Good tidings, friends,
The discussion around the recent combat instruments we've shared, such as the Brudvir Great Axe, continues to spark unexpected controversy among the community so I wanted to address a couple points about the so-called Friday Shiny.
1 - The shiny is a sneak-peek of the coolest thing someone was recently working on that we wanted to share. The Shinies have been presented with minimum context because they're more of a teaser or work-in-progress of our current release cycle's work, thus the context lives in our development blogs. It's definitely not the only thing the studio was working on. It's not necessarily completed or at a shippable quality yet; just a little slice of our in-flight development to continue our desire to be transparent and share our excitement with all of you! Completed iterations will be part of our Adventure Completion blogs along with our usual descriptions of what the work is trying to accomplish and how it fits into our development plan.
2 - Chronicles of Elyria is not an historic simulation and it does not take place on Earth. A fantasy setting like ours is sometimes called Sword & Sorcery or Heroic Fantasy, which does not make it bound to the historic timelines, materials, physics, technologies, or social conventions of Earth. Consider that Game of Thrones and Conan the Barbarian are both in this corner of the fantasy genre, too. There are fantastic qualities to Elyria and they will shape many elements of the game! We've used the term Dramatic Realism before, as well as a desire to have Verisimilitude over Veracity (“It’s better to feel real than be real.”). So we're going to lean into the fantastic in places, and to depths that meet the overall vision we have for the game (both at launch and over the course of the 10-year story). There is absolutely room for weapons and armor and structures and crafts and creatures and adaptations that have no purchase on Earth, but are common in Elyria. Those fantastic creations will receive the same dramatic realism and verisimilitude as something that we adopted from Earth and didn't want to change. A good example of that is horses. People like them, they work well, we understand how they fit into a world, and most fantasy universes include them. We decided to include them as-is but we won't for everything. In the end, this isn't going to be a simulation of Earth - it will be a simulation of Elyria - and we hope it's as compelling as other fantasy universes you've, no doubt, enjoyed over your lifetime!
Now, here's a sneak-peek of something we're working on for the Kypiq that I'm quite excited about. As you may know from reading about this inventive tribe, they do not possess great strength or reach but are quick of mind and nimble of form. Not interested in direct combat if they can help it, a desirable quality for combat equipment is adaptability! This shield is only a shield when it needs to be and will allow Kypiq to keep their mobility advantages as an advantage!
Since we want this to feel grounded in the world of Elyria, you can see that there is thought being put into how the mechanism would actually work and not merely "be cool" (even though it is, isn't it?). A perfect example of the process of developing realistic technology in a fantasy setting. No, this isn't a real Earth weapon and I don't think you're going to find any YouTube videos of this one to demonstrate how it would really work in a fight...but if you do, let us know!
Stay shiny,
Vye
Posted By WarlanderLichbane at 10:04 AM - Sat Jul 14 2018
medieval bait and high fantasy posing as low fantasy switch if you ask me.
I never understood the view some people had around all the weapons. If it makes sense in the game, isn't that the only thing that matters? This game was never sold as an medieval earth simulator. Yet some people seem to think it was. But then it also changed from low fantasy ages back anyway.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJ0unSMWtsk
Someone made a deployable riot shield. Wouldn't work identically but gives a bit of an idea on how the Kypiq shield might look when it spreads out into shield shape.
As someone who wasn't a fan of the Brudvir axe just because it felt like it didn't fit the dramatic realism of a harsh northern tribal culture, I like this a lot.
Posted By Gunnlang at 8:45 PM - Fri Jul 13 2018
Posted By WarlanderLichbane at 10:04 AM - Sat Jul 14 2018
medieval bait and high fantasy posing as low fantasy switch if you ask me.
I never understood the view some people had around all the weapons. If it makes sense in the game, isn't that the only thing that matters? This game was never sold as an medieval earth simulator. Yet some people seem to think it was. But then it also changed from low fantasy ages back anyway.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_ZG22ckzB0
If you can watch that video and tell me that the perception of this game back then was anything other than imagery showing medieval style fantasy I don't know what else to say. All the clips suggest this and this one happens to show most if not all of what they were showing back then.
At no point did they mention this type of fantasy or show Caspian's char pull out any form of a 5 in 1 all purpose tool that does what these types of concepts imply that these things are common weapons. Not once.
So to me this is sort of deceptive. Its one thing to be told about it but its another thing to actually see the concepts being rolled out.
If you have items or assets you no longer have use for feel free to send them my way.
Damn, Kypiq technology is a fearsome thing, just imagine using it for other things.....
A Kypiq traveling bartender would smash competition with a deployable folding beer hall, when its contender would need time and mannpower to even install their stand, the kypiq could do it way faster with less mannpower and start selling beer to customers way ahead !
The little tree critters will rule the world !
@Vye and Team,
I am sorry. It was never my intention to appear negative or to hurt anyone’s feelings. I truly love where this game is going. I enjoy each and every shiny you reveal. All of my comments, statement, thoughts, ideas, and criticisms are not meant to imply that I am unhappy with the work you are doing. I enjoy the discussion and debate and hope that some of it will help with development.
