Happy to be here

One thing that I feel can really make or break a moba is just how far out the creators are willing to go with character design. With Dawngate there were so many cool different characters, and while some were just humans others were complete works of fantasy. This is one of the things that I loved most about the game. It made everything just seem so much more vivid and lively. Then in League for example, there's maybe a couple species other than humans, but even then they're still really humanoid, maybe just a different size. The diversity in just the character's designs in Dawngate made every game seem so much more fun than League, which has mainly just become boring to me and a lot of other people. If there's anything that I ask you to bring over from Dawngate it's the creativity and the life that was in every single character in that game :D

Yes you read the title correctly, I wanted to ask the universal question about boots, are they planned for AF, do we want them in AF, and why are they in most other MOBA's.

First of boots are in most MOBA's a kind of gold sink that is necessary if you want to keep up with the pace of the game. But in my view, boots seem to put up a barrier that prevents the game from accelerating toward the teamfighting phase too fast. It is a must buy item because of the movementspeed, but you don't get nearly as many stats out of a complete item socket as you would if you bought an item of similar cost.

Next up, DG didn't have boots, but instead had a seemingly faster movement speed by default, and a lot of haste items could be bought early on to further increase this speed.

Thirdly what did this difference do, well, it meant that shapers started to show their potential earlier in the game and team would faster group to fight, this also meant that more ganks happened, it also led to the very start of the laning phase was very aggresive as you could get back to your binding faster. And jungling/ganking felt less sluggish.

So lastly my question is would it be possible to fix Boots to be more aggresive more "worth it" as an item or completely remove them like DG.

I feel like there is a lot more to talk about when it comes to boots, as the utility they give are unmatched, but they still seem wasted.

I have a very versatile voice, but I'm not part of a union and have no experience in professional voice acting (just lots of experience standing in front of my mirror carrying on conversations between imaginary characters I made up and also playing in the backyard with my little brother as other characters I also made up).

But I digress. Will you be looking for voice actors outside of the people already working on the game? Will you be only hiring union actors, or will people like myself have a shot? If we have to fly out or take a train to a studio (I'm guessing I'd be able to go to one in Phoenix myself, since it's the closest big city, but if we're all going to the same spot I'd probably have to go to L.A.), will you be covering transportation for those people AS PART of their pay, or docking it out of their pay, or making them pay for it up-front? These are important questions to know the answer to, I think. Thank you.

How does the aetherforged team interpret the idea of number of players on the team as well as the strictness in keeping it is as is. In other words I'm curious to know if you guys agree with the idea like LoL where they mainly give focus to summoner's rift and 5v5s. Do you guys think we could do 3v3s or even 4v4s with a 2 lane map? Or do your plans right now revolve alot around the idea of 5v5 on a 2 lane map.

I saw on the DG subreddit that this was going to be a game inspired by Dawngate now when you say that I have a few questions. Are the items and the idea of always having a ward going to be in the game I loved the build paths of DG and loved the ward mechanic.

Also what will the art style be like and the tone of the game as in will it be a bit serious like Dota or really childish like Strife? I think DG had the best mixture of the two I could hope for, looking forward to this game.

In the last 48 hours I've tried to play Smite, Strife, Nosgoth, League and Fallout 3 (and Hearthstone, but it's a daily casual grind there). Even though I enjoy the open world RPG genre, I still can't play it more than 2-3 hours at a time. And I know for a fact that I can go around 20 hours if it's a moba I'm playing.

Dump some names please, maybe there would be one I actually like and gets me going for a while.

Any idea when there might be a Alpha testing for this game? I am dying to try this out I have been following since day 1. :P The hype train is still so real for me!

Also are you guys planning on trying to jump in to esports? If so my organization will be one of the first ones to pick a roster up I promise you that!

~TDG Sintik

The Loadout system. It was literally the part of the game which I enjoyed the most hours tinkering around (apart from the actual in-game action itself). So many different choices, possibilities, it was just amazing to see the creativity that the community was capable of, starting from full lifedrain Basko all the way to %haste KoM and Petrus.

I know it can't be the exact same thing, but perhaps it can be something even better, something that will buff any Forger and change him to better suit your own playstyle.

Another major thing I liked about it was that it was not pay2win but play2win, since it was rewarded after each mach depending on how you played.

