Yessir, I'm as giddy as a schoolgirl!.... ummm, I really didn't say that. Just the same, I'm really excited. By the way, check out the staff bios on the Flagship Studios website. It made mention on a few of them that, while at Blizzard, they were working on an (as of yet) unannounced title.
So, with the upcoming PCGamer Magazine announcement, the patent applied for by Blizzard on December 9th, 2005 with the heading "DIABLO", and the biographies of former Blizzard North employees currently working at Flagship Studios, along with Blizzard's failure to even mention the Diablo Universe at Blizzcon to provide a suitable "calm before the storm"... my friends, I'd say there's a pretty good chance that within the next year and a half, we'll say goodbye to our families, friends, schools, and lives in general whilst we warmly greet Diablo III with open arms (but hopefully not wallets... WoW style). <-- unnecessarily long sentence
It is an amazing mod. New skills, new areas, new monsters, new items. I've played it for a while, but not recently, so I'm not the person to go to with setup questions. Have fun!
I went to the US patent office website and searched the patent applications archive for a while and found nothing. I believe you, but if this information is online, could you post a link? Thanks a bunch!
- I've been reading a lot of these posts and I've noticed that a lot of people want to be able to choose the gender of their characters. To everyone who mentioned that: good call. I think that would be awesome.
- I would also like to see customizable appearances. If there were 8 sorceresses in the same game, it would be preferrable if they didn't all look exactly the same.
- One of the cool things from Diablo 2 was that when you put different types of armor on, your character model would show that. But it didn't do it for all armor types. I'd like that to happen for gloves, boots, belts, and even rings and amulets if possible.
- I played a Diablo 2 mod called Hell Unleashed, and it had a very cool feature: it allowed you to transmute armor and weapons in the Horadric Cube with colored dyes, and it would turn that item that color. Not entirely necessary, but nifty to have.
- I personally would like it if, when using melee attacks, you could run and attack at the same time.
- Mercenaries: wow, these guys are dense. I think that (and I saw this somewhere else mentioned on this site) there should be a command GUI for mercenaries. Hit a button, a small menu pops up and you tell them what to do/where to go. Perhaps a waypoint system for them. Instead of having them walk in circles in the Arcane Sanctuary, set up a few waypoints to help him along. Also, I think that more than just weapon, armor, helm should be accessible. They should also be able to wear boots, gloves, etc.
- I know I'm going to get some flak for this, but here it goes: no level 1 Hell charcters. Not only is it impractical, it allows for bots to spam messages on ANY difficulty without too much effort. Hell mules, you say? read on:
- There should be the equivalent to an account name town, where, when you log in, you're sent directly to a small town where all of your characters on that account name are stored. From there, you can assume control of any of them and drop whatever items you need to to transfer.
- Variations in skills. Tired of seeing a game filled with Cold Sorceresses constantly using Frozen Orb (please... make it stop)? Well there should be a system that not only has more skill possibilities, but variations on those existing skills to make for a more interesting experience. Maybe, instead of an orb of ice that sprays ice bolts everywhere, you could cast a spell that makes a giant spire of ice come out of the ground that would rain down ice shards. Just a thought.
I could think of many more things, but people complain about me having long, thoughtful posts. Whatever.
If I write something, I'm going to write it clearly, correctly, and in detail. That means lots of sentences. If you don't care to read it, fine, but I am putting a lot of thought into my ideas, and I think they're worth reading.
marley430, I have to hand it to you, you've got some great ideas (especially the skill, Midas Touch, it made me smile for some reason, it's a great idea). The aspect of your architecture that i liked the best was the Golem Tree. It was a very unexpected addition to a much needed character class, and very entertaining to read. Also, you actually took some time to come up with creative names for potions, so hats off to you.
After much internal debate, I have decided that your idea about the dynamic creation of potions via magic is a better idea than mine *bows*. I have, however, thought of another class that I'm not sure if anyone has thought of yet that *could possibly* employ the element-mixing scheme I wanted.
