even an outsider... which leads me back to the idea that he is the son of a rich trader or the royals. If my previous ideas where right he might be a key "reagent" to get rid of the curse if the orcs where part of the group casting the curse.... which I kinda doubt. But I wonder why only an eye might have turned into a crystal. And if he was a baby growing up cursed how did it survive if the curse is as deadly as i thought? Might it not work on something basic as I thought Or does he have a different curse alltogether? There is to little to go on to make any worthwhile ideas. Maybe he is a reincarnator and some higher entity sealed his voice and made him unable to learn to write so he cant tell anyone what he knows? Heck its farfetched but it wouldnt surprise me. Anyways maybe give me something more to go on please? =P
Aulmar isn't exactly to be blamed for every catastrophe. I think it's only recent that they started to blame him for several things such as the war chief's disappearance, Layla getting sick and the river running dry without any evidence to support their reasoning. You know, orcs kinda lack reasoning.
Now that you mention it, there is someone who takes care of him in the village. Her name is Layla, the war chief's daughter. But the war chief does not want Layla to get "too affectionate" with Aulmar due to his curse. If you think about it, the orcs could be jealous of their relationship considering they spend more time together than any other orc in the village. He is the most handsome of the lot and certainly the 'ugly duckling' to orc standards. Or that they're hiding something important to Aulmar that would resent him even further. Ironically, the orcs in the village are so tough against Aulmar, yet they are cowardly in numbers to fend off a Fell creature. And Aulmar was the only one brave enough to fight off the creature despite a broken arm and no voice.
Speaking about training, there was a man who challenged him a long time ago. This would result in Aulmar's arm being broken upon defeat, to which the man replies to him, "You are not ready for me. I don't think you'll ever be ready." Something along those lines to imply that something important went down with Aulmar and this stranger. Can't tell ya who it is but it's just a side detail.
Is the curse deadly? Not at all but the orcs think it is. Maybe his voice isn't just the curse but maybe the eyeball too. I mean, it can detect hostility and can see things ahead of time sort of foresight. Maybe the eye serves as a defense mechanic for self-defense due to how much bullying he's been through. Having a crystal like eye, able to possess things, lacks a human component and is cursed. It awfully sounds too familiar to someone in the game. I don't know who it is but maybe they could be...related?
That's all the details I can provide to you on the surface level because otherwise, I'd be spoiling 95% of the plot revolving around Aulmar. Extra hints will cost ya. =p
P.S. I will add that Aulmar K. has the saddest backstory of them all. It's probably why he's becoming my new favorite character in the story.
The Crystal King
author=kainworks
Hey there!
I've stumbled on your game as it came out randomly on the frontpage and I was really drawn to it. I still haven't finished the demo, will edit/post later after that but you have my full support! ^^ I really, really liked your character designs, very classy and pleasing to look at without them being too overboard. I'm hoping you're considering creating the rest of the graphics, because from what glimpses or your work can be seen (I'm presuming you also did some of the buildings and monsters) the game can be turn into something really unique on that aspect.
I also found really amusing (in a good way) you opted for the "bugbears" instead of something more recognizable, like orcs, for instance. Man, I've been a fan (not a pen-and-paper player, sadly) of most things D&D but always have problems interpreting the taxonomy of some of their monsters/races. This ain't a complain at all, just thought it would be fun to point that out, haha. It's like choosing a niche concept on an already niche project, but in my book that makes the whole thing stand out even more!
Hey kainworks, thanks for checking out the game! I'm really glad you're liking the art because I can get a little insecure to draw things with my big bugbears hands. =p Jokes aside, it was a challenge to design the bugbears to look attractive as possible since orcs and bugbears tend to be ugly. I think they're beautiful creatures.
I did design some of the enemies such as the boggarts and the tree houses in the demo. I can't say I'll design every single enemy or tile set but I'm going the extra mile to put some unique creations in the game like centaurs and spriggans.
I opted to use bugbears since they're unheard of compared to orcs. (And yes, there will be orcs in the game since this month's blog reveals the final party member, who is an orc lol) It's definitely a niche concept but it's a good thing because it easily stands out from the crowd. Not that I don't like humans or elves but it's already out there. I think it's time for the orcs and bugbears to get some action every now and then! They are actors after all.
