New class idea - Is a centaur-type class possible?

[RetsReds 64]

Now, I’m woefully unskilled when it comes to any type of programming or graphic design, so maybe this idea is 100% impossible, I don’t know. But I thought I’d share it just for fun anyway.  

Can a centaur class be made in Sacred 2?

 

I’m imagining a part of the 3D model of a horse merged with the upper body of a humanoid 3D model. The cosmetics can involve choosing between the many different horse body models and the different humanoid skin colors and hairstyles. Both female and male are fine by me.  Can this be done? Here’s what I’ve thought of so far, I’ll leave the story for last:

 

Mounts

Obviously, the Centaur won’t have a mount. He/she will have a buff that gives an X% speed bonus as well as some hp & defense bonus, and regen penalty. Without that buff, the Centaur will move at normal run speed and still won’t be able to use a month so maybe the buff should be extra-good to compensate for the drawback of not having a month. Essentially, other classes can have 4 buffs if we view the mount as a buff but the Centaur will have only the normal 3 buffs so these should be extra strong. Or, can a class just be given some boost to their base run speed? 

 

Items

Soooo… how about this:

1.       Head

2.       Shoulders

3.       Sleeves

4.       Gloves

5.       Breastplate (all 5 of these sound doable as they can pretty much be taken from another class. Either the Shadow Warrior's items or the Dryad's, as I see it. The Dryad's plate armor models always looked silly on her for me but on a centaur? Might look good.)

6.       Barding - Horse-body armor (barding is the right word, right? I’m not a native English speaker, sorry). I can’t think of anything like this existing in-game so I guess it will need to be created separately… I don’t know how hard/possible this is but maybe several identical cloth models with different colors and several identical plate models also with different colors?

7.       Horseshoes – I guess these won’t need a 3D model as they won’t be visible. Although some of the legendary horseshoes might have the flame horse’s and the draconicon’s flames in several different colors?

8.       Necklace

9.       Rings

 

Weapons

I don’t see a reason why the Centaur wouldn’t be able to use all weapon types – maybe even the Shadow warrior’s 2H hammers and axes as well? Maybe some kind of synergy with polearms and/or bows?

 

Combat arts

I haven’t given these too much thought yet but the three combat art groups I imagine go like this:

1.       Physical combat – mostly hand-to-hand, I hope most of the animations can be taken from the hand-to-hand combat animations of other characters. The lower body doesn’t need to be involved too much here. So, we’ll have:
1) a single target strike that works both with melee and range weapons,
2) a cleave/multishot Area of Effect strike that works both with melee and range weapons,
3) a single-target debuff – a “hunter’s mark” sort of thing that makes the target more susceptible to damage,
4) a short-term buff, maybe something like the SW’s banner,
5) a standard permanent buff that boosts physical combat expertise.

2.       Demonic magic – this isn’t very centaur-like, I know, but it’s connected to the story for the centaur that I came up with below. That being said, it’s a pretty cliché story and it’s similar to that of the Shadow warrior so it can be changed. If it’s changed, this tree can be turned into something more classical and shamanistic, for example – curses, totems, roots, etc. Either way, for now, my idea for this tree is to be full of demonic magic (we can call it “Dark matters” ):
1) a demonic curse that does damage over time and/or weakens the target,
2) a fire wave magic Area of Effect attack,
3) a single target “demonic bolt” attack,
4) a short-term buff that transforms the Centaur’s lower body into that of a Draconicon? (a Demonicon, lol),
5) permanent buff - some form of aura or maybe a summoned imp like that of the High elf.

3.       Horse-based combat – here I can see combat arts that are similar to those of a horse, only, you know – useful. I hope the standard horse animations of rear, charge, and leap can be used here:
1) Rear up for some nice Area of Effect damage (maybe the horseshoes can be made to affect Rear’s damage?),
2) Charge also for Area of Effect and for mobility,
3) Leap
4) a short-term buff of some kind
5) the permanent buff of this tree can be the “main” buff of the class – the one that gives it move speed, hp, and defense – the “mount replacement buff”.
 

