Alaloth: Champions of the Four Kingdoms - isometric action RPG with dynamic overworld

[zapotec]

New gameplay

There are a lot of Areas in the map but i bet 100 euro that they are all micro-sized

 

[Langendorf]

New gameplay

Has anyone found out if it really plays like a clunky pre-alpha, snail-paced version of Hades or is it a matter of that player not being able to navigate his character properly? To awkwardly demonstrate how difficult it's supposed to be or god knows why else.

 

[Black_Willow]

Alalololol

 

[GloomFrost]

So it got Dark Souls combat and you need a controller to play it properly and YET it is "inspired by BG and pillars" what the hell???? Just be honest and say that it is a Diablo clone with some fancy combat mechanics and nice looking 2d backgrounds.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

83 minute review:
meh

if you're having trouble because you're getting fucked up in combat, use parry more and dodge less

the rpg side of the game is... meh.

 

[Acrux]

I was so hyped for this game but then I booted it up and was welcomed by the message: "this game is best played using gamepad". I have never been so disappointed. That's some serious popamole gameplay probably.

e: The intro begins something like "There were four kingdoms, one of them The Republic of Larastir".... Doesn't sound like a kingdom to me.

e2: Ugh I need to be able to use the mouse more. Can't even use it in menus.

Agree 100%. I do not understand this trend of releasing games for PC with terrible mouse (or no) support.

 

[1451]

Another cool game I am not gonna touch until they finish it.
Last Epoch has been on early access for three years now, for example.

 

[cyborgboy95]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/919360/view/3325361214988238995

Hotfix live and a few info to get the best from your feed and bug report!

Hello Champions!

This update should have been posted tomorrow to be honest. It should had been something like The Day After or such and it was scheduled with a very different idea in mind. Someone says that life is what happens when you are busy with plans and of course it is so damn true. Long story short: we've been literally overwhelmed by questions, reports, comments etc. following the launch. We didn't expect this kind of reaction and we are super happy about this. Anyway, great powers mean great responsability [cit. once again], so the celebration moment we set for the evening, turned into the very first iteration with the community for our game. And it was amazing. Positive reviews are coming in but we can say that we are even happy of bad reviews so far, because everyone confirmed, in a way or another, that what we had in mind is real and working when playing. And this is amazing. Of course there is a lot of work to do but releasing has been like breathing fresh air after years closed in a room with no windows [to be shared with an idiot roommate...but this is a different story]. So first thing first: we've fixed a few bugs following reports [you can find the changelog below] but we are here to ask for extra help as we already did before launch. Let's clarify a few things again than: we are sincerely humbled by the love we received these days, and we hope to gather feeds on how you are going to hold our game from now on.

Anyway, as a small team, it can be challenging to keep an eye on multiple platforms at the same time and for this reason we strongly recommend posting feedbacks and bug reports on our official Discord server. We promise you that all the threads posted there will be read. We also pay close attention to the board here [so use this topic in the future] but we cannot guarantee that we will see bug reports elsewhere. Once you are in Discord[www.discord.gg], look for #bug-report channel in the Early Access section.

The build you are playing features a debug tool that allows you to take a dump of any issue you could experience. Just press F5 anytime something weird happens. This is going to create a file into your PC, allowing us to fix it asap. The file is stored here: %USERPROFILE%/AppData/LocalLow/GameraInteractive/Alaloth/Dumps

AppData could be an hidden folder, if you can't find it immediately.

Please refer to the same channel for any bug-related issue. You can find two more channels to post your feeds in but even suggest the features you would like to see implemented on the way.

We know that not everyone is happy to jump on Discord but we need a place in which we can store and list the files you are going to upload through our debug tool.

CHANGELOG

• - Fixed Teleporting Dodge bug
• - Fixed Faster than Light quest bug
• - Clips blocking players in the title menu when running the game are now working properly.
• - Sleeping costs in tavern are now ok
• - Repair All Cost is now fixed
• - Scales of the Saurian armor is now rare as it was supposed to be
• - Dark Knight Armor removed from blueprint of Goldport Blacksmith as inteneded
• - Food vendor in Goldport now properly interactable [dialogue to be fixed in next Hotfix]
• - Abarneth the Unknown no more in T POSE in Gashak tavern
• - Vendors stocks updated

Most important fixes done are in bold. We are setting manually every single vendor stock in the game to give the best consistency among lore, char, places and so on. Luckily we found a way to fix clips not working well and preventing someone from running the game properly. It was on Unity side, version-related issue. Now everyone can play properly! Expect more tomorrow. 3AM now here, let us sleep for a few hours before going back to work.

Thank you and share the love!

Follow our official channels to stay up to date:
Like Alaloth on Facebook[www.facebook.com]
Follow Alaloth on Twitter
Check out our Steam page

[discord.com]

 

[The_Sloth_Sleeps]

 

[Softgels]

"This game is best played using a gamepad"

 

[ERYFKRAD]

"This game is best played using a gamepad"

They say the same thing about Yakuza and it don't matter none.

 

[Echo Mirage]

 

[The Wall]

Devs promised full mouse support, few hours ago. That'll be their #1 priority

 

[cyborgboy95]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/919360/view/3325361214990258688

Full support on the way soon but hey, it works already!

Hello Champions!

Just a quick post following feedbacks we received in less than 24 hours since launch. As you know, we already released an Hotfix fixing a major issue related to cut-scenes and clips [codecs related]. By the way, we decided to go on with a new update to clarify a bit the mouse & keyboard stuff because a lot of people is discussing here and on Discord. We read around "this game doesn't support mouse & keyboard" which is not correct at all. The mouse is elegible to be used by the game as an input source to perform actions when the mouse & keyboard layout is active. Normally this layout is automatically enabled when the game detects input from a keyboard/mouse device, and in the same fashion the pad layout is enabled when the game detects input from a gamepad device.

Currently, the mouse can be used to perform some combat actions (heavy and light attack, target locking, zoom in/out), and scrolling in some scrollbar UIs.

Mouse cursor is not available for any interaction with UI or combat. Currently it is not possible to use the in-game remap functionalty for mouse & keyboard to move mouse actions on keyboard, or viceversa.

A lot of people is enjoying the game using the currently supported set-up for mouse & keyboard functionality .

Is it the best set-up for mouse & keyboard? No, it's not. Are we going to improve it? Yes, we are. Roadmap with next steps will be shared next week and this is one of the most important fix to do on our side. So why we decided to go like this? Well, as you know, we had to rush almost every single release-related activity since we've got publishing rights back and we decided to go out as soon as possible with EA, bringing on the table a playable game with tons of contents since D1. We decided to put contents on prio, considering this is not a simple work, planning to improve the support on the way and releasing something working, anyway . So we can confirm that mouse & keyboard setup does work now even if not state-of-the-art and we are going to offer full mouse support soon, so don't despair fellows PC players!

Hope this helps, news on the way soon [and a new Hotfix on its way later on today!]

 

[cyborgboy95]

 

[cyborgboy95]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/919360/view/3325361936004438276

We have a plan!​

Hello Champions

Following the latest update we published celebrating a week into Early Access, we are here again to give you an overview of what's going on with the development, sharing the roadmap we've drafted in these crazy busy days. We've already gathered tons of super amazing feeds about the game and gone through every single post with suggestions and critics. We are still overwhelmed by the incredible support you are giving us and all of this will help the team to build the game we've always wanted, since the beginning of this journey. Looking at people playing hours and hours and reading reviews witnessing that our vision has been embraced by so many people is literally hearthwarming. Thank you for that! Before going on with the plan, we want just anticipate a few things you are going to see with the upcoming patch [out tomorrow]. We've already put in workbenches in Safe Zones and Repair Kits will be available all around the kingdoms. Workbenches will work as shrines, more or less. Buy a kit, use it on the workbench, done. All items equipped will gain +1 durability. We are thinking about adding new traits for crafting in the future but this is just a first step, following what a great number of players were asking for. The same is for the new Legacy Mode, available for who defeated Alaloth already. It is a fancy mode that will let you create your house, customizing your banner, motto and starting city by lore. We are aiming to expand this in the future, making the world reactive to you wearing your colors. DualShock users will have now the right UI with correct inputs popping in-game when plugging their pad and last but not least, we've added 67 new achievements for hunters, bringing the total to 83. Other things have been fixed of course, all the details will be notified with the new changelog as usual. Time to move on with the hot stuff than!

First of all, we have to say this post is just to give you a general overview of what we are working on. We are not going to slow down with patches, so we've just put in the features that are going to take a bit more time, Bug fixing, new contents, balancing etc. will be on-going till the end, no need to underline this, hopefully. This means that plans may change moving on with the development and things listed Beyond for example, could happen in a few days [or in months], according to development needs. The idea is to update the roadmap on monthly basis, given that you are going to get updates almost daily on our channels and the same updates will be posted here too as soon as we decide something.

