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Hero's Journey: Dev Journal: Clerics, Bards & Healers
Dana
Member Posts: 2,415
Stephanie Shaver, the Lead Designer of Hero's Journey, troops through despite it being the week before E3 with yet another colorful developer journal. This week, she looks at Bards, Clerics and Healers.
;) Game designers just don't seem to know what to do with Bards. Are they fighters? Are they sneaky? Well hey, in Hero's Journey you can make a Bard-Rogue or Bard-Warrior and decide that for yourself -- or make a Bard-Ranger and tell other games to go away.
Bards evolved from a humanitarian need for neutral couriers and free agents, and began as a sect of Kinnaes who developed so-called "charm magic". Bards are notorious wanderers, and still called upon as diplomats and mediators. Wandering the Known World nowadays isn't nearly as safe as it once was, but like all Elanthians, Bards have learned to adapt. |
You can read the article here.
Dana Massey
Formerly of MMORPG.com
Currently Lead Designer for Bit Trap Studios
Comments
Think a little sinister Cleric/Necromancer is my style
I think the only bad thing about Hero's Journey right now is there are too many cool classes... Which is technically a good thing, but makes me think too much about character creation.
And on top of that, we're left in suspense on what the next installment's subject will be! Gods, locales, finally some information on Burian history (Please!), combat system details, class combo names, skill examples, an E3 video, a downloadable stand-alone character creator (I would love Simultronics even more)??
I will play as usual, with about four alts.
I'm thinking much of the news we are waiting for will be revealed at E3. Stay tuned...
Steph,
Thanks for the insights. As a long time healer class player, I was a bit put off by EQ's cleric (although I ended up still going that way (come on platemail?) and still have a 63 Cleric. I started a healer in CoH, and in EQ2 also but EQ2 I ended up going on to a mystic/shaman. Sorry to wander off topic, as I really wanted to say, I WILL PLAY THIS GAME! heh..... Its the first I have heard of it (sorry) but I will be mentioning it to my circle of RPG friends. Keep it coming and you might have at least 12 new accounts just from us. Good luck and good gaming. Cheers!
Bringing Chaos to your locale.
I'm disappointed that crafting -- if implemented -- will have only a second-class status in Hero's Journey. (First-class status is awarded when all profession choices are mutually exclusive so that all choices are equally valued by design.) Haven't we seen enough MMORPGs focused on combat?
I'm also disappointed that classes are being designed to fit into a conventional DPS/tank/nuker combat system. I think that's an unnecessary cramping of what could have been a much broader (i.e., more interesting) set of choices for classes. (Personally I'd rather HJ had gone with a skill-based system rather than yet another class system, but that might have been asking too much.)
However, these two (serious) gripes aside, these classes seem reasonably distinct from each other. That will help players understand their role in grouped combat, which is apparently a key design goal for HJ.
Also, being able to dual-class could take some of the sting out of using a class-based system if there are skills available only to certain class combinations. Dual-classing at least offers the hope of being able to create a character that's not just like everybody else. (Yes, I'm aware that gear may be so individualized in HJ as to help uniquely define a character -- I'm just not sure I care to be defined by material possessions.)
This is coming across a little more critical of the proposed profession system in HJ than I intended. Overall I think the class choices sound pretty good, and dual-classing holds the promise of making them even better.
We'll see.
--Flatfingers
so for a monk type character (think shaolin priest) should I go healer/warrior or warrior/healer or maybe gear-knight/healer.
Does HJ have unarmed combat / martial arts as such?
And flatfingers I dont think you need to worry about being constrained by class. WIth a dual-class system with 9 classes that gives 9 * 8 = 72 possible class combinations.
I would like to see crafting that is class dependant - so
- warriors and gear knights can craft, repair, upgrade weapons and armour
- rangers could craft/upgrade bows and arrows
- rogues can craft jewellery, rings etc, make poisons
- wizards - scrolls, potions, wands, staffs etc
- healers - healing potions and supplies
- necromancers - poisons and cures,
- clerics -?
- bards - instruments, scrolls, writing materials
I think by giving each class specific and different things they can craft this would be better than letting anyone craft whatever they want. Its also more realistic.
Be careful saying that 72 class combinations. There will be some classes that just either aren't viable, aren't logical, aren't as good as other combinations, or societal bias.
Example: Final Fantasy XI has a dual-class system with 18 classes. That would leave you to believe 306 class combinations are possible. But in reality you won't have a Paladin/Ninja or Paladin/Black Mage... The only viable 2nd class for Paladin in an experience party is Paladin/Warrior - Mainly because if you are anything BUT Pld/War you won't get invited to any parties. So that there just removed 16 of your options. I'm sure it won't be as drastic as that, but you see my point.
A lot of that bias will be negated because in HJ (as in all Simu games) soloing is a very viable way to gain experience, in fact in Gemstone IV its a more viable option than grouping. So you can do whatever you want, without the worry of not being able to get a group.
You are correct that some of those combinations may not be viable.
Until we start playing the game we wont know which are popular, which get you ostracised etc.
Still it gives more flexibility than just 9 classes and the dual-classing allows for some nice combinations. Until we see some more information on actual skills, abilities, attributes etc its hard to even guess how well particular combinations will work.
Its also possible if they plan to give class combinations names that two combinations may have the same name. Eg cleric/warrior and cleric/gear-knight might both be called Paladin. One is just more defensive and one more offensive in combat.
I played a bard in Gemstone III for years (well, and a ranger, empath, rogue, and cleric, but that's another story), and for anyone who didn't understand Stephanie's loresinging references... be very glad you never heard some of the terrible rhymes spewing forth from Elanthian "singers". A bard could hold an object in their hand and sing a song he or she made up to try to find out what magical properties the object might have.
Bard01 sings:
"Um, like, forest green brigandine in my hand,
Tell me what, um, powers you have... in this land!"
My ears are still ringing from the terrible verses people came up with, but I'm really really (really) glad they're keeping a version of loresinging in the game. I simply can't wait