Maegwyn

Friday, July 24, 2015

New Hovering Terrarium And More

Star Date: 24 July, 3015:

Engine Change: I fixed an issue in the Starship where the equip slot suggesting the placement of Hovering items in the back room of the Captains Quarters was actually not functioning. This required an engine change, so be sure to clear cache and refresh your browser if you are not seeing Omega Ver. 4.0.2

New Hovering Items! Lyris made a couple of terrariums (terraria?) and an aquarium and they are in Lisa's shops on the Starship. The Hovering Aquarium and Hovering Desert Terrarium sell for credits, and the Hovering Terrarium is in the Nova Gem shop. 

Here's a screenshot of a couple of them in MaegTest's CQ

http://cms.mechquest.com/mq/images/MQ-7-24-3015-Omega4.0.2-300w.jpg

Read More

Maegwyn

Friday, May 9, 2014

Begone Gremlins

Star Date: 9 May, 3014

Hi! I'm going on vacation tomorrow for a week! I'll be checking my email and the forums and twitter when I have internet access. MQ is in good hands with Vivi and Ash doing next week's update, and Korin is going to help post Design Notes for you, so you probably won't even notice I"m away.

bzzt <Incoming Transmission: Ash>

Greetings! This week I worked on getting a bunch of the bugs that were around, and that you all reported recently, fixed.
There were a bunch, and I can't mention all of them, but to sum up everything.
- A bunch of typos.
- Item bugs.
- Mech bugs
- Travel Map bug
- Romero quest bug

I also have a hunt tonight for you all for a new type of mod. These still boost stats but they boost a different set then you all usually see. I'm working on seeing about putting extra effects on new mods for some true passive effects but for now I wanted to put these out.
What better way to do that then a hunt through the game! I'm hiding the mods in a shop and the following is your clue.


"Struggled to be free, fled from destruction, leaving pieces behind with a kind of kin."


Good luck and feel free to work together on the forums! Have fun!

bip bip pongggggg

Thanks, Ash!

I wanted to mention that you might want to build up your stash of credits because there's an o.Ops weapon planned for later this month. Good chance to run into Richy the Rich Guy in the Soluna East mission this weekend. Also, we've got a little something for you on Mother's Day so definitely log in again on Sunday!

Good luck with the hunt, everyone!

L8r m8s!

=Mae 

Maegwyn

Friday, April 6, 2012

Eggcziting

It's no yolk that we've got some eggcziting new Spring Holiday weapons - you'll have to crack the egg to reach the shops inside. You can replay the past years' quests and pick up Holiday Rares, too.

Here is Vivi with the Design-Notes-Friendly specials - thanks to blues for coming up with them and to Vivi for coding them onto the weapons that Minar designed, drew, and animated!

Head (CD = 3): 
Good chance for a crit 
Each turn, randomly applies one of these effects (good effects go to you, bad effects go to the enemy). The first effect lasts for 3 turns, the second effect lasts for 2 turns and the third effect lasts for 1 turn. Specials listed are NSC (SC,NG) 
- general damage boost of 30% (35,40) 
- defense boost of 30 (40,50) 
- damage reduction of 30% (35,40) 
- general BtH boost of 30 (40,50) 
- normal (1.5, double) HP DoT 
- normal (1.5, double) EP DoT 
- blinding effect, -30 (35,40) enemy BtH 
- -60 (-70,-80) immo res and stun try 

Back Arm (CD = 3): 
- Good chance for a crit 
- First hit: chance for a double HP DoT 
- Second hit: chance to heal Level*1.5 HP 
- Third hit: chance to heal Level*1.5 EP

We pushed out a fix to the 0-Damage issue that cropped up on the Egg mechas (and monster) - it was the result of an earlier fix, actually. Similar to those NaN issues Vivi has been fixing. 

While I've been writing we've also been fixing little issues that slipped through the initial roll, so BA now really does 3 hits, Egg enemy doesn't NaN its Bonus... 

I had hoped also to bring you a new installment of the Romero storyline this week - a few technical difficulties delayed the storyline and quest (which are coming together nicely but not 100% ready) - but we DO have an update!

