Design an Expansion for Initium

TL;DR

Design a game expansion and submit it. Include:

• Locations — names, descriptions, connections, and where they attach to the existing map

• Monsters — names, HP/damage/defense stat ranges, spawn locations, drops

• Items — names, type (weapon/armor/material), stat ranges, special properties, how players get them

• Quests — who gives them, objectives, rewards

• Level range and theme — who is this for and what's the vibe?

No coding needed. Any format. Submit to #expansion-designs on Discord or email support@playinitium.com. Best design gets built into the live game.

TL;DR

Design a game expansion and submit it. Your design doc should include:

• Locations — names, descriptions, how they connect to each other, and where they attach to the existing map
• Monsters — names, HP/damage/defense stat ranges, spawn locations, drops
• Items — names, type (weapon/armor/material), stat ranges, special properties, how players get them
• Quests — who gives them, objectives, rewards
• Level range and theme — who is this expansion for and what's the vibe?

No coding needed. Any format works. Submit to #expansion-designs on Discord or email support@playinitium.com. Best design gets built into the live game.

We're opening up expansion design to the community. If you've ever thought "this game needs a swamp dungeon" or "there should be a mountain pass full of ice trolls" -- now's your chance to make it happen.

We want players to design a complete expansion for Initium. Not code, not scripts -- just a solid, detailed design document that describes a new area we can build and add to the game. The best submission gets built into the live game, and you get credited as the designer.

What Your Expansion Design Should Include

Think of this as a blueprint. You're describing everything a developer would need to actually build your expansion. Here's what we need:

Locations

Describe every location in your expansion. Give each one a name, a description players will see, and explain how they connect to each other. Which locations have paths between them? Are any paths one-way? Are there locked doors or requirements to pass? Draw it out if that helps -- even a rough sketch of the map layout is useful.

Most importantly: where does your expansion connect to the existing world? Does it branch off from Aera? Is there a hidden path in the Trolllands? A boat from the coast? Tell us how players get there and what level range you're targeting.

Monsters

For each monster in your expansion, describe:

• Name and description -- what the player sees
• Stat ranges -- HP, attack damage, defense. Give a range (e.g., 50-80 HP, 10-20 damage) so we can tune it
• Where they spawn -- which locations, and roughly how common they are
• Any special behavior -- do they hit hard but die fast? Are they tanky? Do they have elemental damage?
• What they drop -- reference items from your item list below, or existing game items

Items

Describe the items your expansion introduces. These can be brand new items or existing ones -- most expansions will have a mix. For new items, include:

• Name and description
• Type -- weapon, armor, material, consumable, etc.
• Stat ranges -- damage, defense, weight, durability. Again, ranges are fine
• Any special properties -- elemental damage, buffs, two-handed, etc.
• How players get them -- monster drops, quest rewards, found on the ground, crafted?

Quests

If your expansion has quests, describe each one:

• Who gives the quest -- an NPC? A sign? An item you find?
• What the player has to do -- kill X monsters, find an item, reach a location, deliver something?
• What the reward is -- XP, items, access to a new area, gold?
• Any story or flavor text -- keep it brief, but give us the tone

Quests don't need to be complex. "Kill 10 cave spiders for the old hermit" is a perfectly valid quest. Multi-step quest chains are welcome too, just describe each step.

Map Placement

Where does this expansion sit in the world? Describe:

• The entry point from the existing map
• The intended level range -- is this for new players, mid-level, or endgame?
• The overall theme -- frozen tundra, underground caves, haunted ruins, tropical island?

Guidelines

• Keep it grounded. This is Initium -- medieval fantasy, gritty, low-magic. No laser guns or spaceships.
• Size matters (but bigger isn't always better). A tight, well-designed expansion with 5-10 locations and a handful of unique monsters is better than a sprawling 50-location mess with no cohesion.
• Balance is approximate. Don't stress about getting the exact numbers right. Give us ranges and we'll tune. What matters is the relative balance -- your boss should be harder than your trash mobs.
• No scripting required. You don't need to know how the game works under the hood. Just describe what the player experiences. We handle the implementation.
• Format however you want. Google Doc, PDF, plain text, a napkin sketch you photographed -- whatever works. As long as we can read it.

How to Submit

Post your expansion design in the #expansion-designs channel on our Discord, or email it to support@playinitium.com. There's no strict deadline -- we'll review submissions as they come in and pick the ones that fit the game best.

If your expansion gets selected, we'll work with you to refine the details before building it. You'll be credited in the game as the expansion's designer.

Go wild. We want to see what you come up with.