Darkest Dungeon II

[Infinitron]

Red Hook cofounders Chris Bourassa (Creative Director) and Tyler Sigman (Design Director) sat down to answer community sourced questions on Darkest Dungeon II.

This stream was recorded on February 7, 2023 as part of Steam Next Fest.

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.darkestdungeon.com/news/darkest-dungeon-ii-suffer-no-sin/

Darkest Dungeon II: Suffer No Sin​

A new arrival at the crossroads!

Retail: 0.19.43728

The Vestal brings a potent mix of defensive support options and flexibility. Her divine Consecrations allow her to bless ranks in combat, empowering allies who occupy them.

This update allows players to unlock and upgrade the Vestal at the Altar of Hope. Visit the Shrine of Reflection to experience her origin story, told in five chapters, including playable flashback encounters.

GAMEPLAY​

Heroes

• Man-at-Arms: Strategic Withdrawal's heal effect now resolves after Riposte / Hateful Backstab damage, consistent with the heal timing on Crush
• Leper: When using Combo to ignore Blind, the Leper will now also remove one of his Blind tokens on a successful hit
• Runaway: Fixed an issue where Hearthlight consumed CRIT tokens unnecessarily

Shrine of Reflection

• Highwayman's first flashback encounter has been adjusted
  • Lunging Cuff now applies Combo
  • Knee Strike now deals +100% DMG vs. Combo
  • Additional Barks

Combat

• Damaging skills that natively ignore Block, Dodge, or Guard (e.g. Pick to the Face) will now also remove one of those tokens on a successful hit
• Adjustments to Daze and Stun
  • Dazing a target who is already Dazed will now result in a Stun
  • Daze and Stun cannot exist on the same target at the same time; Stun will always take priority
  • These rules apply evenly to monsters and Heroes alike
• Controlled Burn/Controlled Burn+ now have unique token icons

UI

• Added new icon for Horror to better distinguish it from Stress
• Updated Stress Halo and Stress Crown visuals
• Added more 16:9 and 16:10 resolutions to the game options
• Updated game credits to include recent hires
• Renamed Battle Advantage Chance to Enemy Advantage Chance
• When selecting a Tutorial the scrollbar should now adjust to make sure your currently selected tutorial is visible.

Items

• General tooltip description improvements
• Strongbox: Added +8 increased stacking for Baubles
• Renamed Jumbo Storage Trunk to Spacious Storage Trunk
• Added new item type: Deliverable
• Animal parts item type changed from Currency to Deliverable
• Added 6 new items – Makeshift Javelin, Wilbur’s Flag, Bone Mallet, Pig Sticker, Locked Strongbox, and Spacious Strongbox.
• Linseed Oil Flask: Reduced change for Daze from 50% to 20%
• Rousing Ringer: Reduced chance for Daze from 66% to 33%
• Stiff Drink: Chance to convert Speed to Daze reduced from 80% to 20%
• Curing Cuppa: Added Noxious tag

Misc

• OFF GUARD region modifier renamed to DEVIOUS PLANS (Off Guard is already a quirk)
• Replaced several hard hero goals

FIXES​

• Fixed an issue where some crit chances would display decimals, instead of rounding up correctly (ie 0.99% instead of 1%)
• Heroes with memories that get rerolled will now generate hero goals
• Fix for Leviathan release rank sliding
• Fixed various tooltips from going off screen
• Fixed an issue where Trophies on the stagecoach would not dither out with the coach and could be seen floating after visiting nodes and before the coach faded back in
• Adjusted some items and trinkets to better fit in the inventory frames
• Fixed an issue where sometimes Crit and Hit chances would not show properly
• Fixed an issue where the regen wasn’t triggering properly on Inert Indicia
• Fixed an issue where the current active tab on the Recollection sheet would not be highlighted
• Fixed an issue where heal previews would incorrectly multiply based on mouseover movements
• Fixed an issue where allies that participate in a hero backstory would have green indicators while targeting enemies
• Fixed some awkward UI behavior from the Crossroads
• Fix to heals on corpses when an actor dies mid skill
• Fixed which sword the Leper is using during his second combat backstory
• Fixed an issue where Altar upgrade buttons are taking hold inputs when not having any candles
• Fixed an issue where tooltips would disable themselves on turn start in combat
• Fixed an issue that helps clean up combat selection indicators when changing skills while hovering characters
• Fixed an issue with bark tails not matching the color of the rest of the bark balloon
• Fixed an issue where ambush combats, shambler combats, and herostory combats were using the wrong LUT
• Fixed an issue where the target selection indicator would get stuck active on self targeting skills
• Fix to center the Token Glossary and Tutorial Archive screens
• Fix to the patch notes screen to scale nicely at lower resolutions
• Fixed an issue where hero goal completion toasts could show the wrong portrait
• Fix to prevent enemy target indicators from animating off of user mouseover when they are acting
• Fixed a string with the Infernal Flame
• Fixed some UI scaling issues with Blessed and Cursed skills overlapping the skill bar

OST​

• Added new tracks from the Altar of Hope update

 

[Sarathiour]

No crusader no buy

 

[Larianshill]

Okay, Vestal is in. Thank you. Now Crusader, please.

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.darkestdungeon.com/news/darkest-dungeon-ii-hero-paths-the-vestal/

Darkest Dungeon II - Hero Paths: The Vestal​

The Vestal.​

"A sister of battle - repudiated but unbowed!"​

"Witness ye the holy radiance of the Light!"​

The Seraph path provides the Vestal with a solid skill set to be a back rank support role. This hero path specializes in amplifying Consecrations. The Vestal will gain Conviction any time a Consecration activates. Using this path, Consecrations will last a total of 5 rounds, rather than the typical 3. Seraph directly affects the following skills: Consecration of Fortitude, Consecration of Light, and Mantra.

