Line #40 Franchise/Thunderscape


1	[[quoteright:264:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/thunderscape_6202.jpg]]
2
3	->''"The Age of Thunder has not ended."''
4	->''"Aden will not slip quietly into the night."''
5
6	In the early 1990s game publisher [[Creator/StrategicSimulationsInc SSI]] was churning up {{RPG}}s based on ''Advanced TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' and was the leader in that area. But the [=ADnD=] license was going to expire and relations with its owner Creator/{{TSR}} were getting progressively sour. Something new was needed. Thus ''Thunderscape: the World of Aden'' was born.
7
8	Aden used to be a peaceful world where rulers were secretly guided toward bright future by a group of seers. Armies and weapons still existed, but large wars were a thing of the distant past. The discovery of a magic-boosting metal -- manite -- allowed a number of scientific breakthroughs and precipitated industrial revolution with magic and technology tied into a strange arcane art of mechamagic. In hindsight that was the golden age.
9
10	It all was changed one unremarkable day ten years ago. The sun was suddenly eclipsed by an unknown force. The darkness didn't last long, but in this short time nightmarish monsters -- "nocturnals" -- sprang from every shadow. Beasts long destroyed, terrors only imagined, and things no sane mind had ever contemplated all became real. Countless thousands were slaughtered and an untold number of villages and cities were burned. In hours Aden was plunged into chaos and anarchy. This event and the malevolent force behind it have been dubbed "Darkfall".
11
12	After a millennium of peace people were ill-prepared for this ruthless onslaught, and it seemed that mortals would perish without ever knowing the cause. But the people of Aden are hardier than that. With mechamagic, steam golem warriors and the many other strengths brought to bear by the nations of Aden, the world fights back against the Darkfall and its nocturnals.
13
14	Two computer games for MS-DOS, three novels and a D6/Masterbook tabletop role-playing game were released. By the time they were published SSI has already been bought by Mindscape. The new owner, allowed to finish the projects, but then cancelled everything. In 2012 the rights were acquired by [[http://kyoudai-games.com/aden/ Kyoudai Games]], which ran a successful Website/{{Kickstarter}} campaign for a new tabletop RPG, this time a TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}} one. It has been released in 2014.
15
16	The video games were published in 1995 less than a month apart. They bore little semblance (other than mentioning Darkfall), were set on the opposite sides of the continent and featured unrelated plots. For years they stayed {{Abandonware}}, but were picked up by [[Platform/GOGDotcom GOG.com]] in 2014. They are:
17
18	* ''World of Aden: Thunderscape'' frequently called just ''Thunderscape'': A first-person real-time 3D RPG with turn-based combat. A group of heroes are sent to restore magic shields on mountain passes between Northland and nocturnal-infested area. Charitable reviewers compare it with ''VideoGame/UltimaUnderworld'', less kind recall ''Descent to Undermountain''.
19	* ''Entomorph: Plague of the Darkfall'': A ThreeQuartersView action/adventure with alleged RPG elements. A lone hero tries to save the island kingdom of Phoros from some sinister plot involving giant sentient insects, [[ForcedTransformation transformations]] and MindControl. Can be described as a grimmer, high-resolution ''VideoGame/AlQadimTheGeniesCurse''. Somewhat influenced by ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda''.
20
21	The novels are:
22
23	* ''The Sentinel'' (1996) by Dixie Lee [=McKeone=]. A young soldier struggles to find his place in the world after escaping servitude to a tyrant.
24	* ''Darkfall'' (1996) by Shane Lacy Hensley. A paladin and his trusted friends are tasked to escort a mage through hostile territory. Their path brings them close to unveiling the biggest secret of Darkfall.
25	* ''Indomitable Thunder'' (1996) by Mark Acres. Orphaned brother and sister have fought for survival every day since childhood. They struggle to get out of their ghetto into the greater world of Aden. And then they find a cause greater than themselves.
26
27	----
28	!Contains examples of:
29
30	[[foldercontrol]]
31
32	[[folder:The setting in general]]
33	* AdventureFriendlyWorld: Deliberately designed to allow diverse parties and enemies.
34	* AfterTheEnd
35	* AppliedPhlebotinum: Manite, the metal that can store spells. For example casting a heat spell on it makes it [[NoConservationOfEnergy permanently hot]]. Although it's possibly not unique.
