I discovered this forum and ACK a while ago, and I have been playing around with it. It works very well for old-style games, and it is nice to have an easy-to-use tool to put my ideas into practice. (I've thought of writing my own engine, but it is a lot of work, and I haven't had the time or energy.) It is great to find that a few game engines are readily available.
I played the Ultima IV parody and loved it. It ran well, with only the occasional minor bug, and there was a lot of great humor.
Anyway, this inspired me to revisit Ultima II. I have always liked that game despite its deficiencies. I love the time and space travel themes and all the areas to explore, but unfortunately the plot is rather thin, and the game mostly consists of killing a multitude of monsters to get enough gold to increase attributes and buy hit points. That said, there are some snippets of humor that add some color to the game. I have often thought that Ultima II could be an excellent game if the emphasis on monster destruction were reduced somewhat and the story were filled in and side quests added.
ACK seems perfect for the task, and I have started work.
Here are a few of my general changes.
1. Land masses are expanded to 192 X 192, so each single square on the original map is now a 3 X 3 block. Boundaries between terrains are smoothed out, some details are added, and new terrains (i.e. bushes, hills, and deserts) are used.
2. Towns remain on a 64 X 64 map. I intend to generally reproduce the layout of the towns, while adding a few features.
3. The original cheesy responses of miscellaneous townspeople (i.e. Hex-E-Poo-Hex-On-You) are preserved to retain some of the flavor of the original, but they are expanded to random lists of responses, and new types of townspeople (i.e. the Ultima V generic townsperson, women, children, bards) are added, and I have written similarly cheesy responses for them.
4. The townspeople with unique responses are kept in some form. Some remain intact with their stock responses, while others are expanded into full dialogues.
5. Generally, the same types of shops are kept in the original towns, but sometimes I combine the purposes of two shops (i.e. weapon and armour shops) so that I can use the other shop for some other purpose. In some cases, the terrains used in the town will change to match the adjacent landscape. (In BC, Le Jester is in a desert on the West Coast of Africa, so the terrain in the town consists largely of desert and cactus.)
6. New locations. I am adding a few more towns, villages, castles, dungeons, and towers to add some variety. Also, I am using the room type of region to create small locations (i.e. isolated houses and small caves).
7. New time periods/planets. Depending on how much energy I have and whether I exhaust the limits of ACK, I might add more time periods and/or planets. Specific possibilities are Earth farther in the past (probably Silurian/Devonian time, since the geography is interesting) and Earth's moon. I'm doing my best to conserve regions so that this might be possible later. (For example, I have created a generic 240X240 region for dungeons, and I will fill it with multiple dungeons before creating a new region for dungeons.)
8. Greater challenges in moving between time periods, getting the spacecraft, finding transport in general, and accessing the Time of Legends. This provides good opportunities for quests and storylines.
9. Rethinking the purposes of the various "items", many of which don't make sense in the original. I'm trying to keep all of those items in some form. In some cases, their purposes are similar to the original, but with some of the story behind them filled in. In other cases, the items are given new purposes.
Current status: The player starts in BC, as in the original, but time travel isn't immediately possible. Some quests are required, and BC by itself may well be a good mini-game when complete. I have created the main land mass, largely finished Towne Linda and Le Jester, laid out (but not populated yet) an expanded multi-level Castle of Lord British, largely finished and populated a new castle, created a few small locations, started work on a new village and the original Greenland dungeon and South America tower.
I intend to finish BC before moving on to other areas. That way, if I get busy and work halts for a time, there will still be a fully playable mini-game (with the goal of gaining access to time travel) for people to try out.
Any ideas or suggestions?
I will continue with some specifics (AND SPOILERS) in my next post. Those who want to wait until some form of the game is ready to play might want to avoid reading further to avoid spoilers.
Heather
[WIP] Rethinking Ultima II
Moderators: Ice Cream Jonsey, joltcountry
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
Here are more specifics. First, the miscellaneous items and their purposes. These are not finalized, and if anyone has better ideas, I will consider them.
Ankh: Original purpose - access to spaceship. New purpose - armor, and might still have something to do with the spaceship.
Blue Tassle: Original purpose - access to ships. New purpose - same. However, the player will have to get training on sailing ships, and the blue tassle will function as a "diploma" proving that the player is a competent sailor.
Boots: Original purpose - protect against the "legs paralyzed" nuisance. New purpose - leather boots: armor; swamp boots - protection against poison swamps
Brass Button: Original purpose - access to airplane. New purpose - same, but brass button is obtained through training, like the blue tassle for the ship.
Cloak: Original purpose - protects against "arms paralyzed" nuisance. New purpose - undecided; not yet implemented. Maybe armor.
Green Idol: Original purpose - protect against sleep. New purpose - allow player to cast powerful cleric spells (maybe - not firmly decided yet)
Helm: Original purpose - view map. New purpose - various types of helms are armor. I haven't decided how to handle maps yet.
Ring: Allows passage through Minax's nasty magical fields. New purpose: I have created an object called "ring of life" which I intend to allow passage over nasty terrains, such as lava, which will be abundant on some of the planets. Replacement for ring: I have created a "force shield", which is essentially a magic shield and is good armor. I intend for that to allow passage through the fields.
The whole Planet X quest might now lead to the force shield rather than the ring.
Skull Key: Original purpose - access to airplane. New purpose - will replace "key" item and is used to pick locks.
Strange Coin: Original purpose - stop time. New purpose - undecided. It might be used for invisibility (although I have created a potion called "vanishing cream" for that purpose), or it might just be a valuable. Or perhaps I can figure out how to use macros to stop time.
Tools: Original purpose - disarm traps. New purpose - same. Not yet implemented.
Torch: Original purpose - provide light. New purpose - same.
Tri-Lithium: Original purpose - spacecraft fuel. New purpose - same.
Wand, Staff: Original purpose - allow use of wizard spells. New purposes/replacements: A plain staff is just a rather weak weapon. The magic wand and wizard staff are powerful weapons. I'm also considering having one or both of them required to cast certain wizard spells, as in the original.
Gem, Green Gem, Red Gem: Replaced by Sapphire, Emerald, Ruby, Force Gem. The sapphire, emerald, and ruby are valuables and are required for certain quests. The Force Gem is a rare item that is required for certain difficult enchantments that are performed by mages who help the player obtain certain key items.
Quick sword: Still required to kill Minax, but I intend to have its acquisition be a multi-step process. First, obtain the quick blade from the thief in New San Antonio as before, but before it can be used against Minax it needs to be enchanted, requiring help from a certain hard-to-find mage (probably another escapee from Mondain and Minax), who will need a Force Gem and probably some other stuff.
Here are a few other miscellaneous ideas.
Time travel: Instead of the time gates, which in the original allow access to all time periods, I've decided to get rid of them and bring back the time machine from Ultima I (and I've used the same design for the tile). A friendly daemon who escaped the bonds of Mondain and Minax, along with a few people from the Ultima I world, figured out that Minax was up to something, and they built a new time machine and reconfigured it to send them to Earth so that they could help the "stranger". This helps explain why certain people are found in the Ultima I world and on Earth, as it gives them a means of traveling from one to the other. Of course, Minax's time distortions mess up the time machine and it needs to be repaired. Also, once repaired, the daemon still doesn't know how to get to Minax's lair, and finding out how to get to the Time of Legends is a major quest in the game. (A sub-quest involves rescuing the princess from the Lost King's castle, in a nod to Ultima I and the imprisoned princess in each castle. The Lost King has relocated to Australia, and he has gone mad. Much interaction with jesters is required in this sub-quest, allowing for numerous possibilities for crazy quests and wild goose chases. These are now partially implemented.)
The planets and the dungeons: It always seemed a shame that most of these places were entirely optional. I intend to keep some of them optional, but quests will render visits to some of them necessary. In particular, I plan to make the mountainous world of Pluto a key to the game, and I plan to expand it by adding an underworld that is the same size as the top-level map, probably with its own towns and villages. It seems appropriate that Pluto should have a nice underworld. Also, in the BC portion of the game, I intend to make the tower in South America, which I have named the Swamp Tower, an important place to visit. The dungeon on Greenland (which I have named Thule) will remain optional, but visiting it might make some things easier (i.e. free treasure that would cost a fortune if found in a shop).