The Seraph takes a bit of setup if you want to make use of her Conviction skills, reliant as they are on her Consecrations for generation. Once they’re up and running, however, she can power repeated uses of Judgement and Mace Bash fairly quickly.

A party of mobile Heroes can potentially trigger the Turn Start effect of a Consecration multiple times in the same round, allowing the Seraph to rapidly reach maximum Conviction! Positional disruption from enemies, on the other hand, can work against the generation rate by pushing people out of Consecration before their turn comes up.

In an emergency, the Seraph can use Mantra to wipe all of her Consecrations in order to trigger a sizable, unconditional heal for the affected Heroes!

A Jester can help speed the starting process along via Encore – sacrificing his own turn in order to get both of the Seraph’s Consecrations into play in a single turn – while Ethereal Dust can clear her cooldowns and allow the placement of additional Consecrations if you can spare the actions.

"Faith is my shield; piety, my armor!"​

Tank for your party! The Chaplain path allows The Vestal to focus her abilities on party defense. Chaplain is a rank-flexible role and allows you to gain Conviction when you are hit. The Vestal is able to focus the might of her Conviction to enhance both her stun and move resistance. Chaplain directly affects Hand of Light, Mantra and Sanctuary skills.

The Chaplain works best when operating from the front ranks or using Sanctuary to guard a frequently targeted rank, such as 2, so that she can absorb more hits and generate the Conviction needed to dish out return damage via Judgement or Mace Bash. The Chaplain’s version of Sanctuary forsakes the targeted Stress recovery for better Block and more Guard tokens, allowing her to intercept an additional attack per use.

Hand of Light provides additional defense for an adjacent random Hero but you can guarantee where it goes if you’re in rank 1 or 4. In addition, using the Profane Scroll trinket turns Hand of Light into a Taunt generator, drawing even more fire – and more Conviction as a result.

The Chaplain’s Mantra trades out its Consecration-targeting for Guard-targeting and Conviction use, applying unconditional heals and stress recovery to both the Vestal and any Hero currently under Guard. This works with the Guard of Heroes such as the Man-at-Arms or Bounty Hunter as well.

"Submit and be purified!"​

Strike enemies down and cleanse your team with the Confessor path. Confessor is a rank-flexible role that specializes in debuffs and token removal. Under this path, The Vestal will gain Conviction on each turn start which will increase your chance to apply debuffs! This path directly affects Hand of Light, Illumination, Judgement, and Mantra skills.

Thanks to her health pool, the Confessor can work from the front or back ranks depending on what purpose you need filled within a party.

From the back ranks, Judgement can deliver a double dose of Weak and Vulnerable to a single target, while Mantra can be used to provide unconditional heals or cleanse negative tokens from Consecrated allies. She also retains access to potent support like Divine Grace and Ministrations.

From the front ranks, Hand of Light becomes an AoE that inflicts Weak while still granting her Strength to support Mace Bash for direct damage. The Confessor’s version of Illumination is able to remove any type of positive token from a monster, making it an ideal way to remove threats like an Evangelist’s CRIT. While she loses access to Divine Grace, Divine Comfort’s regen is available in Rank 2 as are all Consecrations for party or personal support.

Consider using the Smoldering Firewood trinket if you’re running the Confessor up front to give Illumination and Mace Bash some extra punch, or the Icon of Light to amp up Divine Comfort and provide stress recovery options if you have her all the way at the back.

Community Impression​

When put to a vote, Twitter and Discord were clear on the path they preferred - Seraph! It was a close call between the other 2 hero paths. On Twitter, Seraph took the lead with 45.2% of the votes, Confessor had 28.8% and Chaplain came in a close 3rd with 25.9% of the votes. On Discord, Seraph was preferred with 157 votes, Chaplain came in second with 74 votes and Confessor netted 59 votes total. There was also a strong showing for the Wanderer path in Discord, with this write-in ballot option getting 56 votes overall.

"I really like the chaplain path for it makes the best out of her large HP amount while being able to deal powerful stike. with this path she becomes no healer for none is needed. but love what you did with all of her hero paths, amazing work and cant wait to see more heroes :D "- @Rykmar1

"I love the seraph path, though I think Chaplain would grow on me if perhaps there was a way to get taunt on her. Having to sanctuary a taunted ally to make use of her on-hit generation is rather tough to use". - @PatrickRoot6

"i actually like the wanderer's path/no path the best. but if i had to pick one of the 3 paths, i would say the confessor because the judgement move gives a damage debuff and damage taken debuff. but seriously, i really like the wanderer the most." - @KaimeraHusky

"chaplain is my fav path because i think it creates a playstyle centered around guarding the rest of the team

maa and bh can protect the team, but typically they have more combat-focused roles to fill. chaplain vestal feels like your main mission is to tank all the heat for your team and THEN you start dishing out damage" - Tranquil

"Seraph, as strong as it is, demands consecration usage hard in order to get Conviction.

Chaplain is very defensive and relies on getting hit for Conviction, which is inconsistent.

Confessor is fun with its debuffs.

Wanderer, however, is my most favorite due to its versatility and consistent Conviction. " - Arsalan

"Chaplain is a lot of fun because it gives us a support oriented tank. She can buff, guard, and heal while providing utility through illumination. It's only major flaw is the lack of damage output because you may want to save your conviction stacks for the passive buffs. A really fun option that changes up Junia's style though." - ShuffleFM

---

Thank you for taking time out of your day to read the Hero Path blogs. If you would like to be more involved with discussions on hero paths come over to our Discord server! We would love to hear your thoughts on The Vestal’s paths, what trinkets you use, and any suggestions you may have.

