If You Had Complete Creative Control Over the Development of an FE Game, What Would You Do?

[Flere210]

I am not sure if this count as necroposting, but this thread is too good to pass on.

 

STORY

For starter, i will have an Avatar, and they would be the MC, but i will also take after Der Langrisser and make a route system: there will be 4 factions that you could join, and every one of them as a lord that share the spotlight whit the avatar. And at creation you would pick a "background" and/or "personality" that affect dialogues and wich routes are aviable in that playtrough. This should greatly enhance replayability.

As for the factions, i always found fashinating the  that the Roman Empire and the chinese Han Dynasty flourished in the same time and did not interact much because only the Parthian Kingdom did everything it could to prevent that, so i will set the game in a pre-islam midle eastern inspired kingdom, where a romanesque and china inspired empire wage a cold war while looking for the fire emblem macguffin. As both empires had to fight nomadic tribes that can be vaguely decribed as proto-mongols(i know that this historical claim is controversial.) i will round up the factions whit a hun-mongol inspired kingdom that raid everyone else.  After a few chapter of common route you will get to pick a side depending on wich flags you managed to rise. And even then, you could pick sides whitinnthe routes. For example, if you join the romans you could lead a coup if you pick ambitious and ruthless choices in dialogues.

Also, i will add some sort of dragon god as the final boss in some routes, but considering were i set the game, i could instead use an Abdul Alhazred expy as the Gharnef and have an eldricht abomination as the final boss.

I have not decides much on the characters, just a bit on the lord and other notable figures, but i have a clear idea on what i want to do whit the cast in general: for starters, the game will have tellius-style base conversation, fateswekening unlimited supports, and suikoden detective to discover more stuff about the characters. As i mentioned suikoden, i will add noncombatant characters that you can recruit and add base functions(kinda like how in Suikoden certain stars of destiny are cooks, shopkeepers, farmers or like the merchants in Tellius games). The avatar would have a limited support pool based on the background, but could overall support everyone and there will be s-ranks, but they will unlock paired endings, not children.

 

GAMEPLAY

I will most likely make the game shorter, because i expect people to play it multiple times and because having four 30 chapters routes means 120 chapters that would require 80+ maps even if i reuse some. So 20-22 chapters on average, more if i can ger away whit having the same map on multiple routes several times. Otherwise, i need to go the fates route and have some routes behind a paywall, wich i would rather not. I will however, have a rich post game section, whit stuff like obscenely powerful superbosses that require maxed out characters. The overall gameplay will take mostly from Thracia and Conquest. 

I will bring back my castle and up it to eleven. I would have several recruitable NPCs that add functions: trainers that teach skills or rise growth rates, blacksmith and alchemists that craft stuff, farmers and miners that produce resources for the crafting every chapter and so on. I would make so that a combat unit could work whit the npc at the cost of not being employable for a battle(and maybe this can build supports whit the npc if i feel like it, they may give stats boosts or items instead of the regular support bonus) and i will bring back the stamina meter, BUT, you could still employ the unit in base activities even if they are exausted. Used too much the Jeigan and he is out of steam? No problem, send him to the speed trainer so he will not fall off that bad later.

For the weapons i would make an hybrid system of Jugdral and Fates. Weapon  would have uses and would be repairable in the base, but they will also have different strenght ans weaknesses that prevent certain weapons to be strictly betrer. But i'd also rework forging so that forged iron is not op. Instead of improving weapon, you would subtract from a stat to add to another. If your fighter miss too much but has a lot of strenght and con, you could forge an ax whit 20+ accuracy, but heavier and weaker, or you could do the opposite to give your sworsmaster more damage. I would change swords into bladed weapons, spears into polearms and axes would include blunt weapons, and every faction would get different weapons. The China-like faction would get crossbows, the Rome-like faction more throwing spears and so on. And i'd bring back the gba magic triangle. I would also add more accessories like shield or rings, but i'd make so that you can only equip one.

As for the balance, i have 2 objectives: to avert bases>growths and to give every class a niche while bringing down horses and fliers a litle.

