Hi everyone!
Felix here with another episode of our weekly blog. With gamescom only two weeks away we are all working like crazy to make the best out of our demo. I am already pretty excited by the results and I’m sure it will get even better by the time we finally get to show it off behind closed doors. We´re also working on a new gameplay trailer which showcases the latest visuals and features in the game and we´ll upload this one for all to see as part of a showcase that we´ve been invited in to participate in. The excitement - and stress level - have reached new heights. ^^
But my receding hairline is not what I came here to talk about today. Instead, let me talk about how the conquest system works that we´re currently in the process of implementing:
The world of Lost Legions is divided into areas of controls that are centered around villages and fortifications. Each of these regions provides at least one strategic advantage that makes it an attractive target of conquest. It could be rare resources like a mine containing precious ores, a strategic chokepoint like a bridge across an impassable river or a unique building like a mill. Additionally, the forts and villages will be the only places where most of the game's buildings, workstations and objects can be placed by the players.
At the start of the game, all regions in the world are controlled by Germanic Tribes, with the exception of a very limited starting base in the hands of the Romans. The players will have to conquer enemy bases one by one in order to unlock their advantages for themselves and will then have to hold on to those bases when Germanic Raid parties attempt to conquer them back.
Starting a conquest attempt is easy: the players encroach on the area of a village or a fort and initiate combat with one of its defenders. This will start a conquest battle where players will have to defeat waves of defenders, culminating in a battle against the chieftain or commander of the location. If at any point before the village has successfully been conquered the players all leave the area for any reason - they flee, are defeated or a combination of both - the conquest will fail and the village will be reset to its original state. If the players succeed, the location will be razed of most germanic buildings and players will be able to build their own base on top of the remains. The first time players conquer a new region, they can expect to find some nice loot in the stockpile of their newly conquered camp.
The tribes will not sit idly upon being kicked out of their homes however and will mount counterattacks. As long as the players control at least one germanic location a raid countdown will tick down in the background. Once it has elapsed a raid will be launched on one of the areas belonging to players that borders on germanic territory. This means you can create safe zones by strategically conquering buffer areas around places that are important to you.
Once a raid has been launched, players will have a grace period to travel back to the endangered camp in order to defend it. The raid will involve waves of tribesmen that will try to destroy as much of the camp as possible, capture any NPCs they can get their hands on and defeat all the defending players. The raids will be more and more challenging, the more camps players control. Defeated raids will drop nice loot for the players to use. If the raiders manage to defeat all the players however, the camp will be lost and will revert to what it was under germanic control. Any items and resources left in the stockpile will remain there until the players conquer the site again.
This all sounds great in my head and we will have to see during internal and external playtests if it's actually fun. All in all I think this will be one of the major gameplay elements of the game that will drive many of the others around it.
Bonus screenshot: You can now pretend to be Russel Crow in the game. ^^
I´m looking forward to hearing any feedback from you at this level. My next scheduled blog is during gamescom, I hope I will find time to write something in between the excitement! 🙂
Until then: back to the pixel mines!
Felix