Greetings Mercenaries, Your eyes do not deceive you: crossbows are coming to Wartales, for free! As a bit of context for newcomers, crossbows have probably been the most requested (or at least way up there) feature since early access. We know a lot of you have waited a long time to see them added to the game, and we thank you for your patience! We are happy with the current design and wanted to share a little introduction to the class ahead of their addition in a free update on December 10th, the same day as The Skelmar Invasion release.
Unlike traditional crossbow mechanics, which often alternate between firing and reloading every other turn, this class uses a unique "Loaded" and "Empty" system. When the crossbow is "Loaded" it can fire. After firing, it becomes "Empty" and needs to reload before it can fire again.
The dexterity-based class starts with a basic “Shoot” attack that can be replaced with a new attack at level three. For example, the Multi-Shot attack deals damage to the target and attacks one additional time for each “Reload” this unit has performed in the same turn.
A “Reload” can be triggered multiple times in the same turn thanks to passive skills that are unlocked as your Crossbowman levels up or that are tied to the crossbow itself, this is unlike any other weapon in Wartales as they all have attack skills tied to them.
At level five, these passive skills build upon the "Reload" mechanic by introducing effects or bonuses triggered by reloading, how often the unit reloads, or whether the unit is in a "Loaded" state at the end of its turn. At level eight, the skills introduce new ways to trigger reloading such as applying status effects, landing critical hits, or using different abilities. The right skills can lead to deadly combos.
Don’t be fooled into thinking that the Crossbowman must maintain its distance with enemies like its ranged cousin the archer. The class can equip medium (and light) armour, and if paired with the right passives and weapon, can get up close and personal to devastating effect.
The Crossbowman is a versatile and dynamic addition to the mercenary roster that can shift the momentum of an engagement.
Once again mercenaries, we thank you for your feedback and can’t wait to see what interesting builds and combinations you’ll be able to create with the new class!
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- Shiro Games