Foe the former, i would alter the growth system to make it more like shining force: in those games, you are expected to have x stats at y level and the game try to not diverge much from them. For example, if you are intended to have 15 strenght at level 10, the game arrange the strengt growth in such a way you would never have less than 12 or more than 18, and usually 12 is good enought to not be useless. I'd also balance the enemy scaling so that 0% growth runs would require either extreme turtling, rng rigging or cheese. The game should also test your ability to improve characters correctly imo. And i'd make the Jeigan either a bishop, a sage, or a war priest, and makes him in such a way that he became useless as a combat unit by midgame, but retain great utility as a staffbot whit high ranks.

I would use map design to avoid the pitfall of horse emblem instead of lovering their stats. Paladins would have high movements but it would be reduced in most terrains, like the tire b in advance wars. The def bonuses on terrain would be frequent and good, the flying movement type would have a drawback, but the avoid bonuses wouls be rare because they make the game an rng fest. 

I would use a skill system that includes elements from Tellius, fateswekening and Echoes. People will have 3 kind of skill: personal skills, class skills, and extra skills. 

Personal would be like fates: things that characterize the user and give them an edge in specific situations.

Every class would get a single skill, that is hardlocked in the class and if you reclass you replace the skill. For example,knights and generals would get wary fighter, fighters ans warriors would get an activable stance that works like the Jugdral charge skill(that skill that make double both you and the enemy, not sure how it is called now),cavaliers and paladin would get a charging attack similar to the cavaliers in HOMM games, snipers a range increase and so on. 

Extra skills would be learned at the base trought scrolls and trainers, and they basically are the Tellius-like skill: vantage, adept, wrath and so on. 

On top of it there would be combat arts, that are learned based on weapon ranks but sometimes require specific weapons, such as a javelin or a magic sword. They would not cost hp, but a new bar that charge like a limit break gauge (the more skill you have, the faster it rise).

I would have different classes based on faction, but i would avoid and hoshido situation were everyone is high speed low defense. Insteas i would have "regional variants" that have similar stats and the same class skill, but different caps, weapons and sometimes promotions. Kinda like Der Langrisser again, were the light faction ger Dragoons and the imperial Royal Lancer, but those are very similar. I would also add back the balistician classes, as i loved them in fe11. But i would rebrand them as combat engineers that usually are weak bow and axe users, but have some magic item like a portable hole that allow them to acces the convoy and build a small siege machine in a turn or they could open doors and chest whit a portable ram or they could make small bridges(like 1 tile over a small river). 

There will be reclassing, but every unit will get a difderent class pool that is consistent whit their character. No more Beruka situations, were she is clearly stated to be an assasin but she can't be reclassed into one. Also, not every unit would get the same number of alternative classes, but usually those whit few classes would be the best in that role. Would you rise a specilized unit that can only do one thing or a more flexible one that can be class swapped based on what do you need?

The game won't , but i would bring back bonus exp, that can be built both from fighting or from in-base activities.

 

My game would have casual, classic and ironman modes, an will have an advance wars-like ranking system at the end of every battle, that rates you based on how fast you cleared the map, how many red units you killed and how many side objectives you complete. Getting an S rank on every map in Lunatic ironman should be one hell of challange. Doing so in every route, an epic endeavur.

 

It took me 2 hours to write this, so i am sorry if some grammar errors slipped in.

 

 

 

[Jotari]

41 minutes ago, Flere210 said:

I am not sure if this count as necroposting, but this thread is too good to pass on.

 

STORY

For starter, i will have an Avatar, and they would be the MC, but i will also take after Der Langrisser and make a route system: there will be 4 factions that you could join, and every one of them as a lord that share the spotlight whit the avatar. And at creation you would pick a "background" and/or "personality" that affect dialogues and wich routes are aviable in that playtrough. This should greatly enhance replayability.