I will point out that the demo is bit outdated but it does give you a preview on what the game looks like so far. The alpha release date is yet to be determined. If you have any questions about the game or the concept, leave them down below and I'll be happy to answer them! Feel free to subscribe if you haven't! I appreciate every bit of support I can get to make this game successful.
Crystal King - Intro added, no shop run possibility??
What if a dragon ruled everyone in the land including bugbears and orcs? I mean, dragons are at the top of the food chain. They're also hated and feared by everyone that tries to battle them. It could be possible that a "dragon" or someone who looks like a dragon could've been king. Major plot twist coming soon!
Btw, Kylaila and dasgibtesnet, I'm loving this conversation since I had no idea that this blog would turn into a discussion. I think I've come to a conclusion about the no-shop thing. I think no shops would kill the experience, maybe not entirely, but it wouldn't feel enjoyable. Especially if these bugbears and orcs did co-existed at one time so it would throw things off a bit. Maybe I'll throw some random merchant battles for free discounts. How's that for a change?
Btw, Kylaila and dasgibtesnet, I'm loving this conversation since I had no idea that this blog would turn into a discussion. I think I've come to a conclusion about the no-shop thing. I think no shops would kill the experience, maybe not entirely, but it wouldn't feel enjoyable. Especially if these bugbears and orcs did co-existed at one time so it would throw things off a bit. Maybe I'll throw some random merchant battles for free discounts. How's that for a change?
Crystal King - Intro added, no shop run possibility??
author=dasgibtesnet
War. Caused by maybe ressource shortage (even after the help from the beastfolk) for the humans which were riled up by local leaders which started out small but escalated in time but died down after a while. (basically small raids which moved on to bigger raids but when the bugbears/orcs started fighting back it kinda toned down until only the "hatred" brought by war survived but they themselves (humans) knew they couldnt continue this and went back to dealing with bugbears and orcs "normally" blaming them for what they did. Naturally I have thought of more variants of this but this one is the one I thought most likely.
A war seems feasible to how all of this started. Maybe there was a war to prove that orcs were superior or to test human strength. A rebellion could fit along these lines. But the big question is: who would oppress the orcs and the human race? If orcs and humans were at the bottom food chain, who would be at the top?
author=dasgibtesnet
A curse. Nationwide or only the leaders which affected several leaders and was brought on by the bugbear king which crystalized or something similar human settlers or their elites. Which kind of rebounded and "killed" him (well his Soul not this one lives within a certain cursed human) and is trying to undo the damage he did. Which came out to be the fault of the bugbear king and the orcs where kinda caught in the crossfire too. (this theory I found rather unlikely as I only attribute the worst to humanking =P)
Aye, you're not wrong about the curse part. I should point out that King Solomon (in the demo), is a half-orc. If you remembered in the previous post, the orc king was married to a female human. This means that their child is the current king of the game since he carries both human and orc blood. As part of his biography, King Solomon is 'cursed' because of a crystal like heart that's in his chest. How did it get there? Well, that's the big mystery of the game. (And pretty much the game's story line) I like the idea that you imply that there is a bugbear king, which I won't deny, there IS a bugbear king but I won't spoil who that is. Hint: It's not me, it's not a self-insert game.
author=dasgibtesnet
Cultural differences. See when different cultures meet there is often the chance that innocent gestures will be taken as grefious insults.... In some countries nodding is considered no for an example while for us it would be an affirmation. So all of this started because of some sort of misunderstanding and them meeting without beeing prepared for the culture "war" caused a huge chasm between the few races. Especially for humans getting tricked by Lepra Con himself(Herself?) with not knowing that they are greedy could result in bad blood. Things escalated after small things kept pilling up and human mercenaries killed the bugbear king because of a conceived affront and he placed a curse that if one of his attackers should take a certain "heart" he would be turned into what he/she despiced.
The gesture thing I can understand. I'm not sure how that could be conveyed in RPG Maker, maybe with icon bubbles? I'm not even sure if orcs would know what the middle finger means. =p
And Lepra Con is male btw.
I think something to think about is culture shock, given the circumstance for Bhazjadorr (who was cursed to be a bugbear). But why a bugbear? Why not make him werewolf or an orc? What would be the theory behind this?