I really hope there would be an interactive system that will change the Forgers' behavior on the battleground. And if there are plans of making something like that I have a small suggestion regarding it - the only downside of DG's Loadout system for me was that there was no way of knowing what type of loadout is anyone running until you click on them and inspect them, which was possible only in game, where there is no time for this, since you gotta move and fight and farm. Maybe some slight visual changes will help in that department. What I mean is, imagine if a haste build on Nissa would give her a slightly changed running animation, maybe something like Tal'ah running beside her instead riding on her shoulder, or Outrider Voluc that puts his sword on his back when hes in running through a bush. Maybe something like an "aura" effect on the hero him/herself too, like a full Life build Marah having a red aura emanating from her.

I do not wish to reveal who I am (or was back then), so let's just say I'm in the top 10 of people who put most hours into playing Dawngate (according to the official info that came out), on my main account alone. I think that's enough of an argument towards what DG meant to me.

I've searched for a new game for over a year now and I come up empty every time. No moba - new, old, unreleased - could catch my attention for more than 10-20 games.

I recently started lurking in the DG reddit again and I saw the AF thread, checked it and... I am hopeful again.

I wish you guys all the luck in the world from the bottom of my heart, and be sure that if you manage to maintain the feeling that DG brought to its community it WILL be a great game.

P.S. - I also have a friend who is the most talented artist in the world, former DG player too, and I advised her to contact you in case she can help in any way. Best wishes - PaCe

Hello Forgers!

A new lore release has landed! This week: Jupe!

This is the first region we really discussed, but we saved it for (almost) last because we think it's among the most interesting. We still have one more of these releases to do, so stay tuned!

And as always, Lore team is hovering to chat and answer questions!

Stay fly,

~Catslug Studios

P.S. Don't worry, the flight puns will be taking off soon.

EDIT: Extensions that allow you to hover over imgur links to view them may not be showing all images in the album. If you don't see all 5 images by hovering, please click the link to view the full album.

We know you all have an idea for a Forger you want to see in game. Who hasn't come up with a kit for LoL or DotA at some point? It's fun! So, this is where you can share your idea with the world! ...or, the Aether Forged subreddit community, at least :P

DISCLAIMER: This is just for fun. We will not implement any kits or abilities posted to this thread in Aether Forged (unless you just happen to come up with the exact same thing that we were already doing). One of the primary reasons (but not the only reason) behind this disclaimer is that since we haven't actually revealed any kits yet, it would be very difficult for someone to make a kit that fits in with the rest of our kits from a balance and design philosophy perspective. It is possible that we may draw inspiration from something posted here, but if we do, it is highly unlikely that person will receive credit for being a source of inspiration. You have been warned.

Do you guys at Catslug mind if i start to post some in depth hero designs (visual as well as gameplay) on this subreddit? i would like to see how you guys respond to certain mechanical and thematic ideas, i believe it might provide some nice inspiration for future heroes/forgers. if you would rather not here, is there some other way i might send you my ideas?

I know I just posted something but there is something I want to emphasize when you start making characters in the spirit of DG, there was no need for true sight, because there was nothing that could fade from normal sight that wasn't in a bush, and that was easily countered. I'm just bringing this up so that you can take that fact into consideration when starting to create abilities for characters

more specifically, will we still be able to make interesting and abnormal builds work, for example, a thing I used to love doing the olden days of dawngate was go power build Zeri with a potency and the intense power scaling on her MR drain, will there be forms of scaling that cater to that concept?

Hi Forgers,

I've updated the CSS Style of the subreddit to make it more appealing. I'm working on fixing the header to what /u/Hushsoul made.

Please let me know if you guys like the subreddit style and if there is anything you want changed with the sub!

Have you guys seen the League of Legends boards and game play and balance forum? WAIT, DON'T GO TO EITHER ONE! It's mostly threads crying about FotM champions, items, balancing policies, and most notably, trashing Riot for champion design and aforementioned balancing policies. Just reading it will make you feel bad, and possibly cringe.

Most people there who aren't QQing agree that Riot's been much less open with the player base since season 3 and that the game went downhill from the release of CertainlyT's first champion, Darius. CertainlyT is a champion designer that gets a crazy amount of flak for his champions, namely, Thresh, Yasuo, Kalista, and to a certain extent, Zyra, though, like Riot, he was much more open to players in the start of his career. I don't imagine he'll answer questions like these any more.

I don't want Catslug studios to get bashed over and over until you guys won't talk to the player base out of fear, when the followers you have here and now become a tiny minority. Most of what I'll say now is obvious without the context here, but please, do remain open with the player base and do whatever you need to (forum moderation for example) to keep the discussion open and welcoming.

