[Warframe Concept] Tremor, The Earth / Terraformer Warframe - (10/14) Final Update & Retirement

[arch111]

Trigger and Ivory. The plan is to not.make it too obvious. In the.beginning I basically made a gholem. That was much too literal.

Since then I have wanted to give him a unique look of some sort. I drew inspiration from mages coats and military coats, with a bit of Rogue in there as well.

And like most things, Tremor have more than one source of inspiration.

Burrowing annimals like badgers and earthworms inspired the claws and helmet.

Think of Mirage and Limbo, they dont exactly scream laser-disco and rift-travel now do they?

[Morec0]

Barricade is exactly the kind of thing I want from an Earth frame - using rock and metal to create barrier and platforms on the battlefield. However, I'm not sure the rest really manage to capitalize on that potential.

 

I remain of the mind that Warframes deserve tweaks that push all their abilities towards some level of synergy. These abilities all fit within the theme, and for the most part I see them really being able to see how they would work in conjunction to greater effects. But then I hit the ultimate...

 

Don't get me wrong, an ultimate ability SHOULD be ultimate, but it shouldn't be completely outside of the rest of the kit - at least not in Warframe. We see this same problem with Miasma, Bladestorm, these abilities that are just so good that, in the energy-saturated gameplay of toady - it's just better to use them than any other ability.

 

It's not a bad ability, but I'd like to see it retooled a little to play with Tremor's ability to summon barriers.

 

As for the look, something about it feels right to me. As a kid a read a picturebook version of what I think was an old Jewish folklore story about the golem - or least something inspired by such - and sitting here looking at that image I was reminded of that (like, seriously, this is the first time I've thought about it in years). I can't pinpoint exactly what it is about Arch's modeling that hits that, but it does - maybe it's just the brown.

 

For the augments (ignoring the fourth), they all fit EXACTLY into what I think when I think "augment" - a drastic change to the way the ability works. That is, except for Eruption, but given the state of augments as they are it's not really out of place, and all in all works well - or I may just be underthinking it.

 

I DO have a question about Mummify, though: I thought foes couldn't cross the quicksand pits, is that an oversight or would the intent of the ability be "use Quicksand while in the middle of enemies to trap them within and let Mummify take its course"?

[Archwizard]

-snip-

 

Critical feedback! [size=1]I love you.[/size]

 

I understand the want to capitalize on Barricade, but a problem with a lot of Warframes is rampant infamy for being one-trick ponies. Limbo introduces this glorious new mechanic in the Rift... but his entire kit focuses on that mechanic to the exclusion of all else, which makes him boring to some players. Chroma's elemental swapping brought new potential to the design of Warframes... but without Vex Armor that would be literally his entire shtick, right down to his name. I wanted to introduce a deployable cover/platform mechanic, but I didn't want that to be literally the only reason a player would bring Tremor into the party.

 

The first iteration of Fault Zone I came up with had more to deal with exactly the sort of thing you mentioned, causing it to instantly create quakes based on the hazards and obstructions placed within the battlefield. Of course, I felt that this effect was not only somewhat unreliable (without set team compositions or random battlefield obstructions, you couldn't capitalize on it) but relied too much on flat amounts of damage even with the ability to bounce off of Barricades, which as I'm sure you can agree is a major issue when dealing with high-scaling enemies.

The current iteration was based on going back to Tremor's roots, of a class who prepares the battlefield before getting into an engagement - turning a random encounter into an arena, similar to Cataclysm. There was a self-imposed limitation I made for Tremor's kit: I wanted his ultimate to be useful within stealth playstyles while still creating some effect on the battlefield. Imagine, summoning a Barricade from stealth to beckon curious enemies into your Fault Zone; they get caught in your Quicksand trap and when you arise and kick the boulder into one's face, the shockwave ripples through their ranks.

It's a loose synergy, but then again, so are Loki's skills - which is what makes his playstyle so changeable, and gives him such replayability.

