Dune Saga RPG

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Dune Saga RPG

Postby Duhjoker » Fri Nov 18, 2016 12:43 am

Ok so I have a library for a color Gamebuino system and I've been playing around with building a Dragon Warrior port to the updated library to show off the color but it's gonna be a rather large game using 8 colors for a world apart. Which means making 8 world maps but I had a lil inspiration last night and now I want create a Dune saga RPG!!!

My plan is to use the book as the reference ofcourse but with changing stuff as much as possible. I want the player to get the same experience that you would by reading the book plus you get to be part of the story and do the interactions and speaking lines.

Ambitious I know but I only need 4 colors for the world map sprites brown, dark brown, beige and black. I also thought of cool features like a button pressing event during the part where Paul Atreades endures the pain box, where you do it to keep his hand in or die by gaius mohiam. And when walking in different types of sand like pea sand or deep sad, where yo have to walk in non rhythmic patters or be eaten by a worm that pops up and swallows your character or party.

So say your walking on regular sand, you could move the character up to five paces in any direction the change direction for two paces in any direction. And for pea sand which is louder you could move two then two.

I was also thinking of random pop ups of sip wells where you can drink the water and revitalize your hp. Monsters like sand trout or small to big worms, sardukar, smugglers and so on.

Spice could refill your AP. It would be pretty linear at first til you get to the first seitch or village then quests after that visiting legendary places on the map.

I think it could be Epic. As epic as the books.

Edit::: ok so just for the worldmap sprites I have 35. 3 more than the tile mapper can use so the last 3 sprites I will just mark them as blank and change it to what ever after that which are town and stairs left, stairs right.

For the exact color we beige, brown, black and green, white, gray. 2 more than I thought. Figured out how to make different levels too. Had to make some special sprites though. So parts of it will have a LOZ link to the past feel. I'm also using the full map size of 250X250.
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Re: Dune Saga RPG

Postby Duhjoker » Sat Nov 19, 2016 9:12 pm

I got busy yesterday and started making some character sprites. I started by making some generic sprites done in the style of dragon warrior but they just didn't like them. So I made a new batch in poke-style. I think they look better but I would like some opinions.

First, which looks better? poke or generic?

Second, should I add the walking sprites for each character? they are gonna be pretty small so you might not even see the animation from stop to walk
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Re: Dune Saga RPG

Postby naed » Sat Nov 19, 2016 10:18 pm

I like the idea of your project and want to see you succeed but do feel a little disappointed with the fact I won't be able to play this game if it's ever completed, die to the fact your making it for a custom gamebuino...

Shame really as looks like an interesting project

EDIT

The Pokemon style looks better
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Re: Dune Saga RPG

Postby Duhjoker » Mon Nov 21, 2016 8:58 pm

I like the poke style too. What i hate is having to split each bitmap into each of its colors.

Ok so im confused. Ive been trying to calculate bitmap size and its not making sense to me.

How do i calculate the size of a 16 bit monochrome bitmap. In english please. Lol
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Re: Dune Saga RPG

Postby naed » Mon Nov 21, 2016 9:36 pm

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Re: Dune Saga RPG

Postby Duhjoker » Tue Nov 22, 2016 8:08 am

Ok it looks to be around 81kB with all the terrain and character sprites. I still need a battle background, enemies, a worm, and an ornithopter (dune mode of air travel) and a few other things.

Dont know how to do the worm just yet. I would like to make them at least four 16x16 tiles so i can integrate riding them at some point. Plus it has to have the classic three flap mouth.

Then ill need items next i guess.

edit:: got the sandworm head done though it looks more like a graboid than a sand worm but I like it. i tried a couple things before settling on the big long tusks coming out like a graboid and makes it look more like its got the three flap mouth

edit:: got the ring segments done, looks like its kind of Gigerish

edit:: how should I do monster battles? Like the back ground is there a way that doesn't require me to make a huge window with a huge bitmap character inside it?

I think I might just make the monsters 32 X 32 with a fade out to fade in and the mister would be there on the same map. Kill the monster then fade back out and in to the same place you were.

Edit::: happy thanks giving

I started making lists of stuff I need like monsters and items and weapons. I would like to do a two party system that would allow you to choose who want to show in the action screen. Like most two party RPG.

