bladestorm91 on 10/2/2021 at 20:16

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Hello Ciaphas, we need more Thief-like games in the world and I hope you have the best of luck in your endeavors. This is the first time I'm posting in these forums and I have two questions about your game if you don't mind answering.

I read through the feature pages about the game, and under the faction page, I noticed it's lacking a Pagan-like faction even though it had all the others from Thief under different names. Besides a line about 'horrible creatures' being in the Catacombs and the subtitle Abilities in the Thief page, it's giving me the impression that this game is not going to have magic as it has not even been mentioned on any page at all. To the point, is there going to be magic in the game like there is in Thief?

The second thing I want to ask about, I've seen the concept map of the City of Kartmar, and though I understand it's merely a simplistic 'sketch' of the whole city that's supposed to be expanded upon later, it gives me the impression of it being a fortress city in the middle of a desert. Is this design set in stone?

Ciaphas on 11/2/2021 at 09:02

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Thank you for your kind wishes, BladeStorm.
Below are answers your questions.

1. On Pagans faction equivalent. There will be a faction of cultists -- Cult of Kwerren, that is outlawed, and thus congregates in secret places to perform their rituals. In this they are somewhat similar to Pagans, but here similarity ends. They aren't close to nature as Pagans are and don't have powers related to nature. And they aren't specifically enemies and spiritual counterparts to Order of Mensorites. I decided not to make exact copy of Thief's faction structure with other names, but to make setting more original.

2. With magic you have touched interesting subject. Magic like in Thief (or in many common fantasy settings) doesn't exist.
There are people in setting, who are called mages and they even dress like mages, but in truth they are psykers.
Psykers abilities don't allow them to heal someone or cast fireballs, they lie mainly in the domain of affecting minds of other humans. "Mages" can look with animals or other humans eyes, see through walls and in the dark, transfer their thoughts to other persons on long distances. They can slow down or paralyze attackers -- not physically, but by influencing their minds. The same way mage can strike another person with temporal blindness, hallucinations, feat of rage or uncontrolled fear. Skilled mage can possess an animal or even a human, if he is strong enough to suppress victim's will, and use it as his puppet for a short period of time. Each mage has ethereal body that can be separated from material one by falling into trance. In ethereal body mage can travel, scout and sometimes even attack unseen. Weak telekinetical abilities allow mages to move small objects.
Not necessarily all of this will be present in game. It's from setting lore, that I have developed long ago and now adapted for Thievery.
Mages don't play any important part in the main plot. I'll most probably expand on them in side missions, once plot missions are done.

3. Kartmar doesn't stand in a middle of desert -- it actually stands on large hill in grasslands and there is a river near foot of the hill. There are green fields, villages and castles around the city. Kartmar indeed is a fortified city for it was sieged several times in it's history, but it's not one large fortress.
General design with city standing on a hill, rock plateau, where Noble Quarter is situated, is not subject to change. Inner city planning -- is. And there can be additional quarters added, if I'll have to expand city for some reason.