Tyranny Discussion Thread

New article from Gamespot showing off gameplay, going over a bit of lore, and touching on a couple of the choices we can make near the beginning of the game it seems. How exciting!

Scarlet Chorus Mage Gameplay: http://www.gamespot.com/articles/pillars-of-eternity-devs-new-game-tyranny-asks-wha/1100-6441250/

Disfavored Archer Gameplay: http://www.gamespot.com/videos/tyranny-lucia-archer-of-disfavored-trailer/2300-6433146/

Rebel Warrior Gameplay: http://www.gamespot.com/videos/tyranny-kyperia-fighter-of-rebels/2300-6433148/

Notable changes from Pillars of Eternity I saw:

-There can only be 4 companions instead of 6.

-Mages seem to be able to cast unlimited spells in combat. Same goes for Priests (assuming the white haired man with healing spells is a priest)

-Mage/Priest attacks no longer cause friendly fire, so no more worrying about AOE spells being more trouble than they're worth like in Pillars.

-It looks like only health is used in battle now, unlike the Endurance bar used in Pillars. Personally I'm glad for this change, I thought managing 2 seperate health bars was both confusing and tedious even though I love the game.

-It looks like talents such as Lore and Athletics are back, but seem to work in a completely different way. One of the dialogue options we see requires Lore 53. We can also see during battle, next to the character pictures, things like +1 Lore, so I have to assume these abilities now go up during combat or something like that, instead of only a couple of points per level up, which probably means they function much differently than in Pillars.

-It looks like during dialogue, everyone will have a picture by their name to indicate whose talking, instead of only companions.

-Dialogue choices appear to effect battles in small ways. In the Pro-Rebel video we can see that choosing the Athletic dialogue option causes the Fifth Eye's men to run away in retreat rather than fight us.

-The menu that lets you speed up your characters/pause the game/go into stealth mode/etc appears to be on the top of the screen instead of the bottom.

-There will be 3 different starts for the game (if we are to believe this is the beginning of the game) as opposed to how Pillars only had the Caravan opening.

-Character customization (at least, appearance and name-wise) may be gone, indicated by the article's 3 different video links detailing different playstyles (mage, archer, warrior) that are all pre-named. We could just assume that they're simply pre-made characters for the demo however. I'm hoping this doesn't mean character customization has been thrown out.

-It looks like we'll be able to break alliances with other factions, as seen in the Pro-Rebel video where we can kick everyone out of the keep and make it our own. This seems to indicate a different path from both the Rebels and Kyros's forces, an Independent ending perhaps?

Notable similarities to Pillars of Eternity I saw:

-Pause real-time combat is back from Pillars, and seems to flow smoother.

-Judging by the boxes next to the companion life-bars, it appears we can still have conversations with our companions.

-The looting menu has changed appearance from Pillars', but looting corpses/containers appears to be done the same way.

-Faction Reputation has made a return, as we see from the end of the mage video we gain rep with both of Kyros's factions and lose rep with the rebel faction.

-Wait time between attacks has returned directly from Pillars.

-Dialogue is pretty much exactly the same as Pillars, though it seems dialogue cues such as Honest, Benevolent, etc have been taken out. (or they're just hidden like in base Pillars without editing the options)

-Once Per Encounter and Once Per Rest attacks are back.

New Lore:

-As stated above, it appears we will be able to join the rebel faction after all, based off the fact they have a reputation bar and you can join them as evidenced by one of the videos linked above.

-Based off dialogue that seems to indicate we can break alliances/take areas for ourselves, there may be an Independent route, free of both Kyros and the Rebels.

-Kyros appears to be a very, VERY powerful mage, as during this quest it is mentioned that in order to make sure these rebels are stopped quickly and efficiently, Kyros has set up a timer. The world will literally explode in a few days if the rebels are not stopped. The countdown only ends once the player defeats the rebels, indicated by a pretty cutscene. This is indicated by a red text bar at the top that reads: 16 Days Till Kyros's Day of Swords! What this means for gameplay however, we have no idea. Could this mean the game will have a set time-limit to do certain missions before an imminent game over ala Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, Fallout 1, or Pikmin 1? This seems like an interesting feature.

