Strafe of Spirits

[Jeanne d'Ys 166]

So yeah, Maki here!
 
I've been liking Ainu for quite some time (They even became my topic of presentation in the Final Practical Exam for the last semester of high school!), and I'm thinking of making a game (mainly) based on their mythology.
 
This is a small, casual project, and since I'm bad with staying in a project and a great procrastinator, I'm not even sure if this project would actually finish. I still need some feedback and comments though, since my life force is filled by absorbing the mental energy from them those usually help me lift my spirit and learn more.
 
Most of the resources are from the RTP though, so don't expect many fancy custom arts XP
 

Strafe of Spirits

 

Overview:
Strafe of Spirits is an adventure RPG where the player traverse around a world based on the Ainu (and a bit of Japanese) mythology. The player will control a girl archer named Pirka in a quest to find the answer behind a strange happening in her world, while helping people and non-people along the way.

 

Ainu?

The Ainu are an indigenous people mainly found in Northern Japan. It is widely believed that they were more widespread in earlier times, but were pushed back up north when the wave of people from China resides in mainland Japan.

 

It took a very, very long time however, for Ainu to gain acceptance officially as Japan's indigenous. After times of forced-assimilation, the Ainu finally gain official status in 2008.

 

Ainu has quite different... Stuff from mainstream Japan that makes them unique; the culture, language and even portion of their physical appearance can rather easily be recognized.

 

In video games, one example of Ainu culture getting attention is Ookami. There are many references of Ainu culture in that game.

 

As for physical game, the Gusto and Ritual Beast archetype of Yu-Gi-Oh! is based on Ainu. Too bad much of the TCG translation butchered the lore. Oh, well...

 

 

The Story:

This is Moshir, an endless world where Humans and Spirits live together. Even though Human are unable to speak directly with the Spirits, and the Spirits would feel pain when trying to utter a Human language speech, the two coexist in peace and help each others by other interactions, such as rites, prayers, songs and anomalies.
 
One day however, a strange occurrence happened. Suddenly, the Spirits are able to speak Human language casually; and Humans are able to speak directly with the Spirits. Also, some of the Spirits had either vanished or turned against their previous allies. These also apply to Humans; some are vanished without a trace, while others turned sinister for unknown reason.
 
A young girl named Pirka, unexpectedly meets two Spirits named Fuchi and Ush. The two said that Pirka must be hurry to fulfill her destiny and restore the balance between the two races. Despite not being ready for anything, Pirka grabs her trusted hunting bow and sets out in an uncertain journey to find the answer for all the confusions, together with Fuchi and Ush.

 
Gameplay:

It's the usual RPG, but with a small twist; every move except for guarding consumes a resource of some sort. Pirka's bow attacks need arrows, the Spirits' moves needs Energy, and so on.
 
It would be a semi-sandbox. That means plotline still takes a lot in the game, but you can roam the area every now and then. Also, fetchsidequests.
 
You are able to forge things. Mix up Herbs to make the stronger Potions, craft Arrow for your bows, upgrade your weapons... Additionally, Pirka would only has 4 weapons in the game, 2 of each type: Hunting Bow and Enchanted Bow for bows, and Hunting Spear and Enchanted Spear for spears. However, they can be upgraded by forging.
 
The game would have the dreaded/loved multiple-choice system, where your choice in certain conversations affect what happens next in the game.
 
There would be 3 endings: Bitter, Bittersweet and Sweet.

 

 

 

Characters!

Pirka
A young girl "chosen" in a certain prophecy, which is somehow linked to the current state of the world. Her parents are two of the vanished Humans. Her mother is a shaman, and Pirka knows a few tricks from her. She is good with bows and spears, and one of the very few female hunters in her tribe. Can be cold or awkward at times, but is actually pretty sweet and cute.

 

Skills:

Bow Skill: Executes various bow attacks. Requires Bow equipment. Deals Piercing damage. Consumes Arrows, ENE and/or MMT.

Spear Skill: Spear attacks when you ran out of arrows. Requires Spear equipment. Deals Slashing damage. Consumes MMT.

Seals: Pirka's shamanistic skills. Consumes Seal Tags.

 

Trivia:

Her name came from the Ainu word meaning "Good-hearted" and/or "Pretty" (Usually for girls).
 
Fuchi
A Spirit of flames. Has a rather short temper. Despite her arguing with Ush a lot, the two are actually pretty close friends.

 

Trivia:

She is based on Kamuy-Fuchi, an Ainu Kamuy (Spirit) of the hearth. One of her famous tale is defeating Waka-Ush Kamuy.

 

Skills:

Fire Magic: Various Fire-Attribute spells. Consumes ENE and/or VIT.

Ashes to Ashes: Sort of Limit Break. Consumes a special Variable and only usable once per battle.
 
Ush
A Spirit of splashes. Very cheerful and a bit laid-back. Despite her arguing with Fuchi a lot, the two are actually pretty close friends.

