Files
EnterTheJake a2c7c8e57b Heretic Antagonist Full Overhaul. (#92119)
## About The Pull Request

Heretic has received a complete overhaul. This PR touches nearly every
aspect of the antagonist. For readability's sake, not every change is
going to be listed in this pull request.

For the full list of changes please refer to the design doc:
https://hackmd.io/@BiST8PJVRjiwVPY86U3bLQ/B11HyChz1g.

Code by Me, @Xander3359 and @Arturlang 

TGUI by @Arturlang 

Sprites by OrcaCora and GregorDM

Writing bits by @necromanceranne 

### Core changes

- Cross-pathing has been removed. Main knowledge spells are now
exclusive to their path (for the most part).

- For every main knowledge unlocked (save for the robes and the blade
upgrade), Heretics can choose one option from a draft of 3 random side
knowledges (this is a free point).

- Heretics can now purchase side knowledges from a new tab, the
"Knowledge Shop". Side-knowledges have been divided by tier (Stealth,
Defense, Summons, Combat and Main). Tiers are unlocked as you progress
toward your main path.

- Heretics now gain the grasp and mark upgrade immediately, but their
main knowledge choices cost twice as much (except for the first spell,
the robes and the blade upgrade).

- Path specific robes have been introduced! They come with their own set
of quirks.

- Each Path has received a passive ability. This passive is upgraded
when you first create your robes, and again when you complete the Ritual
of Knowledge.

- Paths have been rebalanced as a result of the removal of cross-path
progression. Cosmic and Moon paths have received soft reworks.

- Upon unlocking the path 2nd level or reaching a total of 8 points
worth of knowledge, Heretics will lose the ability to blade break (and
the limit on blades all together).

- Ascension now automatically calls the shuttle with no possibility of a
recall.

- Late join Heretic has been removed.

### New UI 
<img width="750" height="635" alt="moon path ui"
src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/184ef783-5c9c-48a1-a2f7-4807ca93e990"
/>


### Knowledge shop

<img width="787" height="669" alt="Knowledge shop"
src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/3dc89b84-8c70-4d47-b612-54396e3ea6e7"
/>




### Quality of life //General balance changes

- Heretics will now gain X-ray vision for a few seconds when nearby an
eldritch essence (this effect has a cooldown).

- Ritual of knowledge now requires 1 uncommon item instead of 2. You may
now use a stunprod instead of a baton to complete the ritual. Beartraps
have been removed from the list of possible reagents.

- The maximum number of possible sacrifices required to ascend has been
reduced from 6 to 5 while the minimum has been upped to 4.

- Codex Cicatrix no longer requires a special pen to be made.

### Passive abilities

- Heretics now start with a passive ability. You can find what it does
on the path info tab after a path has been selected, and what they gain
when upgraded.

- Crafting your first set of Eldritch robes will bump your passive to
level 2.

- Unlocking the 2nd level will subsequently unlock your "Ritual Of
Knowledge"

- Completing the ritual of knowledge or ascending will net you the final
level.

### Path Specific Robes

- Armorer's Ritual is no longer a side knowledge. Each path will have
their own unique version of the ritual. This is placed after the 2nd
spell in the tree.

- Robes can no longer be destroyed by fire and acid, grant t4 flash
protection (Moth Heretics stay winning) and protection against basic
syringes, to bring them on par with other antagonist's armor sets.

- The recipe to craft the robes is now a set of armor/vest, a mask (any
mask will do now, not just gas masks), plus the unique reagent required
for the blades (Plasma for Cosmic, Trash For Rust, match for Ash and so
on)

- Wearing the robes as a non-heretic may yield some unfortunate
side-effects.

### Moon Path Rework

Moon path  rework.

Moon Heretics gain immunity to brain traumas and slowly regenerate brain
health. Equipping the moon amulette channels its effects through the
moon blade; making it unblockable and cause sanity damage instead of
brute. Ring leader's Rise now summons an army of harmless clones that
explode when attacked; the explosion briefly stuns non-heretics and
cause sanity and brain damage to them. Moon blade can also now be used
when pacified and Moon spells are no longer blocked by regular anti
magic, only mind magic protection.


