UPDATED! 23rd Jan - Call of Cthulhu MMORPG: A Design Proposal

[Keyser_Soze]

This is some absolutely incredible stuff indeed! I'd definitely play this game if it was made.

Thanks =)

I agree with the point that multiple success requirements wouldn't be a good thing.

Not to sure about it myself, see above posts for a further breakdown.

I'd also like to know about the group splitting up to tackle separate leads. It would obviously have benefits in terms of ability to investigate more effectively, but it should come at a cost.Perhaps insanity takes more of a beating if you're in a smaller group/on your own.

Well cost is already pretty high - Safety in numbers and what not. I mean CoC mythos mobs are pretty deadly to begin with even with a full team, imagine how hard it would be to deal with if you have only one or two people - and not all are combat focused.

I think an icon would detract from it, make it a hidden effect.

Sorry which Icon for what component?

As you discussed, communication would be limited/zero between distant people. Maybe allow walkie-talkies to be equipped like torches? It'd allow better coordination over distance but come at a cost. People would need to set up a system to check in after certain intervals or something.

Well since its the 1920s I dont think they had walkie talkies, besides I think this would be somewhat irrelevant since most people will have meta-game means - Voip or whatnot to communicate. Besides the only thing WORSE than not being able to listen to what your buddies are doing is listening to them while they are panicing and screaming for mercy.

Could you also be more specific about the benefits of leveling up your agency? Access to a better caliber of investigators is all well and good. But what else would you gain?

Well its still pretty rough, but the idea is that as your agency's rating advances you get access to what I call legacies - special bequeaths (providing they meet specific pre-requisites) that provide a boost to all your investigators. For example,lets say you tend to be more of Research oriented Agency, discovering the latent powers of artifacts you have come across or even discover new spells. You then can select as a legacy A Research Lab or Arcanic Library which would provide all your agents bonuses to either their sanity score, Mythos lore, or Research skills.
Legacies would not be easy to come by, as they will demand certain pre-requisites which in turn makes your agency specialize (up to a point) and therefore differentiate itself from other player agencies.

 

[Clik]

As you discussed, communication would be limited/zero between distant people. Maybe allow walkie-talkies to be equipped like torches? It'd allow better coordination over distance but come at a cost. People would need to set up a system to check in after certain intervals or something.

Well since its the 1920s I dont think they had walkie talkies, besides I think this would be somewhat irrelevant since most people will have meta-game means - Voip or whatnot to communicate. Besides the only thing WORSE than not being able to listen to what your buddies are doing is listening to them while they are panicing and screaming for mercy.

Checked, first Walkie Talkie was 1940

Looking into the possibility of Pagers.

 

[Clik]

Looking into the possibility of Pagers.

Nope

 

[Clik]

How does this look as a kind of "Agency Info" Page, perhaps what's viewed when a player looks in to another agency.

 

[Keyser_Soze]

How does this look as a kind of "Agency Info" Page, perhaps what's viewed when a player looks in to another agency.

Here is how I see it:

Agencies will have thier own "Character Sheet" with 5 stats:


AttributeSkills AffectedDescription
ForensicsMedical / Biology / AnthropologyThe ability to conduct research and comprehened biological phenomena
ProceduralSpot/ Search/ Listen / Library ScienceTraining in Policing skills that involve investigation
Lore Mythos Lore/ History/ PsychoanalysisAdvanced Knowledge of Paranormal Phenomena and Mental Treatment
Physical TrainingSneak / Conditioning/ GunneryTraining Regime for increasing Agent's physical conditioning
Hardware Resources Demolitions/ Chemistry/ EngineeringAdvanced Skills and access to Engineering technology

Wherenever an Agency levels up, it gains one point to expend on any of the above stats. Once they have reached a particular set of pre-requisites - For example points in Lore and Procedural will give access to the "Arcanic Library" Legacy, as well as having atleast one or more agents who meet the skill requirements.

 

[Clik]

Agencies will have thier own "Character Sheet" with 5 stats:

So something more like this then?

 

[Keyser_Soze]

Agencies will have thier own "Character Sheet" with 5 stats:

So something more like this then?

Yeah thats about right, will flesh it out once I have the chance.

