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[kiiranaux]

Future Development Roadmap for Highfantasy

As of 1.3.00, Highfantasy has hit a stable and permanent release. Future "major" releases are not planned at this time until Premium. 1.2.02 was stable enough that, to repeat, Anyone who loves their current 1.2.02 worlds is good to keep playing those. Almost all bugs addressed in 1.3.00 can be fixed via reaction changes already posted in this thread. Message me if you have concerns and happy playing!

Highfantasy is now feature-complete.
(There's one more system that may be implemented at the time of premium, but development time will not go towards it currently).
This means that anyone who starts or continues a 1.2.02 or 1.3.00 world at this time is good to keep playing all the way up until the Premium release next year.

In the leadup to the premium release, Highfantasy development will focus on the following two areas:
-improving the language files
-preparing graphical hooks

Improving the language files (Process 1)

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

1. Create a list of new objects ("Oni" "Lungdragon" etc) and concepts ("Pyromancy" "Focus" "Gunpowder" etc) in HF
2. Add the list of new words to the English language files for HF, with suffixes/types as necessary
3a. Create translations of the words into the 5 non-procedural language (Human, Dwarf, Elf, Goblin, Kobold)
3b. Add translations of the words into the 5 non-procedural language files with suffixes/types as necessary
4. Categorize the new english language words into existing vanilla "word groups", so they propogate correctly ingame

Assistance may be solicited for 3a and 3b

Notes:
-Highfantasy will not add any new languages. The 6 vanilla languages (5+divine) are considered "language families" and are sufficient for the 14 civilizations as currently implemented.
-The Highfantasy language addition will be built on the Expanded word list (from Taffer and Warlord), but changes may be made to the expanded word list if requested

Preparing the graphical hooks (Process 2)

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

1. Using the list of objects from Process 1, create a graphical tracker (Excel) and process flow for each necessary graphic
2a. For each object, estimate the number of needed sprites (civs; undead; growth stages; ...)
2ba. For each object, flag if it can be created as a simple palette swap or temporarily created with a placeholder palette swap
2bb.    For each planned palette swap, identify the source object and the hue of the palette swap
2bc.    For each palette swap, identify whether the palette swap is short term (more work needed later) or long term (final)
2ca. For each object that is not a palette swap, identify whether it comes from another mod that will put in graphics
2cb.    For each other mod, identify whether I will likely want to use the mod graphics or discard the mod graphics
2cc.    For each mod whose graphics will be used, contact the mod author about their plans to implement / share
3. Flag the remaining HF object graphics which will need to be created manually (for example - 10 colors of slime, lap dogs, servals)
4. Post list of remaining HF object graphics and solicit assistance in creation in line with Premium style!

Assistance may be solicited for the remaining HF object graphics (3, 4) but people may be surprised how few of them there actually are!

These processes will be done slowly over the coming months; small bugfixes may be released during this time as needed. Let's all enjoy the road to Premium!

[PlumpHelmetMan]

Thanks for the heads-up, I can finally post community stories feeling secure that I won't abruptly have to abandon them.

[kiiranaux]

You and me both! I'm enjoying my own current little fortress alongside a savage river at a swamp and shrubland biome intersection, befriending the local centaurs, brewing vodka, and raising my servals/forest cats. The giant ticks have not yet noticed us, but the time for glory will someday come

[PlumpHelmetMan]

Also what's the major system planned for Premium? It's ok if you want to keep it a surprise.

[Enemy post]

Where should I go if I’m looking for dinosaurs?

[kiiranaux]

Where should I go if I’m looking for dinosaurs?

Savage biomes. Wetlands, Savannas, Tropical Shrubland, Forests, there's a few in grasslands and deserts, one or two in temperate shrublands. EG Tyrannosaurs are in SAVAGE Any_forest, any_grassland, any_wetland, which is a lot of biomes, although they are large_predators so they do compete with other savage things.

If you're looking for the full suite of uppercase dinos, those have to be installed with 1 extra step from the optional files (see post 1), and then they are located in cavern layer 3 (although that location can also be disabled or moved around using the dinosaur CV).