**Cosmic Path Rework**

Cosmic path has received the biggest batch of changes alongside Moon.
The path has been dead last in ascension and pickrate (less than 5%) for
almost 2 years. It did gain some popularity over the last few months,
reaching the highest ascension rate in the game (12%) while mantaining a
relatively low pickrate.

Cosmic sits in a weird spot, where pretty much every knowledge
surrounding the path is either mediocre or, in the case of the
ascension, dysfunctional. Yet it has maintained a smidge of relevancy
due to how quickly Cosmic heretics can capture and sacrifice targets
thanks to Star Touch.

As a result, the best course of action would be to rebalance the
entirety of the kit; granting the heretic more tools to manipulate space
and dictate the flow of a fight, while lessening their ability to end a
confrontation by instantly sleeping their opponents.

lastly The Star Gazer is now ghost controlled ; And they shoot lazers!

<img width="636" height="451" alt="gazer gag 3"
src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/601d6881-c042-4e42-8ce6-ac90cd27848b"
/>


## Why It's Good For The Game


### Ok...but why do we want this?

Again, if you want my full reasoning, please check my doc
https://hackmd.io/@BiST8PJVRjiwVPY86U3bLQ/B11HyChz1g.

To keep it short and concise; Heretic is too complex and unintuitive for
its own good. Too impenetrable for new players and too abusable for
experienced players. This can be chalked up to a lot of poor design
decisions. But ultimately, what I believe being the biggest contributor
to the current status of Heretic is the ability to move into different
paths, also known as "Cross-Pathing".

### Cross Pathing my beloathed.

Cross-pathing, while cool in theory, overcomplicates the antagonist and
overloads them with power. Players dealing with the heretic are
incapable of working out what a given heretic can do. This also leads to
late game heretics having 3 rows Worth of action buttons and virtually
no weakness.

Over the last year, I've often received the understandable but also kind
of unfair accusations of making Heretic too powerful without a clear aim
or purpose.

My goal with the paths I've reworked over the last year (Rust,Void and
Blade) wasn't necessarily to just make them stronger (although that was
also part of the goal, as they were paths that were underperforming),
but for them to have more interactions with the sandbox and to better
live up to the fantasy presented to the player.

If an harbringer of frost gets countered by a cup of coffee, we probably
messed something up.


Unfortunately, the current incarnation of Heretic doesn't really allow
for surgical balance changes to specific paths. Every time a knowledge
gets buffed, we make every path that can easily tap onto that knowledge
stronger by default. It doesn't take a genius to understand why this
system is ultimately unsustainable.

### Blade Breaking

I feel that after a heretic has reached the near peak of their power,
they no longer need the ability to instantly escape any encounter. Check
my doc for my full reasoning.

## Less versatile, more specialized paths.

By removing cross-pathing, we remove a huge maintainability burden from
the antagonist. Paths can now be designed around clearer strengths and
weaknesses. They become easier to balance and less of an headache to
understand for everyone.

It also means we can give paths some needed quality of life quirks
without having to worry how such a change might have a knock-on effect
for other paths.

Ash heretics can finally let loose without dying by their own flames.
Cosmic Heretic can go to space without having to carry a modsuit. Moon
Heretic can use their abilities without fear of one random trauma
ruining their day, and so on.

### What a horrible night to have a curse...., wait how do I curse
people again?

As of right now the heretic tree has quite a hefty amount of trinkets
that pretty much never see use.

Partly because the tree itself is a nightmare to navigate. And partly
because why would anyone set up an elaborate plan or scheme when they
can unleash 2 rows of spell in the span of bunch of seconds.

Heretics mostly gravitate towards powers that push them towards greater,
more potent combat strength. If it doesn't contribute to killing people
quicker, it isn't worth doing for most. And given the opportunity cost
associated for taking those powers, they will remain that way so long as
there are better choices to be poached.

