- Dec 8, 2017
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- Thread starter Vanderer
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- Feb 25, 2020
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The world building in this is fantastic. The effort put into the politics, the religion, the magic is quite impressive. I always chuckle at the visual of the mages when they "scan" something. I'd be curious to see a first person view when one of them uses it to see what they see.
This was a great read. Very well written story. Only negative I could think of would be the talk during sex, but then again that is something that plagues 99% of the games.
Really happy I stumbled upon it and looking forward to the next update.
Really happy I stumbled upon it and looking forward to the next update.
- Dec 2, 2021
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I see you fully embraced the power of Sean Bean... excellent...
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I intended to answer, but forgot. Better late than never, though.
No, they do not lose their mind. But they have to obey the brand owner orders to the letter. That means, for example, that if the order to protect someone is given, they will do it, but the method will be up to them. Of course, like the MC said, there are ways around the orders, but the punishments are very severe. Death, usually, and not a quick one.
The Condemned are shock troops. Think penal battalions in WWII Russia. They all got the worst assignments of any troops, and the worse equipment. Need a breach in an enemy line during a battle? Send 200 of them. Even if they fail, well, the enemy will be tired at least. Or they are sent to fight the worst monsters, you get the drift.
As for Nenah, the sister who stole, her sentence was lenient. She stole from her Lord, and from orphans. Andolisa, the grandmother, is a minor Deity, but one that is very respected. And you don't steal from your Lord or Lady... If she was not fooled into it, Athagan would have given her the same choice than Alyah: Death or collar.
In general, punishment in Aetas are far harsher than in modern days, but they often give those condemned to death the choice to be collared instead. With the low population, it is more useful to use them than to just kill them outright. Exceptions to this are for child killers, serial murderers, or people able to resist the brand for example.
- Dec 2, 2021
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Now that I'm all caught up to the most recent update... Vanderer, this MC you have is something else. I don't know whether it's the product of excellent writing (intentional personality), or the product of lazy writing (personality fitting current situation), but he's got some serious issues.
Apologies for the rather blunt deconstruction of the MC, but I'd like to think he was intentionally written to be insufferable so that we could have some character growth. It's just painful having to sit through him repeatedly making similar mistakes without any clear intentions of wanting to become a proper ruler. We see more growth out of Avila and Athagan than we do him.
Overall the story is well written so far with a coherent, albeit rather simplistic plot (so far). Where this VN really shines is in the setting and world building, both of which have been handled in a manner that would put seasoned authors to shame. I especially appreciate the natural exposition of lore elements throughout the story as it helps the audience to better understand the plot without needing to reference a codex every time an event or person is brought up.
- He shows incredible competency when it comes to threat assessment of magical entities in theory, but in practice he continuously makes decisions that will get him killed if he bothers to face a somewhat competent enemy without the help of Athagan. Seriously, fighting an ogre/troll without armor? Walking into the den of a Plagueswarm despite being warned by Athagan to pay attention to all of his surroundings? I have serious doubts about his survival if he doesn't show any progress in that department soon.
- I'm under the impression this guy must have bi-polar disorder to some extent. I understand he was locked away in a tower for several years, but his attitude when it comes to certain topics is beyond unforgivable. Case in point: he routinely admonishes Erika for her rashness in some situations, yet he himself cannot be bothered to think before he acts or says something in return. A good example is how he demands Kes push the one single horse driving a heavy carriage in muddy conditions to make it home slightly faster despite there being zero consequences for being late. Additionally, he's called out for his continued lack of maturity by Athagan, and now Monica because he either refuses to grow up or doesn't undersand how to.
- His decorum is also severely lacking when it comes to dealing with matters of government. Seriously, how is his first response to a high ranking member of the elven kingdom is to burn her alive without even bothering to uncover the truth? Furthermore, even if she was responsible, how could he justify triggering a war with the elves when Aetas' population is already suffering from the Curse, and they're waging a secret war with the demons? Again, if he doesn't show clear signs of improvement down the road he will bring doom to his species due to his hubris.
Apologies for the rather blunt deconstruction of the MC, but I'd like to think he was intentionally written to be insufferable so that we could have some character growth. It's just painful having to sit through him repeatedly making similar mistakes without any clear intentions of wanting to become a proper ruler. We see more growth out of Avila and Athagan than we do him.
Overall the story is well written so far with a coherent, albeit rather simplistic plot (so far). Where this VN really shines is in the setting and world building, both of which have been handled in a manner that would put seasoned authors to shame. I especially appreciate the natural exposition of lore elements throughout the story as it helps the audience to better understand the plot without needing to reference a codex every time an event or person is brought up.
