Tomebound Game Design Document - Universe - Overview

1.0 The Tomebound Universe

This secondary-level GDD relates only to game content relating to the world of Tomebound and its inhabitants (past and present) and how storytelling is achieved in the game and a feel of the tone used in telling that story.

1.1 Narrative and Themes

Tomebound follows two rival lizard wizards who, in an ill-advised act of synchronized arrogance, both attempt to steal a magical tome from the heart of the Lost City. The tome—annoyed, petty, and semi-sentient—curses them with a fate worse than death: co-op gameplay.

Their rivalry, and lifelong refusal to work together, becomes the ironic foundation for the game’s core theme: collaboration through conflict. The tone is whimsical and playful, but the characters themselves are deadpan, begrudging, and thoroughly bitter about their magical predicament.

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1.2 Cast of Characters

Quill – A steampunk lizard wizard and self-styled adventurer-scholar.

scientist tinkerer luckier-than-he-deserves-to-be

He’s fascinated by ancient mechanisms, obscure devices, and the overly complicated ways lost civilizations used to open doors. He asserts he could comprehensively explain the workings of a flux channel inverter... just not in any terms you could decipher. Once an overlooked archivist, he rebranded himself as "Quill" (almost certainly from something less memorable), after one too many footnotes got ignored by his peers. Despite his dry wit and unshakable belief in his own intellect, he’s not entirely without self-awareness.

"I am a lovable rogue, and I am aware of this" - Quill, explaining why the jungle hotel left him a mint on the pillow

His goggles stay polished, his coat meticulously pressed in quiet hope that someone, somewhere, might turn him into a Funko Pop.

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Nyx – A lizard wizard with a flair for the occult and a wardrobe full of bones.

biologist druid-adjacent in-it-for-the-nightmares

He communes with vegetation, has been known to date the odd elemental, and performs unsettling rituals on coffee. Wears ceremonial antlers from a skull he picked up in the Bayou whilst learning the ways of voodoo. What began as a phase (so his parents suspected…) has long since hardened into a lifestyle—one that radiates the kind of energy that suggests he might eat your cat under a blood moon.

"They buried it wrong. That’s why it still writhes." - Nyx, on why stores shouldn't pack your groceries for you"

He takes his persona seriously, speaks in cryptic fragments, and insists he can smell deceitful intentions. Whether any of that’s true is less important than the fact that he believes it is. He leaves ominous chalk patterns in shared living spaces and insists the stars are angry—but won't say why.

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The Tome – Didn’t ask to be stolen, but certainly isn’t handling it gracefully either.

omniscient back-seat-gamer first edition, final word

Less arcane relic of ancient wisdom and more cursed notebook with a superiority complex and a taste for irony. It serves as your narrator, critic, and cosmic babysitter—equal parts dungeon master and passive-aggressive roommate. It comments on your every success with smug theatrical flair, and on your every failure with venomous glee—especially at the end of a run, where its taunts land somewhere between eldritch roast and unskippable therapy session from your unwanted life coach. You’ll grow to hate it. Which, of course, is exactly what it wants.

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End-of-Run Zingers from The Tome

"I recorded your bravery in the margins. Very small margins." — The Tome, offering feedback no one asked for.

"Technically, you did make progress. Emotionally? That’s between you and the mirror." — The Tome, looking on the bright side.

"Your death was foretold. I just didn't think you'd make it so easy to underline." — The Tome, delivering a prophetic roast.

"A bold strategy. Experimentation is never a bad thing. Let’s mark it down as... interpretive." — The Tome, on your run choices.

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1.3 The Lost City

A sprawling temple city overtaken by jungle and time. Once home to a proud, overachieving civilisation obsessed with testing and proving mastery in all disciplines—bravery, agility, intellect, and tax avoidance.

By a wonderfully tidy bit of narrative convenience, they built entire chambers dedicated to these traits: gauntlets, battlegrounds, observatories, and more. A perfect training ground for our cursed protagonists. Or as they see it: a bureaucratic hell built by magical nerds.

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1.4 Lore and Worldbuilding

The journey through Midday, Dusk, Midnight, and Dawn reflects a descent into instability—as time fractures and reality folds in on itself.

As for the real cause? Turns out, this once-great civilisation wasn’t all that. They built their grand city directly on top of an ancient alien monolith, because the rich elites thought it hummed in a very spiritual, expensive-sounding way. Sadly, it wasn’t divine energy—it was radiation from a jettisoned reactor core, left behind by a long-dead interstellar species.

Naturally, the elites began carving it up and selling bits to the lower districts, causing mass illness, structural collapse, and eventually a full-blown space-time implosion. Now everyone’s stuck in an infinite loop of decay, undeath, and magical entropy.

On the plus side: perfect conditions for a roguelite.

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1.5 Loot, Items, Perks, and More

In Tomebound, loot is more than just functional—it’s storytelling through gear. Every weapon, amulet, and relic carries a blend of gameplay utility, worldbuilding flavor, and implied history.

A typical run might yield:

• A weapon that leaves burns the targets it hits.
• An amulet that enhances your sneak stat, perfect for stealth-focused builds.
• A relic discovered in a hidden plaza trove, now viewable in the Hub Gallery—a trophy.

Each item contributes to the tone and lore of the world through:

• Name – evoking its origin or former owner.
• Effect – a mechanical benefit that reflects the item’s intended use.
• Flavour text – a short, dryly written description that adds humour and context from an in-universe perspective.

Loot becomes a secondary form of storytelling, reflecting the long-dead civilization’s obsessions, mistakes, and magical overengineering. Players can equip weapons and amulets for active benefits, and collect relics for completion or curiosity.

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1.6 Sample Items Table

Name	Type	Effect	Flavour Text
Torchsong Blade	Weapon	+2/Sec Fire Damage - Hit enemies are burned. Deals lingering damage for 3 seconds	“It hums as it burns. If it starts harmonizing, run.”
Sash of Minor Invisibility	Amulet	+10% Sneak, +5% Attack Damage if strike lands whilst hidden	“A ceremonial wrap woven from moon-silk. Completely impractical. Looks great.”
Fragment of the Table of Knowing	Relic	No effect. Adds gallery entry	“What’s left of a prophecy-slab. It's mostly just ancient lunch schedules.”