————————
Kypiq Shield.... ok, realism aside, that is really cool. I do actually like it. I am slowly beginning to really like the Kypiq. They might just push me over the edge and make me want to be a deviant Kypiq assassin. It intrigues me.
So a wood that is light yet very durable. I can accept that. High tension spring to wind it up. I can accept that as long as you can create a high carbon steel. The latch and release mechanism should be easy for a good Tinker to make.
I approve.
And for those that think I am just kissing ass... I have no need.
%5D(https://chroniclesofelyria.com/forum/topic/19014/naw-drakemoore)
I would call this a fan shield, if I had to come up with a generic name for the type. It's probably not going to suppress a direct strike from a very heavy weapon, but most shields wouldn't anyway. Depending on the material and the skill of usage, it could deflect glancing blows of edged weapons and some projectiles.
I expect that the materials are Kypiq silk over lightweight metal vanes. The radius is about the length of a Kypiq forearm, so the unfolded diameter is probably in the neighborhood of 60 to 90 cm. The item is shown outfitted on a right arm, so it is not necessarily equivalent in deployment to a traditional shield. It might be commonly deployed on each arm, regardless of other weapons wielded.
Perhaps it is not even primarily a military artifact, but something used to deflect small animals and part of plants disturbed by the wearer's movement. Perhaps one of its purposes is enhanced concealment rather than direct defense.
One of the things I don't get is the loop around the middle finger, which is presumably the trigger for unfolding. That would seem to get in the way of using the hand for other purposes, even including climbing, since closing the fist or grasping something tightly would either cause unfolding or render unfolding possible only by closing the hand more than is anatomically possible.
I dig it.
It serves to block and be compact without making your wrist explode, something not achieved in any IRL toolsets I've seen. There are no existing examples I can draw inspiration from that would fulfill it's intended use and this is definitely a suspension of disbelief for me.
What people feel about the Kypiq shield is what I felt about the multipurpose axe. I just think its cool, and so were the ideas behind it. If we can explain away this by saying the Kypiq are smart tinkerers, why can't we explain the Brudvir axe by saying they're a strong people that revolve around cutting timber? And wooohhh boy at the melt downs. Calling Chronicles a bait and switch scam because A FEW weapons dont look like your favourites IRL is completely childish behavior. But the all the crap aside, I'm extremely happy a dev stepped in to officially clarify this. I had sincere concerns that a particularly loud minority had begun to effect development, which has happened to other titles in the past. Keep Caspian's dream alive!
But now that ive added my input on the current social dynamic... I'd really like to ask the devs to stop tempting me with Kypiq. As a Janoa it goes against my core. But maybe... One day... One life...
Posted By WarlanderLichbane at 02:04 AM - Sat Jul 14 2018
Do whatever you want its your game. By all means reinvent the wheel into GoT Conan Kypiq boomerang, scythe, kite, exploding, buckler, survival shovels!
Edit: I think I am going to take a break and come check this game out in a year or so when alpha actually hits to make any judgment when there is something to play.
Until these concepts started coming out SBS has been showing non stop Medieval imagery showing Neran architecture, Nerans in the silver run mine demo, Jousting in full medieval armor, Nerans dueling with rapiers, horses, and Medieval government structures. Pretty much everything has been driven by this Medieval Simulator as it has been called. Its what made me pay attention to this game and its what made me pledge.
But slowly but surely after you baited me in you are now switching it up by introducing elements and themes that are high fantasy to me. When you say thing game of thrones they didn't start out with Kypiq boomerang, scythe, kite, exploding, buckler, and survival shields vs Janoa double bladed pole staff bucklers, and maul, greataxe, warhammer, spear, survival tools. They kept it simple and believable and built upon it gradually. Not starting with mid-high fantasy themes that can only go into high-extreme fantasy as tech comes into play.
I think those comments single handedly incompacitated my hype for this game. This just means you only add these themes in to bait people with the familiar recognizable aspects of fantasy and then pull the fantasy card at every turn when it fits what you want to do or if we don't like the concepts you have a catch 22 in say its not earth but we plan to have a whole hosts of experts in all the professions on earth matters, earth based systems, pretty much everything on earth.
medieval bait and high fantasy posing as low fantasy switch if you ask me.
Here's a newsflash: it's not all about you...
Like I said its my opinion and its there game to do as they see fit. I don't have to like it. In fact I don't like it at all along with the rest of the all in wonder superfunctional items being propsed. But thats just me.
If you have items or assets you no longer have use for feel free to send them my way.
At the most basic tech level a tinkered shield the blocks and activates would have sufficed. But then its got a spring loaded dagger which would have been a nice upgrade. But then its got a projectile on it too. Again would have been a nice upgrade through research to add the extra elements but is most likely a common shield that is also a piece of armor.
The only way to advance this thing from here is giving it other rediculous properties like spraying fire, turn it into a gernade launcher, or some kind of repeating crossbow. All of which including the two additions to the shield seem too high tech to start the game with.
Especially when we havent seen the hyperfunctional weapons they can team it up with. I can totally see an extendo pike that is a 3 piece staff with a whip on the end. Why? Fantasy...
If you have items or assets you no longer have use for feel free to send them my way.
I like it. Already each tribe appears to have their own distinct flavor. I imagine if this is made with ironwood it would be a formidable defensive tool.