STRONGHOLDS
Strongholds have been thought to be your personal hub with access to stash, bed, kitchen and personal shrine. We have a few NPC here at the mo, you can't interact with. The counselor will allow you to customize your home upgrading furnitures and unlocking other special NPC visiting you time by time. Leveling-up, a personal smith will be available as well as a barber [to customize your aspect] and you'll be able to collect taxes as any noble in the Four Kingdoms. We are still working on the customization, because it's a bit of work to do with assets but we are aiming to 3/4 different layouts for each Stronghold. And we are open to put in special layouts and furnitures in the future

WORLD MAP UPDATE #1
We've built Plamen in a very modular way. The update will bring four new locations on the map with unique characters and quests available. Rockstarn is where The Mercantile Union has its own HQ. The port is where all official businesses are conducted to the benefit of the Union and the Kingdom. Merchants and ships come and go, but the Union always remains, forever amassing wealth and power.

Mountain Hand is owned by Clan Teres-Toil, the mines have supplied the stone and metal that built the first halls of Karak-Hohn. Thousands of years later the mines are still revered for their massive yield.

Fal'Thalas is the former home of a druids' clan that was wiped out by the Ver'Quintiss. The Gardens have been taken by the Vas'Yilien who tend to the crops of those that came before while waiting for their seer to return.

Arrowtooth lies on top of this cliff and among these tents the orcs gather to air their grievances against one another. With the help of the Tahred the orcs make peace or war, or better yet, joined together for battle against an outside force.

FULL SUPPORT FOR MOUSE & KEYBOARD
Ok, we had a problem here but let us explain once again what's happened with this, because it's very important. We explained all the issues we had on the way many times and by the end of April, we had to make some choices. These choices brought us to the release on June 30. We sat down and evaluated all the options. At time, we were in a very bad position because we had to build-up an emergency plan for the release more than anything else. It was about surviving and giving sense to all the efforts to make Alaloth happen. Someone rightfully argued about the partial support for mouse & keyboard, but we were not mad and moving on this way was just to be able to release as soon as possible with some weeks to market the game properly. Full mouse & keyboard support was simply delayed because it's not an easy task and in our long term vision, it is completely bond to a rework of the UI. The situation now is very different so it's way more easy to confirm that full support will be available in September. In the meantime, we are patching again by the end of the week, improving what is already in. With the patch arriving at the end of the week, you will be able to customize the assignment of default keyboard actions to mouse buttons, and default mouse actions to keyboard buttons.

NEW MOBS, ITEMS, LOOTS AND IMPROVED MAIN QUEST
Easy as it is: as you know the world of Plamen is huge and it's an amazing box to be filled with amazing contents. We have a number of mobs ready to join the army of Alaloth, as well as new NPC and special chars. We've almost done in putting in all the items we consider as a sort of Layer 1 and we are close to 800 different assets to interact with, including weapons, armors, wereables, consumables, mounts, quest items etc. This not means that we are going to stop and there is a bunch of new cool stuff on its way for vendors, loot tables and rewards. The main quest already received some improvements with a new cutscene introducing The Fifth Kingdom through Vaizmil's words. We are going to put in some new steps to be able to enter the endgame area, making the journey way more connected to the lore and the chars, introducing more of the pantheon and some other tasks to make things more challenging.

BEYOND...
These are just ideas we are discussing since a while, even considering feeds we've gathered in these first days. The Arena Mode was a thing since the very beginning, trying to understand what we can do with this. We could say that an arena is already in-game and it will be available at some point, but we are talking about a stand alone mode here, offering many opportunities in terms of local coop and such. Thought about something omaging the old arcade cabinets: think about a Street Fighter-like UI with the chance of playing using all the champions available from the houses in-game or importing the save to use your char against them or mobs and such. We'll talk about this later. We already had the chance to explain about localization too and our store page contains all the info about this. New languages are a prio and by the end of the summer we should be able to plan something with a ratio, using the data collected through sales. We had some really cool surprises in a few countries [hello Turkey! Hello Brasil!] and we are carefully evaluating all the options. Dubbing is a different thing, it will be English only but the idea is to start with the narration, the main char and companions moving on step by step. The same for companions and local coop: we have a few ideas to improve this, given that in the next weeks companions will be tweaked to make them pivotal in combat. Last but not least: dragons. Big boss fights waiting, heroes and legends to be told.

Size comparison & VFX testing

MISC
As said above, this update is just a sort of recap of the things we would like to do and we are going to do in the next months. There is much more and again, expect new stuff and fixes with every patch to come. We are now on numbers, balancing the combat sys, the mobs, the weapons, the items. You can expect changes in your inventory with new patches, changing rarity and values of what you've acquired on the way. We are actively working on keeping your saves ok and if something risky is going to happen, you'll be aware of it. We are actively working on our Discord server to introduce a small meta-game to be even more involved in the development and we are going to have polls about in-game contents to add. The iterations we are having on Discord[www.discord.gg] are amazing but we really need a change of policy there, to make things easier for both you and us. We literally received hundreds of messages and gone through every single DM but this is something we can't handle anymore as we can't handle flooding on different channels that are supposed to be used properly. More info about these changes coming soon.

Share the love and stay tuned!

 

[cyborgboy95]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/919360/view/6232436041609562479

Let's talk about lore!

Hello Champions!!

A crazy busy week started yesterday for the team, because of GamesCom. The event is on its way end of August, and we decided to go back to Germany, after our last appearance in 2019. We’ll be attending the event to meet all the people in touch with us to know more about our future plans for Alaloth. It will be a good moment to meet press and creators as well and we are cooking something cool for them. We are going to say more about GamesCom in future updates, but we want to focus on something else right now.
We’ve been very active from May on, and we sent out 7 patches following the release.
We gathered tons of feeds and had the chance to talk about things going on, features, fixes, future updates, our roadmap and so on but it’s time to talk about the RPG stuff again. We spent time discussing options to improve the combat sys but there is a whole huge world we’ve worked on and that will be expanded in the next months. We are proof reading quests again right now, playing every single one again and again and iterating. We’ve put in many new quest rewards, polished dialogues, added timelines and tried to make quests more and more structured for players asking about this.
We read your feeds on writing of course and we are actively working on it. 99% of the games around must be considered player-centered: the whole story evolves around the player, his choices, his actions. We do have something like this, but quests are way more streamlined when compared to other big games of course. We did this choice to work on something different, trying to stay in between old and new, as we tried to do for the combat system.
The game is world-centered, player just live in Plamen, and things happen. Events could be missed, some chars encounters could be missed during a run, and so on. We thought it was cool to move on with something like this and this is something we really want to push in the future, adding many new different events to the calendar, to be able to give you all massive surprises we are going to discuss for sure, updating the roadmap later this summer.
Who said large scale battles? New mobs? New FA? We didn’t. Yet.
Anyway, it’s time to talk about Plamen again, sharing the chronology of events that led to the summon of the best champions of the Four Kingdoms to defeat Alaloth, the Great Betrayer. As you know, the world lore has been created by Chris Avellone [races, cities, pantheon, companions, special chars, legends] and our team started from his work to deliver the game as it is today. This is a timeline of events that you can read about in-game, through Lore Characters, quests, dialogues, and barks all around the world.


BLOOD & BIRTH: THE CHAOS OF CREATION

In the times before the calendars of the Four Kingdoms, there existed only chaos. Swirling raw, elemental matter at war with each other. From this chaos, a consciousness came into being. This conscious became the All-Father. All-Father achieves Consciousness Amidst the Chaos of Creation.
It is said in ancient holy texts that the All-Father existed for some time, unnamed, as a great power fueled only by instinct, but when the first drop of his blood was shed, a new act of creation resulted, and he gained the name All-Father.
From his blood, the gods, beasts, and the mortal races were born. The histories of this time are clouded, for language did not exist in the consciousness as a concept until the Mother-of-Betrayers came to be...and it grew from that moment on. It is believed that the precursor race to the Dwarves was also given form during this time.

THE FIRST ERA
This Era encompasses a time believed to be three millennia before Alaloth’s Descent

The All-Father’s battle with the elements of chaos shed blood onto different aspects of the chaos–stone, shadow, light, and more, creating the First Pantheon. Each of the All-Father’s drops of blood burned into an element, granting it the same passion and desire for battle as the All-Father's.
Each one fused with and took on an aspect of conflict: Storms, Fury, Flame, Purifying Light, Nature’s Wrath, Eldritch Energy, and more. Among them was Vaizmil, The Luminous Spear of Morning, The Champion of Purifying Light: the All-Father’s favored daughter.
The last of the Pantheon, the Mother of Betrayers, was born from the All-Father’s shadow that was cast by Vaizmil’s light. The Mother’s strength, stemming from the All-Father himself, was powerful indeed, and while the others of the Pantheon were considered sons and daughters, she granted herself a greater title and assumed the role of mother

THE ECLIPSE

It is said that when the Mother was created, there was a great eclipse. The Elves called it the Shield over the Sun, others called it the Executioner of Light. When the ecplise passed, the races began to invent their language, all while the first iteration of the group known as the Spectral Circle came to be. The Orcish matriarchs were beset by visions (that they shared with no one, but joined them like a web across the orc tribes), and the Ver’Ethier, the Dark Elves, were born in a world without light.

