Dev Log #49: Temporal Manipulation

[Styg]

Hi guys,

In the expansion, we'll be adding a new psionic school in called "Temporal Manipulation", which will primarily feature delayed damage and buffing/debuffing abilities.



This psi discipline will, probably more than any other, will function well as a support skill that can be incorporated into other builds, rather than a primary skill around which a build is made, though I have no doubt that some of you will find a way to prove me wrong.

Here are the abilities:

• Temporal Distortion - Places a debuff on the target that lasts 1 turn and deals mechanical and energy damage when it expires. In the case the target is already affected by temporal distortion, its duration will be increased by 1 turn and damage by 25% and the newly applied temporal distortion will have the same duration and damage bonus. Damage dealt by this ability ignores shield and 50% of damage resistance and threshold. This ability cannot critically hit.
  
• Psycho-temporal Dilation - Reduces target's action points by 15 and movement points by 50. Lasts 2 turns.
  
• Limited Temporal Increment - Reduces all remaining cooldowns by 1 turn.
  
• Entropic Recurrence - Repeats the percentage of the last unit of damage taken by the target over 3 turns. This damage ignores shields and resistances. In cases when the original damage was very slight, the recurrence may actually empower it.
  
• Psycho-temporal Contraction - Increases target's action points by 15 and movement points by 30. Lasts 2 turns.
  
• Temporary Rewind - Reverses the last damage done to the target, up to certain amount depending on the skill level. After two turns this health is lost and this may cause the target to die.
  
• Precognition - While this ability is active, your chance to dodge and evade attacks is increased by certain percentage depending on skill level (additively). Drains 25 psi points every turn.
  
• Stasis - Places the target in stasis for 2 turns, making it immune to all damage and most disabling effects, but also preventing it from acting. While in stasis, the target's status effects will not progress (except the stasis one), but the cooldowns will.
  

That's about it. Let me know how you guys like the new psi school.

[Tygrende]

It's always the psi builds that get the coolest stuff. I like that all those buffs  can be helpful for pretty much any build out there, the question is if the Psi Empathy HP penalty will be worth it just for them.

Some of those abilities are extremaly powerful, too. Especially 
Limited Temporal Increment (even more so if there will be a more powerful version), Psycho-temporal Dilation/Contraction because both 15 AP and 30/50 MP are big bonuses/penalties and Stasis since it will allow even the most squishy builds to easily survive things like Aimed Shot from snipers (unless the AI will be smart enough ro save their abilities if you use it but I doubt it)

Overall I have some concerns about balance but it sounds fun.

[Yonaiker]

Pretty interesting new psi school, Precognition makes me think if will work with characters with massive armor penalty (95%), meaning I will have dodge/evasion like a Nimble character?

[Altos]

Pretty interesting new psi school, Precognition makes me think if will work with characters with massive armor penalty (95%), meaning I will have dodge/evasion like a Nimble character?

If I'm reading the description correctly, it says that Precognition increases your Dodge & Evasion by a percentage of your skill level in those categories, so if we assume the maximum gain is 25% (because I've noticed that Styg likes to make 25% the maximum for all these percentage-based skills/feats ) then your Evasion and Dodge would still be getting reduced by 70% due to your armor penalty (or 55% with Nimble).

[hilf]

Pretty interesting new psi school, Precognition makes me think if will work with characters with massive armor penalty (95%), meaning I will have dodge/evasion like a Nimble character?

If I'm reading the description correctly, it says that Precognition increases your Dodge & Evasion by a percentage of your skill level in those categories, so if we assume the maximum gain is 25% (because I've noticed that Styg likes to make 25% the maximum for all these percentage-based skills/feats ) then your Evasion and Dodge would still be getting reduced by 70% due to your armor penalty (or 55% with Nimble).

It doesn't say it increases Dodge&Evasion, but rather your chance to dodge and evade attacks.
Dodge and Evasion are one source of dodging and evading, Precognition would be another one (hence stacking 'additively').
That would also mean armor penalty has no effect on those chances as it reduces skills.

[Yonaiker]

Pretty interesting new psi school, Precognition makes me think if will work with characters with massive armor penalty (95%), meaning I will have dodge/evasion like a Nimble character?

If I'm reading the description correctly, it says that Precognition increases your Dodge & Evasion by a percentage of your skill level in those categories, so if we assume the maximum gain is 25% (because I've noticed that Styg likes to make 25% the maximum for all these percentage-based skills/feats ) then your Evasion and Dodge would still be getting reduced by 70% due to your armor penalty (or 55% with Nimble).

It doesn't say it increases Dodge&Evasion, but rather your chance to dodge and evade attacks.
Dodge and Evasion are one source of dodging and evading, Precognition would be another one (hence stacking 'additively').
That would also mean armor penalty has no effect on those chances as it reduces skills.

Lol my bad, I thought it was linked to the <Skills> not the value itself.

[TrueNeutralEvGenius]

Needs practical tests, but looks interesting. Temporal Distortion and Limited Temporal Increment look the most interesting, imho. Psi skills which are raising AP and MP doesn't look so cool & original, because we already have medicine and drugs like that. But still good enough to have them, we will have possibility to combine and empower. Precognition can be super supportive to some exact builds. Overall style is excellent.

Thanks once more for enduring work on the wonderful game which Underrail is.


Upd. Can you send info about school teachers, action points cost, ranges and so on, so I can write it down in the wiki already? Or let's wait for the release, maybe you still think a lot about it can change?

[Yonaiker]

A bit off-topic, makes me ponder now we have a time-based psionic we will have a gravity-based psi school in the future?

[reinhark]

Not gonna lie, this stuff excites me more than the expedition contents itself.

Keep up the good work Styg.

[Lucifuga]

Such flashy animations

I spot several "target"s in there regarding the buffs
They seem to me like the perfect NPC/partner support skills

Maybe I run too many "1st turn" characters but I've never seen one go behind cover at the end of their turn
Neat!

[Yonaiker]

A bit off-topic, makes me ponder now we have a time-based psionic we will have a gravity-based psi school in the future?

I doubt that. Psychokinesis already has matter manipulation abilities (implosion) that would befit such psi school and you can't have much fun with gravity on a 2D game without physics engine.

Temporal manipulation on the other hand is thematically perfect fit for Underrail. Those with keen eye and sharp wit may already have seen something similar in the game...

Maybe I run too many "1st turn" characters but I've never seen one go behind cover at the end of their turn
Neat!

Are you playing on easy or running an old version? The latest version has neat AI updates. All of them apply on hard, some on normal, easy is the same old dumb NPCs.

A siphoner man can dream...

On a serious note, then matter domination is my new bet, I have seen Implosion as applying a crushing pressure to the enemy instead of any kind of disintegration effect. as psychokinesis says its description "exerting mechanical force".

[Altos]

Those with keen eye and sharp wit may already have seen something similar in the game...

Boy, with all the time-related jokes and mechanics in this game, I think I'm developing vertigo! ...Timelapse Vertigo!

...

I'll see myself out.

I regret nothing!

[Lucifuga]

Are you playing on easy or running an old version? The latest version has neat AI updates. All of them apply on hard, some on normal, easy is the same old dumb NPCs.

I run on 1.0.1.4/normal
I'm always reluctant to update but that is something to look forward to along with Expedition
Thanks for the info!

[Planet-X]

I can not wait to play this again!

[Fenix]

Agree!