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Table of Contents
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Overview
This page will eventually become a complete design document. For the time being it's a copy/paste of the various discussions we've had on our discussion boards.
Classless System
Characters are not grouped into strict classes and are generally free to chose to learn any number of skills and abilities provided he/she is advanced enough to do so.
Skill System
In order to balance gameplay dynamics, skills are grouped by both general type (e.g., melee, elemental, ranged, etc.) and then sub-grouped by any associated elemental properties.
As a character gains in levels, they are awarded Skill Points, These points are used to enhance a particular Skill and are assigned based on usage (e.g., as a character uses a melee weapon, their melee weapon skill increases).
Several factors determine the maximum number of points that can be assigned to any particular Skill. First and foremost is the Character's Level. As the Character's Level increases, so too does the Skill Point Cap.
The characteristics of starting culture (e.g., player race) will also affect the point cap on any particular Skill Set1.
In order to prevent players from turning their Character's into 'super-humans', Skill Points are limited. Players will have the ability to fully learn two separate Skill Sets. However, players are not limited to two Skill Sets. They may choose to fully learn one Skill Set and learn 50% of another Skill Set and 50% of yet another Skill Set. How players choose to allow Skill Point distribution is entirely up to them.
Note that players do not actively add Skill Points to Skill Sets. This is done automatically as the player uses Abilities within a particular Skill Set. However, in order to make it easy to manage Skill Point distribution, players will be able to set 'maximum cap levels' for any number of Skill Sets as they see fit.
Abilities
All abilities are grouped under Skill Sets.
All Abilities must be learned — these are learned through various trainers located throughout the world, most often in cities and frequently within Faction Halls.
Players will typically purchase Abilities from trainers although many Traniner will only teach Abilities to players with enough reputation in their associated Faction. Players mst meet Skill Level requirements in order to learn new Abilties.
Character Attributes
The above image is intended to show how various character attributes affect other attributes. It's rather complex and somewhat confusing. I'll be adding a full description of how it works.
Combat System
Professions
Professions help to add additional dynamics to the game and give players another method of interacting with the game world and other players as well as providing additional methods of income as well as providing for some economic sinks.
Players will be able to choose up to two primary professions and two secondary professions.
Primary Professions
- Alchemist - Uses Herbs, Plants and Magical materials to create potions, tinctures and tonics.
- Blacksmith - Uses various Minerals and Metal Ores to produce armor, melee weapons, equipment and vendorable items.
- Bowyer - Fashions Bows and Crossbows out of various materials including Wood and Metals.
- Carpenter - Creates useable and vendorable items using Wood materials.
- Gemologist - Specializes in the creation of Elemental Crystals from Crystal Fragments or Crystals.
- Jeweler - Creates useable and vendorable Jewelery.
- Miner - Can detect and collect various Minerals and Metal Ores.
Secondary Professions
- Demonologist - Specializes in the study, summoning and utilization of Demons and Demonic Power2.
- Dragon Whisperer - Can talk to, tame and train Dragons as Pets or Mounts.
- Fisherman - Catches fish that can be used by other players or sold to vendors.
- Summoner - Has the ability to summon various Beasts, Creatures and Monsters3.
- Winemaker - Uses fruits and grains to produce various Wines, Beer and Spirits that are usable and vendorable.
Elemental Abilities
Elemental Abilities will be a large part of game play. Each region/culture of this world will specialize in a different element. There will be four elemental abilities being: water, fire, wind, and earth and a binding element called spirit. Each of these elements may be complemented by sub-elementals such as ice for water. This variety of elements can be useful in parties, in which they can work together. Each elements can have special weapons that automatically are imbued with thee element or may be stronger with a certain element.
Elemental abilities will be carried around in a type of book. This book may be accessed through pressing a key. A skill bar will be on a player's screen. A player is able to drag any ability down to their skill bar. Their elemental abilities may also empower your weapon more, an example being if you sword had a fire gem or was forged a certain way, you are able to have the sword become a fire-sword.
There will be many combinations between different elements. This encourages players to play with each other and become more powerful as a whole. With a group of players they will be able to combine their different abilities to defeat difficult enemies or finish difficult quests. Indicators will tell each party member which element they are using and they will use the appropriate skill.
Earth
Air
Fire
Water
Player Interaction
Chatting
Talking and chatting with others online is a large part of the online component. There will be a chat box in which you may type to others and they may type to you. This is a way to trade with others, or become friends with another.
The chat box will be broken down into different sections. One section will be global, in which everyone in the vicinity will be able to hear a player. Guild chat will allow all guild members to talk to each other wherever they may be. Friends chat will show the messages you are sending and receiving with friends. Trading chat will show players who are looking for items or are selling items.
Trading
Trading is an action that is definitely required. Trading may occur between players or when you trade with a NPC.
The idea is that NPCs may give you basic items, with large gaps between level or skill required for the next better weapon. Now between those two weapons you may have upgrades or create your own weapon which is stronger than the original but weaker than the basic weapon for the next level weapons. Of course there can be few items that are stronger than the next level of items, but it will be difficult to obtain.