THE PANTHEON

The new gods fought alongside the All-Father, giving form to the chaos around them. The Mother of Betrayers, however, slowly and secretly brought conflict into the Pantheon, jealous of the power that the All-Father wielded.

THE TIDES OF SPLIT KINGDOMS

The mortal races of the four split kingdoms struggled, forming empires and having them fall over many centuries. The Sariqi Caliphate, the empire to the South of the world map, where Iln-Ashah is from, was one such kingdom. The Split Kingdoms lost contact with them over the years, and then completely after Alaloth’s Descent. Very little is left of the histories of the races, except among the Elves, who kept them hidden, presumably out of shame. Many of the practices of Elves and the layout of their kingdom is unchanged since Alaloth’s descent with some exceptions.

THE RETREAT

The Retreat was once something greater: the promise of a new life beyond the mortal realms. The Elves would construct great ships to carry them to their next life. When the Fifth Kingdom was granted to the mortal races, the Elves took it as a sign that the next life was to be achieved in the mortal realms, ceasing the Retreat. With Alaloth’s Descent, however, the Retreat began again but as a means of ending one’s existence.
The Ver’Quintiss came into being, elven paladins that sought purity of spirit and judgment. They were great soldiers and philosophers in elvish society, but when Alaloth came to the mortal realms, they changed from their purpose to inquisitors and executioners, blaming their own people for Alaloth’s triumph.
It was nearly three centuries after Alaloth’s Descent before their fire for punishment died out. The Dwarves fared better than most kingdoms, for they found homes in the abandoned caverns of a precursor race, who built great roads beneath the earth and then vanished. The Dwarves follow their example, and use the already excavated sites to build cities and practice their trade.

THE SECOND ERA
Human Calendar Begins. A time of conquest, battles and bloodshed. The Era shaped what would become of The Split Kingdoms, their borders and government birthed here and now. Humans have recorded their wars and the battles of others, although the latter is left with less details.

4 SE

War breaks out around the continent: Edherest, Larastir, Karak-Hohn, and the Orc kingdom, first named The Teeth of Maknor take up arms against each other, for new territory and for total domination over the entire world. The central piece, the land between them, where the Fifth Kingdom will one day be created, is up for grabs.

32 SE

Initial skirmishes occur around the land between them, and while the cost of lives stays low for now, the tension for bigger campaigns grows to extreme levels.

40 SE

Karak-Hohn seizes the mines all around its territories and reigns supreme over metal mining operations, which leaves the rest at a disadvantage. The other kingdoms are left with inferior weaponry, albeit larger numbers.

48 SE

The Kingdom of Edherest lay siege to the territories of Karak-Hohn, but due to the mountainous terrain they are unable to hold out for long. But when threats from other kingdoms came as well, the dwarves extended their hand in peace, trading some of their metal to sustain peace in its region.

67 SE

The Teeth of Maknor begin to raid both Larastir and Edherest, causing considerable damage to the villages outside the major cities. The humans find the orcish terrain harder to navigate and are unable to retaliate.

80 SE

Edherest fortifies the western front against the orcs with a series of towers and building Westwall at its border. To increase stability and strength, the king gives more privileges to the Houses, allowing them to manage their own estates as long as they are loyal to him.

143 SE

The armies of Larastir are quick to take over the area of the Fifth Kingdom, claiming it as theirs by divine right. They hold strong as the other kingdoms unite in battle to break the elven fortifications.

170 SE

The newly conquered territory knew nothing of peace for years, and finally it fell to a combined assault from all the other races, many lives were lost on the elven side, but the rest suffered greatly as well. All kingdoms decided that they are not strong enough to hold the territories.

228 SE

The orc king, grandson to the legendary Maknor, falls in battle to King Aigen of Edherest, bringing an end to the Teeth of Maknor. The orcs retreat, not out of fear, but because of a change in leadership.

320 SE

Larastir descends into chaos as the different elven races vie for power over the republic, each distrusting the other. At the end of the conflict, the dark elves are left at the bottom of the food chain in elven society and the racial divide widens. The Ver'Quintiss help negotiate peace among the elves.

351 SE

Lord Dorgrad the Vicious Gardin takes over Coldwood in a bloody conquest, slaughtering the local house and ending its existence. He establishes his house there and starts a fearful regime.

372 SE

Descending from the mountains, Jukwar Clarimond and his house came to Whitewind, proclaiming it their new home. The house fought bravely during the conflicts of the Second Era, losing many along the way.

443 SE

The Siege, a decade-long war against a horde of the dead led by the necromancer Kariasha, ends with The Battle of Argent Vale. Lord Hileon Bardolph is named Shield of The North by King Eadan II.

544 SE

The Mother-Daughter War, a 10 years naval conflict between The Lords of The Isles and the Orc Kingdom, then known as the Hand of Dojhmarin ends with House Sedlak establishing themselves in Baystone, taking control of the trade routes in the bay area.

644 SE

Galvin Nordin proclaimed Great Chamberlain of Edherest. His house protects the North and stands as a vanguard against many threats that the kingdom faced.

666 SE

Edwan the Conqueror's army invades the Orc Kingdoms, then known as the Eye of Greija. The Balmont retain the title of Protector of Edherest, giving them prestige and renown second only to the royal family in the kingdom.

692 SE

Some Northern Houses in Edherest band together in emigrating to the unknown lands of the northern sea, there they form the North Sea Empire, a trading colony far away in a distant island.

745 SE

Lord Raffin Balmont, celebrated as one of the fiercest warriors of all time, falls alongside King Eadan III and many others such as Deihn Ballawold and his twin sons. The Balmont family holds the city of Mayfalls.

810 SE

A bloody feud started between the Ballawold and the Wilenkels, after Feihn Ballawold executed four Wilenkel soldiers for stealing cattle.

834 SE

Willeon Wilenkel led the Wilenkel Army and was defeated on the field by the Ballawold troops at the Ypril Hill.

965 SE

The Bleeding of Taburh, a massacre in the halls of House Heilbrond that saw many of the family murdered in cold blood. A mystery still clouds the massacre, with many believing that the position of the house as protectors to the king led to it, while others blame any other race for the atrocity. To this day this event is spoken as a curse in Edherest.

THE THIRD ERA
The chronicles become clearer, starting with the creation of the Fifth Kingdom. It is here by which the histories are measured until Alaloth’s Descent. Different factions and religions weigh time by either this date or Alaloth’s Descent: the Spectral Circle refuses to let Vaizmil’s acts be a reference point for history.

THE YEAR OF THE FIFTH KINGDOM 1 TE

THE FIFTH KINGDOM

Vaizmil, seeing the Split Kingdoms fighting vainly amongst each other, convinces the All-Father to grant their struggles purpose the chance for them to achieve a Fifth Kingdom, that would be the home of whichever of the Split Kingdoms could claim it. The All-Father assumed this would be done through war, Vaizmil, however, hoped it would be achieved through unification and peace, by the races working together.

ISADANAE 'S BIRTH

Isadanae is born in the year of the Fifth Kingdom. She is raisedto believe that hope for all mortal races lies within the Fifth Kingdom, not on the distant shores.

JUDGMENT FALLS

The great eroding cliff, where criminals were hurled from, falls out of use in Edherest when one of the criminals survives the fall and, to everyone’s surprise, returns as a Prophet to preach forgiveness.

BLOOD OF THE MOTHER

The Mother of Betrayers begins her attempt to create a pantheon of her own, molding beasts and monsters. The first was Alaloth, not the strongest or mightiest, but the most twisted and cunning. It is believed that the Blood of the Mother was able to create Alaloth because of the All-Father’s creation of the Fifth Kingdom which violated his own laws of no interference with the mortal realms. As he broke his own rule, he betrayed his own laws.

55 TE

VAIZMIL'S DISCOVERY

As the Mother’s dark Pantheon grew, Vaizmil learned of its presence and challenged the Mother of Betrayers. While the texts agree that the Mother triumphed in the battle, it’s a debate to this day from theologians as to whether the Mother truly vanquished the All-Father’s daughter, or whether Vaizmil sacrificed herself to finally make the Pantheon see the threat. Shards of her spiritual light descended on the realm like falling stars, and were gathered and shielded by the mortal races.

56 TE to 155 TE

THE PANTHEONIC WAR

War raged in the Pantheon for nearly a century. Great upheavals occured in both the mortal realms and in the divine battlegrounds. Beasts, acting like chess pieces for their divine masters, teard through the land, fighting each other like proxies for their masters.

101 TE

THE DRAGONS RETURN

The Dragons, not seen for almost a hundred years, returned during this time, spreading more chaos and ruin. There were rumors that the Mother made a pact with them, promising them great power for joining the conflict.

156 TE.

THE END OF THE FIRST PANTHEON

The Pantheonic War finally came to an end when the Gods were weakened. At the moment of her triumph, Alaloth betrayed his mother, seizing her power and those of the other gods.

