Hello, I have successfully completed a full campaign using your software, and I noticed quite a few things in it that seemed off in some way. Some were obvious bugs, some were questionable interpretations of rules, some were downright incorrect interpretations, and others were my own ideas for features. I’ve tried my best to organize all of these findings into categories to make it easier to read.
I will preface all of this by mentioning that the only other LW software that I have used extensively is Seventh Sense/S so I will often be comparing the two.
Also, any direct references to book sections will be in parenthesis as such: (x:y, z, a, b, c, etc) Where X is the book number and Y/Z/A/B/C/etc are the section numbers.
As for the hardware, I used this app on a Samsung Galaxy J7-Perx phone with Android versions 8.0 and 8.1 (I received a system update during my campaign). If you need any other info about my phone and its software, please let me know.
The only things I changed in the options were the Text Style to "System Fonts" (Text dimension defaulted to 16 and I left it there), and re-ordered the action bar items so that inventory and map were the first two.
Major General Issues- You have made it so that the player can choose to NOT use a discipline or an item should the book ask for its possession. This is good, I like this. I believe there was an official response by Dever to this question in one of the LWC Newsletters, and he advised the same. Seventh Sense is far more restrictive in this matter, and it is, in my opinion, to its own detriment. However, there are many spots throughout the series where this freedom is illogical or a poor interpretation of the text. Book 3, for example, has more than one instance where the text says “if you possess <item or discipline>, immediately turn to <section>”. The “immediately” there is important and should negate all other options. Excluding book 3, I will list all of the places I’ve found this issue below (keep in mind this was only a single playthrough, so there will be many more sections where this occurs):
(7:165) (11:54) (12:166) (14:107) (17:1, 57, 339) (19:1) (20:223, 27, 258, 331, 60) - There seems to be no functionality at all when you are asked if you’ve been to certain places in previous books. It is very problematic to gameplay logic if you allow the player to pretend they never finished a book or never visited a certain place. Or to pretend they have finished a book or visited a place when they have not (this is possible in your app as well). Seventh Sense handles this by tracking every section that a player passes through, and checks for the appropriate section should the book call for it. Again, I will note all of the instances in which I found this issue below, but this is not a complete list of all sections in the series where it occurs:
(6:127) (8:130) (10:80) (14:186) (15:25) (17:22, 349, 150) (18:175, 121, 240, 56, 280) (19:160, 151) (20:269, 63, 210, 343, 303, 155, 275, 243, 218, 47, 248, 86) - Dual-wielding is not allowed anywhere in the Lone Wolf series. I believe this was addressed by Dever in a LWC Newsletter, and the equipment section of every book on PA clearly states “You may only use one Weapon at a time in combat”. You have correctly prevented a player from double-dipping on Weaponskill/WM/GWM bonuses, but the bonuses from dual-wielding special weapons are still being applied. I tested this using The Sommerswerd and Helshezag simultaneously and both CS bonuses were, incorrectly, granted. That 2nd weapon slot in the combat UI should only be used for Shields and, possibly, to denote the restrictions of two-handed weapons.
- It seems that your engine cannot handle more than one notification at a time. If, for instance, the player is forced to discard multiple items at once (13:292), they are only notified for one of them.
- I couldn't find a way to run any book 2-20 as a "fresh start". You should be able to start a LW campaign on any book in the series. Although Seventh Sense doesn't allow it, I think you should also be able to skip books during a campaign, as long as the next book you play chronologically follows the previous (that is, no skipping backwards).
Minor General Issues- There needs to be a way to view both the inventory and the Combat Results Table during combat.
- The automatic interactions with the Action Chart that occur in each section (gaining/losing EP, firing arrows, automatic item pickups, etc.) are right when you enter the section, which is a bit jarring because you’ve not read the text yet. Same with any insta-death sections. The way Seventh Sense handles this is via buttons: buttons for picking up an item, buttons for deducting EP, and so on. There are two colors: green and red. Clicking red buttons are required to complete the section and move on. You have this same functionality already present in your code in (15:247), so I would suggest using that sort of thing for all Action Chart interactions. Insta-death sections could be handled by including the “Your life and your quest end here” text in a button that then presents the player options to restart the book, restart the campaign, or load a bookmark save.
- I would greatly appreciate an option to disable illustrations that can be toggled on/off at will. I specifically did not download any illustrations on my playthrough until I completed book 8 due to having severe aversions to some of Chalk’s horrifying pieces.
- It would be useful to have the always-visible CS total include all possible normal combat bonuses (minus consumables). Currently you’re not counting gains from weapons or disciplines, and those are visible during combat only. I imagine this might be because you’ve isolated weapon equipping to combat-only. Seventh Sense handles this by assuming that you will be using your strongest offensive psychic abilities, and allowing you to “equip” weapons whenever you’d like outside of combat. It adjusts your CS total accordingly.
- Adding an after-combat flavor text that denotes a flawless victory would be nice.
