TLS 0.18.0 Release
Added 2016-05-27 22:49:13 +0000 UTCIt's done, I'll be sending out the messages shortly after this post. ^-^
Usually I give my caveat about late pledges here, but in theory with the new system it doesn't matter? If you should have gotten a link and didn't, or pledge after this post and want your early release, just send me a message.
Several notes about this release. This one is definitely the most involved under the surface to date. People who only want to play through once, this would be a very good update to wait for the 0.x.1 release. It's unlikely that I didn't screw up SOME of the invisible variables involved.
Those of you who write walkthroughs or guides, please start this section with a disclaimer. Lots of things can progress differently based on previous decisions and this isn't always obvious. The mechanics also get tangled underneath the surface - intentionally, but I realize it's going to be ugly to try to describe.
I have an interesting reflection from this production cycle. Usually I do it in more steps, but this time it involved a lot of work going through each stage in the process at the same time. Because I spent so much time editing at the end, I decided to keep track of the kinds of changes I made.
I started with a complete update I thought was close to done, but I still found five game-killing bugs. That's actually not bad, given everything going on. What interested me more was the number of small changes I made: nearly 200. These are non-essential things like rephrasing lines, adding extra animations, and so on. The game would have been fine without any of those, but I think it's a better experience with them. No doubt there are more opportunities I missed that you guys will tell me about, though. =P
Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys the release! The next section will be about the extended consequences of the invasion - there's way too much to include in this release. It'll be a less driven, more sidequesty update. After that, the characters will be off to a new part of the continent!
Comments
That's reasonable, and you just made the cutoff for changes to include in 0.18.2, so count on it!
Sierra Lee
2016-06-03 20:20:07 +0000 UTCThat did it, Thanks!
TitanPortal
2016-06-03 19:48:25 +0000 UTCPlayed 18.1. I'd like to recommend adding the option to save right before selecting your party members for the mission to confront the mastermind. While I did manage to beat the boss after several tries, it can be a very difficult fight if you make the mistake of bringing too many succubi. A save point before the mission would allow players to go back and make a different party selection.
Dream Fractal
2016-06-03 16:18:55 +0000 UTCTimed portion could be hard but if you're getting GAME OVER following a victory it mean you didn't do everything you need to do before you start that fight...
Ripe
2016-06-03 15:20:46 +0000 UTCThe timed fight is really kicking my butt. I'm going into it with over two minutes left on the clock, but as quickly as I can beat it I'm getting the game-over at the end. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong at this point.
TitanPortal
2016-06-03 10:44:13 +0000 UTCYou shoul desactivate the save inside the hidden palace, but before the alarm. It's a death trap. :p
Samshit
2016-05-30 08:32:58 +0000 UTCDecanter, sorry I was doing another playthrough and had just made the Robin switch in the optional dungeon, Now that I'm trying to recall replacing Yarra, but I'm thinking she is an essential party member for the illusions, so you are correct. Thanks for catching that.
Darthjake
2016-05-30 02:03:46 +0000 UTCIt says that 18.1 needs a decrypter to download from mega?
TitanPortal
2016-05-30 01:44:17 +0000 UTCNo one else's were changed retroactively. There are various gains or potential losses from the time skip and battle, though, so your numbers will be different than before.
Sierra Lee
2016-05-30 00:43:44 +0000 UTCPatreon is buggy. You can delete unwanted posts by clicking the ellipsis icon, then the trashcan icon.
Decanter
2016-05-30 00:08:11 +0000 UTCYou had Robin in the Hidden Stronghold? I don't think that's supposed to be possible.
Decanter
2016-05-30 00:07:31 +0000 UTC$game_self_switches[[60, 2, "B"]] is self switch B of event 2 on map 60, AKA whether or not you accepted the offer to whore out Qum for ProN. If you do that, at several points in the game, Qum's affection changes are now worsened from what they would otherwise be. Prior to 0.18, the Stineford Orgy granted Qum 5 affection, and it still does if you don't whore her out.
Decanter
2016-05-30 00:04:16 +0000 UTCPrior to this version, everyone received +5 from the Stineford Orgy. The -3 is to correct that to +2. I recognized that this will leave people who play through the entire game in this version with a -1, but those retroactive corrections won't be in future versions so I hope the consequences will be minimal.
