Hail Elyrians!
It's been near two fortnights since the conclusion of Release 0.3.0 and the team is heads-down on the pivotal work of what will no doubt be remembered as one of the two most critical releases in the development of CoE: Release 0.4.0.
While Release 0.3.0 was largely about the stability and integrity of our platform, in-game communication, performance, and readying the world for the world-building process, Release 0.4.0 is all about the game. While we will no-doubt revisit our platform technology at some point in the future, our focus for Release 0.4.0 is all about breadth of functionality, with very little attention being spent on the engine.
The goal of Release 0.3.0 was to have the platform at a point where we could get as many as 2,500 people walking around in the world, checking their inventory, equipment, and character sheets, and interacting with one another through communication. Mission accomplished; but walking and talking does not a game make!
Release 0.4.0 is where we take the prototypes we've been working on over the last couple of years and begin integrating them into the code-base so that we have the game-play features of Alpha 1 (in some minimally viable way) all in one place. By the time we exit 0.4.0, we will have iterated, in one way or another, on every major feature of Alpha 1. But what features are those? Let's take a look.
Development of the Alpha 1 features is divided up into an order-of-operations in roughly three categories. These are:
The first set of features are things like having the ability to walk around in the world. Being able to check your inventory and character sheet, being able to create a character, and being able to see how character creation is tied into the family and genetics system.
You'll no-doubt recognize those features as some of the main things we were working on at the end of last year and the early part of this year. Those are all components necessary for the world to exist, but contain little of the features most people think of when they think about a "game." Largely, those components are used as information that is fed into actual mechanics. If you take a look at the flowchart below, you'll see the items in the second category begin to resemble more of the "gameplay" side of things.
In the second category you've got things like the player lifecycle, which includes being able to be incapacitated and - you guessed it - spirit walk. At the same time, it includes skills, the identity system, world interaction, and the much desired artificial intelligence systems of both our creatures and NPCs. While we'll be paying particular attention to Skills and World Interaction in release 0.4.0, we'll be hitting all of these at some point over the next release.
Finally, if you take a look at the far right category in the flowchart, you'll see features such as survival, gossip & knowledge, contracts, combat, crafting, and access restriction. These are not simple mechanics like in the second category, in that they are a combination of everything that comes before it. For readability-sake, this chart has been simplified but imagine that every box in the Core Gameplay Systems category has arrows going in and out between every other box.
As with the previous, we'll be spending most of our time in Release 0.4.0 digging into crafting, gossip and knowledge systems, and combat, but we'll be visiting all of them at some point. That should give you a high-level overview, but there's a couple we said we'd be digging into in greater depth during 0.4.0. Well, let's dig into those a bit more now, shall we?
When we first began work on Chronicles of Elyria we did so with the idea that all actions a player could take in the game would be skill based. Some of that skill would be player skill, and some of it would be character skill. As a result, there was a time when CoE had well over 150 unique skills, divided into various different categories spread across a giant skill tree.
As time went on, we realized that there were many actions a player could take which didn't necessarily require character skill. Character attributes would very likely be sufficient for such actions, especially when combined with character knowledge. Of course, we still wanted there to be player skill involved, but the simple act of reducing the number of actions that were tied to character skill dramatically simplified and streamlined the design of the game. This lead to what we referred to as the Skill Flower, as seen on the left-hand side of the following comparison chart.
But we didn't stop there. In Release 0.4.0 we've begun work on further simplifying and refactoring the Skill Flower. If you look at the comparison you'll notice a couple key things.
Deviant has been replaced with Guile. This was done because there were many skills in the deviant tree that could be or would be used legitimately by actors and entertainers, as well as by professional lock smiths. At the end of the day it didn't make sense that they'd be all "deviants".
The Bardic leaf has been split into Art and Lore. This represents the performative vs. artistic nature of many of the things that used to be in the Bardic Skill Leaf.
Finally, we have introduced a whole new Knowledge section. This section represents the things your character knows and spans everything from knowledge of various plants and animals, to knowledge of metals and materials, even to knowledge of farming and animal husbandry. These new Knowledge domains represent a simplification of the skill system that allows us to focus a bit more on player skill than character skill, while still making sure your character and their experiences in Elyria share in likelihood of success.
While a good amount of work has already been done in this area in 0.4.0, there is more streamlining and work to be done. When 0.4.0 exits, we should have the final (Pre-Alpha) Skill System locked down. It will, of course, be iterated on when we begin playtesting, later on.
In the same vein as skills, a large amount of energy is being spent in 0.4.0 on the crafting system. This includes both its relationship to the World Interaction system as well as how tools and stations are used. And, to ensure we've got assets to work with while we experiment with the different professions, the content team is, and will continue to be, hard at work on creating assets for us to use. Here's a couple for you to take a look at.
