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Topic Subject: The AoKH RPG

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Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 03-15-15 01:29 PM CT (US)

Welcome one and all to the AoKH Community Project. This is an attempt to create a large world and RPG in AoK, made by the dozens of talented designers this forum has to offer. Without further introduction here is what it is about.

The Story So Far...
1. The hero is from a Saxon-esque background. He is intended to be a normal, average peasant. His village is destroyed by the new menace from the west, and he is one of the few survivors, along with his dog, who helps him escape. He hates the dragons for what they did to his life and home.

2. Through his travels he meets new friends - a saxon noble, a Bulgar mercenary, a celtic woman, and a Minoan mage. He travels to all the major players - the celts in the forest, the bulgars in the mountains, the Minoans on the islands and the kingdoms of the saxons in the central portion of the map.

3. With the help of his friends and the nations around him, he sets off to unfold the mystery of the dragons and prepare to fight back against them. Along the way, he takes part in the defense of the last Bulgar stronghold against the dragons, investigates a secret Minoan society, falls in love, and forges a mighty sword, to name a few of his adventures.

4. When the player feels ready, the hero confronts the dragon to progress to the ending of the story.

The World as We Know it...
Here is our world map...

And here is our map in AoK...

[AoK Giant map used. Leaves denote forest. The wall is a temporary boundary for now]

You will notice I have done very little in terms of detail. I have named almost nothing. Again, the places, geography, and towns of the world will be all named by popular concensus (with a bit of quality control to keep things feeling unified). We will also post a list of things requiring names here.

Names Needed:
1. Islands
2. The Forest
3. The Snowy Mountains
4. The world itself
5. The river
6. The sea

Note the labels for The Scorched Plain and The Wyrm. Whenever you get the file, DO NOT TOUCH THESE AREAS. We will need that area to wrap up our story. I have set that aside for this reason, otherwise we will have no place large enough left over to do anything interesting with.

The Heroes...
The story has dictated a party of 6 characters, which will be accumulated over the course of the story.

The Mod...
Graphics required:
1. Wooden bridges/Docks - The standard RoA/Forgotten/100 other places version will do. If anyone knows the original source I'd be greatful for a link.

The Contributors...
There are four main types of contributions to be made.

Story team:
1. Panel
2. Lord Basse
3. Seonid
4. Julius999
5. Excelsior
6. Mr Wednesday (coordination)
7. Hockeysam (late addition)

Modding Team
1. Mr. Wednesday
2. ...
3. ...
4. ...

Map Design Coordinators:
1. Hockeysam
2. Possidon

Current Designer waiting list:
1. ~~Mr. Wednesday~~
2. ~~Popeychops~~
3. ~~Hockeysam~~
4. ~~Mr. Wednesday~~
5. ~~Julius999~~
6. ~~Mr. Wednesday~~
7. Devagrawal09
8. Seonid (May 8th or later)
9. Arnas
10. Hockeysam (June)

4. Triggers and Gameplay. We aren't nearly this far yet and much of the gameplay will be dependent on the story, so more to come on this as needed.

Current Tasks
Here I will post what currently needs to be addressed or added. As of right now we need,

1. Map design for much of the map

Our Overall Totally-not-arbitrary Progress: 3%

[This message has been edited by Mr Wednesday (edited 05-03-2016 @ 03:20 PM).]

Author

Replies:

HockeySam18
D�nadan

posted 04-26-16 01:35 PM CT (US) 246 / 308

To anyone on the story crew: I've made a small post at the bottom of the story google doc.

As for names, the goal is first and foremost to make them not be a hindrance. This means a) that they shouldn't be confusing (no names spliced with a million apostrophes or with excessively strange spellings, please), b) that they should be fairly consistent within their region, and c) that they should be fairly distinct (both by region and within their region). The regional culture designations that we've given so far are a good set of rough guidelines.

~ Forgotten Empires ~

Storm on the Steppe | Galderton Hill RP | Proud member of Stormwind Studios

"Deyr f�, deyja fr�ndr, deyr sj�lfr it sama; ek veit einn at aldri deyr, d�mr um dau�an hvern." - H�vam�l 77.

Mash
Huskarl
(id: Mashek)

posted 04-26-16 04:03 PM CT (US) 247 / 308

How about Harold? I've seen this name used in a couple fantasy settings (see Alexey Pehov's Shadow Prowler), and it works quite nicely in the context of simplicity that you want. Also, it sounds better than "Dave".