Some of my items include

Spice coffee ---restore 100 hp
Slig meat -- restore 1000 hp
Spice beer --- restore 500 hp
Pundi rice --- restore 20 mp
Fur whale meat --restore 50 mp
Axlotl fluid ----restore 100mp
Still suit repair kit--repair torn still suit
Compass ----- points to nearest town
Semuta ---- put enemies in trance
Glow globe ---- lights caves
Krimskell rope----bind enemies
Shield generator-----boost defence
Sapho ----- boost offence
Water------restores mp and hp
Water of life-----boost ability
Chaumurky ------defense down
Chaumace-------ability down
Sapporative-----attack down

Plus a thumper that emits a percussion sound to distract worms when traveling across sand tiles but also calls the worm for riding. There's no real way that looks right to add passengers to the worm so we will have to settle with controlling the worms directions instead but beware, worms will tire and leave you stranded if ridden to long.

Monsters ///
Sand trout--------larval stage of sand worm,
Lil maker---------- next stage of worm used to make water of life
Small worm-------- small enough to cause you a bad day with out being swallowed
Sardukar---------imperial troops
Harkonnen-------harkonnen troops
Smugglers -------spice smugglers
Kangaroo mouse-----native to Arrakis
Futar-----------------half man half cat bred by those who returned from the scattering
Gaze hound---------native to Arrakis
Wild dog--------------duh
Laza tiger-----vicious animals bred on salusa secondus
Leech bat ----- self explanatory
Slig ------- large half pig and half snail they eat garbage but the meat is a delicacy
Spider--------..........
Scorpion------..........
Desert hare -------.....
Turtle bug------ common insect with sweet meat
Face dancer-----mimic, these guys can mimick people and have silvery skin and short bodies

edit:: check out all my characters, the yellow thing is my ornithopter and I cant seem to get a side version to look right.
the other two are harvester at birds eye band a side view of the same

characters are::::

baron harkonnen
beast rabban
chani
doctor yueh
duke leto atreades
Duncan Idaho
emperor shaddam
feyd rautha
gaius helen mohiam
guild navigator
guilder
gurney halleck
lady Jessica
liet kynes
paul atreades
princess irulan
sarduakar fanatic
shadout mapes
stilgar
thufir hawat
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Re: Dune Saga RPG

Postby Duhjoker » Wed Nov 30, 2016 8:13 am

Always look for edits if you are following........

Ok so how many monsters is enough? I was thinking about 35 with some doubles. Would that be enough for a map around 250 X 250? Should I do more? Right now I have 29.

Heres an updated list in alpha. When i get done i will post the rips. Its a good mix. Most are complete redraws pixel by pixel from ideas i found online a few are just copies and the rest i made on my own. I did use some DW sprites as monsters such as the golem for mirage and redrew a DW snail into a two snouted pig snail. I have a great imagination for 8 and 16 bit but 32 and higher are too much.

Monsters /////////

arrakeanhawk
crazed dog +
deep sand arrakean hawk
Deep sand crazed dog +
Deep sand gaze hound +
deep sand hare
Deep sand maker+
Deep sand mirage +
Deep sand scorpion +
Deep sand sand trout +
Deep sand spider +
Deep sand turtle bug +
Desert hare +
Desrt leech bat +
Desert scorpion +
desert slig
Desert spider +
face dancer
Futar +
futar bashar
Gaze hound +
Jacarutu outcast +
Kangaroo mouse +
Laza tiger +
Leech bat
Little maker +
lost face dancer
Mirage +
Oasis mirage +
Sand trout+
Sand worm +
Slig +
Small sand worm +
Spice smuggler +
Turtle bug +



Edit::: ok i added a couple of monster sprites and i need to go ahead use a 16 bit slime image instead of the current ones above. With each one having a double its about 85 plus 93 for characters and 22 for land sprites so right at 156k as it stands and i still need items and weapons. I can lose half the monsters by only adding one of each to the code and calling different colors when doing drawbitmap.

Thats a fairly large game. I would still have plenty left over but an upgrade to a teensy 3.6 would be right on the money with its 1mb progmem. But we still need to figure out sd. Then games could be larger and better graphics in the future when the color oled is upgraded. But thats far off right now.

