[RMVX] Legend of Aldor: Book II

Lyndolim no Aldor (Songs of Aldor)

A Ranger's Tale

Introduction
The game itself is based on a short story book I am writing (The Legend of Aldor Trilogy), and therefore, it shall focus more on the story rather than the gameplay. Last thing, this project is one that I am fairly proud of, because I started with something (which is better than saying but never do). One thing you may wonder is, "Why in the world would you start with Book II rather than Book I?" The answer is that Book I was done in RPG Makerr 2003, before my old computer got a virus and messed up everything. I decided that I would redo it on RPG Maker VX instead, once I am done with Book II, before starting Book III... eventually...

World History
The emptiness was given the shape of a great sphere of transparent liquid, clear like crystal, and it was named Water, and fish and all marine monsters dwelt in it. From Water came out Earth and all the terrestrial beasts, reptilians, mammalians, amphibians, and all kinds of plants and trees grew, and all the plains (green and deserts) were formed, and all mountains and hills were shaped. Over Earth blew Wind, and myriads of celestial animals flew with it, finding the goal of their existence as being the guardians of the high sky. But Fire was different, for from it came nothing. Fire was rather the supporter of the other three Elements and gave Light and warmth to all who desired them; for Light did the creatures longed for, and heat they needed.

The wises say that there was a time in which the Four Elements balanced one another (they used to mention the term "QUADRA" to describe this fact, but it appears to have been lost in the Later Days). Each knew of and had their limits, and none could go beyond it: Water could not go further than the coastal lines of Earth; Earth could not prevent Wind from flying at will with its high mountains and valleys and tall trees; Wind could not blow out in anger; and Fire could not ravage the others, for Fire was the mightiest amongst them. It is difficult, however, to recall when the Balance was lost, for the ancient records assume that it occurred before Time existed. The reason is that Time did not exist in the Elderlands, and the Winged Lions did not need to calculate it, because they were deathless.
- From Dhinealindol 1:1, by Jaydee15

World Map

Spoiler for:

Story Overview
"When all seems peaceful and secured, it is then that the real perils emerge and doom fall upon the world," people say. It is no different for Aldor, the once-upon-history-called Nameless Lands: in fact, people ought to remember that chaos and despair, war and evil, are persistent entities, and these same people seem to have the desire to forget that these negative entities always emerge anew, if they are not completely eradicated. And, because of this crucial mistake we often refer to as "underestimation," Aldor is once again plunged into Darkness. The threat they had faced (and thought terminated) three years ago surfaces again, but this time stronger and, even worse, more organized!

Although several attempts to deal with this problem have been made, a few have succeeded... Not only that, old alliances that once were strong, between Men, Elves, and Dwarves, now begin to fade away! Out of a greater desperation, people turn their last bit of hope to the Band of Seven, who had, three years ago, saved the Nameless Lands from the Hilderi.

But how would these Aldorians react, if ever they were to know that the Band of Seven is no more; or that what is left of it does not want to get involved into the same Cycle of Destruction anymore; or that they do not want to interfere in matters they consider "useless?" After all, they have allegiance to no one, if the people recall correctly...

Main Actors:

Spoiler for:

Alduur, son of Baldur (a.k.a.: "Red-Eyed Ranger"; "The Hero of Four"):
Originally from "Blue Haven" (name Aldur in Elvish), Alduur's family was forced to move to Fandoin, as they sought refuge from the Hilderi's frequent rampages on the Haven, when he was but a child. It was in Fandoin that the main protagonist learned the Ways of Nature and developed his Elvish capabilities and nature-sensitivity. By then, Alduur had become attached to the environment and been trained in the ways of a Ranger by both kinfolks with whom he shares his heredity.

Reaching his early twenties, Alduur is first precipitated into a perilous adventure in hope to both defeat the Hilderi. Thinking that he had brought peace into the Known Realm of Aldor, Alduur has settled for a new, peaceful life with his wife-to-be, Rina, in Fandoin...

Irlid, son of Irlos:
Son of Irlos-King, and thus prince of the Sylengwie, the Forestfolk. Irlid was already there when the Hilderi rose to power. He had seen many victories and many defeats; hope and despair. And until now, despair has dominated Aldor for a long time. Whether or not the Silvan Elf had participated in some of the perilous battles, he refuses to say, but his superior skills in swordsmanship and nature-sensitivity and calling let it suppose so. Irlid, after all, is not much of a speaker, although whenever he speaks, words of wisdom come out of his mouth (most of the time). The Forestfolk prince dislikes the presence of Men, and thus prefers to stay away from them as much as possible, unless he finds interest in them (which is rare).

