Day Off, Day Out

With the exception of a brief review and organization of my scripting punch list, I was unable to do any development today due to my AFKness.  I admit that the fresh air felt good.

I am now entering update week.  This promises to be interesting.  I still have a lot to do.

The Worst Kept Secret

...is this blog.  I wanted to take a moment to welcome the newer readers here and to thank everyone for your comments.  I enjoy reading them.

I am amused (bemused?) at the increase of readership, as I have not spoken of this blog to anyone.  This blog started as one part journal, one part catch-all for ideas, one part editorial and one part something-constructive-to-do-with-my-time.  I wouldn't say that anything has changed in that respect: I continue to add journal entries about the highs and lows of my experiences; I still daydream about cool vaporware for the game; and I still voice my opinion and share my thoughts.  I guess that I have some trouble grasping why anyone else would find my self-indulgent ramblings of any interest.

I was genuinely surprised to see a link to this blog on Thoomcare:



I have always considered Thoomcare a great source for public knowledge of Clan Lord, and I found it surprising to see my silly little blog listed there – which therefore makes Yap³ one of the worst kept secrets of Clan Lord.

I find that to my liking.

Save Early, Save Often

The summer months are upon the residents of North America, as are the hot, humid days associated with it.  As the temperature rises, so does the need for energy, presumably to support the millions of simultaneously running air conditioners.  With this demand for energy comes the struggle to provide it, often resulting in brown-outs and black-outs.

Whilst writing a script for Clan Lord, I had the misfortune of experiencing a brown-out, which turned off every appliance in my home – including the computer on which I was writing the script.  This happened thrice throughout the day.

While I did lose changes that I had added to the script, the loss was not severe because I have a habit of frequently saving the documents on which I am working.  The habit is an unconscious one, bordering compulsive: when I add some changes to a document, I reflexively hit command-S.  I acknowledge that it's an odd habit to have, but today I am relieved that I practice such a habit.

I wonder if I can get a discount on my electricity bill for the frequent interruption of service.

Hot Pink and Hot Fire

I am quickly approaching the first milestone of my current project.  I feel happy with the content that has been provided to me and I think I am just about ready to move onto the next phase.

I took a break from project design to work on some bugs.  Has anyone noticed if pink paint turns blue after the paint wears off?  I have been unable to replicate this problem, and I look like a fool wearing pink paint.

I then took a break from taking a break, and I ran a small invasion.



I am learning quite a bit about what challenges players are capable of handling.

Starcraft 2 and Real Time Strategy

I am glad that I do not play Starcraft.  The Starcraft 2 trailer looks totally bad ass, and the last thing that I want in my life right now is another way to waste time.

I have played the Warcraft series.  My take on these types of Real Time Strategy games is that they're not too dissimilar to farming kudzu while defending crops from Pazu-Ohwi: the player works towards a production goal (kudzu seedlings in this example) while warding off opponents that are trying to destroy the means of production.

It's fun, I suppose, if one enjoys that style of gaming.  I happen to find kudzu farming dreadfully dull.

You Dirty Ratticus.

I spent a good portion of today continuing with development of new content.  The work is rather a bit of a grind; lots of repetition and not a lot of variety.  I took a break from this numbing work to see what was happening online and was appalled to see that nothing was happening.

Town center needed to go from quiet to riot.







Thanks to all who participated.  I needed the stimulation.

Scales And Balances

A question of game balance came up in one of the recent comments.  I thought that I would address this concern.

I feel that it is unjust to determine whether or not something is balanced without examining the scale used to measure that balance.  For example, would it be fair to say that it is unbalanced to place an Orga Fury in one of the rat towers or on Kitty Beach?  I say that it is unbalanced, because this monster doesn't fit the scale of the other monsters found in those areas.  It's too large and too tough and too overpowering for the skill level of the players who hunt those areas.

On the other hand, would it be unbalancing to find an Orga Fury in the Slate Caverns?  I am of the opinion that an Orga Fury in the Slate Caverns would be marked as "junk," because the threat of an Orga Fury does not measure to the threat of an Albino Arachnoid.  In this setting, the Orga Fury falls on the other end of the scale.

The new monster AIs will need to have their degree of threat weighed, and then monsters running those AIs will be placed in an appropriate area for that level of risk.  In the example of monsters flanking players, it is unlikely that you will see this tactic used on Kitty Beach (although the thought of Rockodiles trying to maneuver around players makes for an amusing mental picture).  However in a place like the Orga Village where the threat level is already rather high, having some Orga try to maneuver around the players to cut off their escape makes for a new and exciting combat experience.  This tactic would not be unbalanced within such a dangerous area, so a flanking AI scales well for that hunting ground.

So yeah, no Flanking Rockodiles for Kitty Beach.  The new monster tactic AIs will need to scale into hunting areas that match the risk level of that area.