[A17][WIP] Unifica Magica - (v.4 beta - now on steam)

Started by roxxploxx, April 18, 2017, 01:59:20 PM

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roxxploxx

Unifica Magica
~~~Multiple Magical Pathways~~~
~a technology alternative~

Unifica Magica adds several types of magic as a pathway to advance and sustain a Rimworld colony, in competition with the current technological approach in Rimworld. Each magical path will have it's own feel and in order to advance in that path, your strategy and base will evolve in support of that path.






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WIZARDRY
Through study, your colony gains an understanding of the arcane, building devices that support and protect its people.

Wizardry is a grind. It's about research and study to learn about how to build devices to support and protect your colony. Basically, a factory of people studying a deep research tree and continuously crafting magical runes, which are needed to make any item and power them. When enemies approach, your base defenses are weak at a distance but your short range Arcer pylons can wear enemies down, until they are drained of energy. However, a powerfully skilled wizard (i.e. your 'Wizardry' skill) with a legendary Old Magic Wand can devastate approaching enemies with ease, protected behind magic shields.


Figure 1. A wizard sits at his Arcane Alcove, crafting runes to power things like the Arcers and Pylons on the left. Wizard lamps and arcane floors, walls and doors surround him. Around his alcove, Arcane Research Cabinets sit, improving his speed.

Runes:
power, binding, pulsing, control, awareness, old magic. These runes ramp up in difficulties and resources required to make.

Spellbook:
Spells will be slowly recovered but if you study at the Arcane Alcove, you'll regenerate them quickly. I'm using JecsTools to do this so here's a video of some of that now. This casts a Wizard Bolt and a Fear person spell as well as showing a spottable knife.

YouTube Video: Casting Spells and Weapon and Apparel Powers

Level 1: Wizard Bolt, Sparks
Level 2: Fear Person, Blink
Level 3: Fear Bomb

Looking for spell ideas that fit into being a wizard... thinking some utility like spells such as dig and other spells like poison gas and mud.


Production:
Arcane Alcove: A desk covered in papers and books, used to generate wizard runes.
Arcane Workbench: A bench with simple tools of wizardry, capable of producing the simplest of items and artifacts
Arcane Research Cabinet: Stores past notes and experiences with the arcane and provides a buff to Arcane Alcoves.

Wands:
Note: damage increases with Wizard skill
Arcane Wand: An arcane imbued wand. It focuses your arcane Wizard power into a damaging bolt. The more powerful your Wizardry, the more damage done.
Old Magic Wand: More powerful arcane wand. More damage due to a burst fire, more range, more accuracy.
Lightning Wand: Single target damage.
Explosive Wand: AoE damage.
Disintegration Wand: Single target damage and disintegration of armor. (in progress)


Figure 2. Shown are three of the wands I am playing with (v.2 release): Old Magic (burst w/small explosive), Explosive (AoE), Lightning (single target). Wands do damage based upon the Wizard's skill.

Defenses:
Arcer and ranged pylons slowly drain their runes as they attack enemies. Arcers are melee range and pylons are longer range but not very effective. The Arcane Launcher fires mortar shells with arcane energy at your enemies, creating a more rapid firing cluster of smaller explosions around them.


Research Topics:
Wizardry: You start to gain an understanding of matters relating to Wizardry.
Arcane Wizardry: You learn to craft runes that empower wizardry. First, you must build an arcane alcove to support your efforts.
Arcane Artificer: By applying the runes you generate to items, you are learning to extract their power for your own purposes. You can now make some basic defensive items.
Enchanting I: Your ability to control the runess has improved to the point you can contain power with more control. You can make a more advanced defensive pylon, as well as clothes and a curious table that wizards play at.
Arcane Scribe: You learn how to archive your research activities.
Elementalism: An understanding of the raw elements of cold and heat.
Inanimate Imbuement: An ability to force large amount of energy into items. You can now empower better walls and doors as well as temperature devices.
Old Magic: You've discovered powerful old magic. It enables new and powerful scirpts to empower your base.
Old Magic Artificer: You can now apply the old power to your creations.
Arcane Control: With the power of old magic growing in your mind, you learn ways to manage arcane power to a finer level of control.
Arcane Channelling: More advanced weaponry.



Additional: 'Wizardry' skill which impacts your wand damage and ability to build devices (displays off the character screen but fixed in next version), wizardry clothes (robes, amulets, rings, bracers), lights, grow vats, temperature items, walls, doors, floors, etc.




SORCERY
(in progress) Through individualized personal power and enhancers, you grow in ability to shape power.

The plan is: A few people become very powerful as others build structures and devices to empower them. Non-sorcerers stay back when the action starts. Sorcerers are more powerful inside their domain, and weak outside it. About building rooms that empower the sorcerer. Sorcerers can spend time powering magical systems (like batteries) or in empowerment (training) which increases energy generation. Drains energy when using sorcery.




DRUIDIC
(in progress) Pulling energy from the life forces of this desolate planet, you fear no outsiders that dare enter your open and lush domain.

