CAGD 270 - Simple DnD Map v3 (2/22/23) - The Alien Takeover
- My partners Ben Filler and Ilija Gonzales have playtested my simple dungeons and dragons map, The Alien Takeover. Each of them played as the Warrior and the Mage class. Their health and attacks were different this time around compared to the second version, they also had an added magic specialty tied to them. What went right about my level was a sense of direction for the players since my 'fogged out' areas and revealing areas for them worked out perfectly. Both players were easily able to gain a sense of their direction and were able to roam around finding checkpoints and enemies. Everything was going well with the sense of direction and players were also able to discover campfires to serve them checkpoints. Something that went wrong with my map was the calculations of the character's stats after the dice were rolled by the player. It was a little difficult for me to do the calculations and keep up with the character statistics so the game would flow quickly.
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| The Alien Takeover Full Map! |
- Something I would improve in my map design was that one of the playtesters mentioned that my map should better fit into the alien theme and the ways the players go through the levels. Another thing I would improve on is that there were a little too many campfires placed and I could tone them down, as one of the players mentioned. Also, I felt like the boss battle could have been better executed because the players would have to fight the boss to unlock a room that had a key and escape the prison in an aircraft. If the players died, they would have to go back to the nearest checkpoint and have to fight the boss again. The playtesters mentioned that it disrupts the flow of the boss level having to fight them first to unlock the room with the key. I would definitely adjust the boss to have him placed in a better spot or just scratch the idea of the room with the key.
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| Boss battle with locked room & key! |
- The challenges were presented appropriately to the introductory nature to the players and they were able to distinguish things well. Most, if not all, challenges were straightforward and simple to understand for the players. The critical path of the map was obvious and the players enjoyed the pathway flow of the map. The overall flow actually went pretty well and for what I managed to fit in a small prison map, it did its job. There were not any circulation elements added to the map. For the players, it was obvious where they were supposed to go, I was able to successfully reveal the areas of levels for them and explain to them until they are able to unlock the next area of interest.
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| First hallway players have to roam through! |
- All of the rule mechanics were taught to the players in an appropriate way from all points of the map, including start to finish. The enemies would have different statistics and different weapons used to fight back versus the humans. The players would be notified by me what exactly they would have so the players will suit up and be ready before they battle the enemies. The players were able to defeat all of the enemies including the boss, they were able to successfully retrieve the key from the locked room and escape the prison that was taken over by aliens. Overall, the map went very well, and something I really liked based on the gameplay was the path flow and the enemies that would be separated and placed in great areas. I also really enjoyed the different alien enforcements that I implemented with different character models and different statistics that they had.
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- My partners Ben Filler & Ilija Gonzales have playtested my simple dungeons and dragons map, Goblin Gauntlet. Each of them chose the Mage class and the Ranger class. Their attacks & health remained the same and there were no added specialties to their abilities. What definitely went right time around for my level was having an added bonus of enemies to battle with and lots of traps scattered around the map that the players have to dodge in order to reach the final boss. I did love how the players had to position their characters to go a certain path so they do not take any damage from the traps. The traps are not insanely difficult to dodge, but it does add a little bit of intensity rather than having no traps and the player having more free space. Something that I felt definitely went wrong was the reveal map stages which I failed to do properly. Instead, the whole map was exposed in parts and it needed to be the complete opposite so the players can have a sense of control over where they are trying to go and unlock areas when they are near a closed-off space.
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| The full map of Goblin Gauntlet v2 |
- While the players were roaming through the map I just had to improvise and tell them which areas specifically would be serving as a 'checkpoint'. Although they are available to freely roam around, I just had to mention to them when they have reached a new area to keep pushing forward to the boss. So I will definitely re-work the reveal area part of the map so the player is not exposed to the whole map right away at the start. Something I could also improve is perhaps having each enemy deal different damage and health instead of them all being the same statistics. One major thing that the players were confused about was the purple wall at first since I was not clear enough to them about what they were. They also mentioned that the goblins are a good idea but all of them are weak and have a large number count of them.
