Eruta

In this post, I'll describe the setting of Eruta as we have developed them so far. It will be along post with many details, so feel free to skip this post if you're not planning to become help making the game. It will be regularly updated, expanded and corrected
The last update was on 16 April 2012.

Overview

Thenthousands of years passed since man first set foot on the moon. Terrible wars raged, and great ecological problems arose. Much was destroyed, and the face of the Earth itself was changed. Finally, tired of the endless troubles, the people of the world united to build a durable era of cooperation, peace and prosperity. Technology developed as never before, and mankind traveled to the stars and spread throughout the galaxy.

However, even this golden age of technology came to an end somehow. Contact with the other worlds outside the Earth was lost. The advanced technology and the great cities were abandoned, and mankind's numbers dwindled as they reverted to a more primitive lifestyle. Yet, when it looked like mankind was doomed to disappear, a mysterious event turned the tide yet again. The Great Tree sprang from the earth, bringing life and protection to all of mankind. It seeds spread throughout the continents, bringing forth the Twenty Lesser Trees.

The Numen, the power that flowed from these Trees gave mankind new, Mysterious Powers that allowed them to heal and recover themselves and the land. Still, there are those who would abuse this power for their own selfish goals...

History of the future

In this distant future, where Eruta takes place, none of the religions, politics, countries, languages, etc of the year 20xx still exist in any recongnisable state. Eveything got garbled, mixed up, reinterpreted, lost popularity and was finally forgotten. The same ideas as now still exist, but in largely different embodyments.

The people were also thoughougly mixed up, there are no more real "races". People do have varying skin colors and hair colors. Fair hair colors have become more rare. As a result, extravagant hair dyes are in fashion in Eruta, for people to distinguish themselves more from others.

Even geography also changed a bit... due to human terraforming, earthquakes, volcanoes, meteoric disasters, etc.

The setting is rather hard SF: there is no time travel, no faster than light travel, and no teleportation of macroscopic objects. People did travel to other planets all over the galaxy, in large "generation ships" that take decennia, or even hundreds of years to reach their destination.

Still in the end, most of humanity decided to leave and find another planet to make their lives on. Human population on earth is low now, because of this, less than one billion. The population is artificially kept at the same level by the contraceptive action of the Husk if there is to much growth, and the artificial wombs of female androids when there is a severe decrease.

A Galactic Empire of Man was formed like this. However, since FTL travel is not possible, communication was hard. Finally the empire decayed and broke down when the Earth fell in the crisis that caused the 21 Trees to emerge. Now, the Earth is isolated again from other stars.

Utopia

After the 21 Trees arose, the earth became a physical utopia. In essence it's a world where all of mankinds physical needs are taken care of by the Androids and the 21 Trees. And the Husk protects humans against each other's violence. People don't lack anything physically. The husk make s it very hard to physically harm another person, so war and violence are purely virtually nonexistant.

All over the world, In the Cities, the areas that are protected by the 21 Trees, people are being pampered by their Andoids, who do all the work. If a tree is destroyed, then one of the other Trees produces a seed, and the missing tree grows back. The 20 Trees came forth from the first tree like this. The 21 trees form a system that is stable, and all prevailing, yet dedicated to the happiness of humanity.
Each of the 21 trees has a quite large "range". Though "roots" that are hundreds and sometimes even thousands kilometers long, one tree covers a large area and can supply dozens and even hundreds of Cities. Of course, the Tree is not perfect and there are areas where the roots don' t spread. Those are the Outlands. In the Outlands, people live who reject the Tree, or don't want to live coddled by androids, or simply those who live in a city that the Tree failed to reach when it grew.

And the Husk protects humans against illness, and agression. And when there's a need, then the skilled can use the power of the Trees, Numen to set things right. Even food like meat grows from plants 365 years per day, so there's no economic need as well. As a result, most people just hang around their homes, playing with their androids or with VR simulations.

Eruta is a single country, and it has one tree for all it's Cities. But Eruta is sort of unique amongst the countries of Earth, because it also has a rather large Outlands area which is populated quite more densely than in most other countries. Eruta also has many ruins from the past in the Outlands.

Androids

Androids are programmed to intensely desire and work for human happiness. They capable of independant and rational thought, and are able to both understand and simulate emotions. However, this overriding Rule of the Android, "you shall make humans happy" is branded into their processors from construction on.

Androids are programmed to focus mostly on physical means to achieve human happiness, since mental happiness is too personal to be programmable as a general rule. As a result though, their ethics seems somewhat strange. For example, they will lie if they calculate that the lie will make people happier than hearing the truth.