-Apparently Archons have civil wars, as evidenced by the video. The Archon Graven Ashe and the Archon Voices of Nerat are both vying for the glory of taking the rebel keep, and it's up to you to decide which side to help, or if you'd rather help the rebels.

SO much new Tyranny stuff to gawk at! What a happy day today is, this all seems like fantastic news.
 
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https://blog.tyrannygame.com/2016/07/08/the-archons-voice/


The Archon’s Voice
8 July, 2016 Author by Brian Heins.

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Hello, tyrants! I’m only too pleased to introduce The Archon’s Voice – the third of our short stories highlighting the world of Tyranny (Previously released: Under New Management and Commission). This story introduces the Voices of Nerat, the enigmatic leader of the Scarlet Chorus and one of our game’s powerful Archons. I had a difficult time figuring out what angle to take with the Voices. He’s a slippery figure who can’t be easily defined, and any number of stories could be written about him.

Mad as it may seem, I drew from personal experience. I once had an interview for a writing job (in the back room of a Coffee Bean) where my prospective boss declared: “Here’s how this is going to work: I’m going to tell you about how I do my business, and you’re going to sit there and listen. Your body language will tell me everything I need to know about you.”

A one-on-one meeting with the Voices of Nerat would unfold in a similar fashion. The only difference is that you might not make it out of that interview alive.

Now that you’re properly calibrated for uncomfortable meetings, enjoy The Archon’s Voice!

~Paul Kirsch, Narrative Designer

The Archon’s Voice
Servio rose to his feet when he spotted figures cresting the hill. As the creaking of wagon wheels grew in volume, he silently hoped that these were the killers he sought.

A regiment of soldiers drew up to him. At least they were an approximation of soldiers. They varied in age from ten to fifty, and had armed themselves with a fierce medley of weapons – tent stakes, boat hooks, clubs bristling with sewing needles, and many twisted harpoons. A tall woman in a featureless, bronze mask separated from the gang to approach him. Servio recognized her garb as the raiment of an elite fighter – not the leader of this ragged group by far, but a gang boss or taskmaster of stature.

“Old man,” she called, clipped and professional, “you the one who sent us the missive?”

“Prantum Servio,” he announced, clearing his throat. “Originally of the Bastard Tier. I have a proposal for your master, if he’ll hear me.”

“He will. You needn’t worry about that.” She glanced over her shoulder at the assembled recruits, then returned her attention to him. “I’ve been instructed to convey a message: prepare for total commitment. Is that understood?”

Her words left him at a loss. Then, across the gulf of uncomfortable silence, he intuited her meaning.

“I already know what the Archon is capable of,” he said. “Whispers of the Scarlet Chorus reach us daily. News of your methods, your growing numbers, and your… unconventional leader.” His words quavered with unease.

She regarded him a second more before speaking up, this time with a smile in her voice.

“Just don’t let the Archon hear you call him ‘unconventional.’ He doesn’t take criticism well.” Some of the tension dispersed as she uncrossed her arms and rested her hands on her hips. “You have courage for a graybeard. If circumstances were different, I’d have you conscripted to the front lines. A pity. Wait with me, then. He approaches.”

She beckoned him to stand closer, and they watched the procession together. In spite of himself, Prantum Servio shared her company without fear. She reminded him of the daughter who left home in anger so many years ago, though he would never tell her that.
The army stretched beyond the horizon – tens of thousands strong, flowing through the treacherous hills that separated the Northern Empire from the Tiers. The forces of Kyros were making their way south. It was only a matter of time before they arrived in the Tiers proper.

“What do they call you?” he asked.

“Half Nose,” she said.

“They… they give you that name?” he asked. “Is that how it works?”

She nodded. “That’s the easiest part of recruitment, but you’re not here because you want to learn about us, are you?”

They both knew he wasn’t. Quite the opposite – he never wanted to learn what his countrymen would be subjected to as the army swept them up in its relentless tide.

Bare-chested haulers put their shoulders to the task of dragging wagons laden with supplies. They were slaves caked in dirt, blood and sweat. Nothing of their former humanity was evident in their empty gazes. He memorized that look, repeated across endless faces. He needed to bear witness to this. Then Half Nose and the other recruits turned as if responding to a call, and Servio snapped back to attention.

