Video Game / Bolt from the Blue
You are the collective of the heart. You are love in its truest, most unyielding form.
Bolt from the Blue is an in-development RPG project by solo dev RAKURAIKOU (aka Len). It is meant to be a homage to Bravely Default and the JRPG genre with an emphasis on meaningful worldbuilding.
The High Fantasy world of Luxos is said to be forged by four almighty entities known as the Beastlords. After creating Luxos, the Beastlords peacefully lived alongside all other lifeforms, quietly governing the natural processes within the realm.
The story opens with Raiden, a friendly amnesiac who washed up on the shores of Buragee and was taken in by the Cielisono Royal Family. By an interesting trick of fate, she serves as attendant to the passionate princess who can't seem to wield her aspect, Araceli Fuentes de Luna. One day, Castle Cieliso is suddenly attacked by a mysterious force, forcing Raiden and Araceli to flee. They meet the Pyrusian noble and prospective heir Saffron Infiaco, who was planning on visiting the kingdom before it was attacked. The three find their desperate escape aboard the Frostfarer, a skycraft piloted by none other than Cole Fulrisk, a notorious solo pirate.
With Raiden by her side, Araceli is determined to return to Cieliso and take back her kingdom from the unknown assailant. Meanwhile, Saffron strives to prove himself a worthy successor to his noble house, and Cole is apparently just here for the ride. On top of everything else, it seems a dangerous group of people are targetting Raiden for a reason they refuse to disclose.
Bolt from the Blue will probably be in development for a very, very long time.
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This game provides examples of:
- Action Initiative: Units in battle act according to a formula based on AGI, with highest generally going first. Some skills will always occur at the start or end of the round, however. Additionally, ENDURE will always occur at the start before any other action.
- After-Combat Recovery: Cael resets to zero after every battle, even if the character ended the last battle with caelism.
- An Aesop: Whatever it is, you don't have to do it alone.
- Arc Villain: Each chapter of the game features a particular antagonist (more typically a pair of antagonists).
- Doomed Hometown: Araceli is forced to flee San Ven with Raiden when it is suddenly attacked by Nox Noctis. As it turns out, she is the only survivor of this tragedy.
- Elemental Powers: Aspects. In general, each person can only control one, as granted by a Beastlord, with the exceptions being Keepers and those with a certain type of talisman.
- Gods Need Prayer Badly: The Champions require offerings of light to persist in the realm and grant miracles. However, they aren't necessarily "gods," and are not nearly as powerful as the true "god-like" beings in Luxos (the Beastlords).
- Horned Humanoid: Some lumiens have horns.
- Party in My Pocket: When in towns, party members can be found on their own somewhere in the area. In the overworld and areas with monster encounters, however, the rest of the party is not visible anywhere.
- Reality Warper: Beastlords exert "pressure," an aura that distorts light within a certain radius. Pressure is the explanation for natural phenomena, and people generally try to avoid getting too close to a Beastlord so that they don't get harmed by it.
- Turn-Based Combat: Bolt from the Blue's battle system operates on a turn-based format. Each character is guaranteed at least one action per turn, unless their previous action causes their CL to max out, in which case the character cannot act until it has depleted to a certain amount.
- Where It All Began: The final chapter of Bolt from the Blue starts in the ruins of San Ven where the party fled in the beginning of the game. All of this is because the bell required to summon the Beastlord of Light is located in San Ven.