ALALOTH'S DESCENT

Alaloth descended to the Fifth Kingdom to raze it, and instead found himself imprisoned there. Gods are forbidden to walk the mortal realms in physical form by the All-Father’s decree, which Alaloth thought he could sunder by overthrowing the gods but he failed. Storms and tempests spread all over the Kingdoms, and dark times befell the mortal races.

157 TE

DRAGON CHAOS

Dragons, driven mad by the Descent (or as some speculate, the defeat of the Mother of Betrayers), attack the Gates of Welcoming in Larastir, burning the Elven court as it convened for a war council. The ruins became the Gates of Mourning. The dragons, en masse, departed the Kingdoms, almost unwillingly, scholars speculate that whatever pact they made with the Mother failed when she was defeated, and they could not remain.

REBELLION OF THE DWARVEN HALLS

The dwarves lose several of their underground Kingdoms near the Valley of Storms. literally, the stones themselves, fused with Alaloth’s blood and rage, turned against the Dwarves and drove them out. The dwarves sought to retake these Lost Kingdoms over many years, but encountered heavy resistance in the form of golems who are born from the excavated halls themselves. Some of these golems were dwarven items and craftsmanship that have come to life, making them even more dangerous.

VER'QUINTISS INQUISITION

The Ver’Quintiss begin their purge of the elven Kingdoms. The dark elves, who favored Alaloth’s teachings and those of his Mother, are either killed or cast into a lightless prison.

LORIAN'S JUDGEMENT

Lorian loses his title of Ver’Quintiss at Caine’s hand. His foster sister Isadanae flees Larastir to avoid being executed by the Ver’Quintiss for heresy. She returns to the Glade where she was born, praying to Vaizmil for an answer and is met with silence. She resolves to find an answer of her own, and to rescue the goddess if need be.

160 TE

THE DRUIDS RETREAT

The Druids of Larastir vanish from the forests as the Ver’Quintiss crusade continues and slaughters many for crimes of heresy.

162 TE

CALIPHATE LOST

Contact with the Sariq Caliphate, the Kingdom far to the south is lost completely: no ships travel to or from the kingdom, and the journey by land proves impossible for merchants. Rumors whisper that the land has fallen to sorcerers and demons.

167 TE

DRAGON MIGRATION

Four dragons return to the Split Kingdoms, first to the Elven, then the Orcish, the Human, then finally, the Dwarven. Travelers fear to travel the roads, terrified of a dragon’s hunger. The dwarves, however, try to make the best of it and look for ways to defeat the dragons.

172 TE

RAZING THE HOUSE OF SCALES

The House of Scales. the dwarven counting house in Karak-Hohn, is destroyed in a dragon attack, believed to be in retribution for dwarven dragon-slaying expeditions (and the resultant theft of gold from the lair).

177 TE

DRUIDS REDISCOVERED

Lorian, his spirit crushed by the Ver’Quintiss and their crusade in Larastir, begins to make plans for the Retreat but is stopped by the Larastir Druids. Lorian remains with them until Caine ends his purge and many years later, Lorian rejoins Larastir.

180 TE

BAGA'S CLAIM

Baga attempts to breach the Valley of Storms with terrifying results: the Orcish kingdom is laid to waste, and the Gates of Ardur become the Desolation of Baga. No orc champion has ever done a deed, dark or light, to eclipse what Baga has created (and won’t, unless they breach the Valley of Storms).

182 TE

ORC IN EXILE

As orc crimes rise, and more and more orcs are exiled within the Desolation of Baga. Crimes formerly thought too blasphemous to even consider now become more common (unjustified murder and slaughter, killing of others as well as one’s own family).

205 TE

KINGSHIP

House Kendrick rises to power in Edherest, becoming the most powerful rulers among the houses. But being on the top meant that many were scheming down below in order for them to fall.

262 TE

THE BOOK OF ERAS

The Book of Eras, which to this day is cited as one of the best sources of the gods and the reason of existence for everyone, is drafted by Aeberth Heilbron, one of the most prominent clerics of his time, after spending his life studying the history of the world.

285 TE

LILEAH IS BORN

Lileah, born an orphan in the streets of the City of Altars.

NEW JUDGEMENT FALLS

The great Eroding Cliff, where criminals were once hurled from, is in use once more, and scores of criminals are thrown to their death… some to their undeath.

290 TE

THE QUEEN OF THE DEAD

The necromancer Kariasha comes to Judgment Falls and gathers the most powerful of the executed undead (spirits, vampires, greater ghouls and shades) under her banner, proclaiming the land that stole their lives from them will now have its life taken from it in return. Within a night, she gains thousands of troops, from recent times and ancient soldiers (criminals) from before Alaloth’s Descent, whose bodies lay at the base of the Falls

292 TE

ZIAN IS BORN

Zian is born, one of the Bleedwater Gypsies, in Baystone.

294 TE

VADEN IS BORN

Vaden is born, child of The House of Orphans.

300 TE

ESTEN IS RECRUITED AS A SPY

Esten is ordered to leave his post as a Glen Warden and ordered by the Edherest military to become their spy within the criminal networks in Edherest. Esten participates in smuggling and thieving, always with a mind to sell out his compatriots to the king.

THE DARK ELVES RETURN

Dark Elves, using their magic to pierce their prison into Larastir, emerge and begin to infiltrate Larastir’s forests. They come into contact with the Spectral Circle and form an alliance and together, devise a means to channel Alaloth’s rage and use its power to sunder the gate permanently, allowing Dark Elves to return to the surface world.

301 TE

LILEAH BECOMES A SHIELD-BEARER OF VAIZMIL

Lileah is initiated as a Shield-Bearer, vowing to protect all that's good and defend the will of Vaizmil. She helps persecuted priests and councilors in service of Vaizmil escape Goldport during the purges.

302 TE

THE TEMPEST

The tempest occurs, a storm of Alaloth’s rage across the land (there were others, this is the most recent).

Vaden murders his mother for what he believes to be an insult and travels to the wastes to join the exiles.

A strange phenomena occurs in Larastir’s forests, emanating from the Underworld Gate, the home of the Dark Elves.

Ver’Quintiss Caine awakens from his meditation to find the Ver’Quintiss have vanished. He goes on a pilgrimage of his own to restore his broken world.

The Altar City of Edherest falls, the now-ruined temples become the God Graves.

Khorhan defends his people, guarding their escape as the Valley of Storms’ influence spreads below ground, shattering the ancestral homes of the dwarves in many cities.

303 TE

AFTERMATH

The northern tribes beyond the dwarf kingdoms begin to be beset by strange new beasts, and even begin all-out war against each other.

The priesthood in Edherest fell out of favor based on evidence of Alaloth’s growing strength. A nation that once embraced piety begins to turn from it, and the Houses begin fighting amongst themselves.

The Beacon Towers of Edherest go unmanned by soldiers and mages. Mages (kept in check by the priesthood) begin to become more of a force in local warfare and politics, despite the danger they represent to others and themselves.

The keep overlooking the isle of the Red Mage becomes the Vanishing Keep, believed to be betrayed by magic of the Spectral Circle.

305 TE

THE RED SOLSTICE

Years after the Tempest the northern barbarian tribes plea for aid. The Winter Solstice at Winterleaf becomes a massacre as a barbarian, believed in league with demons and beasts, attacks the gathering. No bodies were recovered, and a message was written in blood on the wall of the festival court: The South shall join the North

BECKONSTONE SEALED

Beckonstone Tower (a beacon tower in Edherest by the sea – like a lighthouse) falls to an internal magical explosion (believed to be an accident from within, but there are no survivors, only ash), and is abandoned.

307 TE

THE SEALED STAIRS

After several years of erosion by the tides, the stones of Beckonstone weaken and crumble, creating inadvertent stairs to the Kingdom plateau above. The formerly Sealed Tower becomes the Sealed Stairs, which are used by bandits and smugglers as a port to stage raids into the mainland or smuggle weapons into Edherest.

309 TE

NA'RAGEN CONFRONTS AND BEFRIENDS ILLN-ASHAH AT THE THIRST

Iln-Ashah, having made the perilous journey from Sariq, comes to the Desolation of Baga. His desert survival skills make him more than a match for the orc warriors in the region, and he constantly overpowers or eludes them.

Iln-Ashah’s “infamy”, for slaying orcs in the Desolation of Baga, spreads until Na’Ragen, the champion of Ballek’Mahl, seeks him out.

Na’Ragen investigates the incidents and travels to the Thirst and meets Iln-Ashah. The two bond, and Na’Ragen welcomes Iln-Ashah to the kingdom. Na’Ragen turns from annoyance to a threat, and the orc matriarchs begin to plot how to remove him from power.

311 TE

NA'RAGEN PILGRIMAGE

Na’Ragen, guided by lies of the Orc Matriarchs, goes on a pilgrimage to defeat the dragons of the Split Kingdoms. He speaks to the shaman at the Thirst, who counsels him on how best to proceed (and hints that the quest may have broader interpretations).

AMBERWAKE SLEEPS

The mage college of Amberwake in Edherest folds in onto itself due to (believed reckless) use of magic. No one know how many, if any, are trapped alive inside the inaccessible structure.