Moving with funerary slowness, a pair of slaves bore the weight of a covered palanquin draped with red silk. A warm breeze stirred the covering. The slaves held onto their burden and stopped just short of Servio. A young boy lowered to all fours beneath the opening and waited.

A piercing, reedy voice catapulted from behind the silk canopy.

“Is this one worth our time?” it called.

Half Nose raised a fist in salute. “I believe so, Archon.”

“He understands what is required?”

Servio winced. The Archon’s words sliced the air to ribbons, at times sounding like multiple voices speaking at once.

Servio gathered his courage and called out. “I’m not such a fool as to come without knowing the price of your audience.”

The pause that followed was uncomfortable in length, until a dry chuckle sounded from across the gap.

“Fool enough to speak out of turn, though. We can respect that.” The Archon laughed once again – a jubilant, barking sound.

Servio was no academic like the scholars of the Vellum Citadel, and knew little enough about the happenings outside of his own borders, but he understood that a conscript army answered to bravado. That much he had mastered in his younger days, though he was long since out of practice.

The curtain parted at last. The figure that lowered onto the slave’s offered back was stranger by far than any of his cohorts. Green flames licked at the fringes of his crimson sleeves and fanned out from his tattered shirt in the shape of a glorious, burning collar. The head – if one could call it such – was a brass helmet, ornately molded into a man’s disapproving likeness, his brow adorned with spikes. It floated over the man-shaped inferno and regarded Servio with passing interest.

Servio held his ground and hoped that his fear wasn’t showing. Even if he smothered all of his trepidation down to the bottom of his thoughts, he suspected that the Archon of Secrets would find it anyway.

“Raise our tent!” the Archon announced, twirling his golden scepter in the air. “We make camp tonight. Someone prepare a goblet for our visitor. His mouth is strikingly dry.”

Servio realized that it was so.

***

Hours passed before the last of the supplies made it from the rearguard. Servio politely declined the second offered cup. The work ahead of him was sobering enough that he found it difficult to enjoy the fine Northern vintage.

The Archon of Secrets paraded about his ragged army, kicking slaves and shouting orders. His words vaguely originated from under his helmet, but at times it was difficult to tell. Half a dozen masked soldiers followed in his wake – Crimson Spears and Scarlet Furies, as Servio learned from Half Nose. Those fighters were a cut above the rest of the filthy recruits, who spat and squatted and competed for space around the many campfires.

Only when the Archon reached down and pulled a supplicant’s head from his shoulders with a quick, wrenching motion did Servio agree to more wine.

“You might find this little comfort,” said Half Nose, “but I’ve served under worse than the likes of him.”

“I believe you,” said Servio.

The Scarlet Chorus had come to deliver Kyros’ Peace under a banner of war. Until the last of the South bent the knee and accepted the Overlord’s rule, the entire realm was forfeit to the brutality of occupation. Pain was coming, and atrocities like those arrayed before him would soon become commonplace.

“He is the Voices of Nerat,” said Half Nose, nodding toward the distant Archon. “He’ll refer to himself in the plural, but I wouldn’t recommend you do the same. ‘Lord’ or ‘Archon’ will do. Understand?”

Servio didn’t, but he nodded.

“He has it within him to be exceedingly polite,” Half Nose continued, “but he’d crush you like a spider if it fit his grand design, and wouldn’t think twice about it.”

“Spinning tales are you, Nose?” The Archon turned about and shouted in their direction. He was well out of earshot, but Servio didn’t think that mattered. “We’ll be with you in a moment, sir.”

“Whatever you take from these last moments, make sure they count.” Half Nose whispered to Servio. “I’ll see if we can give you proper rites. That much I promise.”

“You’ve shown me kindness,” said Servio.

“No, I haven’t.” She hesitated. “Kindness would have been loosing an arrow into your throat before we ever met.”

They stood by as laborers erected the Archon’s tent, but there didn’t seem to be anything else to say. Half Nose offered a quick bow to Servio and vanished back into the thickening mob of soldiers. Another attending recruit nudged him inside the tent and closed the flap behind him.

The tent contained a wooden throne and a small rug on the ground. Servio sighed and assumed the appropriate stance, dropping to his knees.

