[b]Greetings Wielders! [/b] It's that time of the year, folks! The moment when we all take a breather from the daily grind, ditch the office desks, bid farewell to school benches, and momentarily escape the clutches of factories. Why? Well, it differs from person to person, but for us? To gaze proudly at our Indie games roadmap and flex a bit! For Lavapotion, 2023 has been quite the journey. While much has unfolded behind the scenes, we thought it'd be fitting to share what we've been up to. Let's dive into the nitty-gritty of our progress and see what we have done! This year saw the introduction of a new campaign, significant AI enhancements, and the inclusion of gamepad support, among other things. We've been hard at work, and we're excited to fill you in on the details. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/6f47271f799f982aa8a35dbd9226829e60dd4841.jpg[/img][i]Spoiler: It's a lot[/i] Back in April, we launched our third Song, the Barony of Loth campaign. The Necromancy-themed faction finally got a chance to tell their side of the story. During the campaign, we learned not just why they fight and who they are but also a loth about rats. We got to follow the troubled Baron Aldus but also meet the mysterious Unseen Society. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/4b179bd2360155bfe685ff5223f9cc02f20156a9.png[/img] [i]He wants to bring back the old days, and he means it VERY literally.[/i] Let's look at the AI! Significant strides have been made in enhancing its capabilities. Our AI has become quite the scholar, now proficient in more spell combinations, and quicker pathing, and it utilizes portals. It's like we've given it a crash course in wizardry! But that's not all. The AI has also adopted a multitasking approach, assigning different roles to various Wielders. And remember that agonizing wait between turns? Fear not! The AI now breezes through its turns a lot faster, sparing you the nail-biting anticipation. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/a52ab1ae3f9bd8a0b74c256b0666187a10ca0f1e.gif[/img] [i]The AI now has a few more tricks up its sleeve. It’s not as cool when the spell “Swap” happens to you as when you do it to the AI![/i] With each update, we're committed to fine-tuning and improving the AI experience. The journey doesn't end at 1.0—heck, we’ll keep going beyond that. We want to give you an opponent that feels not just challenging enough but downright surprising and innovative. Because, let's face it, where's the fun without a worthy adversary? This year we also introduced Sim turns to speed up multiplayer games. And if that wasn’t enough we also made sure that you can explore the map and manage your resources and settlements while others are occupied in battle. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/dd012f53c962e68412e483e82dac2ad4419ca350.jpg[/img] [i]It's futile, but you would probably attack anyway you brave lunatic![/i] The game recently gained the addition of Achievements, something that a lot of you have been looking forward to! There are 54 of them right now out there for you to earn, but beware, some of them are outright tricky. What should have earned us an achievement of our very own was the nomination for best 2D visual during the Unity Awards. We didn’t win but being up there with such names as Dave the Diver and Cult of the Lamb is humbling in a good way! [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/2eaf8417af7e0b2662c8e2319c032e36864f3edb.png[/img] [i]Marvel Snap won this year, but we’ll get them next time![/i] This year has been good for all map lovers out there! We have put a lot of effort into improving and adding features to the Random Map Generator (or RMG). We’ve stamped out bugs and added options for starting positions and important themes like rain and music. We know a lot of you play on RMG and you deserve our very best. There has also been a bunch of new Conquest maps, ready for everything between two to six players. We can’t wait to show you our biggest one yet, but we have to leave something for next year as well. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/2cd9eab974a3603b809cbc58d7f1e4b17f3f7dca.png[/img] [i]It’s massively important, a huge deal. You get the picture.[/i] While we could talk endlessly about the exciting developments, we can't wrap this up without delving into our modding news. We released a new mod resource [url=https://www.songsofconquest.com/modding]website [/url]designated for the modders and level designers in our creative community. The brand new custom Robin Hood campaign was released at the same time, to fully showcase our tools and what you can do with them. Embarking on your journey as a storyteller with Songs of Conquest has never been more accessible. The stage is set, the tools are in your hands, and the possibilities are boundless. Ready to weave your narrative magic? Let the modding adventures begin! [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/4a34665e7c64becbd1f89f4b36e0f3dea88ff8e2.png[/img] [i]Your creations could be right here alongside Robin Hood, isn’t that cool?[/i] We normally end with us telling you to read the changelog to delve deeper into what we’ve done, but on an endeavor like this it’s hard, you’d have to read through a lot of text since we have been very busy. So instead we will just wish you the absolute best, and we can’t wait to show you what's still in the works. The year 2024 will be great for Songs of Conquest and we hope that you will be along for the ride. Turn to Conquest everyone, you’ve earned it. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/c29dba93f7d356c38e0c015c8edb3114f02875f4.jpg[/img] [i]It’s the festive season at the office! Some of the team members are missing but that’s most of us![/i] /Everyone at Lavapotion [url=https://twitter.com/songsofconquest]Twitter[/url] [url=https://discord.com/invite/soc]Discord[/url] [url=https://www.youtube.com/@SongsofConquest]Youtube[/url] [url=https://www.instagram.com/songsofconquest/]Instagram[/url] [url=https://www.facebook.com/songsofconquest/]Facebook[/url]