36	* ApocalypseHow: Societal Disruption, at least Continental, more likely Planetary. As for how, Darkfall employed many methods:
37	** HordeOfAlienLocusts
38	** TurnedAgainstTheirMasters
39	** ZombieApocalypse
40	* AsskickingLeadsToLeadership: How Lord Urbane came to power. He was a barely known mercenary warlord until he managed to knock together an army that stopped a large horde of nocturnals devastating Urbana.
41	* BugWar: This will happen if the giant insects -- ilithix -- decide to expand their territory.
42	** Or if somebody needs something on their territory.
43	*** They're even worse now, since the Brood Mother was corrupted by the Darkfall, and her newfound viciousness spread across the HiveMind.
44	** Kyan uses insect mounts. War against Kyan will be similar.
45	* CassandraTruth: Darkfall killed most of seers. A few disappeared without a trace. These days when a seer appears, he's probably a charlatan. Even if the seer is genuine, nobody would believe him. Except for nocturnals, who will try to kill him.
46	* CombatMedic: Healer class is one of the best for dealing damage. Radiant Order are one of the elite fighting forces in-universe, and they were the organisation of healers before the catastrophe.
47	* ClockworkCreature / TinCanRobot: They are called {{golem}}s.
48	* CoolTrain / TankGoodness: Urbana's four gigantic Thunder Trains. Each is unique and heavily armed. They don't even need rails. They are probably the most advanced Magitek in the world and the safest way to travel between the surviving nations.
49	* CrapsackWorld: But it's too early to say if StatusQuoIsGod.
50	* {{Cyborg}}: Golemoids -- people with parts of their bodies replaced with mechanisms. Bodies and minds eventually start breaking down, but life expectancy of cripples is even shorter. Scratch that, life expectancy of the front line warriors is often shorter than the time before Wasting starts manifesting.
51	* EverythingTryingToKillYou: Especially far from fortified cities. Especially at night. The authors deliberately defined nocturnals vaguely to allow very diverse enemies.
52	* EvilIsOneBigHappyFamily: Zigzags. Stronger nocturnals and Corrupted may prey on weaker ones. But if a powerful Corrupted assembles an army, he can quickly put an end to any infighting.
53	* FaceHeelTurn: The Corrupted -- people that were granted supernatural powers by Darkfall. Some can pass as normal, some look monstrous. Their powers vary greatly. It seems as if anybody can ask Darkfall and may be granted some power.
54	** Some didn't ask for that power, a nocturnal sensed the potential to become a WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds and infused them with Darkfall powers before setting them loose. Thankfully, becoming Corrupted is not always the end - most retain some amount of their conscience and can become {{Fa\|ustianRebellion}}llen instead.
55	* FantasticRacism: Ferrans were originally created as slaves, but got their freedom after a long and bloody war. Rapacians were once considered mentally inferior. Both facts are ancient history by now. Juraks are still regarded as savage dumb brutes and usually [[ObfuscatingStupidity don't bother proving otherwise]]. Meanwhile goreaux are bothered by taller races looking down on them, but [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial definitely aren't]] CompensatingForSomething with their mechamagical achievements. That said, all civilized races are more or less equal and a member of any race can appear anywhere and in any capacity.
56	** On the other hand, trolls are still considered little more than animals, and everybody despises ratlings, even rodent-based ferrans.
57	* FantasyGunControl: Averted. Primitive wheel-lock muskets and pistols are common.
58	* HeelFaceTurn: The Fallen -- people corrupted by Darkfall, but fighting against it.
59	* HiveMind: Ilithix. Originally a fairly benign one, since they're naturally herbivores, but then the [[HiveQueen Brood Mother]] [[OhCrap was seduced by the power of the Darkfall]]...
60	* LizardFolk: Rapacians. They are among the good guys, though.
61	* LoadsAndLoadsOfRaces / MassiveRaceSelection: The video game ''Thunderscape'' allowed 8 PC races (human, elf, dwarf, faerkin, goreaux, rapacian, jurak, ferran) plus golem and troll [=NPCs=]. The tabletop games added a few more playable races. ''Pathfinder'' version promises to bring yet more, most notably insectoid Ilithix. And enemies are much more diverse.
62	* MagicKnight: Everybody knows a bit of magic and many warriors use it in battle in addition to blades, bows and guns.
