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Banished (PnP moba) (First actual game post!)

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Jayce
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Joined: 02/16/2014
Banished Game Example
Banished Map
Banished Map Explanation

A wild game appears!
I have finally posted an actual game! Say hello to Banished, my print and play moba that needs playtesting. This game has been on and off for such a long time... months and months! I finally sat down and threw together a playtest.

If this is at all interesting to you, comment below and I'll give a synopsis/rules for you to break...

*Check out the game example picture, it shows the basic idea of what's going on*

FWyver
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Joined: 06/14/2014
I've checked out the game

I've checked out the game example, but I'm afraid I still have little to no idea what's going on. Would you be able to elaborate? Not necessarily the full rules, but just an idea of the theme and the basic aims of the game.

Jayce
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Joined: 02/16/2014
Little more explanation...

If you have played a MOBA before, like LoL or Dota 2, you'll know the basic idea. There are 2 sides, aka the light and dark side (The map also has the two different sides). Each side has 3 champions, selected by you. The game is turn based, and the objective is to destroy the enemy towers and finally blow up their base. The light side's main structure is the tree, and the dark side's main structure is the red crystal.

The game is a print and play/pen and paper, so that is why I posted this, to see if anyone was interested. If so, I'll give more explanation.

schattentanz
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Joined: 02/18/2014
Oh yes!

You should have explained the term "moba" ;)

Multiplayer Online Battle Arena.

As I'm all fire and flame for combat games: Go on! Please show, what you've got!

Jayce
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Joined: 02/16/2014
Yay!

Well, awesome!
Let me give you the basics, and then you can try a playtest and give me your ideas, thoughts, etc. Print out the white map to playtest on. There is also a new map explanation.

Gameplay is turn based, with each side taking their turn. At the start, you select 3 champions for your side. I will post their stats and abilities at the end. You then put your three champions at your starting zone, the semi circle next to your structure. Gameplay follows as is:

Phase 1: Creeps
-Move Creeps
-Spawn Creeps
-Neutral Creeps

Phase 2: Heroes
-Hero Turn

Phase 3: Upkeep
-Perform upkeep
-Activate Towers

After completing your turn, it is now the other players turn.

Explanation:
-Move Creeps (Move each of your creeps 1 space ahead on the track. If they encounter an enemy creep, both die and are erased. If they encounter a tower without dying, erase the creep and deal 1 damage to the tower. If they are aggroed to the enemy hero, attack the enemy hero)
-Spawn Creeps (Put one creep on the space diagonal to the creep spawner {the pentacle or the orb} A maximum of three creeps are spawned in a wave, and no new creeps for each lane will spawn until all three are dead in that lane {WIP} The two lanes where creeps spawn and move are left and right. The middle is the jungle.
-Neutral Creeps (Move and attack with all aggroed neutral creeps)

-Hero Turn (Each one of your heroes gets one action {WIP} They may either move 2 spaces, autoattack using their basic range and attack, or activate a skill they have unlocked. The heroes on the left and right lane try to push that lane, destroy enemy towers, and enemy creep waves. The hero in the middle/jungle will fight the neutral creeps, farming gold and exp, and "ganking" or moving to either the left or right lane to assist the other heroes.

-Perform Upkeep (Tick down buffs/debuffs, resolve anything else)
-Activate Towers (Any targets in your towers range may be attacked, each tower firing once)

Players alternate turns, moving creeps and heroes, farming, ganking, fighting, etc. until someone wins!

Champions start with one of their abilities (Except their ultimate) unlocked. After leveling up, they pick another to unlock. Then their final ability. Once all abilities are unlocked, when they level up again, they may then unlock their ultimate.

Obviously the stats may be UNBALANCED, which is one of the reasons I need playtesting.

Attacking is simple. Roll d6's equal to your attack value. Target rolls d6's equal to their defense value. 3-6 is a hit, 1-2 is a miss. 1-2 is a block, 3-6 is a miss. For every hit not negated by a block, deal 1 damage. This works for the spells, creeps, towers, etc. with varying effects.

