[img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34013799/74dfbdab07935fad354882f9a4b4dd396b7b8b43.png[/img] Hello, Champions! Alberto again [url=https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/919360/view/4463723296443072744]after recent events and the delay of the 1.0 release[/url] with a new Sunday update. First and foremost, regarding the issues we faced for the launch, [b]a heartfelt thank you goes out to everyone who has supported us[/b]. A delay is never ideal, and it usually comes with reasonable technical timing. For us, it was a last-minute unexpected issue and tough to handle. As mentioned, we tried everything to launch by the Thursday, but there was no way around it. We are actively working on setting a new date, and we can confirm for now that we will be out 110% in November, [b]depending on the plans we’re reworking[/b]. That said, we’re here to dive into the highlights of Arcane Arts, the freshly released update and the final stop of Early Access.[b] Arcane Arts is the largest and most comprehensive update we’ve done[/b], requiring almost a year of work, running in the background while we handled other developments. This is because, simply put, [b]the presence of magic in Alaloth was originally conceived in a specific, focused way[/b], at a time when many aspects of the game were different. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34013799/b93f9b1e3e19c6f7c2483209a176f4acbc7370d5.png[/img] [i]The Magocracy of Valestrum, introduced in Chronicles, marked the first in-game iteration of magic, integrating a new kingdom in Plamen centered around spell users while maintaining consistency with the world’s lore[/i] Every game has its own clear vision, and mine was to create a melee-focused experience with some magical elements and a few classes that fit well into the lore of Plamen, [b]where spellcasters are not exactly common[/b]. We crafted a narrative around this vision with elements like the disappearance of Amberwalk Hall, the rare spell users, and the Red Wizard. We’ve always listened to the community, and we quickly realized that the most common request was to allow players to play as a mage. [b]The point, then, was to transform systems initially designed for a certain kind of experience into something compatible with other systems that weren’t originally planned[/b]. And in game development, the most difficult part is often starting work in one direction only to change course along the way. This is what led to many of our design choices. [h3]HOW MAGIC WORKS[/h3] The major design challenge was [b]figuring out how to properly integrate spells into a game focused on physical combat[/b], where spells were initially intended to be one of the customization options for a fighter. The goal was to maintain the concept of complete freedom in character creation, [b]allowing players to mix skills from various professions without restriction[/b]. At first, we considered limiting the use of spells to characters who could only equip mage robes or staffs. But this seemed to contradict the original vision of total freedom, so we found a solution inspired, like several other elements, by Rolemaster, a highly complex game system I loved and played in the '90s, which also emphasized maximum freedom. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34013799/1b99fcade6926793a0dce10df827fd152aee4f1a.png[/img] [i]The final iteration of the Grandmasters encourages players to adopt specific playstyles to maximize their class potential. Lore-wise, they are scattered across Plamen, and shops will be refined with the 1.0 release[/i] In Rolemaster, any character can attempt any action with any equipment, but there are steep penalties. For example, a warrior in full plate can try to cast a fireball, but the chance of success is nearly zero. Since we didn’t have a system for critical failure in Alaloth, [b]we decided to address this through items rather than by restricting item types outrigh[/b]t. So, a mage is encouraged to dress like a mage, as staffs increase magic damage while specialized robes reduce cooldowns. Conversely, non-mage items increase cooldowns, discouraging but not prohibiting a mix of all kinds. Casting a spell in full plate, perhaps with a shield and sword, will lead to cooldowns up to three times longer than usual, though these can still be reduced with other items or character development. Additionally, Grandmasters will now provide some class-specific gear through shops and train passive skills with certain prerequisites, encouraging different playstyles. Naturally, Valestrum was the first lore step to introduce the various schools of magic, and with the 1.0 release, we’ll be completing the circle. Grandmasters are now spread across the map, each positioned in a plausible location. At launch, a universal shop will be set up in the magocracy [this was one of the final touches that had to be postponed due to the store issue]. Also, we’ve differentiated Quarterstaffs, both craftable and non-craftable, from Magic Staffs, [b]which are specifically tied to spellcasting[/b]. [h3]WAYS AND PROFESSIONS REWORKED, NEW TALENTS, NEW PROFICIENCIES, DAMAGE SCALING[/h3] The other major addition in Arcane Arts is that, while expanding the magic system, we reworked all the Ways and professions. The Ways are now divided into five categories: Way of Arms, Way of Gods, Way of Nature, Way of Arcane, and Way of Elements. In principle, the Way of Arms and the Way of Gods have remained largely the same. The former Way of Nature, which included magical classes connected to the “natural energy of the world,” has been refined to focus more on nature itself. All elemental spellcasters now fall under the Way of Elements, aligning with the Orders of Valestrum, while the Way of Arcane gathers casters who wield “cosmic” powers, so to speak. