Introducing our Reptilian Themed Characters Many of our players (myself included) are huge fans of lizardmen in the fantasy genre. I'm excited to share some our concepts, very much still a WIP, and open up for your feedback and suggestions. The Reptis are a race of humanoid reptilian creatures native to the lush jungles that populate the lands of Summoners Fate. Their ranks consist of tall, Iguanidae/croc/dino lizard like hominids, smaller frilled lizard bipeds, and half humanoid, half serpentine creatures. I need help coming up with better names for the race and various as well as abilities. Feedback welcome! Here are some of the abilities we are currently tossing around for the various sub-classes. Reptis Warrior Abilities Resilience - Their thick scales provide natural protection, enabling them to ignore a percentage of damage they would normally receive from incoming attacks. Chomp Attack - In addition to their regular weapon attack, warriors can use their massive jaws for a bonus attack. Were debating whether this makes sense to use in response to a counter attack (a vengeance attack) or whether it triggers after their regular attack if the targeted unit doesnt counter attack (more like an attack of opportunity). Let us know which idea you like best. Tail Spin Attack - Some players have suggested the lizards might use their tails as a weapon by spinning and whipping them in conjunction with their weapon, allowing them to target all surrounding enemies. We think a power like this might be fitting for the more powerful champion unit, who also has a spike on his tail. Frilled Lizard Abilities Shield + Javelins - Since their javelin can be thrown with a single hand, the frilled lizards have a huge advantage over archers as they can deflect incoming return fire and melee attacks. Camouflage - Frilled lizards can blend in with surrounding fauna, enabling them an opportunity to position themselves for surprise attacks. Poison - Champions will have poison tipped javelins and were also thinking they may grant this ability to friendly lizards to greatly increase their strategic value. Poison causes units to lose life at the start of their turn - and it stacks! This means the more you get hit by poison, the faster it works to end you. Snakepeople Abilities First Strike - Since snakes in nature are known for incredibly fast reflexes, we like the idea of allowing snake people to kill an enemy before they can counter attack. Normally, units get to counter attack unless they are overkilled, but victims of the snake attack would not get counter attack if their victim's life is reduced to 0. Heat Senses - Snakes have ability to detect heat and were thinking this might translate in game to detecting hidden units as well as certain traps.
I'm sure it would be a little on the tricky side (although if you have built a berserk mechanic, it might be easier to implement)...but I'm not sure what you mean by write clear card rules. Do the enemies have cards as well? I also like the idea of the drop mechanic. It seems that you are building some pretty sophisticated tactical systems.
Indeed, the enemies have cards (see image below). Actually, everything in the game is represented by cards: weapons, characters, spells, even the rocks and the trees! When I said it might be hard to create clear card rules, I meant describe how the event happens in concise text that fits on a card. Part of the reason I like CCGs so much is how they contain their own rules, allowing the player to learn more as they are introduced to new cards vs. have to know all the rules at once. They're also a great system for expanding the game with new content, which I plan to do a lot and often
Hey Ross, I just had an idea pop into my head when you talked about the card play. You might consider having a cool mechanic where you can put two cards down. One card and then another card over top. You could have special cards that work with others to add a perk. Eg a poison effect is added or for one turn the hero will automatically block all damage. You could decide weather to tell the player what cards work synergistically with others or have them experiment to find hidden combinations. If a second card cannot be added to create an effect a message could read "No Added Effect" so the player will not waste the card. The synergies with cards could be known as the "The Fate Mechanic" or something like that. If players want to use this advanced method they can, but it would not be needed to finish the game. Or maybe ,really tough battles will require this combat strategy . Just a thought.
That's pretty cool! I like the concept of combining card effects via experimentation; actually even more fun if the recipes are not initially known. Based on how you've described it, I think this would work even more effectively outside of battles - crafting card combinations together to create specialized deck strategies. This also gives a more compelling reason for card collecting. Instead of "dusting" cards, you could use them to add intended effects/abilities to characters. Just a heads up in case you may be interested, Kelly and I will be hosting a live stream Q&A session tomorrow at 12PM MT for Summoners Fate. Everyone is welcome to join us and talk tactics, or feel free to submit your questions and we'll be sure to answer them. I'll share the recap here, of course.