I'm sure you'll all agree that the potions in Diablo 2 (Besides mana, rejuvenation, and mana) are all but useful in most cases. I would love for this to change.
If any of you have ever played the Secret of Evermore, you'll remember the magic system they employed: it was based on Alchemy. There were different elements and substances you could find and combine them in different ways to cast different spells. It would be nifty if there were a similar system in Diablo 3. The player could have an alchemy case of some sort where he stored his ingredients (in his inventory), and whenever he wanted to make a new potion or some such item, he could look into the case, see what he has, and use an index of known recipies to make something (the recipies could be learned through the course of the game).
Collecting the items could be interesting. Using Diablo 2 monsters as an example: maybe the ingredients to a certain spell or potion could be 2 foul crow beaks and a tainted horn, and another could be a demon's heart and bone dust. Also, in the PC/XBox game Morrowind, an alchemy system was used. Different types of plants and minerals were scattered everywhere, and you could find certain plants in certain areas where they grew naturally. I think that would benefit gameplay greatly. Instead of passing straight through areas like the Tamoe Highland or the Outer Steppes, you might need to gather ingredients that can only be found there, and therefore have the player actually use the area for something.
I think that the alchemy case could be used by all classes, but only the Alchemist would have full use of it, obviously. The Barbarian or Necromancer, for example, would be able to make basic potions or elixers, but the Alchemist would be able to make things such as smoke screens, flash potions, or mustard gas potions.
My idea for Alchemist skills is as follows:
The skill tree (which I hope will be used again in D3) will have the basic potions the Alchemist can make, as well as other skills that i didn't really think of yet. Each point, as in Diablo 2, will increase one's proficiency with that particular skill, thus increasing the damage it does, and maybe even decreasing the ingredients needed to make. Although you have the ability to make the potions because you have points in that tree slot, it does not guarantee that you are currently able to use that skill. What dictates wheather you can use it or not is solely based on the ingredients you have, not how much mana you have. And thus, the Alchemist has no use for mana where making potions is concerned (Other Alchemist skills will use mana though).
Try to think of the "Potions" segment of the skill tree as a rating of abilities, not a list of spells. Spells are cast using mana, but potions are MADE using the alchemy case's ingredients. And so if you're reading the fire potions section of the potions tree, you may have 4 points into Fire Potion. That means that you have a proficiency of level 4 in making that type of potion, so your Fire Potions are more potent than those of someone who only has 2 in Fire Potion. They do more damage, and at higher levels you may be so proficient at making them, that some ingredients are unnecessary and you won't have to use them.
I was thinking that there could be a potion icon, as in Diablo 2, that would light up if you were able to make the potion, and would be colored red if you didn't have the right ingredients and couldn't make it. That way, you could make the potion in the middle of a battle from the normal view, rather than having to go into your inventory, look at the index, compare your ingredients from your case to the index, and finally make the potion. *point* *click* *poof* *throw*
Potions could include:
Fire Potions
-Fire Potion: small explosion damages the enemy on impact
-Incendiary Potion: flame engulfs the enemy on impacts, the enemy burns for a specified duration
-Scatter-Flame Potion: A "scatter-bomb" that, when thrown, ignites and burns for a specified duration. If an enemy is not hit, the fire burns on the ground and has the chance of igniting passersby.
(other variations are of course possible using different recipies)
Area Effect Potions
-Flash Potion: temporarily blinds whomever is in line-of-sight of impact. Can be used around corners to gain the advantage.
-Smokescreen: emits a thick, choking haze that causes confusion and has a specified duration
-Rejuvinating Mist: Explodes, releasing a fine mist that, when inhaled by you or anyone in your party, slowly restores health, mana, stamina, and whatever other guages there are. Duration is predefined.
(again, other variations possible)
Acid Potions
-Acid Potion: Burns the enemy when thrown
-Potion of Corrosion: Severely burns the enemy when thrown, toxic fumes from the acid damage nearby enemies
-Acidshower Potion: Severely burns the enemy when thrown, acid splashes and likewise damages nearby enemies, a cloud of toxic vapor forms adding the chance for further damage to nearby enemies.