With such a heavy focus on skills, it should come as no surprise that one of the key motivators was from evaluating our combat system. There are some combat mechanics that tie in very well to a system of character skills, techniques, etc., while there are others, such as Archery, which we felt should be very focused on a player's skill and their ability to read the environment.
As a result, we're also doing iteration work on the combat system. For example, we've been tuning and balancing the different attributes associated with the combat system (along with all the other skills). By default, all skills have a combination of primary, secondary, and tertiary attributes that govern your success rate, and the quality of your success.
Here's a listing that shows the attributes as they stand for a just few of the top-level combat skills. Each leaf in the Skill Flower will have its own entry like this.
Another thing we're working on in 0.4.0 is world building. Upon the exit of 0.4.0 we want our world-building tools at a point where we can finally procedurally generate entire maps. That means we'll be ready for Map Voting! There are two parts then to the work we'll be doing in 0.4.0, the world generation itself, and then website support needed to actually perform map voting.
In addition to the varied flora in our biomes, we're modeling the unique fauna that will belong there. Some, like the foxcelot below, will have different versions depending on the biome it has adapted to. This can affect color and fur pattern, as it will with the foxcelot, but not always. Some creatures will look relatively the same from biome to biome (such as a sheep) but have different behaviors that help them survive there.
I was tempted to share some images of the Broadleaf Forest biome we've been working on, but I'll leave the honors to Raevantiel in his inaugural ChamberBot session tomorrow. One thing I can say for certain is that it's got some very broad trees.
Back at the beginning of 0.3.0 we shared these wireframes as a general guideline of how the map voting website might look.
Since then, we've made further work on the map voting site, and have both completed mockups of the site, as well as begun implementation. While we're not done yet, here's a screenshot of the mockup.
And finally, 0.4.0 marks the beginning of our first major world-event. Back in November and December of last year players got a chance to participate in the Free Kingdom of Elyria event. This event was server-specific, but still provided an opportunity for the entire community to get involved with others to help shape the history on the Luna (NA-E) server.
This July/August we'll be doing an event similar in scope, but with much higher stakes. We'll be running a 6-week event where the players themselves will be dictating, through their collective actions and decisions, the historical outcome of an event from the year 229 of the 4th Age - nearly 600 years before launch.
This is no small thing. This event demonstrates, clearer than ever, our desire to allow the CoE community and players to dictate the history of Elyria prior to launch date. While the Chronicles of Elyria are vast, spanning back before recorded history, and into a future yet unknown, this will be the first time the players truly get to write their own chronicle. Imagine it as a precursor to how world events will unfold using the Story Engine. While more information will be coming soon, the players have yet to pen the unfolding events of The Searing Plague.
That's all for now folks. Release 0.4.0 is really what we at the studio have all been waiting for. It's an opportunity to bring gameplay elements into the world we've been creating. Something we can feel. Combined with more integration work in 0.5.0, these next two releases are perhaps the most vital and impactful of the entire process. We're glad you're coming along with us, and we're so very excited for you to see the outcomes of 0.4.0 and 0.5.0.
Pledged to the Continued Development of the Soulborn Engine and the Chronicling of Elyria,
Caspian
Awesome, but where is engineering? It seems that mechanical engineering would fall under lore, like architecture, but I see no viable option for those of us that wish to be mechanical engineers (siege engines, ships, cranes, etc).
Love this!
Very very cool. But you misspelled “sleight of hand.”
ohh my its commmmming closer and closer, cant wait till i finally set foot in CoE!
Looking forward to all of this
This looks amazing
Great update. Excited for more progress!
Excellent update. Still super excited for everything to come.
I am really looking forward to the release!
nice, hope we see more of!
Great update! These are what I want to see more of!
Nice!
It looks very good! waiting with illusion more news on this subject! regards
Great stuff! Can't wait for map-voting.
Excellent work. Looking forward to the future!
Exciting times! This transition will bring us across one of the final bridges to be crossed before CoE begins to generate the kind of content that will bring serious public attention to the game. Though we're still a long way off release, I suspect this iteration will make real for many the progress that has been made since the project first came out of its Kickstarter phase.
looking good, soon be here
This is fantastic we are approaching quickly. I noticed dual wielding unless my eyes deceived me. Great Job SBS keep up the good work.
Can't wait for more details on the event! The glassware looks really nice :)
Got my heart beating Boiiiiiiii
Yes!
Very interesting indeed - where I suspekt we will see a few more changes to the Skill tree before the Beta is released ! (And I'm not just talking about spelling "Sleight of hand" correctly. :) )
It would be interesting if they instead of a merely one-dimensional hierarchical skill-tree would develop it into a "Skill Web", where for inctance "First Aid" should be connected to "Medicine" which has "Pharmacology" that should be connected to "Alchemy", etc. Think it would be quite easily done by emulating the "Primary/Secondary/Tertiary Attribute" system influence in a similar way as to "Parent/Sibling/Related Skill" bonuses.