Levels, experience, attributes, and training: Leveling up will now work a bit like it does in Ultima VII, and will give training points (I think I can use one of the generic variables for this). Training points can be "spent" at a trainer to increase strength, intelligence, and maximum hit and magic points. Also, I think I will have training points used to get training for ships, airplane, and spacecraft, and to learn new spells. This way, the player can develop the character as desired, and it will eliminate the annoying randomness of the desk clerk at New San Antonio. (I will think of some other key purpose for the desk clerk. That character was too important in the original to relegate to a minor role in this version.) Various trainers will provide different services, and not all skills will be available in all places.
Transport: In a way, it was too easy to get the airplane and then use it practically everywhere. At this point, I plan to confine transport vessels to the time period and/or planet where acquired, and limit the availability of transport in certain places. Right now, in BC, skiffs are available (and don't require a blue tassle), but ships aren't. I might put a ship in a location that is accessible only after traveling through time so that some distant islands are inaccessible until later. The skiff can go almost everywhere, but it has to hug the coast. There is a skiff for sale in Towne Linda for 500 gold pieces. Skiffs will probably be available in most locations, while airplanes will only be available in AD, the Aftermath, and on Pluto (and maybe one or two other planets).
Legends: This place needs to be more challenging. Of course, tough monsters will be present, but for an additional challenge, I plan to entirely circle Minax's castle with mountains and create a difficult dungeon that will be the only way through. I might also
expand the castle to multiple levels, but the original layout will remain on the level where Minax is finally found. There might also be tricks besides simply attacking with the quick sword required to defeat Minax. After all, she is supposedly worse than Mondain, so defeating her should be a bit of a challenge.
Most of these are just ideas at this point and are subject to change. I would appreciate any suggestions.
When the BC portion is playable, I will put an archive somewhere and post a link so that people can try it out.
Heather
Ankh: Original purpose - access to spaceship. New purpose - armor, and might still have something to do with the spaceship.
Blue Tassle: Original purpose - access to ships. New purpose - same. However, the player will have to get training on sailing ships, and the blue tassle will function as a "diploma" proving that the player is a competent sailor.
Boots: Original purpose - protect against the "legs paralyzed" nuisance. New purpose - leather boots: armor; swamp boots - protection against poison swamps
Brass Button: Original purpose - access to airplane. New purpose - same, but brass button is obtained through training, like the blue tassle for the ship.
Cloak: Original purpose - protects against "arms paralyzed" nuisance. New purpose - undecided; not yet implemented. Maybe armor.
Green Idol: Original purpose - protect against sleep. New purpose - allow player to cast powerful cleric spells (maybe - not firmly decided yet)
Helm: Original purpose - view map. New purpose - various types of helms are armor. I haven't decided how to handle maps yet.
Ring: Allows passage through Minax's nasty magical fields. New purpose: I have created an object called "ring of life" which I intend to allow passage over nasty terrains, such as lava, which will be abundant on some of the planets. Replacement for ring: I have created a "force shield", which is essentially a magic shield and is good armor. I intend for that to allow passage through the fields.
The whole Planet X quest might now lead to the force shield rather than the ring.
Skull Key: Original purpose - access to airplane. New purpose - will replace "key" item and is used to pick locks.
Strange Coin: Original purpose - stop time. New purpose - undecided. It might be used for invisibility (although I have created a potion called "vanishing cream" for that purpose), or it might just be a valuable. Or perhaps I can figure out how to use macros to stop time.
Tools: Original purpose - disarm traps. New purpose - same. Not yet implemented.
Torch: Original purpose - provide light. New purpose - same.
Tri-Lithium: Original purpose - spacecraft fuel. New purpose - same.
Wand, Staff: Original purpose - allow use of wizard spells. New purposes/replacements: A plain staff is just a rather weak weapon. The magic wand and wizard staff are powerful weapons. I'm also considering having one or both of them required to cast certain wizard spells, as in the original.
Gem, Green Gem, Red Gem: Replaced by Sapphire, Emerald, Ruby, Force Gem. The sapphire, emerald, and ruby are valuables and are required for certain quests. The Force Gem is a rare item that is required for certain difficult enchantments that are performed by mages who help the player obtain certain key items.
Quick sword: Still required to kill Minax, but I intend to have its acquisition be a multi-step process. First, obtain the quick blade from the thief in New San Antonio as before, but before it can be used against Minax it needs to be enchanted, requiring help from a certain hard-to-find mage (probably another escapee from Mondain and Minax), who will need a Force Gem and probably some other stuff.
Here are a few other miscellaneous ideas.
Time travel: Instead of the time gates, which in the original allow access to all time periods, I've decided to get rid of them and bring back the time machine from Ultima I (and I've used the same design for the tile). A friendly daemon who escaped the bonds of Mondain and Minax, along with a few people from the Ultima I world, figured out that Minax was up to something, and they built a new time machine and reconfigured it to send them to Earth so that they could help the "stranger". This helps explain why certain people are found in the Ultima I world and on Earth, as it gives them a means of traveling from one to the other. Of course, Minax's time distortions mess up the time machine and it needs to be repaired. Also, once repaired, the daemon still doesn't know how to get to Minax's lair, and finding out how to get to the Time of Legends is a major quest in the game. (A sub-quest involves rescuing the princess from the Lost King's castle, in a nod to Ultima I and the imprisoned princess in each castle. The Lost King has relocated to Australia, and he has gone mad. Much interaction with jesters is required in this sub-quest, allowing for numerous possibilities for crazy quests and wild goose chases. These are now partially implemented.)
The planets and the dungeons: It always seemed a shame that most of these places were entirely optional. I intend to keep some of them optional, but quests will render visits to some of them necessary. In particular, I plan to make the mountainous world of Pluto a key to the game, and I plan to expand it by adding an underworld that is the same size as the top-level map, probably with its own towns and villages. It seems appropriate that Pluto should have a nice underworld. Also, in the BC portion of the game, I intend to make the tower in South America, which I have named the Swamp Tower, an important place to visit. The dungeon on Greenland (which I have named Thule) will remain optional, but visiting it might make some things easier (i.e. free treasure that would cost a fortune if found in a shop).
Levels, experience, attributes, and training: Leveling up will now work a bit like it does in Ultima VII, and will give training points (I think I can use one of the generic variables for this). Training points can be "spent" at a trainer to increase strength, intelligence, and maximum hit and magic points. Also, I think I will have training points used to get training for ships, airplane, and spacecraft, and to learn new spells. This way, the player can develop the character as desired, and it will eliminate the annoying randomness of the desk clerk at New San Antonio. (I will think of some other key purpose for the desk clerk. That character was too important in the original to relegate to a minor role in this version.) Various trainers will provide different services, and not all skills will be available in all places.
Transport: In a way, it was too easy to get the airplane and then use it practically everywhere. At this point, I plan to confine transport vessels to the time period and/or planet where acquired, and limit the availability of transport in certain places. Right now, in BC, skiffs are available (and don't require a blue tassle), but ships aren't. I might put a ship in a location that is accessible only after traveling through time so that some distant islands are inaccessible until later. The skiff can go almost everywhere, but it has to hug the coast. There is a skiff for sale in Towne Linda for 500 gold pieces. Skiffs will probably be available in most locations, while airplanes will only be available in AD, the Aftermath, and on Pluto (and maybe one or two other planets).
Legends: This place needs to be more challenging. Of course, tough monsters will be present, but for an additional challenge, I plan to entirely circle Minax's castle with mountains and create a difficult dungeon that will be the only way through. I might also
expand the castle to multiple levels, but the original layout will remain on the level where Minax is finally found. There might also be tricks besides simply attacking with the quick sword required to defeat Minax. After all, she is supposedly worse than Mondain, so defeating her should be a bit of a challenge.
