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State Of The Realm: July
The last couple of months have heralded a significant expansion of our numbers - the recruitment of Korwu as our second scene artist, HereToHelp as our newest writer, and the return of old hands like Mattrex, DoItToJulia, and Undoodle. This has given us a considerable boost in getting the rest of version 5 done, and we’ve already finished our second phase of playtesting.
The last couple of months have heralded a significant expansion of our numbers - the recruitment of Korwu as our second scene artist, HereToHelp as our newest writer, and the return of old hands like Mattrex, DoItToJulia, and Undoodle. This has given us a considerable boost in getting the rest of version 5 done, and we’ve already finished our second phase of playtesting.
With the big number fast approaching, I’d like to take this SOTR post as an opportunity to explain a little bit more about what we’ve been working on, why we’ve taken the approach we have, and when you can expect each part of it. I’ve spoken before about how Act V is ‘three smaller Acts in a trenchcoat’ - how does that cash out? What will our future version numbers mean?
VERSION 5.0
Harem System
This is the big one. In Act II, we got to meet our waifus. In Act III, we got to invite them to stay with us, with varying degrees of politeness. In Act IV, we got the chance to pick a romantic companion (or cool wolfy roommate) to share our roost. So what does Act V add on top of that?
The short answer is “everything”. It would be easy to sideline our existing characters, to make room for the other events of Act V, but I’m not interested in doing that. So instead every single waifu will have new content, as well their own endgame arc, and you can pursue them all simultaneously. No more picking consorts! You’re a king, you’ve earned the privilege.
And if we want to do that, we can’t just recycle our old captive interactions. We need to build an entirely new foundation - one that situates them in their new life, reflects all the choices you’ve made thus far, and gives them the extra depth that we’ll be building on for the rest of the game’s span.
Oh, and a good many of them may be heavily pregnant. So they’ll need new scenes, of course.
Courtly Matters
In a conventional fantasy story, the villain seeks to change the world, and the hero stops him. Then the story ends there, because the hero has no function besides maintaining the status quo (or maybe accomplishing one necessary change). But we aren’t playing by those rules - however kind or gracious your dragon might be, you are the antagonist, and your victory is the start of your greater story.
Being able to hold court as a king gives us some fun levers to play with the world, and process conflicts in a suitably dramatic public arena. On the court’s agenda will be a roster of concerns for the Realm’s new ruler - some dealing with the transition from the old way of things, some resolving leftover issues from your ascent to power, and some processing the new challenges that begin to emerge.
All courtly matters will be meaningful choices - that is to say that they affect things you care about, will have an impact on the world around you, and offer no ‘golden path’ or obviously-optimal solution to retreat to. You will need to use your own judgement, with an ever-present eye on the resources and people you can depend upon. Good luck.
VERSION 5.1
Horde Interactions
There are many people who might have joined you in the conquest of the Realm. Eager kobolds, bestial wolfmen, opportunistic mercenaries, eldritch proteans, ambitious infernals, and a certain very driven warlock. We’ve had plenty of interactions with them thus far, but how much do we really know about them? Why do they do what they do? And where will the future take them, now that they’re on the winning team?
Our generals are major characters, just as our waifus are. They will all have roles to play in the final Act, and some of them are very large! So rather than rush in with our preexisting interactions, we’re building a fresh foundation that allows you to discover more about them, and understand who you want to favour in the world to come.
Minor Characters
Besides the ‘main’ cast, there are a few characters who haven’t received as much prominence as they might otherwise have. That includes the meek maid Chia, the not-so-meek commoner Enid, and everyone’s obvious favourite - the court herald. I know that people have been raring for more content with them, and Act V furnishes us with the perfect opportunity to provide that.
Betrothal
Our last major decision of Chapter One is the question of marriage. This won’t be the same as picking a consort in Act IV - marriage is more than a romantic gesture, especially when you’re king, and has its own special considerations. You will still be able to pursue romances (or… less romantic routes) with the rest of your harem, as is the tradition of the land. But the choice of co-ruler - and mother of future dragons - will be an important one.
VERSION 5.2
At this point we’re ready to move the timeline forward, and introduce the second component of our trenchcoat. Chapter Two will bring new court events, and new interactions with our cast. And you’ll have some dragonspawn to become acquainted with, as well - something you’ll know, if you’ve played our most recent update, might feature some surprises of its own.
VERSION 5.3
Things really come to a head in Chapter Three, where you will have at least one major crisis to resolve - out of the six that are on offer, depending on your choices thus far. There will be action, there will be drama, and there will be the chance to determine your path down one of the ten different game endings.
VERSION 5.4
But it is not yet over! Not for you, and not for our supporting cast either. I mentioned that our waifus will have further stories of their own in Act V - these lead towards decision points that will determine their final fate. Who gets a happily-ever-after? Who gets a miserable end? How much bittersweet do you like? And on the royal side of things, you may have a marriage to look forward to once all is done.
