Infra Arcana - An H.P. Lovecraft/Horror based Roguelike

[Musaab]

Anybody playing the latest release? (18.2)

 

[Tito Anic]

Anybody playing the latest release? (18.2)

Trying it right now. So what are major survivability rules? Game looks unforgivable and RNG dependent. Every time i play i meet 5-6 walking corpses who gang-rape me on LVL1

 

[Musaab]

It's extremely hard...yeah

 

[Matador]

It's a great game. My best run was floor 14-15. Probably my favourite roguelike along brogue. Very tight design.

It's very punishing, but I love the fact that the starting levels are not filler. You have to earn every bit of progress.

It's the most tactical roguelike I played, you have to think very Carefully your actions almost always.

One advice: identify the potions drinking them ASAP, almost all have positive effects, and the worst ones (poison) are manageable if you are in a safe spot. Drink them near downstairs to optimize shock management or just before level up to get rid of negative effects instantly. Do the same with scrolls.

In this regard the game is not so unforgiving as others that have lots of cursed items.

 

[eXalted]

Fucking Cultist Priests.

If you see one surrounded by other monsters, run and hide. The faggot paralyzed me with a spell and I died from all of them before I had time to act.

And a tip from me that probably everybody knows:

You can kick (w) the zombie corpses so that they don't resurrect.

 

[Lithium Flower]

Wow, I played about a dozen runs of this a year or two ago and really enjoyed it. Had no idea it was made by a codexer. Is 18.2 the latest version?

 

[non]

Wow, I played about a dozen runs of this a year or two ago and really enjoyed it. Had no idea it was made by a codexer. Is 18.2 the latest version?

Awesome! Yes, 18.2 is the latest released version (if you don't build the develop version from source).

Currently working on version 19.0, which will probably be out in a month or so. It will be a huge update - here's an ongoing changelog (I add stuff to it continuously):

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/martin-tornqvist/ia/develop/res/release_history.txt

 

[eXalted]

Currently working on version 19.0, which will probably be out in a month or so. It will be a huge update - here's an ongoing changelog (I add stuff to it continuously):

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/martin-tornqvist/ia/develop/res/release_history.txt

I really like the direction of the new patch.

• No experience from monsters is a really nice addition. It always seemed to me counter-intuitive and against the game atmosphere to farm monsters for EXP. Especially those tasty oozes
• Spells for every class will make playing with classes different from occultist a lot more interesting.
• And concerning the newly added monsters - a question of casual nature - are there spites for them ( for the tiled version)?

 

[non]

And concerning the newly added monsters - a question of casual nature - are there spites for them ( for the tiled version)?

Some of them have new tiles, and some are reusing old tiles with different colors.

 

[Lithium Flower]

Wow, I played about a dozen runs of this a year or two ago and really enjoyed it. Had no idea it was made by a codexer. Is 18.2 the latest version?

Awesome! Yes, 18.2 is the latest released version (if you don't build the develop version from source).

Currently working on version 19.0, which will probably be out in a month or so. It will be a huge update - here's an ongoing changelog (I add stuff to it continuously):

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/martin-tornqvist/ia/develop/res/release_history.txt

That looks pretty delicious. Looks like it will be more allowing of stealth (or at least avoidance), then? And the move to fewer but more challenging enemies seems to be a great and thematic change as well.

 

[non]

Looks like it will be more allowing of stealth (or at least avoidance), then? And the move to fewer but more challenging enemies seems to be a great and thematic change as well.

Yeah it should definitely be more stealth focused - the general idea is that combat is now more dangerous, more resource draining, less rewarding, but easier to avoid.

In the previous versions you were pretty much constantly harassed, while in the next version encounters should be more significant.

However, some people pointed out that a melee play style had now become impossible. So I've been trying to balance it precisely so that direct combat is very risky for most characters, but a viable strategy if you focus your character on it. Some changes I've done to support this is that the War Vet also starts with the "Healer" trait (reduces cost of combat) , and that "Tough" and "Rugged" also gives armor bonus.

 

[eXalted]

Could someone explain what Radiant and Lucky do?

 

[non]

Could someone explain what Radiant and Lucky do?

In next version, there will be in-game descriptions for all such properties (on the [@] character screen, and when viewing monster descriptions)

Radiant emits light around you - it's just like having the Electric Lantern activated.

By "Lucky" you probably mean "Blessed". It has a lot of little effects. The most immediately tangible is that you get a small bonus to all skills (like hit chances, stealth, searching) - but there's also a bunch of checks throughout the code where you get a little better result if you're Blessed. For example disarming traps is more likely, and potions inside chests won't break when you kick the chest. The "Cursed" property is of course the opposite of all this.

 

[eXalted]

I thought that it is something like that. Thank you for confirming it.

Will there be changes to the flares? I hardly find any role for them.

 

[eXalted]

Something for the new version:

Shouldn't Molds be resistant to fear? I just terrified one via manuscript.

 

[Matador]

Wow, reading the changelog and it's amazing, the game is going to be even more interesting than before. Can't wait to play it!