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| Provided characters: Mage, Warrior, Rogue, Ranger |
- When the players spawned into the map, I explain to them what each character does and what special abilities they may preserve. I also would explain to them what they would encounter as they progress through eh map and have an end goal of reaching the final boss. For the most part, the critical path the players had to follow was straightforward, but I definitely could have explained more about the purple walls since they make think it is like a lava pit they could fall in. The overall flow of gameplay was fairly smooth, the players were forced to fight each goblin before they can move forward and of course, dodge the traps. The players were both able to eliminate all of the evil goblins and reach the final boss stage of the map. As far as circulation elements, there were no added elements to the map and it is still open to roam around without any locks or doors. For the most part, the pathways were obvious for the players to move around and get to their final destination. All rule mechanics were taught to the players at the start of the level as to what to avoid while roaming around.
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| Boss Level |
- Overall, I did enjoy the results of the second playtest of this level and the players were able to reach the boss level successfully to fight against it. The statistics of the boss are pretty fair to the players and did not cause any problems. I did add a few lava pits on the sides that the players do have to avoid but it is mostly there as an in-game prop. Though, if the players do run into it, they will lose health. Both players did enjoy the level and had fun during gameplay.
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CAGD 270 - Simple DnD Map v1 (2/8/23)
- My partner Jack S. has playtested my simple dungeons and dragons map named Goblins Gauntlet. Their chosen class was the mage character to use during gameplay. What went right with the playtest was the ability to figure out the attack and defense damages when a character was facing and enemy and the boss. The attack and defense damages were pretty fair but may slightly be adjusted for the smaller enemies so there is a difference between them. Something that went wrong during the playtest was that the map could use a more guided pathway since it is a little open and could use some more walls or traps to guide the player in an exact flow. Something I would definitely improve with my map is adding in some traps for sure and also adjusting the health and defense system for the enemies. The boss defensive damage could also be adjusted so it can possibly create a different atmosphere all around.
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| Mage fighting against an Evil Goblin enemy |
- The challenges were appropriated in the introductory and the players are faced with enemies that aren't too powerful to fight. The critical path was fairly obvious, but may need some tweaking because it may seem a little too open for the player. Perhaps adding some tighter window paths and some traps to lure players a different direction would be a great idea. The overall flow of the game felt really smooth the the player was able to figure out the attack damages and defenses when faced against an enemy during play. As far as circulation elements there weren't really any but some green defensive walls around the boss. Perhaps, the green walls could be used as a circulation element like as a stair or elevator. As far as the player trying to find their way around, they were easily able to distinguish where to move and where not to go. The player was able to successfully search for the boss and had no difficulty reaching to it.
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| Player reaching the boss and attacking it. |
- All of the rule mechanics were taught to the player in an appropriate manner and were able to understand easily how to handle and navigate through the map successfully. They had no difficulty for the most part and were able to play on their own. The enemies were at a fair level to face off for the player but still could be adjusted to create some differences between them all. Creating some differences could cause more action for the player because they won't know what will hit them next, basically expecting the unexpected. I also felt like the map may be a little too open for my liking so perhaps dimming it down a little or adding some more walls to fill up the map and create more of cozier and tighter space of play for the player. The players seemed like they were a little small for the map so definitely adding in some obstacles could nicely fill up the map and make the players seem like they fit in more.
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| Provided characters: Mage, Warrior, Rogue, Ranger |
- Overall, the player did enjoy my map design and especially enjoyed the combat aspect of the game. They definitely mentioned that the path could be more defined and mentioned that adding a hidden/reveal space may be a great idea. Also a few added traps or doors would be a nice addition so it can give the player some extra options when navigating around the map. My partner also did enjoy the enemies that were provided and their attack and defense numbers were fair. They did not have difficulties facing the enemies and were able to actually kill them all. I will definitely adjust the attacks and defense values so it is not the expected same values like the values for the goblin enemies.
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