Mana and health only regenerate if killed or while at base, at a rate of 1 hp and mp per turn spent there at the start of their turn, or if you use potions/abilities that regenerate

STATS AND EXPLANATIONS:

{Strength}PUDGE--Health 8--Mana 4--Attack 2--Defense 3--Range 1
MEAT HOOK--Mana 1--Attack 2--Range 3--Pull target to adjacent space
FLESH HEAP--Passive--On killing target, d6=6, restore 1 Health
ROT--Mana 1--Attack ?--Range 1 AOE--Damage is also dealt to Pudge
*DISMEMBER*--Mana 2--Attack 5--Range 1--Slows enemy by 1 for 1 turn

{Dexterity}ANTIMAGE--Health 6--Mana 6--Attack 4--Defense 2--Range 1
MANA BURN--Passive--Damage dealt also is dealt to mana
BLINK--Mana 2--Range 3--May blink through solid objects
SPELL SHIELD--Passive-- +1 (?) defense against spells
*MANA VOID*--Mana 4--Attack X--Range 2 (?) AOE--Damage dealt is equal to the amount of mana missing from the target

{Wisdom}BLOODMAGE THALNOS--Health 10--Mana 2--Attack 3--Defense 1--Range 2
BONE SPEAR--Health 2 (not mana)--Attack 4--Range 3--Pierces
BLOOD SHIELD--Mana 1-- +3 defense; block = -1 defense, + 1 health until back to 1 defense
REANIMATE--Health 2--Summon a HP 3 ATK 2 DEF 1 RNG 1 MOV 1 Skeleton
*CORPSE EXPLOSION*--Health 4--Attack X--Range (Corpse) AOE--Damage dealt is equal to targets maximum health, may set off other corpses

{Strength}DRAGON KNIGHT--Health 7--Mana 5--Attack 2--Defense 2--Range 1
BREATHE FIRE--Mana 2--Attack 3--Range 2--Pierces
SHIELD SLAM--Mana 1--Attack 2--Range 1--Stuns
DRAGON'S BLOOD--Passive-- +1 Defense +1 Max Health
*DRAGON FORM*--Shift into dragon form (+1 range, effect) for ? turns
-Red Dragon: Auto attacks can hit up to 3 targets
-Green Dragon: Add poison to your auto attacks
-Blue Dragon: Add slow to your auto attacks

{Dexterity}Jim Raynor--Health 6--Mana 6--Attack 3--Defense 2--Range 3
STIMPACK--Health 2-- +1 Attack +1 Speed (May stimpack 1-2 times)
Full Metal Jacket--Mana 2--Attack 2--Range 2--Pierce, knockback
INSPIRE--Mana 2--Range 1 AOE + Allies--??? Effects
*HYPERION*--Mana ?--Attack ?--Range ?--Pierces

{Wisdom}GEOMANCER--Health 4--Mana 8--Attack 3--Defense 1--Range 2
ROCK WALL--Mana 4--Summon a Health 4 rock wall that is 1 space big
BOULDER SMASH--Mana 2--Attack 2--Range 3--Pierces
NATURALIZE--Mana 2--Range 2--Heal ally 2 health OR stun enemy
*EARTH ELEMENTAL*--Mana 6--Summon a HP 6 DEF 3 ATK 3 RNG 1 SPD 1 Earth Elemental

CREEPS--Health 2--Attack 1--Defense 1--Range 1--Speed 1
NEUTRAL CREEPS--Health 4--Attack 2--Defense 2--Range 1--Speed 1
{Drops a random buff or exp/gold} [Will chase target if attacked]

TOWER--Health ?--Attack 4 (?)--Range 1
STRUCTURE--Health ?

Anyways, here is a VERY rough idea of the game basics. Questions, comments, concerns, ideas, etc. are extremely welcome!

-Jayce Thomson

Jayce
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Joined: 02/16/2014
?

Anyone tried this?

schattentanz
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Joined: 02/18/2014
Not so quick, young grasshopper!

You will need to explain way more, Jayce:

The map is way too small to Play with physical components on it!. I suggest doing it again, this time with an Inch side length per square.
That way you can Play with actual miniatures and use Counters as creeps (with one side depicting 2 health, the other depicting 1 health).
The map is drawn very beautifully, though!

What are the conditions for neutral creeps to spawn? What do I Need to do to aggro creeps? How does an aggroed creep behave? What kind of buffs or how many gold do they drop? What do I need gold for anyway?

Do you get rewards for destroying enemy towers? For killing enemy Champions? Do Champions respawn? (Apparently, since
Speaking of it: What exatly are the winning conditions? Playing until one player (rage)quits? Until one Champion has reached the opposing base? Until all towers are destroyed?