The new draft system encourages Heretics to play more with the tools at
their disposal. If you want to go for a specific combo from the side
path options, you may now do so by tapping into the knowledge shop.

Yes, the shop does include a few knowledges from the other paths. But
these are limited to 1 per path, are very expensive and can only be
unlocked very late into the shift.

## Drip Of the Mansus

The iconic heretic robe is actually sequestered to a side path that is
most easily access by only two paths at a time. Since heretic paths are
being made to be much more specialized, the most obvious way in which
this can be showcased is through an easily
identifiable outfit.

By using the robes, we can both telegraph WHAT heretic you are looking
at, and just how much power they've accumulated and when it is
reasonable to take the kid gloves off and treat them as a genuine
threat. If a heretic is in their
robes, that heretic is now a significantly more prominent danger to the
station.

It also serves as a useful means for gating some of the more powerful
effects of a heretic's path behind the robes, AND enable options for
disarming them of that power should they be captured without making it
something endemic to their mob.

A major problem with heretics is a lack of certainty as to how powerful
they have become. A heretics robes is one of the milestones to help
players dealing with heretics identify that.

### Will this be 100% fair and balanced?

This is a massive overhaul to a pretty complex and bloated antagonist.
I've done my best to show the changes to several maintainers and other
members of the community for their feedback. But at some point we'll
have to see how this behave in the environment to get a feel if
something is over or undertuned. (that's my way of saying, yes this is
likely gonna require a testmerge or two).

What I will say is that I'm not trying to change the core identity of
Heretic.

Heretics should have the upperhand in single encounters early on, be
able to joust a small group of players after they unlock their final
spell, and end the round when they ascend. They're a progression
antagonist. They should retain their payoff as well as pose a danger as
they grow stronger.

But if more players feel like they are more reliably able to play the
antagonist in more varied and interesting ways, rather than the
antagonist largely existing as a measuring stick for 'robustness' due to
its elitist design philosophy, then the rework has been a success. There
should be something for
everyone in the antagonist, as is true for all of our antagonist roles.
2025-10-15 22:34:51 +00:00