63	* {{Magitek}}: From [[UtilityMagic everburning stoves and lamps]] and enchanted bullets to steam golems, steam trains, steam guns. Usually powered by manite.
64	* OrganicTechnology: Kyan doesn't have genetic engineering yet, but is going in that direction with its selective breeding of insects.
65	* OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame: Strong, stout, equally proficient with axes and pistols, make good tunnel fighters. Some of them believe that dwarves seeing the sun was the blasphemy that brought Darkfall.
66	* OurOrcsAreDifferent: They are covered with fur, they are called "juraks", they have a deserved reputation of bloodthirsty savages, although {{Badass Bookworm}}s are not that unusual. They've got impressive fangs. And they are among the good guys.
67	* PrimalFear: The Darkfall's main ability - it finds {{Urban Legend}}s and terrifying myths, then constructs a nocturnal based around that theme.
68	* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: The ones who didn't are long dead.
69	* StandardFantasyRaces: Pretty standard humans, elves and dwarves, plus magically-inclined fairy/hobbit "faerkin" and mechanically-inclined gnome/goblin "goreaux". There are also several [[BeastMen more animalistic]] races.
70	* TheUnReveal: Curse it to Infernus, what is Darkfall? Is it sentient? Is it merely a force of nature? Does it give orders to Corrupted? Why is it afraid of seers? [[StatusQuoIsGod No answer...]] [[ScrewDestiny yet.]]
71	* UpliftedAnimal: Ferrans -- humanoid-animal hybrids. "Humanoid" being any of the five humanoid races (see StandardFantasyRaces above). Actually, there are 3 branches of ferrans: mammals (the most common), avians (nearly wiped out in their war for freedom) and reptiles (scarce due to low reproduction rate). They can only crossbreed with ferrans of the same branch.
72	* WeAreStrugglingTogether: The kingdoms of Aden seem to spend more effort preparing to fight their neighbours than actually fighting nocturnals.
73	* ZeppelinsFromAnotherWorld: Yzeem has those.
74	[[/folder]]
75
76	[[folder:''World of Aden: Thunderscape'']]
77	* ArbitraryHeadcountLimit: No more than 4 player-created characters, and no more than 6 playable characters in total. Attempting to add a seventh character will cause the game to prompt you to release one of your non-player-created characters in the party.
78	* ArtifactName: The internal name of the starting level is "graymt_1", which likely refers to the ''TabletopGame/{{Greyhawk}}'' ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' setting. This also implies that development of ''Thunderscape'' started when SSI still had a healthy relationship with TSR.
79	* BackStab: Described in the manual as "the most effective attack of all", a backstab requires the character to successfully use their Stealth skill to hide first. On their next turn, the character can then execute the backstab, which does up to five times the normal amount of damage.
80	* BareFistedMonk: Characters with points in the Martial Arts skill can damage enemies without equipping a weapon and unlock the option to kick the enemy in combat.
81	* DramaticThunder: This happens nearly every time you move between menus, advance dialogue, or enter combat, which means you will hear the sound of thunder quite often while playing. The only action that consistently {{avert\|edTrope}}s this trope is viewing the automap.
82	* DumpStat: The Pickpocket skill serves only one purpose: to steal items being sold in shops. This is not as useful as it sounds since there are very few shops in the game, the penalty for being caught stealing is to be permanently barred from entering the shop, there will always be a chance for the steal to fail regardless of how many points a character has in the Pickpocket skill, and having over 100 points in a character's Merchant skill means you will sell equipment and items for a higher price than what the shop is selling them for, essentially giving you a risk-free and consistent alternative supply of gold.
83	* GameBreakingBug:
84	** The amount of damage your party takes when moving around is proportionate to the frames per second. With a high FPS, bigger drops (such as falling down non-lethal pits) will result in an instant TotalPartyKill.
85	** Having too many items on the ground will cause the game to crash with the message "Ran out of render posts".
86	* HeroicSacrifice: Upon entering Vanguard Keep Tower, if you allowed Theros to join your party at the very beginning of the game, he will leave the party and remain in Vanguard Keep to create a distraction.
87	* MoneyForNothing: Gold is used to purchase equipment and items in shops. However, there are only three shops in the entire game, the quality of their goods pale in comparison to some of the unique gear you can find strewn all over the levels, and once any character in the party has over 100 points in the Merchant skill, you will always buy low and sell high with any equipment.
