One thing the game has fallen short with is meaningful progression systems that evolve the gameplay. In other words, the first 5 rounds of the game feel too similar to the last 5 rounds of the game without much changing other than bigger numbers, and access to more abilities.
The goal of this update is to enable the gameplay to evolve over time so that players get access to exciting new decisions, get to reap the benefits for early planning, and get to adapt to changing circumstances throughout the game. Unlike previous patches which took a pass at board mechanics and combat, this patch seeks to do this through one of the game’s oldest systems: the item shop. Check out the changes!
BOARD:
I WAS CLOSE – Predicting a roll value within 1 space correctly now earns you 2 XP.
ITEMS:
NEW- HEROIC ITEMS
Heroic items are a new item tier- these items are extremely powerful, and very efficient, but won’t be available until after halftime.
Heroic items can never be stolen or destroyed by other players.
Most Heroic items start at 400 AP, but they become cheaper as other players buy Heroic items. After purchasing a Heroic item, the player becomes observed by all other players.
Many new items enter this new Heroic tier, and some existing items have been upgraded into this tier. Check out the list:
UPGRADED – Bow of the Master Archer
Cost — 400 AP
Grants +35% crit chance, and +8 attack. Against targets below half HP, your combo attacks will always crit, and your power attacks cost 1 less energy.
NEW – Doogle’s Spellbook
Cost — 400 AP
Grants +3 max energy. Increases all damage you deal outside of combat by 50%, and landing on a meditation square now restores all energy.
NEW – Duelist’s Longsword
Cost — 400 AP
Grants +12 attack. Whenever an opponent critical strikes you, your next power attack is free and heals you for 20% of damage dealt, but cannot crit.
UPGRADED – Emperor’s Breastplate
Cost — 400 AP
Grants +14 defense. Critical strikes against you drain 1 energy from your opponent, and empower your next standard attack to deal double damage.
UPGRADED – Emperor’s Defender
Cost — 400 AP
Grants +12 attack. In battle, you heal for 25% of damage dealt, and your standard attacks are free.
UPGRADED – Enmar’s Time Rod
Cost — 400 AP
Grants +9 attack and defense. Can be activated to reset all your other cooldowns and restore 4 energy. Cannot be used in combat. (5 round cooldown).
UPGRADED – Gladiator’s Stronghelm
Cost — 400 AP
Grants +10 defense, and +35 max health. Can be activated to charge at an enemy, dealing your defense score as damage to them plus 10% of your maximum health Can be used in combat. (2 round cooldown)
UPGRADED – Odnamro’s Greatsword
Cost — 400 AP
Grants +8 attack and +25% crit chance. Your critical strikes deal 20% more damage, and ignore 15% of your opponent’s defense.
NEW – Ramne’s Bulwark
Cost — 400 AP
Grants +10 defense, and +20 max health. All non-combat damage you take is reduced by 50%. Non-combat damage you take that would otherwise be lethal has a 50% chance to be dealt as non-lethal damage instead.
NEW – Monahue’s Righteous Staff
Cost — 400 AP
Grants +4 max energy. When activated, you drain all of your energy. For each point of energy drained, you deal 5 damage to all other players. This damage ignores all defense and refunds 5 energy if the damage kills a target. (5 round cooldown).
ITEM SHOP:
When it comes to the item shop, players rarely get to use items as they see fit and more often than not have to rely on what the shop gives them. Since the shop randomly picks items to display, players don’t get the opportunity to invest in the kinds of items they want but are pressured into buying whatever they can afford. These changes are designed to help the player find the right items for their play-style while getting players more invested in the choices available to them.
Additionally, you’ll now have to be a certain level to access certain items directly within the shop, making leveling up that much more vital to the progression system.
TRIPLE SHOP – Upon visiting the item shop, a player can choose between buying different ‘classes’ of items:
CONSUMABLE — Includes items that restore health, energy, or grant temporary buffs. (Unlocked at start)
BENIGN — Includes items that grant benefits outside of combat. (Unlocked at level 2)
COMBAT — Includes items that aid in combat. (Unlocked at level 3)
HEROIC — Includes superior, high-cost items with dramatic effects. (Unlocked at level 4)
OTHER CHANGES:
The item shop now only displays 5 items at a time. (3 items at a time when in the Heroic shop).
When in the item shop, other players can now see what items are available to the turn player.
When a player enters the item shop, the turn timer is reset to 30 seconds.
The item shop will now strongly prefer to display items that the player does not already own, and items that the player can afford.
AUCTIONS:
Auctions were originally designed to ensure everyone had access to items early on regardless of what squares they landed on, but later in the game auctions would become unnecessary and less competitive due to players having full inventories. With the changes to the item shop however, auctions can be tuned to act more as early game suppliers of items and phase out when players don’t need them anymore.
The following changes have been made:
5-AUCTION RULE – A maximum of 5 auctions can occur per game. After 5 auctions have occurred, all shop squares will behave as normal. During this time, landing on an omni square will no longer grant the option for a player to visit the item shop before 5 auctions have occurred.
HALFTIME RULE – After halftime, regardless of if 5 auctions have occurred or not, all shop squares will behave as normal.
OTHER ITEM CHANGES:
IMPORTANT : All items that have cooldowns and grant stats will not grant their stats while on cooldown. Previously, this only applied to a select few items like AG Pistol or Precision Bow, but be warned: if an item in your inventory is on cooldown, it will not grant any combat stats. Other effects, like bonus AP for rolling, still apply even if the item is on cooldown.
Now, onto specific item changes:
BUFFED – Regenerative Charm
:: Now restores 30% of missing HP per turn. (Up from 20%).
BUFFED – Ol’ Muriel’s Rolling Pin
:: Now grants 2 attack. (Up from 1).
CHEAPER- Quizzle’s Mark
:: Costs 90 AP (Down from 100).
Item Stealing
Item stealing was a novel concept that had big implications for how players should buy items, namely because it created massive swings in net worth very easily and without much player effort. The mere existence of this mechanic also made it necessary for players to either spend large amounts of AP just protecting the items they had or risk losing the game because their prized possession was stolen. By removing the offending items, this creates room for safer player investments and more interesting items down the road.
The following items have been removed:
WHO CARES – Consecrated Sword
NOT FIT FOR COWBOYS – Gibson’s Lasso
NOT FIT FOR ANYONE (Literally) – Gloves of Thievery
OBAMACARE – Premium Insurance Card
TOO CRUSTY – Encrusted Shield
LOST SOULS – Soul Anchor
GENERAL:
HALFTIME BONUS – At halftime, all players now gain 50 AP, and 100 AP is added to the pot.
(JUST) THREE ROUNDS – The “Let there be Justice” halftime event now only lasts for 3 rounds instead of 4, and only effects Omni squares, not Battle squares.
JUST A FLESH-WOUND – All players now restore 5 HP at the end of their turn. (Up from 3).
SCARED CRITLESS – Players no longer start with 5% crit chance.