It is hard to predict what the story line is about if you haven't played the game. But at least with the information I spill here or there, you can get an idea where the game is going.
Crystal King - Intro added, no shop run possibility??
Aye, I should've pointed out that the demo is really outdated like it was made back in May and now it's September xD. It will be fixed and updated but I haven't chosen a date to release the new build yet.
Kinda funny that I had no idea that you were German. I hope I didn't annoy you too much with my English puns, if my name wasn't the Annoying Bugbear. =p
I do like the questions that you brought up such as looting chests and valuables in someone's home. I think it's important to ask yourself these questions to understand the reasoning behind it. Now you know why I asked earlier if people would find it strange that a bugbear was shopping in a human village for potions and stuff. I'm okay with the idea of opening chests in a home if you were a hero like Link. But since this is RPG Maker and not Skyrim, the NPC's would be like 'Who cares! You're the hero! Just take my sh*t!'.
I think you said it best on the last paragraph, these things should be addressed when speaking with NPC's. I don't think there are any chests you can loot in the buildings as far as I know. I could be wrong but I think Worik's house is the only exception. Now you know why I've spent so much time on the world building to give you a deeper context between the different races of the game.
Now that you mentioned this in the middle paragraph, I don't mind that you share some ideas or theories about the game's plot so far. It really helps me find any plot holes that need some explaining or something that I didn't think about earlier.
Kinda funny that I had no idea that you were German. I hope I didn't annoy you too much with my English puns, if my name wasn't the Annoying Bugbear. =p
I do like the questions that you brought up such as looting chests and valuables in someone's home. I think it's important to ask yourself these questions to understand the reasoning behind it. Now you know why I asked earlier if people would find it strange that a bugbear was shopping in a human village for potions and stuff. I'm okay with the idea of opening chests in a home if you were a hero like Link. But since this is RPG Maker and not Skyrim, the NPC's would be like 'Who cares! You're the hero! Just take my sh*t!'.
I think you said it best on the last paragraph, these things should be addressed when speaking with NPC's. I don't think there are any chests you can loot in the buildings as far as I know. I could be wrong but I think Worik's house is the only exception. Now you know why I've spent so much time on the world building to give you a deeper context between the different races of the game.
Now that you mentioned this in the middle paragraph, I don't mind that you share some ideas or theories about the game's plot so far. It really helps me find any plot holes that need some explaining or something that I didn't think about earlier.
Crystal King - Intro added, no shop run possibility??
author=dasgibtesnet
As a matter of fact I dont see the pun... english ain't my first language so yeah =P
Oh lol. I didn't even know! I thought it was a clever name coming from a bugbear... Lepra Con is a play on the word 'leprachaun', which are creatures in Irish folklore. So Lepra Con would be a fake version due to the word 'con' in it. Which means he will try to swindle you for your gold!
author=dasgibtesnet
To be fair I wouldnt be feeling like immersion is broken if you buy from humans as a orc, but they should react differently to you if you do (like higher prices, some sort of "I dont like you stranger, but bussiness is business." Kind of attitude if you go there. Hm I wonder how one could do that.... I never really tried anything like that when I played around with the RPG Maker... I only remember that you can do something depoending on who is in the party.... well back to topic. But it would surprise me with the information I have now if humans would have any sort of prolonged conversation with you when you are an orc.... maybe make them say something like: "You are keeping strange company for a human, I would reconsider this if I were you" and stuff like that... I dunno what they could say as I still havent played the game =P
There is a scene that illustrates this but not in the current demo since it's outdated. It basically pertains to Azhal, who is one of your party members.
His appearance has scared many of the humans that were staying at the inn in Lambshire. We can assume that the humans don't like Azhal because he is a monster of sorts or that he has unnatural powers like absorbing magic. Could be interpreted either way.