 

Skills:

Water Magic: Various Water-Attribute spells. Consumes ENE and/or VIT.

Inner Pulse: Sort of Limit Break. Consumes a special Variable and only usable once per battle.

 

Trivia:

She is based on Waka-Ush Kamuy, an Ainu Kamuy (Spirit) of clear water. One of her famous tale is her fight with Kamuy Fuchi.
 
Okikurumi
A young man said to be a demi-Spirit. Joins Pirka's party after beating her in a duel. Seems to take a liking on Pirka.

 

Skills:

Sword Skill: Various Sword-based attacks. Requires Sword equipment. Consumes ENE, MMT, and/or VIT.

Axe Skill: Various Axe-based attacks. Requires Axe equipment. Consumes ENE, MMT, and/or VIT.

 

Trivia:

He is based on Okikurumi, a legendary character in Ainu mythology. The Ainu equivalent of Japanese Yoshitsune and Greece Hercules.
 
Ermine
A cheerful girl who forced herself into Pirka's party. Not much is known about her...

 

Skills:

Dance: Ermine can dance beautifully it can be deadly sometimes. Consumes ENE, MMT, and/or VIT.

Sing: Ermine can also sing beautifully. Consumes ENE.

 

Trivia:

She is based on the Kamuy Ermine, a Kamuy that resides in the lower part of Kamuy Moshir (World of Spirits) in Ainu mythology. In the stories, she is usually a kindhearted spirit who listens to the prayers of the Ainu (human) and brought them to the higher Kamuy. Also famous for her dances, which entertains the others Kamuy.
 
Wen (NPC)
A Spirit who looks a lot like Pirka. Has a sinister smile stamped on her very often. When she's present, Pirka always got struck by a bad headache.

 

Trivia:

Her name came from the Ainu word of "Wicked" and/or "Evil"

 

Kanda (NPC)
An ancient Spirit who had been sleeping for times untold, said to be an embodiment of ether itself. The constant chaos seems to wake him up now...

 

Trivia:

He is based on Kanda-Koro Kamuy, the spirit that was said to be the creator and embodiment of skies. After the creation myth however, his role in the mythology is noticeably lessened...

 

 
 
So I think that's it for now! I'll add more later, I'm too sleepy now I started to write Harry Potter in flawless Latin instead.
 
Constructive feedback and comments are always welcome~

Edited August 23, 2015 by Maki13

[+ Takeo212 1,079]

I love sandbox-y games. My short attention span makes me wander around aimlessly or mindlessly grind my characters to god levels before progressing anywhere <3

Then I get sad because the games to easy - but thats my own fault xD

 

I like the sound of this so far I would like to see it take off and possibly see some screenies and production later down the line

The spirit/human cross over seems really interesting, and I would like to play a game like this

Especially the idea of battles needing stuff to continue - ie arrows - is a great idea. No infinte bows! (also, I love bows~)

And crafting... I love crafting... like seriously,

 

 

I would be very interested in a game like this Maki~

 

 

Also, to spoiler something you simply:

[ spoiler ]

Information goes here within the tags~

[ /spoiler ]

 

but remove the spaces

[Jeanne d'Ys 166]

I love sandbox-y games. My short attention span makes me wander around aimlessly or mindlessly grind my characters to god levels before progressing anywhere <3

Then I get sad because the games to easy - but thats my own fault xD

 

I like the sound of this so far I would like to see it take off and possibly see some screenies and production later down the line

The spirit/human cross over seems really interesting, and I would like to play a game like this

Especially the idea of battles needing stuff to continue - ie arrows - is a great idea. No infinte bows! (also, I love bows~)

And crafting... I love crafting... like seriously,

 

 

I would be very interested in a game like this Maki~

 

 

Also, to spoiler something you simply:

[ spoiler ]

Information goes here within the tags~

[ /spoiler ]

 

but remove the spaces

Thank you for the feedback!

Also, thanks for the pointer for spoilers! XD

 

I'm glad that you like it!

 

I'll continue the project, and yeah, there'll be screenies soon!

[HumanNinja 144]

It sounds like a cool story. I'm not familiar with Ainu. Is that an anime? or comic?

 

The only part I dislike is how the girl, Pirka, is randomly confronted by two spirits saying she needs to save the world. It seems a bit too cliche but, if it's explained during the course of the story then I suppose I could get on board with that

[Jeanne d'Ys 166]

It sounds like a cool story. I'm not familiar with Ainu. Is that an anime? or comic?

 

The only part I dislike is how the girl, Pirka, is randomly confronted by two spirits saying she needs to save the world. It seems a bit too cliche but, if it's explained during the course of the story then I suppose I could get on board with that

Yeah, I feel that part is too plain too. Although, it will be quite important to the main plot later however. I just found it too spoilery to write more about that XP

 

Answered your first question in the main post, check it out!

 

Thanks for the feedback~