(more variations on this could be made possible using different recipies, for example, you could make an acid potion that burned the enemy but also exploded adding fire damage on impact.)
These are just a few ideas. Digest them, and tell me what you think and add your own spin to it if you'd like.
I had a similar problem while playing Diablo 2: LoD on my dear laptop. I have a GeForce 5200Go video card, 2.8Ghz P4 processor, and 512MB RAM, so playing D2 should be no problem. At first I thought my connection to BNet was lagging, but after experimentation, I found that it was not my connection at all. It was, in fact, my laptop overheating due to: 1) the dusty environment of my room, and 2) my video settings set to 3d. So, I cleaned my laptop out, and turned the video settings to 2d instead. Works perfectly. Hope that helps in some way. Good luck!
Also, I did read some other storyline ideas that involved two of the Lesser Evlis, Azmodan and Belial. Though I do not yet know very much about them, they have never made an appearance in either Diablo game. Plotlines involving these Lesser Evils could be possible, and very interesting.
OK, after reading some of the proposed ideas, I've noticed a trend: most of the ideas concerning a storyline for Diablo 3 are focused around what happens *after* the events in Diablo 1, 2 and the Expansion. What I would be most interested in playing is a game that centers around events that happens *before*, even hundreds of years before the original games.
I have found many sources relating to Diablo history. For your reference, here are a few of them:
One idea I've had for a while, since reading some of the content on BlizzardUniverse.net, has been centered on the Sin war.
"The Great Conflict," as it is called, is the epic battle between the High Heavens and the Burning Hells. According to lore, man's emergence into the mortal realm brought about a new opportunity to both the Legions of the Light and the Armies of Darkness, for man had the ability to be swayed. They knew that wherever man's favor lies, so does victory. So the Great Conflict, at last, entered the mortal realm.
The Powers of Evil, now roaming the earth in disguise, search for influence. Upon discovering that mere persuasion couldn't bring about loyalty, the Demons began to use harsher methods of coercion... The Angels, outraged by this attempted "taming" of man also enter the mortal world disguised and vow to protect man from corruption. Those terrorized by the Darkness lucky enough to escape fled to sanctuary in the Light, while those who felt oppressed by the often strict practices harsh punishments of the Light were driven away to bolster the cause of the Darkness. Nearly all men were oblivious to the true identities of the Warriors of Light and Darkness, and those exceptional enough to know allied themselves out of free will.
[time passes]
A group of magi known as the Vizjerei form in the East. Two members of this powerful mage clan were Bartuc, the Warlord of Blood, and the Summoner, Horazon.
[time passes]
The Archangel Tyrael gathers wizards from the Eastern mage clans to form the Horadrim, one of whom is Jered Cain, the ancestor of the last Horadrim, Deckard Cain. Given the Soulstones and their secrets from Tyrael, the Horadrim set out to capture the Three Prime Evils, Diablo, Lord of Terror, Mephisto, Lord of Hatred, and Baal, Lord of Dectruction.
[time passes]
The Horadrim Capture Mephisto and Baal in two of the Soulstones, and pursue Diablo Westward. Capturing Diablo within the final Soulstone, the Horadrim buried it in a cave in the Western land of Khanduras. Afterwards, a great monastary was built to house the entrance to the cave, and the Horadrim protected the Soulstone from there. A series of catacombs was built beneath the monastary to house the remains of their dead. However, the Horadrim began to die out, and soon the monastary began to fall into ruins. The town of Tristram was built near the old Monastary.
[more time passes, the Zakarum religion gains power, King Leoric becomes corrupted, Diablo is unleashed... and so on, and so on]
----
I always thought it would be incredibly cool to fight alongside the Vizjerei magi of the Horadrim order to seal the Prime Evils into the Soulstones (and Baal into Tal Rasha).