Edit:::: got done with my items last night so now I just need to make a few more sprites for weapons and clothing/armor

Update:::::::::

Just got last night breaking all my sprites down for different colors and we have a totals of

21 people =====115 bitmaps 73.9
43 terrain =====129 bitmaps 20.2
42 monsters ====252 bitmaps 92.8kb
28 items ==== 136 bitmaps 24.5kb
134 total bitmaps that when broken down to their individual 632 monochrome bitmaps equals 211KB
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Re: Dune Saga RPG

Postby Duhjoker » Sat Dec 17, 2016 1:21 am

Been working on the world map the past few days. I found the tiled app and that makes things easier since I can zoom in and out, make bigger maps and it produces a json file so I can use the array with the tilemap commands. Copy and paste rules.

I settled on 425 X 410. I made the main floor deep sand and then created leveled basins and plateaus using the rocks and a few special tiles. It's looking great and I love the layered effects. I would attach it but it's too big!!!! Even zipped.

Ok so any sand tile will bring worms to eat you but only on deep can you ride the worms which will be a quest. But for only so long say 20-25 tiles. Then they tire and disappear back into the sand. You could also distract worms with the same thumper that calls a worm and make a break for it as Paul and Jessica did in the first book before becoming fremen.

In the second half of the book Paul is tasked with teaching all the fremen tribes the weirding way a type of martial arts. So I was thinking that I could have mini quests in each town or sietch that have to be completed before allowing you complete your main task for each tribe. Some will require you to leave the main area you are in and come back with items that cannot be acquired before the tribesman in each seitch asks.

Plus a special quest that involves a legendary weapon like a masamune or something from earths long lost past for each member in your permanent party.

I also want to make a few mazes and push block puzzles for dungeons.

Gonna try to make some worm carcasses to leave around the map

i added a preview of the map showing the polar area I haven't added the angled tiles yet.

edit::::
removed overly large example with atiny biy smaller one almost finished....need more decoration.

Spent most of today creating angles for the rocks so the match what ever surface the touch down to. Rock grass, rock, rock deep sand. And i think it looks a whole lot better with out a general tile. Looks smooth but i still have to fix stuff

Ok about the vegetation. Fremen harvested many grains usually in shady spots and near wind traps. Date Palm trees were kept as a source of fruit to which the seed can be roasted and ground for coffee. Wind traps were openings in rock caverns where the wind pushes through and the water moisture collected in a stone tank. Plastics made fom the plant cellulose that they made a spike type object with a cup at its top end that could change colors to condensate the spike there by watering your crops.

I need a ribcage sprite for decoration and cant find jack. I remember a game like starcraft in the desert and seeing exactly what i could use as a reference but i cant find that either. What other desrt things beside rock sand would look good as decoration.

Edit::::
Finished the world map almost. I filled up all the land masses and depressions with rock then palm trees then grass then angled pieces to match the background color its associated with. Still need more deco but I can take a break and start world map part 2. This tiled app rocks. All I have to do is create a tile set for each color. Just add a clear space to the ones not used so you can keep every thing in order. Then open up my tile map and switch the tile sheet out. Then save. Do that for each color.

Edit::::
Finally found a couple references for desert bones. One is huge at 28 bitmaps but will look awesome in the deep sand. The other is quite a bit smaller but will good in regular sand.

Edit:::
Finally finished the Arrakis world map. It's 425x415 tiles. Added a wall today gonna add a few more details and I'm almost ready break it into an integer array.
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Re: Dune Saga RPG

Postby Duhjoker » Thu Jan 19, 2017 10:05 pm

Ok so my original plan with walking on sand in non rhythmic motions to avoid sand worms coming up and swallowing you, was to go to the game over screen making you have to repeat from your last save, would piss people off. Soooooo I decided on this instead.....

When you get swallowed, you get a respawn at the last cave or town entrance/exit. Then a bubble that says something like.....

Through Paul's Atreades Prescient vision he foresaw that he had taken the wrong path. Kind of a prince of Persia thing but Dune style.
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Re: Dune Saga RPG

Postby wuuff » Sat Jan 21, 2017 2:23 am

It's interesting that you're using Tiled. I'm currently working on a game with tilemaps, and I also decided to use Tiled and export the maps as .json files. I wrote a python script to convert the map and tile data to a byte array. What do you do to get the map data into your game?

Those game ideas sound great, by the way, but seem like they will be huge --- probably way, way more than a gamebuino can handle, even after moving data to the SD card. Are you planning to use something more powerful than the Atmega328p? If you're replacing both the screen and the microcontroller, then you're limiting your audience by quite a lot.
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