Chaosforge Forum

DoomRL => Requests For Features => Topic started by: Thomas on February 16, 2011, 01:08

Title: Berserk/Invulnerability tweaks
Post by: Thomas on February 16, 2011, 01:08
Rarity
On higher difficulty levels, berserks and invulns are huge gamechangers. Instead of giving them out randomly, I suggest always spawning at least 1 on every level. This makes the hugely important full heal berserk on level 2 a guarantee instead of something you really really hope will spawn on UV or N!, and makes later levels a bit less luck-based.

Spawn rate is something like:
Levels 2-5: Always has exactly 1 zerk.
Levels 6-10: Always has 1 zerk, may also have 1 invuln.
Levels 11-15: Always has 1 zerk or 1 invuln, usually has both. Rarely has 2 zerks. Very rarely has 2 invulns.
Levels 17+: Always has 1 zerk or 1 invuln, usually has both. May have 2 or more of either.

Effects
Melee in DoomRL is a bit "get berserk, slaughter everything, lose berserk, die immediately"
Berserk packs should give a tad less damage resistance, but you keep the double melee damage and gain +1 armour until the next time you walk down stairs.
If you grab a berserk pack and walk down stairs before the berserking effect ends, you do not get the +1 armour and you lose the melee damage bonus. The berserk pack must have been picked up on the level you wish to get the long term effects on.
If you berserk through the trait rather than a pack, these long term effects do not activate.

There should be a blue "berserk" status effect at the bottom of the screen when you have the double damage and +1 armour so it's a bit more obvious that you're still getting some sort of bonus from the pack.
Title: Re: Berserk/Invulnerability tweaks
Post by: MaiZure on February 16, 2011, 02:30
This sounds like RNG heresy!

However a difficulty level chance multipler may be acceptable using HNTR as the base.

I'm against the 'zerk modification on level change. I understand the idea of not having the guaranteed full health and boost on the start of the level but the price was already paid...ie you cleared the current level w/o using the powerup.
Title: Re: Berserk/Invulnerability tweaks
Post by: AStranger on February 16, 2011, 04:23
.. instead of something you really really hope will spawn on UV or N!, and makes later levels a bit less luck-based ...
I think this would make some diamond badges a bit less aggravating more reasonable (demonic diamond...). Although I don't know how this would affect Arena diamond. I've completed N! arena in AoB three times now and all three times I was able to grab two berserk packs prior to entering. I've never been able to complete it off of just one. I've thought for a while now that there should be more powerups during the early levels of N!, too often it feels like I'm re-rolling characters to find a berserk pack.
Title: Re: Berserk/Invulnerability tweaks
Post by: Deathwind on February 16, 2011, 04:37
These are game changers because they are so strong, it would make things far too easy to always get them, maybe make them a bit more common but not guaranteed. The reason many of us play this game is BECAUSE it's hard, it's the constant deaths that make the wins worth fighting for. I wouldn't complain about a guaranteed large health globe only on level 2 for UV/N!, but on every floor nerfs the game.
Title: Re: Berserk/Invulnerability tweaks
Post by: Fanta Hege on February 17, 2011, 20:07
I hate this idea completely.

They should NOT be guarenteed. The mercy of the RNG is a very big fun factor in this game.

Nobody should ever rely on thise powerups to begin with when playing UV and N!. This suggestion is seriously implying this. and I don't like it.

The berserk effect fall off? This would be pretty nasty nerf for AoB. Specialy for the chained court in its current form. And Mai made a perfectly good point. You took the price after clearing, not during clearing what it was ment for. Should kind of deserved, win-win situation.

Title: Re: Berserk/Invulnerability tweaks
Post by: Game Hunter on February 17, 2011, 20:28
I think the idea of the berserk change is that it gets an aftereffect. Let's start by organizing berserk's effects into two categories: normal and reduced.
- Normal: 1/4 damage taken, double melee damage dealt, action time is halved
- Reduced: -1 damage taken, double melee damage dealt, normal action time

So, let's say you find a Berserk Pack.
- Pick that bad boy up, normal berserk activates.
- Do your stuff, normal berserk eventually wears off
- Reduced berserk activates, unless
--- you didn't pick up a Berserk Pack on this floor
--- you activated normal berserk via trait (Berserker)
- After you leave the floor, reduced berserk wears off

It's reminiscent of the original game (in which your fists still dealt sweet damage even after the "red" wore off), I could see it working.

As for BP/IG guarantees, I'd say it throws off the randomness of the game too much. Already it's too easy to "abuse" the special levels for quick experience and awesome gear. (I wouldn't say no to the game guaranteeing at least one globe-type thing per level (even just a small health), but that happens so rarely that I dunno if it's worth the chance.)
Title: Re: Berserk/Invulnerability tweaks
Post by: Malek Deneith on February 18, 2011, 11:58
As some other stated I'm against guaranteed IG/BG. Doesn't feel right. Don't really see the need for Zerk changes - it feels fine the way it is now to me. Not to mention that messing with it would throw AoB off-balance... again.