Tabula Rasa Producer Interview: The Language of LOGOS (PC)

In the upcoming massively-multiplayer online (MMO) game Tabula Rasa, gamers play as an AFS (Allied Free Sentient Forces) soldier in an ongoing war against an oppressive alien race called the Bane. Humans can also access special powers through a language called Logos. GameDaily speaks with Starr Long, Producer for Tabula Rasa, to understand Logos and the powers behind Tabula Rasa.

What role does Logos play in Tabula Rasa?

Logos is a pictographic language created by Richard Garriott. In the story, it was created by a race called the Eloh, who used it as a universal communications tool that could be understood by all intelligent creatures. Players collect the symbols scattered through the map. Some can be found out in the open, others are hidden within caves, and a few are protected within enemy bases. Once collected, they are added to a blank slate, or a "tabula rasa," and can be used to unlock special abilities. For example, there's a power called Reinforcement, and to activate it, players will need the symbols for "Summon," "Friend" and "Here."

There are also locked doors called Logos Gates, which can only be opened by having the correct Logos symbols. Finally, there are bits of the story written on the environment in the Logos language. Players can decipher the symbols and learn more about the Tabula Rasa's story.

At this point, is the Logos symbol set relatively complete, or will developers continually add characters to the set?

We'll continually be adding to the set. It's at a few thousand symbols right now, but we will continually add things as we need them. If we make changes in the game, like how a power works, we would have change the symbols linked to it to have it make sense.

Will there be discoverable Logos abilities that aren't found on the skill tree?
I don't know. Those will have to be discovered.

Will players be able to combine powers with each other for team combos?

There isn't a set combo system, but certain abilities naturally compliment each other. Using the Rage ability to do double damage while a teammate lowers the armor of an attacker will lead to four times the normal amount of damage.

Can Logos be used in crafting to augment weapons and armor?

Some of the higher level recipes may require certain Logos symbols. It's not like the Logos will be incorporated into the item itself, but it would be a requirement for completing the recipe. Some of the most powerful and unique items in the game would have a Logos requirement.

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