Sierra Lee
2016-05-29 23:35:38 +0000 UTCI'm asking that because I don't know enough of Ruby to guess what switch [60,2,"B"] is, but if I'm reading the interaction between the Stineford Orgy and your correction, you're giving people with that switch on +2 to RP with Qum, then taking away 3 later, leaving them a net -1 RP. You may want to switch the conditional branch for the stineford orgy if so.
Rafael367
2016-05-29 22:18:36 +0000 UTCQuestion: Qum only goes up 2 from the Stineford Orgy, not 5, right?
Rafael367
2016-05-29 22:10:26 +0000 UTCOkay, battlefield CP EV032, your bottom scenario B branch, Chaos should be negative not positive in that 2nd choice.
Rafael367
2016-05-29 21:36:50 +0000 UTCFound a new scratching my head moment in your figures. EV033 on the battlefield map. Hilstara just tells us that we either caused collateral damage, it was real chaotic, or we paid a heavy price... then the next set of variables all reduce CD, reduce chaos, or increase our army size.
Rafael367
2016-05-29 21:23:39 +0000 UTCHm, the game said that RP's for Qum and Robin had changed by design but were those the only ones with altered RP's? Or were those two just the easiest to notice?
Ripe
2016-05-29 18:45:40 +0000 UTCwow double post, no clue how that happened :(
Darthjake
2016-05-29 17:41:40 +0000 UTCFrom my previous note the party you start with you get served, but yes, I replaced Yarra with Robin and Qum with Carina and had no real problems although Simon did have to use Support Ally several times before I was able to fire off a King's Aura with all party members alive. After that the only ones crying were the unpeople.
Darthjake
2016-05-29 17:41:14 +0000 UTCFrom my previous note the party you start with you get served, but yes, I replaced Yarra with Robin and Qum with Carina and had no real problems although Simon did have to use Support Ally several times before I was able to fire off a King's Aura with all party members alive. After that the only ones crying were the unpeople.
Darthjake
2016-05-29 17:41:14 +0000 UTCThat's fair. I'll probably add some dialogue about what to expect in the future (though it won't make it into 0.18.1). However, I'll note that Carina should be able to cure sexbind.
Sierra Lee
2016-05-29 13:59:16 +0000 UTCThe boss in the hidden palace is too much difficult if you have pick the wrong group, i have the three succubi and one inhuman aura in the beginning of the fight is : game over. Your supporting allies cannot heal the statues sex bind. If you pick the wrong choice you juste have to pray for rng...And no save at all once inside.
Samshit
2016-05-29 12:39:57 +0000 UTCOk just finished the new content, and wow that was quite intense. It will be very interesting to see what will come of all this. Also, I am very intrigued by the mystery behind King Alonon and Mythin and her sisters, and that basically that whole plotline. I don't know what your ultimate plans for this game are, but man I am enjoying the ride. Keep it up!
Badger66
2016-05-29 02:58:34 +0000 UTCIt feels like the demons from the rifts are giving me a *ton* of trouble compared to before. Did any equipment stats get shuffled around?
Zyrus
2016-05-28 22:35:36 +0000 UTCOkay then there must be something else I'm missing, will keep doing some playthroughs. Thanks all!
Darthjake
2016-05-28 17:23:04 +0000 UTCNo the timer showed stopped when I hit the 2 black orbs on either side of the door. Now the first time I did it, I hit the orbs at 0:00 seconds so I did it a 2nd and a 3rd time and had plenty of time on those 2 runs.
Darthjake
2016-05-28 17:20:37 +0000 UTCAt the summit on Day 2, you are given a choice to make a deal with the Ardford Embassador. however if you choice not to you still get the same line as if you did make the deal with her. "You didn't keep your promise." makes no sense when you didn't ask them to vote a certain way.
Edward Culham
2016-05-28 15:52:02 +0000 UTCI had the same issue... and then I realized that I need to do something else BEFORE I go catch the bad guy!
Ripe
2016-05-28 14:50:49 +0000 UTCConfession from a walkthrough writer: I find myself "noticing" this all the time when I do a new playthrough. It's not that the fights are actually harder, it's that I'm trying to apply strategies that work well in latter parts of the game to fights that were finished in a completely different way earlier on. I literally have to read my own walkthrough over again to remember how I did certain battles.
Rafael367
2016-05-28 14:12:57 +0000 UTCSorry if this is too obvious and you've really found a bug, but let me just note that there IS a game over condition written into the event. If you go to the final room without having disabled the teleport system, it'll trigger.
Sierra Lee
2016-05-28 14:10:03 +0000 UTCWas the timer still ticking down in that fight?