To join our Discord server follow the link below:

https://discord.gg/darkestdungeon

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.darkestdungeon.com/news/darkest-dungeon-ii-redemption-road-update-experimental-release/

 

[Jermu]

High expectations for this game

 

[Serus]

High expectations for this game

Yeah, presence of a middle-aged fat woman with danger hair brings so much confidence*. I mean, how computer games were even made before such amazing people started to make them? In the very old, bad days we had slightly obese, sometimes young men with often poor hygiene. Now, it is a great new era!

*Not that i would be confident about this game anyway. First part was good to play for a couple of hours for the atmosphere and visual style. Gameplay was mediocre at best but since it sold extremely well there is no point to change it.

 

[Rean]

 

[ERYFKRAD]

a middle-aged fat woman with danger hair

Dude, that's likely a dude.

 

[Turn_BASED]

High expectations for this game

Shaggy and Velman

 

[Serus]

a middle-aged fat woman with danger hair

Dude, that's likely a dude.

Who the hell cares what he/she is. Xir looks like the best developer ever!

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.darkestdungeon.com/news/darkest-dungeon-ii-redemption-road-live-now/

Darkest Dungeon II: Redemption Road Live Now​

Welcome to the Redemption Road Update!​

Build: 0.20.46449

This update is a combination of brand new features plus many improvements to existing parts of the game. Much of the changes are based upon valuable community feedback. Thank you for being a part of the shaping of DD2!

• Routes: we are enhancing the map traversal experience by layering some additional strategic planning onto your route choices. The stagecoach now has armor and wheels tokens which factor into overall strategy and resource management.
• Stagecoach controls: a brand-new control scheme that reduces the labor on the player and keeps the focus on the journey.
• Pets: animal companionship at last! 10 pets, each with run-defining effects
• More generous candle scoring: removed candle penalties for abandoning a run mid-region; added the “Academic’s Honorarium”, which is a limited candle bonus that applies to a fresh profile; and more
• Valley 2.0: You’ll find it quite a bit shorter and also with one very key change: the Altar’s location has been brought to the very beginning.
• Loathing 2.0: a revamped and more expansive loathing system. Keep it under check or anger the Confession boss!
• Torch 2.0: a reconfiguration of torch gameplay effects to better mesh with other systems
• Loot and economy balance: recalibrating the economy to ensure that treasure collection and shopping give interesting choices and reduce inventory clogging
• Infernal Flame disabled for this version. However, look for exciting changes which will be introduced at version 1.0! We know that many of you like additional challenge, and we are working on options for you.
• Assist Encounters: have been improved to offer interesting and clear options and trade-offs. They remain the primary source of flame restoration mid-region.
• Academic’s Studies: Removed almost all torch costs from interaction. Removed “avoid” choice from standard options, avoidance still a choice through certain quirks.
• And many more adjustments and fixes. See later in these notes.

Continue reading below for more details on much of the above.

We value your feedback! Whether you are a new player or experienced one, we want to hear from you on Discord or via the in-game F8 feedback tool.

Routes: The Road Less Traveled​

Stagecoach Tokens​

The stagecoach itself now has 2 types of tokens: wheels and armor. These tokens do not recharge on their own, and must be replenished via the Wainwright at an Inn, for a cost. Wheel/armor Tokens can also be replenished via some encounters. Also, some stagecoach items can grant bonus wheels or armor.

When wheels or armor are full, the party gets a benefit. When they are exhausted, then it exposes the party to a new ambush – see below.

Route Types​

Your journey has just got a little trickier! Roads are now generated with one of several route types, replacing the binary “fight/no fight” system we had. Icons are shown midway along the road segment on the minimap and are subject to scouting rules.

• Safe: no effect, functions as it currently does, rarest of the route types.
• Rough Patch: the potholes and poor driving conditions deduct 1 Wheel token
• Hazard: a region-themed ‘trap’ that deducts 1 Armor token.
• Combat: Functions as do the current road fights (except time limits have been removed)
• Oblivion Tear: An inkfire wall that increases Loathing by +1 when the coach passes through it.

Urgent Repairs!​

The coach has been damaged, and the party set upon by Pillagers!

When either Armor or Wheel tokens are depleted, and you choose a route that would ordinarily deduct a token of said type (hazard or rough patch), this sets off a roadside ambush combat with a special mutator: Urgent Repairs.

Urgent Repairs procs every round and targets 1 hero, replacing their skill bar with a single skill: ‘Repair Coach’. This is essentially a stressless ‘pass’, and requires players to deal with 1 hero out of action that round.

Furthermore, the party suffers a penalty based upon whether it was wheels or armor that were depleted to cause the ambush.

Wainwright Maintenance​

The Wainwright screen now shows the max + current total of Armor and Wheel tokens. Tokens can be replenished for a relic cost.

Stagecoach Controls: Roads & Intersections​

To reduce coach handling labor, and to better reflect the game’s identity as a strategic experience, coach controls and intersections have been modified. Tapping “w” or “up arrow” will set the coach in motion, and “s” or “down arrow” will stop it.

Intersections present as a click-and-hold (alternatively w/a/d hold) decision point. If you make your choice in advance, the coach will not slow down. However, if you are late in deciding, the coach will halt at the intersection, allowing you time to choose your path forward. These changes affect the overall feel of traversal, and will require a bit of adaptation for experienced players. We’ve found it better suits the game.

Also - thanks to some changes in our generation code, minimum distance between nodes has been tuned down, resulting in a typically shorter distance between nodes!

Pets​

They’re here! Unlock them all at the Altar, name them, and enjoy their gameplay effects! There are 10 pets total in 5 different cages, which are visible on the coach exterior.