I wonder what the different associations will/should/can do, in terms of direct bonuses, learning speed and pattern/action enabling.
Posted By Lord Zeb at 5:02 PM - Wed Jul 18 2018
One thing to keep in mind: that skill graph isn't a dependency graph. You don't level up to move on to the next node down the line or something like that. It's a graphic showing the "relation" of skills. Mechanically, it actually works in sort of the opposite way from a dependency tree, in fact. (Sorry if you've seen this already, I did post something about this earlier in another thread)
Basically, as you improve a skill, some amount of improvement is fed back into that skill's parent on this graph. That in turn makes using any of the parent skill's children (or "skilldren" as some of us took to calling them) a little bit easier. If you learn how to cook, you'll find you're better prepared to try brewing and alchemy, for example, because you've learned many related skills and processes while cooking that can be applied to either brewing or alchemy. This sort of "cross pollination of skills" is represented by the parent skill, Chemistry.
Another thing to keep in mind: Skills can be dependent but not linked, because the skill and its value doesn't encompass the whole of the experience of the related trade. Knowledge is tracked separately, for example. And then there's processes (techniques) and the crafting framework in general to consider, as well.
Yes, there is some overlap between between Alchemy and Pharmacology, for example, but that overlap doesn't necessarily mean they are directly connected skills. Gaining knowledge of the formulation and the skills required to make, for example, a poultice that relieves nausea doesn't necessarily help me isolate salts from suspension or create a catalyst to convert a mineral oxide into another material that's then easier to convert into pure iron.
Likewise, while I might need to know how do those things to make the components of my poultice, as an apothecary I don't really need to know how to make those components to make that poultice; I can simply acquire the already processed components from an alchemist and build my poultice from there. These overlaps and inter-dependencies are an aspect of the game's economy design, broadly, but they're also indicative of some of the ways separating knowledge and skill affect the way you go about making and playing a game like this.
Hope that helps! :)
Congratulations on making ranged about strength and not dexterity.
Hope melee is about dexterity and strength as secondary.
I am new to this game but I love everything I have read and watched about this game. Something about the possibilities of being an information broker (or whatever else you can dream of) really gets me excited. However, I’ve been disappointed too many times in the past in this genre and I think the only thing keeping me from diving in is the lack of a clear understanding about the timeframe. I get that it will be ready when it’s ready but with so many groundbreaking ideas here, I fear the completion date may exceed my own!
Keep up the great work SS, fulfill your destiny with this game and I hope to join your community in the near future!
Posted By Caric Starfinder at 09:09 AM - Wed Jul 18 2018
They know the time frame. It's just that we don't.
Let the good times roll on
Where is the bardic branch for gossip and things? I only see "misinformation" under the "Guile" branch
Posted By Drun Redforge at 08:12 AM - Wed Jul 18 2018
Gossip isn't a skill.
Great update, i needed this today :)
Keep up the good work, so exciting.
The Searing Plague sounds promising.. rubs hands together Tending to the dead business back then must have been great for my family!
Amazing... That skill tree is a thing of beauty
Great update, nice to see the things geting fleshed out. With this event and map voting i belive the comunity will be hyped for a good amount of time and the game will increase in popularity, we could reach some media with the idea that the players are voting on the map they wanna play.
Oh my... Map voting... History changing 600 years.... Idk what to say other than it sounds amazing, yet terrifying all at the same time!
I zoomed in on the skill tree to get a better view of the current skill tree and must I say I am ecstatic.
Got to be one of the shortest but ultimately most satisfying dev journals to date. 👍
Completely agree!
"... platform at a point where we could get as many as 2,500 people walking around in the world, checking their inventory, equipment, and character sheets, and interacting with one another through communication. Mission accomplished..."
So there are 2500 people in 'pre-alpha' doing this walking or is this assuming those numbers are supported by the work done? Are these NPC's or actual people pinging the server from different areas?
Thank you! This is really amazing. Can't wait for more news about the game!
Yeah Map Voting...… what I am waiting for finally.
I love it!!! I can't wait until we can map vote and then get into the game. I'm curious on the actual game mechanics. I'm curious to know why the sneaking and eavesdropping skills were removed?
That aside... you guys are doing some great work, keep it up!
Great write up. Love being able to read all the skills in the flower, and now we've got an awesome event to get hyped about.
And another step - keep going!
Epic post! Thanks for sharing ;)
Nice post! Did have to change my position of "bard" for EIC to "field operatives" since bardic skills are being rewritten a tad :P
I'm very excited. The number of skills is fantastic, and really supports multiple educational ecosystems and schools as a valid component of the game, in turn supporting professions, crafters and guilds. Great update!
