Main Plot

Changes: Entry 01, Segment “Crisis”

As soon as I posted the first entry, I realized that there was too much being shown too early. Entry 01 starts with the Protagonist arriving on the game’s main setting, a moon called Kro’Enx which acts as both a prison and multicultural cemetery. The Protagonist is identified by one of the head guards–Bu’leyg–as a Reenashim: a semi-dangerous aquatic species. Bu’leyg warns the Protagonist that people won’t be very friendly toward him due to his veteran and Reenashim status. But he sends the Protagonist on his way all the same.

The segment I’ve decided to change–Crisis–has the Protagonist take a trolley up to the imposing Baxem Kro Fortress where he encounters the facility’s warden. The warden doesn’t approve of the Protagonist being there and is sent away. Shortly after, mysterious creatures attack and the Protagonist is blamed. The Protagonist is taken to a holding cell back at the Entry Plaza but Bu’leyg releases him while warning him what to look out for.

I decided it was too soon to introduce Baxem Kro and its warden so the following segment is what will replace that.

The Protagonist leaves Kiba Reefings Entry Plaza as he reaches the district’s trolley: Trolley Station: Meda. The trolley isn’t going to arrive for another hour and the Jaroko Guard says as such. He tells the Protagonist that if he takes a trail toward Trolley Station: Si Un, he’ll be able to catch that trolley sooner to get to where he needs to be.

This leads to the first branching path in the story. While it won’t change the overall plot, it will change certain character interactions and opportunities along with inventory opportunities.

If you walk to Trolley Station: Si Un, you’re given a few screens-worth of platforming to get used to the movement in the game. When you arrive at the station, the trolley is waiting for you. You take the trolley up and are on your way to Baxem Kro when you have to stop. A trolley ahead of you has been toppled and damaged.

The Jaroko Guard driving your trolley warns you to stay inside and locks the trolley down for your protection. Then he goes out to inspect the damaged trolley. He’s immediately killed by two hulking creatures with different appearances. And once they’re done with him, they attack your trolley.

This acts as a combat tutorial where you have to practice strafing and dodging until you can get out of the trolley and get the guard’s gun. Then you have to practice using the gun against the creatures. If you die, you’ll get a game over as the creatures drag your body away. But if you manage to get either one of them to below 1/3 of their health, they’ll both flee.

The Protagonist will inspect the destroyed trolley to find a dead little boy and a dead Jaroko Guard. He then hears law enforcement approaching and throws the guard’s gun into some bushes. Before he can properly surrender, however, he’s shot through the chest by one of the officers and passes out. This is Scenario 1: Path B.

If you wait for 10 real-time minutes, the trolley at Trolley Station: Meda will arrive despite the guard and the system saying it would take an hour. You can then take this trolley toward Baxem Kro. Only you and two other passengers have permission to go to the facility so it’s just you three and the guard eventually. However, the trolley suddenly stops before it reaches the fortress. The guard is confused and the two passengers get up to approach the Protagonist. As they do, we see that a little boy has stowed away on the trolley using an illegal cloaking device.

Before anything else can happen , two hulking creatures with different appearances attack your trolley: toppling it in the process. The guard manages to kill one of them with his gun but he’s knocked out and his gun is crushed. The two passengers are killed before the creature attacks the Protagonist.

This is Scenario 1: Path A

This is a different combat tutorial where you have to dodge the creature long enough for it to damage a section of the trolley and cause a pole to fall nearby. You can use this as a melee weapon to strike and counter-attack the creature. Once its health is below 1/3, it will flee.

Shortly after, guards will arrive and arrest the Protagonist. This is Scenario 1: Path A, Result A (or AA).

If you are defeated by the creature in Path A, you’ll be fatally wounded and pass out. This is Scenario 1: Path A, Result B (or AB).

In all scenarios, you end up back at Kiba Reefings in a holding cell. Scenario 1: Path B (S1B) has the red coloring on the Protagonist’s arm spread to his chest, which will be important for later. The boy who was hiding on the trolley and both guards will also be dead. However, you’ll have access to the hidden pistol later.