“Kyros,” Servio whispered, “you may define law for the rest of us, but you aren’t ignorant of mercy. I supplicate before your servant with fear in my heart. Give me some small reason to hope.”

Shoving the last of his pride somewhere deep, he bowed his head to meet the carpet. No sooner had he done so than the tent flap whipped open and a familiar voice shrieked at the top of its discordant lungs:

“What are you doing on our rug?!” bellowed the Voices of Nerat. He beckoned Servio to stand. “We had our attendants bring you a chair. Must you reject our courtesy so soon?”
Servio stood on shaky legs and allowed himself to be lowered onto the throne while the Voices sat down on the rug, curled in comfort and ease.

“You have a speech prepared,” said the Voices. He was staring at the brass gauntlet that comprised his hand, studying nails that weren’t there. “It won’t be necessary. Your posture, the sweat on your cheeks – they’ve told us everything about you and why you’re here.”

Suddenly the Archon shifted forward, regarding Servio with the full brunt of his attention. “You have information,” said the Voices, “and you’ll offer it up in exchange for your town’s safety.”

Servio nodded. He opened his mouth to speak, and then closed it again. He had practiced his words a hundred times over, only to have the Archon dismantle his intentions in a few scant breaths.

“We just want to be left alone,” Servio whispered. “Whatever peace you bring, we will accept it, but don’t drag my people into this war.”

The Archon tilted his head in a mockery of interest, toying with him. Everything from his exaggerated movements to his grating tone hacked away chunks of Servio’s optimism.

“It would be easier if you had asked for payment in rings or precious gems,” said the Voices. “We can’t spare your town any more than the Archon of War can crack a smile.”

Something about this caused the Voices of Nerat to break apart in laughter. The flames under his tattered clothes built to a blaze that licked the ground underneath him.

“Kyros’ Peace is coming,” said the Voices, “and like a flood, it will drown anyone without the good sense to stand tall. Were it up to us, your nameless, insignificant family would be hauling wagons, donning red and shrieking themselves to sleep this very evening.” He paused to regard Servio. “But that needn’t be so. We are legion, and we delight in nothing more than a change of heart. You are the first Tiersman we’ve met who didn’t soil himself at our mere presence. In our eyes, this makes you a remarkable specimen.”

Servio had arrived expecting this, but now that his fate lay before him, he was speechless. The Voices, who never lacked a thing to say, spoke up ahead of him.

“A rare opportunity lies before you. Join us in our howling madness. Convince us of your worth by stripping away all pretense of self, and become one of our Voices.”

***

Half Nose sat by the dying embers of the fire long after the others had dozed off. She kept the tent in the corner of her eye and listened for any movement or activity. Hours had passed since she left the old man.

She lifted her mask to scratch her face, which she was too frightened to show anyone these days. Better that the cold, stoic bronze represent her. Any hint of what she felt – any echo of a question regarding her nerve – could only get her killed.

The journey south had cost the Scarlet Chorus many lives, which would be replenished from the locals soon enough. Half Nose aimed to endure rather than be replaced. She glanced to the men and women of her gang, who didn’t dare step closer to share her fire, and hoped they felt the same. A new recruit bundled herself in rags and trembled under a dying tree. Half Nose reminded herself to kick that one into shape and toughen her up. Elsewhere, she heard a prolonged shriek as men gathered to slaughter a pig – at least what she assumed was a pig. She wondered who had given them permission, and shook her head. The work was never done.

She flinched when the tent flap shuffled open and the Voices of Nerat marched out, making a beeline for the Crimson Spears who guarded the corners of his private camp. Where was Servio?

Half Nose leaned forward and pretended to poke at the fire, but all of her attention was centered on the Archon. It was impossible to miss his voice carrying over the quiet evening.

“We march at first light,” he announced. “You will pair up the gangs and send them down either side of the valley. The west-facing will hit the Apex defenders first, and the east-facing will follow.” The Voices of Nerat paused, turning from the exchange to focus across the Scarlet Chorus camp, straight at Half Nose.

“You!” the Voices shouted. “There’s a withered corpse slumped in our throne. Dispose of him for us.”