313 TE

ZIAN IS BETRAYED

Zian’s band of smugglers and pirates are betrayed and slain by Edherest forces waiting in ambush at the Sealed Stair. “Prince” Esten (unknown to Zian as the spy who betrayed them) escapes with his life, unaware that Zian survived.

TODAY, 315 TE

Champions from each kingdom are summoned to fight the evils of Alaloth.

And so it begins! More lore-related contents will be posted regularly since now on and new cool stuff will be available in our Discord server, where we created a dedicated channel for this! Oh a new Hotfix on its way tomorrow!

Share the love and stay tuned!

 

[fantadomat]

LoL no mouse support,sounds like a pass.

 

[Infinitron]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/919360/view/3362518992748331930

Everything is under control!

Hello Champions!

It's a rainy Sunday here and we would like to drop a super quick note about the latest hotfix released on Friday. As you know, we are super fast with bug fixing and this is the most important thing we've considered when we started thinking about the long term plans for the game.
We've released 10+ patches so far and i think nobody in the world can say a thing about our availability here or on our social, trying to solve as much problems as possible when they pop-up
. We are proud of the work done, and we would say that we've always pushed the EA launch as something different from the usual EA launches. We don't have a vertical slice of the product to iterate,
we have a fully playable product that needs to be iterated, polished and balanced to became what we had in mind since the very beginning
. No game breaking bugs, no crashes, solid builds: we can say that all of this is real and again, proud of this and happy to know that players appreciated it. By the way,
all of this does not mean that we have done with the development
of course. We've updated the game trying to keep game saves safe everytime [and we'll continue like this], we've updated the game testing stuff on our internal branch and we've updated the game keeping in mind what we said above.
A solid build to play is a must for us, and this is not going to change
, but it's important to remind that development is a pain and sometime we can't simply know what is going to happen with the implementation of new features. The last patch was basically built around a first round of economy balancing that will be completed tomorrow. Two weeks ago we've put in the revive for companions. Yesterday we've receveid a few messages complaining about both things so it was worth claryfing once again what's going to happen next.

The revive feature was working fine when patched. We've worked on the feature this week too, and apparently
the last update caused some regression
. A few players experienced crashes or have been forced to restart the game trying to revive companions or trying to interact with them once gone. Crashes or no chances to interact with items/loot chests in FA, are directly connected to this, we are going to fix this tomorrow. The other economy-related issue is the one about repair costs and durability.
We've increased durability for items on Friday, we are going to release the [almost] final iteration tomorrow
. Repair costs will be lowered [by now, they are lower than the costs we had at release] and a first bunch of items will get their real in-game value. Remember that is never about a single feature but we are talking about connected systems. The problem with the repair cost is that the value of the items is still wrong and super high, compared to the money available in loots, quests and so on [even because right now, the sellling price for items have been decreased and we've iterated loots and rewards as well].
In both cases and for future patches, please, don't panic
. "
The game is broken
" or "
The last patch destroyed everthing
" or stuff like that is non sense now, because bugs can happen at this stage, even if we had no significant tech issues since launch. And we are aware in real time of things gone wrong in case.
Regression is pretty normal, we usually talk about what we do before and after a patch note
and we build and fix at speed of light. Our idea was to update twice per week when possible but to avoid issues like this, we are probably going to patch on Thursday instead of Friday, to avoid scary weekends like this and let you play safe. Thank you for the support as usual, Major Update on the way soon! Have a great Sunday!

Share the love and stay tuned!

 

[cpmartins]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/919360/view/6232436041609562479

Let's talk about lore!

Hello Champions!!

A crazy busy week started yesterday for the team, because of GamesCom. The event is on its way end of August, and we decided to go back to Germany, after our last appearance in 2019. We’ll be attending the event to meet all the people in touch with us to know more about our future plans for Alaloth. It will be a good moment to meet press and creators as well and we are cooking something cool for them. We are going to say more about GamesCom in future updates, but we want to focus on something else right now.
We’ve been very active from May on, and we sent out 7 patches following the release.
We gathered tons of feeds and had the chance to talk about things going on, features, fixes, future updates, our roadmap and so on but it’s time to talk about the RPG stuff again. We spent time discussing options to improve the combat sys but there is a whole huge world we’ve worked on and that will be expanded in the next months. We are proof reading quests again right now, playing every single one again and again and iterating. We’ve put in many new quest rewards, polished dialogues, added timelines and tried to make quests more and more structured for players asking about this.
We read your feeds on writing of course and we are actively working on it. 99% of the games around must be considered player-centered: the whole story evolves around the player, his choices, his actions. We do have something like this, but quests are way more streamlined when compared to other big games of course. We did this choice to work on something different, trying to stay in between old and new, as we tried to do for the combat system.
The game is world-centered, player just live in Plamen, and things happen. Events could be missed, some chars encounters could be missed during a run, and so on. We thought it was cool to move on with something like this and this is something we really want to push in the future, adding many new different events to the calendar, to be able to give you all massive surprises we are going to discuss for sure, updating the roadmap later this summer.
Who said large scale battles? New mobs? New FA? We didn’t. Yet.
Anyway, it’s time to talk about Plamen again, sharing the chronology of events that led to the summon of the best champions of the Four Kingdoms to defeat Alaloth, the Great Betrayer. As you know, the world lore has been created by Chris Avellone [races, cities, pantheon, companions, special chars, legends] and our team started from his work to deliver the game as it is today. This is a timeline of events that you can read about in-game, through Lore Characters, quests, dialogues, and barks all around the world.


BLOOD & BIRTH: THE CHAOS OF CREATION

In the times before the calendars of the Four Kingdoms, there existed only chaos. Swirling raw, elemental matter at war with each other. From this chaos, a consciousness came into being. This conscious became the All-Father. All-Father achieves Consciousness Amidst the Chaos of Creation.
It is said in ancient holy texts that the All-Father existed for some time, unnamed, as a great power fueled only by instinct, but when the first drop of his blood was shed, a new act of creation resulted, and he gained the name All-Father.
From his blood, the gods, beasts, and the mortal races were born. The histories of this time are clouded, for language did not exist in the consciousness as a concept until the Mother-of-Betrayers came to be...and it grew from that moment on. It is believed that the precursor race to the Dwarves was also given form during this time.

THE FIRST ERA
This Era encompasses a time believed to be three millennia before Alaloth’s Descent

The All-Father’s battle with the elements of chaos shed blood onto different aspects of the chaos–stone, shadow, light, and more, creating the First Pantheon. Each of the All-Father’s drops of blood burned into an element, granting it the same passion and desire for battle as the All-Father's.
Each one fused with and took on an aspect of conflict: Storms, Fury, Flame, Purifying Light, Nature’s Wrath, Eldritch Energy, and more. Among them was Vaizmil, The Luminous Spear of Morning, The Champion of Purifying Light: the All-Father’s favored daughter.
The last of the Pantheon, the Mother of Betrayers, was born from the All-Father’s shadow that was cast by Vaizmil’s light. The Mother’s strength, stemming from the All-Father himself, was powerful indeed, and while the others of the Pantheon were considered sons and daughters, she granted herself a greater title and assumed the role of mother

THE ECLIPSE

It is said that when the Mother was created, there was a great eclipse. The Elves called it the Shield over the Sun, others called it the Executioner of Light. When the ecplise passed, the races began to invent their language, all while the first iteration of the group known as the Spectral Circle came to be. The Orcish matriarchs were beset by visions (that they shared with no one, but joined them like a web across the orc tribes), and the Ver’Ethier, the Dark Elves, were born in a world without light.

THE PANTHEON

The new gods fought alongside the All-Father, giving form to the chaos around them. The Mother of Betrayers, however, slowly and secretly brought conflict into the Pantheon, jealous of the power that the All-Father wielded.

THE TIDES OF SPLIT KINGDOMS

The mortal races of the four split kingdoms struggled, forming empires and having them fall over many centuries. The Sariqi Caliphate, the empire to the South of the world map, where Iln-Ashah is from, was one such kingdom. The Split Kingdoms lost contact with them over the years, and then completely after Alaloth’s Descent. Very little is left of the histories of the races, except among the Elves, who kept them hidden, presumably out of shame. Many of the practices of Elves and the layout of their kingdom is unchanged since Alaloth’s descent with some exceptions.

THE RETREAT

The Retreat was once something greater: the promise of a new life beyond the mortal realms. The Elves would construct great ships to carry them to their next life. When the Fifth Kingdom was granted to the mortal races, the Elves took it as a sign that the next life was to be achieved in the mortal realms, ceasing the Retreat. With Alaloth’s Descent, however, the Retreat began again but as a means of ending one’s existence.
The Ver’Quintiss came into being, elven paladins that sought purity of spirit and judgment. They were great soldiers and philosophers in elvish society, but when Alaloth came to the mortal realms, they changed from their purpose to inquisitors and executioners, blaming their own people for Alaloth’s triumph.
It was nearly three centuries after Alaloth’s Descent before their fire for punishment died out. The Dwarves fared better than most kingdoms, for they found homes in the abandoned caverns of a precursor race, who built great roads beneath the earth and then vanished. The Dwarves follow their example, and use the already excavated sites to build cities and practice their trade.

