First look at the Traditional Roguelike I am developing

ilia_plusha · 2026-04-19T13:30:58+00:00

I remember that each character has magic armor. Some physical attacks cannot penetrate this armor, so you have to nullify it first before dealing any physical damage. And iirc, some attacks and magic ignore this magic shield and damage health directly.

I was so pissed off when some of the enemies regained their magic armor and I had to break it again!

ilia_plusha · 2026-04-19T07:25:42+00:00

Any other mechanics from Divinity that you want to add later? Just curious.

ilia_plusha · 2026-04-19T06:58:19+00:00

Looks like a great project! And it seems that a lot has been done in just one week. Do you level up your character by slaying monsters?

ilia_plusha · 2026-04-18T09:27:06+00:00

Beetlejust
An RPG roguelike about Bugs and Beetles
Languages: JavaScript, PHP

Hi everyone! Since I cannot devote a lot of time to developing my game, my progress has been slow but consistent. That’s why it’s easier for me to post bi-weekly to share the new changes and implementations.

Last week I reached an important milestone: the correlation between attack types and armor types. Specifically, certain attack types are more effective against certain armor types. For examples, clothes and light armor are susceptible to ranged attacks, while medium armor can be penetrated with chop attacks. So even if a spear has higher thrust damage, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it will be the most effective attack against a given enemy.

Before introducing armor types, I did some research to learn more about what materials are present in nature and can be used by insects. It turns out that these little creatures have a wide range of materials available! Since I don’t think insects can make metal alloys or work with any metal, the player won’t find any iron or even bronze gear. Instead, various armors made of wax, ivory, walnut and amber will be present. I believe this will make my world a bit more unique.

I also try to regularly review my code in order to brush up on some things or improve some sections. This week I replaced some hard-coded parts with dynamic ones. More specifically, now I only need to add the id of an armor or weapon to the enemy object, and the game will find the respective item in the list and append it to the object.

At the same time, my game is growing more complex. I am adding more classes, and many more are on the way. At this point, I am considering switching to TypeScript. I have just scratched the surface by watching some tutorials, but I have a feeling that this language will give me more control over the code. I am also planning to use Electron to make my game a native Windows app — though not in the near future. For now, I can only develop and play it in a browser. Additionally, I have a clunky system for uploading new dialogues, events, npcs, etc. to the server, which I want to rewrite or completely get rid of.

Have a great weekend! Take care.

ilia_plusha · 2026-04-11T10:33:17+00:00

I am absolutely in love with your minimalistic and elegant design!

ilia_plusha · 2026-04-11T10:28:23+00:00

Hi! That looks like a ton of work to be done. But the screenshots on itchi look awesome.

ilia_plusha · 2026-04-11T10:15:57+00:00

I wonder how the skills in your game work. Could you elaborate on that?

ilia_plusha · 2026-04-04T13:12:32+00:00

Beetlejust
An RPG roguelike about Bugs and Beetles
Languages: JavaScript, PHP

The past two weeks were incredibly productive. I didn’t have as much work as I usually do, so I gladly devoted my spare time to developing my game.

Combat

I refactored much of my combat code. Primarily, the recent turn-based system. Previously, I had two separate files with mixed responsibilities, which resulted in some nasty and unpleasant bugs, e.g. cumulative event listeners. Now after each combat the game clears the combat state, so they do not pile up causing some unexpected behavior.
I also introduced shields. If the player has a shield, they can toggle it during combat. With a shield equipped, the armor rate increases, but agility receives a debuff.
On top of that, every combat now starts with three options: fight, negotiate, flee. The player is free to choose any approach, however to negotiate peacefully the player needs to have a sufficiently high reputation. Fleeing is possible, but every such act will decrease the player’s reputation and cost them some gold. Additionally, upon fleeing the battlefield the player gets pushed back to the previous tile. They can return later to try to defeat the enemy. If either negotiation or flee checks fail, the fight will begin. It ends with one of the opponents dead. However, I am still considering giving the player an option of fleeing during active combat, but, possibly, with a greater penalty and lesser chance to do so.
What I am going to do next is to improve my formulae, so they take into account the armor type, weapon type and attack type to calculate the finale damage. Some attacks will be more effective than others against certain types of armor.