Half Nose released her stored breath. “Yes, Archon!”

She crested the hill up to his tent. The Voices studied her the whole way, his helmet bobbing gently on his collar of green flame. He refocused on his Crimson Spears as she passed.

“Give the man rites,” he said. “A promise was made to us, and we would see it kept. He served the realm to the best of his abilities. A wasted gesture, but we suspect a better attempt to placate us than any of his countrymen will manage.”

The Crimson Spears nodded and offered their “Yes, Archons,” but Half Nose hesitated at the entrance of the tent.

A promise was made to us.

She glanced back at the Voices of Nerat and wondered at the vague, almost undetectable Southern accent that colored his discordant speech.

She found him looking back at her, and for the first time, she wasn’t entirely afraid.


THE END

no i'm thinking kyros was just fire nation clone :P
 
https://blog.tyrannygame.com/2016/07/13/dev-diary-6-barik/

Hello, everyone! In our last dev update, I talked a bit about combat mechanics forTyranny. For today’s update, I wanted to introduce you to one of the Companions who can join you on your adventures in the world of Terratus – Barik of the Stone Shields.

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Barik is the quintessential Disfavored soldier. He embodies all of the rigid and uncompromising values that Graven Ashe’s iron legion holds dear. He’s polite, respectful of authority, and doggedly intolerant of anyone born outside of the Overlord’s long shadow.

He began his career with the Disfavored in the phalanx – his size and strength made him a perfect addition to the shield wall. His strong nerve and unwavering obedience quickly drew the eye of his superiors. Barik received several battlefield promotions before drawing the eye of Archon Graven Ashe, leader of the Disfavored. Once the Great General knew his name, Barik quickly ascended to the ranks of the Iron Guard – Ashe’s select group of advisors and lieutenants.

It was one desperate mission that led to Barik’s undoing. During the war against the Tiers, Barik did not retreat with the rest of the Disfavored when word came that the Overlord Kyros was about to proclaim an Edict upon the realm of Stalwart. Instead, he joined a select group that embarked on a daring rescue mission to the heart of Sentinel Stand Keep. When the Edict struck and ruined any chance of success, Barik faced a harsher punishment than disgrace. Unlike the rest of his squad, he survived to witness Kyros’ judgment on Stalwart.

As Kyros’ Edict of Storms swept across the land, Barik was caught in the magical winds – winds that bore the weapons and armor of Barik’s phalanx and the enemies they fought. When the initial onslaught of the Edict subsided, Barik was found still alive, but trapped in a prison of twisted blades. To this day, Barik wears his armor of fused iron and bronze – durable protection, yet an unyielding mark of his failure. No one has been able to free him from the armor he was sealed into by Kyros’ Edict.

Combat Role

We designed Barik to serve as a much-needed shield to protect the party from danger. Barik stands in the front line, engaging enemies, taunting them into attacking him, and being a damage sink to keep the rest of the party alive.

When designing his talent trees, we looked at a couple of different themes that players could use to specialize him. His ‘Sentinel’ tree focuses on allowing him to maintain control on the battlefield while increasing the amount of damage he can absorb. His ‘Punisher’ tree transforms him into a warrior of retribution, excelling at slaying foes that dare to stand against him.

A few of his notable abilities:

Striking Iron: A strong slashing attack that deals increased damage if the target is actively engaging Barik in combat.

Stance: Phalanx: Barik ‘hunkers down’ into a defensive stance, hiding his body behind his shield. While in this stance, Barik gains a bonus to Armor making him significantly more capable of weathering damage from enemy attacks.

Engagement Attack: A passive ability that grants Barik a free attack on any enemy who engages him.

Defender’s Charge: Barik leaps to an ally’s side, taunting nearby enemies into attacking him.

Blade’s Embrace: As Barik adventures with the Fatebinder, he gains control over the bronze and iron prison that confines him. With this ability, Barik is able to command the weapons in his armor to strike out at nearby targets, dealing increased damage to anyone who is activately engaging him.

We wanted players to see Barik as a protector in battle, but also as a tactical asset. Barik’s Defender’s Charge and Striking Iron abilities are powerful, but they excel the most when players find the right moment to take action. Striking Iron incentivizes standing toe-to-toe with enemy melee units, but isn’t as effective when targeting an enemy archer or spellcaster. Defender’s Charge can move Barik to any ally on the battlefield, effectively saving them, but his relocation may leave his previous position unprotected.

