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View Full Version : After Bowser: The RPG



RaveingRonin
2011-11-16, 08:28 AM
So, I've been working on a Mario themed RPG for 6+ months now, and I'd like to see how it looks. The general mechanics are solid (play tested it a few times with my friends) but I feel like there is some spark missing from the world in general.

Intro:
Bowser had fallen, his body thrown into the raging lava that provided power for his many castles. The mysterious hero had left with Princess Peach, uncaring at the wanton destruction he had wrecked. Thousands had been slaughtered, hundreds of thousands more left destitute and homeless as their employer and king had been murdered. Some attempted to rebuild, but to no avail. Soon, chaos reigned in the once rich Koopa Kingdom. All suffered as the predicted blight and droughts began. After all, the princess was kidnaped to force a political marriage so that the people could be spared this unkind fate.

No amount of feverish prayer could save them, and the bodies began to pile high. Cities full of dead were abandoned, only the Boo's left to silently patrol the streets, wailing and mourning the dead. The Kingdom, once rival to any empire, had collapsed. Tiny settlements sprung up, Koopa's and Goomba's finding places where resources were plentiful enough to allow for life. Many of the worlds went abandoned, it's populace forced to more hospitable levels. The world pipes that led underwater or to the great deserts became rusty with disuse, and as whole sections deteriorated, years later, THINGS poured through. It was unclear where they had come from, or what they were, but they wanted only one thing: bloodshed.

War came to the ruins of Koopa-Kingdom, now a loose federation of towns and smaller cities ruled by various people who had gained control in someway or another. These new beings, well versed in warfare, had only seized one of the survivable levels when The Council of Nine ordered all adjacent levels sealed off. Though many decried these actions as monstrous, they knew they could not wait for more refugees. To do so would invite the invaders who dogged their heels into more levels, onto more villages ruin.

So Level 1-1 was sealed off. Armored Koopa's, resplendent in their spiny armors, resolute in their duty. None could pass, the Final Door guarded against.

Years passed, first five. . .

Then ten . . .

Time wore on, and the beasts of war and their terrible machines were slowly forgotten. As more time passed, the Guard was reduced, and eventually disbanded. The Council had grown into a Federation, dozens of new city-states shouting and clamoring for resources, and peace was a commodity only the Guard could provide.

Now, in the year 640 A.B. (After Bowser), as a young Koopa was tending to his oomba flock, the Final Door rattled on its hinges. The sound echoed across every world, and with singular dread, the populace of The Koopa Federation paused. They had grown complacent, willing to squabble amongst themselves when a true foe had come to their doorstep. The worlds are filling with danger once again, the sound of scraping and mining heard in many pipes, heralds of the dangers to come. It is now a time of war, but more importantly, a time for heroes. Lift up the sword, string the bow, and answer the clarion call to action.

I've worked on this world and system for so long I'm not sure what else to add in the general description. Is there anything else I need to let ya'll know? Thoughts? Likes/Dislikes?

Prophet_of_Io
2011-11-17, 12:43 AM
Yeah the fluff is cool enough, a little hardcore for a mario game but I guess raising the stakes never hurts. I guess what I'd like to see now is some mechanics in it.

Races?
Humans, Koopas, Goombas, Maybe even a Royal Koopa class like Bowesers decedents? Yoshi's?!

Classes?
Plumbers, Royalty, Soldiers, Scouts, Casters?

Maybe even some playful PrC's like Hammer Bro, Flowermancer, Yoshi Rider?

What's the Combat system like?

The idea is cool, I guess I just want to see more concrete game rules.

Zeta Kai
2011-11-17, 06:55 AM
Plumbers

I wouldn't call them Plumbers, as I would imagine that they be doing very little plumbing. Stompers is more apt, IMO.

Speaking of which, the combat mechanics should heavily encourage attacks from above, as any Mario platforming game does best. Jumping on top of an enemy for a melee attack ought to be the more efficient, intuitive, & most natural approach to said adversary.

lothofkalroth
2011-11-22, 11:31 AM
Don't take this the wrong way, but you should have someone copy-edit your fluff. The concepts you're working with are really cool, and I'd love to see them developed into a game, but one of the most important things about fluff is that it has to be readable. You need your text to have flow and richness. You're halfway there - your word choice is good for the most part, but you need help with the grammar. Trust me, if your game is well-written it'll be much easier for people to get into it.

As far as content goes, you should definitely make a map of the worlds and how they connect to one another. That might give you a better idea of how different city-states interact.

I like the idea of Mario being a bad guy, definitely stick with this. In fact, I'd make him something of a propoganda-driven legend.

You should go into a little bit of detail about what the strange creatures are, because currently there's none. I'd like to hear more about them - how did they fight? What was their motivation (if known)?

Also, just my own personal taste, but you might want to eliminate classes. Just come up with feats/talents/powers and skills that people can use to custom build their own characters.

Hope this helps, and keep it up - this is a really neat idea!

Prophet_of_Io
2011-11-22, 08:29 PM
I wouldn't call them Plumbers, as I would imagine that they be doing very little plumbing. Stompers is more apt, IMO.

Yes but my logic was that was what Mario was. In our world a plumber is someone who fixes our pipings, but I this world it can have a whole different meaning behind it. In fact I bet most Koopahs hear the word "plumber" and think more of what we'd consider a barbarian.

Anyway what's also interesting about this setting is how many environments you can fit into one campaign. Maybe it's easier to level in this game because it goes up to 90, 10 levels to each world. Just a thought, but I still like the idea that you can have a completely different atmosphere for every world.

nyarlathotep
2011-11-24, 11:01 PM
A little more description on the enemies would be nice.

Draz74
2011-11-26, 01:32 AM
So ... in all this time, what's happened to the ostensibly peaceful neighboring Mushroom Kingdom, where the Toads live???

Pokonic
2011-11-26, 09:17 PM
The Boos had there own king, usualy. How much more powerful are the dead leigons now that bowser has no reign on them?

Are the old forts still in some condition? How many of the old tech, such as hovering platforms and spike pillers, still exist? Are the guardian creatures still around, and could these be the perfect places for any reminents to exist?

Are the subspecies of troopas still maintained, or are there simply differing social roles mimicing them? What about colored shells? ( Another reminent to pillage?)

How do the former monsters of the world cope with the new lack of maintaning there homes? There are some that could only exist with Koopa intervention, like those electrical orbs or the mecha-koopas. Others, like the legendary dragons ( paper mario FYI) could live without much interaction, and could even florish in there new bowser-free envrement keeping them fettered. Goombas for every carnivore!

Bomb-ombs would ether be doomed to be relics or to be produced with the few remaining factories left. They could have a Warforged-like situation on there hands if no more are alowed to be produced, even more if things like Bullet Bills are involved.

Also, how many of Bowsers decendents are around? This could be the make it or breaking point for the Koopas, for the old system was around bowser and bowsers childeren. Literaly, because eached owned a world to goveren.

Also, are the things humans? Something not from the games? Are they swarm-like or individualy powerful?

Also, what about the mushroom kingdom, unless you consider world one to be it?

Domriso
2011-11-27, 05:12 PM
This sounds fantastic. I've played with ideas of a Mario-themed world myself, and this just looks amazing. I agree with much of the others on their comments, particularly on the description of the blood-thirsty beings. Also, you made mention at one point of a "forced marriage." Do you mean that there were humans in one part of the world, and that Mario essentially came to save Princess Peach from the kidnapping, not caring about the world which had stolen his own royal?