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Written by BuckGB on October 20th, 2009

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Since Brian is a hardworking fella, I'm taking over the update for today - and in fact, for THIS update, I think we should keep it short and sweet and talk a little bit about Skill Perks.

Skills in the ZRPG unlike, say, Fallout - don't work on a percentage system, but in a 10-point spread. Before you get all like NOOOOO about this, it was done so that upgrading skills was a more challenging thing, and that those upgrades felt more concrete and compelling of a difference then (Well, I was at 28%, but NOW I'm at 32%! .I guess that's better. It's a higher number, right?) You won't be able to max out ALL your skills in the game, not by a long shot where you put those points is a significant choice. (NOTE: think of the point buy system in Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines and you're not terribly far off)

SO. Skill perks. In addition to having heightened benefits from increasing your skills, at certain thresholds level 3, level 6, and the max level of 10 you will gain a Skill Perk in that particular skill. Sometimes this is an active skill: the Kick ability (gained at level 3 of Melee) knocks a target back a certain number of spaces. Other skills are passive, such as the level 3 Survival perk, Survey which increases the player's viewing area on the Area Map by 50%.

It takes a small point investment to reach level 3, so the Perks are correspondingly handy, but not overly helpful. Level 6 takes more concentrated effort, so Perks are significantly improved and the max Perk at level 10 is guaranteed to be awesome, albeit not in a (this is the win) cheesy and game-breaking way. No matter what skill you put your points into, it should be worth your investment, and Perks should be interesting, well-integrated into all other systems, and easy for the player to conceptualize they should look at it and immediately know how and why it would be immediately useful to them.

I realize I didn't get into the details of how to earn points for investment in skills, and hey, look at the time, guess we'll have to get into that one later on. EVIL LAUGHTER!

We're nearly done introducing all of the skills for the game, but today is a two-for-one, as these skills are two sides of the same coin the combat skills, Melee and Ranged. Melee and Ranged sound pretty straightforward, or even limiting, but before anyone thinks that the choice is merely to hit stuff or hit stuff from far away, let's take a look at some of the pros, cons, and weapon options of both forms of combat.

In most games with melee and ranged combat, ranged is almost always the way to go, because most fights take place at a range with both sides primarily using guns. However, one of the constant enemy types in our game is the zombie. Not only have we established that they tend to be found in higher numbers, but that they are attracted to noise. Unless the player is an excellent shot or using a shotgun at close range, the last thing they want is to be crowded by zombies when firing very loud guns, as the chances of taking them all down before a reload is very low. While no one should ever let themselves get mobbed by zombies, several Melee weapons excel at destroying or knocking back the undead, with the added benefit of never needing to be reloaded at inopportune moments.

At the same time, there are dangers out there that are less predictable than zombies the other humans. They could be carrying everything from a kitchen knife to an automatic weapon, and in either circumstance, the Ranged fighter is likely to stand a better chance. That's not to say Melee can't get to a point where they can totally obliterate anyone at close range, but when they have to close the distance AND have enough Action Points to hit their target, that's where it becomes tricky. And the simple fact is bullets do more damage than almost every type of melee weapon that is, if you don't run out of them. The Ranged player will have to manage resources more carefully if they want to remain effective in combat.

While there are multiple weapons in each category and anybody can use any weapon they find, the crucial thing to remember is that the higher the skill in Melee or Ranged, the more likely it is that you will successfully hit your target with the weapon. There are some other Stats that modify damage and accuracy, but we will go into those in a future update. Put simply, more points in a skill means more viable weapon choices and more success in that form of combat.

Each type of weapon, whether it's a gun or a hand-to-hand weapon, has a class specialty that gives unique bonuses or attacks. For example, a shotgun has a short range but can hit multiple targets with a blast, while the knife has a chance to counter when an enemy attacks. In addition to bonuses, weapons are balanced by being 1 or 2-handed, 1-handed generally taking fewer action points to use and requiring no AP to switch to if in an active weapon slot. Most guns, aside from the pistol, are 2-handed. We don't force you to stick to a specific weapon class, and we did that primarily to encourage people to find the right type of weapon to suit their style of play.