When you visit Vend-O-Tron, his (its?) shop interface has been streamlined so you don't have to wade through a bazillion weapons to get to the one you want.  Many thanks to the ArchKnights of the forums for pointing out this issue!

Have a happy Spring Holiday if you are celebrating in "real life" and enjoy the MechQuest spring holidays in-game! 

Maegwyn

Friday, March 9, 2012

Scalpels and Dieting Mecha Models

First of all let's all wish Vivi a very happy birthday!  And many, many more!

He animated today's Scalpel Front Arm weapon for us, besides his normal coding in of the specials blues designed! The specials all fit into the description so you should go to Romero and check the Vend-o-Tron for that info.  These are Nova Gem exclusive weapons. My original plan was to bring you also Star Captain and NSC (non-Star Captain) weapons, which Minar drew for us but we just honestly didn't have time to get them animated for this week. (Minar had final exams and Korin had a ton of other things in the works.) You will get them most likely next week. 

So many mecha models "lost weight" this week - TONS - so they could "fit" in the walkaround quests! I had to shrink their shadows, actually. Some have only one shadow, and some have two. And of course each mecha model has many levels - so to roll this release I had to open 8 separate windows with many, many tabs in each one to change nearly 100 filenames! So if you were not able to complete the walkaround quests in any of the models on the following list, try again!

  • Wolfblade (lower-level, not the Advanced)
  • ShS Trog SC
  • ShS Trog NSC
  • Dragon Spirit Form NG
  • Dragon Spirit Form SC
  • Dragon Spirit Form NSC
  • Chronomecha
  • Derpmachine
  • Guardian
  • Mechatron
  • Vanguard

If you get stuck in a different model, or are still getting stuck in any of the above, please report it in the Gremlins forum as a reply here

I fixed a few database typos:

  • Sparkler Rocket Std 3010 description is now correct
  • Dimitri's Gaze series got a typofix and a grammar fix
  • The Flamorah series also got a correction in its description 

I didn't get into quest files this week for any dialogue or mouseover typos. I'm still on the PC which can't handle having MQ open and running while Flash is open and running, so my multitasking is suffering horribly. I actually did some questwriting on actual paper with an actual pen with actual ink over the past couple of weeks! My hard drive on the laptop turned up blank - all my precious text files gone... and the first estimate from a file recovery place was over $1,000 USD. Getting one more estimate before I just get a new HD & send this one to Korin to give it a last-ditch effort for file recovery - so let's all hope for the best. Back up your files NOW!

Anyway...

Also in this bugfixing frenzy, Vivi got rid of NaN bugs in:

  • Cosmic Talon (head)
  • Steve Skysplitter (head)
  • Yeti Boss (arm)

Vivi also fixed something with the Giant Gorilla on Liath - I don't know offhand what it was ... because a Gremlin sneaked into one of our testing mechanisms somehow - so that fix actually rolled un-tested! (Normally every potential fix gets tested before it rolls Live.) (The Gremlins ArchKnight Plasma Charge is checking it now - he just told me that what was wrong is that it was buffing the player instead of its own attacks.)

Speaking of Gremlins AKs - Ello is back with us! 'Ello, Ello!

Coming up: Charfade plans to guest-art us a St. Patrick's Day weapon! Jemini did backgrounds for St. Pat's Day! Traditional-styled original Irish music! More about that new music later, though - because I have to run out the door! Have a great weekend - thanks so much for your support! Please tell your friends about MechQuest!

Maegwyn

Friday, February 3, 2012

Buffs and Bugfixes

We are still preparing Planet Romero for you - and so for this week we have continued our Buffs and Bugfixes while we're still getting things in shape on the new planet.

Buffs!

1) In the Dropship, the "Fly This Ship" minigame that you can play (go right till you find Worsh flying the ship) got a buff. I set it up so that it now gives much better credit rewards - for example, a score of 20 used to give you 20 credits but now gives you 200!

2) Tyranno Mecha - I made NEW level 14 and level 19 versions as well as the buffed-up level 10 originals - find them in the Repli-Mecha shops after completing the Museum Jobs for Val. blues designed the buffs, and Vivi coded them and has the following info on the new specials.

