A High-Level Look At The ‘Combat’ Element Of Guild of Guardians
N.b: This article is designed to give the community high level insights into one (of the many) element of how we envisage the game to end up looking like. Naturally, the details listed here are subject to change.
Something the community is always requesting, is for more information around the physical gameplay of Guild of Guardians.
Our senior game designer Josiah is back with some further insights. This article aims to describe in more detail how the dungeon combat will work in Guild of Guardians. It will cover four key areas: Squad composition, strategy, actual combat, and AI/boss actions.
- Squad Composition
Squad composition is hugely important in Guild of Guardians.
The first thing to touch on, is that Guilds are separate from squads. Squads are groups of Heroes that are assembled for single player use, and Guilds are groups of multiple players, working together co-op to complete a specific task.
The single player campaign is the main path of progression in the game, and players can earn rewards as they make their way through this. Single players will control a squad of heroes (it is likely going to be four heroes to a squad) to progress. In battle, players will send four heroes at a time in to a dungeon and (optionally) control one of those heroes at a time (the remainder will be AI controlled).
Whilst single player is important, as we’ve doubled down upon through our communications thus far, (and as given away in the title of the game) we are leaning heavily into the many amazing gameplay mechanics that can be facilitated by working with other players in those squads.
In co-op raids, players can work together as a Guild to take down a single boss. Taking down the biggest bosses will reap those Guilds the greatest loot. Guild Raids require co-ordination in order to succeed. Faction, Class, Element, and Power Level will all be key to determining a Raid’s success or failure.
Guild leadership is motivated to ensure that participants are joining with the right Heroes and have all the gear required. Each participant is rewarded for a successful raid so the effort spent is worth the pay-off.
2. Strategy
Each dungeon in the game will be balanced to provide challenge for the player.
Monster affinities, abilities, and passive buffs/debuffs will require the player to tune their teams to overcome each Dungeon.
For example, players can take a squad of all Horde Heroes into a Dungeon and receive a buff to damage for that instance. Creating squads of Heroes based off Faction, Class, and Elements will give you an edge when progressing through the campaign.
You can play it safe with a squad designed to nullify incoming damage, or you can go full glass cannon and make a team designed to clear entire rooms in seconds. The choice is yours!
Important to remember: some squad compositions are not so obvious to put together, and are hidden in the game. You’ll have to work together to figure these out, and to unlock hidden buffs!
3. Combat
Ok, but how does the above affect you as a player, with mobile in hand? What actions do you have in your arsenal whilst in combat?
Targeting
We’re currently working on the intricacies of combat in Guild of Guardians. Part of what makes a good game is ACTUALLY HITTING what you aim at. Revolutionary, right?
We’re looking into a smart targeting system that makes your heroes attack towards nearest enemies without making you feel stuck and unable to target someone new quickly and easily.
We’re also pulling inspiration from market-leading games on this front (like Dragalia Lost, Diablo, and Hades).
We aren’t going to re-invent the wheel here. Sturdy, mechanically sound, and reliable is our MO.
Active Dodge
Having a dodge that is quick lets us make combat more exciting and reactive.
Not every Hero can stand in front of the boss and tank the blows.
Sometimes you’ve just got to get the heck out of the way.
Basic attacks/combos
Light, Light, Heavy. A simple yet powerful attack combo that makes fighting even the weakest enemy feel awesome.
Each hit you deliver has impact and weight. We want every combat encounter to feel great — not just bosses.
Ultimate attacks
Every Hero has a pool of power/energy to draw from to perform their ultimate ability.
As mentioned in the last article these abilities are the most powerful actions a Hero can perform. They can clear a room, deal massive single target damage, heal, debuff enemies, or buff your party.
4. AI and Boss actions
We want your team to follow you into Dungeons and fight alongside you.
The Heroes you bring in alongside you will actively engage enemies, dodge attacks, dodge traps, and even use their ultimate abilities.
Monster and Boss actions
Enemies need to be smart.
We hear this all the time in game development, but what actually makes an enemy smart? Using the environment? Using their abilities? Being aggressive? As usual, the answer is a little bit of everything. However, we believe it all boils down to one thing. Playing to their strengths.
We want our encounters to challenge the player and we’re working hard to make sure they’re more than just filler you wade through to reach the end goal.
Hero Statistics, and why you may want to buy in the Guild of Guardians founder sale
In finishing, it is worth touching on one major point that is a caveat to all of the above. The better a Heroes rarity, the better their base stats will be. This manifests in the form of more damage, more health, and more powerful abilities. We’re not changing the game on that front.
However, to make it abundantly clear, we do not want this game to be pay-to-win. Even Legendary Heroes will have their weaknesses.
You will need to level your Heroes in the Dungeon campaign to maximize their respective capabilities. Even lower rarity Heroes become powerful when they are equipped well, and leveled up.
Most importantly, having a large roster of Heroes to draw from to face any situation is important to progressing efficiently through the game. You can kill two birds with one stone by securing that large group in our founders sale, setting you up for success, and playing your own unique part in our early growth as a project.
We’re excited to share more information about the game as we lock more details in. Stay tuned.
Until next time!
How to get involved
Join more than 120,000 (!) other Guardians who have pre-registered:
- Drop your email on our website to get early access to the presale (look out for our new website coming soon!)
- Join our Discord channel to find out more about what we are up to!
- Follow our Twitter for spicy leaks and memes!
We are excited to share this journey with you.
#WeAreGuardians