S1AB has the same result as S1B but no pistol.

S1AA is the most ideal result, hence being the hardest. Only the passengers whom the creatures attacked are dead. The guard and the young boy are alive and you aren’t fatally shot, so the crimson hasn’t spread to your chest.

Regardless of the outcome, Bu’leyg will come into your cell and blame you for what happened with the trolley, asking if you feel like a big man. He’ll then stomach-punch you once only to whisper to the Protagonist while they’re close enough: hinting that if you’re going to pursue answers, that you should avoid the trolley stations for now. He also suggests that you get some Habernettes while you’re here.

Bu’leyg pulls back and explains more loudly that there’s not enough evidence against the Protagonist so he can’t be held officially but in 10 days, a transport will come to take the Protag off Kro’Enx. Then he lets you out under the condition that you stay in Kiba Reefings Entry Plaza. The implication is that Bu’leyg isn’t actually going to make you stay here and is helping you.

This would end the Introduction section of the game.

Fleshing Out Kiba Reefings

I’ll be adding more to all the map areas and I hope to have concept art of every main area–or at least the plot-related ones–by the time I have a conclusion to this game’s story. I’m looking forward to drawing up plenty of different alien cultures in each district and show how they compare and contrast in cemetery form. But Kiba Reefings will definitely be the most central-hub-like area and feature the most character interactions.

Cargo and Passenger Docking Concept

This isn’t really a representation of how the area–or future drawings–will look perspective-wise, as the intention is to be closer to top-down to keep perspective easier in combat. But I feel a more horizontal view gives a clearer idea of what each spot looks like.

The dock area is going to look harsh. Invisible force fields protect the bridge from snowfall but you can see wear and tear on the railing and equipment. It won’t be breaking any time soon but it’s been here a while. And the icy waters will splash violently below. I think it would add character to show an NPC getting startled by the splashing waves and falling on their back.

What you don’t see here are the Jaroko Guards that will be positioned at either end of the transport exit and each of the Inspection Arches. But they’d be massive, imposing figures that hurry people along but otherwise remains where they are.

The ship design here is fairly basic. I’m not married to it and as I flesh out what the Karo Unity government is like, it will probably change, with more details and markings. But this works for now.

Another thing about the weather is that despite Kro’Enx being a snowy moon, so much of it has been terraformed and what hasn’t is still regulated in a way that you can go to plenty of locations covered in lush grass and warm soil only to look up and be reminded of a blizzard overhead. But out here, at the arrival section, it’s a lot more true to the moon’s nature. That definitely will tie into an overarching theme in the game of conditioning and unnaturally altering things and people, but showing how it can have negative and positive results.

The Jaroko

The Jaroko were already a bulky species before the infamous Parasite War but during the war, they were given enhancements to become not super-soldiers but super-police. Many were deployed into the war directly–especially after the Rekshay went rogue–but because of Jaroko’s lower mental aptitude, they were considered better candidates for keeping the citizens and planets safe away from the main combat.

The Jaroko quickly developed a hatred from Reenashim and Rekshay, both because of the great betrayal of the Rekshay but out of jealousy of genetics. Many Jaroko consider themselves the alpha species in terms of strength but they are considered second to both the Reenashim and Rekshay, particularly because of their lower intelligence. And the Jaroko aren’t even dumb aliens really. They just aren’t typically smart. Their culture wasn’t as developed when they were brought into the Karo Unity and their stereotypes are brutish strongarms got reinforced further as a result. So while many are actually quite intelligent, they are seldom valued for that aspect.

Many Jaroko live on Kro’Enx and Xone, the planet Kro’Enx orbits. They were further altered genetically to survive the winter conditions, growing more fur and some thicker skin. But their heads never really changed, leading to modern Jaroko looking like they have skulls for faces only. Jaroko value their facial hair and it takes a long time to grow now. Sadly, most in-game Jaroko won’t have facial hair as it can get in the way of their armor. Bu’leyg, the overseer of Kiba Reefings Entry Plaza, will be one of the only Jaroko with a full-on beard.