Skills & attributes

So, no riding, duh… I don’t see a reason why anything else in the skills & attributes section should be problematic. Speed lore finally useful?

 

The Story

(I’m going with a male but a female would be just as cool)

During these troubled times in Ancaria, many beasts and people have been made to suffer in various ways. Demons running amok, wild animals driven to insanity by T-energy, thieves and murderers looking to capitalize on others’ suffering, and so much more pain... But none have endured the torment of the Centaur.

The result of decades-long experiments and mutations, the Centaur is the only surviving specimen of thousands. He was created in the underground laboratory of a sect of High elves that wanted to invent a new breed of slave-soldiers. The Centaur is a former human (dryad, if female?) marauder that’s been captured, fused with a warhorse, and has demonic blood injected in his veins. Kept together with dark magic that helps pump the otherworldly blood through his mixed veins, the Centaur woke up in his cell with constant, pulsing pain throughout his body.

Now that he’s managed to escape his confines, the Centaur is on a quest to right the wrong that’s been done to him. He is ready to use all his unnatural gifts to achieve this goal – the hand-to-hand proficiency he still has from his former marauding days, the power of his lower body to wreak havoc in the enemy lines, as well as the dark demonic magic that’s coursing through his veins. With all these skills and abilities, the Centaur is ready to change Ancaria’s path forever.

 

The Path

Introduction Light Path: “I did not want to be here nor was I meant to be… not like this anyway. But if I am to walk through this world then I’ll make sure that my new feet leave a memorable trail. This is going to be a new start for me but also for Ancaria. There’s a lot wrong in these lands – corruption, rampant and unchecked power, chaos and misery at every step. I used to cause some of it as well and I don’t know if I can change any of it now but my entire being is an undeniable proof that change is needed now more than ever.”

 

Introduction Dark Path: “Elves… petty, narcissistic fools! For so long they have been at the center of this world, trampling over others, leaving nothing but ash and blood in their wake. My very existence demonstrates the evil they’ve brought to these lands. No more. It’s time for them to be trampled underneath my feet! It’s time for them to be torn to pieces and see everything they’ve loved turned into an abomination! I’ll not hesitate to use them, lie to them, and twist them to my will however I must but I will have my revenge!”

 

Class quest chain (if there’s to be one)

After waking up in his underground cell (maybe the SW’s crypt can be used?) the Centaur manages to kill his several wardens and break free. After that, the quest chain leads him/her through Ancaria in pursuit of the high elf cultists that lead the experiments.

 

So, that's all that I've come up with so far... I'm guessing it's either impossible or it will be too difficult to do but I thought I'd share it anyway. I'm not asking for anyone to do it for my benefit - I'm still having plenty of fun with the current classes in the game. But if you like the idea and if it's doable, hopefully it can lead to something unique and fun.

Cheers!
RetsReds

Edited November 13, 2019 by RetsReds

[Flix 5,116]

Good read! It's always fun seeing creative character ideas like this. 

I can't think of any way to bring him to life without making new animations though.  The shortcut I've used for introducing new models to Sacred 2 is to match the mesh to an existing Sacred 2 creature so they can utilize existing animations.

I could probably find a Centaur model to import, but animating the poor guy is beyond me.

[RetsReds 64]

1 hour ago, Flix said:

Good read! It's always fun seeing creative character ideas like this. 

I can't think of any way to bring him to life without making new animations though.  The shortcut I've used for introducing new models to Sacred 2 is to match the mesh to an existing Sacred 2 creature so they can utilize existing animations.

I could probably find a Centaur model to import, but animating the poor guy is beyond me.

So "Frankensteining" two characters together won't work... that's a pity. I was hoping that animations from the horse's combat arts can be transferred to the centaur as well as some SW/Dryad mounted animations that are from the waist up (just hand-waving and shooting/hitting). I thought some of the demonic spell casting could be just the Rear up animation as well...

