Armor/Weapon deformation/damage - Repairing

Scial · Feb 16, 2016

Haven't found a post on this so:
I don't know if this would be very realistic since I don't have much knowledge about how strong of a blow can a good metal armor resist, but if suitable it would be nice for at least lower quality armor and/or weapons to suffer damage from it's using. For example, a strong polehammer blow would dent the armor and make it weaker, or if a sword is used against heavy armor or to block a high energy impact it would lose sharpness and such.
I think you can get my point by now. Not only would it add realism but also depth and value to higher tier/quality items. Also it would require having to go to a blacksmith for a repair or something. Obviously balanced in a way so that it feels authentic and immersive but at the same time not tedious or gameplay-interrupting.

Anyone knows if this has been talked about? I'd also like to hear your thoughts and ideas on the matter.

Gsprfdude · Feb 16, 2016

I've heard mentions of this on the forums, not sure how I feel about it though.

Bobob · Feb 16, 2016

Thankfully not gonna happen.

konggary · Feb 16, 2016

BM doesn't want to add weapon/armor degradation on the grounds that it would be detracting from the exploration, etc. They don't want you to be focusing on managing your damaged armor, but rather on honing your skills and exploring.

Of cosmetic degradation, though, I have heard no mention.

Gozer · Feb 16, 2016

Tedium for the sake of realism. Like I'm looking for a virtual job.

I just wanna fight, not micro manage a broom handle in the dark.

NachoDawg · Feb 16, 2016

I'd be all for it.

Could even have a "inspect item" option to manually inspect the state of armor and weapons, and visually detect blunt blades or bulges in the armor. Blunt weapons have less cutting damage (this mechanic could be used for balancing) and dented plate could restrict your movement a bit, and make your character's joints worse at bending.

Having a grind stone and a hammer / leather sewing kit would be all you'd need to get your items in order- but maybe only at work stations?

If you think about it, we come across several black smithing "stations" in the current story mode. It could feel like a small safe space or a mini-hub akin to bonfires in Dark Souls, and you'd prepare for going further into your adventure or just use the room as a milestone for how deep you got into a dungeon until you want to try again

Tottel · Feb 16, 2016

Apart from being tedious, I don't think that a small team like BM should even spend any time on this, as this would be a pretty labour-intensive feature.

NachoDawg · Feb 16, 2016

Tottel said:
Apart from being tedious, I don't think that a small team like BM should even spend any time on this, as this would be a pretty labour-intensive feature.

And then there's this fact. We have to have reasonable expectations, but level headed dreaming doesn't hurt ^^

Scial · Feb 17, 2016

konggary said:
BM doesn't want to add weapon/armor degradation on the grounds that it would be detracting from the exploration, etc. They don't want you to be focusing on managing your damaged armor, but rather on honing your skills and exploring.

Of cosmetic degradation, though, I have heard no mention.

Yeah, I was going more for a cosmetic aproach but then the possibility of it affecting stats came to mind. Anyways I see how it would be detracting, it would require a lot of balancing I think, and also you would still have mixed thoughts about it from the playerbase.

Tottel said:
Apart from being tedious, I don't think that a small team like BM should even spend any time on this, as this would be a pretty labour-intensive feature.

I forgot to mention that, yeah. The biggest problem from my point of view would be implementing such a feature, and also it would be needed to polish it and balance it so much that it would really take a lot of time.. And that's what makes me think it is not really worth it.

..Unless it's just purely cosmetic aaand instead of going fully on a physics approach doing it differently, like having "prefabd" deformations where the hit lands. Also this would only be in armor of course, deformation on metal armor and maybe cuts and the like for leather or cloth materials.

NachoDawg · Feb 17, 2016

I just realized it would be hilarious if your rusty sword broke on impact and shattered, leaving you holding only the handle

Scial · Feb 17, 2016

NachoDawg said:
I just realized it would be hilarious if your rusty sword broke on impact and shattered, leaving you holding only the handle

Hahahaha " Oh fuck "

Gsprfdude · Feb 17, 2016

NachoDawg said:
I just realized it would be hilarious if your rusty sword broke on impact and shattered, leaving you holding only the handle

If this had a chance to happen for any really bad quality weapons it would be spectacular.

Clanf · Feb 18, 2016

imo, just different weapon quality (like now on armor) will do quite nicely and i guess not that hard to implement
p.s. i mean, just quality, without actual breaking/repairing

NachoDawg · Feb 18, 2016

Clanf said:
imo, just different weapon quality (like now on armor) will do quite nicely and i guess not that hard to implement
p.s. i mean, just quality, without actual breaking/repairing

we are getting procedurally generated weapons, which i think is even better than that

Khaos · Feb 19, 2016

For Sui Generis, weapon and armour degradation will be a must though, as otherwise you'd get the best armour and never have a need to get rid of it.

NachoDawg · Feb 19, 2016

Khaos said:
For Sui Generis, weapon and armour degradation will be a must though, as otherwise you'd get the best armour and never have a need to get rid of it.

Well that's not true! When you die in SG you'll respawn as a fresh character. If an NPC finds your corpse then they can loot it at the items will be spread to the winds if the situation allows it

You'll actually probably want to hoard as much gear as you can even if it's not as good as your current gear. And store it at some pleace you can come back to when you die to gear up quickly

HopeDIV · Feb 20, 2016

NachoDawg said:
Well that's not true! When you die in SG you'll respawn as a fresh character. If an NPC finds your corpse then they can loot it at the items will be spread to the winds if the situation allows it

You'll actually probably want to hoard as much gear as you can even if it's not as good as your current gear. And store it at some pleace you can come back to when you die to gear up quickly

I love that idea, However I remember the dev's talking about a specific power that would allow you to have a void, or magical chest to draw from. I do hope they chose to change that.

*Power is called Open Void, Remembered it from the wiki, not sure if current or not.

NachoDawg · Feb 20, 2016

HopeDIV said:
I love that idea, However I remember the dev's talking about a specific power that would allow you to have a void, or magical chest to draw from. I do hope they chose to change that.

*Power is called Open Void, Remembered it from the wiki, not sure if current or not.

I don't abhore that idea, but maybe it could be limited? I could imagine storing my house key and the deed to my house there so I don't lose it between lives, but not storing all my spare armor pieces

HopeDIV · Feb 21, 2016

NachoDawg said:
I don't abhore that idea, but maybe it could be limited? I could imagine storing my house key and the deed to my house there so I don't lose it between lives, but not storing all my spare armor pieces

That's a good point, small important items maybe? The idea of having your own stash somewhere hidden, in some dark cave or back alley, is such a cool idea to me, and I definitely feel having a magical void to store stuff in kinda takes away from possibilities with interaction in the world. Although maybe that would just lead to more frustration, I don't know.