Greetings from Team Tapas!
First off, we are sincerely grateful to all of you for cherishing and supporting Garden of Witches until now. Your valuable feedback and opinions continue to be a great driving force that helps us to improve the game each day.
Over the past few months, we have been developing Epilogue 2 while refactoring the game’s code and making various adjustments to the systems in the game. As we took another look into our game’s systems, we were struck by several new ideas on how to improve the game. In particular, we explored ways to simplify the weapon, magic, and attribute systems while introducing a new structure that would allow each of Sil’s skills to be more clearly defined with a speciality.
After much contemplation, we have decided to first apply this new system by reworking the existing chapters before implementing it in Epilogue 2.
Due to this change in developmental direction, we will need to delay the Epilogue 2 update that was originally planned for November. However, with the overarching improvements to the game’s systems, we expect the final version of our game to offer a more enjoyable and polished experience.
Below is an outline of our major ongoing updates and our future development direction.
Existing System Overhaul and Structural Improvements
Weapon & Magic Rework and a New Add-on System (tentative name)
Our previous weapon and magic systems had distinct personalities but suffered from limited effective combinations. For example, Giant Scissors only performed well when paired with specific spells and lacked proper synergy with attribute based builds like the “Slash + Summon Doll” build.
To address this issue, we are simplifying the weapon, magic, and attribute systems while introducing a new system called Add-ons, which will offer more specialized build options. You will be able to equip up to three Add-ons to each spell and weapon during or outside a run. Add-ons come in the form of additional damage, supportive effects, and enhancements unique to each weapon and spell.
The effects of Add-ons will replace some of the skill enhancing functions previously offered by attributes and cards while also allowing for new ability and combination options. With the addition of the Add-on System, we expect players will no longer need to follow preset builds, and instead, be able to design and complete their own builds based on their own unique playstyle.
Below are a few examples of Add-ons.
Giant Scissors
#Scissors
Attacks enemies. After a fixed number of hits, the next attack will be a Critical Hit.
Base Stats
DMG: 🗡️200%
Attack SPD: 2 per sec
Range: 5m
CRT Stack Req: 2
CRT DMG Increase: 50%
Add-ons
Increase damage by 50%.
Critical Hit Stack Requirement -1.
Crit DMG +50%.
Increase Sharpness efficiency by 200%. All Sharpness is removed upon hitting with Scissors.
Attack SPD -0.5 per sec. Increase damage by 100%.
...
Ambush
#Spell, #CooldownSkill, #Cast
Moves behind the strongest enemy, before attacking all nearby enemies.
Base Stats
DMG: 🗡️400%
Cooldown: 6s
Cast Time: 0.5s
DMG Range: 3m
Attributes
Scissors: When Ambush inflicts a hit, 60% of Scissors damage is inflicted as additional damage.
Spell: Ambush Damage +30%.
Stack: Max Stack of Ambush +1.
Cooldown: Ambush Cooldown -25%.
Thread: Shoot 1 Needle at all enemies hit by Ambush.
Flower: When Ambush inflicts a hit, spawn 1 Flower.
Crow: When Ambush inflicts a hit, summon 1 Crow.
Blood: When Ambush inflicts a hit, spawn 1 Blood Clot.
Fire: When Ambush inflicts a hit, inflict Burn for 🗡️200% of damage.
Add-ons
Gain 50% Sharpness when inflicting a hit.
When used, become immune to all damage for 0.2s.
Increase DMG by 30% and deal damage in a straight line between Ambush’s start and end points.
When Ambush inflicts a hit, all Threads connected to the Ambush target are severed. Ambush cooldown is decreased by 1s per severed Thread.
When casting Ambush, Flowers within a radius of 5m wilt. Ambush cooldown is decreased by 1s per wilted Flower.
...
Card System Overhaul
The previous Card System granted permanent stat increases through side missions. However, this system functioned less as a rewarding feature and more as a mandatory progression system that forced players to complete side missions for essential growth. Additionally, both the card effects and side mission mechanics were not very intuitive to understand.
With our new Card System, we will redesign cards so they are no longer a core part of builds and are more like supportive elements. To achieve this, we will remove effects that directly enhance skills and replace them with convenient and utility-focused effects. Instead of providing permanent growth, you will be able to select and equip up to three cards (whether you are in a run or not) to help refine and complete your desired builds.
As a result, we will remove the previous side mission card reward structure, and those missions will later be reworked into tutorials or optional challenge content, or removed entirely.
Below are a few examples of new card effects.
+1 Revive Count
+5 Starting Dice Count
+1s Spell Cooldown. +10% Spell DMG.
The Spell in the 2nd Slot can no longer be cast directly, but every time a critical hit is made with Scissors, the Spell in the 2nd Slot is cast automatically.
For the next 3 Attribute selection opportunities, at least one Attribute with the Scissors tag will appear.
For the next 3 Attribute selection opportunities, at least one Attribute with the Spell tag will appear.
…
Meta Progression System Overhaul
Previously, you could only select Sil’s weapon inside of her house. Going forwards, we plan to offer a wider range of pre-run options, allowing you to design the foundation of your build before starting a run. During a run, you will then have a chance to further develop and complete your build.