I realize that this is not really a storyline per se, but more of a platform to launch a storyline. My real interest lies in the rise and fall of the Horadrim order, and the rise of the Zakarum religion.
Please, comment on any of my ideas or my telling of some of the history, as any story needs to have consistency. Thank you all.
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Yessir, I'm as giddy as a schoolgirl!.... ummm, I really didn't say that. Just the same, I'm really excited. By the way, check out the staff bios on the Flagship Studios website. It made mention on a few of them that, while at Blizzard, they were working on an (as of yet) unannounced title.
Here are some links for your viewing pleasure:
http://www.flagshipstudios.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=57&Itemid=29
http://www.flagshipstudios.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=50&Itemid=29
http://www.flagshipstudios.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=56&Itemid=29
http://www.flagshipstudios.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=58&Itemid=29
So, with the upcoming PCGamer Magazine announcement, the patent applied for by Blizzard on December 9th, 2005 with the heading "DIABLO", and the biographies of former Blizzard North employees currently working at Flagship Studios, along with Blizzard's failure to even mention the Diablo Universe at Blizzcon to provide a suitable "calm before the storm"... my friends, I'd say there's a pretty good chance that within the next year and a half, we'll say goodbye to our families, friends, schools, and lives in general whilst we warmly greet Diablo III with open arms (but hopefully not wallets... WoW style). <-- unnecessarily long sentence
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The Hell Unleashed Mod can be found here for download:
http://arimyth.planetdiablo.gamespy.com/hell.htm
and help with technical issues can be found in the forums, here:
http://arimyth.planetdiablo.gamespy.com/forum/
It is an amazing mod. New skills, new areas, new monsters, new items. I've played it for a while, but not recently, so I'm not the person to go to with setup questions. Have fun!
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- I would also like to see customizable appearances. If there were 8 sorceresses in the same game, it would be preferrable if they didn't all look exactly the same.
- One of the cool things from Diablo 2 was that when you put different types of armor on, your character model would show that. But it didn't do it for all armor types. I'd like that to happen for gloves, boots, belts, and even rings and amulets if possible.
- I played a Diablo 2 mod called Hell Unleashed, and it had a very cool feature: it allowed you to transmute armor and weapons in the Horadric Cube with colored dyes, and it would turn that item that color. Not entirely necessary, but nifty to have.
- I personally would like it if, when using melee attacks, you could run and attack at the same time.
- Mercenaries: wow, these guys are dense. I think that (and I saw this somewhere else mentioned on this site) there should be a command GUI for mercenaries. Hit a button, a small menu pops up and you tell them what to do/where to go. Perhaps a waypoint system for them. Instead of having them walk in circles in the Arcane Sanctuary, set up a few waypoints to help him along. Also, I think that more than just weapon, armor, helm should be accessible. They should also be able to wear boots, gloves, etc.
- I know I'm going to get some flak for this, but here it goes: no level 1 Hell charcters. Not only is it impractical, it allows for bots to spam messages on ANY difficulty without too much effort. Hell mules, you say? read on:
- There should be the equivalent to an account name town, where, when you log in, you're sent directly to a small town where all of your characters on that account name are stored. From there, you can assume control of any of them and drop whatever items you need to to transfer.
- Variations in skills. Tired of seeing a game filled with Cold Sorceresses constantly using Frozen Orb (please... make it stop)? Well there should be a system that not only has more skill possibilities, but variations on those existing skills to make for a more interesting experience. Maybe, instead of an orb of ice that sprays ice bolts everywhere, you could cast a spell that makes a giant spire of ice come out of the ground that would rain down ice shards. Just a thought.
I could think of many more things, but people complain about me having long, thoughtful posts. Whatever.
Enjoy.
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After much internal debate, I have decided that your idea about the dynamic creation of potions via magic is a better idea than mine *bows*. I have, however, thought of another class that I'm not sure if anyone has thought of yet that *could possibly* employ the element-mixing scheme I wanted.
You have my full support, marley420.