Specials are NSC (SC,NG) 
Head: ---> CD=5 

- starts with 1.1 (1.3,1.5) times damage 
- general damage boost BoT of +5(8,10) per turn for 5 turns 
- frightening attack, enemy BtH reduction of -20 (30,40) for 5 turns 
- SC/NG only: Disables an equippable enemy's head 

Body: ---> CD=5 

- starts with 1.1 (1.3,1.5) times damage 
- combined HP/EP DoT (normal, 1.5 times, double) 
- Chance for double (triple,triple) EP regeneration. 
- SC/NG only: damages EP with half damage done 

Arms: ---> CD=1 

- rage attack: Damage increases by 10% (20,25) per use. Increases stack between the FA and BA. 

Shoulders: ---> CD=2 

- starts with 1.1 (1.3,1.5) times damage 
- Chance for an extra Hit with 50% damage 
- Chance for a HP Dot for 3 turns, stacking 
- SC/NG only: Chance for enemy EP regen stop for 2 turns 

3) Soluna Battle Button!!??!!

Vivi updated the encounter list:

  • fewer Ghost types, so more chance of variety
  • At Level 25 and up, Advanced House Mecha opponents can show up
  • buffed 3 monster specials

Goliath A (flamethrower, bombs) 
Flamethrower: 120% damage with improved accuracy, inflicts a 1.5x HP DOT 
Bombs: Rolls between 10% and 50% extra damage, reduces enemy boost by between 8 and 15 per hit 

Goliath B (machine gun, ground pound) 
Machine Gun: Damage and crit chance increased, Inflicts a DOT with strength based on number of hits 
Ground Pound: Damage increase between 20 and 40%, reduces enemy bonus by between 8 and 15 per hit 

Turret (small attack, big attack) 
Small attack: Less damage than usual, first hit deals EP damage equal to half damage done, second through fourth hits each lower defense by between 8 and 10 
Big attack: Increased damage, if all 5 hits connect it attempts to stun you

Thanks, Vivi!

Bugfixes:

1) Korin fixed an issue with the menu bar disappearing from the interface and messages of "undefined" (required another engine change, so please clear your cache and reload).

2) I fixed (with Vivi's assistance) the Hazuko series weapons that were causing NaN values

  • Hazuko Machete
  • Hazuko Katana
  • Hazuko Staff
  • Hazuko Sai
  • (Note: I am still working on a head fix - the Tremendous Lightning still gives NaN for now, but I'll get that fix rolled out soon too)

3) Vivi fixed a NaN issue with the Morehawk (which was actually for last week but got included with this week instead)

...and last week some fixes for which I didn't get you Design Notes written:

  • NaN issues with Korin Bag head series, Subzero Gaze heads, and the AC-490 mechas
  • SC Xtreme Challenges Necryptos X-A and X-B (rolled Saturday) - losing no longer takes you back to the intro & kicks you out of the quest 

I *think* that covers everything we've fixed & buffed so far!  More fixes are on my list, and we have other improvements in store - we're eager to bring you new content and it's on its way!  It's been an insane few weeks with the pre-production of the new planet getting a couple of delays, but this is actually turning out to make it better that it would have been.  Ok - I think that's all from me for now. Have a great weekend - have fun - and of course, thanks for playing MechQuest! 

 

Maegwyn

Friday, November 4, 2011

Mogloween and More

This has been an insane couple of weeks! Sorry I haven't had much time to write you notes.  Here are some quick ones for now! The 3011 Mogloween event with Trick or Treating is still happening - if you are having a hard time with the clues, just keep going straight for that candy by the Bay Doors in Trick or Treating quests - if you fight the same person a couple of times in a row it is most likely an NPC with a clue and you should go explore his or her starship. There is an image of what the clue looks like by Jack in town on Mortis (orange fingerprint).

The old Hospital mechas have gotten some nice buffs to make them more useful and powerful. 

Last weekend I worked on a whole bunch of Gremlins - got some fixed - and was completely mystified by the Mecha Fryer crashing the game. Korin took it apart layer by layer this week to find the issue - and he has fixed it! Huzzah!

