Friday Feature - The Next Big System Chronicle Master - 08/21/2009
This week we wanted to share some of the exciting information we released at Fan Faire about the new Chronicle Master system. After the release of Hoth: The Battle of Echo Base, SOE and LucasArts started discussing what the next "big thing" should be. We wanted something that could:
Draw on iconic characters and adventures
Be solo-able.
Be repeatable.
Be added to or iterated on in the future.
Be tons of fun for all our players!
The decision we arrived at was to revive a design that was planned years earlier but never brought to fruition: Star Wars Chronicles. Right from the start, we knew that we wanted the system to be easy to use, robust in the functionality, and offer a lot of opportunity for players to add a variety of new quests into Star Wars Galaxies. I have spent some time testing Chronicles and creating content, finding it very easy to pick up and play. As mentioned previously, I have included the information shared at this year's FanFaire along with screen shots of a basic walkthrough using the new Chronicles Systemwhich you will soon get to test yourself!
The design being brought to life
Getting Started
Overview:
Star Wars Chronicles is a player generated quest system.
Players will be able to take on the new role of Chronicle Master.
Chronicle Masters will create quests that can be burned to Chronicle Holocrons and then traded or sold to other players.
Creating a Quest:
Player generated quests are built though the new Chronicle Builder.
To begin building quests, the Chronicle Master will need to obtain Chronicle Relics.Chronicle Relics are in-game items that have quest events or specific actions associated with them.
Chronicle Relics can be looted, traded, or purchased. There are several different types of Chronicle Relics.
Once the necessary Chronicle Relics have been obtained, the Chronicle Master may begin building his/her quest. The Chronicle Master arranges the Relics in their quest, and customizes the text of the quest, to create compelling content for other players.
Once the Chronicle Master is happy with the quest, it can be saved as a Chronicle Draft so that it may be used again or improved over time.
A crafted quest will automatically produce rewards and XP based on...
How difficult the quest is.
The variety of tasks within the quest.
he length of the quest.
The Chronicle Master may also choose to attach a specific reward his/her own possessions, to sweeten the deal.
When complete, the Chronicle Master will burn the quest to a Chronicle Holocron that can be used by another player.
Playing a Quest:
Our goal is to make playing a Chronicle Quest virtually indistinguishable from a developer created quest.
Chronicle Quests are not like missions. Chronicle Quests will be visible in the Player Journal and Quest Helper. At the end of every Chronicle Quest the player may rate their experience.
High ratings will result in bonuses to the Chronicle Master's XP gain. Other benefits may be included at a later date.
Iconic Characters
As an added bonus, Star Wars Chronicles will give players the ability to create quests that feature iconic Star Wars characters such as:
Darth Vader
Han Solo
Boba Fett
Jabba the Hutt
...And more!
These iconic characters will be featured via Comm. Message Relics. Distribution of these Relics has yet to be determined.
Players will be able to customize dialogue for these iconic characters for use in their quests.
Over time, we hope to add other exciting ways for players to include iconic characters in their quests. Stay tuned for more information about the Star Wars Chronicles system as it becomes available. Make sure to look for Star Wars Chronicles release on Test Center if you would like to test the system and provide feedback to our team as we get closer to the release of this powerful system in Game Update 13.
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