I wanted the Jaroko Guard armor to be pretty bulky but simple. The violet-red markings and force-field helmet are specific to Kro’Enx as a symbolic part of the moon’s culture. The armor and the body underneath are meant to stand out against the icy and snowy environment of Kro’Enx but also not be too flashy. It’s standard police-wear for them but it might as well be battle armor.

The Miku’yiyi

This species as a whole won’t hold much importance to the plot. As it stands, there are only four Miku’yiyi characters in the game you could interact with, but those characters will contribute substantially. I wanted this species to look a lot like an insect while not actually being one. While they have denser bones and muscle in areas like the forearms, a lot of their species traits only cross over with insects coincidentally, or at least, it used to.

The Miku’yiyi are the result of imperfect genetic alterations. The Karo Unity claims not to have experimented on them but they definitely encouraged different breeding habits to get more ideal traits to manifest. Such was the case with the multiple sets of arms. Many generations in the past, Miku’yiyi only had one pair of arms but they also had a second pair of appendages on their backs which were equivalent to tentacle-like tails. These were mainly used for balance, as back then, the species resembled a monkey-like species far more than an insect. But when some of these back-tails mutated in a select number of the population, the species was heavily encouraged to foster those mutations. They were compensated greatly, with money, territory, political influence, and more. And it was a success.

Many believe that the mutations were the result of secret experimentation. This is the prevailing theory because a failed third set of arms now grow on the backs of most Miku’yiyi. These shoulder-blade nubs can be extremely painful and often need amputating. Many treat it like removing wisdom teeth. Many Miku’yiyi who undergo this amputation suffer nerve and muscle damage to their lower arms.

Today, the Miku’yiyi are valued for their mobility and athleticism. What they lack in strength, they make up for in stamina and speed. However, they aren’t culturally sporty. Most Miku’yiyi are highly religious and exploration-driven. Many have slowly transitioned into a gypsy-like role: claiming divine powers, being skilled performers, and selling goods in markets.

Glossary

I’m going to start posting glossary terms at the end of each post, at least for anything newly-introduced and/or important to the post itself.

• Xone
  Planet which the main setting–Kro’Enx–orbits. Xone is sparsely populated after the Parasite War as it undergoes serious decontamination and rebuilding.
• Kro’Enx
  Moon to the planet Xone and main setting of the game.
• Kiba Reefings Entry Plaza
  A visitor’s district and the first any commercial visitors to Kro’Enx arrive in for processing.  It is the first place any newcomers go to for Kro’Enx.
• Veteran’s Garb
  An off-duty uniform worn by Karo Unity Soldiers.  While it has some protective padding, it is not considered armor.  Wearing it indicates authority over most civilians and even law enforcement depending on what rank of soldier you are.
• Bortus Clamp
  A device fastened to the body of any Caution Type Species.  Bortus Clamps are customized to the species applied to but all are able to use high-frequency sounds, electrocution, or chemical injection to subdue their hosts.  They can be activated by any overseer-level law enforcement and above.
• The Blindman
  A symbol on Karo Unity Soldier Uniforms indicating a high-ranking position as well as the officer having suffered a debilitating injury.  It is an equivalent to the Purple Heart.  The name comes from determining that loss of sight is the least desired of any sensory depletion.
• Jaroko
  A hulking species, genetically enhanced as the main form of law enforcement for the Karo Unity.  They are the muscle in Kro’Enx but not many of them are in positions of greater authority.  They monitor public areas, drive the trolleys, and carry out maintenance.
• Karo Unity
  The ruling government of planets for the setting.
• Reenashim
  A cold-blooded, aquatic alien species famous for its propensity for violence.  They are among the Caution Types of Karo Unity species.
• Rekshay/The Rogue Soldier Race
  An ancestral species to the Reenashim who were discovered and reconstructed/resurrected to fight in the Parasite War.  It is a common rumor that they were enhanced even further to combat the Roemar Soldiers.  The Rekshay turned on the Karo Unity after defeating the invaders and most had to be killed.
• The Protagonist
  Not yet named, he is a Parasite War veteran and under the species of Reenashim.