Tydorius

Join Date 01/2010

Design a Trait Contest - Crowd Favorites?

(For some reason, text formatting options haven't been loading in Chrome lately for me) I've spent the better part of two hours reviewing the current 40ish entries to the new contest, and I've come up with a list of favorites and reasons I like them. They're all great so far, which is why I've got so many picks, but here they are:

Wrathful Conduit - Kadrium

This trait would make it more viable for sovereigns to step forth into play on a tactical level. It would help alleviate the issues with both AI sacrificing their sovereigns (Well, with good AI coding) and it would make it easier to level up those heroes and sovereigns by making them useful in more difficult encounters.

Blooded - Tydorius

Obviously, I have to love my own submission. I submitted it because it builds upon the previous entry I'd made, adding more lore to a world that will hopefully have a lot more in Fallen Enchantress, though I'm hoping 1.3 fleshes out WoM as well. It also allows for a nasty surprise - Someone less attentive may think they've destroyed a hero in a close match, and then have them spring back and cause the balance to tip. Surprises are fun in tactical battles.

Shapeshifting - nitey47

It's cool, and it adds a great mechanic into the game. It would allow for the creation of more specifically modded traits, like demons that walk the earth as humans until confronted, sovereigns able to call upon their dominant elements and become elemental lords during tactical confrontations, etc.

Wild Heart - unacomm

I demand a random chance for a giant frog to eat people regardless of this trait being in the game or not.

Equipment Linked Traits - Lomion Agarwaer

This would be an excellent trait. It would also be good if they impliment action-based trait increases where inflicting so much damage with a particular weapon grants access to these traits. I.e. prerequisites being - "Caused 100 damage with sword/blade type weapon" etc.

Warmaster - Sareln

Having traits that are more generelesque would greatly contribute to the feel of the game. I often times have hero units travelling with armies, as the hero unit can act as a quick response unit as the travel buff items are easier to acquire with gold than to hunt over the world. Warg + traveler's cloak + agility necklaces mean they can move up and down the line to anywhere they are needed. They are, effectively, generals, buffing and helping units wherever needed. These types of traits would make for a more Total War feel to the game. Maybe even having trait negatives added such as if the "Warmaster" falls, the army loses morale and/or routes entirely.

Precognition - mposko

Espionage and intelligence related traits would add to the game without forcing the creation of new UI interfaces. Such a trait would mean that additionally modded options may be available. Right now, I can see whatever my enemies are building or training. But I can't see where they are going, but neither can I see the routes my troops take. To be able to see enemy movements, whether they be lines, their destinations, the entire route, or maybe just their next turn's move (I.e. unit is orderd to move across the map but I can only see that they are moving two squares closer to my territory, causing me to make a false pre-emptive strike and hurt myself diplomatically, etc.) would greatly add to the game.

Elemental Bloodline - Jean=A=Luc

Many of the current traits are passive. I know mine is. Specifically for the fact that we can already mod and add abilities, so why worry about making traits that do the same thing? But I like the idea of having some small spells that can be used as a last resort and aren't standardized like the E:WoM spells.

Righteous Path - Berserkben

This branched tree based on the starting traits is excellent, and the options look good to game changing.

Guardian - xStarfirex

This trait reminds me of Cecil's actions during (US)FF2 where he would cover weak allies by shielding them himself. It would allow for shield wall formations and the creation of units that specifically cover spearmen, etc.

Sacrificial Vengance - McNegro

Another close call type trait, similar to Blooded except that instead of just surviving a mortal blow, they are benefiting their allies and inspiring them to continue the battle for their cause.

Anyone else got any favorites thus far?

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My top five traits

Inspiring Leader - Iron Kaiser

Yes, it's a shameless plug, but I wouldn't have made it if I didn't like it. Anyway, there are a couple of things that I really like about this trait. For one, it's a trait that is balanced without having to make it rare. If your hero doesn't fight with other heroes, is too lightly armored for the ensuing enemy attention, or focuses exclusively on powering himself up, then he won't -want- this trait. But if you're creating a good front-line, team-based character, then you'll definitely want the trait. Also, "Inspiring Leader" changes the battlefield in a novel way. The way the trait powers up your allies while simultaneously making your "Inspiring Leader" the center of the enemy's attention is pretty neat, and causes both sides to make some interesting tactical decisions. Also, I have a preference for passive abilities, and this is a really good one along that vein. I guess I have a hard time critically evaluating my own trait, but I'd say it's a really nice one.

Shape-shifting - nitey47

I really like this trait for the tactical variance that it provides. It would be a great trait for grunt-level units to adapt to the tactical conflicts that confront them. Nitey47 already provided some examples, but another good one would be slow, heavily armored swordsmen transforming into a fast band of crows, losing their pure strength but gaining range and speed. I also really like the trait because it requires thought before you use it. Since it can only be used once per battle, it would be easy for the enemy to trick you into shape-shifting, thus depriving you of the heavy swordsmen or archers that you may need later in the battle.

Blooded - Tydorius

I'm unable to read all of the lore written for the trait, but that's okay, since the lore isn't what earns this trait a top-five spot. The effects of "Blooded" come from classic RPG gameplay, and it would be a shame not to see something like this in the game. Again, I can see how this would change up the tactical battle situation, as the "Blooded" hero desperately tries to keep the trait from activating before facing that one giant, menacing badguy on the other end of the field (and of course, the bad guys are trying to activate your Blooded ASAP).

Mana Leech - Tiavals

I'm a huge fan of judo-esque powers. Sapping the enemy's health, stealing their power, snatching their mana- I love this kind of stuff. So Mana Leech is a really neat power, right up my alley. I'd appreciate a little bit of tweaking so that the mana can only be gained by non-magic attacks. This would have the effect of giving the trait an interesting spin by requiring a caster to step out of their casting role. I imagine that "Mana Leech's" most important use would be when the hero is running low on mana and needing the mana in order to cast power. So, the hero has to use bow or sword to gain the mana. Thus, it's a trait that's not terribly helpful for heroes who don't really use mana or for heroes who attack exclusively as casters. The percentages also might need some tweaking. But all in all, this is a really neat trait.

Unstable Magic - Vinco

I like the idea of pushing magic to its limits and fighting with "Unstable Magic." It would be kind of like going to battle with an experimental war machine: you just don't know what you're going to get. When you try casting that fireball, you don't know if you're going to get the regular fireball, a fizzled-out spark, or a burning meteor twice as powerful as the normal fireball. Plus, it's a guaranteed story-maker. Somebody, somewhere will have a story about how he lost all of his men to this evil monster, had only his caster left (with 1HP), and his only hope for victory was casting a fireball in hopes of getting that superball. I'm not so sure that the boost mechanic and the specific percentages are perfect, but the underlying concept is awesome.

Some Honorable Mentions

Equipment-Linked Traits - Lomonion Agarwaen

A very neat idea that definitely deserves to be in the game. If the traits are tied directly to the equipment, then it could give the player a fun, unique dilemma between two different weapons - one weapon statistically better, but the other providing an enticing trait. However, this is more of an broad idea than a specific trait, and so I'm afraid that it's not really eligible for the contest.

Black Market Merchant - Trojasmic

It's a solid trait idea, and I can't help but appreciate someone who foregoes Xtreme combat traits in favor of a good passive economic trait. I hope we see traits like this in the actual game.

I'm sure I missed somebody, but at least for right now, these are my top picks.

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