[h2]Hello Wielders![/h2] My name’s Carl Toftfelt and today I’m writing the Steam post, a friendly takeover of sorts! I’m the Lead Game Designer of Songs and have been working on this project for the past seven years. Releasing from Early Access into 1.0 has been exhilarating. All the kind words and calls for more content for the game have been amazing. I truly feel privileged to share that Songs of Conquest has now hit an incredible milestone! [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/4a7f24f324ec7b53873b737bcd02015f6f756dbb.jpg[/img][i]There was more than a few high-fives at the office when we reached this milestone![/i] Of course, with over half a million players and a passionate community I’m very pleased to tell you the following: There’s an expansion coming with [b]two new factions[/b]. There will also be four DLCs that will expand existing parts of the game. New factions take quite some time to develop. We want to keep telling the story of Songs of Conquest at a higher pace than only faction expansions would allow. So we’re introducing something we call Tales of Conquest in the form of DLC, releasing roughly every quarter. These Tales will move the story of Songs of Conquest forward, as well as expand our gameplay, through story missions following each one of the existing factions. Our first Tales of Conquest is called ‘Rise Eternal’ and it will focus on our undead faction - the Barony of Loth. You will follow Kastus Maal, a scholar slain by Lady Stoutheart at the battle of Grey Tor. He will be seeking vengeance from beyond the grave against the Arleon baroness, and with his guidance the Risen will be more powerful than ever before. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2977430 [i]Remember: For every wishlist we get, one more skeleton will rise to serve Aurelia! You don’t want to disappoint her, do you?[/i] We’re planning to release [b]Rise Eternal[/b] this Fall. It will be a paid DLC, and it will bring new artifacts, set bonuses, and general improvements to the Risen of Loth. And the sweet thing is that most of these things will be added to the base game for free so that everyone can enjoy the hordes of the loyal Risen, even if you don’t choose to buy the DLC. The next DLC that we hope to release around December this year is called ‘Essence Awakened’ and will see Arleon as the protagonist faction. This DLC will focus on new and strange Essence beings in the world of Aerbor. More will be revealed as we get closer to release! The two remaining DLC’s are focused on Barya and Rana, and will be released in the second half of 2025. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/5f3491394bfbc6cba74db2d8f2b7186a2242ddfd.jpg[/img][i]Lots can be said about Kastus Mall, and as far as wandering corpses go, he is a beauty![/i] All right, here’s the big one - we’re aiming to release Songs of Conquest’s first major expansion in the early summer of 2025. I know that’s a full year away, but we just wanted to let you know right away that we plan to support Songs of Conquest for years to come, and that of course means more factions! The Bleak East lies to the North-East of Patrium, and is the home of descendants from both Arleon and Barya. Hardy settlers who now live their lives free of their former masters on the coast of the Bleak East. But they are not alone, and we can barely wait to share their Song with you. I don’t want to give away too much about the new factions, but rest assured that there will be more news about them as time goes on. So for now you will have to make due with their names and some sprites to pique your interest. They will be known as the [i]Vanir [/i]and the [i]Roots[/i]. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/53a89f964a2a20aea34aa251260b8f6cd62492b9.jpg[/img] [i]A tale as old as time, trolls vs plants.[/i] Both new factions will be introduced through a new Song, a large single-player campaign that will tell the story of how they came to be and how they will affect the larger world of Aerbor. Will I personally be singing the campaign song again you ask? Very likely, as it takes too much time to find someone else with just the right amount of Swedish accent! We will be sharing much more about the Bleak East, the Vanir and the Roots in the following months. We know that faction variety is super important for a turn-based strategy games like Songs of Conquest, and we heard your requests loud and clear. I hope the above visual teasers will sate your hunger for the time being! If all that text was a little too much for you here’s the TL:DR in a fancy picture, or as you might say, a roadmap: [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40723472/672e4b06d3f8e3763e91180bc6fd34dad6233553.jpg[/img][i]Click the image to see a larger version of the roadmap![/i] As always, this is a living roadmap - things will always change, and timelines can shift forward and back. We’ll make sure to keep you posted on any developments that happen along the way. From the bottom of our hearts here at Lavapotion, thank you so much for believing in us and supporting our game, the reception of Songs of Conquest has completely blown us away. Thanks for making our dream come true. With love and gratitude, Carl and everyone at Lavapotion [url=https://songsofconquest.com/changelog097]Changelog[/url] [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] [url=https://www.threads.net/@songsofconquest/]Threads[/url]