Game update

Absence of Light

Repel the Darkness Playtest · published 30 Aug 2026, 18:10 UTC

Darkness: monsters can now darken your tiles. A Darkened tile has no effect until the Darkness is removed.
Illumination counters Darkness. Illuminated monsters cannot darken tiles.
Relics: On rare occasions a relic will spawn on the board. Place a tile next to it to find out what it does.
Placement previews now show exactly what a tile or unit placement would change as UI chips over every affected object.
Reworked Slow and Thicket.

Ranged monsters now walk their previewed path to a position within attack range and hold it. They no longer plan a new route toward the base between attacks, which could take them off the previewed path or stop them from attacking.

Reworked Slow to a counted stacks. Each stack reduces move speed by 25% for up to 3 stacks. Critically Slowed no longer exists.
Reworked the targeting of Suppressor so that it spreads its Slow stacks across the monsters.
Reworked Binding Fire. Attacks deal +1 damage per Slow stack on the target.
Reworked Winter's Grip so that the attacks of Suppressor Root a fully Slowed monsters.
Reworked Shatter Chill so that the target loses 1 Shield on every hit, so it also works on monsters that are already Slowed.

The Obelisk is no longer a tile you place.
Reworked Thicket. Monsters walking over it become Bound, opening up new synergies to explore.

While placing a tile or unit, every unit, tile, spawner and the base whose stats or statuses would change shows a chip above it with the change (for example "+50%" or "1→2").
Renamed the "Shifting Ground" reward to "Tile Swap" and clarified its description so that it is easier to understand.

Fixed ranged projectiles despawning mid-air when their target was diminished before the shot landed. The projectile now finishes its trajectory.
Fixed the Defend button overlapping the Undo button on ultrawide screens.
Fixed resuming a saved level dropping the Sturdy Thicket and Barbed Thicket augments.
Fixed Minions spawning outside of the Spawner's tile, unless the tile is too crowded.
Fixed the Echoing Shrine missing triggers that happened near the corners of its cell.
Monster spawns can no longer appear inside an area enclosed by Rivers with no land path to the base.

Other announcements

Game update

Repel the Darkness Playtest · published 30 Aug 2026, 18:10 UTC

Darkness: monsters can now darken your tiles. A Darkened tile has no effect until the Darkness is removed.
Illumination counters Darkness. Illuminated monsters cannot darken tiles.
Relics: On rare occasions a relic will spawn on the board. Place a tile next to it to find out what it does.
Placement previews now show exactly what a tile or unit placement would change as UI chips over every affected object.
Reworked Slow and Thicket.

Ranged monsters now walk their previewed path to a position within attack range and hold it. They no longer plan a new route toward the base between attacks, which could take them off the previewed path or stop them from attacking.

Reworked Slow to a counted stacks. Each stack reduces move speed by 25% for up to 3 stacks. Critically Slowed no longer exists.
Reworked the targeting of Suppressor so that it spreads its Slow stacks across the monsters.
Reworked Binding Fire. Attacks deal +1 damage per Slow stack on the target.
Reworked Winter's Grip so that the attacks of Suppressor Root a fully Slowed monsters.
Reworked Shatter Chill so that the target loses 1 Shield on every hit, so it also works on monsters that are already Slowed.

The Obelisk is no longer a tile you place.
Reworked Thicket. Monsters walking over it become Bound, opening up new synergies to explore.

While placing a tile or unit, every unit, tile, spawner and the base whose stats or statuses would change shows a chip above it with the change (for example "+50%" or "1→2").
Renamed the "Shifting Ground" reward to "Tile Swap" and clarified its description so that it is easier to understand.

Fixed ranged projectiles despawning mid-air when their target was diminished before the shot landed. The projectile now finishes its trajectory.
Fixed the Defend button overlapping the Undo button on ultrawide screens.
Fixed resuming a saved level dropping the Sturdy Thicket and Barbed Thicket augments.
Fixed Minions spawning outside of the Spawner's tile, unless the tile is too crowded.
Fixed the Echoing Shrine missing triggers that happened near the corners of its cell.
Monster spawns can no longer appear inside an area enclosed by Rivers with no land path to the base.