Champions of Ascerth 2

Champions of Ascerth 2 is an action role-playing game developed and published by Ghostrealm Studios for the GhostDrive console as a sequel to the original Champions of Ascerth game released a year prior. Unlike the original game, Ascerth 2 features an all-new setting and has little to do with the original game besides sharing a few characters and taking place within the Ghostverse.
==Story==
===Background===
Champions of Ascerth 2 takes place on the continent of Buzokai on the planet Ascerth, far away from the events of past projects on the planet. When magical spirits first inhabited Ascerth, some found Buzokai, and made it their "testing grounds", so to speak as they used their magical abilities to experiment with the continent, shaping landscapes and in some cases influencing the evolution of some species. Unlike the rest of the planet's magical spirits, these ones were more active and even took on physical forms reminiscent of some animals. 
Over time, the locals of the continent began to worship these magical spirits, calling them Kamaki. The Kamaki took up residence within the different provinces of Buzokai, often sticking to themselves. They were venerated as gods by the residents of Buzokai, and many paid tribute to them.
Fast forward thousands of years, and an amnesiac Kaiden has arrived on the continent. What trials will he endure here?
===Main Story===
For the main story, please click here!
==Characters==
===Playable===
===Non-Playable===
Character	Info
Gakoh 	A Urei, Gakoh is a ghost who tends to take on the form of a simple Tokal artist to interact with the living. However, he joins Kaiden's group as a guide of sorts, offering to help him navigate Buzokai. Gakoh tends to be one to provide insightful commentary on areas and people, and in some cases has a sense of humor!
Tasuk 	Another Urei, Tasuk chose to go find Elina, seeing as how he knew she would want to go search for Kaiden. In several cutscenes, he can be seen adventuring with her. Unlike other Urei, Tasuk is more experimental and likes to put his skills into action.
==Gameplay==
Champions of Ascerth 2 is a real-time RPG in which the player controls a party of characters as they travel through the continent of Buzokai, fighting enemies and progressing through the storyline. Enemies are fought with a targeting system, where characters will constantly attack an enemy with auto-attacks as they target them. However, to speed things up, you might want to use each character's abilities to take out enemies. Each character has four abilities, and are designed to fulfill a certain role within the party. However, abilities have a cooldown period, so you can't just spam them endlessly. While Kaiden is the main character of the game's story, the other characters can be controlled within the game if you wish, allowing for players to pick what playstyle suits them the most.
The game takes on an open world design, with players free to explore as they wish, though the main storyline is always present. Countless secrets await the player, as well as sidequests and chances to see the world. All sorts of items can be obtained, including equipment to enhance a character's stats and even weaponry to change their fighting style. A vast customization system exists that allows for characters to be set up as you wish.
Battles happen seamlessly, with enemies wandering the world. They can be drawn into fights, and other enemies might stumble upon your battle! Winning battles earns experience points (EXP), which can allow for levelups and increased stats. Remaining at a reasonable level is key to taking on the game's challenges. Unlike other RPGs, new abilities aren't gained via leveling up.
===Controls===
Action 	Button Input
Move 	
Toggle Minimap 	
Camera 	
Reset Camera 	
Target Enemy 	
Cycle Targets 	and
Pause Menu 	
Objective Toggle	
Swap Characters 	
Items 	
(Specific items can be set to the Up and Down inputs of the D-Pad.)
Action 	Button Input
Talk/Interact/Use	
Jump 	
Inventory 	
Draw Weapon
(when targeting an enemy)	
Lure Enemy 	
Action 	Button Input
Ability 1 	
Ability 2 	
Ability 3 	
Ability 4 	
Focus Target	
===Stats===
Each character has a variety of stats to utilize, which increase with each levelup.
Stat 	Info
HP 	HP, or Hit Points, influence how much health a character has. When a character reaches zero hit points, they faint and are unable to battle until revived with an item or after a battle ends.
MP 	MP, or Magic Points, dictate how frequently abilities can be used, and work differently for each character:
*Physical attacking characters generally have lower MP stats, but MP recharges quickly. However, each ability takes a big bite out of a character's MP.
*Magic-oriented characters on the other hand have a larger MP pool to draw from. However, to compensate for this, their abilities not only take more time to use, but they also recharge MP at a slower rate.
Power 	Power influences how hard attacks deal damage, as well as the power of healing spells.
Defense 	Defense reduces damage taken.
Critical Strike	Critical Strike influences the odds of an attack dealing double damage.
Haste 	Haste influences attack speed, more specifically the speed of auto-attacks.
Cooking 	Cooking influences how potent the effects of food cooked by that character are.
==Regions of Buzokai==
Buzokai is a vast land, full of different regions and territories. Each have their own civilizations and foes to face, and some areas are even optional to visit!
Area 	Info
Umal Coast 	The Umal Coast is known for its beautiful view of the oceans. The turtle-esque Kamaki of the Seas, Kayol, watches over these beaches.
