Hello, Merchants! We have been seeing some buzz following our recent v0.8 patch about what else is coming to the game leading up to our v1.0 launch, as well as the plans for beyond, so we wanted to get that information out there in a more clear and up-to-date way. Recently, we have had a pretty major shakeup of the content release schedule we had previously planned, so we wanted to explain the what and the why to make sure everyone is on the same page. We did pull some content from our v1.0 release window, including some things we had already discussed that we wanted to get into v1.0, but we believe it’s for the better of the game. First, what do we mean by “better for the game”? Our initial plans included more than double the size of the current playable area worth of content, which meant multiple new zones, new dungeons, and many new features including the human capital, Stonehaven. However, the scope of this was so massive, that getting all of it into the game within a reasonable time frame was simply not viable. We always wanted to have as short of an “Early Access” phase as possible, so instead of pushing Early Access for another year or possibly more, we set our sights on getting the features implemented which we thought would be most important to provide many hours of polished, well balanced, properly challenging and exciting gameplay. As you’ve probably guessed from the paragraphs above, Stonehaven will not be making it into v1.0 and we will explain more on that in the next section. The good news is that, as it turns out, following this new content schedule essentially means that instead of us cramming everything we can into v1.0 and then polishing it up and balancing it, we are going to polish the already implemented and coming soon features, which means less to balance, less to polish, and a more solid foundation for us to add things on in the future. Ironically, this will result in getting Stonehaven into everyone’s hands even sooner than it would be if we were to try and get it into v1.0. You may be asking, “But doesn’t this also mean less features in v1.0?” and we don’t want to beat around the bush, so yes it does. However, we truly believe the game will be in an amazing state for v1.0, and once we get v1.0 to the standard which we want it to be, it does also mean content will be able to be released faster going forward. Now, we wanted to share what is still coming and a little more about what will be happening beyond as well. But first, why was Stonehaven removed? [b]Stonehaven[/b] Stonehaven was shaping up to be a full game within a game on its own. With tons of objectives, progression, story and characters all housed in Stonehaven, as well as the visuals (Stonehaven itself is about 6x larger than Terafell!) and surrounding areas, trying to develop Stonehaven in a reasonable launch window just became too large of a task, so instead of making Stonehaven objectively worse for the sake of release, we wanted to appropriate the proper amount of time toward it post launch. It will be coming in the form of Chapter 2 of our main storyline, which will include a plethora of new zones and dungeons surrounding it, many new features, and a whole new storyline to follow. The good news is, the majority of these new zones have already had substantial work done on them, so a large chunk is already complete! This means that our Chapter 2 development era will take quite a lot less time than Chapter 1 has taken. [b]Story Rewrite[/b] Not much of the overall story is changing, however, we are rewriting several things to make better use of the world we already have developed. For example, you no longer will be visiting Neri, Raider’s Cove or Solas until after you have cleared Unjera. This is to allow for a more sensible transition into the new zone coming in v1.0, The Shimmering Isles. This will all make much more sense once you see the new story and how it has changed! [b]UI Overhaul[/b] We have been talking about a UI overhaul for a long time now, and for those wondering just where we are with the process? It has begun! We have been working for a long time on the assets we will use to replace the UI, and didn’t want to start the implementation process until we were confident we reached nearly the end of our needs for the actual UI assets to be made, and we are just about there. This means you can expect visual teasers of the UI overhaul in our next State of the Game, which we are aiming to get to you mid to late April, barring any unforeseen delays. [b]Ability Rework[/b] Some may already know that we have an ability rework just around the corner. Coming with the ability rework will be a lot of balance changes, including some nerfs and buffs to already existing abilities, but usually where there is a nerf, there are added abilities to compensate. Each spec will have 4 abilities as a baseline. Let’s discuss the Elemental Mage for some examples. Incinerate is being pretty heavily reduced in power, as right now it is the easy choice for high DPS numbers in most scenarios. The Elemental will also be losing Focus and Arcane Shroud from their kits. However, they will be receiving three new abilities to use alongside Incinerate. We don’t want to spoil too much, but one of the abilities they will be receiving is Frost Nova. Frost Nova is an AoE spell which deals a little less damage than Incinerate, but has the ability to hit many more enemies, as well as applying a heavy slow on them. Overall, it is a great damage dealer, but it helps a lot with the Elemental having more utility and survivability, especially in solo dungeons. Along with the ability rework, while we haven’t officially announced a new class yet…it kinda looks like there might be a storm coming? [b]Runes[/b] Not too long after we get the new ability rework out, we will begin work on implementing a whole new system tied to abilities in the form of Runes. Each ability will have three runes which you can use to modify or empower the way your abilities work in unique ways. Let’s use Justice, the Preservation Cleric main ability, as an example. The base form of Justice will function similarly in that it will hit up to three targets, but will only have a chance to stun as opposed to being guaranteed to stun. Don’t worry, the rest of their kit will help offset this slight nerf! Though now, you will be able to find runes to change the way Justice functions if you want your Preservation Cleric to serve a different purpose. The three runes are currently: [u]Wrath[/u] - Justice may no longer stun enemies, but the damage is increased. [u]Reckoning[/u] - Justice now only hits one target, but the damage is substantially increased, and the stun now lasts longer. The stun will not apply if Wrath is also active. [u]Aegis[/u] - You gain a Divine Shield based on the damage dealt with Justice. These runes are some simpler examples of what is to come, and of course, everything is a work in progress, but it gives you an idea of ways in which you may modify how abilities work, and their respective power. Keep in mind, Preservation Clerics also have 3 other abilities and 9 other runes you will want to be strategic with, as currently, you will only be able to choose up to 5 runes to equip, including a selection of many general runes which will be available to all classes like increased health, ability power, movement speed, or anything else you can think of. Runes will be unlocked in many different ways throughout the game, and we leave it to you to discover them, upgrade them, and apply them in ways to help you through our upcoming new end game challenges. [b]Elite Dungeons[/b] Many may be asking, what would all this new power with abilities and runes be good for? Well, that’s where Elite Dungeons will come into play. Elite Dungeons will be much more difficult versions of the dungeons which already exist, as well as some new content. However, they will not be as simple as sending heroes to clear them for you. We plan to release the full information on Elite Dungeons in the near future, as they have development plans still in limbo while we iron out the rest of the things which will pertain to them, but these dungeons will add a new spin of challenge and excitement to the game, really keeping you on your toes to be able to clear them. Alongside improved and more rare spawns, as well as elite mobs which are also coming, the challenge has yet to begin for those seeking to push themselves to the limit! [b]Beyond Launch[/b] All of our upcoming changes might sound like we are still a long way from our v1.0 launch, but fortunately, not as far as you may be thinking! As mentioned earlier, we always hoped for as short as possible of an Early Access phase, and we are very happy with where we landed for our feature list come launch. However, the post launch list is constantly growing as we cook up new ideas for the game. New classes, new mechanics, new dungeons, new raids, new story and even many new ways we will fully mix up combat and how you can play the game are all on the horizon, and we are so excited to continue developing more for this game in hopes that we can provide a unique and challenging experience for you all. Thank you so much for all of your support thus far. We have more to come very soon! -Devs