Pathfinder: Saga of Fate

Background
Pathfinder: Saga of Fate is a side-scrolling beat-em-up based on a campaign of Pathfinder (it's like Dungeons & Dragons) that I gamemastered for my friends from 2014-2015. After I graduate and gain enough experience in game development, I plan on forming an indie developer with at least two of my friends (who were players in this Pathfinder campaign). This would be our first project should that indie developer ever form. Not only will this article allow me to share my ideas with you all, but it will also serve as an outline for me to go back to for reference.

Game Information

 *  Platforms:  PC and Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft consoles
 *  ESRB:  Teen
 *  Genre:  Beat 'em up
 *  Players:  1-4
 *  Release Date:  Obviously I can't provide an exact release date, but sometime in the late 2020s seems realistic.

Gameplay
Saga of Fate takes inspiration from many different games. Most of this inspiration comes from The Behemoth's Castle Crashers. Like Castle Crashers, Saga of Fate is a medieval four-player co-op beat 'em up. It also takes inspiration from Diablo with its ability and upgrade system, and a little bit from Overwatch to flesh out the personality of each character.

In traditional beat 'em up fashion, the game has you always facing either left or right, with the ability to move in all four directions, with enemies coming at you from either side of the screen that you have to defeat to progress.

The game features a cast of 24 playable characters (more may be added through DLC), each with four unique abilities that can be upgraded. These are: Each character has stats that vary from character to character, these stats include: Every time a character levels up, these stats will increase by an amount that depends on the character. The different stat growths are as follows: There are two things that should be noted, however. The first is that health improves by double the normally indicated growth (meaning that if a character has a moderately high health growth, then their health will improve by 5 per level). The second is that there is an eighth stat known as Speed, which effects the movement speed of the character. This stat is inherent to each character, and is not subject to growth. It can only be improved temporarily through the use of certain abilities.
 * 1) Basic attack: A simple damage dealing ability that has unlimited use (i.e. a sword swing).
 * 2) Basic ability: An ability that is essential to the character's kit and has a short cooldown.  Almost used as frequently as a basic attack.
 * 3) Advanced ability: A somewhat powerful ability that has a moderate cooldown.
 * 4) Super ability: The character's ultimate ability that can change the tide of a battle and has a long cooldown.
 * 1) Strength: damage dealt by physical attacks
 * 2) Skill: percent chance an attack will hit its target
 * 3) Magic: damage dealt by spells
 * 4) Defense: resistance to physical attacks
 * 5) Agility: percent chance an attack against the character will miss
 * 6) Willpower: resistance to magic attacks
 * 7) Health: amount of damage the character can take before falling in battle (duh)
 *  None:  The stat will not grow because it is unusable by the character. This will only ever apply to strength and magic.
 *  Low:  Improves by 1 per level
 *  Moderately Low:  Improves by 1.5 per level
 *  Moderate:  Improves by 2 per level
 *  Moderately High:  Improves by 2.5 per level
 *  High:  Improves by 3 per level

Characters
I will go in depth with each of the characters later, but for now, here is a summary of the 24 main characters that will appear in the game. The 24 characters will be split into three separate parties for plot purposes.

First Party

 * Severus Pentai: A half-elf sorcerer who is descended from naga and an aspiring Pathfinder Chronicler. Possesses acid magic and the ability to rally his enemies through heroic tales, as well as conjure serpentine creatures.  Has a fragile physique, but makes up for it in charisma and intelligence.  Often at odds with Romulus.
 * Luandale Cortave: An elven cavalier, ranger, and freedom fighter. Wields a halberd and longbow and channels the power of his deity, Cernunnos.  Quite arrogant, but also courageous and passionate for his cause.  Often at odds with Rognick.
 * Rognick: A dwarven paladin of Torag and freedom fighter. Wields a battleaxe in one hand and a shield in the other.  Brave and hearty but not very smart.  Often at odds with Luandale.
 * Ostarian: A human ninja with a mysterious past. Wields a shortbow and uses stealth.  He's not very friendly, and not much for extensive conversations.  Often at odds with Tsun.
 * Iolana Sevoni: An extremely beautiful half-angel inquisitor of Desna and sorcerer who channels the power of her angelic heritage. Has a very tragic past that she refuses to talk about.  Possesses healing magic and wields a light crossbow.  She's in sort of a love triangle with Severus and Romulus.  Iolana secretly likes Romulus more, but pretends to like both equally.
 * Tsun al Janni: A half-genie samurai and battle herald who serves as a soldier for the possibly-corrupt Council of Absalom. Wields a Nodachi and rallies his allies from atop his horse.  In spite of the government he serves under, Tsun is quite a kind-hearted person, and won't hesitate to save an innocent life (the definition of a good soldier just following orders).  Often at odds with Ostarian.
 * Romulus Malarc: A half-demon magus, playboy, and former criminal. He wields a bastard sword in one hand, and spells in the other, and is extremely agile due to the fact that he wears no armor.  Has a very tragic past, and his behavior is meant to repress those memories.  Has a twin brother named Remus.  Often at odds with Severus.
 * Töruk: A hobgoblin monk who fights with nothing but his bare hands and wears nothing but a pair of trousers. He is quite skilled in grapples and pins.  Very reluctant to run away from a fight.  Always eager for a challenge.

