SP Fantasy [WB] Honour Be Thy Shield - A middle-eastern themed mostly low fantasy mod

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DerGreif

Sergeant Knight at Arms
Honour Be Thy Shield
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A medieval middle-eastern themed low fantasy mod with some high fantasy elements

This mod will be centered on three main aspects:
- exploration
- immersion/realism
- sandbox storytelling

Exploration:
The mod will feature a rich lore and new landscape to explore.
- This includes new cultures, most of them based on middle-eastern medieval culture with the occasional twist.
- This also includes new fantasy religions, which will be very important in the game.
- And of course, this includes new characters to meet and befriend or battle as enemies.
- The mod will feature a new map and new scenes - some of the hidden and/or unique locations - to explore.

Immersion/Realism:
The mod will try to model gameplay as realistic as possible without losing too much fun. For example, this will include some features from Brytenwalda.

Sandbox Storytelling:
Native WB, most mods and actually most other games allow either sandbox style playing or a typical "static quest(s)/questline(s)" set-up. I find sandbox style playing a little bit to random for my tastes. I cannot talk with people about things that happened earlier in the game. The relationship between players and NPCs and NPCs between each other is a flat value between to numbers without any depth to it. Quests are more or less randomly generated. Dialogue options and options to fulfill a quest are severely limited. And the AI acts often in very strange and incoherent ways.

In mods and RPGs with a typical "static quest(s)/questline(s)" set-up the player often has also only limited options. Modern RPGs allow a lot of "freedom" and implement choices and sides/factions for the player to take. But they still are all limited. And more importantly: They almost always wait for the player to act. I want to change that.

My goal is to implement an AI which will no longer assign more or less random quests, but will assign quests based on the AI's overall goal. Thus there will be lots of new quests/tasks available. These quests will be less limited in the way, how they are fulfilled. Important is (most of the time) only the result. The AI will also react to information it gets to further its goals. Whether or not the player is around does not matter. The AI of the adversary will act on its own and will not wait for the player. If the player is not around, an AI, which needs a task fulfilled, will hire someone else to do it. Neither "the story" nor the AI will wait for the player. To achieve this goal there will be three or four "big players" with a very ambitious and far reaching "global" agenda, while most other NPC will only have rather limited personal goals and ambitions. And one important rule: Anything the player can do, the AI can do (as far as the game engine allows that).

I hope I was able to convey the idea behind that.


Random planned and implemented features include but are not necessarily limited to:
- Religion as important gameplay element.
- Character creation decisions will play a bigger role in the game, providing start quests and determining dialogue options.
- A more dynamic dialogue system allowing a wider range of topics to talk about with most NPCs.
- Emotions as part of the dialogue system.
- Lying and "persuasion duels" as part of the dialogue system.
- A more complex relationship system, which does not only have values between -100 to +100, but also includes key events of the past and takes player and AI personality into account.
- More complex AI personalities based on more than one character trait.
- A more complex reputation system with more than one reputation trait. This will also borrow from the Mass Effect morality system.
- Fuzzification of certain values presented to the player to enhance immersion.
- Inventory management based on pack animals and party size.
- New skills, some native skills removed, and some native skills expanded.
- New items (mostly from OSP packs), but a very kind modeller (UsamaEzaddin) has made some completely new stuff, too.
- "Living" scenes with more than just randomly walking around townwalkers.
- Sea travel.
- Expanded journal including more information.
- More logical quest and camapign AI (see sandbox storytelling).
- Lords can be killed and will have successors.
- Some Brytenwalda features including character creation in one page, wounds, prisoner management based on party size, entertainment skill (with further expanded usefulness), resting, different character sizes and others.

Further notes:
Progress will be slow but steady, because I have only 1 to 2 hours per day to work on the mod for the next six weeks or so. After that progress will be significantly quicker.

Preliminary List of Credits:
Lav (invaluable advice, WRECK, integrated module system, Civilian mod compilation – clothing, armour)
Swyter (invaluable advice, Cartographer)
UsamaEzzadin (new items)
WeiXiadi (armours, clothing)
Njunja (Njunja's Eastern Pack)
al-Mansur (al-Mansur Models Pack – helmets, sceneprops)
Dunde (character creation code)
jacobhinds (Ottoman Civilian Clothing OSP, a couple of models from his excellent mod Sayazn with permission - check it out!)
sonyer (helmets, armour)
rgcotl (contributions to sonyer’s pack)
Narf (rus armour OSP, Man-at-Arms OSP, contributions to sonyer’s pack, shaun remo’s pack)
Shaun Remo (Helmets Replacement OSP)
dia151 (Arabian Equipment)
as0017 (Some Vietnamese Items)
Brytenwalda Team (code, ideas)

