Fire & Crown Devlog#1: The Hundred Years' War Never Had Its Game... Until Now.

“The Hussite Wars have Kingdom Come: Deliverance —so where’s the game about the Hundred Years' War?”

It may sound simple, even a little funny, but that moment was the true spark behind Blazing Feathers & Crown.

One evening over six months ago, I was on my way home from work when I saw the announcement for Kingdom Come: Deliverance II. As a medieval history enthusiast, I was thrilled—and suddenly struck by a strange realization: The Hundred Years' War—this sprawling, century-spanning epic between England and France—has never had a game that truly focused on it.

That same night, I sat down and wrote the opening scene of Phil Monstrelet's story—the illegitimate child, the blacksmith’s apprentice, the mercenary—his journey through war, choices, love, and faith. And just like that, Fire & Crown began to take shape.

1. Why the Hundred Years' War?

Even though I studied modern German history in college, I’ve always had an inexplicable fascination with the Hundred Years' War—an era completely unrelated to my academic background. Why? Because it was a cliff-edge between two worlds—when Europe began to crawl out of the swamp of the medieval era and into modernity.

It marked:

• The end of feudalism and chivalric ideals

• The rise of centralized monarchies, bourgeoisie, and standing armies

• The birth of gunpowder warfare and nationalism

But more than any of that, what truly moved me was the role of women in this era—women who defied societal roles and made history: Jeanne d’Arc may be the most famous one, but there were many others: Yolande of Aragon, Anne of Burgundy (one of the game’s three heroines, more in a future devlog), Marie Robine of Avignon, Catherine of Siena… All of them shaped their fates amidst power, war, and faith.

To me, this setting screams for a visual novel (galgame) —a medium where love, choice, destiny, and sacrifice can collide beautifully.

2. Why a Visual Novel?

Because it’s what I can do. Simple as that.

• I’m a humanities student—I can write stories, but I’m terrible at gameplay design or math-heavy systems

• I have a tight budget—I can't afford a full dev team, and my own tech skills aren’t enough for complex systems

But Ren’Py allows me to maximize narrative potential. Honestly, I couldn’t even understand the most basic code at the beginning. I had to rely on tutorials—and yes, AI—to grasp the logic. But I powered through. Line by line, I figured out branching dialogues, affection variables, encyclopedia systems, and everything in between. With relentless debugging and a dash of madness, I somehow got the main programming done. Solo.

3. Historical or Fictional? I Chose History.

You might ask—wouldn’t a historically-accurate galgame be too limited? After all, part of what makes Crusader Kings fun isn’t the history—it’s rewriting it in sandbox chaos. But I believe"limitations" breed creativity.

I don’t want to rewrite history. I want you to choose how to experience it.

• Jeanne d'Arc will still end up in Rouen—but you’ll choose how to walk that path with her.

• Jacquetta (original heroine—more in future devlogs) will still wait for you—but you’ll choose whether to abandon her for your ideals, or stay and build a life together.

• The Duchess of Bedford, Anne, will always be deadly—but how you dance with that lioness is up to you.

Did you know: At the Battle of Jargeau, English commander the Earl of Suffolk screamed for surrender from the battlements— but no one in the French command heard him, because the cannons were too loud. That’s not a joke. That’s a historical fact.

As someone who’s had at least half an academic training, I know history is already rich enough. Rather than making up an entire alternate world—which is more work and more likely to be full of plot holes— I want to take this real history and inject it with imagination, emotion, and narrative choices. To bring it to life.

4. Team Status

No sugarcoating. No fake hype. I’m under a lot of pressure.

I’m the director, writer, programmer, community manager, and asset coordinator. In fact, I’m not even sure if the word “team” applies when it’s just me.

• I didn’t know how to code—so I taught myself

• I have no friends to check my script—I live a quiet, solitary life

• I spent all my saved-up salary from my previous job to fund this project

• I didn’t even register a Steam developer account until recently—because I was scared

I’m scared no one will read this. Scared this devlog will vanish into the void. Scared my passion will just… disappear, unheard.

Even as I write this post— especially as I’m about to hit “publish”—that fear is real.

But I can’t stop. Because—

5. My Inspiration: Kinoko Nasu

My greatest motivation comes from a legend—a pioneer, artist, and dreamer: Kinoko Nasu. I’ve been a devoted Type-Moon fan for over a decade. I started Fate/Grand Order at launch. I’ve got twelve NP5 SSRs.

And whenever I’m close to despair, I think about Nasu and Takeuchi. Back when they were just two guys in their twenties, struggling in a tiny doujin circle:

Nasu quit his job and survived on part-time gigs. Takeuchi had to sell his prized collection for a sliver of funding. Nasu was under pressure from family illness. Takeuchi was still finding his art style—and carried all the art alone.

Their entire “team” was four people: Nasu, Takeuchi, programmer Kiyobee, and composer Keita Haga. They had nothing but ambition and raw ideas.

In the year 2000, when the internet was still in diapers, and no one expected them to succeed—they created Tsukihime. And it became the seed of the Type-Moon empire.

I’m not delusional enough to compare myself to Nasu—he’s a once-in-a-generation genius. I’m just someone who loves history and stories.

But I’ve always believed

their success wasn’t just talent—it was belief.

The kind that says

“Because the mountain is there.”

So I have no excuse to give up.

6. What’s Done So Far

• Common route: Act 1 script complete

• France route: Main script complete

• Core programming: Complete

• Protagonist sprites & UI: Done

• Steam page: Coming soon

• Devlogs: Biweekly updates planned—covering development, historical research, character deep-dives, and more.

If you’ve read this far—thank you.

You’re already closer to this story than most.