By making strong choices and careful tactical decisions, players can use Barik as a powerful commanding presence, emphasizing his strengths to shift the tide of battle.

I hope you enjoyed this first look at one of Tyranny’s companion characters. Stay tuned for our next update, where we reveal our next companion: Verse!

tyranny_dev_diary_06__barik.png


Interesting, we get some more lore on Kyros's super power, AKA "edicts". Sounds like they're not something to be trifled with and can cover an entire country if need be. It also mentions no one's been able to get Barik out of his armored prison. Perhaps this will be brought up in a personal quest for him?
 
eissa said:
will it be like fallout original perhaps, that there is a pre-build character for more enchanced narrative, but also lets you to do blank build as well?
Click to expand...
I sure hope you can create your own guy or I'm not buying it
 
Quite excited for this. I really like how it's a 2016 release too. I was quite sad when Cyberpunk 2077 was revealed to be not before late 2017.
 
Dev Diary #7 – Verse

https://blog.tyrannygame.com/2016/07/27/dev-diary-7-verse/

In our last update, we introduced you to Barik of the Stone Shields, one of your potential Companions. This week, we wanted to show you the other side of the coin, so to speak. Meet Verse, a fierce warrior with ties to the Scarlet Chorus.


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Verse represents the bravado of the Scarlet Chorus. She’s constantly proving herself, challenging others, prodding for weaknesses, and delighting in the social power play within Kyros’ more volatile army. Her free spirit and playful sarcasm make her a fitting counterpoint to Barik and his iron walls of emotional repression.

Verse is a Scarlet Fury – one of the elite fighters in the Chorus, possessing training in all manner of exotic weapons and fighting styles. Combat for Furies is an art form, a coordinated dance ruled by passion over reason or tactics.

Like all members of the Chorus, Verse started out as a civilian in the southern continent of the Tiers – an ordinary girl on an ordinary farm. When the sun went down, she liked to sneak out to the barn and take a knife to the farm animals, and always sensed that she was destined for something more.

When the armies of Kyros arrived and started conscripting from the local populace, Verse recognized her calling. She was one of the few mad enough to volunteer and begin her new life in the howling mob, where she made a point of rising in the ranks with bloodthirsty ambition. She led multiple gangs at different times in the war, so she’s no stranger to pushing others around.

Everyone who joins the Chorus gets a new name. The name “Verse” was a compliment from the Voices of Nerat, who – in one of his crazier, artistic moments – heard music in the shrieking and howling of battle. He said that hers stood out louder than anyone else’s, and contained too many parts to be easily defined.

Verse has a special knack for learning the combat styles of others. She could spend five minutes watching a grizzled veteran wield a spear and know the form as if she had used it across a hundred battles. During the war, this talent manifested in an unexpected fashion. During a battle with the defenders of Apex, Verse suddenly froze in panic – a totally unheard-of reflex, coming from seemingly out of nowhere. The Scarlet Furies fighting alongside her died in battle because of this spasm of hesitation.

What happened next was stranger still: Verse felt the deaths of her sister Furies like a part of her mind getting ripped apart, and she stumbled from battle possessing knowledge of the battle stances and weapon acuity of her sister Furies – an unintended, almost parasitic reflex that fascinated and disgusted her.

Verse hates herself for the hesitation that stayed at her hand, and feels revulsion for everything that came after, which casts her instinctive need to challenge others and prove herself in perhaps a sadder light.

~Paul Kirsch, Narrative Designer

Combat Role

Verse was designed to blend between melee and ranged combat with ease, acting as a highly mobile single target damage dealer. Verse’s talent trees support this synergy between short and long ranged combat and allow her to perform the roles of melee assassin or ranged archer on the fly. Verse also possesses unique combat stances that allow her to further match the party’s needs in the heat of the moment.