As for the factions, i always found fashinating the  that the Roman Empire and the chinese Han Dynasty flourished in the same time and did not interact much because only the Parthian Kingdom did everything it could to prevent that, so i will set the game in a pre-islam midle eastern inspired kingdom, where a romanesque and china inspired empire wage a cold war while looking for the fire emblem macguffin. As both empires had to fight nomadic tribes that can be vaguely decribed as proto-mongols(i know that this historical claim is controversial.) i will round up the factions whit a hun-mongol inspired kingdom that raid everyone else.  After a few chapter of common route you will get to pick a side depending on wich flags you managed to rise. And even then, you could pick sides whitinnthe routes. For example, if you join the romans you could lead a coup if you pick ambitious and ruthless choices in dialogues.

Also, i will add some sort of dragon god as the final boss in some routes, but considering were i set the game, i could instead use an Abdul Alhazred expy as the Gharnef and have an eldricht abomination as the final boss.

I have not decides much on the characters, just a bit on the lord and other notable figures, but i have a clear idea on what i want to do whit the cast in general: for starters, the game will have tellius-style base conversation, fateswekening unlimited supports, and suikoden detective to discover more stuff about the characters. As i mentioned suikoden, i will add noncombatant characters that you can recruit and add base functions(kinda like how in Suikoden certain stars of destiny are cooks, shopkeepers, farmers or like the merchants in Tellius games). The avatar would have a limited support pool based on the background, but could overall support everyone and there will be s-ranks, but they will unlock paired endings, not children.

 

GAMEPLAY

I will most likely make the game shorter, because i expect people to play it multiple times and because having four 30 chapters routes means 120 chapters that would require 80+ maps even if i reuse some. So 20-22 chapters on average, more if i can ger away whit having the same map on multiple routes several times. Otherwise, i need to go the fates route and have some routes behind a paywall, wich i would rather not. I will however, have a rich post game section, whit stuff like obscenely powerful superbosses that require maxed out characters. The overall gameplay will take mostly from Thracia and Conquest. 

I will bring back my castle and up it to eleven. I would have several recruitable NPCs that add functions: trainers that teach skills or rise growth rates, blacksmith and alchemists that craft stuff, farmers and miners that produce resources for the crafting every chapter and so on. I would make so that a combat unit could work whit the npc at the cost of not being employable for a battle(and maybe this can build supports whit the npc if i feel like it, they may give stats boosts or items instead of the regular support bonus) and i will bring back the stamina meter, BUT, you could still employ the unit in base activities even if they are exausted. Used too much the Jeigan and he is out of steam? No problem, send him to the speed trainer so he will not fall off that bad later.

For the weapons i would make an hybrid system of Jugdral and Fates. Weapon  would have uses and would be repairable in the base, but they will also have different strenght ans weaknesses that prevent certain weapons to be strictly betrer. But i'd also rework forging so that forged iron is not op. Instead of improving weapon, you would subtract from a stat to add to another. If your fighter miss too much but has a lot of strenght and con, you could forge an ax whit 20+ accuracy, but heavier and weaker, or you could do the opposite to give your sworsmaster more damage. I would change swords into bladed weapons, spears into polearms and axes would include blunt weapons, and every faction would get different weapons. The China-like faction would get crossbows, the Rome-like faction more throwing spears and so on. And i'd bring back the gba magic triangle. I would also add more accessories like shield or rings, but i'd make so that you can only equip one.

As for the balance, i have 2 objectives: to avert bases>growths and to give every class a niche while bringing down horses and fliers a litle.

Foe the former, i would alter the growth system to make it more like shining force: in those games, you are expected to have x stats at y level and the game try to not diverge much from them. For example, if you are intended to have 15 strenght at level 10, the game arrange the strengt growth in such a way you would never have less than 12 or more than 18, and usually 12 is good enought to not be useless. I'd also balance the enemy scaling so that 0% growth runs would require either extreme turtling, rng rigging or cheese. The game should also test your ability to improve characters correctly imo. And i'd make the Jeigan either a bishop, a sage, or a war priest, and makes him in such a way that he became useless as a combat unit by midgame, but retain great utility as a staffbot whit high ranks.

