Enemy combat behavior has been reworked from the ground up. This update improves targeting, flanking, dodging, fleeing, ranged logic, and much more. Also includes big fixes for combat feel, collision, and clarity of special effects. Oh — and the game is now officially Crown of Kings.
Smarter Enemy Combat Tactics
Enemy Targeting Tactics
Enemies now select positions around the player rather than charging head-on
Simulates flanking and group tactics instead of a crowded front-row mosh pit
Before attacking, enemies close in on a staging position nearby, then advance — this prevents all enemies from bee-lining at once
Flank Tactics
Fixed animation stuttering caused by competing strafe/walk blend
Enemies now pause briefly after reaching flank range, instead of instantly strafing
Cooldowns added for changing strafe direction after collisions
Flank range now respects both minimum and maximum distance
Collision with obstacles will disrupt flanking and trigger cooldown resets
Dodge Tactics
Enemies now roll in the direction they’re facing (instead of always facing the player)
Dodging now triggers even when an enemy is mid-action (e.g., attacking, aiming, summoning)
Chance to dodge increases as enemy HP drops
Latency fixes for dodge-related scripting
Flee Tactics
Fleeing enemies now find safe zones far enough away to regenerate health
If the player pursues too closely, the enemy can be forced out of Flee state
If regeneration doesn’t kick in within a few seconds, the enemy will seek a new safe zone
Once healed or timeout expires, enemies return to patrol
Ranger Tactics
Completely rewritten for improved AI pacing and reduced overhead
Enemies with ranged weapons now behave more tactically and less chaotically
Stomp Attack
Increased damage to make Stomp attacks feel threatening
Still telegraphed with ample time to dodge — but punishing if ignored!
Ranged Attack Overlap Fix
Enemies can no longer shoot while performing other actions (like melee)
Prevents payloads from spawning with no animation or logic context
No More Shooting Through Walls
Fixed issues with both enemies and players firing through doors or walls
No more free hits through geometry — fight fair or reposition
Improved Visual Feedback & Effects
Curse Cloud Tweaks
Player movement speed now returns within 1–2 seconds after exiting AoE
Previously took much longer to recover — this feels tighter and more readable
Sticky Arrows & Bolts
Projectiles now stick into wood and enemies
Destroy themselves after a few seconds
Enemy hit zones (head, torso, limbs) apply bonus damage
Feels punchy and rewards precision
Sticky Payload Cleanup
Effects and particles on embedded projectiles now deactivate properly
No more floating lights or lingering VFX when stuck arrows expire
Map Visual FX
The map’s background now moves together with the map — like parchment, not a transparent overlay
Trap Conduit Glow
Trap conduits now glow faint red when active
Makes it easier to trace where the trap’s control switch is located
Toggle glow on/off by flipping the trap switch
Controls & Collision Polish
Weapon Collision Interpolation
Weapon hit detection now accurately follows the swing path using fixed interpolation
Raycasts were previously misaligned — now fixed and verified to be working as intended
Xbox Controller Fix
Walking slowly with the stick no longer causes foot-slide
Animations now scale down naturally instead of freezing
Doorway Bottlenecks (Partial Fix)
Navmesh and crowding logic improved slightly
Still some pushing/vibrating when >5 enemies compete for a choke point
Ongoing work — will improve in future builds
World Systems & Dungeon Improvements
Lich King Boss Placement
Lich King will no longer appear in random dungeons (this was not intended in previous builds)
Now reserved only for the final arena battle at the end of Act 1
Summoner Variety
Occultists and Liches now summon multiple mob types
Instead of just 1 unit type, they now summon from a variety of low-level mobs at random
Early Dungeon Simplification
Special abilities and advanced tactics are disabled in early dungeons
This includes the intro dungeon and Act 1’s opening Lich King scene
Prevents overwhelm and helps new players adjust
Lockpick Shortage Solved
Mines & Caves now spawn more lockpicks (finally!)
Additional spawns added to other dungeons too
Fewer blocked chests, more satisfying loot runs
Workbench Rubies
Fixed issue where only 1 of 3 rubies could be picked up
Now collects all rubies on the first click
Act 1 Future Plans
Act 1 Completion In Progress
Still developing the final arena with the Lich King showdown
Once complete, players will be able to “leave” Act 1 by talking to a ship captain
Quest Variety & Village Upgrades
Collection quests are being revised to feel more natural
Town NPCs will begin offering meaningful clues and evolving dialogue
Considering a character journal that fills in as you uncover lore and secrets
A New Name for a Bigger Game
The biggest change this update?
The name.
What began as Go Deep Or Go Home is now officially:
Crown of Kings
A more fitting title for the game’s world, structure, and long-term vision. The change is now fully live across the demo, hub, and Steam store.
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Thanks again for playing —
— The Almighty Games Team