Apologies for never really giving any kind of update or news or anything of the sort. But I'll just make it official, WoD is no longer in any state of development. (I'm sure that for the handful of people still checking HLP this is just another sign of 2020 being one of the worse years ever
)
The primary issue mostly just boils down to burn-out and HLP having been on a state of near death even when episode 2 released. I wasn't really planning on even leaving a departing message, but for my own mental closure: here it is.
After working on this game in some form or shape for a decade now, I've decided its time to move on and start development on a new game. One that can actually be sold on steam and not just released to the critical acclaim of the ten remaining active hlp posters (not counting the ones who don't even bother with FS2 at all anymore).
I'm still pretty proud of WoD Episode 1&2, which, thanks to Axem, is a polished and unique experience that has few direct comparisons.
For those of you who might be wondered how the plot of the other episodes were roughly lined out, with a lot always subject to change:
Episode 3 was focused on the CRF. The four houses are increasingly at each others throats. Meanwhile the cloaked Zy ship that was stalking the GA in episode 2 is making strikes inside CRF space, blowing up the Templar vessel that is escorting the GA to Arc Victoria's capital world. House Pegasus spins a narrative that the GA is responsible for this and thus attempts to intern the ship, so as to obtain valuable insight into its various technologies. a brief conflict gets interrupted by the news of the unknown alien forces breaking into the system in force, a situation the Pegasus fleet cannot ignore, letting the GA go for now.
Various events happen, the GA gets to meet the CRF young queen, Pegasus attempts a coup. A large scale fleet battle between the two leading CRF houses is about to break out, until suddenly a beam, originating from the capital world, cuts through the Pegasus flagship. In comes an old acquaintance from old WoD, the Prometheus frame Infinity. Which vindicates several claims that House Pegasus was making about Arc Victoria holding important secrets from them. Infi then has a moment with Dawn as he detects her odd nature and they eventually bond over both being made as intelligent weapons of another time. Meanwhile on the GA, Rose has to decide about her loyalities towards her house and towards the LSF and comes to the conclusion that its Pegasus that her oath should go to, so she attempts to critically sabotage the GA and then make a break for it in a fighter. During her sabotage attempt, she's confront by Tempest, who she shoots with a handgun. The episode ending with a black screen and the sound of the gunshot.
Episode 4 starts with Tempest dying in Justice's arms. The Captain has also suffered severe injuries, leading to Crystal and Suzume commanding the ship together for the time being. The GA eventually manages to disengage from this civil war and heads to the LSF staging ground and HQ at Pisces, where she meets her sister ship the Metatron. Justice decides to return to the mercenaries at Harcon.
Dawn realizes that she has gained an incredible power due to her pact with Infi and is gradually regaining more and more of her esper powers. She's also seeing that depite a common threat, humanity is not uniting properly as they should. Word reaches her that the Delest Dynasty is actually having dealing with the Zy and there's even the possibilty that they'll join the Hierarchy. So Dawn sets out on a journey to the Delest homeworld to have a personal heart to heart with Empress Yu ki kohakuren. Misuzu, Milkshake and Zeri volunteer themselves to come along for the ride, Kunoichi is a variable here because she can be asked to go inflict some personal vengeance. After a trip through several systems, and the power of Infi, Dawn reaches her destination, has a convincing conversation, gets the DD to fight the Zy inside the system and returns victoriously to the GA after.
Episode 5 and 6 are less well defined, in very rough lines, the CSA call for an alliance, wanting the GA and Dawn specifically to come to the talks. The Hertak invite themselves in these negotiations and finally demand that both the Humans and Cyrvans submit to their rule, explaining their intentions of creating a galaxywide '''alliance''' under the Hertak banner, and needing to be on Earth's moon, because the Fir'kyr hid a device there that is capable of opening a rift straight into transspace, allowing the assembled Hertak force to deliver a crushing first strike against the Fir'kyr, ending any new apocalyptic war before it can really begin. Both the CSA and LSF agree that they don't feel like submitting (and the Hertak scoff at the idea of an alliance of equals) and they also firmly object to provoking the Fir'kyr into a war again. Let sleeping dogs lie and all that. With negotations breaking down with the Hertak and the space elves and space humans coming to an agreement, they plan a unified defense of the road towards Sol.
The Hierarchy begins its assault in earnest and cleaves a bloody path, bringing an Aluyrian blackhole bomb with them, which they plan to use on the Fir'kyr once the portal has been opened.
In the Hertak's apparent moment of triumph, the Zy backstab them and destroy the flagship with the emperor on it. The flagship also contained the Cordi 'queen' (it's a computer) and the Cordi go in a frenzy and start attacking everyone. The end wasn't super clearly defined or set in stone yet, because experience teaches that a lot is always subject to change as iterations happen and the story ebs and flows in certain directions.
Dawn grows ever more powerful and with the portal to transspace open, she can start utilizing the ****y power that flows through into reality rending effects and she eventually comes to the conclusion that what this galaxy really needs as a unifying peace keeping power, is her, as a almost literal goddess. So after placating the severally weakened Fir'kyr into staying in their dimension with her guarantee of a non-aggression pact, she proceeds to put the various species under her banner and puts the Hertak in their place.
The end(?)
Thank you to all you lovely people for enjoying and supporting WoD over the years. Hope ya'll make it through 2020 intact.
(I won't be posting on HLP anymore, so if you have questions you'll likely get no answers, sorry.)