For 2 and 3, you have to understand that he is under extreme emotional duress by that time. He has just heard that his daughter, who he really loves and cares for, has caught extremely deadly and painful disease. Disease that is way more dangerous to children than adults. Pretty much any parent that cares for their kids would be in similar mindset during that kind of time. So he isn't the most rational at those moments. Not to mention the unknown heritage he has might make him more temperamental than your average human.
For 1, during the latest mission, MC expected to encounter an ogre, with whom he could have negotiated and not a troll who is automatically hostile. In the earlier mission with those Plagueswarm, they had mission to destroy them and you will have to take some risks to accomplish it. It's not like they could just camp out the entrance and hope everyone of them and the master one comes out to be easily destroyed. It's life and role of an adventurer, you will have to risk your neck to complete the missions and that's what you get paid for. Also i think it's been mentioned that mages can't really wear much armour, since it would affect them using magic.
At the end of the day, no one can prepare for every eventuality in the kind of life MC has and at some point you just have to say, now is the time to act rather than try to take every little thing into account.
- Dec 8, 2017
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HentaiKami got it right, mostly.
As for the rest, thank you very much. It's very nice of you to say.
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As for the rest, thank you very much. It's very nice of you to say.
- Dec 2, 2021
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My gripe with him is a subjective one due to core ideological differences. As I mentioned before, if he was intentionally written to be immature/brash, then ovjectively he's a well written character.
The main point I was trying to make about his character is that his personality will have severe consequences if he continues to act brash (i.e. point #3). It's understandable to want to act rash when trying to save his daughter, but he at some point needs to develop some level of restraint before igniting a war that could easily wipe his species out.
I think it speaks volumes that you have me so invested into a character that I want to see him improve. Additionally, you've made it quite easy to envision scenarios like what I mentioned above to where it's believable that his potential actions could have serious consequences. It's a level of immersion that is difficult for authors to achieve even with writing polarizing characters (i.e. Abby from TLOU2, or Triss from the Witcher series).
One other aspect I forgot to mention... Your animations are by far some of the most advanced in the VN space. The animations are seamless, the physics look realistic, and the climaxes are done surprisingly well. I haven't really seen the level of detail implemented into animations anywhere else, so take pride in knowing you outperform almost every other dev when it comes to that
- Dec 8, 2017
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I can't take pride in that since it's due to the engine.One other aspect I forgot to mention... Your animations are by far some of the most advanced in the VN space. The animations are seamless, the physics look realistic, and the climaxes are done surprisingly well. I haven't really seen the level of detail implemented into animations anywhere else, so take pride in knowing you outperform almost every other dev when it comes to that
Honey Select do not have the best graphics around, but it has the best system for animations. Lot of prebaked ones, and the physics are included too.
- Nov 28, 2018
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But you're complaining about him not growing for how he reacted to situations the very first time he ever encountered those situations. How did you do the very first time you got in the drivers seat of a car. Did you win the race? or did you stall the car (if manual).
- Dec 2, 2021
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I think you're missing my point entirely as you keep focusing on my subjective view rather than listening to the objective ramifications of what appears (so far) to be stagnant behavior. To put it more bluntly, his character is written to be intentionally immature - as pointed out by Vander - because it's setting up growth for later on. Just because I'm making observations about his character as is doesn't mean that it's a complaint.
Additionally, your analogy is a poor one considering you're leaving our severity of consequence to focus primarily on Henri's lack of tact. A better comparison: would I murder the VP of a country just because I assumed, without proof, that they introduced a plague into my country when I'm a low ranking diplomat? The obvious answer is no since it falls under common sense. However, the context that made that scene actually work is the added duress of Henri's daughter being at risk, a point Vander mentioned in his response to mine.
I'm going to put this next part in bold to avoid further confusions:
My subjective opinions do not reflect the quality of the story or the characters. When a story is written well, it WILL generate controversy because it has immersed us entirely.
- Nov 28, 2018
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My comment wasn't on the subjective or objective opinions. I agree with what you typed.
I just wouldn't have commented on that until the author proved to me that the character wasn't learning and growing. Vander hasn't yet had time to do that. Again, all three examples were the first time Henri had run into those situations. He hasn't had a second opportunity yet to prove or not whether he is learning and growing. Also, don't forget that Henri has been stuck in a tower, only interacting with tutors of magic, for 13 (or was it 12) years. He's not going to be as well versed in some things as most 25 year olds.
You are correct that 'complaining' was the wrong word to use.
This all just my opinion of coarse, your mileage may vary.
So something is bothering me
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- Dec 8, 2017
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love your game, dude. great job. keep up the good work. also any plans to explain what happened to MC mother?
- Dec 8, 2017
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Thanks, I appreciate it.
As for the MC's mother, nothing special really. They were moving between town so she could starts a new job. The caravan they were in was attacked by orcs and she was killed. The MC awakened and killed the orcs, and a couple of innocents people.
If you talk about what happened with her and his biological father, that's for the future, yes.