I would use map design to avoid the pitfall of horse emblem instead of lovering their stats. Paladins would have high movements but it would be reduced in most terrains, like the tire b in advance wars. The def bonuses on terrain would be frequent and good, the flying movement type would have a drawback, but the avoid bonuses wouls be rare because they make the game an rng fest. 

I would use a skill system that includes elements from Tellius, fateswekening and Echoes. People will have 3 kind of skill: personal skills, class skills, and extra skills. 

Personal would be like fates: things that characterize the user and give them an edge in specific situations.

Every class would get a single skill, that is hardlocked in the class and if you reclass you replace the skill. For example,knights and generals would get wary fighter, fighters ans warriors would get an activable stance that works like the Jugdral charge skill(that skill that make double both you and the enemy, not sure how it is called now),cavaliers and paladin would get a charging attack similar to the cavaliers in HOMM games, snipers a range increase and so on. 

Extra skills would be learned at the base trought scrolls and trainers, and they basically are the Tellius-like skill: vantage, adept, wrath and so on. 

On top of it there would be combat arts, that are learned based on weapon ranks but sometimes require specific weapons, such as a javelin or a magic sword. They would not cost hp, but a new bar that charge like a limit break gauge (the more skill you have, the faster it rise).

I would have different classes based on faction, but i would avoid and hoshido situation were everyone is high speed low defense. Insteas i would have "regional variants" that have similar stats and the same class skill, but different caps, weapons and sometimes promotions. Kinda like Der Langrisser again, were the light faction ger Dragoons and the imperial Royal Lancer, but those are very similar. I would also add back the balistician classes, as i loved them in fe11. But i would rebrand them as combat engineers that usually are weak bow and axe users, but have some magic item like a portable hole that allow them to acces the convoy and build a small siege machine in a turn or they could open doors and chest whit a portable ram or they could make small bridges(like 1 tile over a small river). 

There will be reclassing, but every unit will get a difderent class pool that is consistent whit their character. No more Beruka situations, were she is clearly stated to be an assasin but she can't be reclassed into one. Also, not every unit would get the same number of alternative classes, but usually those whit few classes would be the best in that role. Would you rise a specilized unit that can only do one thing or a more flexible one that can be class swapped based on what do you need?

The game won't , but i would bring back bonus exp, that can be built both from fighting or from in-base activities.

 

My game would have casual, classic and ironman modes, an will have an advance wars-like ranking system at the end of every battle, that rates you based on how fast you cleared the map, how many red units you killed and how many side objectives you complete. Getting an S rank on every map in Lunatic ironman should be one hell of challange. Doing so in every route, an epic endeavur.

 

It took me 2 hours to write this, so i am sorry if some grammar errors slipped in.

 

 

 

Last post was January second so you're good.

[FabledKnight]

All I'm about to say is based on playing only Awakening and Conquest. 

 

Story ideas.

I dont mind Dragon Gods being part of the world but not as the main piece, background stuff. Main plot I would like something akin to Dragon Age Origin at the beginning, were you select a starting point for your Avatar which determines his/her class like Noble, or Thief, etc. Then goes into a Game of Thrones political story. Maybe it can span a generation so that the child system becomes more important. Maybe a Final Fantasy 6 twist where the Baddie wins halfway thru and it's the next Generation that has to raise up to vanish the foe.

 

Gameplay

Fates with better graphics.

Would like to see supports get exp for all actions not just attacks.

More varieties in support abilities like if you paired a Sage with a fighter the Sage can cast a debuff or buff before the fighter attacks.

Multigrid heals n attacks along with friendly fire.

Add paralogues that become active at A support and must be completed to gain S. 

Ability to craft unique weapons.

Dialogue options so we can decide what personality our Avatar has. Maybe even a morality alignment. Tie it into recruitment. Lose or gain units based on your Avatars alignment. 

Customizable Avatar child unit.

A full roaming My Castle.

PvP online battles that can have special rules. Like switching on Terrian effects, Squad sizes, etc.