When designing Verse’s talent trees, we started by splitting them by Melee or Ranged combat specialization. Deep in each of Verse’s trees lie talents that place strong emphasis on one style or another. Talents at earlier tiers are focused on value for both melee and ranged combat, maintaining synergy for users interested in a hybrid approach or those that enjoy switching styles frequently. Verse’s Duelist tree features a twin blade strategy geared around rushing through the fray and unleashing flurries of deadly melee strikes on weaker targets. Her Skirmisher tree is built around escape tactics and long range devastation via bow and burning arrow.

A few of Verse’s notable abilities:

Know Your Enemy: A talent which allows Verse to study her enemies in combat. This allows Verse to become increasingly more deadly the longer that a combat spans, increasing her Dodge and Parry each time she is struck by an enemy. As a quick thinking fighter, Know Your Enemy helps sell the idea that Verse won’t fall for the same combat trick twice.

Rush: As a Scarlet Fury, Verse is no stranger to sprinting into danger with a wave of Chorus allies at her back. The Rush ability gives players the chance to send Verse like a streak of lightning through the enemy ranks, drastically increasing Verse’s movement speed for a short time and making her immune to engagement.

Killing Spree: After felling a foe, Verse will enter a Killing Spree where she attacks multiple times with each of her basic attacks.

Burning Iron: Verse launches a single arrow doused in oil and flame. When it strikes, it ignites her enemy, burning them for Fire damage over time.

Unbound: Verse performs a spinning attack and vaults through the air to a safe location. A remnant of one of Verse’s fallen sisters appears in her place to face her foes.

Verse is a first and foremost a deadly assassin, her ability to dispatch high priority targets and remain mobile on the battlefield makes her well suited for the task. Abilities like Killing Spree and Know Your Enemy give Verse the momentum to tear down nearly any foe. While Verse is capable of dishing copious amounts of damage, she is notably more vulnerable than iron-clad counterparts such as Barik. Those with Verse in their party should expect to keep a keen watch to prevent her from getting in over her head. Abilities like Unbound and Rush are great offensive and escape abilities, though if on cooldown, Verse loses her mobility advantage and is left vulnerable.

With her highly active kit and powerful single target abilities, Verse feels like a storm on the battlefield, aggressive, relentless, and apt for dispatching key foes.

~Nick Carver, Systems Designer

I hope you enjoyed this look at another of your potential companions in Tyranny. In our next dev update, I’ll talk about setting the game at the end of the Bronze Age, and how we reinforced that in our items and lore.

tyranny_dev_diary_07__verse.png
 
Codex interview with tyranny writer team;


With Gamescom coming up fast, Paradox have begin to promote Tyranny more heavily. Yesterday, Game Revolution posted an interview with the game's entire writing team - Matt MacLean, Megan Starks, Paul Kirsch and Robert Land. And then they took it down for some reason, but now it's back. It's a nice look at the game's inspirations and sensibilities, with a few story tidbits as well. Here's an excerpt:

Matt Maclean, Lead Narrative Designer: The dark setting was one of the original pillars of the game’s design. ‘What if evil won?’ was the question asked in the earliest pitch documents. So ‘evil setting’ was an owner mandate from day one and as far as design constraints go, that’s a fun burden to have around your neck.

Our inspirations included The Black Company, the Fallout series of games (Obsidian created Fallout: New Vegas), and the ‘What if evil won?’ question was unavoidably read as ‘What if Sauron won?’ so there’s always a little Lord of the Rings in any modern fantasy, though I’m proud to say we don’t have elves or dwarves or a lovable midget race of any kind.

For my own interpretation of the question ‘What if evil won?’, I’ve always assumed the answer would be ‘sounds like real life.’ Evil wins when people learn (or are shaped by ignorance) to accept it as required and normal. So most of my own inspiration for Tyranny has come from real life. I’ve never read a book or seen a movie with a fictional villain as fascinating as Alan Dulles, Qin Shi Huang, or Kim Jong-Il.

GR: Did you take any ideas from books, games, or movies for this environment of evil winning? Which and how?

MacLean: The Black Company was very influential, with is an excellent show of a world wherein the cast of characters know the stories and myths of the magical bigwigs but are only semi-aware of how it all actually works. Black Company also had a great sense of soldiers-as-people and it didn’t fall into the brash-hero/peasant-savior nonsense that most fantasy novels can’t help but repeat to death.