Salvage Quest: Joey has Heads - four models that are all completely new to the game, plus I selected a variety of heads that were either rare, seasonal-rare, or available somewhere in-game for each tier.

Special thanks to Gibby for compiling the list of Starship IDs for me last week, and to Kamui for helping us with pre-testing this week! And a huge thank you to all of you for playing MechQuest! Have a great weekend!

Maegwyn

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Rescue Quest Gets Longer and Imbiber Gets Stronger

Rescue Quest: Though this was put through the wringer of extensive testing, even still when you reached the 75% mark and unlocked it, it became clear that I should have made the timer longer to accommodate some of the lengthier animations of various mecha models and equipment setups.  I've made the timer longer now, but hopefully still enough of a challenge to be fun.  

Imbiber Bugfix and Buff: Part of the issues with the underwhelming performance of the Imbiber was the result of a bug.  Korin made an engine change and Vivi made the code play nice.  Also, blues and Vivi and I discussed the buff and looked over your notes in the Game Balance Discussion section of the forums, and here is Vivi with a run-down of the buff details:

Buffed Stats for the Imbiber: 
DOT Shield is the same as before 

Body: 

  • 125% damage 
  • If you have enough EP to not go below 0 with this effect, 50% crit chance. If the attack is a critical hit, takes additional EP from you equal to WeaponCost at your level 
  • 50% of damage is also inflicted to EP 

Head: 

  • Each hit rolls between 0 and 50% bonus damage 
  • First hit heals HP equal to the damage done 
  • Second hit heals EP equal to the damage done 

Front Arm: 
Inflicts a 2x EP DoT, lasts three turns 

Back Arm: 
Inflicts a 2x HP DoT, lasts three turns 

Front Shoulder: 
Inflicts a 1.5x EP DoT and heals your EP each turn by some amount based on your mecha level (this amount has increased from before) 

Back Shoulder: 
Inflicts a 1.5x HP DoT and heals your HP each turn by some amount based on your mecha level (this amount has increased from before) 

The fix and buffs should bring the Imbiber up to expectations.  Thanks for your feedback on the forums!

I also put the Ice Harvester and Shadowed Arthurian Lion mecha models on a diet so that they can now be used for the timed quest and other walkaround maps.  Thanks to everyone for your reports in the Gremlins forum!  Now that I've got the hang of fixing that Gremlin I'll be a lot faster at that (and ideally we will catch those now before they roll Live...)

You haven't heard from me on the Design Notes much lately - I'm happy to say that I'm working from home now instead of on the coffee shop circuit!  I'm about five times as busy as normal at this stage - working with Vivi and Lyris on an upcoming release, which I can't remember whether Korin has mentioned so I won't say too much for now - along with working ahead on putting together another quest - and then more current things like the usual testing, fixing your House Affiliation Gremlins, doing all the database entries for the upcoming rewards to give you some examples of what I might be up to on a given day.  I'll try to be more talkative!

See you on the forums!

Maegwyn

Thursday, March 17, 2011

A Day for Green and Clover and Luck

Green, Clover, Luck Day!  The Holiday Shops are in Soluna City, with the Luck mods of years past, and also Cloverblades, including higher-level versions of the Cloverblades.  (Luck mods do NOT have higher-level versions - this is intentional for this year.)

GEARS Games Fix:  The Mystraven GEARS edition mechas were claiming to be incompatible with MR members, and also crippling in battle incorrectly - this should now be fixed!  There are still some other Gremlins on a List, all of which we aim to fix before the Games are over.  Cross fingers!!

Are you wearing green?  I'm actually wearing my Chickencow shirt today.  It's a green shirt, with a Chickencow on it.  I am the only customer wearing green in this cafe.  One of the baristas has a green shirt on, though.  I'm also drinking green tea... Working from cafes really makes me appreciate my home - it's great to have a laptop and wonderful that I can work from anywhere in the world with an internet connection, but the downside is that some of these cafe connections are s-l-o-w ... 

And I'm due for dinner in 40 minutes so I had better pack up and get a move on!  Don't forget to check out the homepage for some great art by Charfade and a few words from Korin!  I hope to write you some chatty DNs sometime again soonish, too.