(Adding to my list of premium changes that, I should make sure every savage biome can spawn at least one "marquis dinosaur," like I did with mundane biomes and the rare "ancient mammals", probably one predator + one prey.)

Also what's the major system planned for Premium?

Spoiler, but for long enough out that we'll all have forgotten it,

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

I'm planning a horizontal extension to the magic system to brew potions. The system would be modular and based on potion brewing in the obscure minecraft mod "Better Than Wolves" (link). It would probably use the herbalism/plant gathering skill, with spellcrafts' magical ingredients as a starting point (balm leaf, etc). I want to include this both because it's a logical addition that works in the current setting, is fairly easy and interesting, and also frankly as an omage since most of my love and talent at video game design comes from studying and listening to Flowerchild, the creator of BTW

As a fluff inclusion with this system, unrelated, I would also introduce a couple of "magical being alcohols", of the type that you might find in a DnD campaign tavern. Dragon's Tongue, SlimeShine, and the like. Nothing special, just slightly magical booze with a kick.

[PlumpHelmetMan]

Sounds cool, procgen myth & magic will also be huge for the Highfantasy magic system I imagine (as if I didn't already have enough reasons to look forward to it ).

[kiiranaux]

Myth&Magic will be very cool for Highfantasy; I'm excited to rebuild/redesign around it.

But Premium is gonna be sooo important, because Premium makes it so easy to build aboveground, which really helps playing most of HF's civilizations. Building aboveground is obviously totally possible in the current release of DF but it takes some getting used to!

[Enemy post]

Thanks for the answer!

[VABritto]

Myth&Magic will be very cool for Highfantasy; I'm excited to rebuild/redesign around it.

But Premium is gonna be sooo important, because Premium makes it so easy to build aboveground, which really helps playing most of HF's civilizations. Building aboveground is obviously totally possible in the current release of DF but it takes some getting used to!

How will premium do so? I didn't see that update

[kiiranaux]

Just the ability to mouse click and drag to place things like walls in a hollow or filled square. I might be misremembering, but I thought I saw Zach do this in some gameplay vids a while back. We certainly have seen him do it with digging, so it stands to reason the same click and drag would apply to walls and floors.

Currently, to build an outdoor house in this or any mod that uses aboveground building (or building aboveground as dwarves in vanilla), you have to 1. build each wall, which is 5 actions because the last wall needs a space for a door. 2. build a ramp to the side of the wall. 3. build floors above each of the 5 wall segments. 4. build floors in the airspace above the interior. Only then can you place furniture inside the house. It's tedious, and realistic, but would be a lot faster with click and drag.

[kiiranaux]

Note regarding slime:

So, fun fact, slimes in this mod use a form of inheritance code that I havn't actually seen in dwarf fortress before - a combination of the caste and color inheritance systems used by other creatures. I originally wrote this code so that "black panther" leopards and other big cats would actually display the name black panther if they were of the correct coloration.

Anyway, as of some additional testing today, I'm pleased to say that the nested color inheritance works correctly! Let's say you have a green slime, whose specific green color is dark olive, and that slime mates, having one or more offspring. If the offspring fall into the green color family, they are more likely, but not guaranteed, to be dark olive than another green color. In other words, working as intended! Hopefully one of more of us finds this system interesting. You're free to go out there and "collect them all"!

[Sanguis]

Hi! What is magestaff used for? The item you can craft in spellcrafs.

[kiiranaux]

Hey there Sanguis,

The magestaff is super useful! It's a weapon but the weapon skill is "alchemy" (wizard skill). In other words, you can use it to "turn on" the wizard skill even if you don't have any dwarves with that labor enabled. And, it can train alchemy for better wizards.

To use it you'll have to craft some spellcharges, which use gems as an ingredient!

[kiiranaux]

Hello all,

I've added a link on the homepage to a development version of Highfantasy. The dev version will always contain the newest balance tweaks and adjustments, while saving me from posting new updates except when there are major bugs to address or content additions that warrant a new release. So anytime you're ready to start a new save file, it's worth checking out.

There continue to be no major bugs or features to fix and 1.3.00r is a great time - I'm enjoying my own little aboveground fortress for the past couple weeks. Cheers!