General Information

Setting and Background

Fall of an Ancient Civilization:

• An ancient civilization once wielded powerful magic, creating immensely potent artifacts.
• After their collapse or leave, these artifacts were damaged and lost their original purpose.
• Their magic now leaks uncontrollably, affecting the environment in unpredictable ways.
• a myth

Lost Artifacts:

• Over centuries, fragments of a particularly powerful artifact were scattered across the land.
• These fragments ended up in the possession of various factions, often without them understanding their true nature or power.
• A large central piece of the artifact remains at a specific location, radiating nightmares that the player party recives

Effects of the Magic:

• The leaking magic subtly alters the environment, often going unnoticed by ordinary people.
• Some factions inadvertently harness the fragments, causing changes to themselves or their surroundings.

Factions and Goals

The Factions:

• Each holds a fragment of the artifact, using it for their purposes or ignoring its significance.

The Coven:

• A secretive group aiming to restore the artifact’s power and control it for their own ambitions.

Player Objective

• Mission:
  • The players must stabilize or neutralize the artifact’s broken magic
  • This requires locating the fragments, learning their whereabouts and properties through quests, and collecting the leaking energy.

Gameplay Flow

The artifacts must be reachable without faction quests.

Exploration and Information Gathering:

• Players uncover the locations of the fragments and learn how their leaking magic affects the forest and its creatures.
• Factions unknowingly or deliberately use the fragments, influencing local animals and ecosystems in unique ways.
• Completing quests for or against these factions can make the final retrieval of the fragments easier by:
  • Reducing resistance from the faction.
  • Weakening the fragment’s defenses.
  • Providing insights into the fragment’s powers and vulnerabilities
  • making the last run easier

Absorbing Artifact Magic:

• In later runs, the players goal should be to visit the fragments locations to absorb the magic of each fragment. (partly)
  
• Absorbing the magic changes the Gamplay (GAME DESINGN)
  
  • • • • (The act of absorption destabilizes the magic further, signaling the importance of reaching the central artifact before the situation spirals out of control and strengthens the player)

Final Run and Showdown:

• After absorbing all fragments’ magic, the final goal is to bring the accumulated magic to the central artifact’s location.
• This final run is the culmination of the quest, where the effects of previous choices (faction quests, alliances, or conflicts) play a critical role in determining the difficulty.
• At the central location, the Coven awaits, seeking to use the fully charged fragments for their own ends.
  

Endgame Options(WIP): 

• Players must decide whether to:
  • Stabilize the artifact, restoring balance to the forest.
  • Destroy it entirely, which could erase the magic of the artifact but at a great cost.
• The final confrontation with the Coven determines whether the players succeed in their chosen path.