 

Eruption was inspired by Kingdom Hearts. The idea is that you can weaponize it to stun enemies in a pinch, but it will likely see more use to give you an extra second to recast when Burrow's duration runs out.

 

Quicksand is a root effect - enemies who walk over it get trapped in it, but enemies with ranged attacks (which is more than half of all enemies, as the case may be) can still be a threat unless you have a Barricade in place to block their line of fire. While Quicksand is active, Mummify turns it into a hard CC by slowing enemy attacks until they completely stop; when Quicksand runs out, it gives the player a few extra seconds to mark a new area of Quicksand as the stacks on Mummify run out.

Basically, it's a convenience augment.

[Akiryx]

Loving this concept, the Ulti seems somewhat confusing to me, because it seems to do so much, but I'm sure it'd be easy to figure it out.

[Morec0]

I see what you're getting at, I can respect that. Even Limbo doesn't fully live up to his potential, imo.

 

What I was getting at, though, was less a sense of "use Barricade as the starting point for everything" and more a "using abilities in combination with others for a greater effect". As a sort of thrown-together example: imagine being able to cast Burrow on your Barricade and move the Barricade around.

 

You already have some of that with Quicksand and Burrow, and I can totally see them all being used, but just something about Fault Line feels... Off to me. Like I said, disconnected, like there SHOULD be more of a way to tie it into everything else...

 

I dunno, if I used this Warframe in-game I'd probably love it - it creates walls, that's ultimately all I want from an Earth Warframe - so ultimately maybe I'm just looking for something to tweak in an otherwise VERY solid concept.

[arch111]

 

A testrender comp to test Tremor in motion aginst a Orokin backdrop.

[arch111]

With what Morec0 said, I had an idea.

What if an augment allowed to "rocksurf" on a barricade?

Kind of a silversurfer on earth where the barricade allso do damage when crashing into enemies.

I just liked that mental image it gave me :)

Edit: Damn phone trippleposting on me. Weirdest lag.

Edited August 11, 2015 by arch111

[Archwizard]

With what Morec0 said, I had an idea.

What if an augment allowed to "rocksurf" on a barricade?

Kind of a silversurfer on earth where the barricade allso do damage when crashing into enemies.

I just liked that mental image it gave me :)

Edit: Damn phone trippleposting on me. Weirdest lag.

 

Technically, I think all the pieces are already in place for that in base Barricade alone.

 

I left out mention of what would happen if a Barricade was kicked out from under you because I legitimately don't know if the devs would be able to program it - sure they've made trams and elevators, but those are bound to specific tiles. Most player-summoned entities like Tentacle Swarm can be jumped off of, and if you're very good at controlling your speed then you can even walk on a moving Antimatter Drop with practice, but we haven't seen anything you could, say, wall-cling upon as it moves on its own.

 

Still, if it is possible, I would like for that to be a possibility.

[bonamb]

This is one of the best thought out frames I have seen in a while and it actually fits in with the rest of warframe. 

Slightly harder to program than perhaps others, but perfectly doable.

DE plz input.

[arch111]

I see. I had not considered that interacting with a barricade would by default allow you to stand on it.

Ok. So like this?

1) Tremor cast Barricade.

2) Excalibur jumps up to stand on the Barricade.

3) Tremor kicks it forward.

4) Excalibur shoots down the enemy from the new vantage point, jumping off as it collides with a Heavy.

Sounds like fun!

[Archwizard]

Ok. So like this?

1) Tremor cast Barricade.

2) Excalibur jumps up to stand on the Barricade.

3) Tremor kicks it forward.

4) Excalibur shoots down the enemy from the new vantage point, jumping off as it collides with a Heavy.

 

General idea, yup. Could probably clarify just a little in the OP, I suppose.

 

On another note, working on augments again. I'm thinking of removing Landslide and replacing it with an effect like Enveloping Sand, but haven't come up with a replacement augment for Quicksand.

