F? for fabulous! Beach! I'm Fabulous!

It's been a while since the last time I randomly rants about something, let's go!

Apparently, I'm Learning Things I Didn't Want to Learn

Ever since the RPG Maker VX Ace era, there is one part of RPG Maker that I have consistently avoided touching: the UI.

By UI, I mean the whole Windows and Scenes business, the rectangles containing text, menus, selection boxes, handlers, positioning, drawing, and all the other stuff that makes RPG Maker's interface work.

If you're wondering why, the answer is simple:

I'm lazy.

Well, there's a slightly more complicated explanation.

Working with RPG Maker's UI has always felt to me like remodeling a castle.

You can't just slap a new door onto the wall and call it a day. You need to understand what kind of wood the door is made from, how the wall is structured, where the hinges are supposed to go, how the bricks are arranged, how everything connects to the floor, how the roof is supported, and probably which medieval architect originally decided that the entire thing needed to be built this way.

Meanwhile, building something from scratch feels much easier.

At least then I know where everything is because I built the stupid thing myself.

This is why, historically, I have been much more comfortable creating complicated gameplay systems from scratch than messing around with RPG Maker's UI.

Barriers? Sure.

Special counters? Fine.

Randomly cast skills? No problem.

Skill X-value stacks, attack-type weaknesses, elemental absorption, double casts, skill cancellation, and whatever other nonsense I've come up with over the years?

I'll happily write the entire system myself.

But ask me to create a proper window with a proper scene and proper handlers?

Suddenly I have the motivation of a corpse.

There was one notable exception during the Perang Cemen II era. I needed a Additional Parameters window for the ancient combat system, and rather than learning how RPG Maker's UI worked properly, I took the more traditional developer approach:

I stole someone else's homework.

More specifically, I took MOG's Skill Mastery Window Display and modified it. I replaced the parameters, changed the text drawing, and adapted it to display all the additional parameters I had crammed into the combat system—things like Unsheathe Attack, Pierce, and so on.

It worked.

And, importantly, I didn't have to learn anything.

Fast-forward to RPG Maker MZ.

By this point I had started writing my own plugins, but my general philosophy toward UI hadn't changed much. Whenever a plugin needed a window like crafting, cooking, or whatever else, I made the simplest functional UI I could get away with and moved on.

Why spend three hours making a beautiful interface when I could spend those three hours making another unnecessarily complicated gameplay mechanic?

That brings us to late August 2026.

For the first time in years, I finally decided to actually learn how RPG Maker's UI works.

And holy shit.

It was exactly as unpleasant as I remembered.

I spent a considerable amount of time going back and forth through the code trying to figure out where the rectangles were defined, where things were drawn, where the handlers lived, which scene was responsible for what, which window was calling which method, and why something that looked like it should be incredibly simple apparently required me to travel through five different classes and consult the ancient spirits of RPG Maker development.

It genuinely felt like wandering from town to town asking random laborers:

"Excuse me, sir. Do you happen to know how this castle was constructed?"

Eventually, though, I got it.

I reworked some of my plugin UIs, and while it was absolutely a pain in the neck, I did learn quite a bit from the process.

And now that I've finally experienced what it takes to properly remodel the castle...

I'm not doing it again unless I absolutely have to.

If something is functional and nobody is complaining about it, it's staying that way.

If somebody really wants me to redesign it, they can put the request in the suggestion box and I'll consider it sometime around the year 2037.

---

And Now I'm Learning Music

Unfortunately, apparently learning one new thing wasn't enough.

Some people have recently started playing a game I made during Game Jam 2025, and this brings us to another problem.

Because it was a Game Jam project, time was extremely limited. I needed background music, and normally I would have gone looking for some suitable tracks from one of the sites I used to borrow—I mean, legally acquire—music from.

Unfortunately, the site I relied on had disappeared.

So I had two options:

1. Don't have music.
2. Make the music myself.

I chose option 2.

This was, in hindsight, a terrible decision.

I had basically no idea what I was doing.

The result was... let's be generous and call it "music."

The first three bosses got some of the most questionable BGM ever committed to an audio file. By the time I reached the fourth boss, however, I was finally starting to figure out what I was doing, so that track was actually somewhat decent.

Of course, I assumed nobody would ever reach the fourth boss anyway.

So nobody would hear the decent one.

Naturally, the universe decided otherwise.

Now someone has complained about the music.

And because apparently I have chosen violence against myself, my response is:

Fine. I'll learn music.

I can't promise that I'll become some professional composer who charges $200 for a two-minute battle theme.

I'm not expecting to suddenly become Yoko Shimomura or Nobuo Uematsu.

But I can learn enough to make music that doesn't sound like it was composed by a computer having a seizure.

That's the goal.

I'll keep learning until I can make BGM that is at least genuinely pleasant to listen to.