Irlid was part of the Band of Seven, who defeated Zharus and his Hilderi, about 3 years ago; and it was during this time that he had befriended Alduur; but he had also became a rival to Barill, son of Astrill.

Rina (a.k.a.: "Sky Drake"):
At a very young age, she and her family had moved from Miradel to Syllegrin, where she was further raised by the Forestfolk, where she lived for the most part of her life. It is not until she reached her twentieth anniversary that she decided to move to Fandoin in order to seek the peacefulness of one of the only towns that was not affected by the frequent attacks of the Hilderi. There she met Alduur and Barill, whom she befriended over the passing years. She became even closer to them during the Quest of Elements.

Rina is a Lancer (and soon-to-be Rune-Lancer, according to some sources) who can use Wind-based attacks, as she bends the will of her Element to do her biddings...

Barill, son of Astrill:
Son of war-veteran Astrill, who was often known by the name of Ice-Blaster Astrill and has joined forces many times with with Dwarves, Elves, and Men, at Toton Bhakh, to fight against the Adiospawns. When he was still a child, Barill was raised by the parents of Alduur, due to his parents' death by an Hilderi raid. Since childhood, Barill has vowed to follow the steps of his father, but many times was he held back; and it was not until he joined Alduur, during the Quest of Elements, that he had proven himself to be worthy of being called a "hero".

Because of his great charisma and good spirit, Barill can bring back the hope of those who are in the grasp of despair...

Secondary Actors:

Spoiler for:

"White Knight" Bane, son of Banor (a.k.a.: "Swordhealer"):
Son of nobleman Banor the Great and White Knight of Miradel, who was sent in mission to watch over the Red-Eyed Ranger's every move and report it to the King's most trusted ally, Counselor Tangiridril. Bane is considered over-zealous among all his peers--and probably one of the most powerful too. His Liquid-Sword techniques are feared by many who know of his name...

"Black Knight" Amdor, son of Banor (a.k.a.: "Red Blade"; "The Exiled Knight"):
Older brother of Bane, and once a Knight of Miradel, who broke his allegiance with King Brandul of the Goldenstar. He is, thus, a wanted enemy, who can only regain honor and have peace, if he aids his brother Bane in his quest. Because he is aware that his brother serves the will of the King's Counselor, rather than the King himself, Amdor does not fully trust his brother...

Brevis, son of Brevor:
Blacksmith and Squire of Bane. He followed his master to serve and protect him (although against the Knight's will), to show his proficiency and worth, so that he too may one day become a Knight...

"Greenfist" Evendim (a.k.a.: "The Sylvan Fist"; "Mouth of the Silvan King"; "Greenfoot"):
She is an embassador traveling around Aldor to speak in the name of the Silvan King Irlos to assure that peace is kept between Elves, Men, and Dwarves. One day, she is ambushed by a group of Hilderi and saved by "White Knight" Bane; and as a sign of recognition and repayment, she decides to help him in his quest...

Cedolphas "Cedo", son of Cerebor:
Warrior of Toton Bhakh, who was sent in a mission to search for the Red-Eyed Ranger to aid the desolate Fort against the rampaging host of Hilderi...

Coreman "Core", son of Norman:
A man of high reputation who left his everything he possessed, in order to pursue his studies on Castershells, a long-range, gun-looking weapon capable of using the power of Elements as projectiles. He was often financed by the King of Miradel to advance in his goal, and he used to be alleged to him...

Thindiel:
Wife of Coreman and Elf of Syllegrin. She has allegiance to no one but her husband. She has assisted Coreman in whatever the latter did, as long as morality was involved. The only reason why she and her husband joined Cedolphas in his quest was to satisfy their thirst of adventure and knowledge...

"One-Eyed" Reval, son of Revor (a.k.a.: "One-Eyed Thief"):
Renowned thief who many times almost lost his life, especially because of his "womanizing" tendencies. Yet he is a fearsome challenger. His brain is quicker than his tongue, but his hands are slower than his shadow. Reval joined Cedolphas out of obligation, in order to preserve his life from the same people he had once worked with, in the past, as it is accustomed...

Noble Eyes

Spoiler for:

This section only mentions what will figure in the story, and they are not described entirely, as there is more than what this post contains...

The Eyes of Illusion (Illusionist)
The Eyes of Illusion is a human recessive gene that gives its user three main abilities:
1. The foresight of physical movements;
2. The mind-reading ability;
3. The ability to "see the unseen."
All skills, except the third one stated, are done through eye contact. According to mannish legends, it is said that a few rare Men were given the ability to "bend reality" with the Eyes of Illusions...