Heart of the Dragon | Aethelflaed ~ The Lady of the Mercians
Wind of the North | Defence at Lorgan's Watch | Blood of the Bear
StormWind Studios

D4Ra4Aracks111
Squire

posted 04-26-16 05:08 PM CT (US) 248 / 308

saxon background,maybe Ulrik or Jarold and ther surename is Crest.

Seonid
Squire

posted 04-27-16 02:27 PM CT (US) 249 / 308

HockeySam, I replied in the story doc. If any of the story crew are still around, I'd like to see their responses too.

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 04-27-16 02:54 PM CT (US) 250 / 308

I will look at it tonight...

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 04-28-16 00:08 AM CT (US) 251 / 308

I've done considerable work on the file. This including adding a few small modded items in (very few, think 5, not 50), some minor tweaks of the islands sam had completed (see the google story doc for changes, very minor), and a design of some of the northern area. Because I'm a fiddler, much of what I designed is sensitive to elevations, triggers, and in general...everything. Design near it, not on it.

I'm going to begin making a list in the topic post of volunteers to work on map design. If you have already been given access to either the story doc or the map design doc, you know what is what and can go right away. For the rest, I'll prepare a brief, spoiler free summary of the world and map. The story will be worked on in detail much later, so for now all anyone needs is the worldbuilding, which is still pretty nebulous and ready for your input!

Rules in the topic post apply. I will delete bad work. Alter something I told you not to fiddle with and I'll delete your work. Start adding f---ing fairies and I'll delete your work. This isn't Piece by Piece. Don't try to make the community's world fit your vision in 4 hours of map design. Work with everyone. Stick to themes. Etc.

I'd like if some of the people already involved (other than me, Popey, or Sam) could take a swing at this for a day or two first, to block in a few more basic areas. We will use the PbP system...to an extent. Post if you want to do map design, and give a time when you'd like to work on it (any time, some time in the next month, after exams finish, etc). I'll try to keep the file moving and do quality control. It's going to be a tough job so please be patient and understanding.

Mapshot, just to show how much of the map is available. Everyone will get at least one chance.

MAPSHOT

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

[This message has been edited by Mr Wednesday (edited 04-28-2016 @ 00:10 AM).]

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 04-28-16 00:13 AM CT (US) 252 / 308

Story doc and Map doc updated with my comments, for those with access. If someone with access would like to put a spoiler free description of the world together, that would help speed this up. No need to include characters, story, or any other details at this point. A brief description of the five major areas on the map, the civilizations, and the design approach to each should suffice for now.

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

devagrawal09
Squire

posted 04-28-16 06:56 AM CT (US) 253 / 308

Nice design guys! The bridge in the north part looks very realistic!

If the story has not progressed a lot, I have a suggestion-

Instead of the current tribes that are being used, I would recommend that different tribes should be set of different historical settings. For example, one of the tribes (preferably the desert one) can be an Arabian-Persian-Turkish tribe, with camels, elephants, and all the eastern buildings and units. The northern tribe could be a meso-american, with all the weird animal-based soldiers and lack of horses, or an eastern/north-eastern European tribe with all their stuff. The one in the islands can be west European civs, as they had a strong dependency on navy and trade. The one in center can be an eastern Asian.

This would, in my opinion, use AoK to its full potential, as it would force the designers to use all the units and settings available, showing off the diversity available to AoK players and designers, because neither an eagle warrior nor a chu-ko nu will fit in any of the tribes currently being used.

Again, if the story has not progressed a lot. If it has, I don't think the writers would want to ditch their hard work and start over.

|E)\/

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 04-28-16 08:08 AM CT (US) 254 / 308

Well, I can see if we wanted to make a showcase of AoK that would be ideal. I feel this is more of a showcase of the talent of the community. One of our strong points here is atmosphere and storytelling. While we might go overboard on our scripting and 'overdesign' our maps by some standards, we as a community are pretty dedicated to providing as deep of experiences as an rts can manage.

Given that, it makes more sense to set things in a believable world. The worldbuilding here is quite realistic. The islands are far enough away that they can be more exotic, but the other factions should seem geographically consistent.

And because this is the premier modding community on the web, I wanted to include modding, so you won't feel limited at all. You don't need to design with only huscarls and berserks. As need be we can add to AoK (within reason and never adding for the sake of adding though).

Would you like to be on the list for map design?

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

Excelsior
Squire

posted 04-28-16 08:37 AM CT (US) 255 / 308

Would it be helpful if I put together a list of design points for each region, run it by the Story Doc team, and then post it here?

"It looks like a huge shark just took a bite out of Excelsior's ass"-Colonel Kyle Riggs, Star Force: Storm Assault

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 04-28-16 08:55 AM CT (US) 256 / 308

Extremely helpful.