As you progress through the Chapters, you will unlock various armory slots, enabling you to configure the following elements in Sil’s Armory before entering a run:
1 Weapon
2 Spells
Up to 2 Weapon Add-ons
Up to 2 Spell Add-ons
Up to 2 Cards
With these changes, you will have a more strategic preparation phase before starting a run, and your gameplay experience will vary significantly depending on how you develop your build.
Other System Changes
In addition to the major changes mentioned above, we also have several other updates planned. We’ll briefly introduce some of them here with key points and provide more detailed information later.
Fire Attribute Rework
The Burn effect will now scale based on base attack power, improving its early-game viability and overall elemental balance.
Achievement/Goal System Overhaul
Gold will no longer be obtained through achievements but instead earned directly through runs. Achievements will be converted into point-based rewards that only track progress.
“Charge” Tag Renamed to “Stack”
With the introduction of the new Charge System described below, the term “Charge” gained two meanings. To avoid confusion, we have renamed the existing “Charge” tag to “Stack.”
Other Changes
We will make general improvements across multiple areas. Besides skill and attribute balance changes and reworks, we will enhance the UI/UX, tutorial, and controls and improve the overall systems in the game.
Epilogue 2: New Content Overview
Epilogue 2 is a new chapter that expands the scope of how you can upgrade your build through several new systems centered around the exploration of a new region. The theme is dungeon crawling.
Today, we’d like to introduce a few of this chapter’s key features.
Relic System (Replaces previous relics)
We will be adding over 50 new relics and replacing the previous Relic System.
You will be able to strategize how you want to prepare your build through a Relic Shop and an enhancement/fusion system.
Charge System
We will be introducing a new control mechanic where you can hold down a skill’s button to charge it before casting.
The max charge level of a skill increases based on the number of Stacks (formerly “Charges”) you possess and will amplify various effects.
This system works in tandem with relics, weapons, and spells, providing new depth to both how you use your skills mechanically and how you can build your character.
New Weapons & Spell Variants
We will add a charge-type weapon and alternative versions of existing spells, offering you with even more options to choose from.
Spell variants can be selectively applied to existing spells, and some will completely change the way you use a spell mechanically or even transform them into entirely different skills.
Expanded Special Techniques
We will be introducing special techniques similar to “Maydel’s Gift” from Epilogue 1.
These abilities can synergize with certain relics to generate gauges and unleash powerful effects, enabling playstyles centered around special techniques based on your build.
Below are a few examples.
Charge Scissors(*tentative name)
#Scissors, #CooldownSkill, #Charge
After charging, fire an attack toward the strongest target, dealing damage in a fan-shaped area. The attack repeats based on the amount of charge levels. After a fixed number of hits, the next attack will be a Critical Hit.
Base Stats
DMG: 🗡️400%
Cooldown: 1s
Max Stack: 1
Charge Time: 0.5s
Range: 12m
Angle: 60 degrees
Critical Stack Req: 1
CRT DMG Increase: 50%
Add-ons
Stack +1. DMG per charge level +30%.
Charge SPD +100%. DMG -60%.
Angle +60 degrees. Range +4m.
Range -50%. DMG +100%.
...
Butterfly Walk - Variant
#Spell #CooldownSkill #Charge
Summon 1 Afterimage of Sil per charge level. Each Afterimage will fill a gauge while it tracks enemies and then explodes, dealing AoE DMG based on the amount of gauge accumulated.
Base Stats
DMG: 🗡️250%
Cooldown: 8초
Max Stack: 1
Charge Time: 0.5초
Max Gauge: 200%
Gauge Gain per sec: 150%
DMG Range: 4m
Roadmap and Current Development Progress
Currently, Garden of Witches is undergoing a complete system overhaul alongside the development of new content. Here is how far we are into development:
Code Refactoring (Complete): Foundational overhaul for game and system stability.
Existing Chapter Rework (In Progress): Applying and improving system changes across Chapters 1~5 and Epilogue 1.
Epilogue 2 (System Implementation Stage): Completed all resources. Currently in the system testing phase.
Epilogue 3 (Planned): The final scenario concluding the Epilogue storyline.
End Content (Planned): Removal of the existing Challenge Mode and replacing it with new Challenge Modes. Customization features will also be added.
Official Full Release Target – May 2026
Currently, the new systems introduced in Epilogue 2 are interconnected with the overall system changes we are making to the game. So we are making balance adjustments and conducting tests simultaneously. We may adjust our roadmap depending on our development progress, but we will follow up with more detailed timelines in the future.
Closing Remarks
This rework is not merely a balance adjustment, but a major turning point aimed at making Garden of Witches fundamentally more enjoyable. All of these changes are designed to hopefully give you a freer and more intuitive experience in allowing you to create builds that fit your unique playstyle. We will continue to share key updates and our development direction as we update the game.
If you have any thoughts or suggestions about the new systems and direction of the game, we would greatly appreciate it if you shared them through our Steam Community or Discord. Your feedback is and has always been a great source of motivation for us.
Thank you.