- Also regarding the after-combat flavor text: The "heavily damaged" text is highly exaggerated. Please reduce the EP % threshold that triggers it. This should only occur if you end combat below… and I’m just throwing this number out there... 20% of your maximum.
- You have correctly blocked the effects of using more than one CS-boosting consumable (such as Alether), but it still consumes the subsequent items. For optimal player usability, the subsequent items should not be consumed, and a notification should be given stating that you cannot use more than one CS-boosting consumable.
- Any time player death occurs, there should also be an option to restart the current book at section 1. Seventh Sense saves a snapshot of the action chart upon exiting setup and going into section 1 and can load that snapshot if the player desires. This is a very good QoL feature, as having to redo pre-book setup can be cumbersome.
- It took me a while to figure out that, instead of just dropping them, you can use usable items (such as healing potions) in the “found items” screen by holding down your finger on them (not sure if there’s an actual term for this interaction in the mobile universe). Maybe add a tip somewhere with that info?
- Special items that do not count towards the limit of 12 should note this in their description. Additionally, give those items an asterisk (or other conspicuous symbol) in the list. When I picked up the Sun-crystal in book 18, I had suspected that I had long since passed the 12-item limit but it was hard to tell because the only item in the list that noted its lack of encumbrance was the Korlinium Scabbard.
Sub-Series-Specific Issues- (Kai/Magnakai) You are not allowing the use of a shield when otherwise unarmed. This is a reasonable use of the item and something Seventh Sense permits so it should be equippable and apply the +2 CS even if you don’t have any weapons.
- (Kai/Magnakai) Some meal checks should disallow the use of Hunting/Huntmastery where it is illogical (during coach rides, flights, etc.). I did not list those occurrences, but I assume it is a program-wide issue and every meal-check section should be examined and flagged appropriately. It may be plausible that, among the other demi-godly powers the GM disciplines grant (and the precise wording of the text in GM series meal checks), Grand Huntmastery negates even the aforementioned scenarios (conjuring food out of thin air, basically)
- (Kai/Magnakai) Per the book text, the special item limit of 12 should only be enforced starting with book 8. Currently it is enforced in 1-7 as well.
- (Magnakai) The Improved Disciplines infoboxes display the effects with the incorrect ranks. They all seem to be shifted down one rank. Examples - the Principalin ability of Nexus to extinguish fires is listed under Mentora; the Archmaster ability of Curing to restore 20 EP in combat is listed under Kai Grand Master; none of the Primate effects are listed under Primate. This issue does not affect the GM disciplines, only Magnakai.
- (Magnakai/GM) Placing a quiver into safekeeping deletes any arrows it contained.
- (Magnakai/GM) Why are arrows and Fireseeds listed individually in “found item” lists? This requires a player to tap multiple times when one tap should be sufficient to fill any quivers they might possess. Fireseeds stack infinitely.
- (Magnakai/GM) There needs to be a way to view the Improved Disciplines info during the discipline selection screen, except with books 6 and 13. This will give the player a more informed way to choose their next discipline.
- (Magnakai/GM) The penalty for using Helshezag is not being applied correctly. The maximum EP value is being reduced but the current value remains unchanged. The current and maximum values should be reducing simultaneously.
- (GM) In the setup for book 13, the final sentence regarding carrying over your stats has some grammatical issues. It should read “forfeit all the benefits from your Kai and Magnakai Disciplines, and will gain additional CS and EP only starting from the 5th Grand Master Discipline you acquire."
- (GM) If you chose to not reroll your stats, you should still have access to the Curing-Archmaster ability to restore 20 EP in combat. I was not able to test this until after I picked up GM Deliverance, but hiding the button until it is usable is inconsistent with the combat UI in book 12.
- (GM) Some better formatting is needed for the new Kai-Alchemy and Magi-Magic spells you receive in the Improved Grand Master Disciplines infobox. They are all crammed into a single paragraph, making it difficult for the reader to parse.
- (GM) In books 16 and beyond, checking the Kai-surge box during combat should disable the Kai-blast button since you cannot use both simultaneously. Same with the Kai-ray button in book 20. Also, make sure to update the combat ratio during a round in which Kai-Blast or Kai-ray is used. It should be 4 less once you click the button.
- (GM) The small illustrations for each of the GM Disciplines are missing.
- (GM) The name of the spell in any section in which is it used should be italicised, per PA formatting standards.
- (GM) Whenever used in combat in the Plane of Darkness (varying stretches of books 16-20), The Sommerswerd should give a 12 CS bonus instead of the usual 8.
Section Specific Issues(2:60) I received no CS penalty for fighting Halvorc unarmed. I was also not able to use a shield (as noted in series issues above).
(4:setup) The equipment list is very long, and in the side-by-side view, the last two items (Chainmail and Shield) were covered by the “proceed” button.
(4:268) The Iron and Brass Keys should be backpack items since they are not labeled as special.
(4:77) The Vassagonian Captain is immune to Mindblast but the bonus was given anyway.