 

[non]

Will there be changes to the flares? I hardly find any role for them.

They're pretty good for dealing with light sensitive shadow-type monsters, just toss a flare in the room and wait around the corner a bit.

Shooting them at monsters with the flare gun is somewhat powerful (it sets them on fire).

Also, in the next version standing in lit cells lowers your shock. So they could be used for example to make it to the stairs before insanity happens.

Shouldn't Molds be resistant to fear? I just terrified one via manuscript.

Yeah that sounds reasonable. I'll give them fear resistance.

 

[non]

Wow, reading the changelog and it's amazing, the game is going to be even more interesting than before. Can't wait to play it!

v19 is out now!

Download here:
https://sites.google.com/site/infraarcana/downloads

Changelog:

Gameplay
* You no longer gain XP from killing monsters - instead XP is raised by activities related to exploration and discovery, such as identifying items, drinking from some types of fountains, reading inscriptions on "monoliths", or seeing a new type of monster for the first time
* Fewer monsters are spawned on the map overall, and many monster types now tend to spawn in smaller groups, but are individually stronger - they also generally follow and remember you for a shorter time than before
* Monsters may become "suspicious" (typically with a message about them looking "wary" or "disturbed"), which gives them an increased chance of detecting you - they may still detect you immediately, but the chance for this is slightly lower than before
* Added metal doors - can only be opened with levers
* Added bookshelves - can contain Manuscripts
* Added barred gates - doors that can be seen and shot through
* Added gratings - walls that can seen and shot through
* Added "pylons" - can be activated with a lever for various effects (most commonly burning the area around them)
* Added hanging vines - can be walked through, but blocks line of sight
* Added rusty chains - makes a noise when someone walks through them
* Items are more likely to spawn behind hidden/stuck/metal doors, and in areas away from the path to the stairs
* Added a bunch of unique artifacts, and removed the old (relatively bland) randomized amulets
* If you are Observant, you now get "level feelings" when there are unique monsters or artifacts (when entering a new level, or when monsters appear on the map), such as "I feel like I should examine this place thoroughly"
* Standing in lit cells (e.g. lit by the Electric Lantern) now temporarily reduces your shock
* Some rooms are generated from handmade templates (loaded from a text file)
* The game now models creature speeds in a new (probably more common and intuitive) way - creature speeds are expressed as percentages, e.g. 50%, 100%, or 300%, and different actions can have different speeds
* Many bonuses such as "occasionally performing a certain action instantly", now simply gives a speed bonus instead (to a specific action, or to all actions)
* Dodging also applies to ranged attacks
* The spells Slow, Paralyze, and Terrify Enemies have been merged into "Enfeeble Enemies"
* The spells Detect Monsters, Detect Traps, and Detect Items have been merged into "Searching" (which also detects doors)
* Burning features only hurt creatures on the same cell (not adjacent to it)
* "Cloud Minds" is a Rod instead of a spell (the Rogue starts with this item, intead of the spell)
* Spells have "skill level" percentages, which determines the strength of the spell (and can also add additional spell effects) - the skill levels are primarily increased by casting from Manuscripts
* All backgrounds can learn spells, but the Occultist gains proficiency much faster (and as before, starts with a few spells and has access to unique spell casting traits)
* Different monsters have different spell skill levels - spells cast by more powerful monsters will typically hurt more, last longer, summon nastier monsters, etc
* Monster spells have individual cooldown counters (instead of random chances to be cast) - so a monster cannot for example spam Darkbolt several turns in a row
* The Warlock trait gives a chance to cast damage dealing spell multiple times (instead of the old "Charged" mechanic)
* Added trait "Electrically Inclined" - gives bonus to using Rods, Devices, Electric Lanterns, and electricity weapons
* Added trait "Silent" - all melee attacks are silent, opening and closing doors does not alert monsters
* Added trait "Magically Gifted" - +20% skill with all spells
* The traits "Tough" and "Rugged" also grants 1 armor point each
* The War Veteran background also starts with the "Healer" trait
* The Occultist starts with fixed (non-random) items and spells
* When quaffing Potion of Insight, you can manually choose which item to identify
* Potion of Insight always gives some XP, in addition to identifying an item (to avoid making them worthless if all items are identified)
* All Manuscripts are guaranteed to be identified when read (previously this only applied to potions)
* You search for secret doors and traps a bit further away, and your chance of finding them is affected by distance - for adjacent cells there is now a higher chance of detection than before (to avoid requiring hundreds of turns to detect an obvious hidden door)
* Traps are always immediately revealed when triggered by the player
* Some melee weapons can be used for breaching doors or destroying corpses more effectively with [w] (check the item descriptions)
* Chests can no longer be trapped (it was awkward to deal with, and didn't really bring anything to the game) - chests are now interacted with merely by bumping them (if they are not locked), kicking them, or using an Opening spell
* Rogues remain aware of monsters much longer than the other Backgrounds, and the other Backgrounds remain aware for a shorter duration than before
* Removed the random "I have a bad feeling about this..." shock events
* The Iron Suit and Asbestos Suit no longer gives penalties to aiming or spotting hidden monsters and objects
* Removed all negative effects from critically failing melee attacks (such as "I am exhausted"), except for a small chance of the weapon breaking - which can only happen while cursed
* Added more monsters
* Zombie-type monsters occasionally drop "Zombie Dust" when they are destroyed - can be thrown at living, non-undead monsters to paralyze them
* Added property "Deaf", deafening traps, and a deafening spell (for monsters)
* When attacking invisible monsters who are immune to the attack, a message is printed to indicate this (previously it was only printed for seen monsters)
* Added Spiked Maces - a weapon with a weight between medium and heavy, and with a chance to stun the victim
* The Mi-go Electric Gun no longer uses ammo, and costs Spirit Points to fire