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34013799/229f214978230aa98767b3fe347b4986ef873cf1.png[/img] [i]Each way now includes a new profession, and the existing ones have been revisited and adapted to the new scaling system[/i] Nearly all professions have been adjusted, blending skills and spells (which are now distinct in gameplay terms), with new talents and specializations. The Guardian and the Elementalist have been merged into other classes, and now each Way includes an additional profession. The new professions are: Rogue and Berserker for the Way of Arms; Druid, Bonder, and Ranger for the Way of Nature; Aeromancer, Pyromancer, Geomancer, and Hydromancer for the Way of Elements; Mystic Warrior, Runemaster, and Warlock for the Way of Arcane; and Shaman for the Way of Gods. This brings the total to 20 professions, with new traits and a complete set of magical proficiencies.[b] One of the key changes is the damage scaling for both skills and spells[/b]. Four different tiers are available, influenced by stats, now including Wisdom as well, which primarily affects the Way of the Gods. [h3]COMING UP NEXT[/h3] In the coming days, we’ll dive deeper into each Way and profession, but in the meantime, starting next week, [b]a new build will be available with some urgent fixes and tweaks from the original launch package[/b]. This update will address numbers and values for various items that aren’t yet final (bonuses from deities, weapons, armor, some spell values, etc.). Returning to the initial topic: [b]most of the issues with Steam and the store have been resolved[/b], so we’re technically ready to launch soon. However, we’re rearranging a number of things (streams, advertising, interviews, reviews) that were originally scheduled for October 30. More updates to come shortly. In the meantime, Arcane Arts changelos is here! Stay legendary! [h3]CHANGELOG[/h3] [h3]Added[/h3][list] [*] Added new Ways of Power: Nature, Elements, Arcane [*] Added Rogue, Berserker, Mystic Warrior, Warlock, Pyromancer, Geomancer, Hydromancer, Aeromancer, Runemaster, Bonder, Druid, Ranger professions and talents. [*] Added scaling of skills and spells, with 4 different Tiers of power [*] Added new NPC and more than 40 new items [*] Added new Traits and Proficiencies, for magic spell users [*] Added Wisdom, influencing spells scaling and resistansces [*] Added new Grandmasters for each new profession. Grandmasters will now trade and craft a selection of items. [*] Added 11 new Achievements [*] Added new crafting recipes and reagents [*] New crafting recipes and reagents. [*] Added voiceover on Throwmasters [*] Added hostile pawns for Obsidian and Swamp golems and Wicked Shadows in the World Map. [/list][h3]Changed[/h3] [list] [*] Player’s abilities are now referred to as Talents: each Talent is categorized as either a Skill or a Spell in its description, which has some gameplay implications. [*] Stamina is now referred to as "Focus" [*] Reworked and changed some player's Talents. [*] Removed Guardian and Elementalist professions. [*] Now damage from most abilities and projectiles will be influenced from physic and magic buff/malus on the caster. [*] Ranged weapons attacks will now trigger their cooldown upon the action start instead of shoot time, in the same way of Talents. [*] Added a chance to apply Lightning condition with “Thunderbolt”. [*] Removed lifetime limit of summons for Summon Undeads. [*] Removed usage limit for Vampiric Touch”and reduced healing amount. [*] Reduced range in which the Fire condition damages other nearby enemies from 3,8m to 1,5m. [*] Changed Grandmasters cards in Codex. [*] Now various mobs will have complete immunity to specific conditions; for example generally demon-types will be immune to Bleed and Undead-types will be immune to Poison. When a condition attempts to apply for a character with a matching immunity, the message IMMUNE will now appear. [*] Updated tutorials texts and shots. [*] Crimson Cobwebs now requires collecting 25 cobwebs instead of 50. [*] Timed quests will now have an hourglass icon besides their name in notifications. [*] Quest items will now have their value at 0 (except for those sold by vendors). [*] Improved visual quality of various scenes. [/list][h3]Fixed[/h3][list] [*] Fixed “Arrowchain” occasionally skipping directly beyond a new bouncing target. [*] Fixed talents enabling summons to spawn in unreachable areas from caster position. [*] Fixed player summons unable to follow player when spawned in areas reachable only through environment interactions (e.g. climbing at Windcrest Heights); now summons will be periodically teleported near their master in such scenarios. [*] Fixed vfx for some melee skills being retriggered by using knife/bow attacks after the skill. [*] Fixed Lileah AI unable to use her healing talent in response to player's SUPPORT command when the party member most in need is herself. [*] Fixed missing collisions with ground in “Lornwood”. [*] Correct Achievement description for “Amberwalk's Student”, which is meant to be awarded when all four gate portals are open. [*] Fixed visual issue on weapons with poison effect. [*] Fixed visuals of waterfall ripples in “Sholunarr”. [*] Fixed “Talons of the Beast” not properly applying its bonus damage against goblins. [*] Fixed some enemies auto-poisoning themselves. [*] Fixed quest item for “Frozen Goblins” dropping outside of Karak-Hohn. [*] Fixed quest item objectives for “Everyday Tools” not being available for interaction as soon as the quest is granted. [*] Fixed depth texture in “Stonechair” and “Gashak”. [*] Fixed killcam triggering sporadically in some edge cases; now will trigger only on player kill of the last enemy if no other is Aware or Suspicious in the scene. 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