Which skills do "tick down"? I haven't seen any..
How many health do towers have? How are you going to track health per tower?
My suggestion would be: 6 health per tower, tracked by a die. You could spice this up by creating lables for indented dice depicting the different states of destruction along with the numbers 1-6.

How many XPs are required to Level up? How many XP do I get for which action? Why does the evil wisdom guy have more health and strength than his stregth companion?

Also, please elaborate the skills more: It might be clear to you, what exactly "pierce", "stun", "poison" and the likes mean - to me (or anyone else in that case) it is not.

So, no: I haven't tested it at all up to now, simply because the "rules" here are - as you already stated - VERY rough and thus not enough to actually playtest anything here at all.

Kind regards,
Kai

Jayce
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Joined: 02/16/2014
Here we go!

First off, thanks for taking a look at this! I appreciate it.
Second, this is more of a pen and paper game, i.e. creeps are little x's, heroes are letters. All you (should) need is a pencil, some d6's, and a map.
I did have an idea how to make it into a board game though, but I don't know if there would be enough interest. If the rules work well enough, and there is enough interest, I could definitely make this a pnp.

The map explanation shows where the neutral creeps spawn. They spawn at the start and stay there. If a champion goes and attacks one, during the creep phase, the neutral will attack the champion back. The goal is to kill them to gain extra gold/exp/buffs.
Buffs are hp regen, mp regen, speed boost, defense boost, attack boost. As I am still working on the shop, gold is NOT implemented yet, but will be.

To win the game, you need to destroy the enemy structure (check the map explanation) To successfully reach their base, though, you'll need to destroy both towers in a lane. Destroying towers will net you gold. Killing enemy champion also nets gold and exp. Champions will respawn on their next turn, so if on my turn I kill one of your heroes, he won't respawn on your turn, but on your next turn.

Skills do not tick down. For sake of streamlining gameplay, I decided against cooldowns, and decided upon no hp/mp regen. So in essence, heroes usually have a balance mp that lets them cast a couple of spells while out in the map. If you don't die and want to cast some more spells, use an mp potion or return to base. That gives players an interesting dilemma: return to base to regen hp/mp or stay in the lane and push/farm some more.

I love your idea for the towers! Thanks!

There are 3 general types of heroes, like classes (from dnd, for example). Strength heroes tend to have large amounts of health and defense. Their main purpose is to "tank", or take the damage. Their physical attack is usually low, but heroes stats vary. Dexterity heroes tend to have a balanced hp/mp pool, and a high physical attack. They focus on farming and assisting other champions/killing enemy champions. Then there are Wisdom heroes, who have low hp and defense, but very high mana. They focus on support and casting powerful spells a lot. Obviously, the different heroes have different stats, and different abilities.

Currently, basic creeps drop 1 xp, neutrals drop 2, killing an enemy hero drops 3. You need 5 xp to level up (WIP). At the start, all heroes are level one, meaning you can pick one of their abilities (not the ultimate) for them to have. Leveling up lets you learn a new skill of theirs. Their ultimate is the last skill to level up, usually costing a lot of mana and being very powerful.

Pierce means that the attack will hit every enemy in range, usually in a line. So if I have an attack that has a range of 2 and pierces, I'd hit 2 enemys in a straight line. Stun means that the target is unable to take an action on their turn. If I stun you in my turn, on your turn the target can't take an action, then it wears off. Poison means that the target takes 1 damage every round for a couple of rounds. Slow means that the target will only move 1 space instead of 2 for a couple of rounds.

Those are some explanations off the top of my head. I hope this helps with your questions, and thank you for the criticism. My biggest problem is trying to explain the rules for my games to other people. I DO have most of the rules here and the game IS playable (I have playtested a bit), but as you are correct, my explanations are fairly rough.

MicroStack Games
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Joined: 06/21/2014
I think you really need to

I think you really need to listen to what Kai is saying.

I've played league, hon, DOTA, DOTA 2, and I'm still not sure how to play your game.

Anyways, love the MOBA genre and it looks like you've spent a lot of time on this - impressive map as well.

I'm not sure if the pen and paper method you suggested will work well here. How about increasing the size of the map (inch tiles like Kai mentioned), creating your own champions with special abilities (similar to the dice method of attacking and defending), and possibly removing creeps.

