Dev Task: Design choices on classes and abilities.

[NancokPS2]

I think this is a good space to lay down some ideas or proposals for these systems. And it'd help with figuring out other design choices if we tackled the main mechanics first.

Here's a couple of docs with ideas to consider thrown in, it is in comment mode so anyone can suggest additions.

Attribute gain:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Isi9orMsX6R08GWkia5MgpPzxj8T3bF4R0gCuIEoxnc/edit?usp=sharing

Skills and abilities: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1S5PSdKvYGjjsThQ0EP7Ct3rSz1nKC3_3GmWJFCnVSh4/edit?usp=sharing

Skill progression and acquisition:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wE4siB-sDkL0MN3w0TZ5R2wHf6JTZwi8TtrdCD-5hvs/edit?usp=sharing

Class systems:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AYA5v9zqmil5nyDvxMK37pox9HWIvcK-XNcDV6QL_hA/edit?usp=sharing

Class ideas:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ErJ8DUnDJPEYq7zImsVPuIbYq72ASLzMHNVK6WA36IE/edit?usp=sharing

Status effect ideas: https://docs.google.com/document/d/16OTp7omx1jJy13sg4qPeJr0e8yHgyidlIsCB0FJHzKA/edit?usp=sharing

[NancokPS2]

I'll go ahead and make a proposal:

Class system:

• Each class has modifiers for stats, these are applied after ALL other modifiers and thus dictate the overall efficiency of particular stat gains.
  • These modifiers are usually 100% for all but 2 stats from which one will have a positive modifier and another will have a negative one. Making it clear what they specialize in and where they weaknesses lie. While keeping build viability as high as possible.
• When choosing more than one class (assuming we have multiclassing) the modifier becomes an average of the class modifiers (so a class with 120% damage paired with a 100% damage class would make the modifier 110%). Classes that try to take a class to complement their weaknesses will often find that they don't specialize in either.
• Changing classes may be limited to only the secondary class, both, or none. And it would only be available with a certain cost (requires some specific resource other than money) at certain locations.

Skill system:

• Characters can equip a limited number of skills (total of 4-5 active ones) at a time, but they can pick any unlocked skill from their classes to equip. Equipping skills can only be done when out of combat (at defined spots across the world, most of them being the hub areas/cities)
• It is expected that different stat buffs from skills which target the same stat cannot stack, and only the strongest one remains active at any given time. The weaker one is removed.
• Passive skills work on a "medal" system. Some passives cost more points than others, and the cost of equipped skills may not exceed a the total amount of "medal" points the character has. This allows the creation of weak skills without making them dead weight when something better unlocks.
• Skills use a % of the player's stats for their values, meaning they always scale with their user. All skills scale from a stat related to them (healing can scale from total health of the user and/or target, some buffs could scale with defense values, etc) or related to the class from which they originate (For example, a paladin's smite shouldn't scale off their "mind" stat if the class has no builds that accommodate for such a stat, but could scale off "health", "defense" or simply "strength")
• All valuable skills use mana/energy (name pending) regardless of class.

Stat system:
Only max health, strength, dexterity and mind may increase from leveling up, other stats may only be increased trough equipment or skills.

• Health: the usual. High health builds are weak to damage over time effects or any other effects based off max health.

  • Regenerates out of combat to a certain %. Allowing you to at least survive encounters if trying to leave the area.
  • Some (cheap) consumables may rise this % for a limited time. The player should be able to craft/produce these to some capacity.

• Mana/energy: this is used for most skills.

  • Regenerates over time. Classes that rely more on skills tend to have a higher regeneration.
  • Capacity is the same for all classes, some skills or (more rarely) equipment may increase it. But it'd be more common to see a cost reduction instead.

• Resistance: reduces ALL damage by a %.

  • Resistance is very favorable for classes with high health amounts due to resistance acting as a health modifier.
  • Armor resistance is usually a fixed % based on armor class. All heavy armors may have 20% resistance while light armor could have a consistent 10%.
  • Armors are balanced around a max resistance % vs other stat gains of the same armor. If the max allowed resistance is considered to be 30%, then any armor that reaches such a value cannot have any other stats without some penalty.
  • If the value is 15%, the other armor's stats should be 50% as strong in comparison to other armors without resistance or penalties. Any resistance value higher than the max would warrant a hefty stat penalty.

• Defense: refers to a flat damage reduction, which shines the most in low health characters which cannot get as much benefit from resistance.