Since combat is a major part of the game, we've barely scratched the surface with these weapon skills and the many different weapon types. To boil it down, Melee is close-quarters, costs no ammo and is on average more quiet, while Ranged can be used at a greater distance, costs ammo, and is powerful but loud. Each weapon has unique features that can make it more appealing to certain types of builds or play styles. Melee is generally better versus zombies and humans without guns, while Ranged is generally better against gun-toting humans or supporting Melee characters. And if you can't make up your mind, you could always put points in both and be a combat specialist. In a future update, we'll discuss some of the pros and cons of the weapon classes, but until then we open up the discussion to this question what type of weapon are you grabbing before you go out into the zombie apocalypse?

This week, I began thinking about just what kind of leader I would be in a crisis. Oh, don't worry, there is no fear or loved counter in the game, but one of the goals of the game is to make the player handle a group during a crisis and, just possibly, find out that maybe they aren't the person they think they are. What I mean is, the people who might think they would be an even-handed, rational and kind leader, might find themselves shooting the the shrill, obnoxious woman that keeps criticizing every decision of theirs. Or the person that tries to please everyone ends up pleasing no one. Or the person that thought it was swell to grow their numbers for safety finds out that it's a chore to keep that many people fed.

We're not trying to make the allies in the game a collection of stats. They're people, with their own quirks, strengths, and weaknesses. They're not all action heroes, and some of them can't even fight. They aren't guaranteed companions like in most games - the player has to be able to do something for them. Maybe that involves providing shelter or food, and maybe it means barking louder than them. Most of all, the personalities in the game don't necessarily get along with each other - the only thing that can unite them is strong leadership. This doesn't mean being fair or nice or a complete monster - maybe that might work for your group, I don't know - but the people that the player allys themselves with are going to need someone to keep them together and make the decisions that overall benefit the group in the long run, even if it means sacrificing or displeasing a few of them. In a lot of ways, the player has to be a politician in addition to being a fighter/thief/healer in their role as a leader. And if all else fails, you could try to just go it on your own.

Anyhow, opening up discussion to the group - what kind of leader do you think you would be in the zombie apocalypse? Assuming you don't live next to a soldier, secret agent, surgeon, astronaut, bare-knuckle boxer, and sniper, if you had to keep ten of your neighbors alive in an emergency situation, could you do it? What kind of problems would you encounter? How many do you think would make it to a month?

(When the game comes out, check back on this post and see if you lived up to your expectations.)

Survival it's one of the major themes of the game, which is why it should come as no shock to anyone that it's actually a skill in our Zombie RPG. Now, you might think pumping points into this skill is all it would take to win a game about survival, but that would be wrong. Survival (the skill) is a combination of skills that would allow someone to stay alive in a hostile wilderness without the threat of zombies being an everyday occurrence. In real life, this would encompass a whole range of skills, from camping and plant identification to navigation and path finding. In the game, there are some very specific reasons why you would want to sink points into this skill.

As was previously mentioned on the boards, food is an important resource for the player to seek out. As the stores aren't being restocked and scavenging is always dangerous, the Survival skill unlocks an alternative way to supplement food stocks - by giving the player the ability to identify wild plants and fungi and know where to harvest wild sources of food. You'd be surprised at just what you can eat and how common some of these plants are. As the skill increases, the player will be able to identify more wild plants, giving them more alternatives to trying to fighting other looters for that last can of dog food.

However, the Survival skill isn't just about gathering nuts and berries, it's also about looking, listening, and staying out of trouble. While traveling, there will be times that the player's party could be ambushed by hostile humans or even groups of undead. With high enough Survival skill, the player will be able to choose whether to run from or engage enemies on their own terms, and at higher levels, they'll even get a bonus to ambushing their attackers.

Last but not least, the Survival skill is about moving fast about knowing how to get through terrain quickly and being observant. What this means is that when traveling on the area map, the player's party will move quicker when they or their allies have a higher Survival skill. As they are moving, the higher their Survival skill, the more likely it is that they will spot areas to loot from a farther distance than they normally would. Remember, wasted time is wasted resources, so speed and knowledge are critical abilities to possess when making your way through the hostile wilderness of the zombie apocalypse.

Observation, identification, swiftness, and situational awareness these are the tools that Survival experts possess. Survival in our game is less about being a nature enthusiast and more about being a commando. If you build your Survival skill, rest assured that neither hunger, nor hostiles will get the jump on you. Don't get too cocky, though, because Survival will only get you to a destination, but should you get into the thick of combat, you're going to need some other skills to rely on, chiefly the kind that involve axes, shotguns, and claw hammers. More about those in our next update.

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