The first 6 pets unlocked have effects that synergize with specific categories of stagecoach items. The goal is to create stagecoach ‘builds’ focused around a pet. To achieve this, various stagecoach items now have a GEAR type tag and the effects on a pet will scale based on the number of those stagecoach items equipped.

For example:

• Unnatural Owlet provides +5% Debuff Chance per Tinker's Gear equipped.
• The Tinker’s Gear tag has been added to Explosives Magazine, Blueprint Tubes, Assay Gear, Tinker's Bench, and Trapmaker's Kit.

The final 4 PETS unlocked have powerful combat effects.

Candles and Scoring​

Based upon community feedback, we have relaxed and increased early game scoring quite a bit. Gaining candles and investing them at the Altar of Hope is a key part of the game, and we were a little too stingy before.

• Removed the scoring penalty from abandoning an expedition between Inns. It’s still a good idea to try to reach the next Inn (because of candle bonuses), but you won’t get penalized if you decide to bail out.
• Increased map candle spawn rates; increased candle inventory stacking by 1
• Added “Academic’s Honorarium”, which is a candle bonus to the first few runs on a new profile.
• Region Goal rewards for Candles of Hope range increased from 1-3 to 3-5
• Increased starting hero goals candle rewards from 1 to 2

Valley 2.0 Refinements​

The Valley has been significantly shortened, and the Altar has been placed before the Confession screen, so that you can visit it at the end of every run. This will allow you to unlock paths and heroes, and immediately use them.

With the Hoarder and assist node gone, shopping/prep for the expedition has been moved to the provisioner of the first Inn.

Loathing 2.0​

The Loathing system has been extensively reworked.

Instead of accruing at Inn arrival, Loathing now builds when passing through Oblivion Tears, or by visiting void-touched locations. As before, combat reduces Loathing. However, if Loathing builds to its maximum, the Confession boss stirs and inflicts a confession-specific attack upon the party.

Depending on your confession/boss choice, the max Loathing effect is different, but in all cases, the final boss also gains a health buff. This bonus stacks each time Loathing is maxed out, so be careful out there!

Torch 2.0​

The torch’s gameplay effects have also been revamped. The revision focuses on some thematic touches (chance of blind for heroes in the dark; chance of blind for monsters in the light) as well as removing some of the crit and DOT resist clutter.

DoT Changes​

DoTs dealt by Trinkets and Combat items can now be affected by effects that modify DoT duration, chance, and amount dealt. To accommodate these changes, DoT effects on various items have been updated from % to flat value modifiers and/or had their potency adjusted. These changes can be seen below under the Items section.

Loot and Economy Balance​

Combat, Inn, and Stagecoach items have mostly been removed from battle rewards. These item types have been available from many sources, but the amount obtained from battles overshadowed the need to purchase from shops or seek out locations like Academic’s Caches or Assistance Encounters. This also contributed to an excess amount of items leading to tedious inventory management. We’ve also added and curated stock at the various shopping locations.

Key Location Loot changes​

• Field Hospital - Reduced shop selection as it’s not meant to be a shopping destination
• Hoarder - Improved shop selection of Indelible Trinkets and Stagecoach Items
• Inns - Improved default shop selection and additional unique selection for various inns.
• Academic’s Caches - Better rewards and slightly more
• Oblivion’s Ingress - Cultist trinket and Dark Impulse drop rate improvements

Drop Rates​

• Baubles from battles - increasing in some and reducing in others
• Removed Baubles and doubled the amount of Relics from Swine battle rewards and Sluice Caches

Price Changes​

• Reduced stagecoach item prices
• Reduced trinket prices

The balance adjustments are intended to ensure that every relic collected is valuable, and the shopping/outfitting interactions in the game are meaningful. Basically, bring things more into…balance.

Memory System Changes:​

Memory flow has been revised to better match the rearranged Valley (Crossroads/Altar order) and to be closer to our original design goals of linking memories directly to success against Confession bosses.

• Memory slots are no longer unlocked at the Altar of Hope
• Instead, each hero instance unlocks their own memory slot by defeating a Confession boss. Each unique Confession boss allows this hero to fill another memory slot, up to the maximum of 5. Victorious heroes with no memories need to purchase a memory at the next Altar of Hope to persist.
• Note that currently, only three slots can be unlocked because only three Confession bosses are in the game. Bosses 4 and 5 are coming at 1.0 release.
• Example: Boudica the Hellion wins Denial Confession. Now she can have a memory installed. If she beats Resentment Confession, she can put a second memory on.
• The Altar Memory track is used to unlock memory discounts as well as to give a better selection (more loot pulls) of the memories available to implant at any one time.

Notes on Memory for this Release:

• When the new update is pushed, current runs will be invalidated.
• Memoried heroes on these runs will be moved out of the party and preserved
• Existing memoried heroes will have their memories preserved even if they have not defeated each boss
• Moving forward, any character not in a party must have a memory assigned to them to preserve them
• If a memoried hero is in your party, they will only persist if you are victorious

Assist Encounter Revamp:​

• Assist Encounter choices have been thoroughly revised. The intent is to provide interesting choices for the party, primarily to help in the areas of torch, supplies, and repair.
• They still function the same way overall. Choices have been audited and redesigned with intent of making the rewards previewed both better and more consistent.
• Quirks are a major driver of special responses.
• It should be more likely that if you are desperate for torch and roll into an Assist location, that at least one hero will want to interact in a way that actually restores torch

Stagecoach Item Adjustments Overview​

An increased focus has been placed on stagecoach items that produce combat items, which has been done a few different ways.

Changed Explosives Magazine from a stagecoach item that increases stacking to one that produces items with the explosives tag.

