Hi again, Lightbringers!
Welcome back to a new entry of our weekly dev blog! This time we’ll take you to the heart of the mage tower: the throne room. Here you will listen to your people and make decisions on events that will affect the lives of your subjects and also the gameplay.
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One of the main duties that come with the job of any competent Lightbringer ruler is holding court and passing judgement on daily issues happening in their domains.
The banging knocker on the door at your tower will let you know when your presence is requested in the throne room. If you are out of the city on a mission, a big exclamation mark will pop up on top of your mage tower to let you know that there is something in town that needs your attention.
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When you advance in the main quest, the throne room is the place where you will receive updates on the status of the mission and unlock the next step. You will most times have a say on what is happening and your answers can not only give you rewards or penalties, such as karma gains or loyalty losses, but can also change the story and lead to different game endings.
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However, not all the topics in the throne room are related to the main mission. Quite often you will have to listen to your subjects’ pleads and troubles, make decisions that will affect city management, or sort out arguments between citizens, for instance.
Other times, when you enter the throne room, an event will be triggered. This can be things like a stranger entering your chamber at night, or you going hunting and finding some delicious-looking berries. As usual, you will be presented with a few choices that will lead to better or worse consequences.
The dialogue sequences that are not related to the main quest are set off randomly, as are the results of your choices. Almost all dialogues have some small reward or loss: gaining or losing villagers, gold, spellbooks, one day of game time, etc. Selecting some options will result in nothing at all happening.
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For example:
This morning in court, a distraught woman rushes past the guards to address you. Apparently, her
husband disappeared the night before. “He didn’t run off on me, yer majesty, he was taken! A strange
figure dressed all in white got ‘im out of bed in the wee hours and led ‘im into the woods. It was witchcraft, I warrant.”
OPTION 1:
Bring an article of his clothing to the keep and we’ll see if he can be tracked.
[50%] The man is discovered in short order at a private little love nest in the forest. Seems he slept in.
[50%] The man is discovered sleeping in a pile of leaves in the forest. He remembers nothing of how he got there.
OPTION 2:
It sounds to me like the man found himself a mistress. The problems of a marriage are beyond even my powers to resolve.
[20% - gain 20 gold] When the husband returns, he comes straight to you with a small purse of gold. He wants you to hide him in the keep until his troubles blow over.
[60%] She is less than pleased with this answer, but too wise to complain about it.
[20% - lose one Villager] Dissatisfied with this result, the wife goes searching on her own. Unfortunately, the man is never found.
OPTION 3:
Hmm, what if a witch really is abducting my citizens? Best investigate.
[40% - lose one Villager] Your men find nothing. The man has vanished.
[60% - gain two Spellbooks] The man is discovered asleep outside a tumbledown hut in the woods. He remembers nothing of the night before, but your guards return with two spellbooks they discovered at the site.
The brain behind most of these dialogues is Scott Hamm, one of the writers behind the fabulous RPG and strategy game Battle Brothers, and his writing talent has brought very enjoyable and interesting encounters and events to the game.
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Holding court is a tough job and most of your decisions will have consequences, so make sure you consider all your options carefully!
This is all for today! If you are new to Empire of Ember and haven’t had the time to play yet, give the game a go and do not forget to leave us a review on Steam! Your feedback will help us greatly to improve the game experience and give it the finishing touches it deserves.
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