Heiyak 	The fertile plains of Heiyak are best-known for holding the city of Chuzan, the largest city in Buzokai. The regions outside the city however are home to long-forgotten ruins and Senshal camps, so be careful!
Moran 	The ancient jungle of Moran is oddly tropical, but is best-known for being the home of the Kamaki of War: the skeletal bird Sentok. However, all sorts of monsters make their home here, living below the trees.
Xolkra Wastes	The barren, red-rock filled Xolkra Wastes have been torn apart by the research of the Tsubak, though dark forces seem to be working on undermining their efforts. The Tsubak city of Fijusan dominates the land, with the city's energy radiating all across the desert.
Koruda 	Koruda's snowy fields and dense snowstorms are treacherous. However, what's more dangerous are the ferocious mountain giants that disguise themselves as mountains.
==Sidequests==
Throughout Buzokai, there's all sorts of sidequests to go after. While there's the usual fetch quests and monster slaying tasks to complete, there's also some more meaty ones to go after.
===The Ring of Trials===
The Ring of Trials, located in the city of Bukan, is a gladiator ring that holds some of the toughest opponents in the game. Opponents are divided into Gauntlets, with each Gauntlet consisting of three teams of enemies and one boss. While initially there's only one Gauntlet available to challenge, others can be unlocked by defeating prior Gauntlets. These fights reward experience points and money, and in some cases rare equipment.
However, do not underestimate the strength of the opponents within the Ring of Trials. They're much stronger than monsters found out in the world, and will deploy tactics that other enemies will rarely use. This makes them both a statistical and a logical threat, so it'll take more than grinding to outsmart these enemies!
===Researchers' Guild===
The local Researchers' Guild has been studying Buzokian history for years, delving into ruins and uncovering artifacts. Kaiden and co. can easily help out with their research by bringing them relics from ruins scattered around the planet. Each relic has important lore tied to it, and you'll also be rewarded with money.
===Cooking===
Throughout your travels, you'll come across all kinds of food. While it can be eaten raw, cooking is key to not only enhancing the effects of food, but also unlocking new effects gained by consuming it. Each character has a Cooking stat that determines the potency of the food they cook, making it wise to choose who you cook with.
==Bestiary==
Buzokai's inhabitants are unique, with all sorts of species. Monsters, friendly beings, cruel individuals, they're all here.
Species	Info
Tokal 	The Tokal are the predominant race of Buzokai, known for their tribal culture. They pay tribute to the Kamaki through prayers and rituals, and are ferocious warriors when the time is necessary.
Dokann 	The ferocious Dokann are the most prevalent predators of Buzokai, wandering the wilds of the continent. They'll eat just about anything (or anyone!), and possess a vicious poison shot out of the spike-like bulb on its back. Some Dokann have even been trained to act as weapons of war.
Senshal	The Senshal are a barbaric race that fill a similar role to the gringar species seen on the rest of Ascerth. However, the Senshal are much more brutish and tend to construct crude forts and attack travellers. Multiple senshal tribes exist, and are differentiated via the colored paint on their bodies.
Tsubak 	Thought to be a distant cousin of the volant race, the Tsubak are an intelligent avian race known for being the most technologically adept of Buzokai's inhabitants. They've learned to combine magic with their technology to allow for advancement seen nowhere else, and hold the Kamaki of Research, Kenkya, in high regard.
Netsak 	The insectoid Netsak are known for their scavenger culture, often conducting mining operations and acting as the leading force when it comes to minerals. Thus, they believe in the Kamaki of Earth, Vikyor, more than any other.
Urei 	While not necessarily a species, the Urei are prevalent throughout Buzokai. Whenever someone dies on the continent, they are given the opportunity to become a Urei, making them ghosts more or less. They often play tricks on the living.
==Development==
Champions of Ascerth 2 started development shortly after Ghostverse Stories was wrapped up. The game's initial concepts came about after the lead developer played Xenoblade Chronicles 2, and sought to make a real-time RPG in a similar vein to it. While the first game was also a real-time RPG, it happened to be a bit too ambitious for his liking. Thus, Ascerth 2 was designed to be a reimagining of the first game's gameplay.
The game at its core was primarily inspired by both Xenoblade 2 and another favorite title of Krexxal: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. This would also be reflected in the game's artstyle and open-world elements, which were anime-esque but retained the cel shading techniques seen in Zelda. Because the game was on the GhostDrive and not the Nintendo Switch like its predecessor, the developers had more freedom when it came to making the game as great as possible.
One key decision made was the idea of each party member only having four abilities. This was done to keep things simple and teach players to utilize their core skillset.
==Trivia==
*Despite Ascerth 2 being a JRPG first and foremost, it has elements of adventure games reminiscent of the Zelda series.
*Most of the species seen in the Bestiary section were designed within the game Spore.
Category:Role-Playing Games
Category:GhostDrive Games
Category:Ghostrealm Games
Category:Action Role-Playing Games