 

[Clik]

awesome

 

[Keyser_Soze]

awesome

Have not had much time to complete the writeup, so here is an expansion on the UI / Gameplay layout

Number Name Description
1Side BarCharacter Sheet, Inventory, Journal, Lore, Agency
2Health BarHealth, Fatigue, Sanity
3Investigator LogAll Skill Rolls and Results are displayed here
4Context MenuLeft Click and Hold Context Menu
5Abilities Hot BarSpecial Abilities, Skills Hot Keys
6Chat LogCommunications


1. Side Bar can be hidden to display only when the mouse touches the side, so as to free up on screen real-estate
2. Health Bar - Mostly self explanatory
3. All rolls and "Behind-the-screen" successful rolls are displayed here, along with the relevant icons: So a successful spot roll will show up with the "Eye" Icon, which can be clicked to provide the context menu, so no pixel hunting.
4. Context Menu: Almost everything will be interacted with, especially furniture, so in this case left clicking on the Closet gives the options - in order from top to bottom - Push, Hide Within, Open / Close and Examine.
5. Standard Hot keyable 1 to 0 hot bar, fully customizable.
6. Chat Log - Communications between players, and maybe a separate tabbed window for NPC dialog.

 

[Clik]

>
Skills

Are (typically) Charisma based skills likely to feature? Diplomacy, Bluff, Perform (Interpretive Dance) etc. are all the skills I go for in RPGs and I'd love to see them included in this.

 

[KurtzGallahad]

I FUCKING HATE GETTING PHOBIC
the most annoying CoC game mechanic

 

[Clik]

I FUCKING HATE GETTING PHOBIC
the most annoying CoC game mechanic

You're clearly not a "roleplaying" roleplayer.
Phobias are so much fun to play with. Any psychological disorder is! It's both hilarious and terrifying.

 

[MrSnugglesworth]

Where is Alex?


He froze up, and you kind of left him. Did he stay in the crypt?

 

[KurtzGallahad]

I FUCKING HATE GETTING PHOBIC
the most annoying CoC game mechanic

You're clearly not a "roleplaying" roleplayer.
Phobias are so much fun to play with. Any psychological disorder is! It's both hilarious and terrifying.

I know but I always get tree-phobia, i don't know why but my characters never fail a san check till the mitt shrub-niggurath(Get it?) than the go crazy like a shot

 

[Clik]

I FUCKING HATE GETTING PHOBIC
the most annoying CoC game mechanic

You're clearly not a "roleplaying" roleplayer.
Phobias are so much fun to play with. Any psychological disorder is! It's both hilarious and terrifying.

I know but I always get tree-phobia, i don't know why but my characters never fail a san check till the mitt shrub-niggurath(Get it?) than the go crazy like a shot

Ah I know the feeling child, It is always hilarious.

A friend of mine tends to play "quirky" characters, and therefore is the first to go incurably insane in every scenario. Very, very hilarious to watch

 

[Keyser_Soze]

Where is Alex?


He froze up, and you kind of left him. Did he stay in the crypt?

Err. Sorry, well basically it was a temporary Insanity thing, will expand on it in the third part of the mock up which should be posted in the next 12 hours or so if I can get my work done .

 

[Keyser_Soze]

>
Skills

Are (typically) Charisma based skills likely to feature? Diplomacy, Bluff, Perform (Interpretive Dance) etc. are all the skills I go for in RPGs and I'd love to see them included in this.

Good point, will include some more of the Non-Combat skills in the next part of the Mockup, I dont know about such skills as Interperative dance - I mean my own players use to Guffaw at the thought of someone actually having a use for that skill, but I think a reasonably large section of Aesthetic and Social skills will be included.

See the next part in the next 12 hrs or so.

 

[Keyser_Soze]

I FUCKING HATE GETTING PHOBIC
the most annoying CoC game mechanic

You're clearly not a "roleplaying" roleplayer.
Phobias are so much fun to play with. Any psychological disorder is! It's both hilarious and terrifying.

I know but I always get tree-phobia, i don't know why but my characters never fail a san check till the mitt shrub-niggurath(Get it?) than the go crazy like a shot

Ah I know the feeling child, It is always hilarious.

A friend of mine tends to play "quirky" characters, and therefore is the first to go incurably insane in every scenario. Very, very hilarious to watch

This one issue though, by definition some of the more weird and possibly game breaking phobias - Agoraphobia for example -would be hard to implement.

Suggestions?

 

[Clik]

Good point, will include some more of the Non-Combat skills in the next part of the Mockup

Good

I dont know about such skills as Interperative dance

That was a satirization of Charismatic Skills.

 

[Clik]

This one issue though, by definition some of the more weird and possibly game breaking phobias - Agoraphobia for example -would be hard to implement.
Suggestions?

Hmm, some good ones to include are
Arachno- (spiders)
Necro- (the dead)
Acro- (heights)
Aichmo- (sharp objects)
Algo- (pain)
Agyro- (crossing roads)
Andro- (men)
later, when i don't want to read, i'll post more