Edited August 13, 2015 by Archwizard

[(PSN)L-B-H-100]

oh, me likes ;) +1

[Elydir]

but haven't come up with a replacement augment for Quicksand.

 

What about one that lets you set landmines using QS?

[Archwizard]

What about one that lets you set landmines using QS?

 

That might be worth considering.

 

It's just weird to me that I'd end up having 3 augments that exist to deal additional damage to enemies... Sort of seems like the low-hanging fruit.

[Elydir]

That might be worth considering.

 

It's just weird to me that I'd end up having 3 augments that exist to deal additional damage to enemies... Sort of seems like the low-hanging fruit.

 

Oh I thought you were talking about replacing the damage aug for FZ.

[Archwizard]

Oh I thought you were talking about replacing the damage aug for FZ.

 

I... don't know where you got that impression, since I said to the contrary right here - 

 

On another note, working on augments again. I'm thinking of removing Landslide and replacing it with an effect like Enveloping Sand, but haven't come up with a replacement augment for Quicksand.

[Archwizard]

Decided to put in a section of the OP for weapons created to be paired with Tremor; GunsDownGrace's pilebunker is already there, while I expect Pyro15232's primary and secondary can be added to the section after.

 

Wondering if I should update the title to reflect it, although I have been sitting on GunsDownGrace's concept for a couple months now (I... lost it for a bit).

[Elydir]

They just announced an earth frame on stream!

 

Edit:

Edited August 21, 2015 by Annon5150

[Archwizard]

They just announced an earth frame on stream!

 

It's a good concept, but I don't know if that's an Earth frame.

 

Right colors and look for one, and they mentioned he'd throw rocks so I'll honestly be surprised if they don't give him an Earthquake stomp and call it a day on future stone-frame concepts, but they put more emphasis on the "Brawler" part of him. As it clearly says. In the bottom of that picture.

 

I will admit there are similarities to how I originally envisioned Tremor (particularly where the one-handed gauntlet is concerned - might open up possibilities for a Pilebunker if they decide to make it, albeit announcing this soon could make him a 17.5 frame with Mios instead), complete with the scrappy roguelike look and the sleeveless coat I asked arch111 to consider, but unless he puts up physical obstacles, Tremor still has a place.

 

Tremor is, first and foremost, a Terraformer. He's a different take on the Earth elemental, just like Oberon and Mirage are two different takes on the Light elemental, and Chroma is a different take on every elemental before him. He's not done yet.

[taiiat]

the Mesh shown there looks a tiny bit peculiar. primarily, that the 'coat' seems to have a cutout conveniently at the arse location.

idunno. maybe some other People around here are rubbing off on me, but that looks a little bit suggestive.

i'm also not sure what is what, but the Art section at the end, the final iteration for that looks more interesting than the Image shown initially. personal preferences.

granted, none are Textured, so that could change if they were Textured.

note that my comments on Abilities are based on reading the quick overviews up top writing what i think, then reading the explanations.

Barricade is useful. being able to make true Area Denial via actual Blocking of Areas is something i've wanted to be able to do.

Barricade being literally indestructible is a problem. you can cheese with it by blocking AI Navigation. Enemies needing to destroy it to get to their intended location is fine, but being completely unable to get there at all is kind've cheating.

being able to move your Barricade by Kicking it or Melee Striking it is neat, though here we get into another potential trolling problem. the Co-Op of being able to move Barricade is good, but Players being able to move it when you don't want them to.... :/

though if you could 'lock' the location of it so that nobody can move it, then the Caster still retains control over it's location.

lmao that i can 'drive me closer!' with Barricade.

unlimited Barricades active? that's asking for trouble. maximum of 4 is probably reasonable. maybe 8.

