Ptolemy - The Debtor Hero Concept (don't gamble with spirits lads) + visuals

[ehomegiga]

Hey guys and gals,
here is my new hero concept - Ptolemy, the Debtor.
This guy uhhh unusual casino habits lead him to, well, another gambles and now he has to do biggest ritual of his life.
Have you ever played Deadlock with your life on the line?
Please let me know what you think - feedback is very appreciated!

I've used Deadmock template for this concept:

PTOLEMY​

The Debtor​

LORE​

He is from Northern Ixia, a defector to the south. He got hooked on casinos and gambling, lost everything. Turned to ritualism to pay his debts, but what he didn't know is that even in spirit world, the house always wins. He borrowed from everyone who offered, with no experience and no protection. Now entities far more dangerous than the three inside him are hunting his soul — and the only way out is to subjugate a Patron.
Still alive not through knowledge, but through the cunning of an immigrant on the run.
Thematic reference: Dostoevsky, "The Gambler".

APPEARANCE​

• Ixian — horns peeking out from under his hat, tail hanging carelessly
• White worn-out suit — his last good one, worn with dignity
• Hat, Vegas style
• Colored bandana around his neck — indicator of the active spirit
• Three-barreled pistol

THE THREE SPIRITS​

Mid-tier Northern Ixian entities. Ptolemy doesn't know their true names, because if he did, he'd have real power over them. He holds them in through a deal and mutual interest.
The deal included giving them parts of his soul and promising more after the Ritual. Instead of their real names, he gave them American nicknames and they hate it.
Switching mechanic: Alt+1/2/3, ~10-second channeling ritual, interrupted by damage. At the start of each match, the active spirit is random. Switching the spirit also switches the gun barrel.

JACK​

Trait	Detail
Character	Small, chatty, chaotic. Genuinely enjoys everything happening. Deliberately annoys the other two.
Took	Shame — Ptolemy didn't have much of it to begin with.
Color	Yellow-green
Gun passive	High fire rate, large magazine, damage with a downward multiplier from Ptolemy's base

SAM​

Trait	Detail
Character	Serious, arrogant, goal-oriented. "The destination matters, not the journey." Openly despises Jack, quietly respects Bob.
Took	Patience — Ptolemy already had issues with this.
Color	Purple
Gun passive	Few bullets, slow fire rate, high damage, shotgun spread

BOB​

Trait	Detail
Character	Cold, methodical, like a snake. Doesn't factor in Jack or Sam. Barely speaks. Keeps a meticulous list and loves adding to it.
Took	Attachment — the last thing keeping Ptolemy from his most reckless moves.
Color	Icy blue
Gun passive	Medium magazine, powerful single shots, best range of the three

MELEE ATTACKS​

Quick attack: pistol grip strike
Heavy attack: left fist with active spirit's aura. Timing identical for all three, visual differs:

• Jack — fast, yellow-green trail
• Sam — slow with a windup, purple, weighty
• Bob — precise, minimal motion, icy

ABILITIES​

Scaling is unified by Ptolemy's base, spirits add bonuses on top.

Slot 1 — SHOWDOWN​

Scaling: weapon damage
Charged shot that varies by active spirit:
Jack: burst fire in a fan pattern, fast, covers area in a cone in front
Sam: shrapnel arc shot, pellets land in an area, deal damage and apply bleed
Bob: single guided shot, that curves around obstacles and tracks target
Alt casting switches to Jack via ritual.

Slot 2 — SNAKE EYES​

Scaling: spirit
Curse on target that varies by active spirit:
Jack: target starts to stagger like drunk, aim drifts and is slowed
Sam: all actions of the target are executed with delay
Bob: tethers target to nearest unit, damage is shared between both
Alt cast to switch to Sam

Slot 3 — ANTE UP​

Scaling: spirit
Self buff that varies by active spirit:
Jack: passive bullet dodge chance and on activation grants speed boost, extra dodge chance and faster dash recharge
Sam: on activation provides barrier, when it expires or breaks, heals for exactly how much HP the barrier has absorbed
Bob: on activation provides ability to stick to the walls
Alt casting switches to Bob

Slot 4 — ALL IN​

Scaling: spirit (reduces ability cooldowns during ult)
All spirits are activated at the same time.
All three pistol barrels now fire simultaneously.
Using any ability in the duration triggers all three effects at once.
After it ends, the spirits mutiny for 3 seconds, switching randomly once per second and the player cannot control which spirit is active at the moment.
Visually adds all 3 spirits aura around Ptolemy and bandana cycles through all three colors

 

[Hawf]

I like the idea of a Brewmaster style "Stance swtich" hero, though I wonder if there's a more elegant way to do the spirit swapping. The character from a lore perspective is also really neat, Like Curly, Larry, and Moe all possessed Shemp.

 

[ehomegiga]

I like the idea of a Brewmaster style "Stance swtich" hero, though I wonder if there's a more elegant way to do the spirit swapping. The character from a lore perspective is also really neat, Like Curly, Larry, and Moe all possessed Shemp.

Thank you, I was trying to combine multiple feels here - the Three Stooges you've mentioned, also The Gambler by Dostoyevsky and Bartimeus Trilogy demonology along with Deadlock Ixia lore.

Mechanically, swapping could be done also via different inputs, but main thing I wanted to do here is to make it a ritual, so swapping mid fight would not be possible, so demonologist part of the concept is played there.

 

[Hawf]

Thank you, I was trying to combine multiple feels here - the Three Stooges you've mentioned, also The Gambler by Dostoyevsky and Bartimeus Trilogy demonology along with Deadlock Ixia lore.

Mechanically, swapping could be done also via different inputs, but main thing I wanted to do here is to make it a ritual, so swapping mid fight would not be possible, so demonologist part of the concept is played there.

given the pace of the game I feel like 10 seconds is WAYYY too long. I would opt for it to be like 2 seconds with a longer cooldown. 10 seconds is a long ass time to not be moving or doing anything.

 

[volkgang]

I wonder what Wraith would have to say to the guy. He seems like a fun character.

I can see his eyes also changing alongside the scarf to help differentiate who's in charge. I'm assuming he's Ixian if he's from the North. Perhaps the shape of his horns can change? I'm just thinking of during a chaotic fight, how can you tell which form he is in at a glance.

 

[ehomegiga]

given the pace of the game I feel like 10 seconds is WAYYY too long. I would opt for it to be like 2 seconds with a longer cooldown. 10 seconds is a long ass time to not be moving or doing anything.

I don't want it to be too similar to Brewmaster switching stances, but probably 10s is too much, maybe it could be default 5 s and later reduced with T2 ultimate to 2s

I wonder what Wraith would have to say to the guy. He seems like a fun character.

I can see his eyes also changing alongside the scarf to help differentiate who's in charge. I'm assuming he's Ixian if he's from the North. Perhaps the shape of his horns can change? I'm just thinking of during a chaotic fight, how can you tell which form he is in at a glance.

I was thinking about him having veryyy special dialogue with Wraith and special interaction with Sinners Sacrifice.

He is Ixian from the North Ixia, his tie/bandana would be changin along with the pistol barrel being switched.

Now thinking about this - could be added with "aura" around him, but also Ixians we know all have different color skin (Blue, Red and Black) - maybe his skin color could indicate the active spirit?