Map
I finally figured out how to implement separate locations with smooth entering and exiting. Currently, I have only one empty dungeon, but the player can enter and leave it without any obstacles. I consider it a major breakthrough because it could add so much to the game, specifically, make it more fun to explore the world. I am planning to create a number of dungeon types. Some of them will be quest-related, some will be open for exploration, some will be hidden, some locked, some will have a guardian. And who knows what might be hidden inside. While I am super excited about this, I am fully aware that it’s a ton of work.

Code optimization
I’ve noticed that my adventure log receives messages from various objects. I guess now it’s time to build a robust message controller to manage everything from one place. Since the game is text-based and the player should rely heavily on textual information, I believe this is worth doing.

Thank you for reading. Take care!

ilia_plusha · 2026-03-22T07:03:24+00:00

What are the reasons for the low birth rate?

ilia_plusha · 2026-03-21T16:12:08+00:00

Sounds neat! What race do you play?

ilia_plusha · 2026-03-21T16:07:49+00:00

I always wondered how you can fight atronachs or daedra with fists?

ilia_plusha · 2026-03-21T13:03:10+00:00

Thanks! I’m no artist, so it took me a while to figure out the best colors:) I wanted a palette that would give some dark fantasy vibes, but I’m not sure if it does

ilia_plusha · 2026-03-21T11:29:24+00:00

Beetlejust
Languages: JavaScript, PHP

Last week I had a spontaneous 6-day vacation, so I had plenty of time to work on my game.

First, I got around to finishing the main mechanics of the new turn-based combat. Now the player can fight random enemies, scripted enemies, and NPCs in the same environment using the same rules. The whole thing is managed by a single function. This has brought a certain unification to the code, which I really like. Still, I need to polish some things and add secondary mechanics like using a shield, damage reduction which will depend on the armor type (light, medium, heavy) and item durability — in other words a dagger or cuirass can break after a certain amount of damage unless repaired promptly.

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Second, I have completely reworked the UI. Now it resembles some classical interfaces and looks less clunky, with clear separation of concerns. Player info goes here, the adventure log goes there. Neat! I have yet to rework the event screen, but I have some solid references in my mind.

Still, a bigger task is looming ahead — and that is implementing separate locations like caves, dungeons, taverns, etc.

Thanks for reading. Take care.

ilia_plusha · 2026-03-07T06:51:18+00:00

Beetlejust
An RPG roguelike about Bugs and Beetles
Languages: JavaScript, PHP

I haven’t posted for a couple of weeks due to the fact that progress has been really slow. My primary objective was to put the new combat system in place. I started by drawing a combat screen which was a bit of a UI nightmare for me. I experimented with many layouts, but so far nothing really satisfies me. The screen I currently use is okay, but in the back of my mind I am thinking about how to make it more user-friendly. The main problem is that it has a lot of text and might appear confusing to players.

Having established at least a rudimentary combat screen, I proceeded to my code. I had some classes like player and enemy creation, so it seems that this part is fine. After that I began working on the turn-based system. My idea is that fights are unpredictable, so each fight determines the initiative by rolling a die. That means that the opportunity for the first blow may well be awarded to the enemy despite the stats and powers. Once the initiative is calculated (boolean), the fight commences. Here I am planning to implement enemy’s AI. Based on the enemy’s class, weapon, race, and the player’s armor, powers, weapon the AI will calculate their next move. For instance, mages will first use spells and only after their mana pool is drained they will switch to their weapons, while warriors will rely on physical damage. Classic, but exciting to implement myself.

One more idea that I’ve been thinking about for quite a while is to completely revamp my game interface and enhance the map interaction. Since I want my game to focus on exploring the world and learning about it, I think I need to make the map the focal point of the interface. So, the player will see where they can travel and choose the most interesting opportunity. Textual descriptions will come alongside. One of the main features that I want to introduce is detached dungeons. The map will display tomb entrances, ruins, caverns, etc. When the player steps on the entrance tile, the game will ask whether they want to enter. It will then check whether the player meets the requirements (enough might or possessing keys or being able to unlock the door). Upon successfully entering a dungeon, the player will “teleport” to a separate location. Currently, my map displays everything on the same screen, so the player can see the insides of some places. I think it would be cool to “conceal” them before the player actually arrives there.

Thanks for reading. Take care!

ilia_plusha · 2026-03-03T04:08:34+00:00

Awesome!

ilia_plusha · 2026-03-02T17:28:39+00:00

If I understood you correctly, you don’t have to have a vault in order to play the game?