- - - - -

Burrow seems useful. like Form of Puddle, but for movement rather than anything Offensive or Defensive.

however, a Player disappearing not to be seen again is weird in Multiplayer.

however, idunno how you'd handle the Camera for this. if it's going to be inside the Floors and Walls, this Ability is about as complicated to create a an entire new game from scratch is. would require retooling every single Tile in the game.

shame you can't cast Burrow while in the air. diving into the ground from up high is a classic Cartoon thing. :p

- - - - -

how do you mark areas for Quicksand? are you suggesting you like, turn it on, walk around, then turn it back off?

so you can carve holes into the ground? it sounds cool, but then you'll see someone draw a d...butt.

the general use of this sounds great however. i'd totally want to use other Abilities to push Enemies into this 'Sarlacc Pit'.

oh, piss. need an Augment that lets you create a Sarlacc Pit.

any benefit to walking over the same area that you've already marked?

- - - - -

i like that Tremor can be a Status Effect Multiplier. 100% Status of any received Status seems quite high though, unless this Ability has a smaller Range than i think it does.

being able to be comprised of multiple Damage Types is thumbs up.

how often can it create the Shockwaves? there must be some delay, to keep it from being VFX spam. once per second, twice per second, Et Cetera.

are the Shockwaves centralized on any particular point? center of the Ability? where the target that it absorbed from is standing?

i feel like you should be able to Cancel this Ability while Active, so that you can move it, but pay the Activation Cost again obviously. like Cataclysm.

- - - - -

the Terraforming Augment seems questionable. Damage Type being decided by location means Player can't choose it themselves. *shrugs*

Quartz Barrier is interesting. not sure if it's good or bad that it sounds like a Laser Beam Rave Party Augment.

how many seconds does it take Mummify to 100% CC lock Enemies? completely turning off Enemies is a very powerful effect. granted, one which Warframe in general forces you to do, but in the form of spamming Abilities over and over, rather than Abilities having the effect as a feature. (though Frost comes close nowadays, being able to stack several types of Slows is hilariously powerful, but requires considerable setup time and a lot of Ability usage. but it's just plain hilarious to Slow Enemies by that much.)

wearing off one stack at a time at the end is incredibly powerful. would expect dividing by 2 on a clock rate or something.

Landslide sounds very interesting to use. would be quite tempted to use slows to be able to shore up more Enemies into it.

"Pulling effect does not knockdown or ragdoll foes, a la Prolonged Paralysis." uh, but Enemies affected by Prolonged Paralysis land in a Knocked down state?

also, if Enemies are 'in transit' by Landslide when Fault Zone activates, will they continue, or will they fall out of the air?

Edited August 22, 2015 by taiiat

[arch111]

Well the road has certainly been long in terms of design, as you can see from the art.

The latest one is supposed to make you think of a rogue/ wizard/military uniform.

The open part in the back in a heritage from the fauld and i guess it can be tweaked, it is not final.

In fact a few things will happen in the next iteration.

I allso do not see Brawler as a competition for Tremor, they seem radically different.

[(XBOX)Typhon00]

I think mortal kombat when I hear the name so I'd recommend maybe a different name. Something mean and tough

[arch111]

I think mortal kombat when I hear the name so I'd recommend maybe a different name. Something mean and tough

Um, whas not Tremor in Mortal Combat just added?

Besides I don't really take MK seriously on many levels.

[(XBOX)Typhon00]

Um, whas not Tremor in Mortal Combat just added?

Besides I don't really take MK seriously on many levels.

He was actually a part of the series for awhile. But I just think naming a warframe for a fighting game the same as a character released earlier with the same power and abilities might seem like a copy.

[Archwizard]

-snip-

 

One point at a time...

 

-   Enemies already path around Fire Blasts where possible, and being able to box them in is one of the intended selling points - keeping in mind that even without this feature, he still has a root effect. If it could be broken easily, it wouldn't make a very good wall, no?

-   I'm more worried about Tremor players trolling their allies than the reverse (just look at Limbo, Loki, Valkyr, G1 Mag, the occasional Frost on Infested missions...); you know there would be that one guy who would just throw down all of his walls behind him in tunnels. Worst case for now, someone kicks your wall and does some damage with it, then you can just summon another - you're the one with the button, remember.