As far as business goes, I think it would be a bad idea to raise a price for certain characters. I think earlier I liked the idea but now that I think about it, I think Azhal would just threaten the guy for his money back or have Worik steal it back. However, I won't "discount" the idea. Ah, I made another pun! =)
author=dasgibtesnet
Anyways if they are just settlers it would make sense if they had little to trade with, especially equibment that "beastfolk" would use. But I wonder why they would have an inn and how they make enough money to sleep there... are they working for the inn owner in return for a sleeping place? Do they not have enough materials to build a hut/tent/whatever for all the people? How do they even get coins? Is killing monsters for coins something common? How do they explain how they get coins from monsters? Or do monsters drop their body parts that can be sold/used for crafting? Is this an economy that revolves around killing enough monsters to have a place to sleep? How do they deal with inflation if there are far to many coins compared to services provided.... they would at some point have prices to high to afford even if one goes hunting the entire day... Where do they get their wares? I mean we can probably buy like 99 of each item without them running out of stock.... and and and.... i will stop here and download the game and put it higher on my playing list.... you piqued my curiosity if i get answers to all the questions I now have xD
It's called 'video game logic'. Don't question it. XD Okay, let's take this one step at a time since I have some juicy backstory to explain. You can call this an exclusive scoop from the dev!
The orc king is married to a human, who brought her people (who are humans) to the continent of Devonshire, which are inhabited by forest folk (like goblins and faeries) and beastfolk (which are orcs and bugbears). The two words are sometimes synonymous but humans tend to call them 'forest folk' due to the surrounding landscape being a forest.
Since humans are settlers, it would make sense that they traded things with the other tribes. What they traded for is up for debate but chances are, it's probably gold since I have no idea what orcs would do with gold in the first place. Maybe the orcs use the gold to make fancy jewelry for the king or make him a piece of armor but that's about it. You could even say that gold is the human currency while 'Faerie tokens' (which are featured in the demo) are the currency for the orcs and forest folk.
How the humans had the resources, that's what the orcs (and the forest) was for. The queen might've asked her husband, the orc king, if she could build her own human empire, to which the king did and her city ,Lambshire, was created with the aid of the orcs. Based on this info, we can imply that the humans and the orcs did co-existed and were potential allies for war, which was a pretty big deal back then. Maybe that's why the humans immigrated to this country. But where did it all go wrong? Well, the answer is in the game's title. Game theory time! But...I'll save it for another time once the game is fully completed!
As for lodges, gold drops and potions, let's just say they are the basics for any RPG to begin with. Suppose if there was any lore or reasoning behind it, then there should be a reason to why it was designed in that manner. Like, why wouldn't you have shops? Why would potions run out? I think players should be intrigued by the lore than just say it's 'bad game design'. Although, chances are, that's probably the response I would get for doing something like that. Which is why I'm asking in the first place.
I can't say I answered all of your questions, maybe too many questions lol. But I think the inns at the moment will just function as set pieces than functional resources for healing.
Crystal King - Intro added, no shop run possibility??
author=Kylaila
Good point : D Gotcha. And that makes a lot of sense. They DID seem to treat you as monsters first n foremost, so banter of any kind would be outlandish.
Aye, precisely! Now you know why I've been pondering about this for some time now.
It sucks for Bhazjadorr since he's cursed and those humans have no idea that he was once human.
Crystal King - Intro added, no shop run possibility??
author=dasgibtesnet
They wouldnt make you refuse their business oh no, they would wring you for every piece of gold/coins whatever you are worth.
So they would stock up on stuff other races need if there is any meaningful traffic... they just would sell their services at a very high... rate. Especially if they dont have a choice but to shop there.
Gives me the EverQuest vibe all over again. I'm not opposed to the idea of raising prices. In fact, to bounce off from that idea, I could raise the prices intentionally at the beginning so when you first arrive, it would be expensive. Then after you gain trust, you would get a nice discount. At least one character would have an initial discount due to their race (i.e. Rennic would get a discount in a human town and Lesnar would get a discount from a lizard merchant and etc.) That would be an interesting experience but how would players feel about that? That's what I like to know.
I won't remove shops entirely since you'll need to buy healing items somehow. The inns will be pretty much useless atm but it's probably for Azhal's sake. Poor guy.
It was just a thought to see how players would react when they see Worik talk to a human merchant or when Rennic bargain shops with the orcs. Don't know if that would seem odd or funny but I was worried if someone was going to question the lore behind it.
And lastly, the goblins are the greedy folk in the game, notably the character named Lepra Con (ah, see the pun?!), who tries to rip you off for passage through the Goblin Grove. The humans, on the other hand, are settlers so they are not used to seeing beastfolk so why would they trade in the first place?














