March 2020 Update

It's been a while since I have posted anything. Day job sucked the life out of me with 

a big datacenter migration which we finished up Valentine's Day weekend. Despite the long hours, I still managed
to get some dev work done with the game! Most of the work that I have been doing is 
creating and populating the needed zones for the game. I've added some screenshots of the a few of the new zones
for your enjoyment. Note: some of these are early shots and are still a work in progress.

Now, I have a certain art theme that I've been trying to maintain; so, this isn't Assasin Creed Odyssey
level graphics were talking. This theme is based on the art that I have available and my abilities as a level designer :)
So, if you like state of the art graphics that makes your GPU cry, sorry to disappoint.

I have figured out a better way to handle the mob's AI. It's a faster method vs. deciding which spells/abilities
a mob has access. Now, I assign based on their level and what skills they should be using. I still consider any special
abilities/spells a mob may have and assign those individually. This has helped in speeding up mob design consideribly.

The run system has been revamped! I have added code which will select the nearest run point instead of retreating
to your starting location within the zone. Currently, Nerah's Landing is the only zone that has been updated.
I'll be updating all zones to include the multi-evac spots. So, within dungeons, you will no longer retreat
to the beginning. You will retreat to the nearest safe spot within the dungeon.

I've worked on my melee abilities. These abilities are tied to a specific skill. So, if you have the sword skill
and a sword equipped, you will be able to use those abilities that you have trained. You gain access through combat
books similar to spellbooks. What you can train in is based on your current skill rank and level. I have been 
contemplating adding ranks to each ability like there are with spells. The idea, you will need to seek out
trainers to increase your rank within that ability much like casters need to seek out spell tomes to increase
their spell's rank. I have decided yet; but, I really like the idea.

I'd like to say thanks for those who are still interested in this little game. It has kept me 
motivated to finish it. I will admit, this was not what I set out to make. I originally wanted to create
a single-player (maybe with co-op) MMO style of game including the tab-targeting combat system EQ and WoW uses.
I was moving right along. Then, one day during testing - the game was not fun for me. So, I backed off of development
for a while and started playing some older RPGs that I wasn't able to play during their heyday (either the PC was lacking
or I was playing EQ at the time :)). Well, I discovered Might and Magic 6-8 and loved the party development aspect of the game.
And, that's how I got the idea to meld MM6 with EQ/WoW style of play which I found fun. My biggest fear, no one else would like the idea.

I have my PC specs figured out for the game. I have a few PCs and laptops available. What I discovered: this game
wil NOT run on a potato. I originally was targeting my laptop with an integrated graphics chip (an old intel chip).
I cranked everything down to the lowest settings. It ran - barely. Specs are at the end of this post.
I did this because I needed that info. Plus, after many arguments with myself, I decided to put the game on 
Steam. I'll be creating the page soon. It makes sense to do so. I liked the cloud save feature of Steam and the 
SDK was easy enough to integrate. I'll probably create some achievements for those that enjoy them.

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PC SPECS
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