-   A maximum is worth considering, but I like the idea of you being able to build Barricades on top of one another to form structures. Bridges and stuff.

 

-   Burrow would have a relatively short duration to make up for the invisibility/invulnerability (somewhere along the lines of Smoke Bomb).

-   Tilesets and camera functionality wouldn't have to be reworked - think more Undertow, just shrinking you down, putting you in permanent wallrun and showing you the surface rather than showing you inside anything. Yes it would be low to the ground, that's why most of his skills are point-blank anyway.

 

-   Toggle QS on, mark your area by running, turn it off and reap; create your own custom snare. It's a self-balancing feature, in that if you want to cover a larger area, it takes you longer to set up. If you want to draw a "d...butt", that's your prerogative. Can't guarantee it'll catch anything, but it's certainly an option.

-   The Landslide augment for Fault Zone already kinda makes a Sarlacc Pit - and you can throw in a Hydroid for good measure.

-   No benefit to layering Quicksand on the same spot (what're you gonna do, disintegrate it further?), and it'll cost you energy anyway to encourage you to spread it out. Of course it will have a fairly low upkeep cost, so you're not penalized all too heavily for criss-crossing.

 

-   For clarity: Hitting a target within Fault Zone causes a miniature quake (like a Moa stomp) to expand from the struck target's current location. It does not expand to hit the entire zone (just like how Molecular Prime's explosions don't hit the whole marked area - albeit the shockwaves will be somewhat wider), although the quakes can reach outside of the zone if you're attacking a target near the edge.

-   Fault Zone uses the same delay mechanic as Chroma's Electric Ward; enough to prevent from overloading the map from someone using Twin Grakata, while still allowing for big hits from Opticor as frequently as you can dish them out.

-   Don't really see a point to letting you cancel it, personally. Granting, everybody and their dog thinks every Duration ability that can lock you out should be cancel/recastable instead, just because the lockout is frustrating, but I see Fault Zone more as a skill for hunkering down in one location anyway; someone who shapes the battlefield should be connected to a given location. Cataclysm can prevent targets from receiving damage, and deals damage on-cast and once cancelled; Fault Zone deals no instant damage without the augment and amplifies hits they receive, putting enemies at a natural disadvantage while they're in your house. If you leave your house...

 

-   Chroma aside, players can't always choose the damage type of other frames either, just the frame itself. You can go into a mission with full knowledge of the tileset you'll be going into, so Tremor can be prepared accordingly. Worst case, damage is damage and status is status.

-   Laser rave augments are always good.

-   Mummify will probably take around 5 seconds at max rank. The delay on all of the stacks releasing is to give you more time to set up the next Quicksand pool.

-   Don't bother with slows when you have a root.

-   That must be recent... I know Divebomb Vortex causes targets to land knocked down, but last time I used Prolonged Paralysis, enemies were just stunned for the duration of the (very short) pull.

-   Enemies shouldn't be pulled off the ground by Landslide, so they shouldn't "fall out of the air" when it ends (although I hadn't considered what would happen if you put it on the second floor - perhaps I should make it a hemispherical effect). The idea is that the ground warps to drag enemies closer. They should otherwise be released however, unless they were flying.

 

I think mortal kombat when I hear the name so I'd recommend maybe a different name. Something mean and tough

 

Concept's had the name for a year and a half now.

 

It fits with the naming conventions of other elementals, using a term that indicates a smaller version of whatever element you wield. A wildfire is composed of Embers, a lightning bolt is measured in Volts, a snowstorm begets Frost, an earthquake causes Tremors. Doubly apropos, since every one of his abilities has a relation to the earth moving, as opposed to... what, kicking up rocks?

 

I still think The Incredibles when I hear Mirage, Homestuck when I hear Nyx, and Half-Life when I hear Mesa. If you think MK, it wouldn't be the first such instance.

Edited August 23, 2015 by Archwizard