Updated increased stacking stagecoach items to align with the type of items produced.

• There’s an item that produces Poultices and another item that increases stacking for Poultices.
• We now have the functionality to increase stacking by item tag and type rather than unique items only.

Added additional effects to stagecoach items that have situational effects

• Hospital/Hoarder location scouting will also increase their shop selection
• Food barrel/Icebox getting additional effects based on the number of food items the player collects.

MISC GAMEPLAY​

• Tutorial image improvements
• Removed negative affinity penalty for some RESIST location choices. Kept them for diametrically opposed stuff like CHARGE vs FLEE and FIGHT vs FLEE but removed for less extreme choices like FIGHT vs WITHDRAW or TACTICS vs WITHDRAW. Net effect should be less disharmonious affinity at RESIST stories in particular. This is intended to help with managing relationships. Feels bad to pick a Resist node specifically to keep Loathing under control and then get penalized with unruly heroes.
• Reduced base torch drain by 20% based upon feedback
• Generation: increased # of node choices overall, to give more strategic options
• Generation: more hero shrines overall. More node choices per row overall
• Generation: The length of region 3 in the full-length expeditions has been reduced to more closely match that of region 2.
• Altar of Hope track nodes have been added for wheels/armor
• Monster party difficulty shaping WIP (working on providing more reliable progression of easier mashes to harder mashes as go from region to region)
• SC items slightly more expensive to unlock the Altar
• Economy: Relics and baubles now stack at 40 (was 24)
• Economy: Adjusted starting relics and baubles to ensure proper amount of shopping at the Valley inn
• ‘+/-DoT/Debuff/Stun Chance’ and ‘Ignore +/- Deathblow’ changed to ‘+/-Dot RES Piercing’
• Added new relationship tooltip descriptions for Stagecoach, Pets, Infernal Flame, and Trophy stagecoach item types
• Added new Region Modifiers: Crisp Air, Foul Air, Foreboding, Treacherous, Loathsome, Marked Roads
• New Quirks: Spotter, Tracker, Void Sight, Pathfinder, Vigilant
• Quirks: Region Explorer quirks now have effects that scout routes
• Gameplay: Kills from DoTs now count towards item effect triggers and Hero Goal completion
• Slay enemy hero goal descriptions updated to better reflect the requirements
• Effects that remove positive quirks will no longer remove locked positive quirks
• Story choices (esp Oasis) should now properly show Stress Heal icons in gold and Stress damage icons in blue. Let us know if you see anything wrong
• Cultist locations now very unlikely to appear in first region past the Valley
• Numerous fixes to improper preview icons showing for various assist, resist, cultist, oasis, creature den, or Academic’s studies
• Monsters can no longer roll multiple consecutive turns in standard initiative order; this does not apply to special action turns or turns affected by Speed/Daze tokens
• General tooltip description and icon fixes
• Immobilize tokens now stack to a maximum of 3 and expire at a rate of 1 per turn
• Weak tokens applied by Death’s Door can no longer be resisted
• Added game settings option to stop the stagecoach when opening the character sheet

HEROES​

Some Hero Paths have been converted to the new skill replacement system. In the case of Paths that had DMG buffs/debuffs, this will typically result in slightly higher values when factoring in the use of tokens such as Strength or Weak.

This work is planned for all hero paths on pre-Vestal release, and will be rolled out over time.

Grave Robber

• Deadeye path converted to the skill replacement system
• Nightsworn path converted to the skill replacement system
• Venomdrop path converted to the skill replacement system, which fixes an issue with the Blight on Flashing Daggers not being affected by trinkets

Vestal

• Fixed an issue with Confessor’s Illumination unintentionally consuming CRIT tokens
• Confessor's Illumination now removes 2 positive tokens instead of 1
• Confessor's Illumination+ now removes 3 positive tokens instead of 2

Shrine of Reflection

• Highwayman now has barks during his first fight

MONSTERS​

Cultists

• Cardinal: Exultation no longer ignores Riposte

Creature Den

• Fixed an issue that prevented Gander from spawning with Ordainment

Lost Battalion

• Knight: no longer receives Weak tokens on Death’s Door
• Knight: DMG bonus at Death’s Door increased to +50% from +30%
• Knight: DMG bonus when under Order increased to +50% from +30%

ITEMS​

General Item Changes

• Combat items are now rewarded in full stacks
• Removed Ranged tag from combat items as it was not clearly communicated and was causing undesired interactions
• Added possession limit to each Trinket and Stagecoach Items which will reduce duplicate appearances of these item types
• Stagecoach Equipment are now called Stagecoach Items
• Replaced The Still Waters Shroud Lair boss trophy with The Lashing Tides
• Leeches: Now no longer target heroes that aren't diseased
• Add several new items
  • Rural Riches (Valley Baubles)
  • Iron Banded Wheels (Stagecoach Item)
  • Steel Plating (Stagecoach Item)
  • Carriage Lamps (Stagecoach Item)
  • Wagon Jack (Stagecoach Item)
• Items added to default unlocked item pool
  • Greater Anchoring Charm (Trinket)
  • Greater Cleaning Censer (Trinket)
  • Greater Gilded Mind (Trinket)
  • Greater Hale Draught (Trinket)
  • Greater Heartseeker (Trinket)
  • Greater Protectorate (Trinket)
  • Greater Sharpness Charm (Trinket)
  • Greater Wolfsblood (Trinket)
  • Laudanum (Combat Item)
  • Milk-Soaked Linen (Combat Item)
  • Smoke Bomb (Combat Item)
  • Ethereal Dust (Combat Item)
  • Clarifying Poultice (Inn Item)
  • Academic’s Map (Stagecoach Item)
  • Mortar and Pestle (Stagecoach Item)
  • Worktable Loom (Stagecoach Item)
  • Spacious Storage Trunk (Stagecoach Item)
  • Tinker’s Bench (Stagecoach Item)
• Items removed from the default unlocked item pool
  • Noisemaker
• Added new item tag Explosive
• Added new stagecoach item tags. Below are the tags and which stagecoach items they have been added to.
  • Food Gear: Food Barrels, Ice Box, Pot and Still, Stew Pot, and Griddle
  • Luxury Gear: Collector's Chandelier, Worktable Loom, Windchime, Tea Service, Trinket Organizer, Merchants Guild Seal, Strongbox, Spacious Strongbox
  • Medical Gear: Medicine Chest, Bottle Case, Compress Kit, Mortar and Pestle, Medical Equipment, Alembic and Retort, Chirurgeons Table, and Chirurgeon's Mixing Kit
  • Road Gear: Leaf Suspension, Iron Brazier, Iron Banded Wheels (new), Steel Plating (new), Carriage Lamps (new), Wagon Jack (new)
  • Scouting Gear: Crows Nest, Shrine Map, Hoarder Signal Decoder, Tracker's Map, Telescope, Academic's Map, and Chirurgeon's Directory
  • Tinker’s Gear: Explosives Magazine, Blueprint Tubes, Assay Gear, Tinker's Bench, Trapmaker's Kit