Most of these are just ideas at this point and are subject to change. I would appreciate any suggestions.
When the BC portion is playable, I will put an archive somewhere and post a link so that people can try it out.
Heather
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
One further point... The Aftermath.
I've always thought the Aftermath had possibilities that weren't realized. As it is, there is little there besides a few monsters, a dungeon, and a funny town. I was thinking of making the destruction more evident by covering most of the remaining continents with lava, desert, and other inhospitable terrains, and/or possibly by turning the oceans some hideous color to indicate the presence of pollution. Also, I thought of adding an underground town populated by anti-Minax people who are hiding from the jokers in Pirate's Harbour and from whatever nasties are lurking above ground. The people of this town will be key to penetrating Pirate's Harbour (by way of sewers I might put beneath the town) and gaining access to the spacecraft. Additionally, I was thinking of adding the ruins of the Castle of Lord British.
Finally, if I want to create more monsters, this seems like a good place to put some funny-looking mutants. After all, what is a post-apocalyptic scene without mutants?
Any ideas???
Heather
I've always thought the Aftermath had possibilities that weren't realized. As it is, there is little there besides a few monsters, a dungeon, and a funny town. I was thinking of making the destruction more evident by covering most of the remaining continents with lava, desert, and other inhospitable terrains, and/or possibly by turning the oceans some hideous color to indicate the presence of pollution. Also, I thought of adding an underground town populated by anti-Minax people who are hiding from the jokers in Pirate's Harbour and from whatever nasties are lurking above ground. The people of this town will be key to penetrating Pirate's Harbour (by way of sewers I might put beneath the town) and gaining access to the spacecraft. Additionally, I was thinking of adding the ruins of the Castle of Lord British.
Finally, if I want to create more monsters, this seems like a good place to put some funny-looking mutants. After all, what is a post-apocalyptic scene without mutants?
Any ideas???
Heather
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rld
- Posts: 223
- Joined: Sun Jan 25, 2009 2:17 am
- Location: Dallas, TX
I haven't had much experience with the Ultima series myself other than playing Chris's parody, but this definitely sounds interesting.
Since Chris has been kind enough to release the source, I have been able to make a small number of patches and tweaks to the ACK engine. See the "[ACK PATCH]" threads for details. If you run into any minor issues with ACK that prevent you from implementing a feature you would like in your game, let me know and I may be able to figure out a fix.
Since Chris has been kind enough to release the source, I have been able to make a small number of patches and tweaks to the ACK engine. See the "[ACK PATCH]" threads for details. If you run into any minor issues with ACK that prevent you from implementing a feature you would like in your game, let me know and I may be able to figure out a fix.
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Garth's Equipment Shop
- Posts: 638
- Joined: Fri Dec 05, 2008 5:55 pm
- Location: Festering Foothills
- Contact:
Sounds great Heather, especially the Aftermath part. I'm a sucker for anything with a post-apocalyptic theme. Coincidentally I recently renamed my Wasteland remake "Aftermath!" after my favorite old pnp rpg from when I was a kid. I've been drawing inspiration from old Aftermath! manuals and modules, as well as borrowing tiles from other PA games besides WL to make it a bit more "hi-res" than the original Wasteland.
Which of you is interested in my fine wares?
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
Things are going well. Here is a status update. While I'm actively working this, I'll post updates periodically.
NEW COMMAND MACROS:
O - open or operate. This is used to open/close chests and doors, and I plan to use it for levers when I decide to place some. This command sets off traps if a door or chest is trapped. (Yes - in this game, it is possible to trap doors, and I am making use of this feature.)
S - search. Allows for a difference between the simple look command and a more exhaustive search. Searching a door or a chest will yield whether it is locked or trapped. Searching an open chest causes its contents to appear on the map on top of the chest.
I also plan to use this command to reveal items in barrels, dressers, bookcases, and other furniture as needed.
USE ITEM MACROS
I have implemented macros to use certain items.
Skull key. Using a skull key and providing a direction picks a lock on a door or chest. The skull key is destroyed. It won't work on doors that require special keys.
Special keys. Using a unique key on the correct door will unlock or lock it. (I may also implement special keys for chests, but I haven't yet.)
Trap tool kit. This is the item that replaces "tools". Using this item on a trapped chest or door will disarm the trap, and the item is consumed.
MACRO FOR CHESTS, etc.
To allow for chests (or other containers) to contain more items than provided for by default, I have created a series of macros to cause a variety of items to appear. Precisely what selection of items is decided by the "data" variable of the chest (which is a space*). I use "execute macro" to set the data variable, but that action is triggered by nothing. I suppose other actions that take a value would work just as well since the action is never triggered. Macro 0 means that the chest is empty. I have set data variables for armaments, food, equipment, and valuables. Which particular items appear and how many of them are determined by random variables. This works very much like chests in Ultima V.
The data variable for a chest can be numbered from 0 to 63. If the 64 bit is set, the chest is trapped, and if the 128 bit is set, the chest is locked. (Open chests cannot be trapped or locked.) The data variable for a door is arranged similarly, but the 0 to 63 number refers to the required key; 0 is a generic lock that a skull key can open.
I am having one problem with the chests. I can't seem to get the macro to place a quantity of gold along with other items. When I try to set the data value to set the quantity of gold, it removes the other objects. I know it must be possible to put a quantity of gold on the map since the Drop command does it, but I couldn't find in the documentation a way to place gold using macros. Maybe there is a way, or perhaps a simple change to the source code could provide it. (rld - any ideas?) I haven't checked the ACK patch thread yet; maybe someone has already taken care of this.
The macros I have implemented may be generally useful. When I have properly tested them and decided they aren't likely to change considerably, I'll make an archive available so that others can get copies of them if desired.
MAPS:
Castle of Lord British - more details filled in; will be populated soon
Towne Linda - cemetery added
Le Jester - cemetery added, complete with the skeleton of a jester that the player can talk to
Gerry (new village; name borrowed from Ultima I) - village generally planned out; general store, farm, one crude house, and cemetery added; plan to add a pub and a few more farms and houses. The general store in Gerry will be the best place in BC to get skull keys and trap tool kits.
Swamp Tower - general structure of this six-level tower has been mapped, and the first level has been subdivided into rooms and hallways. The overall nature of this tower and its place in the quest to get the time machine working are decided.
Thule (Greenland dungeon) - The first level is partially done. I haven't yet decided how many levels it will have.
BC map - More wandering monsters have been placed; this task is nearly complete.
Other BC locations - A small ruined temple in India (complete with a hermit), small houses in E. Asia and Madagascar, a troll cave in the Himalayas, and a dangerous underground crypt in the Andes have been planned but not yet implemented. These locations could still move, but they are important to the story as I have planned it, so it is nearly certain that I will use them. Hopefully having these extra locations will add some color to the game and make the story more interesting.
A few future plans - AD will be the most heavily populated out of all the time periods and planets; it will have the most towns and villages, and I have planned a good number of small locations (which use room maps), including some lighthouses. The Devonian time period (which I will likely implement) will have one or two towns, a dungeon or two, and a castle inhabited by a crazy king who calls himself the Emperor of Gondwana; he will have driven the population away from the continent of Gondwana (good opportunity for a ghost town a la Magincia), and those opposed to him will be located on the Old Red Sandstone Continent (also known as Euramerica and Laurussia) and/or possibly the smaller islands and continent fragments. Defeating the Emperor of Gondwana will be an important quest. (If I don't end up implementing the Devonian, I'll put the nutty Emperor on some planet and rename him accordingly.) While looking at the original Ultima II, I noticed that astronauts had somehow ended up in Baradin's Town on Pangaea. This seems like a good opportunity for a humorous story (i.e. two astronauts accidentally hurtled back through time and are stuck) and provides a good reason to make tri-lithiums available there. Finally, in the spirit of the original Ultima II. which is full of pop culture references, I plan to add many more, and I plan to expand the time period of these references to include the 1920's through 1960's, which I know quite well. (For example, somewhere in this game will be a town fully populated with characters from a well-known 1940's radio sitcom, and maybe I'll work a pop culture joke into the Pangaea astronauts - perhaps something from a hokey sci-fi program of the 1950's/1960's.) When I finish part of all of the game, we'll see how many people pick up on the jokes.