(5:54) Reaching this section afflicted by Limbdeath should disable the second and third options. NOT having Limbdeath should disable the first.
(5:282) If you possess Mind Over Matter, its use is forced in this section but that is inconsistent with your established discipline use freedom.
(8:155) I did not possess Curing-Primate for this fight but the double damage I was supposed to take did not occur.
(8:100) I was already at full EP upon reaching this point, but moving to the next section
deducted 1 EP instead.
(9:201) I rolled a 0-4, but the pickpocket stole my first-listed
backpack item instead of the first-listed special item (as indicated by the text).
(11:238, 101) Both of these full EP restores made me
lose EP instead. The first, 7. The second, 6. I don’t recall my current EP levels at either of those sections, and I did not note them.
(11:270) Considering you cannot reach this version of the fight without Psi-surge, it would seem appropriate to force the player to use it in combat here.
(12:171) The Dagger of Vashna was automatically equipped when starting this combat. However, the bonus from The Sommerswerd was still active. I had to manually equip a different (normal) weapon, then re-equip the DoV to receive the correct bonus.
(13:80) Considering you cannot reach this version of the fight without Kai-surge, it would seem appropriate to force the player to use it in combat here.
(14:86) I was able to bypass the meal requirement with only Grand Huntmastery. The text indicates you need Grand Nexus as well.
(15:319) I happened to check the map in this section and there are two erroneous straight lines from Vadera to Shugkona. There are also similar lines from Konozod to Odnenga. They persisted throughout the book.
See this pic.
(15:292, 212) I had both Sabito and Oede here, but the app used both of them! It would be a good idea to let the player choose which one to use if they have both.
(16) The Platinum Amulet’s description in the inventory should say "condition
s".
(16:247) The Ruby Ring should be a backpack item since it is not marked as special.
(16:121) The RNT roll result inexplicably had a +1 added to it. I did possess the Jadin Amulet from book 15 at this point, perhaps this roll is incorrectly flagged as an incoming missile? Additionally, I had more than 20 EP but both options were available to use.
(16:350) The Deathstaff should be force-removed from the inventory here. It was not, and I was able to keep it and put it into safekeeping in the next book!
(17:map) There eventually is a weird squiggle on the voyage path through the Tozaz Sea. The location of the iceberg field would make sense but the shape of the squiggle does not. I did not get a screenshot of it.
(17:254) In the first sentence, the initial single quote to denote speech is missing.
(18:setup) I was able to use safekeeping in this book, but due to the logistics of the story, you should not be able to.
(18:16) The donation to the monks in the previous section (154) was not deducted.
(18:336) The arrow was not deducted, nor did the app give any notification that one had been fired.
(18:51) The red progress line on the map should extend to the monastery in this section, but it stops short. I did not get a screenshot of it.
(18:192) No arrow was deducted for this bow shot. I possessed two quivers during this book, maybe that had something to do with these problematic bow shots?
(19:setup) I’m not sure if safekeeping can be used in this book, either. You begin in Anskaven and go straight to Tyso. But there was also a significant amount of time between the end of book 18 and this point, so it might be reasonable to assume that, during this time, Lone Wolf managed his inventory at the Monastery.
(19:map) The progress line in this book is pretty messed up.
See this pic.
(19:136) The notification here incorrectly stated firing one arrow when it should have been two. I’m unsure if the correct amount of arrows were deducted.
(19:10) An erroneous "5" is present after the first sentence (presumably a remnant of the PA footnote indicating the section as the puzzle solution).
(20:232, 251, 33, 98, 86, 150, 237) The small illustrations in these sections were all missing.
(20:271) Two arrows were properly deducted but the notification only mentioned one.
(20:222) One arrow was properly deducted, but this time, there was no notification.
(20:216) There should not be an option here to use a bow, as it is not present in the current PA edition of this book. Perhaps that is an error on PA’s part?
(20:260) I counted 12 arrows available to pick up. I had 2 quivers, is that dynamically calculated (6 x number of quivers)?
(20:350) No ending? No "congratulations"? No option to start a new game? There should be
something here denoting the player’s great success in completing this book and/or the entire series.
Finally, a note about Healing/Curing: The +1 EP per section is wildly overpowered. Seventh Sense addresses this by separating damage taken into categories (combat, starvation, other) and restricts the discipline to only recover EP from the “combat” category, giving it a much-needed nerf. Potions and other methods (a hearty meal, being well-rested, etc.) will recover any of the three types, giving those methods a buff to compensate. This can also introduce some illogical situations where Healing won’t restore EP lost from frostbite, for example, so it is a rather colossal task figuring out which damage fits into which category. I’m not sure if you should change your current implementation, I’m just mentioning it as something to think about.
PS - Another thing I really like about your gameplay decisions are the stat bonuses from the first 4 GM Disciplines if you carry over your stats in book 13. That +4CS/+8EP is a very welcome balancing mechanism for the difficult GM combats. As far as I know, this implementation is unique among Lone Wolf software.