Combat Items

• Linseed Oil Flask: Removed Trap tag
• Otherworldly Fragment: Reduced amount found at certain Academic Studies
• Ethereal Dust: Removed from general combat item loot pool and now can only be found at certain Academic Studies and chance when defeating the Shambler. Increased stacking from 1 to 2
• Scrap Grenade: Tag changed from Contraption to Trap. Now produced by Trapmaker's Kit
• Spiked Ball: Tag changed from Contraption to Trap. Now produced by Trapmaker's Kit.
• Ichor Bomb: Tag changed from Contraption to Explosive. Now produced by Explosives Magazine
• Greek Fire Grenade: Tag changed from Contraption to Explosive. Now produced by Explosives Magazine
• Incendiary Cocktail: Tag changed from Contraption to Explosive. Now produced by Explosives Magazine
• Spore Grenade: Added Explosive tag. Now produced by Explosives Magazine
• Laudanum: Now guaranteed to be available for purchase at Field Hospitals and Inns
• A Glimmer of Hope: Now guaranteed to be available for purchase at the Hoarder and Inns

Inn Items

• Whiskey Barrel: Now gives +3 Affinity (67%) or -2 Affinity (33%) rather than +1 Affinity (75%) or -1 Affinity (25%)
• Whiskey Bottle: Now gives +3 Affinity (67%) or -2 Affinity (33%) rather than +1 Affinity (67%) or -1 Affinity (33%)

Stagecoach Items

• Food Barrels: Now increases stacking for all Food tagged items. Added effect, ‘If Food in inventory >= 10: +10% Resolute chance’
• Icebox: Increased chance to find. Added effect, '+1% Disease RES per Food in inventory'
• Pot and Still: Increased chance to find. Added effect, ‘Increases stacking for Whiskey by 4 per stack’
• Strongbox: Now lists Baubles rather than each individual type of Baubles. Increased stacking bonus from +8 to +12
• Spacious Strongbox: Now lists Baubles rather than each individual type of Baubles. Increased stacking increased from +24 to +40
• Collector's Chandelier: Increased stacking from +3 to +4. Added effect, ‘+33% Candle of Hope chance at Locations’
• Medicine Chest: Now increases stacking for Bandages and Restorative items. Added effect, ‘+2 quantity of produced items from Chirurgeon’s Mixing Kit’
• Bottle Case: Now increases stacking for Concoctions and Powders. Added effect, ‘+2 quantity of produced items from Alembic and Retort’
• Compress Kit: Now increases stacking for Poultices. Added effect, ‘+2 quantity of produced items from Mortar and Pestle’
• Chirurgeons Table: Changed effect from '+30% Travelling Heal' to 'After Each Location: Remove Disease (10%)'
• Crows Nest: Increased Location Scouting from +15% to +20%
• Hoarder Signal Decoder: Added effect, ‘Double the trinket selection at the Hoarder’.
• Telescope: Changed ‘+20% Scouting’ to ‘+33% scouting for specific routes’
• Academic's Map: Added ‘+100% Academic’s Studies Location Scouting’
• Chirurgeon’s Directory: Added effect, ‘Double the item selection at the Field Hospital’
• Explosives Magazine: Changed ‘Increases stacking for Incendiary Cocktail, Smoke Bomb, Ichor Bomb by 4 per stack’ to ‘Increases stacking stacking for Explosives by 2 per stack’ and ‘Before Each Location: Chance to produce Explosive items’
• Blueprint Tubes: Changed ‘+200% increased chance of looting STAGECOACH ITEMS’ changed to ‘+1 quantity of produced items from Stagecoach Items’
• Tinker's Bench: Added effect, ‘Increases stacking for Contraptions by 2 per stack’
• Trapmaker’s Kit: Added effect, ‘Increases stacking for Traps by 2 per stack’