[Von Ithipathachai]

1 hour ago, FabledKnight said:

Dialogue options so we can decide what personality our Avatar has. Maybe even a morality alignment. Tie it into recruitment. Lose or gain units based on your Avatars alignment.

This is something I’d consider too if I ever made a successor to Sanctaea Chronicles.

[Lord Ice]

I'd try to hearken back to the old formula, and have an epic story spread over 70+ chapters. That might seem like mostly filler, but the story I'd tell, which I'm creating into its own game, would use it all. I'm sorry for seeming vague, but I don't want to spoil my project.

I'd either do that, or make an epic that ties Elibe and Magvel together.

[henrymidfields]

Story

• Main Plot
  • See here for my overview.
  • As the story in the above link shows, the whole story is a big "fuck you" against the netouyo-s in Japan. (They are basically the ultraconservative netizens who ironically either is ignorant of, or even outright ignores how, say, former Emperor Akihito is happy to be the figurehead as opposed to an absolute monarch of Prewar Japan, amongst other things.)
• Final boss
  • The link above describes as such, but the final boss is entirely human, without any supernatural powers seen in other ultimate bosses. What is made up of difficulty, is the sheer number of supporters they have, and how well-equipped and well-skilled they are, as well as some markedly improved AI rivalling/exceeding that of Fates Conquest. An additional difficulty is that the political outcome (or the story's ending) changes depending on how many of the supporters the protagonist managed to convince to turn away form their politically toxic goal in the final 2-3 chapters. Slaughter them all, and the anti-protagonist movement will fester, resulting in the protagonist being assasinated, and another civil war ensuing. Convince many, and the political movement against the protagonist will be discredited, the protagonist's rule sees stability and maybe even a future golden age.

Gameplay

• Battle
  • Most of the battle aspects will be based on Fates Conquest, in which sheer stat numbers alone cannot rule the chapter. Enemy placements, improved AI, and experience payout scaling, and the increase in their magnitude on upper difficulties means that low-manning in general is not an option, and your team need to be coordinated properly. (One-man army-ing with what would otherwise be a gamebreaker in other FE entries, is out of the possibility here.) This is not a problem in lower difficulties, where enemies have AIs as dumb as past entries.
  • Customisable leadership stars will be incorporated into the game, which involved several things. The protagonist's intelligence, (which can be trained/raised), her (she is the princess-heir and future Queen) charisma (which can also be trained/raised), her advisors or lack thereof, how far one progresses in the game, all contributes to her leadership stars, which can be distributed to affect various stats for various classes. Her leadership level also can enable her to convince other enemy units to join her side instead of having to field other certain units, and some units can only be recruited through being convinced at her leadership. Again, this is more crucial for higher difficulties, where the enemies also have leadership stars, and required leadership stars for recruitment are higher. This is basically reconstructing Binding Blade's Roy in gameplay terms.
  • Enemy units will all have improved weapons on higher difficulties, and they will equip effective weapons more often. Thus, your cavalry and wyvern knights that were effective steamrollers in other FE entries will not be as viable, forcing you to diversify.
  • To make the Luck stat more useful:
    • All swordmasters and berserkers will have the critical bonus raised again. Definitely +20%, or maybe even back up to +30% from Binding Blade.
    • Characters with higher luck has better chance of recovering random dropped items.
    • Luck stat contributes more to avoid and dodge, also from Binding Blade.
    • Some chapters start with an ambush, where characters with lower Luck stats are forced to start with half, or even a quarter of their maximum HP. The required luck stat for avoiding said adverse outcomes is raised further on higher difficulty modes. The effects of an ambush start can be mitigated in general by the protagonist's intelligence, however - as the protagonist can predict at least the possibility and prepare accordingly.
    • Other chapters can start with the protagonists initiating the ambush. Here, characters with higher luck starts with boosted avoid, accuracy, and critical.
  • To offset increased frustration, however, checkpoints within chapters will be introduced, as well as Mila's turnwheel on lower difficulties.