So does this mean it's safe to say that Alpha testing will be soon? how long before you guys think you'll be done with 0.4.0?
Posted By Lentor at 9:37 PM - Tue Jul 17 2018
No, we will be going through Pre-Alpha first, then Alpha testing. Alpha testing is expected later this year.
Wow I LOVE all the information that we have gotten today with this Blog Post. But question, I don't think it was listed in anything that I read, but when is the map voting happening? Or is it not confirmed yet?
Posted By Howling Storms at 9:25 PM - Tue Jul 17 2018
There isn't currently a date public yet, I asked Caspian on discord and he said that it would start after this event, I then asked if he meant after the event ends or starts and he simply said good question, when its ready.
Just please, please, please, make combat smooth and FUN to play. I don't expect this kind of game to be fast and furious action combat like BDO, but if it ends up feeling more akin to Bless I'll be soooo disappointed. Give the combat system lots of love!
Something I would like to ask is how do you plan on spreading the lore through, the land do you plan on doing it yourself or do you plan on letting it player decide how it's distributed. Finally, if you are spreading lore through the land yourself in what way are you planning on it being spread if you willing to tell?
Nice update. I'm particularly intrigued by this bit:
Time for speculation on the attributes involved in skills? I think so!
Nice
Cool update.
Curious that we can see the results for map voting beforehand/as it's happening. Seemed to make more sense to me if it's flat out blind voting. That way it's more a surprise which one wins. Not, oh yeah that one map was winning the whole time
Posted By Gunnlang at 03:38 AM - Wed Jul 18 2018
Agree.
I honestly love the fact you can see who is winning if you see potential in 2 maps but you see neather one is first but one you like is second you can vote for that one making your vote count a bit more than otherwise!
This is all really exciting. I wanted to know what the difference is between "short swords" and "one handed long blades" Which types can be dual wielded? Ideally both since two one handed long blades could mean the historical "case of rapiers."
LOVE the well flushed out skill trees and knowledges! Too many games give you just a few skills and that's it. You gave like almost 7 dozen! Love it!
The number of skills is fantastic, and really supports multiple educational ecosystems and schools as a valid component of the game, in turn supporting professions, crafters and guilds. We've been developing a guild/school, and reading this really makes me feel like we're on the right track. It's great to share vision with a developer :)
that map voting page is sexy... mmmmmm... licks lips
Great work! In reading it says animals will adapt to the bio they are in. Are there plans to have biome specific animals? or can i expect to see cold weather animals in the desert that have adapted and vice versa?
Nice! Always love getting tomorrow's post today....
😉
Posted By Fergus Redbeard at 7/18/2018 2:19:38 AM
Caspian has figured out time travel, dontcha know? :P
The Lore event sounds great! I can't wait.
So happy with the progress of the game, and I am excited to see what 0.4.0 and 0.5.0 bring at their conclusions!
This is great, everyone!
i'm super excited for 0.4.0 but man oh gosh, can we get a map done so we can recruit for our Counties.
Combat:: tab targeting, i need my tab targeting please
It's going to be soft lock. Where you move your mouse cursor around and it soft-locks on a target. Then executing combat techniques automatically move toward the target unless they dodge away from your camera. Then you can miss them. You can switch between targets simply by moving your look-at vector over a different target. No tab targeting. No hard-lock.
Awesome!
Skillz. Awesome in scope! Super Great and thank you for sharing!!
Amazing work as always!
But I will never get fact that the server names spell 'A L S O' out of my head.
Amazing post! I'm so excited about the new Skill Tree/Flower and changes you've made. Now feels more comfortable and realistic. I can't hold the hype right now xD
Also, Lore event is going to be so epic ^^
Me too, didn't notice until now!
Love those Alchemy jars! What's in them? He asked as he reached for the contents.
Hmmmmm
yess! The Skill Flower!
Knowledges
Skills
Combat
Ranged Combat:
Triggered Weapons:
Drawn Weapons:
Thrown Weapons:
Melee Combat:
Unarmed:
Polearm:
Blades:
Dual Wielding
Blunt Weapons:
Defensive:
Lore
Medicine
Scribing:
Inquiry
Art
Performing Arts:
Musical Arts:
Survival
Wayfinding:
Hunting:
Fishing:
First Aid:
Forestry:
Animal Care:
Horticulture
Crafting
Chemistry:
Glass, Bone and Stone Working:
Engraving
Cloth and Leather
Metal Working:
Wood Working:
Guile
Slight of Hand
Replication
Disguise
Prowling:
Misinformation
((BIG Thank you to Polite And Duffy and others for helping fill in the blanks when we didnt have a higher res photo ♥))
Thanks for the update! Looking good!
Thank you. Keep up the good work
Thank you for the update! Keep up the good work!
Aw shit... now I regret not getting a foxcelete cause he's a cutie.
I was so close!