I've been making several corrections and fixes to Hearkenwold based on feedback received over the past few weeks. In the meantime, the IceBlink engine has also been getting some upgrades to address outstanding issues or visual changes. By next weekend, I expect to post a new version of the module along with build 116, which will hopefully enhance the playing experience.
On a longer term prospect, thanks to
CryptRat and his comment above, I have started work on the next piece of content to be included in the campaign, The Halls of Hamhock, which is presently inaccessible beyond the mountain gates. This will natuarly be a dwarf-centric adventure with quite a bit of history. First some background information:
I initially created the Halls of Hamhock as an adventure design using the FRUA toolset in the late nineties. Years later, I would recreate the module for NWN2. But now I am looking forward to building it again in IceBlink, returning this iteration to its proper 2D and turn-based origins.
The idea behind Hamhock goes back even further. It's one of those odd naming conventions of taking a word that has meaning in the common English language, and imposing it on a fantasy setting within its own context. I think the original inspiration for the name came from the Greyhawk city of Hochoch, where we launched our PnP campaign. Although even the literal translation of Hamhock is fitting, as the dwarves who live in the village have a rural quality to their character, while the dwarves in the mountain are the more traditional monocled sort. The player can even meet an angry pig farmer outside in the village of Hamhock.
One of the more noticeable changes to IceBlink on an engine level is that the size of the portraits used in conversations has been increased. Both the dialogue windows, if you compare to previous screenshots, and narration text.
Another thing added to combat encounters, is a round indicator as well as listing victory conditions. We will soon have the capability of winning fights by eliminating a designated enemy (think assassination) or fulfilling other objectives. There is also a pop-up screen at the end of combat to better display the party's victory, XP earned and any loot drops.
Here is a sample conversation with a dwarven general, with a remark referencing the broader Hearkenwold adventure. Again, the portrait size has been enlarged, taking up more of the screen real estate than before. I believe the character icons on the bottom will be getting an increase as well, in an upcoming version of the engine.
The architectural concept behind the Halls of Hamhock is a fortress built inside the core of a mountain. So you can expect to find tiled floors, brickwork and other masonry, in addition to cave walls and bare earthen ground in some places.
Once the Halls are integrated into the Hearkenwold campaign, it will immediately become the largest dungeon complex in the game. An adventure for characters 5th to 7th level, although it might be attempted at lower levels with disastrous results. More importantly, it expands the game world and moves closer to one of the overarching goals I have of creating this campaign that players can jump into and go off and find their own path, exploring quests that might only have a peripheral connection to the main storyline.
It will take several months to finish this project. But next weekend I will post the updated module for Hearkenwold with more details about the fixes and changes.