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

Lilthbehr
Squire
(id: Lildbehr)

posted 04-28-16 12:41 PM CT (US) 257 / 308

That's a gorgeous bridge, is it walkable? Like both above and under?

AN EVIL TONGUE IS A MAN'S BANE.
(The above poster is right, did you know that?)
Proud associate of Monsoon Studios

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 04-28-16 01:24 PM CT (US) 258 / 308

You realize that's impossible right?

It's walkable on top to cross the bridge. You can also walk on the ice or the sides of the snow near it, but not under it. You also can't walk 'off' the bridge on either side. Just across.

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

Lilthbehr
Squire
(id: Lildbehr)

posted 04-28-16 02:45 PM CT (US) 259 / 308

You realize that's impossible right?

Impossible or very hard to achieve? Even with modding?

AN EVIL TONGUE IS A MAN'S BANE.
(The above poster is right, did you know that?)
Proud associate of Monsoon Studios

Excelsior
Squire

posted 04-28-16 03:13 PM CT (US) 260 / 308

K. I have the most basic details. It's probably off somehow, so I'll let Matt/others check it and post what they decide is the best fit.

"It looks like a huge shark just took a bite out of Excelsior's ass"-Colonel Kyle Riggs, Star Force: Storm Assault

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 04-28-16 03:18 PM CT (US) 261 / 308

Impossible or very hard to achieve? Even with modding?

No like impossible as per the laws of science.

How could units be below and above the bridge at the same time? Think about it.

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

Julius999
Imposter

posted 04-28-16 04:21 PM CT (US) 262 / 308

MC Escher would disagree.

1010011010
[ All_That_Glitters | Pretty_Town_Contest | Other_AoK_Designs | AoE_Designs ]
Member of Stormwind Studios

HockeySam18
D�nadan

posted 04-28-16 06:42 PM CT (US) 263 / 308

I've read through the additions to the docs and posted comments.

Nice work on the map, Matt. I love the new cliffs and that modded bridge, and I've always been partial to that TWAL with fortified wall ends trick...it just looks so much better than using the normal TWAL ends.

devagrawal09
Squire

posted 04-29-16 03:02 AM CT (US) 264 / 308

Given that, it makes more sense to set things in a believable world. The worldbuilding here is quite realistic. The islands are far enough away that they can be more exotic, but the other factions should seem geographically consistent.

I am not saying that you put America, Arabia, and China into a single island. My point is that different tribes living in different regions can have different cultures and themes.

Well, I can see if we wanted to make a showcase of AoK that would be ideal. I feel this is more of a showcase of the talent of the community.

Who restricted you from achieving both together?

And because this is the premier modding community on the web, I wanted to include modding, so you won't feel limited at all. You don't need to design with only huscarls and berserks. As need be we can add to AoK (within reason and never adding for the sake of adding though).

How many types of units only of European culture can be added? And if you mix in Asian and Americans, how much did that number become now? Of course modding has to be included, but doing this would even push the limits of what you can achieve by modding a lot further, as it will give you a lot more to design for.

Would you like to be on the list for map design?

Sure! I have asked twice about it.

|E)\/

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 04-29-16 07:16 AM CT (US) 265 / 308

I am not saying that you put America, Arabia, and China into a single island. My point is that different tribes living in different regions can have different cultures and themes.

Atmosphere is destroyed by variety. Everytime I tried to enjoy the crisp cold norse feel of skyrim, some person with a cathead would walk by.

In short, I can't establish an early western europe fantasy feel if I'm always throwing samurai at the player. The map is very small, due to AoK. There are a few regions, but those cultures are in direct and constant contact with each other. Rohan, Gondor, Arnor, all the regions in Middle Earth have the same technologies and are highly similar. Small differences make regions unique, massive ones make them disjointed.

I didn't want to get into this in great depth but it's a huge pet peeve of mine. The truly decent fantasy has unified connected worlds. Exotic peoples and races come from 'far, far away' so as to provide contrast, but they never exist next door.

Anyway, The story written is clearly in the vein of early western European mythology, so Oriental and Mesoamerican nations would feel quite jarring. In fantasy worldbuilding, less is more. Bigger usually just feels empty. There is a reason Middle Earth is smaller than almost any other fantasy world.

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

Mash
Huskarl
(id: Mashek)

posted 04-29-16 07:26 AM CT (US) 266 / 308

Atmosphere is destroyed by variety.