88	* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast:
89	** The leader of the nocturnals that captured the beacon at Vanguard Keep is known as the Dark One, and the final boss is named Anthrax.
90	** On the unique weapons front, we have such names as Deathwish, Skull Splitter, and Demon Slayer.
91	* NoStatAtrophy: {{Averted\|trope}} with the Raise Dead spell. A party member's maximum HP will be reduced by 1 each time they are resurrected with this spell. Played straight otherwise.
92	* PermanentlyMissableContent: If the elevator connecting the Troll Caverns to King Droog's chambers is raised and you use the teleporter in Vanguard Keep Tower to backtrack to Skelon's Pass, all of the Vanguard Keep levels become inaccessible, which prevents you from going back to pick up any items on those levels that you may have missed.
93	* PowersViaWeapon: Any weapon that has "Magic" or "Magical" at the front of its name gives an automatic +25 points boost to the skill that is associated with the weapon. This means that even a character who has no points invested in said skill can make use of the weapon to some degree.
94	* SituationalDamageAttack: One action your characters can perform during a battle is to "Attack for Vitals", which is represented by an icon depicting an arrow through a heart. This attack is more difficult to successfully carry out, but can occasionally do tremendous amounts of damage on a CriticalHit.
95	* SoLongAndThanksForAllTheGear: {{Averted\|trope}}; contrary to what the manual states, any characters that leave the party will ''not'' take their equipment and inventory with them, but instead leave both in a pile on the ground.
96	* StatOVision: In combat, the Xenology skill will display information about any enemy you right-click. At lower skill levels, it only shows the enemy's name and HitPoints; higher skill levels provide a lot more information, such as the enemy's damage resistances and type of attacks. Similar to the Merchant skill, the character with the most points in Xenology will have all the benefits of their skill available to other characters in the party.
97	* UnintentionallyUnwinnable: The elevator located after the bridge in Skelon's Pass is the only way to access the upper levels of the pass (as well as all the other levels in the game). If the player takes the elevator to the upper level, then falls off the cliff to the ground level, they will not be able to call the lift down and must restart the game from a point where they can still access the elevator.
98	* WithThisHerring: {{Downplayed\|trope}}; your party is a RagtagBunchOfMisfits who banded together to reactivate Skelon's Shield, which will prevent the nocturnals from overrunning the Northlands. You start at a dock near the pass with nothing but basic equipment, although you are immediately greeted by Theros, who will join your team and assist you for a time if you allow it.
99	[[/folder]]
100
101	[[folder:''Entomorph: Plague of the Darkfall'']]
102	* AmnesiacHero: The hero wakes on a shore barely remembering how he got there. When he comes with a plausible explanation (being thrown off a ship), he stops dwelling upon it. When he meets people he knew, he remembers them. Actually [[spoiler:he's been thrown back in time by a time-travelling spider queen. This isn't his first attempt to save the islands.]] Which also explains his above-average martial prowess -- he has already consumed some "juice" and got much faster and stronger.
103	* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: If you don't hurry in your last mission, you'll become a BlobMonster spewing out the juice that transforms humans into insects. [[spoiler:Just like the queen of Phoros.]]
104	* ApocalypseHow: Regional/Species Extinction. It is never said if Darkfall brought any nocturnals to the islands, but the islanders lost all their giant insects vital to their agriculture.
105	* AristocratsAreEvil: From the moment you see them, it's clear, they are up to no good. Their wealth came from commoners using giant insects to do various works. Now that insects are gone, they want to transform commoners to insects.
106	** They may look and sound like pushovers, but they are deadly in combat even near the endgame.
107	* BaitAndSwitchComparison: "You look like your sister. Only her biceps are bigger."
108	* BlackComedy: Quite a few examples.
109	** If you try to save a brainwashed man from being eaten by a giant ant, he attacks you for "disturbing him while while he is feeding the ants".
110	** You find a corpse under a fallen tree. He's been driven out of the village for irresponsible spellcasting and was practising a spell to make trees fall to impress villagers to be let back.
111	* {{Bookends}}: In the intro T'Urthrax Mata says "How many more times must I encounter you?" [[spoiler:and sends you back in time.]] Before the final showdown she says the same words, but this time you are better prepared.
