Equipment based/EXP-less character progression

[Brosephus 7]

So, instead of levels, I want my game to balance your strength around your weapons/armor/accessories.

There are opportunities to increase your stats through one-time items and what-not, but these are sparse.

 

I'm doing this so that sneaking around enemies is viable at all levels.

If you sneak past enemies early-game, but get caught in a fight with tough enemies mid-game, you aren't hopelessly outclassed/forced to grind levels. It's a bit like Brogue that way.

 

What do you guys think?

[Rezanta 373]

Little rough, unless the beginning foes are as brittle as glass in my opinion. In the other hand, I do have to like the "pick your fights wisely" theme you've got going.

[TheManlyFairy 51]

If the point of the game is to carefully walk your way around battles as much as possible, why even give the option to upgrade your characters? Are you hoping to give a false sense of security to the player? And if you're not fighting anything, how do you obtain new equipment? You just find it as you go along?

Edited February 16, 2016 by TheManlyFairy

[Brosephus 7]

If the point of the game is to carefully walk your way around battles as much as possible, why even give the option to upgrade your characters? Are you hoping to give a false sense of security to the player? And if you're not fighting anything, how do you obtain new equipment? You just find it as you go along?

 

Not necessarily walk around all battles, just battles with monsters that you don't have the right equipment to handle. I'm thinking about giving some kind of bonus in battle(Perhaps you always go first, regardless of your AGI)if you sneak up on an enemy, but I don't know how difficult this would be to event.

Edited February 16, 2016 by Brosephus

[Rikifive 3,411]

Something like this isn't a bad idea.

 

For example this kind of feature was implemented in 'Terraria'. There were absolutely no levels, but you were gaining better and better equipment with time.

It may seem like a unjustified comparison, but that game has some features similar to RPG's.

 

The enemies were getting harder along with the progress, so do (better) your equipment.

 

If it's better or worse than the level-based character progression however, is impossible to tell as it depends on how you'll handle that and what players like.

 

Equipment based progress makes the game balanced for every single player - No weak by skipping or OP by grinding characters. However, it will steal the main purpose of battles - gaining experience. When there's no point in fighting, then why just to not run away and skip all of this? Unless you'll do that smartly and put some rewards like items or something.

Also if somebody bad in RPG's will have a problem, then there'll be no way to make his characters stronger, so how you'll setup the difficulty is there really important.

 

~But generally if your game focuses more on the story than the battles, then it should work.

 

Personally I love 'exping' my characters ~ without that feature I'd be rushing through the game, since battles would be pointless (unless done nicely).

 

 

A good idea could be making the stats heavily based on equipment and slightly (but noticeably) on levels. That way, both would be important and grinding would be less effective/destroying.

[ashm 12]

Have you played "the world end with you" on NDS ?

They're basically like :

1. Choose your enemy, grind where you wand to grind (except evented battle)

2. Level ? yes but only increase HP and drop point. Atk and Def influenced by style and some are food.

3. Skill ? dropped by enemies.

 

So, what would happen if you got stuck in hard enemy ? The game has 4 difficulty.

Of course if you stuck and dead, you will offered to restart the match with easy difficulty.

But the cost is, easy difficulty commonly have bad drop item.

 

Hard and above are obviously need to grind, but they gave different drop (maybe lower rate, but it can be increased by your level).

 

Anyway, forced to grind is not bad. As long they are not tedious.

It's like people who use elevator everyday and then aiming to win number 1 in marathon. 

Edited February 17, 2016 by ashm13

[Brosephus 7]

Something that I should mention - I'm using Meowface's roguelike movement script. Monsters only move when you move, in classic Rogue fashion.

So I'm also thinking that, in a way, monsters also present a navigational challenge. That said, It would probably be a good Idea to implement loot drops in one way or another.

[Kayzee 4,032]

I tend to think RPGs need more then just equipment changes, but I agree that the level/exp system is not the best way to do it. I would recommend adding a skill system actually, one that gives you more abilities without necessarily making you any stronger, such as ways to hide or move around the map, or extra abilities in battle.