I'm working on a weird west spell slinger game.
You play as a ragtag posse traveling the west shooting spell bullets. Each game you equip your character with spells and equipment. Then set off to deal with the "bounty".
My main problems are if I should roll dice to activate spells, where you would need a certain number to cast the spell (along with it being your battle order or if you should pull x colored chips out of your bag and you can cast a spell (and/or activate enchanted equipment) with it ming each slinger can cast only 1 spell a turn (unless you have twin pistols).
I'm thinking the monster pull from a element bag (or card set with a element and number) what they can do and their spot in the battle queue ... I have monsters most of the game figured out, monsters, spells, quests, locations.
I'm stuck on the battle section which sadly is what every thing hinges on.
Main inspiration (what I stole most of my ideas from) are Diceborn Heroes and Zephyr: Winds of Change.
It's both AI and combat. My game is a co-op 2 to 4 player. Think old school jrpg combat (in a sense).
I'm thinking monster roll a d6 and that determines both initiative and their action. But if I bag build the players "mana bullets" with a preset of dice determined by the character there is a chance they might not get the color or number they need to act. But pulling color chips (or blocks or what not) does not determine the initiative so would that would have to be on the spells. Higher spells taking longer so lower initiative.(1-6) with some items and status effects changing that.
Indirectly you might have solved it by asking. I'm in a bit of a idea vaccume when it comes to mechanics and such)
Example(of my thoughts from typing now): we drew a Griffin and a harpy as monster after we awt up their health and armor we start combat. Since the harpy has a stun attack (makes opponent it hits with it go last) you decide we should try to take it down first if possible you draw 2 earth 1 fire 1 water and a wind elements. You have a fire blast, a miasma and earth spire using your 2 fire mana (name might change) you cast fire blasts a tier 2 with a 3 initiative spell doing 2 dam to main and 1 dam to other monster. (I'm not going into my draw to speed up my example). I cast air blades a tier 1, 2 initiative spell for a wind mana causing 1 damage the harpy rolls a five which is an evade since we have higher initiative (low to high not sure if you can only target lower initiative or not.) Our spells succeed causing 3 damage to the harpy and 1 dam to the griffin (sorry for not rolling for her getting to streamline the battle.) First to the armor then the health.
I might separate monster depending on the leg of the journey so you don't end up fighting monsters to strong. Instead or just dealing random monster from a big deck. But if I do how are you going to heal get spells and equipment between locations.