Androids come in male and female versions and are fully functional and programmed with numerous variations. However, a genuine love relationship with an Android is difficult because the Rule of the Andoid. They must always respond in the way that will keep you happy. Their response may not be truth or based upon their own opinions. Only if you are strong enough to not be upset by the truth, will they be willing to tell it to you.

Some androids work like public servants, and some help people individually as house Helpers. Almost every household has one and sometimes even two androids to do the chores and entertain the members of the household. There are also those androids who work on the fields, in maintenance, construction, etc, for the public benefit.

Androids are free to choose what they do after they are constructed, as long as it benefits human happiness. They're also free to change their occupation as long as it doesn't make any humans unhappy. For example, if the old masters of a Helper pass away, then the android may change it's occupation or look for a new family to serve.

Androids are unable to use Numen. Only humans can use Numen. On the other hand, because they are partially mechanical, they can install and use use special Parts into their body that give them advanced attack, protection and healing abilities. Likewise they can read in data from Disks to upgrade their mental abilities.

Problems

Of course, that is the situation in the cities and towns. Outside of them, it's a
brutal world and rough world. There are some distant Outskirts that are very terrible places. In such places, people who dislike the 21 Trees or the andoids eke out a living.

The first problem for people outside the cities are the Beasts. Due to ecological disasters and rapid evolution, most normal animals have deed out. Those who survived became agressive, fierce Beasts that roam the land.

The second problem Outside are the Mavericks. Mavericks are androids who lost their human-friendly programming in any of various ways. Some are neutral, some hate humans, some even like still humans but prefer to stay aloof. In the latter case, Mavericks can be remarkably more honest than Androids are, since they don't feel they must lie to keep humans happy. Most Androids, however, have a built-in aversion towards of Mavericks, and often try to eliminate even those Mavericks who are harmless.

The third problem is Omen. Omen is a corruption of Numen. Omen seeks out to destroy Numen weherever it can be found. Which means humans are a main target. Omen can manifest itself materially in monstrous forms. But more usually it infects and corrupts beasts, objects, Maverics. It can even animate dead bodies.

Weapons and Armor

To defend themselves from Androids, Mavericks and Beasts, people use different kinds of weapons and armor, or Numen Arts. Common weapons are guns, cannons, knives, swords, gloves and staffs. Common types of armor include shields, armors, vests and robes. Weapons can do piercing, cutting or impact damage. Numen Arts, and some special weapons can do heat, cold, shock, laser, jamming or draining damage.

Guns are held in one hand. Guns are easy to use, however, many foes and also the human's the Husk resist guns. Guns also have less useful special techniques in their skill tree. Guns can be dual wielded, but doing so is hard. Until the character gets the gun Skill's "dual wield" perk, the second gun only does half as much damage as the first. Needle guns do piercing damage. Most ray guns do laser damage.
Cannons are large guns that need to be held with both hands. Some cannons can attack several close by foes in an area. Cannons have some of the same drawbacks as guns. Most cannons do either impact or laser damage.
To crack open the Husk and the defeat foes that resist guns, hand-to-hand weapons are needed. Knives are very popular since they attack quickly, can be held only in one hand, and can be dual wielded rather easily. The second knife is 75% as effective until a "dual wield" perk is obtained. Knives do piercing damage.
Most swords can be held either in one hand with two hands. When held with two hands, the sword does 25% more damage. This can go up to 100% more as the character gets successive "twohander" perks. Some very large swords must be held in two hands. Swords do cutting damage.
Gloves can be worn on one or two hands. They allow the figher to fight in martial arts style. Gloves are even easier than knives to wear on both hands, and the second glove does the same damage on the off hand as on the dominant hand. Gloves normally do impact damage. Some gloves are fitted with long claw, and these do cutting damage in stead.
Staves must be held in two hands. Staves are specially designed to conduct Numen. they are favoured by people who are not physically strng and want to use Numen Arts often. Depending on the experience the wielding character has with the staff, their Numen Arts can become up to 100% more effective. Normals staves do impact damage, but there are many customized staves that that do a different type of damage such as hear, cold, shock, etc.
Armors are heavy plated protective gears. They absorb much damage, but they slow down the character, and also prevent Numen from flowing efficiently to them. Armors can make Numen Arts up to 50% less effective, and slow down the character up to 50%. Armors are usually favored by people who get directly in harm's way.
Vests are medium protective gears. The absorb less damage than Armors, but they slow down the character less than armors, and and also allow more Numen to flow more efficiently to them. Still, Vests can make Numen Arts up to 75% less effective, and slow down the character up to 75%. Vests are the standard armor typeand popular amongst most adventurers.
Robes are light protective gears. The absorb even less damage than Vests. Hoever, they do not slow down the character, and they do not impede the flow of Numen. Robes are favored by people who want to use Numen Arts often, or who don't want to be slowed down.
Shields are protective gear held in hand. A Shield can be used in the off-hand for protection. A shield is usually combined with a knife, one handed sword, a gun, or a glove on the dominant hand.