Second Party

 * Lau Kong: A vanara brawler who adopts the unarmed fighting style of his monk brethren, but rejects the gruelling traditions that they have long adhered to. As such, he was outcast from his village.  He is fun-loving and carefree, which led him to become friends with Pavo Crispin.  Tends not to speak much.
 * Raalnorg Bomarg: An Acarian (black crocodile person, player-created race) assassin who was abandoned as an infant in the Inner Sea after a failed colonization attempt from his people in a faraway continent. Dual-wields scimitars and uses stealth.  Possesses no sense of morality whatsoever, but stays with the party for his own personal gain.
 * Hiroto Kituhara: A Kitsune summoner who fights alongside his eidolon (a lasting ally from another plane), a giant golden frilled lizard-like creature named Solavoto, and other temporary conjurations. He is capable of assuming a rather handsome human form, which he uses to win over women.  He is quite kind-hearted, but is rather annoyed by the behavior of Lau Kong and Pavo.
 * Hanji K'Zotii: A human witch and former student at the Magaambya arcane school in a vast jungle known as the Mwangi Expanse. Uses offensive and healing magic in equal measure.  She is accompanied by a cat-like creature from the plane of Nirvana named Mitoa, which she uses to draw her power.  Stoic but kind.
 * Captain Pavo Crispin: Captain of a small ship named the John Taylor, which had a crew that consisted only of himself until he met Lau Kong, Raalnorg, Hiroto, and Hanji, who happened to need a boat as a means of escape. Wants to prove to the world that there is such a thing as a good pirate.  Wields a rapier in one hand and a revolver in the other.  Has a serious drinking problem.
 * Whittaker: A grippli gunslinger and cleric of Pharasma. He uses the power of his deity for necromancy, which is frowned upon by other worshippers of Pharasma (but not necessarily the deity herself).  Wields a pistol and can channel both positive and negative energy to heal his allies and harm his enemies.  Fights alongside a skeleton he calls Rotbeard, who thinks he was pirate captain before he died, but was actually just a fruit merchant who got shot and thrown in a sewer because he couldn't pay tribute to the local gang.  Whittaker doesn't talk much, but when he does, he's quite sarcastic.
 * Tir'Vak: A trox barbarian who starts as an NPC that fights with the first party, but dies partway through that campaign and comes back to life as a half-construct under mysterious circumstances to join the second party in their quest. Wields a gigantic club.  He hates all injustice, especially slavery, since he was one for most of his life, and will do anything in his power to stop it.  To his allies, he is a gentle giant.  To his enemies, he is a force to be reckoned with.


 * Calamity: A samsaran blight druid and free spirit. Wields a spear and inflicts blights upon her foes.  She prefers to wander the Inner Sea, doing whatever she pleases.  Incredibly seductive and manipulative.  Her sanity is questionable.

Third Party

 * Helvar: A half-vampire who has fought in many wars over his long lifetime. After fighting his most recent war, the first Inner Sea War, he became a mercenary who traveled the Inner Sea destroying undead.  Wields a musket and heals with magic from his deity Iomedae.  Very stoic and battle-hardened.
 * Remus Voldruk: A half-demon bloodrager who is even more ill-mannered than his twin Romulus. He is tough and mean, and always looking for a fight.  He will only do something if he knows it will bring him pleasure.  Wields a greataxe and draws upon the power of his demonic bloodline to buff himself in battle.
 * Brunnwald von Roth: A human skald and skilled blacksmith who fought in the first Inner Sea War. Wields a warhammer and sings songs to buff his allies in battle.  He is a travelling bard who records his adventures and tells about them on his travels.  He's always looking for another adventure, another tale to tell.  Hearty, kind, and charismatic.
 * Zob the Hairy: A bugbear monk assassin who prefers violence over rational thought. He wields no weapons, so his preferred method of attack is to sneak up on his foes and snap their necks.  He is a compulsive liar, but also very forgetful, so he doesn't usually get away it.  Jealous of Remus's strength.  Wants to be friends with Mogmurch because "us goblinoids should stick together", but Mogmurch doesn't want anything to do with him.
 * Mogmurch: A goblin alchemist who is both intelligent and cynical. He uses alchemy to improve his reflexes, and to create powerful bombs.  In order to learn alchemy, Mogmurch had to read, which is frowned upon in goblin society, thus Mogmurch was outcast.  Dislikes those who prefer brute force over wit, so he doesn't like Zob and Remus very much.
 * Mordecai: A half-elf hunter who struggles to survive in the underground hellscape known as the Darklands. Dual wields hand crossbows and fights alongside his igaunodon companion Talon, which he tamed himself.  He has a past that is shrouded in mystery, but Helver points out that he seems to fight like a soldier.
 * Ker-Shal: A member of the Jir'Yonga (chameleon people) race that lives exclusively in a jungle in the Darklands. He wields a shortbow in battle and is also skilled in alchemy, which he uses to enhance his abilities.  He can utilize camouflage to hide from his enemies.  Very curious about what life is like for surface dwellers.
 * Sargon: A deaf fetchling oracle who can see into the future. He uses magic to manipulate time in various ways.  He never speaks, so his background and personality are a mystery.

Game Modes

 *  Story Mode:  Play through the main story chapter after chapter, unlocking the various different characters as you go.
 *  Free Play:  Play through different chapters as you see fit. Here, there is no restrictions on which characters you can play as, so long as you've unlocked them in story mode.
 *  Hardcore Mode:  Unlocked after you've beaten Story Mode. In this mode, every character is made available at the beginning.  If you're playing by yourself, you have every character at your disposal.  With two players, each chooses 12 characters.  With three players, each chooses 8.  With 4 players, each chooses 6.  The objective is to play through every level in the game on a higher difficulty than in story mode.  The catch is that once a character falls in battle, that character is unusable for the rest of the playthrough.  Once the number of players is chosen for this mode, the choice is locked in.
 *  Arena:  Fight in 2v2, 3v3, or 4v4 battles with AI and/or other players. If there is only one player on a team, any remaining slots will be filled with AI.  1v1 won't be available because characters with support abilities won't be as useful.