---

What About the Art?

This one is a little different.

I have been learning art, and I think I've improved considerably if I compare my current work to what I was capable of years ago.

But there's a difference between:

"I've gotten pretty good compared to my old self."

and

"I'm good enough to replace an actual professional artist."

I'm somewhere in the first category.

Compared to the artists I've commissioned, I'm still basically an average Joe.

So while I'll continue improving my own art—and I'll probably keep making more assets myself—I don't see myself completely abandoning commissioned artwork anytime soon.

There are simply things that are better left to people who are much better at them than I am.

---

So, after years of avoiding RPG Maker UI, I'm finally learning it.

After making questionable Game Jam music, I'm now learning music.

And I've been learning art for years as well.

At this rate, I'm slowly becoming the person who can do everything myself.

Which sounds great until you realize that it also means I'll have no excuse to be lazy anymore.

...Actually, forget that.

I'm still going to be lazy.

I'll just be more capable while being lazy.

Random Essay I write when I was high on Caffeine!

Despite being a simple 2D turn-based RPG, Perang Cemen games hides an absurdly layered system under its surface, so dense that most players need time just to digest it.

Yet, in its complexity lies a bizarre truth: everything is balanced.
Almost unnaturally so.
Where else can you find a game where every mechanic has a counterpart?
Even major studios struggle with this.
Konami shattered the balance of Yu-Gi-Oh! with endless waves of meta decks.
MOBA games constantly suffer from overpowered heroes that dominate until the next patch.
As for indie games, well, most of them are chaos wrapped in code.
But Perang Cemen? It’s something else entirely.
It’s a world where every advantage comes with a matching disadvantage, every strength faces a natural weakness, and every clever trick has its countermeasure waiting in the shadows.
It’s not just balanced.
It’s Perang Cemen balanced, a state of equilibrium that borders on madness.

The Layered Logic of Battle

In RPG Maker, there are four core reaction mechanics: Evasion, Magic Evasion, Counterattack, and Magic Reflection.

Evasion and Magic Evasion simply avoid attacks, physical and magical respectively.
Counterattack and Magic Reflection, on the other hand, not only avoid but also retaliate, granting both defense and offense in one.

Naturally, that made them superior, which, of course, was not fair by Perang Cemen standards.

To restore balance, the system introduces attack range restrictions:

A Knight with a sword can counter another Knight’s sword strike, but not an Archer’s arrow.

An Archer can counter another Archer’s shot, but becomes helpless against a Knight’s close-range slash.

As for Magic Reflection, its power is undeniable, most magic can be bounced back, often dealing heavy damage. It’s especially deadly against slow-casting spells.
But such strength demands weakness:
Healing and Buff spells can also be reflected, meaning a reflected Cure are also bounced back to its caster.

Certain spells like Dispel, Quake, and other special magics can bypass reflection entirely.

The Chain of Magic and Countermagic

Magic that bypasses reflection might seem unfair, but balance always finds a way.

Dispel nullifies most magical effects, stripping away buffs and enchantments. However, it deals no damage, harmless but tactical.
Quake also bypasses reflection and deals damage, yet it can be avoided by those who fly or float through magic.
Of course, those same effects can be dispelled, turning Dispel into a silent executioner of defense and resistance alike.

But even Dispel has a counter: Dispel Block, which prevents it from working.
And for that, there exists Ultimate Dispel, a costly spell that overrides Dispel Block, consuming far more resources.

In Perang Cemen, the rule is absolute:
Every power has a weakness. Every weakness has a counter. Nothing is final.

Evasion and Its True Place

Unlike Counterattack or Magic Reflection, Evasion and Magic Evasion don’t strike back, but they’re far more flexible.
Evasion can dodge any attack, from swords to arrows.
Magic Evasion can avoid harmful magic while still accepting healing and buffs.

This might seem overpowered and by Perang Cemen standards, that’s unacceptable.

To counter them, the system introduces Unavoidable Attacks.
These ignore Evasion and Magic Evasion entirely…
but that doesn’t mean they always hit.

If the attacker is Blinded or suffers from low accuracy, their Unavoidable Attack can still miss.
It’s a perfect example of the game’s logic: Nothing is absolute.

The Freedom of Play is Why There Are No Achievements

There are no in-game achievements in Perang Cemen games deliberately so.
Because this world values freedom above all.

Players are encouraged to find their own way to victory, whether by exploiting elemental weaknesses, overgearing, or inventing clever tactics with ailments.
Every journey is different because every player thinks differently.

In Perang Cemen, it’s not about how far you’ve gone,
it’s about how you got there.

Beating the game itself is already the greatest achievement.
If players want to chase goals, they can create their own, completing the bestiary, collecting every weapon, mastering every class, their choice, their path.

