Ahoy, Sky Sailors!
We recently shared the first part of our update Devlog, where we dove into technical improvements and new features coming to Aloft: progression tech trees, ecosystem changes, Life Saplings, Life Trees, and the new world generation. That Devlog also contained important information about your saves, so please be sure to check it out if you haven’t already.
We also recently announced the update’s title and release date: Bloom & Blight, which ships on November 4th!
We’re now back to deliver part 2 of the Devlog focusing on corruption, enemies, and research – let’s take a look!
CORRUPTION STRAINS & NODES
As you may know, the world of Aloft is plagued by a mysterious and infectious fungal corruption that aims to completely overtake ecosystems by preying on other fungi, but also on fauna and flora.
This corruption manifests in multiple strains – distinct tiers of corruption, each with its own appearance, enemies, and level of threat.
Currently, the Mykter strain has spread across the world, but going forward it will be found exclusively in Emerald Isles, leaving room for new, more dangerous strains to emerge.
We will soon be introducing two new corruption strains: Sportox and Flogade!
Sportox will be found invading Fallen Heights and recognised by its bright orange bulbs and toxic spore fumes.
Flogade will be found infesting Red Cliffs and recognised by its black tissue, jagged spikes, and scorching red-hot ooze.
Our infamous corruption nodes will also come in Flogade and Sportox versions. Further, nodes are being reimagined as an exploration challenge – instead of being chained to the node’s trunk, weak points will be scattered across the island as corruption cores.
You’ll need to explore and hunt down 2–5 cores before the node itself becomes vulnerable to attack. Careful, enemies will be chasing you down along your path! Once all the cores are destroyed, the node will weaken, opening the way for you to strike the final blow and cleanse the island.
NEW ENEMY STRAINS
Sportox & Flogade enemies have entered the chat! That’s right sailors, prepare to battle stronger tiers of Guardians, Cowards, and Shriekers! These new monsters will spawn in Fallen Heights and Red Cliffs.
The new enemies will also have strain-specific special effects: the Spore Cloud and the Scorching Ground!
Sportox enemies will unleash Spore Clouds, a drifting haze that will hang ominously above the ground. Any player caught within it will suffer the Asphyxiated condition, taking steady damage as toxic spores choke the air around them.
Flogade enemies will ignite the Scorching Ground, a fiery hazard on the battlefield. Players who step into it will suffer the Scorched condition, taking an initial burst of damage followed by ongoing burn damage over time.
NEW TOOLS & WEAPONS
To face these new fungi, we’re tooling you up with stronger gear: Windstone and Serrated Bone tools!
Windstone tools will deal more damage than their regular stone counterparts and will have a larger combo zone, making it easier to chain combos and land powerful hits!
Serrated Bone tools will be the strongest of all the tool tiers. Their combo finale will deal increased damage, letting you strike with the greatest force!
RESEARCH & BREWING LABS
Research will now require a special new resource from corrupted islands: the Corruption Anomaly! These strange, bubbling anomalies will pulse and glow across corrupted islands.
Take these anomalies, along with Mykter, Sportox, and Flogade samples back to your Research Lab to experiment with and earn Breakthroughs.
Breakthroughs can be spent on the Research Tech Tree to learn various cure-related technologies, such as Brewing Labs and Terrariums. Each biome will have two tiers of Brewing Labs – tier one labs will concoct the fungicide, but only the upgraded tier two labs will be advanced enough to brew the cure!
That wraps up part 2 of our Bloom & Blight Devlog!
Thank you for reading and for continuing to share your thoughts and feedback. Your input has been invaluable in shaping Aloft’s new systems and enemy encounters!
We can’t wait to see you take on Sportox and Flogade foes when Bloom & Blight launches on November 4th. Until then, keep your sails high and your blades sharpened, Sky Sailors! 💙