At this rate, as long as I keep at it, BC should be done and ready for people to try out within a few weeks, and hopefully I can keep at it for a few months and get the whole thing done.
Heather
NEW COMMAND MACROS:
O - open or operate. This is used to open/close chests and doors, and I plan to use it for levers when I decide to place some. This command sets off traps if a door or chest is trapped. (Yes - in this game, it is possible to trap doors, and I am making use of this feature.)
S - search. Allows for a difference between the simple look command and a more exhaustive search. Searching a door or a chest will yield whether it is locked or trapped. Searching an open chest causes its contents to appear on the map on top of the chest.
I also plan to use this command to reveal items in barrels, dressers, bookcases, and other furniture as needed.
USE ITEM MACROS
I have implemented macros to use certain items.
Skull key. Using a skull key and providing a direction picks a lock on a door or chest. The skull key is destroyed. It won't work on doors that require special keys.
Special keys. Using a unique key on the correct door will unlock or lock it. (I may also implement special keys for chests, but I haven't yet.)
Trap tool kit. This is the item that replaces "tools". Using this item on a trapped chest or door will disarm the trap, and the item is consumed.
MACRO FOR CHESTS, etc.
To allow for chests (or other containers) to contain more items than provided for by default, I have created a series of macros to cause a variety of items to appear. Precisely what selection of items is decided by the "data" variable of the chest (which is a space*). I use "execute macro" to set the data variable, but that action is triggered by nothing. I suppose other actions that take a value would work just as well since the action is never triggered. Macro 0 means that the chest is empty. I have set data variables for armaments, food, equipment, and valuables. Which particular items appear and how many of them are determined by random variables. This works very much like chests in Ultima V.
The data variable for a chest can be numbered from 0 to 63. If the 64 bit is set, the chest is trapped, and if the 128 bit is set, the chest is locked. (Open chests cannot be trapped or locked.) The data variable for a door is arranged similarly, but the 0 to 63 number refers to the required key; 0 is a generic lock that a skull key can open.
I am having one problem with the chests. I can't seem to get the macro to place a quantity of gold along with other items. When I try to set the data value to set the quantity of gold, it removes the other objects. I know it must be possible to put a quantity of gold on the map since the Drop command does it, but I couldn't find in the documentation a way to place gold using macros. Maybe there is a way, or perhaps a simple change to the source code could provide it. (rld - any ideas?) I haven't checked the ACK patch thread yet; maybe someone has already taken care of this.
The macros I have implemented may be generally useful. When I have properly tested them and decided they aren't likely to change considerably, I'll make an archive available so that others can get copies of them if desired.
MAPS:
Castle of Lord British - more details filled in; will be populated soon
Towne Linda - cemetery added
Le Jester - cemetery added, complete with the skeleton of a jester that the player can talk to
Gerry (new village; name borrowed from Ultima I) - village generally planned out; general store, farm, one crude house, and cemetery added; plan to add a pub and a few more farms and houses. The general store in Gerry will be the best place in BC to get skull keys and trap tool kits.
Swamp Tower - general structure of this six-level tower has been mapped, and the first level has been subdivided into rooms and hallways. The overall nature of this tower and its place in the quest to get the time machine working are decided.
Thule (Greenland dungeon) - The first level is partially done. I haven't yet decided how many levels it will have.
BC map - More wandering monsters have been placed; this task is nearly complete.
Other BC locations - A small ruined temple in India (complete with a hermit), small houses in E. Asia and Madagascar, a troll cave in the Himalayas, and a dangerous underground crypt in the Andes have been planned but not yet implemented. These locations could still move, but they are important to the story as I have planned it, so it is nearly certain that I will use them. Hopefully having these extra locations will add some color to the game and make the story more interesting.
A few future plans - AD will be the most heavily populated out of all the time periods and planets; it will have the most towns and villages, and I have planned a good number of small locations (which use room maps), including some lighthouses. The Devonian time period (which I will likely implement) will have one or two towns, a dungeon or two, and a castle inhabited by a crazy king who calls himself the Emperor of Gondwana; he will have driven the population away from the continent of Gondwana (good opportunity for a ghost town a la Magincia), and those opposed to him will be located on the Old Red Sandstone Continent (also known as Euramerica and Laurussia) and/or possibly the smaller islands and continent fragments. Defeating the Emperor of Gondwana will be an important quest. (If I don't end up implementing the Devonian, I'll put the nutty Emperor on some planet and rename him accordingly.) While looking at the original Ultima II, I noticed that astronauts had somehow ended up in Baradin's Town on Pangaea. This seems like a good opportunity for a humorous story (i.e. two astronauts accidentally hurtled back through time and are stuck) and provides a good reason to make tri-lithiums available there. Finally, in the spirit of the original Ultima II. which is full of pop culture references, I plan to add many more, and I plan to expand the time period of these references to include the 1920's through 1960's, which I know quite well. (For example, somewhere in this game will be a town fully populated with characters from a well-known 1940's radio sitcom, and maybe I'll work a pop culture joke into the Pangaea astronauts - perhaps something from a hokey sci-fi program of the 1950's/1960's.) When I finish part of all of the game, we'll see how many people pick up on the jokes.
At this rate, as long as I keep at it, BC should be done and ready for people to try out within a few weeks, and hopefully I can keep at it for a few months and get the whole thing done.
Heather
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rld
- Posts: 223
- Joined: Sun Jan 25, 2009 2:17 am
- Location: Dallas, TX
Are you doing this in a worldmap type region or a room type region? The code handles each differently.Heather Harrison wrote: I am having one problem with the chests. I can't seem to get the macro to place a quantity of gold along with other items. When I try to set the data value to set the quantity of gold, it removes the other objects. I know it must be possible to put a quantity of gold on the map since the Drop command does it, but I couldn't find in the documentation a way to place gold using macros. Maybe there is a way, or perhaps a simple change to the source code could provide it. (rld - any ideas?) I haven't checked the ACK patch thread yet; maybe someone has already taken care of this.
Heather
One workaround would be simply to have the chest macro announce "You found <x> pieces of gold!" with a short message, and add the gold to the player's total using the MONEY variable.
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
Thanks.
I tried it in a worldmap region, but since then I have placed some chests in a room-type region. Maybe it will work there, but I haven't tried it yet. If it works in room-type regions, I might just put gold-containing chests in those places. Or maybe I'll decide to have the gold just go right into the player's inventory as suggested.
The workaround I'm using now is to put valuable gems in the chests instead of gold. The gems can be sold in shops for a decent amount of money.
One more quick update - I just finished implementing a few macros to cover switches, and I have put a small lever puzzle in the Castle of Lord British. Like the chest and door macros, the switch implementation might be generally useful, so when it is fully tested, I'll make an archive available so that others can use it.
Here is how it works.
The O command operates a switch, and the S command searches for traps.
Like the doors and chests, switches have a data variable. 0 means that the switch does nothing, and 1-63 are unique switch numbers. (Switch numbers can potentially be re-used in different regions Hopefully 63 unique switches will be plenty for any given region.) 64 is added if the switch is trapped, and 128 is added if the switch is stuck. The presence of traps is revealed by the search command, and they can be disarmed using the trap tool kit.
The switch number ultimately maps to a line in the macros which determines the action of the switch. Right now, I have one switch set to stick/un-stick another, and another to lock/unlock a door that has no matching key and can't be picked with a skull key. (I've reserved Key #63 for doors affected by switches.) Since the switch action simply points to a macro line, it is conceivable that the switches can be programmed to do a number of things, i.e. change terrains, unlock chests, modify portals, cause objects to appear, release monsters, or set a variable that can be accessed by another macro or dialogue later.
I have noticed that terrains affected by switch actions must be within about 16 spaces from the player; if a switch needs to affect something more distant, then I imagine that could be accomplished using variables.
