Grim & Grit Roster
A comprehensive GDD about the various playable characters within the hack-and-slash title Grim & Grit.
Introduction
Grim & Grit is a game I am working on collaboratively with another developer. It is a hack-n-slash rogue-like with Zelda style combat, built around dark Grim fairytales. The attached PDF on this page is a link to download the character roster I designed.
As of version 0.1.0. of the planned designed document, Grim & Grit will feature 12 unique characters with captivating twists on classic fairytale characters!
Parts of a Character
Mechanically speaking, a Character is defined by their Kit. A Kit is a set of tools at the player’s disposal unique to the selected character. A Kit’s tools are designed to synergize with each other in a vacuum, and are designed first and foremost to create a satisfying combat loop exclusive to the playstyle of that Character. A Kit consists of Skills. Skills are the tools inside of a Kit, and each Kit is built with 5 Skills:
Passive - This is a Skill that has no active component tied to it. Its effects are indefinite, though it often requires certain criteria to trigger such as time, Skill usage, positioning, ect..
Primary Attack - This is a Skill meant to serve as a Character’s main method of dealing damage. It is a Skill requiring an active input from the player to perform, but is often spammable and always accessible. Primary Attacks are NOT Abilities. This means criteria concerning Ability activations do NOT trigger from performing a Primary Attack. This also means that effects that restrict Abilities such as a Silence do NOT hinder a Character’s Primary Attack.
Ability 1 - A Skill with an active component. This is an Ability.
Ability 2 - A Skill with an active component. This is an Ability.
Signature Ability - A Skill with an active component. This is considered an Ability. Unlike Abilities 1 & 2, a Signature Ability is often considerably higher in power budget compared to other Skills in a Kit, and often capitalizes on capturing the fantasy of playing the chosen Character.
Skill Attributes
All Skills are built using 5 key Attributes:
Icon - A visual representation of a Skill’s effect. This is often key art used to easily identify a Skill on a Character’s hotbar.
Name - The name of the Skill. This is important in the event other Skills in the same Kit reference Skills by name, making synergies and relationships between Skills clear.
Binding - What role a Skill plays in a Character’s Kit. See the “Character Kit” section above for more information.
Cooldown - After activating the Skill, how long it takes to become available for use once again. Cooldown can be reduced, but the listed Cooldown (CD) of a Skill is its default behavior.
Description - The actual effects associated with the Skill, including its functionality, output, and Area of Effect (AoE).
The Roster
The following is an introduction to each of the 12 Characters planned for the Roster. Their abilities are not included - view the document for more detail on the playstyle and the abilities of each one!
RED • THE WILD CHILD
Hailing from the hidden vales of the Winding Woods, an elusive woodland native called Red speaks more with blades than with words. With her family stolen by Grim’s twisted story, no longer does her hands carefully pluck berries from bushes or weave baskets from grasses. Instead, they find themselves in tight fists around the handle of her trusty axe.
Familiar with the brutality of the forest, Red leverages her habits and tricks from the wilds. Someone with patience may wait for an apple to fall on its own. But someone of Red’s resolve may come to find chopping the trunk to be even more immediate, direct, and brutally efficient. After all, though none knew her before the axe, who is to say her cloak was always red?
PRINCE • THE BOISTEROUS BRAWLER
Once the proud heir of the Crystal Castle, this would-be successor to the diamond kingdom paid the price for his arrogance at the hands of Grim. Warped by malign magics, diminished to a stature befitting his bloated ego and warted heart, the creature now simply known as “Prince” came to be.
Little did Grim know, regardless of whatever form he twisted Prince’s body into, his hubris would always eclipse it. Compelled by conviction to seize his throne, Prince will let nothing stand in his way - or stand taller than him. Be they as puny as a pebble or as mighty as a mountain, Prince will crush anyone for show, for fun, or in the way. With legs, arms, and charm like this, he’ll be damn certain that he looks fantastic while doing so.
PERSINETTE • THE TANGLED VENGEANCE
Deprived of everything from a childhood to sunlight, the eerie Persinette is a terrifying being to behold. Rumored to be from a kingdom struck from the pages of history, her long, unkempt, and razor-frayed golden locks are a testament to her torment locked away inside a tower that teetered at the edge of memory and time.