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#define MAX_THROWING_DIST 1280 // 5 z-levels on default width
#define MAX_TICKS_TO_MAKE_UP 3 //how many missed ticks will we attempt to make up for this run.
SUBSYSTEM_DEF(throwing)
name = "Throwing"
priority = FIRE_PRIORITY_THROWING
wait = 1
flags = SS_NO_INIT|SS_KEEP_TIMING|SS_TICKER
runlevels = RUNLEVEL_GAME | RUNLEVEL_POSTGAME
var/list/currentrun
var/list/processing = list()
/datum/controller/subsystem/throwing/stat_entry(msg)
msg = "P:[length(processing)]"
return ..()
/datum/controller/subsystem/throwing/fire(resumed = 0)
if (!resumed)
src.currentrun = processing.Copy()
//cache for sanic speed (lists are references anyways)
var/list/currentrun = src.currentrun
while(length(currentrun))
var/atom/movable/AM = currentrun[currentrun.len]
var/datum/thrownthing/TT = currentrun[AM]
currentrun.len--
if (QDELETED(AM) || QDELETED(TT))
processing -= AM
if (MC_TICK_CHECK)
return
continue
TT.tick()
if (MC_TICK_CHECK)
return
currentrun = null
/datum/thrownthing
///Defines the atom that has been thrown (Objects and Mobs, mostly.)
var/atom/movable/thrownthing
///Weakref to the original intended target of the throw, to prevent hardDels
var/datum/weakref/initial_target
///The turf that the target was on, if it's not a turf itself.
var/turf/target_turf
///The turf that we were thrown from.
var/turf/starting_turf
///If the target happens to be a carbon and that carbon has a body zone aimed at, this is carried on here.
var/target_zone
///The initial direction of the thrower of the thrownthing for building the trajectory of the throw.
var/init_dir
///The maximum number of turfs that the thrownthing will travel to reach its target.
var/maxrange
///Turfs to travel per tick
var/speed
///If a mob is the one who has thrown the object, then it's moved here. This can be null and must be null checked before trying to use it.
var/datum/weakref/thrower
///A variable that helps in describing objects thrown at an angle, if it should be moved diagonally first or last.
var/diagonals_first
///Set to TRUE if the throw is exclusively diagonal (45 Degree angle throws for example)
var/pure_diagonal
///Tracks how far a thrownthing has traveled mid-throw for the purposes of maxrange
var/dist_travelled = 0
///The start_time obtained via world.time for the purposes of tiles moved/tick.
var/start_time
///Distance to travel in the X axis/direction.
var/dist_x
///Distance to travel in the y axis/direction.
var/dist_y
///The Horizontal direction we're traveling (EAST or WEST)
var/dx
///The VERTICAL direction we're traveling (NORTH or SOUTH)
var/dy
///The movement force provided to a given object in transit. More info on these in move_force.dm
var/force = MOVE_FORCE_DEFAULT
///If the throw is gentle, then the thrownthing is harmless on impact.
var/gentle = FALSE
///How many tiles that need to be moved in order to travel to the target.
var/diagonal_error
///If a thrown thing has a callback, it can be invoked here within thrownthing.
var/datum/callback/callback
///Mainly exists for things that would freeze a thrown object in place, like a timestop'd tile. Or a Tractor Beam.
var/paused = FALSE
///How long an object has been paused for, to be added to the travel time.
var/delayed_time = 0
///The last world.time value stored when the thrownthing was moving.
var/last_move = 0
/// If our thrownthing has been blocked
var/blocked = FALSE
/datum/thrownthing/New(thrownthing, target, init_dir, maxrange, speed, thrower, diagonals_first, force, gentle, callback, target_zone)
. = ..()
src.thrownthing = thrownthing
RegisterSignal(thrownthing, COMSIG_QDELETING, PROC_REF(on_thrownthing_qdel))
src.starting_turf = get_turf(thrownthing)
src.target_turf = get_turf(target)
if(target_turf != target)
src.initial_target = WEAKREF(target)
src.init_dir = init_dir
src.maxrange = maxrange
src.speed = speed
if(thrower)
src.thrower = WEAKREF(thrower)
src.diagonals_first = diagonals_first
src.force = force
src.gentle = gentle
src.callback = callback
src.target_zone = target_zone
/datum/thrownthing/Destroy()
SSthrowing.processing -= thrownthing
SSthrowing.currentrun -= thrownthing
thrownthing.throwing = null
thrownthing = null
thrower = null
initial_target = null
callback = null
return ..()
///Defines the datum behavior on the thrownthing's qdeletion event.
/datum/thrownthing/proc/on_thrownthing_qdel(atom/movable/source, force)
SIGNAL_HANDLER
qdel(src)
/// Returns the thrower, or null
/datum/thrownthing/proc/get_thrower()
