Dungeons, adventuring areas, and elements
Posted: 30 Apr 2005, 23:47
This subject has been mentioned off and on in passing in a number of conversations...
What is the current conception regarding adventuring areas and dungeons? It seems, from what I have been reading, like the general idea at the moment is to have them broken down by element, like "desert of fire," "dungeon of earth," and what have you, and I would really question if this is wise. Basically, it just seems as though it would be pretty boring, to me, and I would much rather see more naturalistic adventuring areas, wherein you don't know offhand what a monster's elemental resistances are save by observation, trial and error, though of course certain areas would have more of a certain type of monster (creatures in a desert are generally more fire resistant).
This also brings up the related issue of creature element resistances, which I am similarly unsure of the current ideas on. Early on, it seemed to be the accepted thought that each monster would be assigned an element. I would, for purposes of variety, naturality, and complexity, like to see elemental resistances (and affiliations) handled more along the lines of how it's done in Battle for Wesnoth; everything has a chart of resistances/affiliations, which might start out based upon the archetype of having a single element, but would be customized for each creature type, thus allowing such things as a monster heavily resistant to both water and fire, but vulnerable to, say, space.
What is the current conception regarding adventuring areas and dungeons? It seems, from what I have been reading, like the general idea at the moment is to have them broken down by element, like "desert of fire," "dungeon of earth," and what have you, and I would really question if this is wise. Basically, it just seems as though it would be pretty boring, to me, and I would much rather see more naturalistic adventuring areas, wherein you don't know offhand what a monster's elemental resistances are save by observation, trial and error, though of course certain areas would have more of a certain type of monster (creatures in a desert are generally more fire resistant).
This also brings up the related issue of creature element resistances, which I am similarly unsure of the current ideas on. Early on, it seemed to be the accepted thought that each monster would be assigned an element. I would, for purposes of variety, naturality, and complexity, like to see elemental resistances (and affiliations) handled more along the lines of how it's done in Battle for Wesnoth; everything has a chart of resistances/affiliations, which might start out based upon the archetype of having a single element, but would be customized for each creature type, thus allowing such things as a monster heavily resistant to both water and fire, but vulnerable to, say, space.