Myth: The Fallen Lords was also a big influence, with its grim take on the true cost of being a hero. Myth was also inspired by Black Company, and like Myth, Tyranny features magical sociopaths with personality-driven powers set alongside grim, desperate regular folk trying their best not to die.

A world wherein there’s one big evil dude on top really only works when it’s sold with great big lies that get the average person invested in the evil (or just dependent upon it), instead of willing to resist it. And for evil to win long term, it also needs to be immune to self-implosion (since we’ve all read enough fantasy literature to know that evil defectors are involved in 9 out of 10 evil regicides). So with that in mind, I’ve found most of my inspiration comes from non-fiction: fascism, American exceptionalism, drug cartels, capitalist corporations, and militaries through the ages have all provided a great deal of inspiration as to how evil wins.

GR: Do you have a favorite faction to write about/for?

MacLean: My favorite faction to write was the Scarlet Chorus, mostly because it’s a faction of grumpy jerks and I’m a grumpy jerk, so it’s a perfect fit. More a lawless mob than a ‘proper’ army, the Scarlet Chorus is made up of folks forced to join or die, with the masses kept in check by aggressive gang leaders who rule as despots until they are challenged and dethroned. The folks in this bloody motley have to be rough, jaded, and darkly optimistic to make it through the day, so they’re all tinged with sass and deceit, and that’s far more fun than writing honest villagers.

Kirsch: The Disfavored and the Scarlet Chorus are fun for different reasons. As the most militaristic and viciously patriotic, it can be enjoyable to test the Disfavored’s limitations—what a soldier will do for their unit, how they balance their emotions and needs against the needs of the legion, and how their personality measures up to the expectations of the legion.

When it comes to the Scarlet Chorus, this is more fertile ground for creative exploration. No form of psychological manipulation, physical torture, or all-around weirdness is off the table when the Scarlet Chorus is concerned. We’re talking a Fury Road magnitude of diversity and strangeness. Since every gang has its own rules and twisted leadership structure, there isn’t what you’d call uniformity in any gang of Chorus rats.

GR: The short stories suggest there's more to these factions than just burning and pillaging. Will we learn their backstories in the game? And is this indicative of how the narrative and role-playing will run in Tyranny?

Kirsch: If you want to understand the armies of Kyros, there’s no better entry point than the soldiers and Archons. Talk to everyone, take the time to ask questions and figure out who these people are. Even the Chorus understand that their way of life is unsustainable, and that someday the survivors will have to pick up pitchforks and boat oars for their intended purposes. If you’ve explored every dialogue option, we’ll know that we’ve done our job.

If you'd like to learn more about the Scarlet Chorus, a detailed description of that faction, including its various subgroups, was posted on GameSpot on Thursday. Interestingly, in the Game Revolution interview, Robert Land mentions an Archon character named Sirin (who apparently appears in a short story which hasn't been published yet), while the Scarlet Chorus description mentions a captive Archon of Song. I'm willing to bet that those two are the same person, probably the unknown female character who appears in the game's logo alongside the other Archons.
 
eissa said:
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Thanks for posting this up.

The way they're emphasising choice and consequence does provide a good impression of the game though there is a risk that by having every choice bear an unforeseen consequence, the game may induce apathy in players. It's still sound promising nonetheless.
The way they are describing the various forms of evil you could perform does bring Alpha Protocol to mind.

Before this, was there a mention of Kyros's gender in any of the promotional materials before this? I can't recall at the moment...
 
CerberusGate said:
Before this, was there a mention of Kyros's gender in any of the promotional materials before this? I can't recall at the moment...
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i'm not sure, when the lead level designer describe kyros empire, he refer kyros as "she". check 0:46
 
eissa said:
i'm not sure, when the lead level designer describe kyros empire, he refer kyros as "she". check 0:46
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I remember that along with referring to the player as one of "her" Fatebinders. I guess Kyros is confirmed to be female (unless they already confirmed it before this video).

EDIT: Here's a video on character creation (if it's already here, feel free to let me know so that I can remove it)
 
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Had no idea the release date was so close. Crap, i don't want to go back to active gaming just yet, i think they should postpone it... bugs and stuff :smugoticon:.
 
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