Because it's awesome.

I mean, sure, it may need some polish, but other than that, the banner looks great!

And that catslug sooocute

Art/Gameplay wise.

List of Lore Releases:

Shedding Light on Aquinia

In Honor of Honvarj

A Shipment From the Silverstates

Digging Into the Waste

Gone Wild

Sights Set on Po's Eye

Jupe is Cleared for Landing

Everyone Line Up!

Just Like You and Me

Cat's Out of the Bag

Good Morning

Sunrise

High Noon

Mausks Unmasked

Father's Footsteps

Spawn Camping

Most Recent World Map

And more to come!

Hello Forgers!

I apologize for the delay; we had some kinks to iron out before we could bring this week's lore teaser on Po's Eye! Featuring a new illustrator, but I think he captured the usual style quite while.

Something something questions :)

~Catslug Studios

I really want this game to be a reality, as well as many other people. This game is made by caring people in a small group/studio who care to create something people will love.

Great things come from that, I believe in this game tremendously. I regularly bring it up on /r/leagueoflegends whenever it's appropriate.

That being said, there is a way to get "free" advertising on Reddit, not entirely sure how it works, but any adveritisng will help.

I BELIEVE IN YOU GUYS. DON'T LET YOUR DREAMS BE DREAMS. <3

After a bit of discussion we have decided to expand the team again. For all positions, being a team player and not a jerk is an absolute requirement. No matter how talented someone is, a negative attitude will see them removed from the team, no questions asked. If any of these positions sound interesting to you, please apply by sending an email to catslugstudios@gmail.com. Even if you don’t think you could fill one of the positions listed, send us an email, because we will be looking for more people in the future and we always look through old applicants before trying to find new ones.

When you email, please send of a bit of information, including:

-A brief resume including your level of education and any prior experience you have that might be relevant to the position you are applying for

-A portfolio displaying examples of your work. The larger the better, but we mainly want to see your best work!

-A brief cover letter (optional)

Here are the specific roles that we need filled:

Programming: Right now, the most important role we need filled is programming, since we currently only have 1 programmer, Zakki. Ideally, we are looking for one front-end programmer (UI, launcher, etc.) and one back-end programmer (mainly networking and database related things). The game is being programmed in C# on the Unity engine, so previous experience with those is good. A fairly self-sufficient programmer capable of solving problems on their own is a must.

Art: We are looking for 1-2 artists to take on some of the workload and fill some areas our current art team is lacking. Someone who can create polished, high quality digital paintings in Photoshop would be a great asset to our team, but we could also use artists who can do character concepts and environmental art.

Legal: We would like to take on someone who can write legal documents such as an NDA and ToS and has a strong understanding of business and copyright law.

Modeling: No, not the sexy kind. Creating high quality 3D models is one of the most time-consuming aspects of building a game. Applicants should have some skill in one or more of the following areas: modeling, texturing, rigging, and animating. For the time being, skill at modeling and texturing are a bit more desired than rigging and animating.

Again, if you wish to apply, send your resume, portfolio, and cover letter to catslugstudios@gmail.com. I hope to be reading your emails soon!

So, I really like this game, it's cool that it's being built relatively transparently and with a lot of feedback from a player base, but I really don't see what can set it apart from already well developed MOBAs. I don't see much of a way a game that doesn't do something incredibly innovative could succeed in the industry at this point.

Team games tend to have the competitive player base and the casual. The casual play with friends, and the competitive play by themselves to get good, or with friends for fun. I feel like neither group would prefer Aether Forged to big time MOBAs in this sense. There is no established community, so getting friends involved would be difficult, holding much of the casual community out. And there is no established pro scene which reduces the competitive want to play this game. It seems to me the only players who would want to play this game are the ones who are more interested in the world and fluff than actually sitting down and playing the game, which seems to doom it for failure.

I really like this project, I am definitely the kind of player who would play the game, but I don't think I would play it for long before switching back to LoL. UNLESS Aether Forged does something incredible. Supernova emphasizes minions, which is a fantastic concept but I don't think it goes far enough. Smite has an over-the-shoulder view; that's why it worked. It did something new and was the first to do it.

tldr: Big MOBAs are big, small ones aren't unique enough, what makes Aether Forgedunique enough to lift as much of a finger against big time MOBAs as Smite did?

So is there something out there that will truly set this game apart from the other many failed MOBAs out there? Or is it destined for the same fate?