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If any of you have ever played the Secret of Evermore, you'll remember the magic system they employed: it was based on Alchemy. There were different elements and substances you could find and combine them in different ways to cast different spells. It would be nifty if there were a similar system in Diablo 3. The player could have an alchemy case of some sort where he stored his ingredients (in his inventory), and whenever he wanted to make a new potion or some such item, he could look into the case, see what he has, and use an index of known recipies to make something (the recipies could be learned through the course of the game).
Collecting the items could be interesting. Using Diablo 2 monsters as an example: maybe the ingredients to a certain spell or potion could be 2 foul crow beaks and a tainted horn, and another could be a demon's heart and bone dust. Also, in the PC/XBox game Morrowind, an alchemy system was used. Different types of plants and minerals were scattered everywhere, and you could find certain plants in certain areas where they grew naturally. I think that would benefit gameplay greatly. Instead of passing straight through areas like the Tamoe Highland or the Outer Steppes, you might need to gather ingredients that can only be found there, and therefore have the player actually use the area for something.
I think that the alchemy case could be used by all classes, but only the Alchemist would have full use of it, obviously. The Barbarian or Necromancer, for example, would be able to make basic potions or elixers, but the Alchemist would be able to make things such as smoke screens, flash potions, or mustard gas potions.
My idea for Alchemist skills is as follows:
The skill tree (which I hope will be used again in D3) will have the basic potions the Alchemist can make, as well as other skills that i didn't really think of yet. Each point, as in Diablo 2, will increase one's proficiency with that particular skill, thus increasing the damage it does, and maybe even decreasing the ingredients needed to make. Although you have the ability to make the potions because you have points in that tree slot, it does not guarantee that you are currently able to use that skill. What dictates wheather you can use it or not is solely based on the ingredients you have, not how much mana you have. And thus, the Alchemist has no use for mana where making potions is concerned (Other Alchemist skills will use mana though).
Try to think of the "Potions" segment of the skill tree as a rating of abilities, not a list of spells. Spells are cast using mana, but potions are MADE using the alchemy case's ingredients. And so if you're reading the fire potions section of the potions tree, you may have 4 points into Fire Potion. That means that you have a proficiency of level 4 in making that type of potion, so your Fire Potions are more potent than those of someone who only has 2 in Fire Potion. They do more damage, and at higher levels you may be so proficient at making them, that some ingredients are unnecessary and you won't have to use them.
I was thinking that there could be a potion icon, as in Diablo 2, that would light up if you were able to make the potion, and would be colored red if you didn't have the right ingredients and couldn't make it. That way, you could make the potion in the middle of a battle from the normal view, rather than having to go into your inventory, look at the index, compare your ingredients from your case to the index, and finally make the potion. *point* *click* *poof* *throw*
Potions could include:
-Incendiary Potion: flame engulfs the enemy on impacts, the enemy burns for a specified duration
-Scatter-Flame Potion: A "scatter-bomb" that, when thrown, ignites and burns for a specified duration. If an enemy is not hit, the fire burns on the ground and has the chance of igniting passersby.
(other variations are of course possible using different recipies)
-Smokescreen: emits a thick, choking haze that causes confusion and has a specified duration
-Rejuvinating Mist: Explodes, releasing a fine mist that, when inhaled by you or anyone in your party, slowly restores health, mana, stamina, and whatever other guages there are. Duration is predefined.
(again, other variations possible)
-Potion of Corrosion: Severely burns the enemy when thrown, toxic fumes from the acid damage nearby enemies
-Acidshower Potion: Severely burns the enemy when thrown, acid splashes and likewise damages nearby enemies, a cloud of toxic vapor forms adding the chance for further damage to nearby enemies.
(more variations on this could be made possible using different recipies, for example, you could make an acid potion that burned the enemy but also exploded adding fire damage on impact.)
These are just a few ideas. Digest them, and tell me what you think and add your own spin to it if you'd like.
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"Seven is the number of the Powers of Hell, and Seven is the number of the Great Evils."