Numen, Arts, and Focuses

Numen is a source of power, generated by (one of the) 21 trees. It is stored in the Husk of every human. Every Husk contains a limited amount of Numen, expressed as Numen Points, or NP. The trees transmit Numen though the air, and more efficiently, though their roots. Numen allows humans to perform certain Arts, mysterious feats of healing, protection, attack, ... When an art is used, the NP in the Husk is reduced.

A Focus is a special artifact that enhances and shapes the effect of Numen and Arts. It can take any sort of shape or form. Focuses cannot be mass-produced due to their immense internal complexity, and the knowledge needed to create the most powerful ones has been lost. That's why ancient, powerful focuses are prized all over the world.

Android, Mavericks, and Beasts cannot use Numen, and hence cannot use Arts. However, since Omen is a corruption of Numen, being that is infected with Omen can use Arts as well.

Arts are the mysterious effects of the application of Numen (or Omen). Arts can be classified in the following categories:

Heat Arts. Control heat, solids, the earth.
Cold Arts. Control cold, water, liquids, ice.
Shock Arts. Control electricity, lightening, electronics.
Tone Arts. Control sound, enhancement, buffing.
Light Arts. Control light, laser, purification.
Shadow Arts. Inflict corruption, decay, death.
Life Arts. Control life, healing, plants and animals.
Arcane Arts. Rare arts that do not fall in any of the other categories.

Governments and Politics

There are many, small countries, each with their own governments. However, most of these governments don't have much to do since the androids independently take care of everything. They have a police force or military to take care of what little human crime remains, to hunt down Mavericks, Beasts and Omen. Because of the Husk, and the plentiful economy, it's a world where there are no petty criminals. If you want to harm others, you really have to go out of your way to do so and become a supercriminal. For the rest the government basically help andoids with planning and making general descicions on what to do or build where, etc.

The overarching guidance comes from the sytem of the 21 Trees, which is in essence a world governmet that is led by the Androids, mostly unbeknowns of people. The system of the 21 Trees, the numen, and the androids was designed to keep people happy, and it wil do that whether they like it or not. Open war is almost impossible between the Cities because the androids would interpose between countries that would want to start a to fight. In the Outlands, however, some Outcities are in conflict...

Eruta is a country of city states. The head of state is a human Queen (or King), who is elected for life by the legislative after the death of the previous monarch. The Queen's role is largely ceremonial, although she does preside over the legislative, in which she has no vote. She also has the personal right to offer pardons, but this power is rarely used.

The legislative consist of the Meeting in the capital, to which each City and Outcity sends one representative. The Meeting has relatively little power and tends to defer most work to the Government.

The goverment of Eruta is made up of 3 Androids who, seeing their immortality, have been in power since the beginning of the country, and and 4 human ministers who are elected by the legislative. Seeing that there are so few trials and criminal cases, the government also doubles as the only and final court of appeal in all of Eruta.

The government too doesn't have too much power, as the individual Cities tend to emphasize their own independence. Cities are expected to follow the descisions of Eruta's Meeting, but this is not always the case...

Economy

Since all basic needs are taken care off, most people rarely trade. Art and science are usually freely given away and shared. Hotels, bars and restaurants for are free, and travelers use them extensively.

If you want to go live in a city, a free new house will built in a few weeks by the androids after requesting a place to live. You have to give up your previous old house though, to do this.

The exception to this is advanced technology, like weapons and armor, since those requires Chips to be constructed. Chips are solidified chunks of Numen, of different types, that are found in some places and that regenerate after some time when removed. Chips are also found on Omen infected Beasts, and in Mavericks.

Because Chips are one of the few items that are both is rare and useful, they have become something of a universal currency for people who still trade.

Life and death

In the game, when an android's HP reaches 0, he or she or it will be "broken". But a broken android can be repaired by a mechanic or by using a repair kit. Androids have a tiny "kernel" that contaoins all their memories anpersonalities, and as long as that is intact, the can be repaired fuly. Although, repairs can leave "scars", depending on the skill of the repairsman. Some androids prefer to keep these scars for flavor.