THE SECOND ERA
Human Calendar Begins. A time of conquest, battles and bloodshed. The Era shaped what would become of The Split Kingdoms, their borders and government birthed here and now. Humans have recorded their wars and the battles of others, although the latter is left with less details.

4 SE

War breaks out around the continent: Edherest, Larastir, Karak-Hohn, and the Orc kingdom, first named The Teeth of Maknor take up arms against each other, for new territory and for total domination over the entire world. The central piece, the land between them, where the Fifth Kingdom will one day be created, is up for grabs.

32 SE

Initial skirmishes occur around the land between them, and while the cost of lives stays low for now, the tension for bigger campaigns grows to extreme levels.

40 SE

Karak-Hohn seizes the mines all around its territories and reigns supreme over metal mining operations, which leaves the rest at a disadvantage. The other kingdoms are left with inferior weaponry, albeit larger numbers.

48 SE

The Kingdom of Edherest lay siege to the territories of Karak-Hohn, but due to the mountainous terrain they are unable to hold out for long. But when threats from other kingdoms came as well, the dwarves extended their hand in peace, trading some of their metal to sustain peace in its region.

67 SE

The Teeth of Maknor begin to raid both Larastir and Edherest, causing considerable damage to the villages outside the major cities. The humans find the orcish terrain harder to navigate and are unable to retaliate.

80 SE

Edherest fortifies the western front against the orcs with a series of towers and building Westwall at its border. To increase stability and strength, the king gives more privileges to the Houses, allowing them to manage their own estates as long as they are loyal to him.

143 SE

The armies of Larastir are quick to take over the area of the Fifth Kingdom, claiming it as theirs by divine right. They hold strong as the other kingdoms unite in battle to break the elven fortifications.

170 SE

The newly conquered territory knew nothing of peace for years, and finally it fell to a combined assault from all the other races, many lives were lost on the elven side, but the rest suffered greatly as well. All kingdoms decided that they are not strong enough to hold the territories.

228 SE

The orc king, grandson to the legendary Maknor, falls in battle to King Aigen of Edherest, bringing an end to the Teeth of Maknor. The orcs retreat, not out of fear, but because of a change in leadership.

320 SE

Larastir descends into chaos as the different elven races vie for power over the republic, each distrusting the other. At the end of the conflict, the dark elves are left at the bottom of the food chain in elven society and the racial divide widens. The Ver'Quintiss help negotiate peace among the elves.

351 SE

Lord Dorgrad the Vicious Gardin takes over Coldwood in a bloody conquest, slaughtering the local house and ending its existence. He establishes his house there and starts a fearful regime.

372 SE

Descending from the mountains, Jukwar Clarimond and his house came to Whitewind, proclaiming it their new home. The house fought bravely during the conflicts of the Second Era, losing many along the way.

443 SE

The Siege, a decade-long war against a horde of the dead led by the necromancer Kariasha, ends with The Battle of Argent Vale. Lord Hileon Bardolph is named Shield of The North by King Eadan II.

544 SE

The Mother-Daughter War, a 10 years naval conflict between The Lords of The Isles and the Orc Kingdom, then known as the Hand of Dojhmarin ends with House Sedlak establishing themselves in Baystone, taking control of the trade routes in the bay area.

644 SE

Galvin Nordin proclaimed Great Chamberlain of Edherest. His house protects the North and stands as a vanguard against many threats that the kingdom faced.

666 SE

Edwan the Conqueror's army invades the Orc Kingdoms, then known as the Eye of Greija. The Balmont retain the title of Protector of Edherest, giving them prestige and renown second only to the royal family in the kingdom.

692 SE

Some Northern Houses in Edherest band together in emigrating to the unknown lands of the northern sea, there they form the North Sea Empire, a trading colony far away in a distant island.

745 SE

Lord Raffin Balmont, celebrated as one of the fiercest warriors of all time, falls alongside King Eadan III and many others such as Deihn Ballawold and his twin sons. The Balmont family holds the city of Mayfalls.

810 SE

A bloody feud started between the Ballawold and the Wilenkels, after Feihn Ballawold executed four Wilenkel soldiers for stealing cattle.

834 SE

Willeon Wilenkel led the Wilenkel Army and was defeated on the field by the Ballawold troops at the Ypril Hill.

965 SE

The Bleeding of Taburh, a massacre in the halls of House Heilbrond that saw many of the family murdered in cold blood. A mystery still clouds the massacre, with many believing that the position of the house as protectors to the king led to it, while others blame any other race for the atrocity. To this day this event is spoken as a curse in Edherest.

THE THIRD ERA
The chronicles become clearer, starting with the creation of the Fifth Kingdom. It is here by which the histories are measured until Alaloth’s Descent. Different factions and religions weigh time by either this date or Alaloth’s Descent: the Spectral Circle refuses to let Vaizmil’s acts be a reference point for history.

THE YEAR OF THE FIFTH KINGDOM 1 TE

THE FIFTH KINGDOM

Vaizmil, seeing the Split Kingdoms fighting vainly amongst each other, convinces the All-Father to grant their struggles purpose the chance for them to achieve a Fifth Kingdom, that would be the home of whichever of the Split Kingdoms could claim it. The All-Father assumed this would be done through war, Vaizmil, however, hoped it would be achieved through unification and peace, by the races working together.

ISADANAE 'S BIRTH

Isadanae is born in the year of the Fifth Kingdom. She is raisedto believe that hope for all mortal races lies within the Fifth Kingdom, not on the distant shores.

JUDGMENT FALLS

The great eroding cliff, where criminals were hurled from, falls out of use in Edherest when one of the criminals survives the fall and, to everyone’s surprise, returns as a Prophet to preach forgiveness.

BLOOD OF THE MOTHER

The Mother of Betrayers begins her attempt to create a pantheon of her own, molding beasts and monsters. The first was Alaloth, not the strongest or mightiest, but the most twisted and cunning. It is believed that the Blood of the Mother was able to create Alaloth because of the All-Father’s creation of the Fifth Kingdom which violated his own laws of no interference with the mortal realms. As he broke his own rule, he betrayed his own laws.

55 TE

VAIZMIL'S DISCOVERY

As the Mother’s dark Pantheon grew, Vaizmil learned of its presence and challenged the Mother of Betrayers. While the texts agree that the Mother triumphed in the battle, it’s a debate to this day from theologians as to whether the Mother truly vanquished the All-Father’s daughter, or whether Vaizmil sacrificed herself to finally make the Pantheon see the threat. Shards of her spiritual light descended on the realm like falling stars, and were gathered and shielded by the mortal races.

56 TE to 155 TE

THE PANTHEONIC WAR

War raged in the Pantheon for nearly a century. Great upheavals occured in both the mortal realms and in the divine battlegrounds. Beasts, acting like chess pieces for their divine masters, teard through the land, fighting each other like proxies for their masters.

101 TE

THE DRAGONS RETURN

The Dragons, not seen for almost a hundred years, returned during this time, spreading more chaos and ruin. There were rumors that the Mother made a pact with them, promising them great power for joining the conflict.

156 TE.

THE END OF THE FIRST PANTHEON

The Pantheonic War finally came to an end when the Gods were weakened. At the moment of her triumph, Alaloth betrayed his mother, seizing her power and those of the other gods.

ALALOTH'S DESCENT

Alaloth descended to the Fifth Kingdom to raze it, and instead found himself imprisoned there. Gods are forbidden to walk the mortal realms in physical form by the All-Father’s decree, which Alaloth thought he could sunder by overthrowing the gods but he failed. Storms and tempests spread all over the Kingdoms, and dark times befell the mortal races.

157 TE

DRAGON CHAOS

Dragons, driven mad by the Descent (or as some speculate, the defeat of the Mother of Betrayers), attack the Gates of Welcoming in Larastir, burning the Elven court as it convened for a war council. The ruins became the Gates of Mourning. The dragons, en masse, departed the Kingdoms, almost unwillingly, scholars speculate that whatever pact they made with the Mother failed when she was defeated, and they could not remain.

REBELLION OF THE DWARVEN HALLS

The dwarves lose several of their underground Kingdoms near the Valley of Storms. literally, the stones themselves, fused with Alaloth’s blood and rage, turned against the Dwarves and drove them out. The dwarves sought to retake these Lost Kingdoms over many years, but encountered heavy resistance in the form of golems who are born from the excavated halls themselves. Some of these golems were dwarven items and craftsmanship that have come to life, making them even more dangerous.

VER'QUINTISS INQUISITION

The Ver’Quintiss begin their purge of the elven Kingdoms. The dark elves, who favored Alaloth’s teachings and those of his Mother, are either killed or cast into a lightless prison.