Normally, switches can be flipped back and forth. However, if one wants a switch to be activated once and then get stuck, it would be a simple matter to have the switch action macro add 128 to the data variable and render the switch immobile.
With chests, doors, switches, locks, keys, and traps now implemented in generic macros, things should go more quickly now.
Heather
I tried it in a worldmap region, but since then I have placed some chests in a room-type region. Maybe it will work there, but I haven't tried it yet. If it works in room-type regions, I might just put gold-containing chests in those places. Or maybe I'll decide to have the gold just go right into the player's inventory as suggested.
The workaround I'm using now is to put valuable gems in the chests instead of gold. The gems can be sold in shops for a decent amount of money.
One more quick update - I just finished implementing a few macros to cover switches, and I have put a small lever puzzle in the Castle of Lord British. Like the chest and door macros, the switch implementation might be generally useful, so when it is fully tested, I'll make an archive available so that others can use it.
Here is how it works.
The O command operates a switch, and the S command searches for traps.
Like the doors and chests, switches have a data variable. 0 means that the switch does nothing, and 1-63 are unique switch numbers. (Switch numbers can potentially be re-used in different regions Hopefully 63 unique switches will be plenty for any given region.) 64 is added if the switch is trapped, and 128 is added if the switch is stuck. The presence of traps is revealed by the search command, and they can be disarmed using the trap tool kit.
The switch number ultimately maps to a line in the macros which determines the action of the switch. Right now, I have one switch set to stick/un-stick another, and another to lock/unlock a door that has no matching key and can't be picked with a skull key. (I've reserved Key #63 for doors affected by switches.) Since the switch action simply points to a macro line, it is conceivable that the switches can be programmed to do a number of things, i.e. change terrains, unlock chests, modify portals, cause objects to appear, release monsters, or set a variable that can be accessed by another macro or dialogue later.
I have noticed that terrains affected by switch actions must be within about 16 spaces from the player; if a switch needs to affect something more distant, then I imagine that could be accomplished using variables.
Normally, switches can be flipped back and forth. However, if one wants a switch to be activated once and then get stuck, it would be a simple matter to have the switch action macro add 128 to the data variable and render the switch immobile.
With chests, doors, switches, locks, keys, and traps now implemented in generic macros, things should go more quickly now.
Heather
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
Here is the latest status update:
The following are complete, or mostly complete, with most creatures and items placed (all in the BC time period):
BC wilderness
Towne Linda
Le Jester
Lord British's Castle (top level)
Swamp Tower (S. America tower - a 7-level rat-infested building with some good treasure)
Troll Caves (first level of a 5-level dungeon - a maze of caverns and mined-out areas, with lots of orcs, trolls, and treasure - located in Himalayas)
Lost King's castle (2 levels - Australia)
Small caves (2 - one room each - one in the Alps and one on a Canadian island)
Small farms (2 - one, with 2 rooms, is on Madagascar, and the other, with 5 rooms, is in East Asia.)
Abandoned house (two rooms - central North America)
Morias' house (two rooms - Indonesia)
Cheat building full of treasures (one room - useful for testing - I move it around as needed)
The following are largely laid out, but are not yet completely populated:
Gerry (About half of the village now has its shops, people, and items. There is an entertaining undertaker. Located in North America, near the AD location of New San Antonio.)
Lord British's castle (main level and lower level - I have completed everything related to Chuckles and Lord British; now I just need to finish populating the rooms of the castle.)
The following are partially laid out, but need to have a lot of details filled in:
Thule (Greenland dungeon)
Troll Caves (the four lower levels - they will be nastier than the upper level)
Ancient Catacombs (will be full of undead creatures - located in the Andes)
Ruined Temple (Will feature a lower level infested with undeads; the quest here will be to clean out the monsters so that the hermit living in the upper level can restore the temple. I plan to put a restored version of the same temple in AD at the same location, but I might only have it appear after the player has cleaned out the BC temple. I'm sure I can accomplish all this with macros and variables. Located in India.)
I have also created some monsters - daemon (replaces Ultima V daemon), devil, balron - that are based on the Ultima II graphics, and I have created some variations of giant rats and trolls. I'm also considering copying in the capybara from the Ultima IV parody and placing some of them in South America and the Swamp Tower.
The macros I mentioned in my previous post seem to be working well.
As you can see, BC is well over half done.
Heather
The following are complete, or mostly complete, with most creatures and items placed (all in the BC time period):
BC wilderness
Towne Linda
Le Jester
Lord British's Castle (top level)
Swamp Tower (S. America tower - a 7-level rat-infested building with some good treasure)
Troll Caves (first level of a 5-level dungeon - a maze of caverns and mined-out areas, with lots of orcs, trolls, and treasure - located in Himalayas)
Lost King's castle (2 levels - Australia)
Small caves (2 - one room each - one in the Alps and one on a Canadian island)
Small farms (2 - one, with 2 rooms, is on Madagascar, and the other, with 5 rooms, is in East Asia.)
Abandoned house (two rooms - central North America)
Morias' house (two rooms - Indonesia)
Cheat building full of treasures (one room - useful for testing - I move it around as needed)
The following are largely laid out, but are not yet completely populated:
Gerry (About half of the village now has its shops, people, and items. There is an entertaining undertaker. Located in North America, near the AD location of New San Antonio.)
Lord British's castle (main level and lower level - I have completed everything related to Chuckles and Lord British; now I just need to finish populating the rooms of the castle.)
The following are partially laid out, but need to have a lot of details filled in:
Thule (Greenland dungeon)
Troll Caves (the four lower levels - they will be nastier than the upper level)
Ancient Catacombs (will be full of undead creatures - located in the Andes)
Ruined Temple (Will feature a lower level infested with undeads; the quest here will be to clean out the monsters so that the hermit living in the upper level can restore the temple. I plan to put a restored version of the same temple in AD at the same location, but I might only have it appear after the player has cleaned out the BC temple. I'm sure I can accomplish all this with macros and variables. Located in India.)
I have also created some monsters - daemon (replaces Ultima V daemon), devil, balron - that are based on the Ultima II graphics, and I have created some variations of giant rats and trolls. I'm also considering copying in the capybara from the Ultima IV parody and placing some of them in South America and the Swamp Tower.
The macros I mentioned in my previous post seem to be working well.
As you can see, BC is well over half done.
Heather
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Garth's Equipment Shop
- Posts: 638
- Joined: Fri Dec 05, 2008 5:55 pm
- Location: Festering Foothills
- Contact:
Wow, you are so productive. I envy you. I always seem to get too caught up in editing tiles to keep up a consistant rate of progress anywhere else. I wish I could balance or budget my time a little better so I could spend more time on some of the macros I've been dreaming of doing, and finishing some of the big projects i already got more than half way through. :P
Which of you is interested in my fine wares?
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Garth's Equipment Shop
- Posts: 638
- Joined: Fri Dec 05, 2008 5:55 pm
- Location: Festering Foothills
- Contact:
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
Here is the latest.
All of the BC locations are now fully mapped, and all but the Ancient Catacombs are fully populated with monsters, furniture, and treasures. I have also converted a few locations. I decided that the wilderness maps should be 256X256, so I converted the BC wilderness. Also, I converted the small locations that had been room-type maps to world maps because the locations weren't quite working out as room-type maps. I have also done more work on various macros.
Here are a few highlights of the various locations.
Thule (Greenland dungeon) - Home to many trolls and orcs, and a few nastier things are found on lower levels. There is some very good treasure deep within the dungeon, and I have put in a few surprises.
Swamp Tower - Rats run this place, and they don't appreciate visitors. There is some very useful treasure.
Troll Caves - This large dungeon features a variety of terrains, lots of orcs and trolls, some treasure, and a very nice troll settlement (complete with prison, of course) on the lowest level.
Ancient Catacombs - A reasonably well organized dungeon with a few hidden surprises. At this point, this dungeon is entirely optional, but that could change later. I plan to fill it with undeads, and perhaps add a few daemons, devils, and balrons to the lowest level.