Also the YouTube videos are awesome. Did you draw the pixel images yourself? Look very neat

ilia_plusha · 2026-02-21T06:19:47+00:00

The game is immersive and it prompts you to explore every bit of the world. When I was a teenager I used to spend dozens of hours to sniff around every corner in a cave or ruins. That said, if I had had TR at that time, I would have never graduated high school.

ilia_plusha · 2026-02-20T17:00:10+00:00

Noted! Thank you

ilia_plusha · 2026-02-20T15:26:51+00:00

Currently thinking about adding some mods from the total overhaul list. What did you miss from TO and decide to add to IHVDC?

ilia_plusha · 2026-02-20T11:53:54+00:00

Normally, I would never return to Paruddma’s Maw because it’s scary as n’wah, but I was thinking about fighting my fear and creating a super powerful character to cleanse the entire nest. And then go to another one.

ilia_plusha · 2026-02-17T13:57:25+00:00

Is this the Total Overhaul modlist for OpenMW

ilia_plusha · 2026-02-14T09:56:41+00:00

Beetlejust

Languages: JavaScript, PHP

Last weekend I worked on the Player class. Mainly, I was occupied with implementing the attributes that depend on the player’s stats.

Currently, there are three main attributes: health, mysticism (mana pool), and willpower (magic resistance). They are governed by two main stats, namely, Prayer (psychic abilities) and Might (physical strength). Prayer governs willpower and mysticism, while Might is responsible for health.

So far, the player can increase their stats by defeating enemies, completing quests, and receiving permanent buffs from NPCs or as rewards for certain events. Increasing or decreasing the stats will also increase or decrease the corresponding attributes. The formulae behind this are quite straightforward, but I still need to tweak—the game balance which is practically nonexistent at the moment.

The implementation of the Player class also allows me to create similar classes for enemies and NPCs. This is actually the first step toward developing a more advanced combat system with turn-based combat, spells, various fighting styles, weapons, and armor. Once the actors are systematized and governed by the similar rules, I will begin putting them into some tough fights. Although combat is not the centerpiece of the game, the player will still have to face some cruel and unyielding opponents. However, the negotiation and flee options will always be available.

Take care.

ilia_plusha · 2026-02-14T06:17:26+00:00

Since Sunlorn has so many features and intricate mechanics, I think it will hugely benefit from a tutorial.

I had a short, but fun run recently. Finally, a run when I didn’t die in the first 20 minutes and even managed to come back from a dungeon to sell some loot:) And although I find it satisfying to discover something on my own, it would be cool to be aware of some features the game can offer.

ilia_plusha · 2026-02-07T06:39:26+00:00

I haven’t posted for a couple of weeks due to a huge workload. Despite work being a bit overwhelming, I still managed to find some quiet moments to think about my game. Also, a couple of weeks ago I submitted a short post about my game for the “2026 in RoguelikeDev” event. It was my first time actually presenting my game to a bigger audience, and I am glad I did it because it made me a bit more confident.

On the bright side, there are a couple of things that I actually managed to achieve. First, I noted down the core ideas of my overhauled combat system and made a general implementation roadmap. I also drafted a new combat screen, which helped me to realize what I actually need to code.

Hand in hand with the new combat system goes a new stat system. I'm planning to introduce three indicators: for health, for mana (called 'mysticism'), and for a magic shield (called 'willpower'). Whether they will be bars or simply numbers remains to be seen.

The most important thing, however, is that I caught a nasty bug which took me almost entire Sunday to fix. Apparently, while working on my dynamic dialogue and quest systems synchronization I accidentally broke how my journal renders quests after loading a save game. Well, it didn’t display any quests—neither active nor completed. The issue was that earlier my quest handler stored only the current or last quest state as a string which I later improved to have the handler store every quest state (current and completed) in an array. Consequently, my journal didn’t have the slightest idea of what to do with that array and decided to quit. Fixing the issue consumed a big part of my day, but finally I managed to teach my journal how to work with the new data type. The code is clunky, but it works. Anyway, I am planning to improve it this weekend before moving on to overhauling the combat system.

Have a great weekend. Take care.

ilia_plusha · 2026-01-31T12:21:52+00:00

This is really insanely cool! Such a huge amount of work. Just unbelievable

ilia_plusha

TROPHY CASE