Difference between revisions of "Scrolls"

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'''Scrolls''' return in Diablo III, with some key differences.
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Many types of scrolls were present during Diablo III's development, but as of January 2012, late in the beta test, all scrolls have been removed, though some may return post-release, in rebalanced form.
 
 
Diablo II had just two types of scrolls; [[Identify]] and [[Town Portal]].  Both types could be stored in [[tome]]s or [[book]]s, that held up to 20 of them, for convenience. (It's not known if there are tomes in Diablo III; possibly not, since scrolls stack.)
 
 
 
Diablo III also has just two types of scrolls, being the Identify scroll and the Scroll of Companion, but the Diablo III development team may have some surprises in store for the release of the game.
 
  
  
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[[File:Scroll-id1.jpg|frame]]
 
[[File:Scroll-id1.jpg|frame]]
[[Identify Scroll]]s, which work just as they have in the other games in the series. Magical [[items]] (blue items) drop identified, as do white (normal) items, and gray (junk) items. [[Quest]] (green) items do not require identification either.
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[[Identify Scroll]]s were present during the entire development cycle until they were removed late in beta testing. The announcement was made by Jay Wilson in January 2012.[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/diablo-3-progress-report-2#more-12130]
  
[[Rare]], [[Legendary]], and [[Set]] items, however, still must be identified.
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The scrolls were replaced by an inherent identification function; players need merely right click on an unidentified item and after a two-second casting time, the item identifies itself.
  
An [[NPC]] can identify them for you in town ([[Deckard Cain]] in D2, and probably in D3 as well, and perhaps the [[Mystic]]), or they can be identified anywhere by the use of an identify scroll.
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Identification became much less important during development, when blue (magical) items were changed to '''not''' require identification. Only yellow (rare), green (set) and orange (legendary) items must be identified.  
  
Scroll of Identify now stack up to 20, which saves on inventory space. There also appear to be Books of Identify, though it's not clear why you'd need them when the scrolls stack up anyway?
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Unlike in Diablo 1 and Diablo 2, [[Deckard Cain]] was never a source of item identification in Diablo 3. The [[Mystic]] was, when she and the other [[Artisans]] were first revealed, though she lost that knack during development, and was ultimately removed from the game entirely.
  
  
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[[File:Scroll-wealth1.jpg|frame]]
 
[[File:Scroll-wealth1.jpg|frame]]
[[Scroll of Wealth]] was a new type of scroll in Diablo III. Using this scroll allowed you to sell items anywhere, even out in the dungeons. It was meant as a convenience; a way to save the time and trouble of returning to town so often.
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The [[Scroll of Wealth]] was removed from the game during development, and replaced by the [[Cauldron of Jordan]], an interface item that allowed players to sell items from anywhere in the dungeons. This item was removed late in the beta test, as the developers felt it was too convenient and an exploit, as it along with the (also removed) [[Nephalem Cube]], made things too easy and destroyed a sense of game flow by enabling players to never return to town.
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==Scroll of Town Portal==
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[[File:Town-portal-belt1.jpg|thumb|250px|Town Portal on the [[belt interface]].]]
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[[Town Portal]]s changed form and status in Diablo III repeatedly during development. Initially the scrolls were just as they were in Diablo II; objects that opened a blue portal in the dungeon. After some testing these were removed as the developers felt they were too easily exploited to escape from dangerous situations. Players were expected to use the frequent [[waypoint]]s for town travel, and various traveling [[NPC]] merchants and other conveniences were added to allow selling in the dungeons.
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This theory changed during development, when the [[Stone of Recall]] was added to the game. This interface object allowed for a return to town from any dungeon location, but came with a five second casting time, and no longer created a portal in the dungeon; the character was instead teleported back to town, where a blue portal appeared for traveling back to the dungeon.
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This feature evolved back into a Town Portal that was housed directly on the belt interface, after the Stone of Recall was removed during late beta testing.
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==Scroll of Companion==
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[[File:SoCicon.jpg|frame]]
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The [[Scroll of Companion]] was removed from the game during the beta test. When functional, it allowed characters to summon a small animal or insect pet that would scurry or fly around, picking up all of the stacks of gold that dropped from monsters, chests, destructibles, and all other sources.
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It was a very convenient feature, but it proved so useful that it become almost mandatory, which the developers didn't like. There were also some debates over the thematic appropriateness of some of the cute and fuzzy pets.
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This feature may well return post-release, if the developers can find a way to make it less than mandatory.
  
It was scrapped from the game, replaces instead by the [[Cauldron of Jordan]] which is a quest reward early in the game, and doesn't take up inventory space.
 
  
It seems that scrolls do not have a very long lifespan in the development of Diablo games.
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==Scrolls of Reforging==
  
==Scroll of Town Portal==
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The various types of [[Scrolls of Reforging]] will not be included in the release version of Diablo III, but may return in a patch or an expansion, if the developers can balance them to their liking. 
  