Team:
DerGreif - coding, lore, basic retextures & 2D-Art
Usama - 3D-Art, additional gameplay ideas and lore

Signature link:
Code:
[url=http://forums.taleworlds.com/index.php/topic,327981.0.html][IMG]https://tw.greywool.com/i/fG4Mk.png[/IMG][/url]
 
Lore Background:
The Mod is set on the large island of Jazir Faraz. In its earliest history the different peoples, tribes and clans were in constant war with each other. But over the time a consolidation process began, which culminated in the unification of the island under the Doulat of Ispandar. The city of Ispandar was seated in the middle of the island in a rich and fertile oasis surrounded by the Baharmash desert. It saw a golden age of art and scientific advances until a civil war broke out and Ispandar was destroyed, its earth salted and its location reclaimed by the desert, now long forgotten. It followed again a long period of constant war, in which every prince and warlord tried to gain the upper hand. Only after centuries of war and misery a new and brutal unification process started, which finally led to the establishment of the Doulat of Anwar under Shah Behnam. A second golden age was to follow. The Doulat of Anwar send ships across the Deep Sea and established a city on the continent, the city of Aqaba, which would lead to the establishment of the Sultanate of Saba and from there it started to spread its religion. But again the empire was not to last. First the Sultanate of Saba broke away, then the Emirate of Ismayi located on a small island not far from the shores of Jazir Faraz. Then the big division followed in the heartland itself: The Doulat of Anwar split into two rivalling kingdoms, the Badshahi of Tabesh and the Badshahi of Daryace, both claiming to be the spiritual and only true successor of the now defunct empire. Across the Deep Sea the ruthless Order of the Farryther saw its opportunity and used the crumbling order to invade Jazir Faraz. It conquered quickly several cities, but seems not to be satisfied with its spoils of war.

Main factions:
The Badshahi of Tabesh is ruled by the Shahbanu Tehmina. While nominally the larger of the two kingdoms a lot of the land is infertile desert. The different ethnicities are still respecting the Shahbanu as their ruler, but there are rumours that some of them living on the periphery seek independence. Furthermore even the powerful Amir within the court of Tabesh seem to be dissatisfied with the Shahbanu and people say the Shahbanu fears they scheme against her. The Badshahi of Tabesh relies on the regular military provided by its vassals and auxiliary forces of the periphery, among them quite formidable horse archers. The strategic position of the kingdom is rather difficult. While the Baharmash desert provides a natural barrier, the boundary is long and difficult to guard. A ruthless shrewd commander might be able to use the desert to advance unseen deep into Tabeshan territory to launch a surprise attack.

The Badshahi of Daryace is ruled by Shah Diya al-Din. It is smaller than the Badshahi of Tabesh but is far more fertile due to better irrigation. Culturally the Badshahi of Daryace is not that different than the other kingdom. The long time the whole island was unified has let to a mix of the cultures living there, especially in the larger cities. But if you look closely you will find a certain distinct style in clothing and especially armour. The military of Daryace is similar to the Badshahi of Tabesh, but the Shah relies also heavily on Fireantan mercenaries, namely the Crogan Guard, a group of fierce warriors from across the Deep Sea. The strategic position of the kingdom is excellent. It is guarded by natural borders such as a small mountain range and the coast. On the other hand the Shah is described as ruthless and ambitious and most likely will want to strike from this defensive position against his enemies.

The Emirate of Ismayi is ruled by Amir Musa al-Qani. Due to be seated on an island the cultural distinctions are stronger here. The island is small compared to the other kingdoms, but provides also an excellent defensive position. Cavalry plays a lesser role here compared to the mainland.

The Order of the Farryther is ruled by Grandmaster Roderic of Widragel. Its main force is composed of Sturgian knights but also includes warriors from other kingdoms from across the Deep Sea who all follow the Gast Cyngs, a pantheon of enigmatic gods among them the Farryther, the red bull, father of mankind, god of fertility and destruction.

The Sultanate of Saba is a powerful and large southern kingdom across the Deep Sea and as such not part of the playable map. But one can still interact with it. And there are rumours that Sultan Mustafa III. has shown great interests in the fabled riches of the erstwhile motherland.

The Kingdom of Sturgast – like the Sultanate of Saba – is not located on the playable map. But it is the most powerful country in the north across the Deep Sea and as such a force to be reckoned with: King Dermond has been said to be a religious man and a strong supporter of the Order of the Farryther.

Minor factions:
The Jadugar are a group of mystics, who seemingly believe in Baal Shamzar, the Sun God, the main religion on Jazir Faraz. They own a couple of secluded monasteries and try to avoid politics and war. The question is: How long can they do that when an order of foreign religious fanatics is invading the island and the other two kingdoms are sliding ever closer to war?

