Balmung Cycle Part I: The Messenger and the Heretic Options

[Magi]

Sorry! I messed up, so here is a rar file that should fix the encountered problem(s): http://www.rpgmaker.net/~magi/archives/database_fixes.rar Drop these files off in the base directory, choosing to overwrite pre-existing ones. If you haven't already downloaded the game, just download it like normal. It has been updated.

While I know RR is primarily an RMXP/VX community, I felt compelled to share my project with those who may be interested. Though 2003 is inferior in many ways, development still takes time. I've spent the last few years creating this project and smoothing out all the bumps. I'm making no claims that it's perfect as of now, but I've spent months just on the process of debugging and re-assessing the overall balance of the game. As always, many resources included are previously unreleased, but they're free for anybody to take and use without giving any credit. After all, why give credit for ripped graphics anyway?

So what makes this game special? Over the months of development I've strived and collaborated with different people to create a classic SNES RPG feel. Unlike many RPG Maker games, it has a high level of graphical consistency that binds everything together into a complete package. It's for this reason that I've often jokingly called my game "Treasure of the Rudras 2", and I'm sure if Square actually cared it'd be a lawsuit waiting to happen! The overall length of this game is around 6-8 hours.

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Story
An outcast god consumed by despair threatens to bring the world of Midgard to its knees. Aided by a ragtag group of volunteer soldiers-of-fortune and a small loyal following, he aims to establish his kingdom once more. When reason and diplomacy with the outcast deity fail, the Aesir god Loki prepares to make a final bid to halt the ambitions of the heretic. What will become of the world should he be unable to succeed?

You are Blitz Ymir, a disconnected servant to the Aesir. The god Loki has offered you a limited freedom if only you were to complete a simple task in his name. When past obligations become personal choice, will you choose to live a menial life or continue to take up the sword in the name of the gods?

Key Features
-Modified DBS, third place winner of the GW 2005 code-off battle system division
-Single consistent graphical style that always feels like you are playing the same game
-An original score not composed of commercial game music
-RPG fare gameplay reminiscent of the classic SNES era: Secrets, mini games, dungeons, puzzles, and more!
-Duel system radically unlike any you've seen before! (A reaction skill based system instead of the standard rock/paper/scissor)
-Utilizes weapon attributes to expand battle strategies.

Download Here (14MB)
Download Mirror (Truthabout521.org)
1.1 Game Patch (Only necessary if you've already downloaded the game)
1.1 Game patch mirror (Truthabout521.org)
Project Page

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Screenshots:




Primary Characters:

Blitz Ymir: The Einherjar most favored by the god Loki. He has been entrusted with a mission that cannot be revealed to any other god or goddess of Asgard. Blitz has a distinct manner of speech that would suggest he once a man of high stature, however cannot recall the person he had once been. Labeled as a follower incapable of free thought, he chooses to reject everything in favor of orders. Is there more to him than that?

Elm Damascus: A spry girl that seems to possess significant knowledge of the Aesir and their world. She appears to know Loki through some past event, but neither her nor Loki are quick to reveal just what that is. She is best described as gentle on the outside and turbulent on the inside. Often insecure, she will try to cling to whatever she can to bring stability back into her world.

Alrick Munin: A wholly incompetent archaeologist who seems to destroy anything he uncovers. Having cost the Roska excavation guild over 200,000 kune in defecit, he is likely to be forcefully employed for the rest of his life. Snide, loud, and obnoxious, Alrick is easy to find in a crowd; simply follow the angry mob.

Valkyrie Skuld: Newly appointed in the absence of the superior Valkyrie Sigrun, Skuld is an inexperienced chooser of the slain who has a terrible tendency to overestimate her own abilities. Despite that, her confidence is backed up by experience and the determination befitting of a god.

Hod: An accursed Aesir who has fallen from grace, he seems to be devoutly loyal to Loki. Exiled forever from Asgard, he must continuously wander the human world of Midgard or risk death for his heinous crimes against the god of light. He maintains a very cold and distant personality and is especially reckless and aggressive. Hod has a habit of coming and going as he pleases.

Other Characters:

Loki: Known as the trickster god for infamous acts of deception, Loki prides himself as the only being truly in control of his own fate. He has been known to openly rebel against Odin, however has remained untouchable up until now. Is he a man of good intentions, or is there a darker face behind the mask?

Freyja: A human girl who takes her name from an Aesir goddess. Little is known of Freyja aside from the fact that she was somehow involved with Loki some time ago.

Boss Regin: The undisputed head of the Roska excavation guild. He is a mentor to Blitz and had once planned on naming him the inheritor of the title Guild Master. Though old, he is quite energetic.

Lyte Ocharus: A solitary schoolteacher who tends to children that have become orphaned in the village of Visgott. He appears to have been conducting his own investigation of the region's mysterious illness that has claimed countless lives.

Magistrate Arianrhod: A government official of Grand Novellium that has been appointed with the task of carrying out the official investigation of the Visgott incident. A staunch skeptic, he isn't often willing to listen to anybody's advice aside from his own.

Siegfried: Siegfried was a famed, albeit stubborn scholar who refused to give up alchemy in all the light of scientific evidence against its existence. An ill-fated experiment is said to have finished him off long ago, however his legacy haunts the land to this day.

Viscount Halfdan Andhrimnir: An internal power struggle for the crown decimated both vying sides, leaving the minor noble family of Andhrimnir the only faction with enough influence to ascend to the throne. A young ruler, Halfdan is not only popular but also mild mannered, kind, and considerate. However, even a man such as himself has his enemies; some of his political opponents have claimed Halfdan to have resigned his soul to the lady Hel for a glimpse at Niflheim, however such a farfetched story couldn't be true, could it?

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If you happen to have any questions about the features of the game and how to play it, there is a thread with a more complete explanation on the gameplay mechanics and what they mean here.
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For those that still cling to RPG Maker 2000/2003, I hope to motivate and inspire with this game, as previous games and people in the community have inspired me (Velsarbor, Barkley: Shut up and Jam, Freedom Fries, Forgotten Origin, Legion Saga). For those who like the face sets and music used in Balmung Cycle, you can find find them here:

TKOOL-KOOL (Face sets)
Cyber Rainforce (Music) - Please be conservative with what you download. It is a Geocities site and has low bandwidth.

Enjoy, I'll be updating this entry with more information as it comes to mind. If you find something you suspect to be a bug, don't hesitate to PM me about it.

This post has been edited by Holder_of_Life: Jul 7 2008, 08:30 PM