Ver 1.0.5a - 3 new crates, 1 New Shovel, 1 new secret, several altered items
Rutrum · published
3 New Crates:
Quick Crate -- Available immediately, no unlock needed
This is slightly intended for shorter runs. (Artwork somewhat placeholder).
Each Battle is only 2 waves, but each non-boss enemy has twice as much health.
However, the crate no longer empties between battles (although it does trigger new unlocks, which I'm debating about).
The crate only gives you the typical "starting" rocks on the first battle. However, Coffer Refills and Chamberpot or other items will still activate every battle.
Quantum -- Requires you to upgrade the Common Shovel "Quantum Box" (available at start of game).
I want to increase the visual juice of this crate but it's kind of slightly closer to traditional "drop-and-merge" games.
Cardboard -- Requires you to use Phoenix Tuft or it's upgraded form, Phoenix Quill. (Which are locked.)
Mmm the effects are a secret...
But I'll probably also refine it in the coming weeks.
New Shovel
[Spoiler Warning]
Potion Dice -- No unlock needed.
Effect: "Sell: Heal 4. Reroll: Grow this amount by 4."
Intended to give players additional options to heal, particularly in shops
The Handle is also related. "Reroll: Heal 2." It may not sound like much but with Copycat...
Altered Shovels / Handles:
[Spoiler Warning]
Target -- the base item, the upgrade, and the handle have all been revised extensively.
Old shovel was "Forge [Random Tier]: Triple damage this forge."
New shovel is "Start Turn: Give random runeless gem in crate the bow rune. End Turn: Remove that rune."
In other word, the "target" is now to forge a particular gem in the crate. The Bow Rune gives double damage, so if you hit it with another bow rune, it's actually 4x damage.
I probably need to improve the UI, like when you mouse over for it to highlight which bow rune it will remove.
Alchemy Handle was changed.
Old one was: "3 Copper Forge: Increase base strength by 3"
But multiple players thought this was a bug, because it changes the gameplay too much. It was a mistake on my part.
New one is (for now): "Forge Silver: Forge into Gold Coin"
Penny Ante Upgrade has been changed. The old upgrade was too weak, new one is more fun, I think.
Decay Rock (Shovel + Upgrade) have been reverted to their previous incarnation.
Recent version: "Pop Rock: 100% chance to pop another rock. Decrease by 1%. Start Battle: Reset to 100%"
Now version: "Pop Rock: 100% chance to drop another rock. Decrease by 1%. Start Battle: Reset to 100%"
I wanted to make Decay Rock more impactful, but popping on pop was causing a chain reaction (quite fitting) but it was something that would have an effect for the first wave and then do nothing.
I'm leaning toward revising it AGAIN, this time toward poison (sticking with the sort of "radioactive" theme).
[BUG FIX / Minor]
I have decreased the weight of gems by 50%. When the crate was too full of heavy gems, it was causing physics equilibrium issues (jittery rocks).
During a recent stability patch, Frog Legs and the Boulder stopped making rocks actually bigger (only appear larger visually). This is now fixed.
Replaced the placeholder artwork for the Anchor Rune, looks more like an Anchor.
Some other minor / trivial ones, mostly text stuff.
1 new secret too, but if I said more than that, it wouldn't be a secret. If you previously completed the requirements for it to unlock, it should unlock on your very next run (no matter what run you select).
I also want to thank HolyBadman for giving multiple bug reports and posting screenshots on the community page (but uh, beware of spoilers). Thank you for all of the energy that helped make today's patch possible!
Next Patch [Likely]
I'm still reading the feedback from in game, discord, and the steam discussion board. Please let me know if anything is not what you expect or anything you would like to see improved.
That being said, here's what I hope to add for next patch sometime next week:
1 New item - Anchor Shovel (and upgrade and handle)
Encounter analysis from those who were kind enough to share data, to identify any rough spots, particularly in Battles 2, 5, and 6.
Maybe additional Treasure Bear Dialogue.
Monitor feedback from players, especially regarding Quick Crate. Should the base game move slightly in this direction? I am curious to hear more.