Hey there, the Monthly Summary for March is here!
March was heavily focused on the new gate siege and yard combat, and I'm really happy with how it is shaping up🙂
TFE Development Summary - March 2026
Gate Sieges & Yard Combat
🛠️ Defenders can now hold the gate, take reduced damage, and retreat to Yard Defender slots if the gate HP drops below a certain threshold
🛠️ Gate attacks now utilize SmartObjects, and only specific soldier classes are able to attack the gate
🛠️ Refactored attacker and defender slot logic to prevent overcrowding and ensure soldiers engage properly
🛠️ Gates get repaired by defenders once the yard is safe and not under siege anymore
🛠️ Implemented the new Yard Combat mechanic, which starts after a gate is breached
🛠️ When attackers win a Yard Battle, the building owner is changed correctly and the territory polygon is cleaned up
🛠️ Added automated Functional Tests for the Yard Mechanic and Gate mechanics to keep everything robust
Navigation & Optimization
🛠️ Utilized async pathfinding in the MoveTo function to improve the game thread performance
🛠️ Optimized NavigationMesh generation, especially when spawning ground patches or modifying the landscape with texture stamps
🛠️ Disabled navmesh generation for buildings that are currently in preview or being demolished
🛠️ Added a new tool to bulk build and save nav paths for maps
More Stuff
🛠️ Enabled Bot AI to attack after a certain peacetime, if the Bot is set to offensive (this is just for testing for now, these kind of things will be configurable in the lobby later)
🛠️ Implemented a scripted action to quickly export combat stats as a CSV file for faster balancing
🛠️ Fixed builders and diggers not being properly committed to their construction sites
🛠️ Fixed multiple character issues, e.g. the Weaponmaker & CoinMinter got stuck in door frames, and carriers became stuck at the tavern entrance
🛠️ Fixed a bug where combat units were stacked or teleporting to barracks during infight
🛠️ ... more bug fixes
✨ Secrets
This month I took a big leap forward with the combat mechanics, ensuring Gate sieges and Yard combat feel rewarding. The new smart object system for the gates makes the whole flow much more robust.
Feel free to share your feedback in the comments!
And that's it for now, see you next time 🚩
Best, Sebastian 🙂