Oh well, it was fun to write.

 

Edit: The idea came after I saw how well the HE fits on a tiger and how her waist-up animations remain the same. So, I thought, "If she can cast her Magic coup and Glacial thorns just as easily regardless of what's between her legs, maybe she can cast them as easily regardless of what her legs are."

But I am indeed clueless about how these things work so if it can't be done - it can't be done. I'm going back to my white-tiger-riding ice queen.

Edited November 13, 2019 by RetsReds

[gogoblender 3,070]

On 11/13/2019 at 4:29 AM, RetsReds said:

Now, I’m woefully unskilled when it comes to any type of programming or graphic design, so maybe this idea is 100% impossible, I don’t know. But I thought I’d share it just for fun anyway.  

Can a centaur class be made in Sacred 2?

 

I’m imagining a part of the 3D model of a horse merged with the upper body of a humanoid 3D model. The cosmetics can involve choosing between the many different horse body models and the different humanoid skin colors and hairstyles. Both female and male are fine by me.  Can this be done? Here’s what I’ve thought of so far, I’ll leave the story for last:

 

Mounts

Obviously, the Centaur won’t have a mount. He/she will have a buff that gives an X% speed bonus as well as some hp & defense bonus, and regen penalty. Without that buff, the Centaur will move at normal run speed and still won’t be able to use a month so maybe the buff should be extra-good to compensate for the drawback of not having a month. Essentially, other classes can have 4 buffs if we view the mount as a buff but the Centaur will have only the normal 3 buffs so these should be extra strong. Or, can a class just be given some boost to their base run speed? 

 

Items

Soooo… how about this:

1.       Head

2.       Shoulders

3.       Sleeves

4.       Gloves

5.       Breastplate (all 5 of these sound doable as they can pretty much be taken from another class. Either the Shadow Warrior's items or the Dryad's, as I see it. The Dryad's plate armor models always looked silly on her for me but on a centaur? Might look good.)

6.       Barding - Horse-body armor (barding is the right word, right? I’m not a native English speaker, sorry). I can’t think of anything like this existing in-game so I guess it will need to be created separately… I don’t know how hard/possible this is but maybe several identical cloth models with different colors and several identical plate models also with different colors?

7.       Horseshoes – I guess these won’t need a 3D model as they won’t be visible. Although some of the legendary horseshoes might have the flame horse’s and the draconicon’s flames in several different colors?

8.       Necklace

9.       Rings

 

Weapons

I don’t see a reason why the Centaur wouldn’t be able to use all weapon types – maybe even the Shadow warrior’s 2H hammers and axes as well? Maybe some kind of synergy with polearms and/or bows?

 

Combat arts

I haven’t given these too much thought yet but the three combat art groups I imagine go like this:

1.       Physical combat – mostly hand-to-hand, I hope most of the animations can be taken from the hand-to-hand combat animations of other characters. The lower body doesn’t need to be involved too much here. So, we’ll have:
1) a single target strike that works both with melee and range weapons,
2) a cleave/multishot Area of Effect strike that works both with melee and range weapons,
3) a single-target debuff – a “hunter’s mark” sort of thing that makes the target more susceptible to damage,
4) a short-term buff, maybe something like the SW’s banner,
5) a standard permanent buff that boosts physical combat expertise.

2.       Demonic magic – this isn’t very centaur-like, I know, but it’s connected to the story for the centaur that I came up with below. That being said, it’s a pretty cliché story and it’s similar to that of the Shadow warrior so it can be changed. If it’s changed, this tree can be turned into something more classical and shamanistic, for example – curses, totems, roots, etc. Either way, for now, my idea for this tree is to be full of demonic magic (we can call it “Dark matters” ):
1) a demonic curse that does damage over time and/or weakens the target,
2) a fire wave magic Area of Effect attack,
3) a single target “demonic bolt” attack,
4) a short-term buff that transforms the Centaur’s lower body into that of a Draconicon? (a Demonicon, lol),
5) permanent buff - some form of aura or maybe a summoned imp like that of the High elf.