Screenshots

Spoiler for:

Battle Screens:
Will be posted soon...

Videos
Will be posted soon...

Features
- 16+ characters, each with unique traits, personal struggles, etc.;
- Deep storyline, divided into Parts and Chapters;
- Elves, Dwarves, and Men, each with their own speeches;
- The "Noble Eyes" abilities, also called "Sight System";
- Interactive Save Point NPC;
- Complete History and Geography Overviews and Lessons through NPCs, Books, and Files;
- More to be added...

DEMO(s)
- TECH-DEMO v0.1 <-- All I ask is that you do NOT copy my maps. I left the RTP and such intact, bcause I don't know how to upload the moving parallax maps through compressed filing. Anyway, enjoy and comment!

P.S.: Please, report any bugs, if you find any. It would be verily appreciated.

Non-Official Website
I now have a non-official website! Click here to visit!

Support
If you would like to show your support to my project, you can always add the following to your signature:

Code: [Select]

[url="http://www.rpgmakervx.net/index.php?showtopic=35139&st=0&p=333310&#entry333310"][img]http://img684.imageshack.us/img684/4499/loabookiiuserbar2.jpg[/img][/url]

Comments? Feedbacks? Please share. Also, this topic can be found here!

This looks awesome.
I'll edit this when I try out the demo.

Recheck your download link, please? It's formatted wrong and messing around with the URL doesn't let me access it. I really wanted to give your game a twirl

http://www.mediafire.com/?ls6a2iqmi6ebomb
Your maps look incredible.

@AbsoluteIce:
Thank you. But, be warned, it is more like a Tech-DEMO, to try out a new kind of mapping, so that people can comment on which mapping style will be best. Right now, the tiles I use can be seen in the Screenshots section; but I have been trying out the Inquisitor/Cyangmou's tilesets, too.

@Skanker:
Download link is fixed. Oh, and don't expect much until at least mid-April. The real DEMO will be released around that time, if all goes well.

@Pacman:
Thank you for the link formatting. The main OP was updated, so it should work now.

The game does look very pretty, and I like what I've seen of the story and world history.

Sounds interesting. Looks amazing. What did you use to make your world map? Was it a program, or did you hand draw it?

@Modern_Algebra:
Thank you for the honor of transfering this topic to the Substancial Projects section.

@Countdown:
I hand-drew it, then scanned it on my PC. I used Photoshop to add the details. Long process. LOL!

Actually, I take back my last comment. Your everything in this project is awesome.

Aaaaand... another screenshot for you guys! I think the release date for the Demo may be sooner than I expect it. But still, I am thinking that the next Demo will be released around mid-April or so. Now, here's that for you guys!

(Not the final product!!)

The maps are nice, but the heavy use of Lord of the Rings lore is kind of jarring.

I guess if you're going to be heavily influenced by classic fantasy may as well take influences from the father of it.

you might want to do some revisions of your writing though. there are some grammar and spelling issues.

@Acolyte:
I'm confused by your statement. Do you mind explaining, please?

@Strike_Reyhi:
Eh? O_o

Oh come on now. Second age? Heavy use of Elvish that is at the very least phonetically similar to quenya? A forestfolk prince? Aragorn, son of Arathorn Alduur, son of Baldur, the ranger?

Don't pretend you weren't lifting some of that from Tolkien.

named Water, and fishes and all marine monsters dwelt in it. From Water came out Eart and all the terrestrial

plural of fish is fish. you spelled Earth as Eart

that's just in the first few sentences. All I'm saying is take another run through of your writing and check for proper spelling and grammar. it's not bad, but it is noticeable and it does tarnish the perception of your writing and your writing is the focus of the game. you do have a solid story though.

Spoiler for:

don't pretend you know nothing about JRR Tolkien's Lord of the Rings.

@Strike_Reyhi:
Thank you for the pointer. I probably omitted a few things when I wrote it. I will make the corrections.

@Acolyte:
I asked you politely to explain your reasoning because I did not understand your statement correctly, but your answer was kind of rough.

Sorry, I didn't mean to come off that way. I just see a lot of people that rip lore and things from other places and act like they came up with it.

@Acolyte:
Bah! Don't worry. But never in this entire thread have I denied it. If you go to my other forum, someone actually pointed out that it even had some Shakespearean elements in it. Anyway, yes, it is inspired by LOTR and all; and I do not deny that it was inspired by it, structure-wise. As for the story itself, I think you will be able to judge it once the Demo comes out.