The 4 Lesser Evlis:
Duriel, the Lord of Pain
Andariel, the Maiden of Anguish
Belial, the Lord of Lies
Azmodan, the Lord of Sin
The 3 Prime Evils:
Mephisto, the Lord of Hatred
Baal, the Lord of Destruction
Diablo, the Lord of Terror
Azmodan and Belial were, if I'm not mistaken, mentioned in Diablo 1.
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Information about Azmodan and Belial:
Azmodan - http://www.lunarfalls.com/Diablo/charguide/characters-a.html#Azmodan
Belial - http://www.lunarfalls.com/Diablo/charguide/characters-ba-bl.html#Belial
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I have found many sources relating to Diablo history. For your reference, here are a few of them:
- http://www.blizzarduniverse.net/diablo.php (BlizzardUniverse.net: very, very interesting)
- http://www.diabloii.net/generalinf/overview.shtml (Diabloii.net's history section, complete with a handy timeline )
- http://www.lunarfalls.com/Diablo/diablocast-index.html (A comprehensive look at the characters and story of the Diablo series)
- Diablo: Demonsbane (Robert B. Marks)
- Diablo: Legacy of Blood (Richard Knaak), The Black Road (Mel Odom), and The Kingdom of Shadow (Richard Knaak)
One idea I've had for a while, since reading some of the content on BlizzardUniverse.net, has been centered on the Sin war.
"The Great Conflict," as it is called, is the epic battle between the High Heavens and the Burning Hells. According to lore, man's emergence into the mortal realm brought about a new opportunity to both the Legions of the Light and the Armies of Darkness, for man had the ability to be swayed. They knew that wherever man's favor lies, so does victory. So the Great Conflict, at last, entered the mortal realm.
The Powers of Evil, now roaming the earth in disguise, search for influence. Upon discovering that mere persuasion couldn't bring about loyalty, the Demons began to use harsher methods of coercion... The Angels, outraged by this attempted "taming" of man also enter the mortal world disguised and vow to protect man from corruption. Those terrorized by the Darkness lucky enough to escape fled to sanctuary in the Light, while those who felt oppressed by the often strict practices harsh punishments of the Light were driven away to bolster the cause of the Darkness. Nearly all men were oblivious to the true identities of the Warriors of Light and Darkness, and those exceptional enough to know allied themselves out of free will.
[time passes]
A group of magi known as the Vizjerei form in the East. Two members of this powerful mage clan were Bartuc, the Warlord of Blood, and the Summoner, Horazon.
[time passes]
The Archangel Tyrael gathers wizards from the Eastern mage clans to form the Horadrim, one of whom is Jered Cain, the ancestor of the last Horadrim, Deckard Cain. Given the Soulstones and their secrets from Tyrael, the Horadrim set out to capture the Three Prime Evils, Diablo, Lord of Terror, Mephisto, Lord of Hatred, and Baal, Lord of Dectruction.
[time passes]
The Horadrim Capture Mephisto and Baal in two of the Soulstones, and pursue Diablo Westward. Capturing Diablo within the final Soulstone, the Horadrim buried it in a cave in the Western land of Khanduras. Afterwards, a great monastary was built to house the entrance to the cave, and the Horadrim protected the Soulstone from there. A series of catacombs was built beneath the monastary to house the remains of their dead. However, the Horadrim began to die out, and soon the monastary began to fall into ruins. The town of Tristram was built near the old Monastary.
[more time passes, the Zakarum religion gains power, King Leoric becomes corrupted, Diablo is unleashed... and so on, and so on]
----
I always thought it would be incredibly cool to fight alongside the Vizjerei magi of the Horadrim order to seal the Prime Evils into the Soulstones (and Baal into Tal Rasha).
I realize that this is not really a storyline per se, but more of a platform to launch a storyline. My real interest lies in the rise and fall of the Horadrim order, and the rise of the Zakarum religion.
Please, comment on any of my ideas or my telling of some of the history, as any story needs to have consistency. Thank you all.