Lemma Soft Forums

Overview
"Deirdre, My Blade" is a planned kinetic visual novel based on a story about a man who bears a cursed weapon in his possession. The curse is not an affliction he must suffer or a price he must pay; rather, it is that the weapon is a sentient shapeshifter, which most frequently takes the form of a woman calling herself Deirdre. Mad with bloodlust, she refuses to leave the side of her master, endlessly causing death and carnage in her twisted, desperate desire to serve him. The tale follows this man's life and details his experiences with this cursed weapon; how he came to cross paths with her, how he struggles to live a normal life despite her destructive impact on everything around him, and how he seeks to unravel the mystery behind the true identity of the cursed weapon named Deirdre.

For further information, refer to the Adult Works In Progress thread: Deirdre, My Blade
Alternatively, see the development blog for information and updates: DMB Development Blog

Current Progress
The first draft of the story is now completely scripted, coming in at just over 150,000 words. The project will now enter into the script editing, VN planning, and team recruitment phase. Then, proper production, including asset commissioning, will begin.

Currently, the team members required for all non-audio assets have been assembled, and proper production is soon to be underway. Active recruiting for a composer will begin once we are prepared with our requirements for audio assets. It will probably be quite some time before we consider actively recruiting voice actors, if resources still permit by that point.

Content and Restrictions
As this project contains adult content, I cannot permit prospective team members who cannot legally contribute to such works. Specifically, this content includes explicit depictions of violence, gore, and sexual acts. If you cannot legally contribute to a product with such content, or are not comfortable working with it, then please refrain from applying for available positions on this project's team.



Project Coordinator: Position Filled

Programmer: Position Filled

Illustrators: Partially filled, additional staff needed

Composer: Position Filled

Script Editor: Position Filled



Illustrators
Due to the scope of this project, we have an increasing need for illustrators to produce both background and character assets. Specifically, we need artists who can work in a painterly style similar to what has already been presented on our dev blog. Much of the initial design work has been done, but now the in-game assets - sprites, frames, CGs, and backgrounds - need to be completed.



Voice Actors
I intend for all characters with spoken lines to have voice actors, and possibly even have spoken narration, resources permitting. I may also attempt to have a vocalized song for an OP or an ED, or both, again, if resources are available. A small number of characters will have some spoken lines involved in the explicit sexual content of this story, so if you are applying, be aware that you may be voicing lines of this nature. I should emphasize that "Explicit" does not mean "Gratuitous," and I have made every effort to write these scenes in good taste.

Translator (Japanese, Other)
I am not bilingual, but I would like for the script of the game to be translated into a Japanese version for wider distribution among the VN audience. I will require the aid of someone who is fluent in Japanese to accomplish this. Anyone with fluency in other languages who would like to translate the script into them would be welcome as well, resources permitting.


The budget for this project is drawn entirely from my own personal savings, which, while being more than sufficient to fund the independent development of a non-commercial Visual Novel, places a hard cap on how much I can spend in total. That said, this is a labor of love for me, and I am more than willing to pay what is necessary to ensure that this project is completed with an acceptable level of quality in all of its assets. Your price listings or estimates and an accessible portfolio will be very helpful to me in making a determination about commissioning your work. If you have any prepared contracts, all the better.


You may not be an asset creator, but if you know someone who is, then feel free to make recommendations. I am not familiar with the communities of content creators seeking work, so any assistance in this area would be greatly appreciated.

Contact Information
The best way to contact me privately is via my handle, RotGtIE, either here on LS, or via Steam or Skype.
I can also be contacted at rotgtie@gmail.com
Of course, I will also be monitoring this thread for responses as well.

_________________
Current project: Deirdre, My Blade
Recruitment Thread
Development Blog

This post is reserved for the answering of questions and for posting the most recent updates not essential for inclusion in the opening post.

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Fair points. I agree, and have updated the content of the recruitment post to reflect these changes. I will be looking into implementing your other suggestions as well. Thank you for the advice.

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As of now, the Programming position has been filled. Thanks again to those who showed interest.

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We are no longer recruiting for a script editor for the English draft of the story, as the position has been filled. As always, while we are not actively recruiting for possible future positions, feel free to apply and we can work something out.

_________________
Current project: Deirdre, My Blade
Recruitment Thread
Development Blog

[Programmer]

Hi, RotGtIE. My name is Ronald and I am interested in this project.
However, I cannot program the game in Ren'Py, but in game maker studio.

This is my info:
viewtopic.php?f=66&t=32678

Looking forward to your reply,
Ronald

If you have any other social profile like a blog or something, you should really consider posting the rest of your story's details there with a maturity warning. Otherwise even if people are of legal age, potential members will have to wait to be verified before they can even read about your story, and that's a bit inconvenient. I, for one, would have to be verified, and that would take at least an hour.

You can honestly do the directing yourself. Since it's your story and you have all the ideas, you need to give the final say of what stays and what doesn't.

If you haven't already, you need to make a game design document. It highlights all the main features planned for the game like story, cast, locations, etc. Then you need a free cloud folder service to upload all your team's submissions where they can access it. That way you don't have to email everything to everyone.

A blog is optional. I personally just email my team updates, but not after every single update so I don't fill their inboxes. Usually 2-3 updates, I send them emails.

Then you need an outline of a plan of action. What are the phases of development, what do you need at a particular time, and so forth. Since you're the creator, only you can know these things. People need to know what to do, and when to do it.

For a visual novel, anyway, this is pretty much all a director does. The only "difficult" part, is first figuring out what you want to do with the game. Once that's clear, you assign jobs, and keep everyone updated on the game's progress.

Fair points. I agree, and have updated the content of the recruitment post to reflect these changes. I will be looking into implementing your other suggestions as well. Thank you for the advice.

_________________
Current project: Deirdre, My Blade
Recruitment Thread
Development Blog

My pleasure

We are now actively recruiting again - this time for a composer. I'll be looking into applicants and candidates for the position starting today.

EDIT: We've added a composer to the team, and are no longer actively recruiting for one.

_________________
Current project: Deirdre, My Blade
Recruitment Thread
Development Blog

Once again, we are actively recruiting. The project is in need of a script editor who can perform a thorough copy-edit on the current draft of the story. If you are able to do this and interested in the project, please contact me and we can discuss terms.

EDIT: We have met our requirement for a script editor, and are no longer actively recruiting for one. Thanks again to everyone who showed interest.

_________________
Current project: Deirdre, My Blade
Recruitment Thread
Development Blog

This sounds very interesting! I've sent a PM.

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Current Projects:

[GxB][Fantasy][Drama][Romance]

Proud writer of Celestial Crossing! [Fantasy][SoL][High School][BxG]

We are starting another round of recruitment, this time for additional illustrators. These positions will be available to anyone who can meet the current standards of production for the foreseeable future.

_________________
Current project: Deirdre, My Blade
Recruitment Thread
Development Blog