Dev-log

Hello everyone!

Here comes another dev-log

What I've been working on

• Adding more maps (had to make a whole system to load maps in runtime, which have taken most of my time since last patch)
• Made tools for map-making. that will make it easier to create or modify maps. e.g. made so the hills are twice as large (they looked so silly small before), and can "paint" it with one brush.
• Increased the pace of the game, so made the player & units move and hit faster (it almost felt like a turn-based game :P) (let me know if you prefer the old pace, if so, then I could just make a game lobby setting for chill/fast).
• Meta progression is no longer gained from "gained in-game xp" (e.g. killing units or destroying enemies buildings) but instead from completing or the progress on quests (atm. only for clearing regions of hostiles, more to come!)
  • The previous system encourages players to wake as many camps as possible, that you can hold out against, and then stop pushing forward, not only for it to become the "best way to gain meta-progression" (farming), but the "mentality" of it whole. As it made the player discouraged in destroying an enemy base (by you, or your allies), which I want the other way around. Should feel rewarding with pushing forward, building outposts at the frontier and trying your limit. And to finish a game to start a new match (except maybe, if you/your allies push too fast for you to hold). Even more so later, when maps will have much more random elements to them.
  • So completing parts of a quest will give progress, and a large bonus for each fully completed quest, so best progression would be completing a full round)
  • Will add side-quests that will also reward with meta-progress.

• Also made that you get twice as much meta-progression xp for completing a round in ~45 min with the current playable version map-size (much more on the updated map).
  
• Equipment more impactful - they really felt (and kinda still feels) like a "small-stats-bonus of choice". I would really like them to "pre-shape" the playstyle the player wants, rather than a "bonus start-talent". If any of you know of another game to get inspiration, or have any ideas yourself, please let me know, I gladly listen to your tips & suggestions :D. As I'm not satisfied with the current system.
  

What I'm currently working on

• Balancing
• Making the initial map twice as big, and open up more paths for making the map more connected.
• More maps, some with unique behaviour
  • small / start-map, if you want just a small 15-20 min game, and to keep it simple
  • Map where you have to hold out for a time before a rescue, hopefully before you are overwhelmed.
  • Map you win by protecting x-amount of caravans.

• Side-quests
  
• Improved Pathfinding for AI
  
• New unit behaviour (Some units will no longer "push forward & attack all hostiles in their path"), e.g. units will have more distinguished "styles". E.g. Axe-throwers lost half attack range, but gained double attack speed
  
• The previous Berserker-unit with poison, will now be split into two units (I never felt it fit the bill):
  • Core Barbarians will get"Berserker" - same as before, but without poison
  • Barbarian's "poison/subrefuge subfaction" will get: Assassins - Don't have the berserk ability, but stealth, poison and will focus on "targets of high priority" (e.g. the player and squishy units like mages)

Things I will focus on after I finish my current tasks

• More abilities for wizard (want it "90% done" before 0.8)
• More interesting bosses / mini-bosses.
• More defensive utilities for your enemies

Unsolved future problem

But, I have one nasty issue, what do you all think of the game-mechanic/gameplay of placing buildings? I think it is really tedious, especially with all the small buildings.
But I thought it felt "ok" atm, but that was before I was thinking of making towers upgradable. So I thought if it was a little tedious to build all, then I would also have to return to all towers again to upgrade them (even multiple times, as they will have multiple stages). Then it would be way worse. (hold-my-beer-meme).

So I am planning on remaking the building system, so they are no longer insta-built, but you instead tell your allies you want a building on a building lot, and then they send out a worker to construct it. And also not making buildings "auto-repair themself", but a worker goes out to repair as well.

Solution 1

So with this new feature, so do I have one soothing solution for to the tedious-building-problem, that your allies run out and take care of planning & building all the “small buildings” completely, and the player only have to build the larger ones (Medium & Large)
e.g. in the playable version, so would they then build towers & small farms (I've not decided if it should be fully random, or designated spots, probably the latter).

But the last “level” of towers can be one of two variants: an aoe-tower or strong vs single-target, so it complicates the solution,
So here I have two "sub-solutions":

• The player is responsible for what variant the tower will get for its last level.
• The AI takes care of it as well.

What do you think? Would you like to have full control? Only the last step? Or none at all. Maybe a game lobby setting:

• Allies will do all the planning & construction
• Allies will only take care of small buildings (including variants)
• Allies will only take care of small buildings (excluding variants)
• The player has full control on what to build at each building lot.

Solution 2

Second solution, by removing the manual-placing buildings all together and instead making a new system where the player instead decides what each region should be its focus, e.g. the Player has cleared region 2 and now can decide if it should be agriculture, military or a defensive position. And with region 3 can the player choose it to be either Mercantile or Military, and then allies will build "that type of region" (e.g. fill all building slots with corresponding type).

Solution 3

Maybe something between solution 1 & 2? The player designates the region what to focus on, BUT all large buildings have to be placed by the player (but they are theme-based, e.g. no large fortress in an agriculture region, but maybe A market, Huge farm or stables).

Solution 4

Or "simply", make a map-view which pauses the game & let you interact with all build sites & placed buildings, so you can do it "on the battlefield". (this would take a lot of time).

But this is atm. just a "minor issue" as we don't have upgradable buildings yet. Which will come in a later patch. But I really liked the second solution which designates a region to be of a type, or maybe the 3rd solution to also have a minor control on what to build where. As it otherwise is sooo much running back and forth between all regions, which I at least think, makes the game into a walking-simulator :P. But let me know what you think, maybe most of you really like to have full control on what to build where and manually have to place it. In the end, maybe we all are on the "whole spectrum" so maybe that game lobby setting to decide which style to have, solve it completely :).

And as always, please don't hold back, and let me know if you have any suggestions for things you want added, changed or removed (E.g. Even "negative critique" can bring light on an issue I've not even noticed). It is so easy to get tunnel-vision as a solo-dev. And almost all discussion about the game is with you guys, so you have my sincere gratitude for that, and most of all, thanks for reading this far and/or for playing the game!