Everything below is in the free demo today!
Windows menus, tooltips, HUD bars, the map and screens before you enter the world now look gritty
Combat animations are more lively and card categories (attacks, defenses, spells, poisons etc.) now have their own unique animations
17 weapons and 3 shields now show up as LARP gear in the game
Every deck now holds one each of four new cards:
Sharpen: your next attack hits for 3 more; costs no action
Focus!: your next 2 cards that cost two or more actions cost 1 action less
Sifting: draw two cards from your deck, keep one, put one back; you get 1 action back
Press: in a duel with another player, their next card costs 1 more action
Additional tweaks to existing cards:
Some guards and utility cards now give their action back
When the fight makes a card cheaper or more expensive, the cost tab shows it
The guard your opponent has up is now visible as a card on their side of the table
All activities missing from the combat log previously are now listed there
Right-clicking a card in the deck editor now flips its side
Changing gear while viewing the card collection now updates stats on the go
Challenge someone for an area on the conquest map and the loser goes down but not dead. You get the win, they get put back in the room where they were before the challenge. If the duel times out or someone flees, that counts as a loss. Starting a conquest against a player or an NPC guardian ends your newcomer protection. A won conquest duel counts as a kill on the Killboard and in the Next Fest tournament on October 20 and 21.
The demo now opens 17 of the world's 23 areas. Darkwood, The Northlands, The Wasteland, Plaguelands, Ancient Forests and the OG Area remain off limits. You can walk into the Fort but its services stay closed in the demo.
Firelight indoors is visible, and rain and fog cover the whole screen
The minimap route says when the way is up or down, and the quest being guided is marked in your quest list
Carrying too much, you move once every six seconds, and the game tells you why you cannot move
Clearer messages when Steam drops the connection or is not running
For LARPers, fans of Baltic myth, and anyone who appreciates raw, uncompromising indie grit, it earns an easy spot on the wishlist.
The full review: https://larpnews.org/demo-review-manala-equinox-war-turns-boffer-combat-into-turn-based-card-battling/