Hey Ross, I just watched your live stream. I could not figure out how to ask questions. I'm assuming I needed to ask my questions before the stream started. Anyway, I have a few questions. Can a hero die permanently? Are dungeons linked? Can you go back through them again or are they not accessible once completed? Thanks
I don't currently have any plans around permadeath, but I am certainly open to having a hardcore mode as an option if enough players wanted to see this. If you're a player that would like to see that, also let me know whether you're a fan of character legacy (ex: keeping items or other characteristics of fallen hero) that can be used on with the next. I'm not sure how applicable that would be to our game since everything ties to cards naturally, but definitely within the realm of possibility. Rooms within a dungeon are linked, and this includes linked boards going into/outside of dungeons (ex: wilderness areas). I actually had a discussion on discord the other day about accessibility of dungeons after completed (you're not alone in this). Personally, I'm in favor of it - but only if it ties back into gameplay in a meaningful way. I like the idea of there being hidden easter eggs, for instance, that you can go back and discover by following clues and using new cards you find later in the journey perhaps to unlock hidden rooms in older dungeons that you may have missed to find another piece of the story, a new character, or a rare item.
Hey Ross, I really like the idea to be able to go through already cleared dungeons. I thought that there could be a few reasons to do so , including the ones you mentioned. Firstly , if you cleared a dungeon the enemies would be all dead. But, if you returned there, you would have to fight their spirit or skeleton form now. This would be a way of incorporating another difficulty level without having to choose a setting. These ghosts and skeletons will be harder to kill and need more advanced tactics to beat. Ghosts do not need to move as before. They can just disappear and reappear beside you. The other thing is that they can disappear and stay hidden for a turn or two, making it harder to attack them. Secondly, one could find rare combinations that could only be used once or a few times with a special card. If you returned to the dungeon, you may find bodies still on the ground. These creatures do not have souls and remain dead until you resurrect them. You may even get a card combo that will turn a spirit into the living again. These "Turned " creatures will join your group and fight for you just as the resurrected ones will. Thanks
I've always loved insects, especially the praying mantis, and thought they would make for an interesting playable race in Summoners Fate. Here are some animations for these characters: Here are some examples of their animations: Scorpion Wasp Mantis Warrior Bug Bonanza Subscribe to the TouchArcade YouTube channel Let me know what you think. What other insect like creatures should we be considering to add to their ranks?
Hi everyone! Here's a first look at gameplay of Summoners Fate. Not only does the game support portrait and landscape orientations, but it also adapts for left and right hand users by simply turning your device! Enjoy the video and let me know what you think of the gameplay so far. Subscribe to the TouchArcade YouTube channel
The gameplay looks really cool! I hope you plan to have nasty spiders to fight as well. They could drop down from their webs. Thanks
Thanks, gemineye62! Duly noted I'll put together a battle against spiders for a future video. In the meantime, here's a new gameplay video on a much larger board (this time I'm playing on PC but the gameplay is the same on iPad/iPhone). I play as the Liche King defending my throne room against an invading band of heroes. Subscribe to the TouchArcade YouTube channel
Huh, very interesting, I like the top-down visual style, makes it feel more unique. Loving the progression you've made. Keep up the good work!
Control Time with Steampunk Celestial Timekeeper Rats One of the great benefits of working together with my wife is her unique perspective and creativity. When considering the possibilities for creatures to live within our fantasy world, humanoid rats naturally came to mind. When I shared initial ideas for the typical "mutant sewer rat" with Kelly, she responded with "Boring!" (Well it probably wasn't said so harsh) more like "That's not very original, interesting or existing, honey, but here's an idea I have that would make it better..." Kelly and I work together each day on Summoners Fate Kelly turned the concept of ragged, filthy rats on its head with her idea of clean, sophisticated and intelligent rats garbed in Victorian-era style clothing and decked out with clockwork steampunk gadgety. These rats are aligned with the forces of good and the celestial order. And they have the power to control time. Above are the initial characters Kelly designed in the series. From left to right, we have the Time Bombardier, a ranged unit that can throw "time bombs" that damage and slow enemy movement, the Time Keeper, a powerful Summoner with the power to cast Celestial Time Spells, and the Time Warrior, a cunning melee fighter with hyper speed and lightning reflexes. Here is a selection of some of the Celestial Time spells we've created so far. Time manipulation mechanics such as these are one of many unique innovations we aim to bring to the tactics and CCG genres.