LORIAN'S JUDGEMENT

Lorian loses his title of Ver’Quintiss at Caine’s hand. His foster sister Isadanae flees Larastir to avoid being executed by the Ver’Quintiss for heresy. She returns to the Glade where she was born, praying to Vaizmil for an answer and is met with silence. She resolves to find an answer of her own, and to rescue the goddess if need be.

160 TE

THE DRUIDS RETREAT

The Druids of Larastir vanish from the forests as the Ver’Quintiss crusade continues and slaughters many for crimes of heresy.

162 TE

CALIPHATE LOST

Contact with the Sariq Caliphate, the Kingdom far to the south is lost completely: no ships travel to or from the kingdom, and the journey by land proves impossible for merchants. Rumors whisper that the land has fallen to sorcerers and demons.

167 TE

DRAGON MIGRATION

Four dragons return to the Split Kingdoms, first to the Elven, then the Orcish, the Human, then finally, the Dwarven. Travelers fear to travel the roads, terrified of a dragon’s hunger. The dwarves, however, try to make the best of it and look for ways to defeat the dragons.

172 TE

RAZING THE HOUSE OF SCALES

The House of Scales. the dwarven counting house in Karak-Hohn, is destroyed in a dragon attack, believed to be in retribution for dwarven dragon-slaying expeditions (and the resultant theft of gold from the lair).

177 TE

DRUIDS REDISCOVERED

Lorian, his spirit crushed by the Ver’Quintiss and their crusade in Larastir, begins to make plans for the Retreat but is stopped by the Larastir Druids. Lorian remains with them until Caine ends his purge and many years later, Lorian rejoins Larastir.

180 TE

BAGA'S CLAIM

Baga attempts to breach the Valley of Storms with terrifying results: the Orcish kingdom is laid to waste, and the Gates of Ardur become the Desolation of Baga. No orc champion has ever done a deed, dark or light, to eclipse what Baga has created (and won’t, unless they breach the Valley of Storms).

182 TE

ORC IN EXILE

As orc crimes rise, and more and more orcs are exiled within the Desolation of Baga. Crimes formerly thought too blasphemous to even consider now become more common (unjustified murder and slaughter, killing of others as well as one’s own family).

205 TE

KINGSHIP

House Kendrick rises to power in Edherest, becoming the most powerful rulers among the houses. But being on the top meant that many were scheming down below in order for them to fall.

262 TE

THE BOOK OF ERAS

The Book of Eras, which to this day is cited as one of the best sources of the gods and the reason of existence for everyone, is drafted by Aeberth Heilbron, one of the most prominent clerics of his time, after spending his life studying the history of the world.

285 TE

LILEAH IS BORN

Lileah, born an orphan in the streets of the City of Altars.

NEW JUDGEMENT FALLS

The great Eroding Cliff, where criminals were once hurled from, is in use once more, and scores of criminals are thrown to their death… some to their undeath.

290 TE

THE QUEEN OF THE DEAD

The necromancer Kariasha comes to Judgment Falls and gathers the most powerful of the executed undead (spirits, vampires, greater ghouls and shades) under her banner, proclaiming the land that stole their lives from them will now have its life taken from it in return. Within a night, she gains thousands of troops, from recent times and ancient soldiers (criminals) from before Alaloth’s Descent, whose bodies lay at the base of the Falls

292 TE

ZIAN IS BORN

Zian is born, one of the Bleedwater Gypsies, in Baystone.

294 TE

VADEN IS BORN

Vaden is born, child of The House of Orphans.

300 TE

ESTEN IS RECRUITED AS A SPY

Esten is ordered to leave his post as a Glen Warden and ordered by the Edherest military to become their spy within the criminal networks in Edherest. Esten participates in smuggling and thieving, always with a mind to sell out his compatriots to the king.

THE DARK ELVES RETURN

Dark Elves, using their magic to pierce their prison into Larastir, emerge and begin to infiltrate Larastir’s forests. They come into contact with the Spectral Circle and form an alliance and together, devise a means to channel Alaloth’s rage and use its power to sunder the gate permanently, allowing Dark Elves to return to the surface world.

301 TE

LILEAH BECOMES A SHIELD-BEARER OF VAIZMIL

Lileah is initiated as a Shield-Bearer, vowing to protect all that's good and defend the will of Vaizmil. She helps persecuted priests and councilors in service of Vaizmil escape Goldport during the purges.

302 TE

THE TEMPEST

The tempest occurs, a storm of Alaloth’s rage across the land (there were others, this is the most recent).

Vaden murders his mother for what he believes to be an insult and travels to the wastes to join the exiles.

A strange phenomena occurs in Larastir’s forests, emanating from the Underworld Gate, the home of the Dark Elves.

Ver’Quintiss Caine awakens from his meditation to find the Ver’Quintiss have vanished. He goes on a pilgrimage of his own to restore his broken world.

The Altar City of Edherest falls, the now-ruined temples become the God Graves.

Khorhan defends his people, guarding their escape as the Valley of Storms’ influence spreads below ground, shattering the ancestral homes of the dwarves in many cities.

303 TE

AFTERMATH

The northern tribes beyond the dwarf kingdoms begin to be beset by strange new beasts, and even begin all-out war against each other.

The priesthood in Edherest fell out of favor based on evidence of Alaloth’s growing strength. A nation that once embraced piety begins to turn from it, and the Houses begin fighting amongst themselves.

The Beacon Towers of Edherest go unmanned by soldiers and mages. Mages (kept in check by the priesthood) begin to become more of a force in local warfare and politics, despite the danger they represent to others and themselves.

The keep overlooking the isle of the Red Mage becomes the Vanishing Keep, believed to be betrayed by magic of the Spectral Circle.

305 TE

THE RED SOLSTICE

Years after the Tempest the northern barbarian tribes plea for aid. The Winter Solstice at Winterleaf becomes a massacre as a barbarian, believed in league with demons and beasts, attacks the gathering. No bodies were recovered, and a message was written in blood on the wall of the festival court: The South shall join the North

BECKONSTONE SEALED

Beckonstone Tower (a beacon tower in Edherest by the sea – like a lighthouse) falls to an internal magical explosion (believed to be an accident from within, but there are no survivors, only ash), and is abandoned.

307 TE

THE SEALED STAIRS

After several years of erosion by the tides, the stones of Beckonstone weaken and crumble, creating inadvertent stairs to the Kingdom plateau above. The formerly Sealed Tower becomes the Sealed Stairs, which are used by bandits and smugglers as a port to stage raids into the mainland or smuggle weapons into Edherest.

309 TE

NA'RAGEN CONFRONTS AND BEFRIENDS ILLN-ASHAH AT THE THIRST

Iln-Ashah, having made the perilous journey from Sariq, comes to the Desolation of Baga. His desert survival skills make him more than a match for the orc warriors in the region, and he constantly overpowers or eludes them.

Iln-Ashah’s “infamy”, for slaying orcs in the Desolation of Baga, spreads until Na’Ragen, the champion of Ballek’Mahl, seeks him out.

Na’Ragen investigates the incidents and travels to the Thirst and meets Iln-Ashah. The two bond, and Na’Ragen welcomes Iln-Ashah to the kingdom. Na’Ragen turns from annoyance to a threat, and the orc matriarchs begin to plot how to remove him from power.

311 TE

NA'RAGEN PILGRIMAGE

Na’Ragen, guided by lies of the Orc Matriarchs, goes on a pilgrimage to defeat the dragons of the Split Kingdoms. He speaks to the shaman at the Thirst, who counsels him on how best to proceed (and hints that the quest may have broader interpretations).

AMBERWAKE SLEEPS

The mage college of Amberwake in Edherest folds in onto itself due to (believed reckless) use of magic. No one know how many, if any, are trapped alive inside the inaccessible structure.

313 TE

ZIAN IS BETRAYED

Zian’s band of smugglers and pirates are betrayed and slain by Edherest forces waiting in ambush at the Sealed Stair. “Prince” Esten (unknown to Zian as the spy who betrayed them) escapes with his life, unaware that Zian survived.

TODAY, 315 TE

Champions from each kingdom are summoned to fight the evils of Alaloth.

And so it begins! More lore-related contents will be posted regularly since now on and new cool stuff will be available in our Discord server, where we created a dedicated channel for this! Oh a new Hotfix on its way tomorrow!

Share the love and stay tuned!

All this massive lore dump into an ARPG. Like hanging the Mona Lisa on a pigsty.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

All this massive lore dump into an ARPG. Like hanging the Mona Lisa on a pigsty.

it's not a diablo-like hack'n'slash, the combat is much slower/tactical

 

[Infinitron]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/919360/view/3404177923733932077

Strongholds on the way and other precious info!

Hello Champions!

