14 DAY TRIAL // The team at Paradox Development Studios might be focused on the upcoming Gamescom 2014 fan event, but they still found the time to deliver a diary for their ambitious upcoming Runemaster, which will mix traditional turn-based strategy with role-playing elements.
The focus of the studio is on the windy and cold world of Jotunheim, which is home to both the giants and the dwarfs and presents some unique challenges.
Giants tend to be a little aloof, with their belief that they are the wisest creatures because of their near immortality, and Paradox states, “They have little regard for clothes, as they are naturally very resistant to the elements. Their skin is very tough, and has been known to repel some arrows. Giants usually build their homes out of stone to shelter against the harsh winds of Jotunheim.”
The dwarves, on the other hand, tend to brave the elements by hiding underground, working both rock and iron in order to create complex architecture and interesting items.
Their focus is on mining and smithing, and their lives can be short because of violence or because of overwork.
The creation myth for Jotunheim focuses on the giants, who were created from the sweat of the left arm of the first being, Ymir, whose blood then killed almost all of them when the creature was put to death by Odin and his two brothers.
Bergelmir and his wife were banished to the harsh world in order to live out their lives and they quickly developed a hate for the gods.
The origin of the Dwarves in Runemaster is still under discussion, and Paradox states, “Most believe that they emerged from the mixture of Brimir’s blood and Blainn’s bones, which could mean the blood and bones of Ymir. Others believe that they were little more than maggots, festering in the flesh of Ymir, before the Aesir gave them reason and spirit.”
In Jotunheim, the cold and harsh environment has favored the evolution of creatures that can survive the conditions, including boars, wolves, stags and goats, but the player can also encounter powerful dragons and mythical creatures made of ice and snow.
Runemaster is set to be launched on the PC before the end of the year.
The game will use Norse mythology to create a complex story that allows gamers to side with either Thor or Loki and fight using their hero and creatures in order to bring about or to simply stop the end of the world.