Rafael367
2016-05-28 13:51:18 +0000 UTCHappy to be of service. Looking forward to the updated version. :)
Rafael367
2016-05-28 13:50:44 +0000 UTCHmmm, not sure what I'm doing wrong here but when I go to the hidden stronghold in act 3 with the "suggested party" I get served, and get a game over. When I change the party up, and win the fight, I get a game over, any hints for me?
Darthjake
2016-05-28 12:30:33 +0000 UTCOkay, I think I have most of the bugs mentioned here fixed! I'm thinking of putting out a 0.18.1 this weekend yet, so that anyone waiting has a chance to play too. This version would be focused on fixing the bugs involving invisible mechanics, general polishing can come later (though that would be fine too).
Sierra Lee
2016-05-28 12:12:30 +0000 UTCYou mean back in the previous section? I don't believe I changed the stats of any of those enemies.
Sierra Lee
2016-05-28 11:46:17 +0000 UTCI will try to track this down eventually when I get time, but if you want to help, can you be any more specific about when exactly this occurs?
Sierra Lee
2016-05-28 11:45:31 +0000 UTCThen I have no clue.
Sierra Lee
2016-05-28 11:44:12 +0000 UTCOk, thanks for specifying! Most are fixed; I actually wrote what I meant in #1 and #5, but upon rereading I can see how #5 might be an idiosyncratic thing - since it reads just as well without the word, I removed it. As for the errors in calculations, you appear to be right on all accounts. Yeah, that last part was meant to be an evaluation of whether the victory was worth the cost, at least as far as those characters are concerned.
Sierra Lee
2016-05-28 11:43:54 +0000 UTCAn update that is well worth the wait... and I love how we could see how our previous decisions affect the outcome (sometimes subtle, sometimes not so subtle).
Ripe
2016-05-28 11:27:20 +0000 UTCInherited the "Majere" tag long time ago from playing White Wolf RPGs, never learned of Raistlin until many years later amazingly. Out of nowhere everyone kept asking me about the last name leaving me confused for a good while.
Michael Majere
2016-05-28 06:00:54 +0000 UTCIs it just me, or is combat *way* harder in Ardan in this release? I'm fighting things that I should be able to deal with easily and they're taking me tanky types like Simon and Hilstara down to almost no health in under 3 hits.
Zyrus
2016-05-28 05:46:20 +0000 UTCSorry, that last report was for the 2nd of the two Yhilin Throneroom Aftermaths. This is for the first: check the Report event for right after you give Balia a +5 RP. You've defined Temp2, but then you use Collateral damage instead of Temp2 as your variable in the conditional branch. Also, I think you meant to have Victory points be GREATER than or equal to Temp2, not less. I assume having your victory points less than your collateral damage + chaos score would mean you burnt the place to the ground.
Rafael367
2016-05-28 04:29:49 +0000 UTCNo, I just had it happen in a battle in the "Hidden Stronghold" with the wandering guards. Regular attacks, just holding the enter button in, and whoever I had attacked last got dropped to 0/1 before the start of the next round.
Secular Reason
2016-05-28 04:14:27 +0000 UTCOkay, I see one error in your calculations so far. So, in Yhilin Throne room aftermath, you have set Temp2 = 1, and then right after you have a conditional branch that also sets Temp2 = 1. I think you meant to add one to Temp2. Otherwise it added up for my playthrough.
Rafael367
2016-05-28 04:14:18 +0000 UTCOkay, here are the beginnings of those lines in order: 1. "No, there are already too many half-truths..." 2. "Perhaps another couple..." 3. "I feel REALLY good..." 4. "Forgive me, sir..." 5. "Now... now see here!..."
Rafael367
2016-05-28 04:07:23 +0000 UTCBy the way, there is an error with the Ardford Embassador that always plays that you made a deal day 3, even if you didnt.
Edward Culham
2016-05-28 03:17:21 +0000 UTCThis could happen if you used Aka's Deathblow technique, which the subordinates are accidentally vulnerable too (they were supposed to be immune, like most bosses).
Sierra Lee
2016-05-28 03:05:23 +0000 UTCSorry, but would you mind giving the beginning of any lines with text errors? You've seen how they're formatted, with my wrapping script, so it's rough trying to find the exact line unless I can remember the conversation verbatim. Given the amount of text I put out monthly, I can only manage that some of the time.