Just a quick update to inform you that
we are pretty confident about releasing the major update with strongholds before leaving for GamesCom
. We initially targeted the end of the month to release it but you know we are fast, and we are testing the feature right now so we'll hopefully be able to deliver next week.
The update will come with a new round of balancing and misc improvements that will be detailed before the patch of course
. Two more important info: we are going to release a new patch today or tomorrow too, because we are updating Unity to a new version right now. We were using an old version of the engine because it was super safe and we've waited for a new one with the same stability to make the move. Of course, even if we are testing everything right now, a few issues could occurr but in case, once again, don't panic.
We are here to fix everything if needed
. The new engine version is needed on our side to include a new set of tools to gather data and info that will be crucial in the next months, for balancing and improvements. We should be able to unveil a few community-related features as well, involving players on our Discord server. Anyone helping us with the development and contributing to the community itself, just helping others or simply contributing with your suggestions, will be rewarded with gifts and perks. More info to come! GamesCom will be pivotal for our future plans, so
expect big news in September
. While a couple of heroes will be in Cologne [Alberto and Giulia], the whole studio will take a short break the same week. This means that this will be probably the only week of the year in which the game will not be updated.
We'll be available 24/7 as usual on our channels
but the guys are going to recharge batteries after this super crazy summer in which everyone gave 110% for the EA launch. In case of emergency [catastrophic events or such], we'll find a way to fix as usual so, no worries anyway.

Share the love and stay tuned!

 

[holla_cabezas_de_mierda]

is this a souls-like rouge-like with procedural generation? If not I am not interested...everything must be souls-like, rouge-like w/ procedural generation, also crafting, I want to collect various types of dust mites, daisy stems and beetle husks..

 

[cyborgboy95]

Welcome home, champion! Strongholds are here but there is much more for you...

Hello Champions!

Sunday is not the best day to deliver a massive update, said the PR experts, but hey, we were aiming to deliver strongholds before leaving for GamesCom and we did it! This is the first part of a major update which is super important considering the long term and the whole process in terms of balancing and polishing. This patch includes changes to the global economy sys and some other adds and fixes but doesn't require to start a new game!

IMPORTANT NOTE The game is playable usiing old saves as usual but issues can occurr from time to time. We are working try to prevent it, new saves will be bug free so if you spot something wrong, please consider this [i.e. Entering Free Mode could not stop enemy pawns or some UI elements as portraits or texts could be wrong

STRONGHOLDS
We were aiming to have strongholds by the end of the month, but we decided to speed-up things and go on with a first iteration of the sys, which is pretty cool. The stronghold has been thought to be a customizable personal hub, allowing players to plan their moves in a safe environment with the help of many different servants. The stronghold will be open to visitors, new characters will be available and new quests will be unlocked on the way. Taxes will be collected granted 10k gold per year.

[/I]

• Councilor: the Councilor is in charge to recruit servants on your behalf. When the Councilor is tasked and a new servant is hired, players will have to wait around one week to see him in the stronghold
• Chef: the Chef grants the player the chance to cook recipes available in the cookbook in the comfort of a private kitchen
• Priest: the Priest will unlock the private shrine to respec your character using Orbs of Chaos
• Debt Collector: the Debt Collector is the one in charge to take care of taxes in your feud. A good Debt Collector can raise the amount of tax collected up to 50% per year
• Architect: the Architect is in charge to provide upgrades to the stronghold and to make it better and better with fancy furnitures. Fancy stuff will pop-up in his store time by time. Upgrading a stronghold will take 2 weeks
• Special Chars: unique characters will visit the stronghold granting new quests or asking for something from time to time [i.e. a special vendor with a unique stock, a unique QG and so on]

GAMEPLAY
We've put in a few important quality of life improvements, following your suggestions on our Discord server[www.discord.gg]. We've worked on quests and the very good news is that we've finally put in all the contents we wanted, having more than 150 quests in place, now in their final shape with their final rewards. We've implemented the last 25 missing rewards today and there is just a bunch left still giving out money only [that were placeholders to let quests work]. This is a very important thing, because many players will notice big changes in their inventory as with everything in place, we've been finally able to determine the [almost] final level of rarity of each item. This means that what you see now is coherent with quests and tasks you can find all around Plamen and even if stats are not matching the real value/fancyness of the item/weapon, this will happen soon with the second part of the update. Moreover, we've added a new tracking sys with a cursor showing the direction for your tracked quesst [if any] that will be visible in the infobox of cities and places on the map.

As we said, saves are still working but we suggest to start over a new char to check what is changed and enjoy what is in now. We've even given a first pass to Grand Masters, changing their rewards. Not still working 100% but now they grant cool items basically lowering all cooldowns and in the future, they'll grant extra bonuses for the skillset linked to the respec of choice. Durability and repair costs have been iterated once again. Repair now costs 15% of the item value while selling an item to a merchant, will grant 40% of the item value to the player. Workbench have been iterated as well, considering the work done on all the items in-game. Repairing will be cheaper and workbench have been reworked accordingly.

ECONOMY
This is probably way more important than anything else at the mo. We've iterated every single item in-game, adjusting numbers a bit but working on in-game values to start. Doing like this is a bit weird, but for a number of reasons we're forced to do this kind of work to balance things properly. So, as we already said, this first round was mostly to align available rewards and avaialble items with a ratio, focusing on the progression of all systems together blending the proper way. Prices have been generally lowered and made consistent even if you are going to find items that will be still higher/lower in terms of stats, with the proposed value/rarity.

This will be fixed in the second round, but you can already see improvements around, making the whole thing way more coherent. Consumables, weapons, shields, armors, trinkets, belts, rings, cloaks: everything has had a first rework and even if we've tested things a bit, this week will be useful to gather feeds and data for the future updates. As usual, don't panic if something seems broken: we can revert and even if we'll be out for GamesCom and the team is going to take a break, we'll be available for emergencies.

NEXT
We are leaving for Germany today, have a great week! We have 50+ meetings for Alaloth and we hope to come back with enough info to be able to draft the long term plan heading to the full release. A few publishers would like to jump-in, investors are asking about our future projects and we are in the middle of a huge puzzle, trying to find the best way to solve it. Considering our past experiences and the actual situation, we'll be very careful with the next steps. The game is doing well, feeds are cool and we feel, now more than ever, to have something unique to push here. So no rushes and we'll keep you posted as usual [we realized just yesterday how many updates & patches we've sent out in one month and how many channels we handle real time trying to answer to every single question we receive...]. Happy to confirm that we are completely aligned with the roadmap we've shared and we'll probably be able to speed-up things in September, with the things scheduled [M&K anyone?].

CHANGELOG

• Strongholds are here! [with 7 achievements]
• New quest available Venomous Strike
• Overviews are now shown in a frame, supporting all resolutions the proper way
• A new pop-up shows now the total required cost when repairing the equipment
• Quest icons in World Map are now bigger
• Active quests titles and their statuses are now shown in the locations' info boxes on the World Map
• A new marker has been implemented on your pawn, to show you the right direction to the tracked quest [when possilbe]
• First round of iteration for global economy has been done. More than 700 items checked
• Quest Woe of a Stubborn can be completed as intended
• Quest A Whole New World had a typo in one of the characters name, now fixed, and its update notifications are now properly shown after each step completion
• Lesser Cloak of Vigor can now be equipped properly, showing the right cloak model on you character
• Quest The Hunt has been fixed and now do fails when conditions occurr
• Quest Imperial Intolerance makers have been fixed and now the quest is doable as intended
• Grand Masters' rewards have been iterated and are now more powerful and unique. More on the way
• In Thilaris a Quest Giver, not showing the proper 3D model, is now fixed
• Some POIs names in Codex have been fixed, as many other typos around. Proof in progress
• Blacksmith showing doubled blueprints in Winterleaf has been fixed
• VFX and SFX for eating/drinking actions are now shown in Inventory view, making it more clear when you eat/drink something directly from that UI, out of the FA
• The Citadel overpaint and navmesh have been improved, some unwanted obstacles to the player navigation have now been removed
• The Harbingers have been iterated to have more challenging fights
• Hashak overpaint has been iterated and improved [do you see the arena?]
• Timelines in strongholds have been improved
• Quest Troubles of a Merchant removes QI correctly when completed
• Frostsong has now its icon and card properly displayed
• Quests The Wold Rider, The Woods Keeper, Condemned, Accused, Exiled, have now their markers correctly displayed
• A Northern Voyage interactable item is no longer interactable during combat, as intended
• Bosses Xamoth and Drag'Drimin aren't spawning anymore if their FA has been already claimed by anyone, as intended
• Quest Nature's Keepsake reward is now as intended [showing 3 rings of the same kind]
• A few 1H weapons showing wrong assets in size, have been fixed
• Quest Lost on the Frozen Trail interactable in Silvermoor is now properly working
• Quests A Lovely Gift and Queen of the Dead have now their day/night indicators properly shown in World Map
• Cosmetic improvements on almost every in-game environment
• Misc performance fixes

Share the love and stay tuned!

 

[cpmartins]

Just played this one. So far, it was 8 or 80. Once you get a skill point the game goes from pretty much impossible to absolute pushover as a DW warrior. Has promise though. Probably a day one purchase if they keep refining their systems. The main issue I was having is when there are melee npcs bunched up. You need to hit-and-run too much and not in a reliable way, and it seems separating them without an active skill is not an option.
Edit: Oh, and the literally fucking retarded repair prices. Holy shit it's stupid how expensive they are. I don't know what the devs are thinking.