Humans on the other hand have LP (life points) as well as HP (husk power). When their HP reaches 0, they go "down" and become unable to fight. They can be healed, but it costs 1 LP to do so. When the HP is 0, the husk is malfunctioning, so if they are hit while their HP is 0, they lose one or more LP. If their LP reaches 0, they actually die for good. If this is one of the two Leading Characters, the game is over. However, if it's one of the PC's or villains, the game continues. Of course, letting too many of your friends die will net you a bad ending, but for some story paths, the death of one of the PC's may very well be unavoidable...

The average life span of people who live in the Cities is 120 years. The average life span in the Outlands is only about half of that. When someone in the Cities of Eruta passes away, his family's caretaker Android will take the body to a single City of the Dead to have the departed buried there. The City is tucked away in a corner of Eruta so people won't be reminded too much of their mortality. If one of the playable characters passes away, you can take them to the City of the Dead for their funeral.

Concluding remarks

The main idea is of this game a thought experiment. What if we have this future utopia, the best possible we could imagine through technology. How will people live then? Perhaps, in such a case, the mind, the emotions... that's what people will be living for. So, in the Cities, it's not really a dark world, at least not on the surface. But of course there is much hidden mental and emotional suffering. Of course, the Outlands are different.

In total there will be 12 playable characters. Now we only have the basic idea for the two lead characters. First there is Berun, a rather arrogant History Scholar who was born and raised in Eruta, who sets out to study the history of the famous ruins in his country. Second is Chelia, a seemingly cheerful Huntress who came from far away to Eruta to give a new direction to her life.

We need 10 more characters. There should be 4 more men, 4 more women, 1 more male android, and 1 more female android at least.

In this post I'll detail what Eruta, the game I have been developing, is about. If you think it's a good idea, or have any comments, then please feel free to contact me or comment. If you'd be willing to join the development, that would even be better! :)

Let's begon with the basics. Eruta will be Japanse style computer RPG with 2D sprite graphics. It will be available for Linux, Windows and Mac OS X. It will be free, and open source. The art style will be inspired mostly by the Phantasy Star series, but reworked in an original way.

Eruta is set in a very distant future where the earth as become almost a utopia. Technology has become so advanced that it's almost indistinguishable from magic. The plot focuses on 2 young adults who seek to find their way in life, 10 of their possible friends, and 3 of their possible foes.

In the setting of Eruta, androids do all the strenuous work, and help people lead an enjoyable life. All the necessities of life are plentiful and free. Humans are from birth covered by the symbiotic Husk, a nearly invisible living membrane that covers them to protect them from physical pain, wounds and illness. People live long, healthy lives. Twenty-one Trees, spread over the world, maintain the world peace and emit Numen, a mysterious energy that allows humans skilled in it's use to perform extraordinary feats.

But still, in this near utopia there are also problems. The current era of peace was only reached after many wars, disasters and much ecological destruction. The areas around cities, towns and roads are safe, but outside of that, it's a very rough and wild world. Most animals have died out, and those who have survived evolved into terrible, fierce Beasts. Maverick androids stir up trouble occasionally. And then there is the waste of the Ancients, and the the corruption of the Omen infection.

In this world, two young adults, Berun the scholar, and Chelia the huntress, each set out to find their way in life. Each of them decides to explore the country of Eruta, famous for its ancient historic records and ruins. What will they discover? Who will they meet there? Will they make new friends, or meet new enemies? Will they find love? How will they decide to live their lives? How will this influence the fate of Eruta and the Earth? That will be mostly up to the player to decide.

The battles will be tactical and turn based, with a mix of ideas from Grandia, Mana Khemia, the Atelier series, Phantasy Star 4, etc. There will be combos and also "action commands" that allow the fighters to intervene between their turns. There will be a "combat ethics" system that both enables special moves, but also influences the development of the personality of the characters. The battles will take place on the map screen as in Chrono Trigger.

The art will be 2D sprites, tiles and character portraits at a (virtual) 640x480 resolution. The art style will probably takes cues from Phantasy Star 4 and the Playstation 2 remakes of the Phantasy Star series, perhaps with some Atelier series and Ars Tonelico influences.

Technically speaking, Eruta is being developed in plain C (not C++) using the Allegro game library and use Lua as the scripting language. The tile maps can be edited with the Tiled Map Editor. The technology may seem a it spartan, but this is to better focus on the game's content.

Here's a screenshot to show the current progress, which isn't much yet:

Eruta game engine displaying a tile map editor (.tmx) map.

Links

dinsdag 25 december 2012

woensdag 29 augustus 2012

Going at it again!

dinsdag 1 mei 2012

A great new team name and an unimpressive demo

dinsdag 10 april 2012

Help wanted

Setting