Logos (Words of Power) Issues

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Olthadir, Jul 17, 2019.

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  1. Olthadir

    Olthadir Avatar

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    Hello All.

    Before I begin, I just want to thank you for taking the time to read this. This may not seem like an important issue for the game. There are a lot of other more technical issues that exist that clearly need the developers time. However this is a basic fix (essentially a typo) that reflects on the games immense lore. And really, part of the reason why we are here is because we love the lore a game by Lord British brings. (the linked poll has 36.7% saying Lore/story is important, the 5th highest out of 18 items)

    I previously posted a thread in the Feedback forum about the Logos being all messed up. I want more awareness to that, hence this post.

    Since then I have been doing a 'deep dive' into the logos and found a few interesting things.

    • The large list posted on the wiki is incorrect. If we go off the logos that are being used in the game (and why not, they are the primary source) then Sanct (Protection) should be replaced with Solis (Sun, light) and Vertu should be replaced with Vatu (water).
    • The spells Earth's Embrace and Torpor do not have logos.
    These are the biggest inconsistencies. Personally, if the above were fixed, I would be content.

    But I didn't stop there.
    I went further.

    I got a list of all the logos for all the spells (except Chaotic Shield, none of my friends, nor myself, have that spell). Then I referenced them, tallying each time a logos was used and hoped to optimize the usage of them.
    Sort of what Browncoat Jayson did two years ago, but on a larger scale.

    • For example, Bet is only used in two spells. Instead of increasing the amount of usages, I removed it, replacing the two occurrences with other logos.
    • I also replaced the only occurrence of lumen (in Fireflies) with Luna (now it is luna hex - moon curse).
    • I also balanced out the usages of opposing logos (asen/desen, etc at 9 each), and made similar spells have similar logos (earth/fire/ice/chaos arrow are all terra/ignis/frigo/kaus motus); drain life is corp like all other 1st tier spells, etc) and cleaned up some of the other logos that made little sense.
    • Added an additional logos to Summon Air Elemental, Healing Burst, Lightning, and Summon Ice Elemental to align them to their 'tier' of magic per the skill chart. (Thanks Ashyeena Marsh)
    • All my work can be seen on this Google Sheet.
    Does this change the way the game will be played?
    No. But it makes the way the game feels much more stable and well thought out. As someone who thinks lore is of utmost importance to the game, this NEEDS to be fixed. But I also know that my opinion is of the minority (how else could it have been forgotten for two years from when it was first mentioned?).

    Is this really important? *yawn*
    Maybe not to you, and that is fair. Like I said, I know there are more technical issues that need fixing, and better ideas that might increase enjoyment of the game exist. But this, the logos of the spells, is an important part to me. Lord British games from Ultima 5 on each had logos. Players of these games can probably say the logos off by heart (I know people who played UO that would frequently say Vas Corp Por, even outside the game). It is fundamental to a Lord British game. As such, I think it is important and needs some attention.

    But developer time can be used to do other things, like ______!
    Yes it can, and it should. So I did most of the work. It would be great if @Lord British or @DarkStarr or any other developer took the spreadsheet I made and plugged it into the game, or better yet, gave me a form to fill out so it reduces the time needed on their end. Really, this is just a simple fix and I know myself and others would be very happy to assist by either making it easier for the developers to put it into the game or make the logos better than they are now.

    Do I think I'm right?
    Not at all. I did what I think is best. I also don't know how to improve the spells Healing Grace and Healing Blast. I just don't like the logos for them. (I don't think spells keeping you alive should have corp in them. Except resurrection. Because you are changing death. But... I don't know what to change.)
     
    Last edited: Jul 19, 2019
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  2. Browncoat Jayson

    Browncoat Jayson Legend of the Hearth

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    I think Healing Blast should be "Wast Gaus Reno Zeph", since "Zeph" (Air) could also mean burst/zephyr.

    Chaos Bolt should be "Kaus Jura" as it is literally causing harm via chaos.

    As I've noted before, I don't like using "Solis" or "Luna" because those are not the names of the sun or moon in New Britannia (unnamed/Sosario and Daedaelus), but I won't fight that battle.

    Otherwise, I think your changes are quite good.
     
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  3. Olthadir

    Olthadir Avatar

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    Thanks Browncoat Jayson,

    I made the changes you suggested. I like them a lot.

    I also agree with the point that Solis and Luna should not be used. It would be perfect if we could use Bet or Nox for them or something as they are not being used. It also allows us to use Sanct (useful for shield spells instead of Obix which is good but could be better a little weird. [I feel Obix is more of a negative thing you do to opponents, rather than used to protect yourself... but whatever]). Along with other things. But... rather have these changes made instead of a whole revamp.

    Small steps.
     
  4. Ashyeena Marsh

    Ashyeena Marsh Avatar

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    This is looking very good.

    Just one more little issue. As I understand, the number of words a spell uses is supposed to match its level/tier in the skill tree. Nearly all of them do, but there's a few that don't match:
    • Summon Ice Elemental - level 5, 4 words
    • Lightning - level 3, 2 words
    • Summon Air Elemental - level 5, 4 words
    • Healing Blast - level 5, 4 words
    Not a big deal, but would be nice to fix for consistency.
     
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  5. Olthadir

    Olthadir Avatar

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    Fixed the above.
     
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