3.       Horse-based combat – here I can see combat arts that are similar to those of a horse, only, you know – useful. I hope the standard horse animations of rear, charge, and leap can be used here:
1) Rear up for some nice Area of Effect damage (maybe the horseshoes can be made to affect Rear’s damage?),
2) Charge also for Area of Effect and for mobility,
3) Leap
4) a short-term buff of some kind
5) the permanent buff of this tree can be the “main” buff of the class – the one that gives it move speed, hp, and defense – the “mount replacement buff”.
 

Skills & attributes

So, no riding, duh… I don’t see a reason why anything else in the skills & attributes section should be problematic. Speed lore finally useful?

 

The Story

(I’m going with a male but a female would be just as cool)

During these troubled times in Ancaria, many beasts and people have been made to suffer in various ways. Demons running amok, wild animals driven to insanity by T-energy, thieves and murderers looking to capitalize on others’ suffering, and so much more pain... But none have endured the torment of the Centaur.

The result of decades-long experiments and mutations, the Centaur is the only surviving specimen of thousands. He was created in the underground laboratory of a sect of High elves that wanted to invent a new breed of slave-soldiers. The Centaur is a former human (dryad, if female?) marauder that’s been captured, fused with a warhorse, and has demonic blood injected in his veins. Kept together with dark magic that helps pump the otherworldly blood through his mixed veins, the Centaur woke up in his cell with constant, pulsing pain throughout his body.

Now that he’s managed to escape his confines, the Centaur is on a quest to right the wrong that’s been done to him. He is ready to use all his unnatural gifts to achieve this goal – the hand-to-hand proficiency he still has from his former marauding days, the power of his lower body to wreak havoc in the enemy lines, as well as the dark demonic magic that’s coursing through his veins. With all these skills and abilities, the Centaur is ready to change Ancaria’s path forever.

 

The Path

Introduction Light Path: “I did not want to be here nor was I meant to be… not like this anyway. But if I am to walk through this world then I’ll make sure that my new feet leave a memorable trail. This is going to be a new start for me but also for Ancaria. There’s a lot wrong in these lands – corruption, rampant and unchecked power, chaos and misery at every step. I used to cause some of it as well and I don’t know if I can change any of it now but my entire being is an undeniable proof that change is needed now more than ever.”

 

Introduction Dark Path: “Elves… petty, narcissistic fools! For so long they have been at the center of this world, trampling over others, leaving nothing but ash and blood in their wake. My very existence demonstrates the evil they’ve brought to these lands. No more. It’s time for them to be trampled underneath my feet! It’s time for them to be torn to pieces and see everything they’ve loved turned into an abomination! I’ll not hesitate to use them, lie to them, and twist them to my will however I must but I will have my revenge!”

 

Class quest chain (if there’s to be one)

After waking up in his underground cell (maybe the SW’s crypt can be used?) the Centaur manages to kill his several wardens and break free. After that, the quest chain leads him/her through Ancaria in pursuit of the high elf cultists that lead the experiments.

 

So, that's all that I've come up with so far... I'm guessing it's either impossible or it will be too difficult to do but I thought I'd share it anyway. I'm not asking for anyone to do it for my benefit - I'm still having plenty of fun with the current classes in the game. But if you like the idea and if it's doable, hopefully it can lead to something unique and fun.

Cheers!
RetsReds

This creative writing is awesome! Just the concept of having another race in the game is exciting and reading through your lengthy backstory with a thought-out list of unique CA's was satisfying read

 

gogo

[RetsReds 64]

1 hour ago, gogoblender said:

This creative writing is awesome! Just the concept of having another race in the game is exciting and reading through your lengthy backstory with a thought-out list of unique CA's was satisfying read

 

gogo

I'm glad. It's just a quick stream-of-thought draft, it could be changed and polished in a lot of ways. There are so many things that could've been done with this game if they had kept working on it...