  • Some defense values may be conditional, for example, some armors may provide an extra flat reduction against ranged attacks.
  • Some armors have "aplique" defense. These are allowed to have higher defense values, but loose defense with repeated damage, which restores over time.
  • Defense applies after any modifiers.
  • Defense is usually a fairly low value.

• Accuracy: acts as a direct damage modifier, attacks at 50% accuracy deal 50% the amount of the listed damage.

  • This provides a reliable amount of damage while yielding the same numbers in average.
  • As a base, accuracy is 100% for all attacks.
  • Accuracy is reduced the further away from the target and may also be lowered by some abilities.

• Evasion: serves as a direct counter to accuracy, all incoming attacks are calculated as "attacker accuracy" - "target evasion".

  • Most tankier classes have little access to evasion outside of increasing dexterity.

• Critical chance: base chance for a critical hit.

  • Crits ignore accuracy modifiers and deal extra damage equal to the accuracy % above 100 times 2. Magic damage has this multiplier reduced to 1.5.
  • Crits are basically the most reliable way of increasing damage in non-strength builds.
  • For each attack that's not a crit, the critical chance increases based on the weapon used until one happens. Ensuring that crit based weapons are more consistent.
  • There's very few sources for this stat. The main source of this comes from weapons increasing it per non-crit hit.

• Strength: damage modifier for attacks, 5 strength would make attacks deal 105% damage.

  • Some class modifiers may make strength start at negative values, but this does not decrease damage below 100%
  • Melee attacks receive 100% of the modifier, ranged attacks receive 75% and magic ones receive 50%.
  • Melee attacks start their accuracy at 110% as a base, but dexterity is the only stat that can boost it further.
  • Max health is increased by a small % of strength

• Dexterity: accuracy and evasion increases

  • Increases accuracy of all attacks.
  • Increases evasion by a small % of dexterity.

• Mind: increases mana/energy regeneration

  • All magical attacks have a minimum accuracy of 90% (other types may not have a minimum at all) on average and a good base damage.
  • This makes magic damage very reliable at any range, but there's no stat to boost it directly.
  • Magic damage has a reduced critical modifier of 1.5 for every % of accuracy over 100.

[ivoryfitz]

I think the defensive setup is quite solid with Health, Resistances, and Defense.

I like the idea of multi-classing, and that can be something we expand on later down the line starting with single classes first and then expand later.

What would this look like without Accuracy? I'm typically not a fan of it as it feels like an extra damage slider for us the dev's to use, but as a player, it just feels bland.

[NancokPS2]

Accuracy is meant to add depth to non-melee classes other than just "damage but from a range", where the balance would usually become a matter of giving melee more damage in comparison. Instead of being a typical stat, it would be mostly affected by the actions of the players in combat.
It is more of a "meter" of the user's effectiveness and damage consistency rather than a damage modifier. A ranged character that risks getting closer and uses skills to reduce evasion and raise accuracy will be rewarded with their full damage while those who try to simply take pot shots from afar will deal less with the benefit of being further away from danger (builds centered on boosting accuracy can afford to shoot from afar without any damage loss, think of it as a sniper-type build).
Melee has a higher base accuracy to make their damage more rewarding and magic damage is unique in the sense that it ignores most of the enemy's evasion to be the most reliable of all types (while still getting little benefit from raising accuracy).

It also allows to have a evasive characters that don't rely on luck, but must be smart with how they play to ensure that their evasion remains high.

This is mostly meant to give non-damage focused classes to have something to build around for their damage (where they get diminishing returns from trying to raise the stat much higher but are rewarded with more consistent damage).

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BUT i did not put that much thought behind it, it could easily be removed.
We could simply not have it and let the rest of the stats dictate builds. I am merely unsure of what to do to make ranged and magic damage feel more unique.

It could also just be differentiated by the weapons available and by giving them unique mechanics, as i proposed here.

This is also assuming we want such distinctions. I am open to any other approach.

[jonathaneeckhout]

@NancokPS2 thanks for this well documented proposal! I like it a lot.

I think we should try to split this very big issue into smaller ones so that they are more manageable for people and easier to be distributed.

[jonathaneeckhout]

For the Alpha release In think we should focus on having 1 class per character. We can still add the secondary class in a later release.

[NancokPS2]

For the Alpha release In think we should focus on having 1 class per character. We can still add the secondary class in a later release.

The system is already set to support arbitrary amount of classes.
I'd be more work to change it to not be as such at this point, unless there is a need for it?

[jonathaneeckhout]

It's ok to support more classes. We can just configure that at this stage the player is only allowed to have one class.

[NancokPS2]

That's as simple as setting 1 variable, so sure.
My incoming PR will have it set to 1.