Sierra Lee
2016-05-28 02:54:59 +0000 UTCGotta say, I definitely felt like I knew what was going on even as I had no idea...thus the chaos and fog of war was very well established. More was sent otherwise for your perusal later. hope it helped.
Argenten
2016-05-28 02:42:37 +0000 UTCYup, you and I are of the same mind when it comes to the walkthroughs and so on.
Argenten
2016-05-28 02:41:33 +0000 UTCusing the ctrl button allows you to skip that without actually making a choice ahead of time
Argenten
2016-05-28 02:39:44 +0000 UTCOkay, here's your copy edit. (Man you like hiding event scripts in map corners...): 1. Janine's Retreat, EV053 - "being passed around more [than I'd like.]" 2. EV018 - "even [knew] ourselves..." 3. - "been carrying [for] so long..." 4. Ari Rhel, EV007 - "she's not [injured more/injured again]" ("more injured" just sounds awkward there). 5. -"wasn't paying <strike>any</strike> attention", (again, kind of awkward sounding). I can confirm that Yarra and Megail max RP scenes are working correctly. (I was within 5 RP of maxxing Qum, too... until the retconjuration.) /smh Now that I know how it plays out, I'll go through and double check your equations. But this should keep you busy for the short term.
Rafael367
2016-05-28 02:37:25 +0000 UTCBug - During the fight with Ivastan and his two subordinates, randomly, for unknown reasons, an opponent will have their health drop to 0? 1? for no apparent reason after all of my and their actions have been completed, leaving them free for a OHKO the next turn. Doesn't happen every time I fight them, and seems to happen if I'm pressing "enter" quickly during battle? Might affect more than just this fight, I think this is just the first time I've been impatiently pressing "X" during battles to rush them. It's also the first time I've played using my keyboard instead of a controller, if that is somehow having anything to do with it, which I doubt.
Secular Reason
2016-05-28 01:46:49 +0000 UTCIs that name a Raistlin reference?
Secular Reason
2016-05-28 01:35:50 +0000 UTCSuggestion - Add more save spots before choices. (Maybe just before any choice that takes place after a battle? Battles are boring to repeat due to a too fast button press.) I know I went in and added them for myself mostly because it is far too easy to press a button too fast and fuck up and choose something you didn't see. (Especially in a "choice heavy" section like this.) Then when you have to go back through the saves are so far between you end up rushing trying to get back where you were and... infinite loop. It's obviously a minor thing that was a personal preference, but others might have the same issue? Maybe see how many comment and agree? It would help with the bug testing too anyway.
Secular Reason
2016-05-28 01:32:57 +0000 UTCYeah, it probably won't be the last time. -_-
Sierra Lee
2016-05-28 01:07:41 +0000 UTCYes, please do compile grammar errors. As for sending the orcs... looks like I just plain forgot to include the conditional to only run that dialogue if you sent them. There should be a consequence for not sending them, too. Have both fixed on my end.
Sierra Lee
2016-05-28 01:07:02 +0000 UTCGlad it's worth it to you!
Sierra Lee
2016-05-28 01:05:32 +0000 UTC*Waits Impatiently*
Michael Majere
2016-05-28 00:39:48 +0000 UTCWell, I was gonna check the text changes in the prologue, but it turns out you made New Game go somewhere other than the beginning.
Decanter
2016-05-28 00:25:01 +0000 UTCFirst bug was grammar, I'll make a list of those so we can hit it all at once. Second is that I refused to send orcs and Janine acted like I sent them. That'll need fixing.
Rafael367
2016-05-28 00:23:01 +0000 UTCPost does not cut off mid-sentence.
Decanter
2016-05-28 00:21:09 +0000 UTCIs my phone bugging out, or does this post cut off mid sentence?
Ezzie
2016-05-28 00:04:30 +0000 UTCThanks for the warning. I'll make sure to check under the hood as soon as I get a chance to decrypt, (I want to play around with it first). I won't be releasing a walkthrough update until after the public release, anyway. I think Argenten doesn't do his until after that, either. As always, I'll shoot you a reply with any weird event errors I locate. Your event code's been pretty tight the last few releases, though, so I'm not really expecting to see a ton.
Rafael367
2016-05-27 23:12:15 +0000 UTCLove it! Had to drop a ton of my pledges this month, (moved, and had to suddenly give TWO months security deposit when I was expecting only to pay one) and you are literally one of only three pledges I kept when I originally had about 30-40.
Secular Reason
2016-05-27 22:57:22 +0000 UTC
