It’s been quite a while since the last update, but here’s version 1.2! This has actually been finished for a couple of months since I already submitted it to FEE3 a while ago, but oh well. This is a small update with some slight fixes to graphical issues, but the real change is with forged weapons.
They can now be bought on the preps screen rather than from Anna after you start the map. This allows you to more easily plan your strategy around it’s contents as well as letting you buy more than one weapon at a time. As usual, apply the patch to a clean FE8 rom and report any errors you may find. Have fun!
Phew! It’s been a while, hasn’t it? I’ve been busy working on other hacks, but I’m finally ready to unveil Dark Dragon Reborn v2.0! This version has a couple of miscellaneous changes to units, mostly buffs to characters that I felt were too weak to reasonably contribute. Beyond that, I also added some much needed polish to the game. The link in the first post has been updated with the newest release, so apply it to a clean FE8 ROM. You can carry over previous save files if you have them, so don’t worry about losing progress.
Changes
To start with, stationary enemies now have Diamonds on their map sprite. This just stops certain enemies from blindsighting the player with how their AI works.
In terms of graphical changes, I’ve finally inserted palettes for every single character! This took the brunt of my time honestly, most other changes were quite simple.
The last addition to the game is the Challenge Room. This is just a fun post-game area that can be accessed from seizing the lower right corner of Chapter 25. Make sure you don’t overwrite that save file with the epilogue!
Anyways, thanks for taking the time to check out this game! I’ve learned quite a bit from making this hack and plan on making more in the future. As always, if you find any issues or have suggestions, just let me know!
That was more of a workaround for reclassing. Since promotion resets your level, I needed to let characters reclass even if they were below level 10. I don’t think it’s a major issue since most people will probably wait until their unit is around level 14-16 before considering using a Master Seal. But if you really want to promote a unit at level 7 or something you totally can.
Okay, I just updated the link to include Version 2.1 which fixes the Ballistician-Wing Spear error.
I’ve also made two other patches with some QoL features. The first is labeled “Minimug” which lets you see some basic unit info on the map like Atk, Hit, and Crit. The other patch is labeled “Fixed Growths” which has the same QoL from the Minimug patch and stops unit’s from having random levels, so they’ll stay close to their average stats.
Are there talk options for characters and do they display on the battlefield as a QOL? Also are there any other prf weapons like the tomes or stones in this?
The talk options do not appear as QOL on the battlefield, but you can see it on a character’s status screen like in the image below. I didn’t add any new dialogue or support conversations, so all Talk events are just for recruitment.
Also everything DarkPrinceRick said about prf weapons is correct. The Rapier and Falchion are exclusive to Marth as usual, but some staves are also for certain units (It should be stated in the item’s descriptions). Hammerne is for Lena, Aum is for Elice, Rescue is for Maria, and Silence is for Wrys.
Do you want any ideas for class and character balances?
I was thinking in contrast to the critical force of Sniper/Berserker/Swordmaster, Generals could get something like critical avoid, which lowered the chance of an enemy critical against them.
Welcome to the community!
My hacking skills are limited to FEBuilder and this hack doesn’t have any skills, so implementing something like critical avoid for generals isn’t feasible with my knowledge. I am considering the idea of overhauling the game to include Skill Systems and more advanced reclassing, though this would take me quite a bit of time that I just can’t dedicate to the project right now. I will keep the critical avoid idea in mind though (I believe the skill “Fortune” does something similar).
As for character/class balance, I’m pretty happy with how everything is currently. Some units are definitely better than others, but most classes have some kind of niche to fill and every character is usable even if they may be outclassed. This may not suit everybody’s taste, but hopefully you’ll still get some enjoyment out of the balance that does exist.
I’m not really interested in rebalancing the game, no. Character/Class balance really isn’t too important in the grand scheme of things, at least in my opinion. I care more about balance between the Player and Enemy units. Most player units can’t take too many hits, but neither can the enemy. As long as this is true, players should stay engaged throughout the game as the line between units living and dying is thin.
Every character has been changed in some way (Bases, Growths, Weapon Ranks, etc.), though they still keep their standard “Archetype” from FE11. So characters like Linde or Est will still start out relatively low level for the point in the game that they join, but grow into good (or at least competent) units. Another big change is how reclassing works. Some characters have more limited class options (Gordin, Wrys, Matthis, etc.) while others get access to new classes (Like General Jagen or Hero Minerva).
I can’t add any more skills to the hack in its current form because the Skills System patch in FEBuilder conflicts with the reclassing patch I used. There is a way to get around this, but it would require redoing the hack from base FE8 and porting over assets. Like I said I might eventually do this, but that potential version wouldn’t be available for at least a year. Also there’s no guarantee I’ll even bother to make a brand new patch when I could be working on other projects instead. But if I do, I can add a variety of skills that increase unit variety without making the game feel too cluttered.
I was mainly going to talk about like classes, giving some character’s new weapon proficiencies and altering the base stats of various characters instead of using the FE11 base stats for everyone. Though it seems you already did the latter.
Like I was thinking of adding the Cavalier and Armored variant classes might make characters seem less redundant, such as Axe Cavalier Vyland, Sword Macellan, ETC.
Also Roshea in the soldier class is an idea I like and he certainly has the tanky stats for the soldier class. Do you have any opinion on reclassing any of the bosses for variety’s sake?