Ruined Temple - A small location, with only two small levels. The underground level is full of undeads, and there is a devil to defeat. The quest here will not be necessary to leave BC, but it will be vital later.
The dungeons will require lots of skull keys and tools. To make it easier to obtain them, I have put a merchant in Gerry who sells them in bulk at a discount. (He also sells arrows and bolts by the dozen.) Some can also be found among the treasures in the dungeons.
Still to be done for BC:
1. Fully populate the Ancient Catacombs.
2. Add a few more dialogues to finish up the quests and create a few more shops. Dialogues and shops are currently about 75% complete.
3. Generate macros to get the Ruined Temple quest fully operational.
4. Finish the time machine and begin connecting it to Devonian (brand new time period), Triassic (Pangaea), BC, AD, and Aftermath. (Legends will remain broken until late in the game.) I have created regions for all the time periods, but they are not mapped yet. I will probably map AD and Aftermath (relatively easy because I can copy and modify BC) before I release the BC portion.
4. Test everything and make sure the BC portion is playable from game beginning to the first use of the time machine.
I hope to have the BC portion available soon for people to try out. Of course, there are bound to be bugs that I miss, but hopefully a few people will thoroughly explore the game and let me know of any bugs.
Heather
All of the BC locations are now fully mapped, and all but the Ancient Catacombs are fully populated with monsters, furniture, and treasures. I have also converted a few locations. I decided that the wilderness maps should be 256X256, so I converted the BC wilderness. Also, I converted the small locations that had been room-type maps to world maps because the locations weren't quite working out as room-type maps. I have also done more work on various macros.
Here are a few highlights of the various locations.
Thule (Greenland dungeon) - Home to many trolls and orcs, and a few nastier things are found on lower levels. There is some very good treasure deep within the dungeon, and I have put in a few surprises.
Swamp Tower - Rats run this place, and they don't appreciate visitors. There is some very useful treasure.
Troll Caves - This large dungeon features a variety of terrains, lots of orcs and trolls, some treasure, and a very nice troll settlement (complete with prison, of course) on the lowest level.
Ancient Catacombs - A reasonably well organized dungeon with a few hidden surprises. At this point, this dungeon is entirely optional, but that could change later. I plan to fill it with undeads, and perhaps add a few daemons, devils, and balrons to the lowest level.
Ruined Temple - A small location, with only two small levels. The underground level is full of undeads, and there is a devil to defeat. The quest here will not be necessary to leave BC, but it will be vital later.
The dungeons will require lots of skull keys and tools. To make it easier to obtain them, I have put a merchant in Gerry who sells them in bulk at a discount. (He also sells arrows and bolts by the dozen.) Some can also be found among the treasures in the dungeons.
Still to be done for BC:
1. Fully populate the Ancient Catacombs.
2. Add a few more dialogues to finish up the quests and create a few more shops. Dialogues and shops are currently about 75% complete.
3. Generate macros to get the Ruined Temple quest fully operational.
4. Finish the time machine and begin connecting it to Devonian (brand new time period), Triassic (Pangaea), BC, AD, and Aftermath. (Legends will remain broken until late in the game.) I have created regions for all the time periods, but they are not mapped yet. I will probably map AD and Aftermath (relatively easy because I can copy and modify BC) before I release the BC portion.
4. Test everything and make sure the BC portion is playable from game beginning to the first use of the time machine.
I hope to have the BC portion available soon for people to try out. Of course, there are bound to be bugs that I miss, but hopefully a few people will thoroughly explore the game and let me know of any bugs.
Heather
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Garth's Equipment Shop
- Posts: 638
- Joined: Fri Dec 05, 2008 5:55 pm
- Location: Festering Foothills
- Contact:
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
It's getting closer.
All BC locations are complete and fully populated. I'm in the process of play testing it, fixing bugs, and tying up a few loose ends. The only major part of the game I haven't done a lot with yet is the magic system.
I am having one rather strange problem with vehicles. In some (but not all) regions, when I try to dismount a vehicle, it says "DISMOUNTING VEHICLE" but the player remains on the vehicle. I've had this problem with horses and skiffs.
Has anyone else had this problem?
Heather
All BC locations are complete and fully populated. I'm in the process of play testing it, fixing bugs, and tying up a few loose ends. The only major part of the game I haven't done a lot with yet is the magic system.
I am having one rather strange problem with vehicles. In some (but not all) regions, when I try to dismount a vehicle, it says "DISMOUNTING VEHICLE" but the player remains on the vehicle. I've had this problem with horses and skiffs.
Has anyone else had this problem?
Heather
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
Another quick update...
I have just finished a quick play test (i.e. using cheats, debugging commands, and good items) to quickly run through the main quest and the Ruined Temple quest. It is now possible to play the game from the beginning through getting the time machine to work (and even using it, although right now BC is the only time period for which there is a proper exit from the machine), and it is possible to clear the Ruined Temple of monsters and get credit for it.
The next step will be to play through it without using cheats or debugging codes, and starting with the crappy weapons and skill levels that players always start with on Ultima games. (I have already done this a few times for the first part of the game.) I'm sure there will be more bugs, and I'll probably have to tinker with monsters and make minor changes to the maps.
Hopefully, in the process, I will figure out the vehicle problem and get that fixed. However, if I don't, the game will still be playable; the regions where it is not possible to exit the vehicle are few, and it doesn't cause critical problems.
Once this is done, I will post an archive somewhere on the web, and I will post a link to it in this thread.
Depending on how many bugs I find and how much time and energy I have this weekend, there is a good chance that this game will be posted within the week. Hopefully a few people will want to help test it out; that way, the debugging process for BC can continue while I start mapping out the other time periods and the planets.
Looking ahead, the next installment will likely include all of the Earth time periods except Legends, with all their towns and dungeons, and the next major quest in the game will be to purloin a spacecraft from Pirate's Harbour, which will be a far more difficult task than it was in the original.
Here are some of the ideas that are in my plan for Earth's other time periods.
Devonian - a new time period. Native monsters - labyrinthodonts and placoderms. I might add one or two tiles representing Devonian vegetation if I think I have enough available. Will include a substantial ghost town, a castle inhabited by a mad king, and some pop culture references. The mad king will have one of the items necessary to gain access to Minax, so a visit to this time period will be necessary.
Triassic (Pangaea) - The astronauts who are in Baradin's Town in the original will be expanded into full dialogues, and they will hold the key to reaching Planet X, as they do in the original. Native monsters - labyrinthodonts (they were around for a long time) and cynodonts. If I have enough tiles, I might add a primitive dinosaur.
AD - Many new locations. Expanding on the New San Antonio theme, I plan to add other "New" towns - New Kinshasa and New Vladivostok. I also plan to add a few villages and isolated houses. There will be rat-infested sewers beneath some of the towns. Lord British's Castle will have an extra level. There will be eight lighthouses. I still plan to make AD the most heavily populated time period, and it will probably be a lot of work. The quest for the Ring of Life will go from New San Antonio to Planet X back to New San Antonio as it does in the original, and Santre the Swashbuckler will still have the quick sword, but I might move him to a different town and make him hard to find. The quick sword, however, will need to have an enchantment applied to it before it can harm Minax. (I might have to make Minax a terrain object rather than a creature for this to work as I want it to.)
Aftermath - I have already created some new tiles for broken walls, sludge pools, polluted water, and an ugly mutant. I also plan to use the familiar Headless monster as a type of mutant. Pirate's Harbour will be inhabited by rather suspicious Soviet-type people, and stealing their spacecraft will not be easy. There will also be a dungeon-town called Destiny which is inhabited by the few remaining good people, and they will help the player gain access to the shuttle. Also, there will be ruins of Lord British's Castle. I have already started mapping this.
