UPDATE #42: Horn Of Taint

Sometimes a feature just clicks... and suddenly the game opens up in a completely new way.UPDATE #42 is one of those moments.

With the Horn of Taint, you're no longer just reacting to danger. You can call it. Shape it. Push it as far as you dare - and see if your defenses can actually handle what you've unleashed.

And while you're experimenting with the Horn, we've been tightening the world around you - from smarter spawning systems to settlers who finally show how they actually feel about life on these islands.

Changelog UPDATE #42

NEW STRUCTURE: Horn Of Taint 😈

• Horn of Taint lets you summon a monster wave on demand:
  • Provide an offering - up to 3 crafting items. Different combinations influence the wave’s monster roster.
  • Fuel it with additional items - the more you use, the stronger the wave.

• Choose which wave type to summon (Infestation or Raid).
• Set the monster tier of the wave.
• Horn of Taint can be unlocked in the Scholars’ Guild technology tree.

Highlights

• Plant popups now display status after the name (Regrowing, Harvestable).
• If you carry items for Val’s gathering quests, she’ll wave at you when nearby and an alert will appear above her.
• Improved monster spawning system - monsters should now always spawn correctly from their nests.
• Increased the maximum number of animals roaming the island.
• Improved animal respawning - when more animals of different types die, they now respawn faster in their nests.
• Added a crafting recipe for Dark Stones (unlocked via the Essence Collector).
• Fireplaces in community huts are now visibly smoldering.

Fixes & Balance

• The Raven Watchtower now increases settlers’ maximum happiness by 10.
• Fixed an issue where settlers could drift or slide on the ground.
• Fixed dungeon monster spawners on the second island - some nests were not triggering properly.
• To unlock further technologies in the Scholars’ Guild, you must now first unlock the Taint Collector.

Settler Changes

• Added new idle animations for settlers with low happiness:
  • Heavy sigh with slumped shoulders.
  • Dismissive hand wave.
  • Kicking a stone.
  • Sitting sadly.

• Added new idle animations for settlers with high morale (more ways to boost happiness coming soon):
  • Admiring the view.
  • Cheerful whistling.
  • Deep breath.
  • Sitting happily.

• Polished other settler animations.

As always, thank you for being here with us and helping shape the game with your feedback and ideas.

We're not slowing down - more updates are already in the works, and we'll keep pushing things further step by step.

Now go ahead... ring the Horn. And see what answers 😈

Star Drifters Team