The Navidians are a forbidden radical sect, which split from the main church of Baal Shamzar. They attack high priests of Baal Shamzar and those Amir who support them. It is said that they have a couple of hidden fortified refuges and a couple of followers in the nobility, too.

The Mahtabans are the exact opposite. Also forbidden by the high priests of Baal Shamzar they believe in a godly message of mercy and peace. Lots of women have flocked to this sect and they have learned to fight for their lives.

The Azlal are a secret order of assassins, who have vowed to fight the Order of the Farryther. But it is heard that they also generously offer their services to other people, if the price is right. If one can believe the tales, they reside in the hidden mountain fortress of al-Alana.

Gameplay:
– Ironflesh (STR)
– Power Strike (STR)
– Power Throw (STR)
– Power Draw (STR)
– Weaponmaster (AGI) - includes Shield
– Athletics (AGI)
– Riding (AGI)
– Horse Archery (AGI)
– Stealth (AGI) - helps with Sneaking in Scenes or on the World Map
– Sleight of Hand (AGI) - Lockpicking, False Gambling, Pickpocketing
– Sailing (INT)
– Trainer (INT)
– Tracking (INT) - + Spotting = Pathfinding
– Tactics (INT)
– Spotting (INT) - + Tracking = Pathfinding
– Medical Treatment (INT) - includes Wound Treatment, First Aid
– Surgery (INT)
– Alchemy (INT) - useful to provide for medical supplies
– Engineer (INT)
– Empathy (INT) - useful in dialogues, to check party morale and attitude of NPCs
– Persuasion (CHA)
– Leadership (CHA)
– Trade (CHA)
– Performance (CHA) - useful for courting, party morale, renown, disguising

Screenshots:
uZr1s.jpg
OTXAD.jpg
PeF5D.jpg

There will, of course, come better ones, when I have made more progress in scening.
 
- Character creation decisions will play a bigger role in the game, providing start quests and determining dialogue options.
- A more dynamic dialogue system allowing a wider range of topics to talk about with most NPCs.
- Emotions as part of the dialogue system.
- Lying and "persuasion duels" as part of the dialogue system.
- A more complex relationship system, which does not only have values between -100 to +100, but also includes key events of the past and takes player and AI personality into account.
- More complex AI personalities based on more than one character trait.
- A more complex reputation system with more than one reputation trait. This will also borrow from the Mass Effect morality system.
- Fuzzification of certain values presented to the player to enhance immersion.
YES :grin:
 
Really looking forward to this. Looks interesting and I like every mod that tries something different than medieval Europe. Good luck with your mod :smile:
 
Thank you guys for all the kind words! It is greatly appreciated!

jacobhinds said:
Man, I wish more mods would do this. Looking forward to more info.
Well, I want to do away with numbers in the character report. In part native has this already implemented. But I want to get rid of it more thoroughly. Party morale will just be a descriptor like: good, bad, ordinary, with some colouring added depending on events/situation. For example: The player party is crossing a desert (which will be bad for the morale) and morale in general is down due to other factors. Then you might find in the specific report: "Your party morale is low. Your troops suffer under the unbearable heat of the desert and the sand creeping under their clothing. You hear also people complaining about the food: "Nothing but Smoked Fish for weeks now!" Alternatively after a great victory: "While you wander among your troops, you hear lots of laughter. Your troops gamble with their new found riches."

The same with renown: Instead of numbers you will see a descriptiv text like: "Nobody knows you here, you are a stranger from far away." Or: "Wherever you go, you notice how people suddenly recognise you, even though they have never seen you before. Most make a few steps back to let you pass, some bow, some give you a small present, others try to touch you for good luck."

And so on. I will also randomise the tresholds for the change in the wording a little bit to make these a little bit fuzzy.

I will keep the character sheet though, at least for the time being, because people like to see their character advance in a more tangible way, and it will be a lot of coding to replicate something lie the character screenvia script. Doable, but for the time being just not worth it.
 
Quite an interesting idea, I must say.
Though the only complaint I could have is that the font that you are using has too many dots everywhere making it kind of cumbersome to read, if you get what I mean. The char-creation screen just looks overcrowded because of it.
 
SBolshevik said:
Quite an interesting idea, I must say.
Though the only complaint I could have is that the font that you are using has too many dots everywhere making it kind of cumbersome to read, if you get what I mean. The char-creation screen just looks overcrowded because of it.
I understand your concerns. But it is easy to revert to native font: Just delete the font_data.xml in the data-folder and the font.dds in the texture folder. The font will be just an option for those who might like it.


And again thanks for all the nice comments.
 
Comrade Temuzu said:
Gender: Mate

ur a cheeky lil **** il give u that
:lol: Actually, that is just the font. Maybe I really have to change it. I am just so used to it, that I did not recognise that it actually makes all "l" look like "t".
 
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