Because once achievements like “Defeat a boss in under X turns” exist, the illusion of freedom collapses.
Players will discover one optimized strategy, others will copy it, and soon everyone’s playing by the same script.
That’s not creativity, that’s conformity.

And in Perang Cemen, there is no “correct” way to play.
Only your way.

Perang Cemen isn’t just a game, it’s a philosophy of design built on obsession and fairness.
Every mechanic exists to challenge, counter, and complete another.
Every path is valid, and every victory is personal.

In a world full of “meta,” “tier lists,” and “optimal builds,”
Perang Cemen dares to ask:
What if balance itself became the ultimate chaos?

Perang Cemen II Gameplay Time (Rough)

 Average Gameplay Time

The total playtime for Perang Cemen II can vary greatly depending on the player’s preferred battle strategy:

High Risk, High Reward Strategy (Fast)

This approach focuses on having a caster unleash the strongest spell in the game, comparable to Ultima in Final Fantasy, but several times stronger. These spells can obliterate bosses in seconds, but come with extreme aggro buildup, making the caster the prime target for enemies. If the caster is hit or suffers a disabling ailment (like Silence or Sleep), the spell is cancelled.

⚔️ Estimated Clear Time: ~25–30 hours (for skilled players who can protect their caster effectively).

Slow and Steady Strategy (Safe)

This traditional method balances offense and defense. Players take time to build SP, rotate between skills, spells, and basic attacks, and carefully manage resources for consistent but slower progress.

🛡️ Estimated Clear Time: ~45–60 hours (for beginners or cautious players who prioritize stability).

The Legend Continues...

Perang Cemen I

The most beginner-friendly entry. You start with an overpowered sword that can instantly kill mobs (except bosses), and allies join with predefined roles like Support, DPS, or Tank. The game gradually teaches mechanics stage by stage, charging skills, turn-based damage, barrier points, enemies immune to physical attacks, etc. Difficulty ramps up but always provides exploitable weaknesses in bosses. Great for learning the fundamentals.

Perang Cemen II

Not tutorial-based, instead following a Final Fantasy VI approach where NPCs (mostly in the Adventurer Guild) provide hints. Combat is more technical: spellcasting can be interrupted by attacks (flinching), repeated use of the same attack type reduces its effectiveness (damage proration), and efficient play requires balancing attack types.

The stat and equipment system is more complex: instead of flat ATK/MAG, damage is calculated using Power and Magic, which depend heavily on equipment. A frail mage can outscale a warrior with the right weapon. Characters can equip anything, which open possibilities of various builds.

Skills aren’t gained by leveling, but by weapon/magic mastery, using attacks to unlock new abilities. Beyond level 40 there are no new skills, but mastery scaling keeps weapons relevant. Because of this, specializing each character is more efficient than making everyone a jack-of-all-trades, though certain universal skills (like Quick Draw from bows) are worth picking up.

Perang Cemen III (in development)

By far the most punishing entry. Stats are randomized at the start, encouraging rerolls for survivability. Multiple visible and hidden parameters: Food, Action, Luck, Alignment, Fame, Crime, Diet Balance, govern gameplay.

The game drops you in the wilderness with no money, weak, and surrounded by predators. Every action costs Action points, which are recovered by resting. Resting consumes Food, fail to eat, and you die. Nighttime drastically reduces vision, making survival even riskier.

Enemies don’t drop money; instead, you must dismantle loot into scraps and trade with merchants. Many additional systems (dice rolls, durability, dosage limits on medicine, branching skill trees) layer on top, creating a brutal survival experience with no tutorials, no hand-holding, and no NPC hints. Definitely not for beginners.

DnD Update ver 0.1.4

https://www.patreon.com/posts/dnd-special-v0-1-137808570?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link

Download can be found above:

Hello Adventurers!

This month’s build is packed with brand new systems and fresh areas to explore. Thank you so much for supporting me, your encouragement keeps the project alive! 🙏

🏞️ New Areas

River Side Road

A new connecting path between Plusroad and Erusido.

New passive creatures: 🐿️ Squirrel & 🦌 Deer (they flee when approached).

River Town Erusido

A lively town with:

🏨 INN (discounts possible via negotiations).

🛍️ Shop (negotiations possible, but taxes block most discounts).

🔮 Witch House / Magic Shop (discounts possible, but fail and the price goes up!).

🏰 Guild Building (WIP — system coming soon).

🏘️ Two villager houses.

📌 Notes

INN and Shop negotiation now use Fame, Morale, Nature, INT and other parameters.

The Guild System is still WIP but the building is placed in Erusido.

⚖️ Judicial System

A full crime & punishment system is now in place!

Guards will catch players who commit crimes (or are framed).

You can:

Negotiate if your talking skills are high enough.

Bribe guards if you’re wealthy.

Fight back (risky do or die battle!).

Surrender and face prison time.