Anyways, it sparked my interest. Good luck and welcome feedback (seriously - it is not easy to come by).

MSG

Jayce
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Joined: 02/16/2014
Thanks!

Thanks for checking this out.
The pen and paper method "does" work, as I have actually playtested it, but it "does" need streamlining. The creeps actually were the hardest to do, but I think with their relatively set movement and the map size, they'll get the job done.

I do understand your comment about making my own heroes. To be fair, I used ones already made simply to playtest my game, but I definitely am going to make my own. Geomancer and Bloodmage Thalnos are both made by me.

I am interested though, in making this an actual board game. It would function almost the same, but rather than using X's for creeps and letters for the champions, you'd have actual chits for the figures.

Thanks for checking this out, and I'm definitely open for more comments/concerns/ideas, and playtests.

MicroStack Games
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What's the reasoning behind

What's the reasoning behind using a paper and pen method? I think the board game with the tokens for different champions would work well.

I'd recommend drafting a set of rules (post the PDF or word file here), possibly create a print and play version for play testing, and try to simplify the rules a tad.

It's really difficult for people to playtest this game in its current form. But don't give up on this yet! Keep us posted.

Jayce
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Ok. The biggest reason it was

Ok. The biggest reason it was pen and paper because it was easy to draw/print a map, grab some dice and a pencil, and play.

Considering there seems to be some interest, would you like me to try and put together a paper with the rules and a map? A pnp is also possible.

MicroStack Games
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Yes - I would like to see

Yes - I would like to see written rules and a print and play file to test out at home.

Also, you could consider using playing cards for the units (reference cards - not placed on the game board) and represent the units on the game board with tokens/poker chips like you said.

I know a graphic designer who might be able to help if you're interested. He helped me with the game board, logo, map, PNP file, unit designs, and rules.

Jayce
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Joined: 02/16/2014
That'd be awesome. I

That'd be awesome. I definitely have the idea how it'll work as a pnp. Well, I'll get started! Thanks for the advice and encouragement.

Guild
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Joined: 07/03/2014
Are you maybe interested in getting some graphics made for this?

From my perspective you'd possibly want to license this game through League of Legends to get the support you'd need for it maybe. Have you considered that?

You might also consider hiring a designer to get something visual down. Let me know if you're interested in that. I previously made the Nuclear Tactics print and play, version 0G.3.3 found here:

www.microstackgames.com

Thanks for reading, cheers!

Jayce
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Joined: 02/16/2014
Well... not really. I guess

Well... not really.
I guess I never really intended for this to be published. I had made this own my own as a hobby, and wanted to see if anyone else was interested. I do want to make this a pnp and see if anyone on here wants to try it out, but I don't really have the MONEY to hire pro's for art and game components. Thank you very much for your offer though! I'll attempt to make this own my own, just like my other actual produced game, Magicka the board game. If I had the money for it, I'd definitely make this game and Magicka the board game into full fledged games with fantastic art.

MicroStack Games
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Looking forward to seeing

Looking forward to seeing your next update.

I think Guild's question was asked due to the possibility of potential IP/copyright issues. But I'm not sure how that would play out here.

Jayce
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Potentially...

Well, once I get my next update (and hopefully a pnp), I'll try and see if I can replace all the champions, creeps, etc. with my own unique ones to avoid and ip/cr issues.

Guild
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Considering that the genre

Considering that the genre began as a free mod created in Warcraft II or Starcraft or whatever it's pretty messed up that the zillions LoL has invested into their brand would probably prompt them to litigate the release of this board game even if you changed every name and all the art. For that reason I'd at the very least approach their team and talk about your game development with someone on their staff, and ask if it's possible to license with them. You never know, someone might tell someone and next thing you know you're creative lead on a project with an actual budget and real artists.

Jayce
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True

True. I probably should check with them, if I ever do intend to actually publish this. Maybe if I added some other unique mechanics to help differentiate it also...

schattentanz
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Well ..

Well, LoL has been created by those guys that invented the corresponding WarCraft III Game Mod after all ..
My understanding of Laws however is, if you create a game with a unique Name, that just based on the idea (3 Heros, some creeps, farming, pushing), but plays differently (which it does, because it is pen and paper), you should be fine.

I still fail to see how this game can be played with pen and paper, though. After all, somehow you would have to track all those moving creeps and Heros somehow..

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