112	* DyingAsYourself: [[spoiler:The queen of Phoros. She does become a human when you kill her insect form, only to give you the last quest and die.]] RedemptionEqualsDeath.
113	* ForcedTransformation:
114	** The hero consumes various insect-derived substances to boost his strength and slowly transforms into a giant insect. Borderline example, since he knows of the risk and willingly takes it.
115	** The sinister plot central to the game is to trick inhabitants of Phoros into drinking stuff that turns them into insects that would work for the nobility. The next step of the plan is doing the same on the continent and eventually taking over the world.
116	** The source of the transforming substance is [[spoiler:the queen of Phoros, who got transformed by a cursed scarab planted by an agent of Darkfall.]]
117	* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: All hives are ruled by queens. You'll have to kill them all eventually. In other words they are bosses, ranging from ThatOneBoss through PuzzleBoss to FinalBoss.
118	* HaveWeMetYet: The intro looks incomprehensible. That's because the spider travels in time. [[spoiler:And the hero has been thrown to the past, but forgot everything.]]
119	* HornetHole: Actually it's a hive of man-sized bloodsucking bees. Ruled by ThatOneBoss. The ant colony also comes close.
120	* MoodWhiplash: The game tries to be funny while staying true to the rather grim setting. And it isn't subtle.
121	** You start in a devastated village with dozens of fresh corpses, and barely save another from becoming the same.
122	** Then you help to summon a "beautiful nymph" who turns out to be a monstrous octopus. At least she does protect the village as promised.
123	** Then you meet funny ObviouslyEvil {{Harmless Villain}}s feeding people some crap. (Both metaphorical and literal.) And equally [[IdiotBall funny clueless]] rebels.
124	** And then your friends start getting killed. And you can't do anything.
125	** The storyteller keeps commenting your actions and arguing with his audience until the end.
126	** See also DarkHumor.
127	* NoOntologicalInertia: After you re-seal the scarab, all transformations are reverted. But the dead stay dead.
128	* PurpleProse: The storyteller commenting on the hero's actions.
129	* StealthBasedMission: Sometimes you need to use pheromones to blend in with the insects. Unless you wish to fight the whole colony.
130	[[/folder]]
131
132	[[folder:''Darkfall'']]
133	* ActionGirl: Mara, Krysys.
134	* BadassBookworm: Narl.
135	* BloodSport: Appropriately called "splat". Involves fighting on a rickety frame far above ground. Killing opponents isn't obligatory.
136	* DarkActionGirl: Arkana. With retractable poisonous FemmeFatalons.
137	* EscortMission: The first half of the book is escorting a mechamage who decided to change the employer and soundly fears the retribution. The second half was going to be kidnapping a teenage prince from his father and escorting him to his mother, but unforeseen circumstances conspired to make life more interesting.
138	* FamedInStory / LivingLegend: Grimlak.
139	* ILied: The word of Ice Queen is unbreakable. Her sons, on the other hand, can promise anything... And then break the promise in favour of the queen's order.
140	* KnightInSourArmour: Grimlak.
141	* NewPowersAsThePlotDemands: Spyre's ability to understand ilithix surely came at an appropriate moment.
142	* NoOneCouldSurviveThat: The death of [[spoiler:Lonage Crouix]] is never shown. His executor only listened to his screams. This allows to bring him back in a sequel if it ever materializes.
143	* RedshirtArmy: Anybody helping Grimlak risks dying for greater good. Especially if they were introduced less than a chapter ago and their names were never mentioned. Although [[AnyoneCanDie names don't guarantee anything]].
144	* RewardedAsATraitorDeserves: [[spoiler:Lonage Crouix]] gets exactly the reward he was promised. And is left with the reward in the middle of Ice Wastes near a very unfriendly group of snowmads. Although he is killed not for betrayal, but for his [[EvilutionaryBiologist earlier actions]].
145	* TheTrickster: Spyre.
146	* WhatTheHellHero: Spyre's impulsiveness created more problems for Grimlak and Narl than all enemies combined.
147	* WouldHurtAChild: Lord Urbane is more than willing to [[{{Cyborg}} golemize]] his children in attempts to create a perfect heir. Most die in the process or shortly after, but [[WeHaveReserves he can sire more]].
148	[[/folder]]

Context Franchise / Thunderscape