Friends
A player will be able to have multiple friends. While a player wanders around the LoM world online they will meet new people, some becoming friends. There will be a friend's list in which a player may add friends to keep track of each other. Friends will be able to message each other from anywhere.
Guilds
Players will be able to group together to form the typical MMORPG Guild.
In order to establish a Guild, a leader must petion 10 other players to sign a Charter. This Charter is then brought to a City Hall found in any major Hub City. A Deposit4.
Guild Battles
LoM will host officially sanctioned Guild Battles that will take place in moderated arenas. Guilds must both mutually agree to a battle. Each Guild must have the same number of players on each side of the fight and the average of the abilities of both sides must be relatively even (measured using each players level, attributes and equipment then averaged out).
Opposing Guilds may choose 5vs5, 10vs10 or 20vs20.
Player vs. Player
PvPing will be part of the online game play. Players will fight can fight each other in designated areas in the wilderness or in dueling arenas. The fight will be to the death. This may be for fun, though there can be consequences but also winnings.
Pros: Players can have fun testing their strength against an opponent. If a player is able to win they will receive a prize. A prize may vary from the opponents money, or money is just won. They may also receive an certificate in which they may trade in and they will get anything, randomly chosen if they turn it in to a certain NPC. If a player has many certificates there is a higher of chance of receiving a better item. Basically the victorious player will loot the player, these will be items the loosing opponent actually has. The winning player will not be able to choose what items drop.
Cons: The loser will lose a small amount of money and possibly some other minor items (e.g., potion, herb, etc.). Additionally, heavy damage will be taken to all items of equipment carried on the player both equipped and not equipped.
Friendly Duels
Friendly Duels are a way for players to test their skills against one another in a friendly, sometimes competative way. A duel is agreed upon by both players and is not to the death. No items or money are lost when defeated. No reputation or prizes are granted to the winner.
Group Battles
Like in parties people are able to make each other's attacks stronger with different elements. With group fights it can be seen as essentially one party versus another party. Players may go around a town asking if others would like to partner up and fight another group. This will be broken up into 2 vs 2 or 4 vs 4, etc.
Sanctioned Tournaments
There will be official rules unlike out in the wilderness.The max amount of players will be 40 meaning 20 vs 20. Any amount of guilds are allowed to team up as long as they follow the 20 limit cap amount of players. Rules will be enforced during this tournaments. Guilds may develop tactics to fight their opponent. At the end of each tournament the victorious Guild will win a prize. Each opponent will be unknown and will not be chosen by the Guild.
These battles will be officially recorded and saved. Guilds will be able to choose what type of arena they want to fight inside.
Economics
Currency
The currency in Legend of Mazzeroth will be called Kur. Kur will be the dominant currency. The currency may be broken down into different sections, each being a different worth. This can be compared to a system with gold, silver, and copper.
Lottery
The lottery can be compared to the real world lottery. All players will have a choice to buy a lottery ticket, costing a certain amount of money. The lottery drawing may be daily or weekly.
Here is an example of how it can work daily: Let's say that players buy a lottery ticket for 10 gold and can get a return of 10000 gold. They have a 1/1000 chance of winning. Those odds are high enough that if 1000 players bought a ticket, one person would win every day. That's a 10,000 sink but we'd be putting that 10,000 right back into the economy which that player would then use to do whatever.
Player Trading
We should probably provide something similar to World of Warcraft's Auction House — a free in-game officially sanctioned way for players to trade with eachother without bombarding local chat channels with annoying messages that other users may not care to see.
Providing an Auction House will also serve as a minor money sink. World of Warcraft determines that deposit amount based on an the NPC valuation of an item. This deposit is returned back to a player if their auction is successful. An unsuccessful auction keeps the deposit.
We could also determine the deposit based on the value of the auction — e.g., if we had a 10% deposit, an item being sold for 1000 would require a 100 deposit. This is the way most real-world auctions are handled however could cause players to avoid the Auction House if the deposit is too high (10% is clearly very expensive on high-value items but roughly pennies on low-value items).
If we took the real-world approach to auction deposits, we could go with a negative scalar percentage — e.g., the higher the auction amount, the lower the deposit percentage. This would make higher-priced auctions more attractive to players vs. using a flat rate percentage.
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Miscellaneous
Holidays
Holiday celebrations will take place in Legend on Mazzeroth. There will be a variety of holidays, including real world holidays such as Christmas, Halloween, etc., this will also include fictional holidays that only exist in the game.
Holiday events will have different activities. An example being: on Christmas you may receive a present which may be an item or money. Seasonal weather such as snow, or decorations may be implemented.
Mini-Games
Mini-games are going to be a part of Lom. These will be small games on the side in which a player does not have to partake in. These mini-games will allow players to win prizes, some that may not be available or easily found otherwise.
Environment
The environment will be always active as possible. NPCs will walk around town, you will be able to talk to them. Night and day will occur in which the luminosity of everything will change throughout the day. Different time zones is a possibility right now, and an idea of mine. Wind and movement of creatures and animals may also take part in the LoM environment.
Reputation
A player's reputation may come into play on single player gameplay to a certain degree. In which decisions, family, etc. will decide if you are good, bad, or are disliked by certain NPCs. This whole topic is still open for discussion.
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