Endurance - discussion & ideas thread.

This is the discussion for the new game which started to take form in the maze setup thread.
The idea of the game would be to create a character in a maze-like fashion and battle enemy after enemy after enemy. So, in a way, this could be called an Endurance or a Survival mode of The Maze.

However, I feel we should first think this through, and discuss ideas for the game, before we rush into things. 

Firstly, should this be like a team battle mode, where several party members fight the same enemies, or a single player mode where several players could take part, but each player would battle different opponents in different arenas, and possibly fight each other in a grand final battle... if the player make it that far, that is?? 

also, additional equipment and spells could be suggested here... and added to the compendium, if approved by the original GM, alx.

The rules of the Maze are already quite well though out, so we'll probably go by those. However, small adjustments could be made if needed.

I'll just note, the reason I brought it up, was because I have some NPC adventurers for the Maze (not the current one), and I want to see how well the fight as individuals. The quickest way to find out would be putting them through waves of enemies.

Of course this would also be a good opportunity for you guys to have a go GMing, and let me know if you have any ideas, or you think I should add more detailed info into the compendium. Keep in mind, if this ever grows, there would be both a general compendium for players and a GM guide, with significantly more detailed info in the latter.

Oh, and a general note, I'm thinking of renaming the 'detect' stat 'awareness', as that's really more descriptive.

What you choose to call a stat doesn't really affect anything, so feel free.

So you'd like an individual fight? Alright, I guess that would be the best way to test this.

It can affect the perception of the stat.

I'm not sure the idea really needs 'testing' as such. I mean, it's The Maze, just with all the exploration and puzzles stripped out. Still, there will be the getting used to GMing the rules and asking all the little things that I didn't think I needed to write :P

Oh, if you want something to work on, I'd suggest thinking about what enemies you can use, and in what quantity. I'd say nothing more complicated than a half-noticable weak point, or to put it another way, no boss monsters.

so, if DG or sithy aren't against it, I'll take this opportunity to GM this game then.

I'll start working on creatures right away.

Detect stat renamed and slightly reworded.

Try to ensure the difficulty curve doesn't go down, and do try to mix things up where you can, Tough single enemies, swarms of weaker enemies, and so on.

Oh, I'll just note, there should probably be a 'no recovery items' rule.

Try to ensure the difficulty curve doesn't go down, and do try to mix things up where you can, Tough single enemies, swarms of weaker enemies, and so on.

Oh, I'll just note, there should probably be a 'no recovery items' rule.

alx222000

Yes, I'll try to slightly raise the difficulty with each opponent. However, even quite tough enemies could be quickly taken care of if your attacks happen to land on their weak spot. 

And I was thinking about a no recovery rule, however, depending on how many levels you'd play, I was thinking about making every 5th level or so a recovery level.

but I wanted to GM for alx. :P

oh, and one question. do you have some kind of formula for how much energy each action consumes?

Well, it doesn't sound like dg really wants to anyway.

No real formula. Someone with higher strength will use less energy lifting the same weight, and that sort of thing, but the actual amount is something you'll have to figure out. Just try to keep the amounts relative, and any balance can be done with how much they recover by resting. Of course, unless they have a significant rest, they should be losing energy overall.

dg, I'm just thinking, do you mean you want to be running two characters simultaneously? One in the maze proper, one in endurance? I know they're not fast-paced, but it can still be disorienting to be keeping track of two at once.

Alright then. I'd like to start Alx's game first, and then after his first battle or so, I could start DG's as well.

So alx, please make your character. I'll give you 35 stat points to use and 50 item points. Start with one path, skills cost 1 skill point, and you may start with only one skill. New skills and/or magic scrolls/items may be won as prizes.

*sigh*

ok, Just create a character then. Just keep in mind that your opponents will also be at a higher level.

Now, now, I did say I had some characters and needed someone to GM so I could test them ;) Oh, and their inventory is part of what needs testing, so they'll be bringing everything they need.

That's fine, if the fights are too low levelled, then we wouldn't learn much.

Actually, it turns out the first character is only a little beyond that level. the other three are quite a bit stronger though. Still, I refrained from going past 10 on any stat.

Sena

Health - 3
Strength - 3
Stamina - 5
Dexterity - 6
Agility - 8
Reflexes - 5
Magic - 3
Stealth - 4
Awareness - 4
Luck - 5
Skill - 4

Total 50

Wooden Staff
Claws (right hand)
Spells: Barrier, Magic Missile, Magic Mine
Ranger: Bird Call, Befriend
Athlete: Gymnastics

just one more thing before I can start this.

Are the claws like an extension to the fingers, like this: 

or are they the wolverine type? 

I ask because, the way I see it, punching someone with the claws would deal more damage than just cutting them with your fingers. This would make a difference when fighting an armored opponent. I read the description, but it only told me the number of blades and their length.

Wolverine type, I believe I mentioned in the description that they were 'strapped to the back of the hand'. Or should I add more to make it clear? Best example would be Vega from Street Fighter. Perhaps it should be 3 blades rather than 5....

For player characters, the alignment system is broken. I should really remove that part. Elements are fine otherwise.

EDIT: Yeah, I'll change it to 3 blades. Thinking about it, I can see why they would be designed that way.

Ok, just be prepared that some enemies may be resistant to some magic.
But your character doesn't have any elemental spells, so this shouldn't be a problem.

alright, 3 blades it is. That's all I need to start the game.

Well, you seem to be able to imagine the situation well, though you sometimes don't give enough detail about what position the character ends up in, which can make it difficult for me to see what my options are. In the first case I questioned, the character should have been instantly aware of what happened, simply by whether the staff kept moving or not.

I also felt that, despite the "cracks", I wasn't doing any real damage to the skeleton until I hit the crystal. Whether that was intentional or not, it just felt like I wasn't making any progress.

The other thing, well, remember I mentioned that it would probably be best to go no further than a half-noticable weak-point? I'm not sure being hidden behind a shirt is actually even half noticable :P

Just to be clear, only the first point is important. You did alright. But we'll have to see how things continue.

I know what you said about the weak points. But because this was an animated creature, and was dead to begin with, the source of it's power would have to be damaged in order to defeat it... that or damage it to the point where it's unable to move... like removing it's limbs.
And because this was the first battle, I would have had your character find the weak spot eventually regardless of your luck and detect stat... or whatever it was called.
I know I didn't give much detail about your positions after each move... but I thought I'd descrbe your position after each move during the next battle though.

oh, and good thing you finished off the skeleton with that last bolw. Had you not, it would've used the last of it's power to deal you it's strongest attack.

Well, depends what universe you're in. Some necromancers just wave their hand and a skeleton will get up until somebody gets a solid smack on it.

Good, good, knowing what happened to the character is important. Especially for a detail-oriented person like me.

oh, and good thing you finished off the skeleton with that last bolw. Had you not, it would've used the last of it's power to deal you it's strongest attack.

LordAbyssion