[[Town Portals]] are out of the game entirely. The [[D3 Team]] felt they were exploitative and made immersive combat too hard to create. So they're gone; their removal doing much to spur the creation of the [[Cauldron of Jordan]], as well as the [[salvaging]] system with the [[Nephalem Cube]] and, ultimately, the [[Stone of Recall]]. The Stone replaces the functionality of the TP scrolls of yore, while the Cube and the Cauldron negate the need to go back to town in the first place, unless the player is directed so by a quest.
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These scrolls were never usable in the beta, but were in the game code and even on Blizzard's site, for some time. They allowed a character to reroll the stats on an item, much as some of the {{iw|Horadric_Cube_recipes cube recipes}} did in Diablo II. There were three qualities of this scroll, themed to work on rare, set, and legendary items.
  
See the [[Town Portal]] page for much more about the D3 Team's reasoning on this issue.
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See the [[Scroll of Reforging]] article for full details.
  
  
==Unconfirmed Scrolls==
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==Scroll of Greed==
  
There is the additional possibility of the following scrolls to make it to the final release of the game:
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This item is seen in the game code, but has never been enabled or officially commented on.
  
 
* Scroll of Greed: Shows treasure on map.
 
* Scroll of Greed: Shows treasure on map.
 
''The power locked within each treasure of antiquity is far too valuable to squander.''
 
''The power locked within each treasure of antiquity is far too valuable to squander.''
  
* Scroll of Reforging: ''This complex arrangement of glyphs and symbols can subtly morph existing enchantments to form a new pattern.''
 
 
* Scroll of Greater Reforging: ''This complex array of glyphs and patterns is designed to morph and rearrange existing enchantments.''
 
 
* Scroll of Superior Reforging: ''Forging a device of great power is difficult. Disrupting the balance of that power can be dangerous and costly.'''
 
  
  

Revision as of 22:34, 27 January 2012

Many types of scrolls were present during Diablo III's development, but as of January 2012, late in the beta test, all scrolls have been removed, though some may return post-release, in rebalanced form.


Scroll of Identify

Scroll-id1.jpg

Identify Scrolls were present during the entire development cycle until they were removed late in beta testing. The announcement was made by Jay Wilson in January 2012.[1]

The scrolls were replaced by an inherent identification function; players need merely right click on an unidentified item and after a two-second casting time, the item identifies itself.

Identification became much less important during development, when blue (magical) items were changed to not require identification. Only yellow (rare), green (set) and orange (legendary) items must be identified.

Unlike in Diablo 1 and Diablo 2, Deckard Cain was never a source of item identification in Diablo 3. The Mystic was, when she and the other Artisans were first revealed, though she lost that knack during development, and was ultimately removed from the game entirely.


Scroll of Wealth

Scroll-wealth1.jpg

The Scroll of Wealth was removed from the game during development, and replaced by the Cauldron of Jordan, an interface item that allowed players to sell items from anywhere in the dungeons. This item was removed late in the beta test, as the developers felt it was too convenient and an exploit, as it along with the (also removed) Nephalem Cube, made things too easy and destroyed a sense of game flow by enabling players to never return to town.


Scroll of Town Portal

Town Portal on the belt interface.

Town Portals changed form and status in Diablo III repeatedly during development. Initially the scrolls were just as they were in Diablo II; objects that opened a blue portal in the dungeon. After some testing these were removed as the developers felt they were too easily exploited to escape from dangerous situations. Players were expected to use the frequent waypoints for town travel, and various traveling NPC merchants and other conveniences were added to allow selling in the dungeons.

This theory changed during development, when the Stone of Recall was added to the game. This interface object allowed for a return to town from any dungeon location, but came with a five second casting time, and no longer created a portal in the dungeon; the character was instead teleported back to town, where a blue portal appeared for traveling back to the dungeon.

This feature evolved back into a Town Portal that was housed directly on the belt interface, after the Stone of Recall was removed during late beta testing.


Scroll of Companion

SoCicon.jpg

The Scroll of Companion was removed from the game during the beta test. When functional, it allowed characters to summon a small animal or insect pet that would scurry or fly around, picking up all of the stacks of gold that dropped from monsters, chests, destructibles, and all other sources.

It was a very convenient feature, but it proved so useful that it become almost mandatory, which the developers didn't like. There were also some debates over the thematic appropriateness of some of the cute and fuzzy pets.

This feature may well return post-release, if the developers can find a way to make it less than mandatory.


Scrolls of Reforging

The various types of Scrolls of Reforging will not be included in the release version of Diablo III, but may return in a patch or an expansion, if the developers can balance them to their liking.

These scrolls were never usable in the beta, but were in the game code and even on Blizzard's site, for some time. They allowed a character to reroll the stats on an item, much as some of the cube recipes did in Diablo II. There were three qualities of this scroll, themed to work on rare, set, and legendary items.

See the Scroll of Reforging article for full details.


Scroll of Greed

This item is seen in the game code, but has never been enabled or officially commented on.

  • Scroll of Greed: Shows treasure on map.

The power locked within each treasure of antiquity is far too valuable to squander.


Media

Images of scrolls, as seen in Diablo III, some of which are outdated.