Farther into the future, I plan to add to the existing list of planets, and I have hand-drawn rough sketches for the maps of some of them. In my plan are Earth's moon, Ceres, Makemake, Haumea, Eris, Quaoar, Sedna, Io (a good excuse to use lava and brimstone tiles), Titan, Oberon, and Triton. If I get finished with everything and feel like adding more (and I haven't maxed out ACK), there are plenty more moons and Kuiper Belt objects to choose from. Like Planet X, not all of these locations will be immediately accessible upon getting the spacecraft; the player will have to search for the information needed to reach them. More than just Planet X will be necessary to finish the game, and many of those that remain optional will have quests that can add to experience and treasure.
When finished, this will be a huge game. Even with BC by itself, it is already quite large.
Heather
I have just finished a quick play test (i.e. using cheats, debugging commands, and good items) to quickly run through the main quest and the Ruined Temple quest. It is now possible to play the game from the beginning through getting the time machine to work (and even using it, although right now BC is the only time period for which there is a proper exit from the machine), and it is possible to clear the Ruined Temple of monsters and get credit for it.
The next step will be to play through it without using cheats or debugging codes, and starting with the crappy weapons and skill levels that players always start with on Ultima games. (I have already done this a few times for the first part of the game.) I'm sure there will be more bugs, and I'll probably have to tinker with monsters and make minor changes to the maps.
Hopefully, in the process, I will figure out the vehicle problem and get that fixed. However, if I don't, the game will still be playable; the regions where it is not possible to exit the vehicle are few, and it doesn't cause critical problems.
Once this is done, I will post an archive somewhere on the web, and I will post a link to it in this thread.
Depending on how many bugs I find and how much time and energy I have this weekend, there is a good chance that this game will be posted within the week. Hopefully a few people will want to help test it out; that way, the debugging process for BC can continue while I start mapping out the other time periods and the planets.
Looking ahead, the next installment will likely include all of the Earth time periods except Legends, with all their towns and dungeons, and the next major quest in the game will be to purloin a spacecraft from Pirate's Harbour, which will be a far more difficult task than it was in the original.
Here are some of the ideas that are in my plan for Earth's other time periods.
Devonian - a new time period. Native monsters - labyrinthodonts and placoderms. I might add one or two tiles representing Devonian vegetation if I think I have enough available. Will include a substantial ghost town, a castle inhabited by a mad king, and some pop culture references. The mad king will have one of the items necessary to gain access to Minax, so a visit to this time period will be necessary.
Triassic (Pangaea) - The astronauts who are in Baradin's Town in the original will be expanded into full dialogues, and they will hold the key to reaching Planet X, as they do in the original. Native monsters - labyrinthodonts (they were around for a long time) and cynodonts. If I have enough tiles, I might add a primitive dinosaur.
AD - Many new locations. Expanding on the New San Antonio theme, I plan to add other "New" towns - New Kinshasa and New Vladivostok. I also plan to add a few villages and isolated houses. There will be rat-infested sewers beneath some of the towns. Lord British's Castle will have an extra level. There will be eight lighthouses. I still plan to make AD the most heavily populated time period, and it will probably be a lot of work. The quest for the Ring of Life will go from New San Antonio to Planet X back to New San Antonio as it does in the original, and Santre the Swashbuckler will still have the quick sword, but I might move him to a different town and make him hard to find. The quick sword, however, will need to have an enchantment applied to it before it can harm Minax. (I might have to make Minax a terrain object rather than a creature for this to work as I want it to.)
Aftermath - I have already created some new tiles for broken walls, sludge pools, polluted water, and an ugly mutant. I also plan to use the familiar Headless monster as a type of mutant. Pirate's Harbour will be inhabited by rather suspicious Soviet-type people, and stealing their spacecraft will not be easy. There will also be a dungeon-town called Destiny which is inhabited by the few remaining good people, and they will help the player gain access to the shuttle. Also, there will be ruins of Lord British's Castle. I have already started mapping this.
Farther into the future, I plan to add to the existing list of planets, and I have hand-drawn rough sketches for the maps of some of them. In my plan are Earth's moon, Ceres, Makemake, Haumea, Eris, Quaoar, Sedna, Io (a good excuse to use lava and brimstone tiles), Titan, Oberon, and Triton. If I get finished with everything and feel like adding more (and I haven't maxed out ACK), there are plenty more moons and Kuiper Belt objects to choose from. Like Planet X, not all of these locations will be immediately accessible upon getting the spacecraft; the player will have to search for the information needed to reach them. More than just Planet X will be necessary to finish the game, and many of those that remain optional will have quests that can add to experience and treasure.
When finished, this will be a huge game. Even with BC by itself, it is already quite large.
Heather
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
I've made more progress. I decided to fully implement the magic system and the training related to magic, and it seems to work but it hasn't been fully tested yet. Some of the related macros are very complex, and there are probably bugs. Substantial play testing of magic will be necessary.
Here are the basics of how it works. There are 10 wizard spells and 10 cleric spells. Unlike in the original, the player can learn both types. For each type, training at novice, intermediate, and advanced levels is required before spells can be learned; each instance of this training requires one training point. Learning particular spells does not use training points. Novice-level spells do not require any items to cast. For higher levels, certain items must be equipped - green idol (amulet - cleric intermediate), magic ankh (amulet - cleric intermediate or advanced), magic wand (weapon - wizard intermediate), wizard staff (weapon - wizard intermediate or advanced). These items are all very valuable and difficult to find; acquiring them is one of the challenges of the game. Wizard spells are mostly combat-related and light spells. Cleric spells include healing, opening doors and chests, teleportation, and protection from death. Training to augment magical energy (1TP = +5MP) is also available. The game starts with 5 training points, and each level increase gives 5 training points.
I've also been fixing bugs and tying up loose ends through play testing. Things seem to be working well enough now that I should be able to do a proper play test without using debugging commands to speed things up.
Heather
Here are the basics of how it works. There are 10 wizard spells and 10 cleric spells. Unlike in the original, the player can learn both types. For each type, training at novice, intermediate, and advanced levels is required before spells can be learned; each instance of this training requires one training point. Learning particular spells does not use training points. Novice-level spells do not require any items to cast. For higher levels, certain items must be equipped - green idol (amulet - cleric intermediate), magic ankh (amulet - cleric intermediate or advanced), magic wand (weapon - wizard intermediate), wizard staff (weapon - wizard intermediate or advanced). These items are all very valuable and difficult to find; acquiring them is one of the challenges of the game. Wizard spells are mostly combat-related and light spells. Cleric spells include healing, opening doors and chests, teleportation, and protection from death. Training to augment magical energy (1TP = +5MP) is also available. The game starts with 5 training points, and each level increase gives 5 training points.
I've also been fixing bugs and tying up loose ends through play testing. Things seem to be working well enough now that I should be able to do a proper play test without using debugging commands to speed things up.
Heather
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
I'm still working on play testing, but should be done soon. The magic system is complicated, and that has required some debugging.
To conserve objects, I have created one spell object for all wizard spells, and one object for all wizard spells. Casting these spells brings up a request to choose a spell (by entering the first letter of the spell name). That way, I have ten spells in one object. The macros to do this are rather long. There is also a complicated magic training macro that is called by dialogues. It takes over from the dialogue and brings up a training menu. Specific training options are controlled by a variable that is set in the dialogue.
(An Ultima V-style spell system could be fully implemented using similar macros, and only one object would be needed for all spells.)
I have also done some minor housekeeping. The horse and skiff vehicles have been properly tested, and the macros that govern entrance portals now cover vehicles. A skiff (or, later, ship) can sail into a port town and will appear at a location different from the location the player appears if on foot or horseback. Also, horses refuse to go into caves, mines, or dungeons, and cannot climb ladders, but will go into other entrance portals.
In addition to the final play testing of BC, I have been creating a few more maps.
The following maps now exist:
Wilderness maps - all terrains and entrance portals placed, but wandering monsters are not there yet. Devonian, Triassic (Pangaea), AD, Aftermath
Towns, dungeons, houses, etc.:
Completed locations: Lord British Ruins (Aftermath), Dead Cave (Aftermath)
Locations fully mapped, but no creatures yet: York's House (Aftermath), Rocky Cave (Aftermath), Ruined Temple (AD), Temple of Peace (AD), Baradin's Town (Triassic), Ruined Farm (Aftermath)
Locations mapped, but details and creatures not placed yet: Sandstone Ranch (Devonian), Penninsula Prison (small dungeon - Triassic), Lord British Castle (AD), Port Panthalassa (Triassic), Pirate's Harbour (Aftermath)
Time Machine: All connections except Legends have been created and are working. When I release the BC game, these other regions will also be there to explore, but they won't be fully populated or working.
