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New Profession: Engineer

edited February 2017 in New Ideas
Please keep in mind that Engineer is the current working name for this class. All of the skillset names and mechanics are a work in progress and may completely change tomorrow. I am posting this basic idea to get some feedback, and because I still have not finished my Obelisk/Shardtree design doc, which is what I really want to get cooking on.

I'm avoiding posting the abilities right now, as they are still a bigger work in progress.

Engineer (Working Name)

Summary

The engineer is a profession based on basic science and has nothing to do with magick. The practitioner may not ignore the magickal skills in the world of Imperian, but prefers the more reliable answers found for life's problems with the application of science.

The skills of the engineer revolve around guns, chemicals, gyrocopters, clockworks, and similar technologies. This is a damage based class and will have limited line-of-site abilities.

Combat Summary

Resource Mechanic:
When targeting and attacking a single player, the character will build up Focus. This resource can be used in several different skills and can increase the chance for a "crit" of burst damage.

Momentum Mechanics:
Focus serves as the primary momentum mechanic, builds up over time as the character hits a single target. The more a character focusses on a single enemy, the more his or her focus will increase. The character will slowly do more damage and recover balance faster.

There is a secondary mechanic as well: Chemicals. These ‘chemical’ effects are added to shot ammo with abilities in the Invention skillset. Curing these new effects requires a single new curative created by engineers that shares balance with toadstool. The more stacks a character is afflicted with, the faster the cure will works. This gives an afflicted character the choice between curing immediately (and having a long cure balance) or suffering through the lower stacks, using toadstool, then fast-curing the higher stack numbers.

Skill Sets

Note: Skill set names are a work in progress as well.

Ballistics
The Engineer’s primary weapon is the flintlock. One also uses the blunderbuss and an assortment of explosives as secondary weapons. This skillset holds all of the abilities required for using the Engineer's main and secondary weapon attacks to their maximum ability.

Focus
The Engineer is very intelligent. As they engage with another in combat, they will focus on the enemy, learning their weak points and how to better attack. Using focus, an Engineer will be able to do a variety of targeted shots, attacks, or defences. It also has skills related to the use of they gyrocopter and other clockwork contraptions.

Inventing
Inventing is used by the Engineer to construct their various ammo types, mines, traps, bombs, gyrocopter, and clockwork contraptions.

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Comments

  • This is pretty dope. I like it.
    (Ring): Lartus says, "I heard Theophilus once threw a grenade and killed ten people."
    (Ring): Lartus says, "Then it exploded."

    (Ring): Zsetsu says, "Everyone's playing checkers, but Theophilus is playing chess."
  • Please tell me it's a dex class.
  • I would imagine most shooting skills will rely on dexterity.

  • Looks pretty cool and should open up to RP opportunities for those who play it.
    You say, "Oh crap."
    You say, "My bottle is empty."
    Jeremy raises an eyebrow questioningly.
    Jeremy slaps you on the cheek.
  • Sniper head shots. :V
  • IniarIniar Australia
    I feel like Jeremy plays Guild Wars 2. :3
    wit beyond measure is a Sidhe's greatest treasure
  • Jeremy said:
    Curing these new effects requires a single new curative created by engineers
    Pretty neat, aside from this part. Don't think a curative that's used for curing their afflictions, should be limited to being made by them.

    Depending on what the affs do as well, I think having them cured on the same balance as toadstool is going to make them extraordinarily unfun to fight against in groups.
    image
  • Aysari said:

    Depending on what the affs do as well, I think having them cured on the same balance as toadstool is going to make them extraordinarily unfun to fight against in groups.

    This. I have some major problems with some of the balance implications of some of these ideas, however I think it's early enough in the process that we can handle that and get them changed as we test it more, and it becomes more fleshed out.
  • The chem thing is basically an evolution of wisp poison. A bit of -hp/-mp versus whatever the effect is when you make the choice, and it has the swing mechanic on the stack. As far as 'unfun in groups' goes, that doesn't sound any worse than 5 people rocking high alpha strikes or 4 monk squads or enlighten production mills. If you have multiple engis stacking it, then it sounds like it'll lose effectiveness. TL;DR it's balanceable from what I see

    As far as only them making the cure goes, it's either not going to matter when all 3 sides have engis willing to sell or be an unfortunate hellscape when the 1-2 engis don't make it for anyone but friends for the first few days.
  • are we calling them engi's now? ffs that took like 3 hours to become terrible. 


    ... 30874 in Caanae, already has steampunk glasses in stock guys.
     You say, "This is much harder than just being a normal person."
  • this does look pretty cool with it being a more science based class.

  • I like thinking about Imperian going through a revolution thematically.
    (Ring): Lartus says, "I heard Theophilus once threw a grenade and killed ten people."
    (Ring): Lartus says, "Then it exploded."