From prison you can:

Hire a lawyer → increases chance of winning trial.

Attempt an escape → but you’ll stay a fugitive.

At the Court you can:

Bribes the judges, sway the Judge Master, chat with your Lawyer if you hire any or provoked the Prosecutor.

Accept the Trial → win/lose, but at least your record is cleared.

> ⚠️ Losing in court means years skipped in-game.

PC 2 Update

 

Update V 4.5

• Fixed minor bugs
• Better TL patch
• High Difficulty Secret Boss Battle added!
• New Weapons and Xstal added!
• Adjustment on High Difficulty Boss Battle Kara.
• Adjustment on Carbuncle Edge (Weapon)
• Adjustment on Charging Time for all Tier 6 Elemental Magic.

Fixed Bugs

• Description on Ring of Lust
• CO-OP Command Skill

To Fix the CO-OP Command Skill, simply interact with the opened chest at the depth of abandoned mine deepest floor where the skill is obtained, new players will not affected with such bug as it's already fixed.

New Translation Patch

Fixed various grammar errors and improve the quality of the characters dialogue to another level.

New High Difficulty Secret Boss

P. Arum

P. Arum has a habit of using Magic: Impact on early, it's not dealing lot of damage but knock back upon hit, you can interrupt P. Arum with Flinch, Tumble, or Stun while she is charging Magic: Impact if you deem it necessary to cancel her Magic: Impact.

P. Arum has three phases, on first phase the maximum damage she can take is capped at 200K/hit meaning any damage she took will not exceed 200K, on the second phase which occurs when her HP is below 50%, the maximum damage she can take is capped at 10K/hit, she also begin to use more powerful skill such as Dragon Horn, Meteor Breaker, and so on, lastly during the last phase which occurs when her HP is below 25%, the maximum damage she can take is capped at 2K/hit also she can begin to Parry which allows her to Guard and Dodge attacks.

If you knock back P. Arum she will either using a Magic: Impact or using Tier 2 Elemental Magic or Parry if magic is unavailable, additionally because characteristics of player skill is being too overpower to be used by enemy, some of P. Arum skills are given charging time such as Nova Dragon and Dive Impact, in return Rampage gain a boost in ASPD but the final strike of Flying Dragon Slash are reduced to 2/3 of its original power, while the rest of the skills are left as is.

P. Arum Dive Impact has been nerfed with charging time and second hit miss chance by 50% because the second hit which is a delayed damage are true damage which ignoring all defenses, making it possible to devastate the whole party unnoticed as the damage is same as the Dive Impact used by players, it's highly recommend to interrupt when she's charging this skill as even tanker will take damage when they're hit with delayed damage regardless Guard status.

New Weapon and Xstal

Embezzledar (Berserker) a Greatsword.

Remarkable Greatsword known for its HP boost that increasing Max HP by 10000 breaking the previous cap of 5000 in boosting flat Max HP.

Intoleracistar (Lancer) a Spear.

Abnormal Spear that known for boosting CSPD which is rare for non-mage weapon, opening up a more potential for Magic Knight / Kisma builds.

Modusliar (Foreigner) a Katana.

Ridiculous Katana known for its cheat like 100% Critical Rate, it's base attack may be lower but each strike is guaranteed critical is overwhelming.

P. Arum (Normal) a Xstal.

Not so impressive Xstal other than having a little EXP Boost which has no use for Max Level parties or little resistance boost.

Adjustment

High Difficulty Boss Battle Kara is now having two type of fight, the Ultimate difficulty will now become easy version while refusing/cancel while selecting difficulty will now become the hard version.

The Easy Version will no longer dropping Carbuncle Edge in return but still unlocking the Crafting Recipe for Carbuncle Edge, the hard version will still dropping Carbuncle Edge.

Carbuncle Edge previously treated as (Saber) weapon is now treated as (Berserker) weapon, Greatsword is now under (Berserker) domain.

Charging Spell for Tier 6 Elemental Magic is reduced.

New Game?

 Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaahhhhhh!

Destiny and Dice Released!

It's still in early development so spare me any lecture!

Go check the game list or click here.

The gameplay?

I planned to make it something like open world RPG thingy, the players will not be bound by the story, well yes they did in early but at some point they're free to do whatever they wanna do, they can be goody two shoes hero who helped people in need or they can be villains who rob merchants, raid people house, etc.

That's pretty much the draft, I have roughly over 100+ recruitable characters so I'll need funds to pay an artist to make me those character graphics which is why I'll open a Patreon tomorrow or a day after.

Of course whoever support the development of the game will get some privilege and I'm currently testing the privilege balance, the purpose of my game is challenging, I want the game remains challenging even with privilege to keep the game fun and not boring! and of course I'll listen to the request of my patrons if they had a great idea and want it to be added into the game.

Yeah! let's do this!