VERSION 5.5
The last major Act V update exists to close everything out in a suitably satisfying fashion. That means a suitably spectacular wedding night for you, and a series of dynamic epilogues that take our saga forward into the future. This won’t be the end of Ravager’s development - not even close - but it will mark the point we can call our main story ‘complete’.
* * *
That’s far from everything, but I’ve rambled on long enough for now. Hopefully you’ve got a stronger idea of what’s to come! And hopefully you’re as excited about it as I am. Now, I’m gonna get back to work on Act V - when the next State Of The Realm post comes around, I’d like it to include a release date for you.
VERSION 5.0
Harem System
This is the big one. In Act II, we got to meet our waifus. In Act III, we got to invite them to stay with us, with varying degrees of politeness. In Act IV, we got the chance to pick a romantic companion (or cool wolfy roommate) to share our roost. So what does Act V add on top of that?
The short answer is “everything”. It would be easy to sideline our existing characters, to make room for the other events of Act V, but I’m not interested in doing that. So instead every single waifu will have new content, as well their own endgame arc, and you can pursue them all simultaneously. No more picking consorts! You’re a king, you’ve earned the privilege.
And if we want to do that, we can’t just recycle our old captive interactions. We need to build an entirely new foundation - one that situates them in their new life, reflects all the choices you’ve made thus far, and gives them the extra depth that we’ll be building on for the rest of the game’s span.
Oh, and a good many of them may be heavily pregnant. So they’ll need new scenes, of course.
Courtly Matters
In a conventional fantasy story, the villain seeks to change the world, and the hero stops him. Then the story ends there, because the hero has no function besides maintaining the status quo (or maybe accomplishing one necessary change). But we aren’t playing by those rules - however kind or gracious your dragon might be, you are the antagonist, and your victory is the start of your greater story.
Being able to hold court as a king gives us some fun levers to play with the world, and process conflicts in a suitably dramatic public arena. On the court’s agenda will be a roster of concerns for the Realm’s new ruler - some dealing with the transition from the old way of things, some resolving leftover issues from your ascent to power, and some processing the new challenges that begin to emerge.
All courtly matters will be meaningful choices - that is to say that they affect things you care about, will have an impact on the world around you, and offer no ‘golden path’ or obviously-optimal solution to retreat to. You will need to use your own judgement, with an ever-present eye on the resources and people you can depend upon. Good luck.
VERSION 5.1
Horde Interactions
There are many people who might have joined you in the conquest of the Realm. Eager kobolds, bestial wolfmen, opportunistic mercenaries, eldritch proteans, ambitious infernals, and a certain very driven warlock. We’ve had plenty of interactions with them thus far, but how much do we really know about them? Why do they do what they do? And where will the future take them, now that they’re on the winning team?
Our generals are major characters, just as our waifus are. They will all have roles to play in the final Act, and some of them are very large! So rather than rush in with our preexisting interactions, we’re building a fresh foundation that allows you to discover more about them, and understand who you want to favour in the world to come.
Minor Characters
Besides the ‘main’ cast, there are a few characters who haven’t received as much prominence as they might otherwise have. That includes the meek maid Chia, the not-so-meek commoner Enid, and everyone’s obvious favourite - the court herald. I know that people have been raring for more content with them, and Act V furnishes us with the perfect opportunity to provide that.
Betrothal
Our last major decision of Chapter One is the question of marriage. This won’t be the same as picking a consort in Act IV - marriage is more than a romantic gesture, especially when you’re king, and has its own special considerations. You will still be able to pursue romances (or… less romantic routes) with the rest of your harem, as is the tradition of the land. But the choice of co-ruler - and mother of future dragons - will be an important one.
VERSION 5.2
At this point we’re ready to move the timeline forward, and introduce the second component of our trenchcoat. Chapter Two will bring new court events, and new interactions with our cast. And you’ll have some dragonspawn to become acquainted with, as well - something you’ll know, if you’ve played our most recent update, might feature some surprises of its own.
VERSION 5.3
Things really come to a head in Chapter Three, where you will have at least one major crisis to resolve - out of the six that are on offer, depending on your choices thus far. There will be action, there will be drama, and there will be the chance to determine your path down one of the ten different game endings.
VERSION 5.4
But it is not yet over! Not for you, and not for our supporting cast either. I mentioned that our waifus will have further stories of their own in Act V - these lead towards decision points that will determine their final fate. Who gets a happily-ever-after? Who gets a miserable end? How much bittersweet do you like? And on the royal side of things, you may have a marriage to look forward to once all is done.
VERSION 5.5
The last major Act V update exists to close everything out in a suitably satisfying fashion. That means a suitably spectacular wedding night for you, and a series of dynamic epilogues that take our saga forward into the future. This won’t be the end of Ravager’s development - not even close - but it will mark the point we can call our main story ‘complete’.