Heather
To conserve objects, I have created one spell object for all wizard spells, and one object for all wizard spells. Casting these spells brings up a request to choose a spell (by entering the first letter of the spell name). That way, I have ten spells in one object. The macros to do this are rather long. There is also a complicated magic training macro that is called by dialogues. It takes over from the dialogue and brings up a training menu. Specific training options are controlled by a variable that is set in the dialogue.
(An Ultima V-style spell system could be fully implemented using similar macros, and only one object would be needed for all spells.)
I have also done some minor housekeeping. The horse and skiff vehicles have been properly tested, and the macros that govern entrance portals now cover vehicles. A skiff (or, later, ship) can sail into a port town and will appear at a location different from the location the player appears if on foot or horseback. Also, horses refuse to go into caves, mines, or dungeons, and cannot climb ladders, but will go into other entrance portals.
In addition to the final play testing of BC, I have been creating a few more maps.
The following maps now exist:
Wilderness maps - all terrains and entrance portals placed, but wandering monsters are not there yet. Devonian, Triassic (Pangaea), AD, Aftermath
Towns, dungeons, houses, etc.:
Completed locations: Lord British Ruins (Aftermath), Dead Cave (Aftermath)
Locations fully mapped, but no creatures yet: York's House (Aftermath), Rocky Cave (Aftermath), Ruined Temple (AD), Temple of Peace (AD), Baradin's Town (Triassic), Ruined Farm (Aftermath)
Locations mapped, but details and creatures not placed yet: Sandstone Ranch (Devonian), Penninsula Prison (small dungeon - Triassic), Lord British Castle (AD), Port Panthalassa (Triassic), Pirate's Harbour (Aftermath)
Time Machine: All connections except Legends have been created and are working. When I release the BC game, these other regions will also be there to explore, but they won't be fully populated or working.
Heather
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Garth's Equipment Shop
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
The first installment will be ready for people to try out within a day or two. I have finished a complete play test (without using cheat/debugging codes to speed things up) of the major BC quest, and I have gone through all of the dungeons in the BC time period. It is now fully playable up to the point of getting the time machine to work and using it to travel to all of Earth's time periods except for Legends. As I mentioned, the other time periods have their wilderness maps done, but I have not extensively tested them, and I have not placed the creatures. I did just fix up the time machine macros, and I have confirmed that the time machine will properly access all of these time periods. After implementing this, I have decided that I like this method better than the time gates of the original game; it just seems to make more sense, especially considering that Ultima I had a time machine.
I just have a few loose ends to tie up; once I have fixed these few minor problems and tested the fixes, it will be ready.
I am sure there will be lots of bugs that I haven't found. That is why it is useful to have other people try it out. I have a few friends who want to try it, and anyone who stumbles upon this forum will be welcome to try it as well. Any feedback will be appreciated.
While others are trying out the BC portion, I will be working on the other time periods, and hopefully before long they will be finished and fully populated. That will give everyone a lot to explore.
Heather
I just have a few loose ends to tie up; once I have fixed these few minor problems and tested the fixes, it will be ready.
I am sure there will be lots of bugs that I haven't found. That is why it is useful to have other people try it out. I have a few friends who want to try it, and anyone who stumbles upon this forum will be welcome to try it as well. Any feedback will be appreciated.
While others are trying out the BC portion, I will be working on the other time periods, and hopefully before long they will be finished and fully populated. That will give everyone a lot to explore.
Heather
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Heather Harrison
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2010 8:40 pm
Here is the latest. I will probably be busy for a while mapping all of the areas in Earth's other time periods.
Devonian
Mapped, but life not placed yet: wilderness, Sandstone Ranch
Partially mapped: Summerfield (village)
Planned but not started: Castle Gondwana, Rhea (port town), Port Granville ruin, Wardley Farm, Antler Farm, Gondwana Prison, Caledonian Caverns, Iron Mine, Gondwana Dungeon
Triassic
Mapped, but life not placed yet: wilderness, Baradin's Town
Partially mapped: Penninsula Prison, Port Panthalassa (town)
Planned but not started: Wizard's Retreat (village), Dawn Farms (village), Triassic Tower, Iapetus Mine, Cynodont Burrows, Lazy R Ranch, Cheston Farm, Bog Cave, Wardick's House
AD
Mapped, but life not placed yet: wilderness, Ruined Temple, Temple of Peace (ground level), Port Bonifice (ground level)
Partially mapped: New San Antonio, Lord British's Castle
Planned but not started: Sewers underneath Lord British's Castle and Port Bonifice, New Kinshasa, New Vladivostok, Darwin (village), Paradise (village), Ruins of Thule, Tomb of the Pharaohs (tower), Baffin Tower, The Gulag (tower), Lucky Strike Mine, Eureka Farm, Patagonia Ranch, Orin's Farm, The Boneyard (small cave), Bat Roost Mine, Sahara Cave, Lair of Thieves (small cave), Jungle Road House, Sven's House, Ruined House, eight lighthouses
Aftermath
Completed locations: Lord British Ruins, Dead Cave
Mapped, but life not placed yet: wilderness, Pirate's Harbour (ground level), York's House, Rocky Cave, Ruined Farm
Planned but not started: Sewers under Pirate's Harbour, Destiny (dungeon-town), Ultima Thule (dungeon), Lava Cave
As you can see, I have a lot planned, and it might take a while to get all of this done. It isn't quite as bad as it looks; many of the locations are small, and AD is especially full of small locations.
The planets: A lot of planning is done, but I haven't mapped anything yet.
Quests: Many of the quests in the game are roughly planned, but changes are likely.
Heather
Devonian
Mapped, but life not placed yet: wilderness, Sandstone Ranch
Partially mapped: Summerfield (village)
Planned but not started: Castle Gondwana, Rhea (port town), Port Granville ruin, Wardley Farm, Antler Farm, Gondwana Prison, Caledonian Caverns, Iron Mine, Gondwana Dungeon
Triassic
Mapped, but life not placed yet: wilderness, Baradin's Town
Partially mapped: Penninsula Prison, Port Panthalassa (town)
Planned but not started: Wizard's Retreat (village), Dawn Farms (village), Triassic Tower, Iapetus Mine, Cynodont Burrows, Lazy R Ranch, Cheston Farm, Bog Cave, Wardick's House
AD
Mapped, but life not placed yet: wilderness, Ruined Temple, Temple of Peace (ground level), Port Bonifice (ground level)
Partially mapped: New San Antonio, Lord British's Castle
Planned but not started: Sewers underneath Lord British's Castle and Port Bonifice, New Kinshasa, New Vladivostok, Darwin (village), Paradise (village), Ruins of Thule, Tomb of the Pharaohs (tower), Baffin Tower, The Gulag (tower), Lucky Strike Mine, Eureka Farm, Patagonia Ranch, Orin's Farm, The Boneyard (small cave), Bat Roost Mine, Sahara Cave, Lair of Thieves (small cave), Jungle Road House, Sven's House, Ruined House, eight lighthouses
Aftermath
Completed locations: Lord British Ruins, Dead Cave
Mapped, but life not placed yet: wilderness, Pirate's Harbour (ground level), York's House, Rocky Cave, Ruined Farm
Planned but not started: Sewers under Pirate's Harbour, Destiny (dungeon-town), Ultima Thule (dungeon), Lava Cave
As you can see, I have a lot planned, and it might take a while to get all of this done. It isn't quite as bad as it looks; many of the locations are small, and AD is especially full of small locations.
The planets: A lot of planning is done, but I haven't mapped anything yet.
Quests: Many of the quests in the game are roughly planned, but changes are likely.
Heather