As a big advocate of atmosphere, I can vouch for this. It needs just the right feel, look and theme to be convincing. I would also personally hate seeing Meso-American moss/creeper covered stone buildings because then you would need jungle (remember: cultures reflect their environments) and this would throw off the entire balance of the world Matty is trying to create.

Everytime I tried to enjoy the crisp cold norse feel of skyrim, some person with a cathead would walk by.

Ha ha this is brilliant.

Heart of the Dragon | Aethelflaed ~ The Lady of the Mercians
Wind of the North | Defence at Lorgan's Watch | Blood of the Bear
StormWind Studios

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 04-29-16 08:24 AM CT (US) 267 / 308

The topic has been updated. We now have a waiting list for designers. Julius gets to go first because he wants to reroute the river and I'm tired of reading his whiny complaints about it being unnatural. And it's already getting designed along.

Then Mashek is going to work on some cold northern scenery (shocker). After that devagrawal09 on a yet to be specified area. I'm going to prepare a small text file of notes that will slowly grow to be sent with the file to hopefully keep us all on point.

If you want a spot, let me know.

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

HockeySam18
D�nadan

posted 04-29-16 09:05 AM CT (US) 268 / 308

Agreed with Matt and Mash on the fantasy front. Following a similar model in our collaborative SWS project 'The Merchant' served us quite well in creating a detailed and interesting yet believable world.

I'm glad to see this starting to take wings

devagrawal09
Squire

posted 04-29-16 01:54 PM CT (US) 269 / 308

Thanks for letting me contribute to the map designing Matt!I understand if you want to make a specific atmosphere, a lot of diversity would probably spoil things up. I am not an expert in that area.

|E)\/

Julius999
Imposter

posted 04-29-16 03:10 PM CT (US) 270 / 308

And it's already getting designed along.

*twitch*

I'm going to get the file right now.

1010011010
[ All_That_Glitters | Pretty_Town_Contest | Other_AoK_Designs | AoE_Designs ]
Member of Stormwind Studios

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 05-01-16 10:57 PM CT (US) 271 / 308

I have the file back from Julius and it is currently with Mash. After that I'm going to add one or two things and then it can go to anyone who is ready to take it right away.

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 05-02-16 09:32 PM CT (US) 272 / 308

Mashek has passed on his turn for now.

Is anyone capable of taking it right now? As in tomorrow? You will have about 3-5 days to design an area. I've neatly divided the world into chunks with walls so essentially you can pick one and do your best with it.

Devagrawal09 is on the list so it goes to him if he wants it right now.

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

devagrawal09
Squire

posted 05-03-16 11:32 AM CT (US) 273 / 308

Sure. Throw it to me. I will try my best.

|E)\/

Seonid
Squire

posted 05-03-16 12:11 PM CT (US) 274 / 308

I would like a shot at designing on the map - if I recall right, the qualification was a Blacksmith score of 4.0 or better (which I have). If you need screenshots anyways, let me know and I'll find or make some.

EDIT: I won't be able to actually start designing until the 8th, but I would like to be on the list.

My Mods:
Wheel of Time: End of the Third Age.

[This message has been edited by Seonid (edited 05-03-2016 @ 01:56 PM).]

Mike Oxhard
Squire
(id: Arnas)

posted 05-03-16 02:07 PM CT (US) 275 / 308

I can do a bit of designing or brainstorming for the plot over the weekend.

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 05-03-16 03:21 PM CT (US) 276 / 308

Both of you are on the list.

The file will start moving again tonight hopefully.

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

Mr Wednesday
Cavalier
(id: matty12345)

posted 05-04-16 10:49 PM CT (US) 277 / 308

Dev, I've sent you the standard opening email for anyone joining the project, along with the current files attached. Follow the directions and have fun!

I sent it to your email provided for the secret hitler game, by the way.

"And Matt is a prolific lurker, watching over the forum from afar in silence, like Batman. He's the president TC needs, and possibly also the one it deserves." - trebuchet king

devagrawal09
Squire

posted 05-05-16 03:47 AM CT (US) 278 / 308

Got it.

|E)\/

MrMew
Huskarl

posted 05-06-16 04:19 AM CT (US) 279 / 308

I could do a little work on this... But I have no inspiration at the moment and I don't think my style would fit this project. Has any modding been done yet or will that be after the map has been designed so it can be touched up?

Time of Tea
Still in the Dark Age
Don't be a melodramatic clown. ~Mr Wednesday

HockeySam18
D�nadan

posted 05-06-16 06:40 AM CT (US) 280 / 308

There have been about 5 objects modded in so far, so nothing really major...yet. There may, however, be more down the road - we're definitely going to have to at least add some dragons at some point.

Feel free to sign up if you like

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