Trinkets

• Idle Thought: -30% Damage per Round changed to ‘Round End: -30% DMG(1 Battle)
• Strong Shackles: Now applies 2 Immobilize tokens instead of 1. Chance to apply Immobilize tokens reduced from 33% to 25%
• Corrupted Bile Gland: Now has a guaranteed chance to apply DoTs to the hero when hit
• Celebrated Chalice: Moved to default unlocked loot pool
• Tinderbox: Reduced Burn applied from 2 to 1 and chance from 66% to 33%
• Fishmonger's Gloves: Reduced Bleed applied from 2 to 1 and chance from 66% to 33%
• Poison Ring: Reduced Blight applied from 2 to 1 and chance from 66% to 33%
• Fisherman’s Line: Chance to apply Bleed while serrated item equipped reduced from 50% to 33%
• Enlightening Element: Chance to apply Burn reduced from 33% to 25%
• Curing Cuppa: Chance to apply Blight reduced from 33% to 25%
• Charred Litany: +100% Burn Dealt to +3 Burn Dealt
• Severed Finger: +33% Bleed Dealt changed to +2 Bleed Dealt. +33% Bleed Received changed to +1 Bleed Received.
• Bloodied Branch: +33% Bleed Dealt changed to +2 Bleed Dealt
• Tormenting Locket: +33% Bleed Dealt changed to +2 Bleed Dealt
• Early Experiment: +66% Blight Dealt changed to +2 Blight Dealt. Spore Grenade requirement changed to requiring a Noxious Item.
• His Rings: +33% Blight Dealt changed to +2 Blight Dealt
• Knitted Blanket: +33% Burn Dealt changed to +2 Burn Dealt

FIXES

• Fixed hero goal description that displayed the incorrect requirements needed for using Ounce of Prevention in a single fight
• Fixed incorrect loot dropping from valley road debris
• Fixed an error that came up when changing languages in driving
• Fixed an issue where A Glimmer of Hope triggered a positive affinity tick
• Fixed the combat description for The Blood that was displaying Stress rather than Horror
• Fixed Play Out with Royal Summons trinket where it now removes Vulnerable before the Block is added
• Fix missing SFX on Funeral Pyre
• Fixed an issue with torch light popping on node approach instead of fading out
• Fix missing tooltip SFX on memory icon and minimap
• Added new low quality settings version of the opening cinematic
• Fixes an issue where the hero goal panel wasn't updating in driving
• Fixed an issue where Obsession boss tokens were briefly present on valley enemy
• Fixed an issue where sometimes the camera would get stuck in an awkward position after failing and returning to the Valley
• Added Embark save validation and inn rollback if no valid save is found
• Fixed various issues with multiple visual effects in the Altar of Hope ui
• Added pop text for when 0 torch ambush fight is triggered "The Flame is Exhausted!"

Known Issues With This Build

• All non-English Assist encounter barks have not yet been adjusted for the new choices, and you will see errors (either missing strings or incorrectly assigned strings)
• All new strings are currently only in English. Localization will be patched in as soon as we have them delivered
• If you play using a memoried hero directly after an invalidated run, you may notice stat changes are not updating outside of combat (i.e. food buffs do not visibly change HP values in the Inn). The buffs are all still applied, but their changes aren't reflected until getting into combat. We are working on a fix, but in the meantime quitting the game and reloading should fix this issue.

 

[Larianshill]

That's nice (or terrible, I'm not reading this shit). But no crusader, no buy.

 

[Ibn Sina]

That's nice (or terrible, I'm not reading this shit). But no crusader, no buy.

No crusader, no buy. With crusader, no buy as well. Fuck red hook.

 

[bandersnatch]

I still like the art style of this game. It was pretty unique at the time. Now it's been copied by many.

 

[Cat Headed Eagle]

I still like the art style of this game. It was pretty unique at the time. Now it's been copied by many.

Don't worry, they copied it too

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.vg247.com/darkest-dungeon-2-devs-early-access-final-release

Darkest Dungeon 2 devs on navigating the early access Redemption Road trip – and what final release looks like​

Their time in early access is almost over. It's almost time for Darkest Dungeon fans to experience a bit of hope.

Roughly a week ago, an eldritch phenomena descended upon San Francisco in a hail of rain and wind. Escaping these otherworldly forces as they threw trees, chairs, and Web3 developers all over the place, I escaped into Hotel G where I found greater horrors waiting for me…

It was game design director Tyler Sigman and creative director Chris Bourassa from Red Hook Studios – the perilous pair were lurking in the darkness, armed with Darkest Dungeon 2 on a laptop, ready to pounce. Resigned to my fate, I sat down and spent my last sane 30 minutes asking them about their time in early access on the Epic Game Store, and some of the ways Darkest Dungeon 2 differs from the original. If you are reading this, I am already gone.

Check out the early access trailer here!
As of writing, Darkest Dungeon 2 has roughly six weeks left in early access before it is let loose on a world unprepared for its horrors. The game, in development for four-ish years, exploded into its beta phase with fervour – selling 100,000 copies initially, and going onto sell just over 300,000 early access copies as of our interview, according to Sigman. The team has gone dark and put its heads down in preparation for the full release, following a process of almost continuous process of development, feedback gathering, and reworking.

“A lot of early access is completing content, but in this game we haven't been afraid to go back and take a second look at systems that maybe weren't lining the way we wanted them to,” says Bourassa. “We're really happy with where it’s at now.”

Ever since the game launched in Early Access in 2021, the team has both chiselled away at new content whilst folding in feedback in three major areas: the relationship system, overall progression, and richness with the game’s traversal mechanic.

The progression system was initially received as 'boring' before the Altar of Hope was added. The relationship system – while initially presenting an elaborate aspect of rapport between your party – was confusing players. When characters fell in love, it could result in negative effects from inter-party jealousy and other complicated lovey-dovey stuff. While the team dug it at the time, “it wasn’t gamey enough” according to Bourassa. Following this feedback, the team rebuilt the system several times, over nine months, to create the system that's in place today.

According to the pair, the passionate install base of early access players gave them plenty of criticism to work with, resulting in tweaks and changes the studio is happy with today. Of course, some things got cut. Gone for now, but nowhere near forgotten.