But Persinette cares not about her legacy. The only desire that quivers in that harrowed heart is a raw, vicious vengeance. Vengeance against the man who sought to seal her away for eternity. Reasons be damned; Persinette will haunt the world for a thousand lifetimes, seeking recompense for the one lifetime she was robbed. Beware the braids of gold. She comes for Grim, and anyone between her and him.
ARPEGGIO • THE SKITTERING SONG
Perhaps the most elusive figure in all of the Grim’s stories is that of Arpeggio, the mysterious master musician. Were they a royal? A court jester? An actor in the performing arts? No hint of feeling lies behind the grief-stricken mask of the artist; their only means of expression is clutched tightly beneath a gnawed glove - an immaculately crafted pipe.
And so, without reason or known motivation, Arpeggio wanders the lands with a troupe of rodents in tow - a permanent concert captivated by the enigmatic artist. With every note they squeak, with every pitch they leap, and with every sharp hiss of Arpeggio’s instrument they snap and claw and tear at Arpeggio’s critics. To stifle one’s applause in the presence of the master musician is to invite woe. None can - nor should - ignore the fleeting melodies of dear poor Arpeggio, lest one find themselves less of an audience, and more of a concession to the master musician’s swarm of dancing teeth.
HANSEL & GRETEL • THE PASTRY BANDITS
A story of two abandoned siblings, lured into the Winding Woods at the beckoning of a sooth-sweet witch, mutilated into confectionary monstrosities in a vain attempt to sate Grim’s hunger for delicious tragedy. Now free from saccharine chains, through troubles as thick as frosting or dense as rye, the two siblings know they will always have each other’s back on their quest to discover the fate of their parents.
Hansel is the brawn of the duo, boasting shoulders as round as boules, thighs as thick as loaves, and muscles as layered as cake. Much like his aptitude for force, his baking skills tend towards setting up a foundation for his more detail-sweet sister. He serves poundings with a smile, and much like a slice of bread, his hard exterior gives way to a spongy, soft interior that only Gretel’s laughter can bring out.
Gretel is the precision of the duo. Beneath her licorice locks she leverages her eye for detail in every blade she whets and throws. Unlike the muscle of her brother, she prefers to apply her dexterous skills in compliment to his base; flawless finishings in both frostings and cuts. Though cold from afar, the warm smile of her brother melts her icing to reveal a sweet joy within. Next to Hansel, she spreads her cheer in all her work, scattering daggers like sprinkles everywhere she goes.
CINDER • THE LADY OF GLASS
The lady of glass. The hour hand. The clockwork knight. The crystal champion. All apt titles for the knight known as Cinder. Annealed in the accolades of the Crystal Kingdom, Cinder’s origins are said to be the gifted armor of the crystal princess, crafted to reflect her dazzling features. Though none recall her fate, ages later, many still swear they see the grace of their lost lady in the wide strides and the flawless finesse of Cinder’s every act.
Lofted by nobility as the shining champion, Cinder does not deign to draw a blade. Adorned in ornaments, glass-clad, and as pure and radiant as starlight, the crystal knight is the weapon of the kingdom. Grace is the grindstone upon which Cinder’s sorelets become daggers and greaves become hammers. On a battlefield under Cinder’s command, with the precision of a surgeon, execution becomes elegant. In time, all opposition will be toppled by Cinder, and the timeless Crystal Kingdom will outlast all, even so called gods like Grim.
JACK • THE BOTANIST ALCHEMIST
Once, nestled at the foot of the Thunderstone Mountains, a humble farmer lived. Solitude was no burden, for absent prattle allowed room to ruse. How did the barley bend its stalks to the wind, yet never break? How did the wheat soak the color of the sun? Peculiarities congealed into postulations. Postulations calcified into puzzles. And puzzles are meant to be solved.
Across a childhood and into his maturity, the farmer sought to solve the world. His seas of grain soon cultivated exotic herbs and flowers from afar. As he brewed miracles like sap that burned like molten nickel or vines that could climb clouds, his ceaseless experiments could never slake his thirst for knowledge. Indeed, once there was a humble farmer. But now, there is only Jack, and he seeks to extract ultimate understanding.
