One way to intertwine narrative and mechanics in a game is to do so through character classes. In order to have unique feeling classes, the class style needs to match the narrative of what they are. For example, a warrior needs to feel like a physical powerhouse, and a mage needs to feel like a squishy, but powerful spellcaster.
WARLORD:
In Draconic Echoes: The Ardent War, the standard advanced warrior class is Vendra’s “Warlord” option. The in-game description of the Warlord is as follows:
Selecting this option will change Vendra to the “Warlord” class. She will continue to focus on overwhelming her enemies with physical force in martial combat and gain more skills to that end. She will also gain a passive ability to counterattack physical hits naturally. The Warlord’s fighting style is very straight forward. She deals damage through strength alone while she controls the flow of battle. Essentially, the Warlord fights like a Vanguard, but with higher power and a few extra interesting tactics.
Draconic Echoes: The Ardent War
In short, the class fantasy of the Warlord is being an overwhelming physical force, who uses marshal prowess to both attack enemies and defend allies. To elaborate on the description above, I would like to explain a few of the Warlord’s class skills in more detail.
Stalwart Protector – Stand steadfast in front of your allies to eliminate the brunt of all incoming damage this turn by applying “guard” to all allies.
Using this skill allows players to feel that the Warlord stands at the front of the party, and is unmovable in the face of daunting threats.
Challenge of Strength – Attempt to goad the target into a contest of strength, applying the “silence” effect to the target and applying both the “mocking” effect and the “fortified body” effect to the user.
This skill forces the selected target to attack the Warlord with only physical skills, and makes the Warlord immune to many negative physical effects such as “bleeding” and “stunned” through the “fortified body” effect. Basically, the Warlord is declaring “I’m stronger than you, and I know it” as this spell is cast. A good use of this skill truly gives players the impression of the Warlord’s physical superiority.
Massive Blow– Brutally assault the target for high damage and apply the “dazed” effect. Additionally, the “dazed” effect has a high chance to be upgraded into the “stunned” effect.
Of course, the Warlord needs an attack that conveys raw power. Not only does this skill deal high damage, but also it can, with one strike, stun normal enemies for 2-4 turns. Dealing high damage while reducing damage via a stun truly embodies the feeling of the Warlord’s physical prowess.
Ultimately, the goal of most classes are the same: attack to get the enemies’ HP down to zero. Therefore, it is up to the blending of mechanics and narrative to make each class feel unique. Theming a class around a certain archetype or narrative will help to define each class mechanically as well.
If you’re curious about how all my nonsense actually plays out in a game, check out Draconic Echoes: The Ardent War on Steam!