“We wanted to re-approach our roadmap a little bit after launch, just because some of the things we just weren't happy with, while some of the features weren’t performing to our standards. So we had some neat ideas for additional things that may make a re-appearance later on.”

What strangeness will you encoutner on launch and beyond?
These include, but are not limited to, an underground region where every fight would be against a giant enemy, flipping the typical battle system on its head in a unique way. “So, we had a huge four-slot enemy there, so every fight would be a massive drawn-out slug fest,” teases Bourassa. “We kind-of thought that would be a neat twist on the combat and there are lots of implications to that – if there’s only one target you’re able to really set-up and execute combos.”

Then there are characters. Funky, awful hags, crones, gargoyles, and other horrific monsters. None of these have been thrown out the window. Instead, they could very well come back as post-launch content injections. As Sigman notes, they all go in the hopper for potential post-1.0 content. Nothing is left on the cold, dank, cutting room floor of this dungeon.

There are plenty of ideas that have fallen into this pot of potential post-launch curiosity, thanks largely to the wider scope made available with the game taking the player away from the manor of the first game, and into the wider world of Darkest Dungeon.

“That was something that was exciting to us,” says Sigman. “At the beginning of Darkest Dungeon 2's development, the idea of this being a journey made sure we got very creative”. He points to the Colour of Madness DLC from Darkest Dungeon as an example of the stuido's prior creativity within the boundaries of the original, but acknowledges that Darkest Dungeon 2 allowed them to reach to different, darker places.

Sigman elaborates: “There is a freedom that comes from saying what would the world look like? And it's fun to imagine entire regions. It opens the gates for things that maybe just wouldn't fit within the confines of Darkest Dungeon 1”.

This scope goes further than the places you visit. If Darkest Dungeon 2 has become anything over its time in early access, it’s more expansive in all areas. Take the character backstories; no longer are your Highwayman just a tool to be disposed of. He is a genuine character, with a narrative journey the player can connect with throughout their travels – an aspect of the game both Sigman and Bourassa are particularly proud of.

Best friends, through the worst of times.
But in spite of all these differences, despite the wider scope, and despite the change in direction from a delve into the manor to a righteous road trip, Darkest Dungeon 2 remains a challenge to the typical power fantasy found in other games.

Sigman explains: “This is not a game about getting wealth and resources. When you're on a road trip and it's kind-of a ride-or-die mission as these expeditions in Darkest Dungeon 2 are, wealth has no real value. So you're working with, really, whatever you can pick up alongside the road”.

But, there is a tinge of hope there. You always need something to cling to on those long, cold, nights whilst the wind is howling past your caravan, right? Following the often hopeless tone found in Darkest Dungeon, and the horrid real-life events that have taken place alongside the development on Darkest Dungeon 2, the team believes everything in their game builds up to a more aspirational experience.

Bourassa concludes: “For us and where we live in the world, we have enjoyed – for a long period of time – a relative sense of progress and safety. I think that lets you play around with your entertainment, you can kind of be darker because you yourself don't feel personally on the hook and that is a fun space to play in. But I think, for this game, we just felt like it would be a great challenge for us as creatives to embrace the other side of the coin and something a little bit more hopeful.”

---

You can see for yourself whether the folks at Red Hook Studios managed to pull this off when Darkest Dungeon 2 version 1.0 launches on 8 May 2023.

 

[Mud']

>This scope goes further than the places you visit. If Darkest Dungeon 2 has become anything over its time in early access, it’s more expansive in all areas. Take the character backstories; no longer are your Highwayman just a tool to be disposed of. He is a genuine character, with a narrative journey the player can connect with throughout their travels – an aspect of the game both Sigman and Bourassa are particularly proud of.

But I liked how the first game felt like an AD&D game, throwing characters at real dungeon crawls to see how deep you can go to retrieve all the riches possible and go back into town to count your wealth and new shit you just got and that no matter what you did, you never could lose (just in very, veery specifc stuff) while here,

I dont know, this game just doesn't hold my interest like DD1 did, something about it feels off but still the art style and narrator is just good enough that i will give it a chance when it comes out.

 

[Reinhardt]

He is a genuine character, with a narrative journey the player can connect with throughout their travels

dumbfucks... it's opposite - instead of your own character you are forced to play theirs.

 

[whydoibother]

I had forgotten about this game, and it looks like I am not the only one.

Epic Games graveyard?

 

[Wunderbar]

Epic Games graveyard?

EGS is not to blame here tbh. The game is just not good, and it would've failed on Steam too.

 

[InD_ImaginE]

I had forgotten about this game, and it looks like I am not the only one.
View attachment 35111

Epic Games graveyard?

DD2 or even just DD or just roguelike in general are not evergreen streaming games. During major patch release, you can see variety streamers playing it (including famous ones with thousands of viewers). They are not kind of game being streamed every day for a long time. Only on release, major patch, and expansion. Twitch view is not a good matrix for this tbh.

 

[1451]

So I played the newest update.
Game's performance seems a little bit better, still looks weird to me how it can eat 4gb of vram.
They got rid of the pre journey shenanigans with the anal candles but you still collect them for some reason.
Overall the game is in a slightly less terrible state than it was before but it's still terrible.
Feels like the team lacks vision, they change so many things from patch to patch, it feels like they threw lots of ideas in a bag and then they randomly pulled some of them out and decided to implement them.

 

[Cat Headed Eagle]

Feels like the team lacks vision, they change so many things from patch to patch, it feels like they threw lots of ideas in a bag and then they randomly pulled some of them out and decided to implement them.

The first game was the same. They kept "balancing" things for a single player game, which is a red flag, but then they released the multiplayer dlc and everything made sense as to why they were changing so much stuff.