Episode 65: It's Starting To Feel A Little Epic!

When I first envisioned The Scroll campaign for NWN2, I had no idea of the scope I would end up trying to cover. My initial plan was to write a first module that would introduce the players to the campaign, and at the same time, bring all players, new or old, to a place where they could continue with the main plot with similar campaign story knowledge. The second module was when all players would then start to unravel the main story in more detail ... and the third and final module would be what brought the story to an end ... but let me just backup one step and bring you the latest on the second module, still currently under development.

The Brief History

Regular readers of this blog will be aware that The Scroll was originally a "pen and paper" (PnP) 3rd edition campaign, with original roots in AD&D 2nd edition. The PnP sessions of the campaign ran from the early '80s through to 2008. I then transitioned from PnP to using NWN, and Soul Shaker (NWN1) was the first module written for the campaign that eventually leads us into the new age of "The Darkening" upon Althéa ... and where the first module on NWN2, The First Day, begins. If and when played, all players should finish The First Day around 9th - 10th level, and with an understanding that they need to head to Boran, the capital city of the Borantan Plains upon the world Althéa. However ...

Main Background Differences

Even at the beginning of the second module, Predestinated Days, whichever background the player chose at the start of The First Day has a bearing on how the second module unravels. However, I have also allowed the option (for players who may skip the first module, or no longer have PCs to import into the second) to reselect the background path from the beginning of the second module. If, however, the player has PCs they have exported from the first module, or are one of those dedicated enough to play the first module and flow straight into the second (yes, I have allowed for that too), then the background first chosen will be retained on import or continuation of play. Why is all this so important? The bottom line is because each background path adds a whole layer of plot for some conversations the PCs may have moving forward in the second module. The good news is, I believe I have finally resolved all path differences for the most important conversations now. This means that by the end of such conversations, all players, irrespective of background, should now be in the same place, as far as knowledge and expectations of them is concerned, which, in turn, makes my progress with later conversations easier to handle ... and speed up building. Although ...

A Big World: Design Depth

I already have PnP maps of the entire world of Althéa. I drew them and wrote a history for the world even before I designed the story for the players. Why? Because story elements with historical references from the world in which they take place can make them feel more real. In many other styles of modules, often these historical elements are either never referenced at all or are made up on the fly to give a kind of lip service to such. However, unless a builder has a good idea of how their world runs from the start, then modules can feel orchestrated at best, or lacking in details at worst. Some players don't mind that style of play. Personally, however, I like to play modules that (at the very least) have given some thought to the background in which their story takes place. The downside is that if done wrong, then introducing or making use of these elements can come across as "boring" or an "information dump". Done right, by introducing the elements at a reasonable pace and as the story unravels (as the player plays it), can lead to a satisfying discovery for the player and add a layer of gameplay that I believe is often poorly handled in many AAA titles today. In brief, I am talking about design depth, which, when done well, leaves the player with the impression of details that add to the overall experience of their game. The game world feels full, even with fewer areas, compared to a module with twice as many areas but no depth to its campaign world. However, all such depth of design requires more time to develop and then careful implementation in such a way that does it justice. I just hope I have the balance right.

Reining It In

I confess that I need to start reining the design in, or I will lose myself within its depth for too long, and risk losing sight of the end. Finishing the final conversations that handle the background differences have certainly been a turning point for me, but I also now need to try to deliver on gaming elements that I have managed to design already. However, there remains some partially started quests, which due to their historical background and involvement with players PCs of my PnP campaign, require some extra attention to the detail of their design. Thankfully, this is a less complex process than writing conversations to handle such, but, nevertheless, they do still have some design elements that differ according to the main background chosen at the start of the campaign. Looking back, I have to admit that taking this original design policy to support both old and new players has added a extra layer of complexity for me, but, I hope players will remain waiting patiently for the end result. Thankfully, by the time I start the third module, all main backgrounds should have converged in the story line, meaning the last module should be easier to write form this perspective.

So What's Left?

Having explained my difficulties and reasons for this second module taking longer than I first thought, I suppose I should at least give another update indicating where I am currently at ... So let me try to break it down into sections that I think remain, without, I hope giving too much away ...

1. WORLD MAP: The area is completed, but not all links are yet fully in place or tested.
2. LOCATIONS: Main city locations and others are in place, but extra work with them required.
3. MONSTERS: New monsters are in place, but some additional AI on others required.
4. QUESTS: Many are already started, but some require a lot of work to finish. (*)
   
5. PUZZLES: I have all my puzzles working, but some new systems requires extra coding.
6. SYSTEMS: The second module has a special new system, which is 75% completed.
7. NPCS: Many have been written, but quest nodes remain where quests not yet completed. (*)
   
8. PLAY TESTING: After all points above done.   

(*) These are the elements that require the most time to complete, especially when you take into account the points I make above with respect to backgrounds and retaining logical flow to the original PnP design.

I can't deny that occasionally I still "gasp" at what remains to be done. But, there is still less to do with each blog post I make, and is why I continue to write these blogs: to help encourage both you and I in that, hopefully, one day, Predestinated Days will be released.

And as you have taken the time to read my post, please enjoy this screenshot of an image the PCs will come across during their adventures in the World of Althéa ... The start of another adventure?

A Noticeboard Update!