. = thrower?.resolve()
if(isnull(.))
thrower = null
/datum/thrownthing/proc/tick()
var/atom/movable/AM = thrownthing
if (!isturf(AM.loc) || !AM.throwing)
finalize()
return
if(paused)
delayed_time += world.time - last_move
return
var/atom/movable/actual_target = initial_target?.resolve()
var/atom/thrower = get_thrower()
if(dist_travelled) //to catch sneaky things moving on our tile while we slept
for(var/atom/movable/obstacle as anything in get_turf(thrownthing))
if(obstacle == thrownthing || (obstacle == thrower && !ismob(thrownthing)))
continue
if(ismob(obstacle) && thrownthing.pass_flags & PASSMOB && (obstacle != actual_target))
continue
if(obstacle.pass_flags_self & LETPASSTHROW)
continue
if (obstacle == actual_target || (obstacle.density && !(obstacle.flags_1 & ON_BORDER_1) && !(obstacle in AM.buckled_mobs)))
finalize(TRUE, obstacle)
return
var/atom/step
last_move = world.time
//calculate how many tiles to move, making up for any missed ticks.
var/tilestomove = CEILING(min(((((world.time+world.tick_lag) - start_time + delayed_time) * speed) - (dist_travelled ? dist_travelled : -1)), speed*MAX_TICKS_TO_MAKE_UP) * (world.tick_lag * SSthrowing.wait), 1)
while (tilestomove-- > 0)
if ((dist_travelled >= maxrange || AM.loc == target_turf) && AM.has_gravity(AM.loc))
finalize()
return
if (dist_travelled <= max(dist_x, dist_y)) //if we haven't reached the target yet we home in on it, otherwise we use the initial direction
step = get_step(AM, get_dir(AM, target_turf))
else
step = get_step(AM, init_dir)
if (!pure_diagonal && !diagonals_first) // not a purely diagonal trajectory and we don't want all diagonal moves to be done first
if (diagonal_error >= 0 && max(dist_x,dist_y) - dist_travelled != 1) //we do a step forward unless we're right before the target
step = get_step(AM, dx)
diagonal_error += (diagonal_error < 0) ? dist_x/2 : -dist_y
if (!step) // going off the edge of the map makes get_step return null, don't let things go off the edge
finalize()
return
if(!AM.Move(step, get_dir(AM, step), DELAY_TO_GLIDE_SIZE(1 / speed))) // we hit something during our move...
if(AM.throwing) // ...but finalize() wasn't called on Bump() because of a higher level definition that doesn't always call parent.
finalize()
return
dist_travelled++
if(actual_target && !(actual_target.pass_flags_self & LETPASSTHROW) && actual_target.loc == AM.loc) // we crossed a movable with no density (e.g. a mouse or APC) we intend to hit anyway.
finalize(TRUE, actual_target)
return
if (dist_travelled > MAX_THROWING_DIST)
finalize()
return
/datum/thrownthing/proc/finalize(hit = FALSE, target=null)
set waitfor = FALSE
//done throwing, either because it hit something or it finished moving
if(!thrownthing)
return
thrownthing.throwing = null
var/drift_force = speed
if (isitem(thrownthing))
var/obj/item/thrownitem = thrownthing
drift_force *= WEIGHT_TO_NEWTONS(thrownitem.w_class)
if (!hit)
for (var/atom/movable/obstacle as anything in get_turf(thrownthing)) //looking for our target on the turf we land on.
if (obstacle == target)
hit = TRUE
thrownthing.throw_impact(obstacle, src)
if(QDELETED(thrownthing)) //throw_impact can delete things, such as glasses smashing
return //deletion should already be handled by on_thrownthing_qdel()
break
if (!hit)
thrownthing.throw_impact(get_turf(thrownthing), src) // we haven't hit something yet and we still must, let's hit the ground.
if(QDELETED(thrownthing)) //throw_impact can delete things, such as glasses smashing
return //deletion should already be handled by on_thrownthing_qdel()
thrownthing.newtonian_move(delta_to_angle(dist_x, dist_y), drift_force = drift_force)
else
thrownthing.newtonian_move(delta_to_angle(dist_x, dist_y), drift_force = drift_force)
if(target)
thrownthing.throw_impact(target, src)
if(QDELETED(thrownthing)) //throw_impact can delete things, such as glasses smashing
return //deletion should already be handled by on_thrownthing_qdel()
if (callback)
callback.Invoke()
// Same can happen in the callback
if(QDELETED(thrownthing))
return
if(!thrownthing.currently_z_moving) // I don't think you can zfall while thrown but hey, just in case.
var/turf/T = get_turf(thrownthing)
T?.zFall(thrownthing)
if(thrownthing)
SEND_SIGNAL(thrownthing, COMSIG_MOVABLE_THROW_LANDED, src)
var/turf/landed_turf = get_turf(thrownthing)
if(landed_turf)
SEND_SIGNAL(landed_turf, COMSIG_TURF_MOVABLE_THROW_LANDED, thrownthing)
qdel(src)
#undef MAX_THROWING_DIST
#undef MAX_TICKS_TO_MAKE_UP