It's time for Jeff, Corinne and Max to reveal some interesting facts and exclusive concept art for the Drakken! Are you ready to fly?
Jeff (aka Slowhands), on the Lore
"We wanted to do a number of things in Endless Legend that were based on the best of our ideas from Endless Space. One of these was to have the diplomacy-oriented faction; one who found and wielded power through negotiations and treaties rather than commerce or warfare. In ES it was the Amoeba, and the equivalent for EL was initially unknown. We had ideas for a flying faction, and for a diplomatic faction, but it took a few iterations for us to put them together and create the Drakken. The artists, of course, were very helpful in coming up with great visuals to spur our brainstorms.
The Drakken are the sole sentient species on Auriga whose roots lie in the planet's native biology. A race of large reptiles, their ability to walk upright and their position at the top of the food chain made them an interesting pilot for early tests by the Endless. Numerous experiments were done, primarily to turn these beasts into omnivores, give them the ability to live in cold climates, and create a sense of community and shared future. The Drakken Program moved forward at a slow speed and with as many social and psychological scientists on board as geneticists and microbiologists. Unfortunately, it was rudely interrupted by the bombing of the planet.
The effect on the Drakken of the Virtual destruction of Auriga cannot be overstated. In a matter of months they lost the teachers, doctors, and psychiatrists who had spent lifetimes trying to develop a firm and cohesive society for the Drakken. Uplifted, coddled, and then thrown into a cold and burning world, the remaining pockets of Drakken spent millennia in cycles of reproduction and hibernation; their entire culture shell-shocked by the loss of their "parents" and the ruin of their planet.
When the planet was once again ready for habitation, the Drakken emerged to a world so different that it caused their already weak memories to fade even further. They held on to the few recollections that remained with a zealous passion; knowing little more than an anguished sense of loss they reached out to uncover whatever they could about their lost mentors. Over time this became their overriding passion: To learn and preserve all that they could about the Endless civilization that lifted them up to be a peaceful society of intelligent creatures. Thus, the major projects of the Drakken were to find artifacts and uncover lore of the Endless, building vaults and libraries -- in fact, temples -- in which those artifacts could be stored.
In spite of their physical power and ferocious fighting skills, the Drakken remained a primarily peaceful society, content to pursue the search for Endless knowledge with little contact outside their own borders."
Corinne (aka Sostene), on the Art Direction
"People:
The Drakken people consists of a large variety of creatures, both two-legged and winged creatures. During the first lore researches for this faction, it seemed an interesting idea to imagine that their physical aspect evolved along with their seniority. Bipedal as a base unit, with age they gain wisdom and knowledge, and can hope to turn into winged Drakken... someday. So, to give them shape, it seemed useful to mix several animal influences and not just rely on traditional dragon shapes.
These humanoid/serpentine creatures must have ‘allure’, a kind of imposing bearing, as the descendants of the great people that they have always been (they may have scales, but they have a samurai mind ^^) They can look almost scary, but first of all : terribly intimidating.
- One is recommended not to disturb, or even be at odds with an ancient Drakken.
- Their presence must have... a deterrent effect, shall we say. ^^
Main Inspirations:
To emphasize the idea of ancient civilization, we chose an iconographic universe combining brute force and refinement at the same time, with a sprinkle of mystical atmosphere :
- Lizards, snakes chameleons, komodos, etc…
- Viking-like ornamentation
- Cuneiform-like signs and writing
- Runic symbols
Costumes:
The first concept arts were "naked" versions of the Drakken
- These looked a bit too "wild" and feral. In fact, nudity highlighted an animal aspect that didn't show enough intelligence and a “civilized” side.
The second phase of the design was about “dressing your Drakken”
- Actually, it was not convincing either ; they seemed civilized... but hard to see pants, tunics, dresses or capes on this kind of majestic creature, without obtaining a silly feeling... (like tricking out a pitbull in a tutu)
We finally settled for a solution that was to equip them with a minimum of clothes and play on inlays of metal and ornamental scales/stones all over the body. One must ask if these are natural elements (carved and polished scales?) or jewelry added and fixed on them.
City:
One can imagine that they lived a long time ago in natural places such as tunnels, crevices in the rock, summits of cliffs. Even after their “awakening” Endless experience, they kept a taste for wild and grandiose landscapes, towards which they feel an almost mystical reverence.
- Growths of unusual rocks, carefully hewn, strange patterns in the surface of the rock, or soil.
- They love to create kinds of rock cathedrals that keep a grandiose side, sharp as a rocky ridge.
We imagined the structure of their city in the same way that their society organization: homes near the ground are quite simple and modest (for the simple and modest bipeds units), while the more height is gained, the more it appears well-built and ornamented.
A supreme Drakken loves to roost on the highest constructions, on a rocky outcrop inaccessible to ordinary mortals, to observe in the distance or ponder the fate of Auriga ^^"
Max (aka Skamaks), on the game design
The Drakken were quite a challenge in game design, as much as for the story and art. We knew straight from the beginning that we wanted them to be the good guys going for the diplomatic victory. Their gameplay was inspired by the Amoeba from Endless Space but we thought we would make their initial bonus a little weaker so the Drakken player could only see the starting positions of the other factions rather than the whole map, but still be able to open diplomatic discussions with all players straight from the start.
We also wanted them to embrace the improvements we made in Diplomacy in Endless Legend, so we designed specific diplomatic options only the Drakken would have. With the inclusion of Influence points we wanted Diplomacy to feel more natural and realistic, and the Drakken were created to play around with that notion. They have the possibility to force peace, alliance and truce, which are aggressive diplomatic moves. We wanted them to have their own means to victory which would give us interesting and unusual results.
We reinforced the feeling of being skilled diplomats by allowing them to assimilate additional Minor Factions sooner and by accessing higher levels in the Empire plan earlier. These can be very powerful assets that link to their gameplay as they will be focusing on getting a lot of influence points.
If you read Jeff’s lore, you’ll also learn that the Drakken are searching for Endless ruins, and will get additional Influence points when you have some near your city.
Finally, the Drakken are dragons, right?
So they have tough-skinned units that earn XP faster. Clothes do not make the man; these guys are strong and wily and will keep you on your toes!
>> For more information on the Drakken, check out the [FACTION PAGE] and [FACTION CARD]. Download on [DEVIANT ART] our wallpapers: LINK, and submit your own fan art!
Have a great weekend!
