Jellyface [Caves of Qud mod]

Who are Jellyface?

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Jellyface are remnants of a bygone era where bio-engineering was at its peak. Created by the Eaters as a hybrid between human cognition and jellyfish physiology, they were designed to serve as caretakers for the deep aquatic laboratories of Qud, where Jellyface have been an integral part of the Eaters` society.

They have been specifically designed to facilitate communication among the Eaters and to embody the ethos of the Eaters, serving as living examples of their advanced understanding of life and their pursuit of harmony with Qud’s diverse ecosystems.

Their psychic energies have been harnessed to create a network of telepathic links, allowing the Eaters to share thoughts and wisdom instantaneously across great distances.

When the cataclysm shattered the old world, Jellyface and their kind were freed from their servitude.

Driven by fragmented memories of their creation and remnants of human-like consciousness, Jellyface are on a quest to uncover the truth of their origins and the strips of the civilization that conceived them. As the Eaters' creations, they carry ancient memories and genetic codes that could unlock secrets of the Eaters' technologies or philosophies.

A peaceful, yet misunderstood species, they now roam the waterlogged passages of Qud, their origin forgotten by most.

What`s this?

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This is a mod for Caves of Qud by Freehold Games, and was made for the Monster Mash modding jam.

This mod is released under Creative Commons Zero, everything is in the public domain. Feel free to check out the source code on GitLab.

This is our first game jam ever together! We`ve  spent the first 48 hours of the submission exploring the game and trying to heal ourself up from some spaceaids we caught.

Credits:

@miliv - xml, pixel art, itch design, ideation

@k0ba - conversation design, lore, testing, ideation

"If only we had more time..."

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• Lore Alignment
  The game's expansive lore suggests that refining our character's origin story could enhance its fit. Perhaps we could delve deeper into the identity of the underwater Eaters and explore their relationship with Ptoh?

• Conversation Design
  Our initial vision was to craft meaningful player interactions, such as Jelly initiating a water ritual, revealing secrets, or embarking on quests according to player choices. However, our deep dive into the lore consumed much of our time, leaving us with limited opportunity to refine these elements.

• Game Balance
  Jellyface, while very powerful, exudes a peaceful aura. We hope this won't disrupt the game's difficulty balance, even if we created them too strong. 

• Combat mechanics
  Our aim was for Jelly's combat abilities to be primarily psychonic (around 80%), with a potential touch of venom. However, these mutations proved to be inconsistent in their execution. We would fix that also.

• Population Ecology / Location
  The Lake seemed a good choice, however an underwater cave could have been also  a fine. We still need to explore the whole lore, to add some coherent element, eg. the underwater Eaters sub-society. 

• Faction Relationships
  We would rework the faction relationships, as being an ooze makes most animals and creatures trigger happy. We tried to fix this with the "docile" tag, but Jellyface needs to self defense somehow. Our intent was to use mostly non-lethal esper powers, like Confusion, but we still need to figure out how to make them flee from the fight after casting their ability.