You underestimate how much I like talking about my game. This is actually the kind of thing I'd like to see more of from people, but I also know that there is a certain degree to which balance is subjective/a moving target.
And here I've been trying to avoid talking too much, especially about balance for that same reason. (Well, that and I'm not as comfortable discussing things that are "disputable" - "subjective facts", you might say - so I'll probably still usually avoid it.) I actually trimmed a paragraph from my last post about Thorns, where I pretty much shared their opinion that it *really* doesn't feel good to have it be consumed while resting. Chests too, although that's only a single charge lost instead of 10. I can accept it being consumed on traps, though, as I consider that a form of "fighting", and you could even make a skill that causes Thorns to help against traps. Maybe call it "Tangled" and have it increase the amount of time for the trap to rearm. But losing a whopping 10 stacks every time you rest sucks, especially when that same issue doesn't apply to Charge or Fury, and you can even *gain* those from resting. There are probably some other self-buffs that feel like they shouldn't be lost on resting.
(Edit: Unrelated thing I just realized about Thorns. The reason the "Quintessence" spell has that name, and the reason it's able to be taken as a starting spell, is because Melos's symbol is a tree/plant. The Quintessence spell causes those you scry to receive Melos's protection in physical form. Perhaps this connection between Melos and Thorns can be further explored through other skills or scenes...)
I also came to the conclusion that Lucette needs some help.
Oh yes, that's definitely something I've felt in her exclusives, though I figured it might just be my playstyle of never grouping up. But then again, if a whole-ass character is objectively inferior when not using a particular playstyle, that is kind of an issue... But I've never really felt that to be the case because of how many "pseudo-exclusive" skills she has from her stat spread, which make her feel great and unique if you ignore the fact that I *could* give those same skills to the others if I actually took stat points. I love "Magic Knight Lucette" from both a gameplay and thematic standpoint (and I'm sure you don't disagree since you gave her the first curse-reliant scene with a "sensitive to magic" theme).
But then, Privitarium described the stat point requirement for Raine to learn Charge skills as
easier than the time requirement to teach Lucette Battle Thirst (which is indeed quite a time investment), which is kinda
to me. On that note, are there plans to include something that gives stats in the future, and isn't a mutually exclusive choice? Along the same line as skill scrolls?
Some of the earlier designed skills definitely seem to have expected that the player would have more skill points available than has ended up happening. The game actually supports Skills going up to 5 ranks, but now it sounds absurd to expect anyone to ever sink that many points into anything.
Oh yeah, there's something I keep forgetting to bring up about that. Currently, it feels kind of pointless to actually *have* a specific scroll 90% of the time. Since they can be instantly memorized/blanked and taught in the same amount of time as teaching directly from the scroll (which is still better than the alternative, because I'd never consume a non-memorized scroll), the only thing actually having it does is let you bypass desire requirements. Those requirements can be circumvented easily enough with time, and lots of skills don't even have desire requirements, making their scrolls no better than a blank scroll once they've been memorized. One thing that I think would make the specific scrolls feel better would be to let you teach their skills without a time requirement, so that using it directly always has a clear benefit over blanking it and then teaching the skill.
(Of course, the inability to sort/shorten the massive scroll list is also an issue that needs to be sorted out, but I assume that's on the to-do list already.)
Sprout should be increasing stacks every floor regardless of if you go back to camp or not. If it doesn't that's a bug.
There are probably a lot of things not working properly with that mechanic, since most people would use it so rarely. I initially thought the days not progressing was a bug, then I realized it made more sense than them having not slept in a week. Although you'd think charging through half the dungeon at once would have them returning at a later time of day... Are they actually just spending a few minutes at a time in there before heading back to camp to jill off and relax? TFW clearing dungeons is just a casual hobby for them.
Curses which seem out of place in an H-focused game:
In my opinion, anything which can’t also contribute to the games themes doesn’t belong, but I can be a bit too Spartan.
I disagree there, especially as this isn't *only* an erotic-themed game, and there's plenty of other stuff that isn't exclusively erotic. Having curses that aren't entirely lust-based helps reinforce the fact that Eschahn isn't just some misunderstood goddess of love (and beauty and just expressing emotion in general), she's also an invader who's trying to gain a foothold and overpower those who are trying to stop her. (I mean, setting aside the rape spiders and the rape tentacles and the haunted rape room, this lady also employs maids who try to straight up murder the knights.) To say nothing of how her own interpretation of "benevolent" is probably pretty skewed. I find that the fanbases of games like this tend to have too much of an "evil goddess of corruption is actually the good guy" sentiment, and while it's great to have some nuance that shows her as more than a one-dimensional villain, it's just as important to have a reminder of why you're fighting against her. Even if she can potentially learn and grow and become someone who deserves to stand alongside her rivals, she probably needs to be smacked around by some heroes who themselves wield the power of love (brainwashed or otherwise) first.
(And if she doesn't learn from that, a healthy dose of Melos Mind Control can turn her into the Slave-Goddess of Love and Devotion, who serves all of humanity as her Masters and Mistresses. Win-Win!)
...Yup, still gotta try not to talk too much.