    (Ring): Zsetsu says, "Everyone's playing checkers, but Theophilus is playing chess."
  • *flintlocks*
    *blunderbusses*
    *BOMBS*

    HEYOOO IMPERIAN
    currently tentatively active
    (may vanish for periods of time)
  • I think the toadstool thing will be fine honestly. If I'm understanding correctly you still have the choice to eat toadstool to heal health/mana, it'll just mean you don't cure the stacks of the new special affliction or whatnot. That's a pretty cool decision to force, and we don't know the base balance times of curing a stack of the aff etc yet, so I think its way too early to panic about any implications. This'll be way inferior to nauthiz/wisp poison/prophecy, since they outright block the toadstool.
  • What if instead of using the word focus we use Insight:

    in·sight
    ˈinˌsīt/
    noun
    noun: insight
    1. the capacity to gain an accurate and deep intuitive understanding of a person or thing.
  • I saw some concern about the availability of the cure as well. This will be a neutral profession, so I do not think it will be a problem.

  • edited March 2017
  • DruuDruu The Garden
    I still think they should be called Boomsmith. Boom!
    "One batch, two batch. Penny and dime."
  • Horrible Skill Ideas pt 1

    Ballistics 

    Return fire - Defense that has a chance of triggering a basic blunderbuss shot when hit with a line attack.

    Take cover - Defense that reduces damage from ranged attacks (I would say chance to dodge a la arrowcatch, but that's too crappy of a mechanic, even for this horrible list).

    Mortar - LOAD MORTAR WITH (bomb), FIRE MORTAR AT (target, outdoors + in area). Delayed impact a la meteor, detonates on landing.

    Boomenlugger - LoS bomb launcher, instant detonation, limit 1/engineer with long reload time.

    Morgan Freeman's Soothing Voice - Optional direction at end of LoS attacks to bend the bullet around corners. Example input: quickdraw blunderbuss|quickload blunderbuss with caster shell #4|headshot bob ne nw
     

    Smoke Canister - Limit vision in room and adjacents heavily for a short time


    Focus
    Dance all day - Substantially boost resistance versus target, scaling to focus when used and expending it.

    Rat-a-tat-tat - Channeled series of fast shots that hits all enemies in the room. Each tick drains focus.

    Valkyrie - In-area track to target, equilibrium cost and delay based on focus (down to instant on both at max focus).

    Doubletap - Fires two flintlock shots. If either shot kills the target, they are unable to be revived. Damage should scale between focus and missing health, and balance cost should scale heavily with focus.

    Inventing

    Bettercorder - Basically the same thing as the engineering recorder, except capable of recording action and with a larger capacity.

    Continuum Transfunctioner - An engineer can make a continuum transfunctioner, a two-item device consisting of a beacon and the transfunctioner. Both pieces of the transfunctioner are small cubes with multi-colored panels that flash intermittently. The engineer can activate the transfunctioner to instantly move to the beacon, wherever it is, so long as it's not in a confined location like someone's hands or a container (not pretty). The transfunctioner would also be able to summon the beacon if necessary. 5m cooldown.

    Clockwork Upgrades - Tired of being a squishy fleshy, an engineer can swap out various portions of their body for improved functionality. Too much ruins their connection to the Lifestream, so they can only choose 2 options (3 with arti!).
    Eye - +vision
    Hands- +dex 
    Leg - +acrobat
    Olfactories - +chem strength
    Chest - + damage resist, +con
    Face - +exp,+gold
    Brain stem - +Focus gain

    Golem - A big, durable golem! It takes some winding, but it serves as a punching bag that diligently reports status updates to the activator.






  • Headshot: after seven successful attacks land, the 8th one will crit.
  • Lartus said:
    Headshot: after seven successful attacks land, the 8th one will crit.
    then you will have people running around screaming BOOM HEADSHOT everytime they land a crit.


  • Aodan said:
    Lartus said:
    Headshot: after seven successful attacks land, the 8th one will crit.
    then you will have people running around screaming BOOM HEADSHOT everytime they land a crit.

    I don't see the problem here. :)

  • Want to see a hat trick?

    Inventing - Yeti snap trap - Stops movement for a short time when triggered, no other hindrance though.





    Inventing - Clockwork familiar - Utility pet with attitude




  • Aodan said:
    Lartus said:
    Headshot: after seven successful attacks land, the 8th one will crit.
    then you will have people running around screaming BOOM HEADSHOT everytime they land a crit.


    Sani (was that his name? The fat monk?) used to do this...and this was when Aspect wasn't common and he was up there, so it was...frequent...
  • Redecorate - Fire a bomb upwards, destroying canopy effects and temporarily allowing flight in normally indoor rooms.
  • So what happens if you fire a bomb in a cave? Does it turn into a cave-in and kill everyone in the room?
  • edited May 2017
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