The plan is: to cultivate defensive plants around your base by placing druidic plants and call on the forces of nature to cast spells and such. Would love to transform into animals but will see if possible first. The feel of the base will be lush and full of life, with no walls blocking the advance of enemies as walls block life. Will create devices to support plants growing out of temperature and such so expect plants to grow on ice and desert climates. So far, I have exploding and entangling vine defenses. Poisoning plants shouldn't be too hard and I'm working on needler plants. By extending the Pot item, you can change what is planted at a location through typical sowing actions.

Plants Teaser: Here are the Entangling vine and Popping Fern plants. They activate when you get near and are planted in Druid Defensive Plots. They only operate when mature so plan ahead. Artwork still in progress. Also, the druid defensive plot is very resistant to explosive damage so it will last between ferns, but the ferns will have to regrow.

Figure 2. The entangling vine is a crowd control tool, reaching out to slow raiders (90% slowing) while the popping fern is like a mortar shell. Sorry for the blindingly fast recording speed. Will fix in future.





7 paths planned

Looking for feedback and testers.

minimurgle

Don't mind the questions. I'm probably just confused.

roxxploxx

Thanks! Should have something out this week. I'm doing some play throughs and realize that it doesn't feel right. So, I added in more things. Basically, I want wizards to hole up in their towers and have everything operating for them, with lesser wizards doing errands, medium wizards write scripts and more powerful wizards crafting the grand and powerful items.

roxxploxx

Soon. Just figured out how to program a resource using turret. Anyone wanna build a chem-fuel powered machine gun?!? I'm using this class for a short range arcing pylon powered by arcane scripts.

minimurgle

As much as I would love to try building a powered gun I think I'll leave that to you. I'll definately test it though  ;D
Don't mind the questions. I'm probably just confused.


roxxploxx

Steampunk is one of the ideas I was playing with. Similar to technomancy. Maybe a little less dark.

roxxploxx

Putting the fun into wizards. Lightning and explosions and shields. Changing the pylon images too. They currently show turrets which should not be.

Any ideas for rings? I have "of warmth" and "of cooling".

ZE

u on discord? liking the direction of this tbh

been toying around with implants and artificial limbs myself and i thought "why not runic tattoos?".

Runology : Creation and application of runes.
example runes
Mobility Rune : [Leg] movement +10%
Haste Rune : [Leg] movement +15%
Mercury Rune : [Leg] movement +20%
Dexterity Rune : [Hand] manipulation +10%
Finesse Rune : [Hand] manipulation +20% + scratch damage 5 0.25 cd
Strength Rune : [Arm] blunt damage 30 2.0 cd
Health Rune : [Torso] Blood Filtration +30%

Transmutation: Creation and application of phantom limbs and magical organs
Phantom Limbs / Magical Organs
Lv1 + 25% efficiency
Lv2 + 50% efficiency
Lv3 + 75% efficiency
Lv4 + 100% efficiency
Lv5 + 25% Movement/Manipulation/Whatever the organ is supposed to do

Third Eye : [Skull] Sight + 100%, Manipulation + 25%, Talking + 25%
Pointed Ears : [Ear] Hearing +75% (per)

just a few examples, what do you think?

roxxploxx

We're definitely on the same wavelength. Great feedback and ideas. These are inline with a mix of what I am thinking for Sorcery and for Steampunk. Sorcerers are "charged" in a sense so runes that are powered are definitely a way to go. Wizards will have some body augmentation, but not too much. Their power is in wands, artifacts and creations.

Although, I could see a completely new class of Cybernaught/Technonaught? Where basically it's all about augmentation of self due to technology or arcane? Could see some really cool melee action here. Maybe Glitternaught to fit with Rimworld. Could be cool.

I'm trying to separate out the theme of each path (magic, technology, drugs, nature, death, etc.) from the feel of the path (collective study, grind and digging in (Wizard), individualistic empowerment and fortification (Sorcerer), cultivation and openness (Druid), etc).

I'm also exploring how to actually implement these things. Many of the paths require the same new C# classes to be created. I'm new to modding Rimworld so it's taking a bit to get moving. Once some of these classes get built, I can more readily play with implementing each path and making them "feel" right.

ZE

Nature Magic could have applications in security, summoning a row of thorns that not only have extreme slowdown, causes damage, is flammable, but can cause infection

and glitternaught sounds perfect lol

minimurgle

Oh sweet you have a playable release now. I'll try and get you some feedback soon.
Don't mind the questions. I'm probably just confused.

roxxploxx

Quote from: ZE on April 27, 2017, 10:30:05 AM
Nature Magic could have applications in security, summoning a row of thorns that not only have extreme slowdown, causes damage, is flammable, but can cause infection

You're dead-on to my thinking. A Druid trap that sends out entangling vines that rot away over time. On the Wizard side, an ability to create Wizard Walls that rot away in a few seconds. Enough to shape the outcome of combat. Never thought about the vines being flammable though. That's a cool thought, but don't know if the druids will like that... :)

roxxploxx

Quote from: minimurgle on April 27, 2017, 10:37:12 AM
Oh sweet you have a playable release now. I'll try and get you some feedback soon.

Cheers! Though I should have a new version out soon? Maybe I'll do that now. Keep an eye out for version 2.

ZE

tbh been testing it since day 1, did face a few bugs mind you, get on discord !

i couldn't reach the higher levels since arcane alcove didnt seem to be a research table, maybe its been fixed? either way get on discord!