Interface
* The throwing slot has been removed - instead you change which item to use for throwing by pressing [T] (which can be a wielded item or an item in the backpack) - pressing [t] throws the currently selected item (this also has gameplay effects, since you don't have to spend turns to equip different items to throw them)
* While holding lit explosives, the explosive is shown in the status lines instead of the selected throwing item (with yellow text)
* All active properties are printed with descriptions on the [@] character decsription page, and when [v]iewing monsters
* When picking a trait, instead of showing all available and blocked traits in the same list, the trait selection screen now has two modes (toggled with [TAB]) - the first mode shows available traits, and the second shows traits for which the prerequisites are not yet fulfilled
* Reduced "more" prompt message spam from traps (less interruption)
* Addded option to enable/disable fading rendering brightness with distance from player
* Added an option to ask for confirmation before lighting explosives
* Added a low HP warning
* Removed the "q" command - Ghoul characters now feed on corpses when "waiting" on them instead
* The map shown on the postmortem info screen is drawn with tiles (if that mode is enabled), and in color
* Added "New journey" option to postmortem menu, to immediately start a new game
* When [v]iewing the map, the game also prints messages for cells with detected unseen monsters ("There is a creature here")
* When [v]iewing detailed monster descriptions, the game prints hit chances for melee, ranged, and throwing attacks for the player and the monster - with the calculations of the total hit chances shown
* Weapons now merely display their own hit chance modifier (e.g. +5% or -10%), instead of your skill plus the weapon modifier (the old way was misleading, since more factors are involved when calculating actual hit chances during attacks)
* Removed the "Combat skills" section of the character description page
* Messages are printed when stepping on corpses
* Sound effects are played when browsing menus
* When entering player name, the previously used name is filled in as a default name
* The player symbol is colored yellow when carrying a lit Electric Lantern

Bug fixes
* Fixed a bug where dropping the Staff of the Pharaohs would cause the spell to be permanently lost, even if the staff was picked up again
* Fixed a bug that prevented hit chance bonus against unaware targets for ranged attacks

 

[eXalted]

Fuckin great!

 

[Bocian]

Any chance you'll make version for 32-bit OS?

 

[Lithium Flower]

Second run of this new version. Descended to the first dungeon level, opened a door, saw Major Clapham Lee inside. Alright, guess I'm not going there. Close the door and take a few steps back and what do I see? A fucking mindeater.

Great changes by the way, but not sure if the above was a bug or some sort of randomized "fuck you" event, haha. Certainly made for a good story and genuinely scary experience?

 

[Tito Anic]

* You no longer gain XP from killing monsters - instead XP is raised by activities related to exploration and discovery, such as identifying items, drinking from some types of fountains, reading inscriptions on "monoliths", or seeing a new type of monster for the first time

Underrail?

* Fewer monsters are spawned on the map overall, and many monster types now tend to spawn in smaller groups, but are individually stronger - they also generally follow and remember you for a shorter time than before

A bunch (5-7) of wolfs meet me everytime near starting area, better not fight them - just sneak past them

Win x64 only? I play it on winXP x32 - no problems

 

[non]

Win x64 only? I play it on winXP x32 - no problems

Huh... I'm really confused now. I tried running it myself on 32bit Windows XP, and it did not start.

I'm currently setting up stuff to build a 32bit version. If I can play that build on both the 32bit Windows XP machine, and my 64bit Windows 7 machine, then I'll probably replace the uploaded release with this 32bit version instead.

Edit: Are you running SP3? The machine I tested it on was running SP2, which is probably deprecated as hell.

Edit: I think that what I labeled as a "64bit" release is actually entirely a 32bit release. If this is the case I just need to rename it.

 

[Tito Anic]

Huh... I'm really confused now. I tried running it myself on 32bit Windows XP, and it did not start.

Strange... it works fine for me.

 

[non]

Huh... I'm really confused now. I tried running it myself on 32bit Windows XP, and it did not start.

Strange... it works fine for me.

Aha, yep "SP3". That explains it.

I'm gonna test it with 32bit SP3 Windows XP as well. If that works, then I will just re-label the release as x86 / 32bit (which it really is).