As Hawkswell Studios CEO and Creative Director Erwan Le Breton explains, one of the developer’s goals with upcoming single-player narrative cRPG Legends of Awen: Rise of the Fianna is to address the lack of entries in the genre that are based on Irish myth.
Drawing inspiration from both the Fenian cycle and classic Bioware RPGs for its story, the title puts us in the role of Finn, an orphan wielding otherworldly powers who, alongside a party of loyal companions, ventures across the kingdom to aid those in need.
An early demo I got to try out as part of a recent preview event, sees the main character – who can be either male or female – tasked with investigating trouble brewing around an important mining town. With the High King on his deathbed and bloodthirsty rebels running rampant, the guards aren’t convinced of my party’s good intentions.
Plunged into my first battle after failing to talk things through, I get a taste of Legends of Awen: Rise of the Fianna’s Conviction system, which aims to add a whole new dimension to combat encounters. It complements the various lethal abilities with a series of non-lethal actions that allow for a more peaceful resolution.
Each character involved in a fight has two bars above their model, one tracking health, another tracking conviction. Depleting either puts them out of the fight, although outright killing them may have different consequences than making them flee.
Furthermore, a mood system governs how enemies react in battle. Angry opponents forego defending allies and prioritize tearing apart the heroes. Frightened foes still attempt to attack but make fleeing a priority.
Calm enemies then take a more measured approach to battles. The heroes’ abilities can alter moods, allowing follow-up attacks to deal bonus conviction damage under the right circumstances.
Legends of Awen: Rise of the Fianna also takes a page out of Divinity: Original Sin’s playbook, weaving synergy into the various elemental attacks Finn’s party can use. Spells that inflict the wet status allow future ice attacks to freeze their targets, giving you more space to maneuver.
This has the potential to turn battles into intricate puzzles that challenge you to carefully weigh your tactical options while considering your party’s abilities and their overall intentions. If you favor peace, you might try to prioritize conviction damage, but, sometimes, violence might be required to ensure your survival.
In certain situations, conflict can also be avoided through contextual dialogs that you trigger during the real-time exploration segments which precede turn-based battles. Another interesting tidbit I learned is how Finn’s sword harbors an ancient spirit, Cian.
Communing with it allows the hero to relive past events. The choices made during these moments – which see you playing as the spirit – have consequences during the game’s current timeline.
Le Breton notes that Legends of Awen: Rise of the Fianna’s conviction system was inspired by the discussions that usually happen during tabletop RPG sessions. He also says that, even as the game offers a more traditional approach to combat, permadeath is not part of the core experience. Fallen party members get back on their feet after combat ends, as the focus falls primarily on storytelling.
On a similar note, Finn’s party always has the first turn advantage during fights, except for when it’s ambushed. Where the protagonist can tap into a mix of warrior, bard, and druid abilities, his companions boast a more specialized skill set.
Le Breton hopes that, aside from offering a slightly different approach to the genre, Finn’s adventures will also encourage players to dive even deeper into the rich world of Irish myth.
The title currently positions itself as a shorter cRPG, targeting closer to 20 hours of playtime for one playthrough. Legends of Awen: Rise of the Fianna is in development for PC and will first head to Kickstarter, “which will determine a lot of the remaining roadmap,” including whether or not fully-voiced characters and console versions will be attainable goals in the future.
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