* * *
That’s far from everything, but I’ve rambled on long enough for now. Hopefully you’ve got a stronger idea of what’s to come! And hopefully you’re as excited about it as I am. Now, I’m gonna get back to work on Act V - when the next State Of The Realm post comes around, I’d like it to include a release date for you.
So for the most part I love what's going on but I'll be honest and say it's a bit disappointing that you have to give away your harem members just to see them have interactions with our various groups,(like the wolfmen and kobolds) so it'd be nice if there was an option where they could have interactions like that without being "given away" and of their own will.
Like they wandered into that part and are socializing with them, and the socializing happened to get sexy. But I realize that this isn't simple on paper at all so maybe it could just be a varation of the "fate" scenes where it still uses the same art and stuff but just has different text to suggest it isn't permanent more than anything. Though some of those fate scenes are overtly more, well permanent than others would suggest from context alone so maybe they wouldn't make sense to reuse some of those for a situation that's supposed to be more of the character in questions choosing.
I'm just tossing my two cents out into the nether though, I still am happy to have followed this project for this long cause it's been fun playing as a horny dragon gathering a gaggle of lusty maidens!
Incredible Ambition!
I want to corrupt the merchant girl and eventually romance her
Love what you've got planned for Act V
"...your victory is the start of your greater story..." ...Wait a second, that sounds like real life ...does that mean I'm a villain? °-°
On a serious note, one of the things I like the most about this game is that the fact that the protagonist is a literal dragon kinda takes the edge off of many questionable decisions over the course of the game. When you play as a human, there's just something inherently treacherous about doing things that aren't in their best interest. Like, you were born and raised by humans and are one of them, so it's just reasonable to expect that you put the community above yourself.
But the dragon is not human, and the only "raising" humans did for him was giving him some food after birth - and even that he wouldn't really have needed. So it's just not reasonable to expect him, a supernatural creature, to conform to mankind's idea of morality. Like a wild animal, you can't just label him "good" or "evil". He simply IS.
My own headcannon for my "good" dragon is that he actually isn't that much more kind-hearted or sympathetic than his predecessors - but rather infinitely more greedy.
Whereas the dragons that came before him were content to just sate their most primal desires and didn't give a damn about both others welfare and their less animalistic desires, that just won't cut it for this one. He won't be content with less than ALL of his needs and desires being fulfilled. Both his want for treasure AND his wish to gaze at a prosperous kingdom from the highest peaks. His need to breed AND desire to enjoy the afterglow undisturbed by sobs or fearful faces. The lust for conquest AND the desire to nurture. Wanting his offspring to be both numerous AND happily thriving.
So, sitting in his roost and pondering it all he quickly realised the only way he could even hope to achieve all of that was by conquering the kingdom and turning it into a prosperous and united place whose people would love AND respect/fear him.
All that being said, the other thing I like the most about this game is how it deconstructs the villain archetype. I mean, let's look at the facts:
The dragon was quite literally not even a day old when the people of the kingdom imprisoned his "mother" and tried to kill him for the mere crime of existing. And when he evaded that, they set out to hunt him down like a rabid dog. And he knew if he didn't do anything, they'd succeed eventually. From that point his options were very limited.
1: He could've just surrendered and embraced death. Very undesirable all around, but an option immediately discarded is an option nevertheless.
2: He could've fled the kingdom. Problem is, the only exit was heavily fortified, so he'd have needed to amass a force sizable enough to break through. And if you come barging into another realm with an armed strike force, you're public enemy number one again in a heartbeat - even more so considering you'd need to either break through the fortifications on the other side of the pass as well, or wait in front of them negotiating passage. The latter would turn you into a sitting duck at the mercy of any pursuing tropes Balthorne would send.
And even if the dragon would've found a spider hole past the fortifications and established a new shelter away from the kingdom... He would still remain the last living dragon. Once the people of the new land would hear of him they'd either fear him and send hunting parties of their own ortry to exploit hims somehow - most obviously by earning favour from Balthorne by giving him access to a threat to his throne.
So bottom line is, flight would be a huge risk that very likely would have our dragon just end up in the exact same situation he was in before.
3: Amassing a force sufficient to repel any attackers Balthorne could send, effectively establishing his own realm within the realm. Theoretically possible, but he'd effectively have to conquer half the kingdom to make that happen. Even if he succeeded, it'd at most achieve a brittle peace fraught with skirmishes across the border. And considering many inhabitants of the conquered territory would have relatives or business partners you'd have cut them off from. So their loyalty would likely be VERY thin at best.
And finally 4th: Crush the ones that want you dead, free your mother and take over the kingdom, effectively protecting you from other rulers wanting you dead by virtue of being a king with an army to protect you.
So really, there's a very strong case to be made that the dragon only did what he had to do to survive.
Apologies for straying from the topic like that, but as a new subscriber I just wanted to give my honest praises to you.
Most everything you planned for act V sounds great! And I'm not too worried about there being no "golden path" - because I found that whenever a creator gave such a warning, I actually always found a route that I'd actually consider a golden path myself.
Looking forward to see it all!