Magic

[Thalius]

I am curious to know if there will be any magic type system included in the game at some point?  (Please say yes!)

I would not envision anything cumbersome.  Most magic mods that add magic to Minecraft are way to cumbersome and make the game all about the magic aspect of the mod.

What I would envision is something fairly simple and linked to progress in the game.  A scroll randomly dropped by a mob that has a particular magic skill, such as throwing fire balls or lightning bolts.  The easiest of these mobs would be found from time to time in the common world, while more powerful mobs (and their related spell scrolls or books) would be found in more difficult locations.  Different spell scrolls could be combined to learn a more complex spells and abilities.  Add some required experience into the mix in order to learn and create more advanced spells.  If other dimensions are eventually added to the game, make certain special spell scrolls available in those areas that can be combined with other skills to create some potentially powerful abilities.  All of this could be fairly easy to find in the game, it is just a matter of progressing.

 

To keep it from being overpowered, the real issue is how are you able to use the spells?  This would include adding mana into the game.  The player that chooses to go down the path of learning and using magic has to learn how to acquire the materials to brew a type of potion that increases their ability to have and use mana to cast spells.  The potions would be fairly challenging to make, and it would take multiple potions to increase one's mana supply.

 

There is a Minecraft mod that I have used that does some of this if you want to get an idea on what I am trying to describe, but I would suggest MANY changes to it.  The core idea and the simplicity I have in mind are there however.  It is the Archmagus mod.

I will offer more on what I have in mind if this thread gets any real interest...

[Tyron]

Took to freedoom to also paste your chat logs:

• Thalius
  I look forward to hearing your thoughts! It was one thing I did not like about minecraft. You have these other dimensions and a few other mystical things in the game, but no mystical skills you can learn yourself other than enchantments. Maybe that was their way of bringing a bit of that element into the game, but I always felt like something was lacking.
  2:56 PM
• Then reading how Luc has written up the underlying story (which I loved by the way!), it hints strongly at something more than just the physical in the game. Forces at play on a higher level. I would not envision the magic element ever being great enough to overshadow the need for smelting and using weapons and armor. Just the ability to use a few spells- throwing an occasional fireball or calling down a lightning bolt or some such thing.
  3:04 PM
• Spells that can be upgraded to be more powerful, but always supplement the other aspects of the game, not overshadow them. The ability to cast a warding spell to keep critters at bay around your home in the night, or "enchant" a weapon with fire or ice to hurt or slow an enemy, or to enchant armor to boost protection in certain situations.
  3:07 PM
• The ability to learn the more powerful of these spells would be gained by experience in another dimension, perhaps the one that I referenced in my response to what Luc offered in the story section of the forum.

 

We're still not quite sure about magical elements, but 2 things we did want to include is

• Alchemy, based on 15th century alchemical practices and
• A few player skills that give slight powerups or damage spells to players.

I like your approach to include it in a subtle way and that definitely resonates with the rest of the game. I do would like to remotely ground spells on something physical, i.e. a mechanical high voltage device that would cast the thunderbolts or something like that ;-)

By the way I also updated the roadmap on the front page, I'll be currently focusing on the more basic survival elements first, so we probably begin more serious planning of the spell casting / magic aspects of the game at a later time, though it definitely doesn't hurt to brainstorm about it now :-)

 

 

[Thalius]

I like the alchemy direction, a lot, and grounding any spells on something physical would be a plus in many ways. 

I am not so much aiming at a need for "magic" (not even sure I would use the words "magic" or "spells" in the game to describe spells and skills) but more along the line of skills and abilities learned through lore found in the game.  The story being crafted by Luc seems to beg for something beyond just swords and bows and axes and such; it whispers of something more- a conflict between the light and the dark; powers beyond the physical, but still rooted in the fabric of our world. 

Perhaps some of the higher abilities could be a blend of alchemy and "lore" gained through encounters and experiences in the game?  A book found on a shelf deep in a dungeon somewhere...  A mysterious scroll dropped by a particularly tough enemy... A manuscript found in a creepy library in some castle in the shadow realm...   Knowledge found that teaches the player how to manipulate his or her world, and even infuse some of their creations with greater powers and abilities. Perhaps even some of the working of the more powerful alchemy aspects of the game are learned through lore as well.

Just some thoughts.