BOOTS • THE CLAWED SCALLYWAG
Outlaws are no rare sight. Tucked beneath docks or slithering through sewers, where there is profit, there is crime. Yet few in the trade of infraction find fame appealing - the best kind of scandal is one unnoticed. A mountain of gold could persuade the daring or desperate, but crime for the sake of crime? A name? Ludicrous. Yet, Boots is the notorious exception.
Born on sails and storms, raised on a resolve sharp enough to cut through the sea, Boots is less likely to kill a captain if he’s paid than he is if someone doubts he could. And in a land where ink bleeds through trees and skies are soaked black, it is Boots who dauntlessly, recklessly, sails into the storm to chase the eye. Sure, Boots enjoys the praise. He enjoys being paid. He enjoys the rowdiness of a tavern and the exhilaration of slipping away when the kingsguard come knocking. But for all the gold in the world, what is the real worth of a coin if there isn’t a good story that earned it?
KINDLE • THE PLAYFUL PYRE
When the final leaves abandon their posts and the wails of winter wind its way through every vale and street, the fortunate many retreat to their hearths and their family. Yet a few, like Kindle, are not afforded the luxury of comfort. Discarded and disheartened, little Kindle wanders the snow-smothered roads wherever winter goes, tightly clutching a small box of matchsticks and onto the faint hope that someone will share a sliver of generosity.
Yet passersby who know the tale heed the child no mind. She seeks no comfort from company, only tinder for her flame. Be it leaves exhumed from the snow, sticks or splinters, cloth or flesh, Kindle knows only the kindness fire offers; A light. A companion. A tangible, true warmth compared to the fickle presence of a person. Her only friend is the flickering flame, and Kindle will feed her friend the world if she must.
FORGE • THE DEVILSMITH
There was once a blacksmith with the gift to imagine anything. In iron, he saw swords as sharp as needles. In copper, he saw gears with teeth to rival a dozen wolves. In gold, he saw chains braided so fine they could be mistaken for hair. His ingenuity was peerless, but such skill brought envy. Rivals larger than him stole his customers, threatened his partners, and spun rumors so vile his name grew sour to speak. In the span of a season, though his soul still burned with zeal, the smith was stripped of everything but his gift.
But from the blacksmith’s desperation, the bridge between want and fulfillment conjured an agent of exploits; a fiend. It promised him the power to forge anything he desired. The price, the fiend asked, was the smith’s deliciously stubborn soul. Without delay, the smith shook on the pact, and as his hand erupted in violet flames, a smile split his lips wider than his patron's. In the fiend, the smith saw his new hammer, and in the hammer, he saw a prison. The fiend was sealed in iron, and the hellfire blacksmith Forge was born - soul and all.
GOLDIE • THE CHARMING CHARLATAN
Spoiled as a child with porridges of perfect temperatures and beds of perfect comfort, Goldie’s sense for perfection was honed by her excellence. Like a cushion too firm or too soft, the spiraling markets of the kingdom ebbed and flowed the same. When a product was too high in demand, its value soared, but shortage languished without any immediate returns. When demand was too low, quality suffered, and profit fell short of desired. But when demand was just right, Goldie could squeeze the kingdom for every coin it made again and again.
Ruthless in business and brutally efficient, Goldie swiftly became the richest noble in the land. But make no mistake of taking her for only a pampered brat. Armed with well-deep coffers and irresistible charm, whoever Goldie cannot buy or manipulate she beats herself. By coin or fist, she will stay where she belongs - at the top - where everyone else falls in line. It’s just right.
ROBIN • THE CROWNHUNTER
In the deepest recesses of the Winding Woods, some tell of a figure that lurks in the wilds. A sharp shape that darts between branches in a cloak of emerald. A shamrock-shroud perched atop the highest trees, keeping silent vigil upon trespassers of the forest. A predator who hunts the wicked with arrows like thorns, armed with a bow as wide as the horizon. From his tendencies to the canopies, the folk came to call this warden of the forest, Robin.
None ask why or who he hunts - the royal seals on the spoils he shares speak for themselves. Little do the forest folk know the huntsman has no use for loot. Robin hunts the wicked in search of his missing daughter, headhunting one by one until his wild child is back home once more.