Build 25132454

Realms of Wands — Update 2.0.26 (Steam)

Version: 2.0.26
Platform: Windows (Steam) + Steam Deck
Saves and Steam achievements are not reset.

WHAT THIS UPDATE IS
After Ashfall, a blank ember remains. This update adds Act IX Afterember,
Act X Marginwake, the optional Unwritten Hours side campaign, eight new
heroes, new spells and gear, title modes, and a Steam HQ soundtrack pack —
plus graphics polish and quality-of-life fixes.

ACT IX — AFTEREMBER
- 75 regions across 15 courts after Ashfall
- Beat the Afterember Sovereign to unlock Act X
- Courts: Blankwake, Quillfen, Echo Margin, Sealbreak, Dawnrift,
Kindled Page, Ash Script, Hollow Draft, Ember Index, Choir Margin,
Last Binding, Palimpsest, Redaction, Colophon, Afterember Throne
- Court gimmicks play in the field (ash script, blankwake, dawnrift,
redaction bars, drafts, ink bogs, echoes, throne phase rings)
- Optional delves: Kiln Margin, Fen Quill, Flue Draft, Index Deep,
Palimpsest Hollow, Redaction Spire, Colophon Vault, Blankwake Well
- Afterhearth, 5 Quill familiars (Ink, Margin, Seal, Palimpsest,
Colophon), a 24-node Afterember Paragon tree, and court bounties

ACT X — MARGINWAKE
- 20-region epilogue: First Margin, Second Voice, Binding Wake,
Marginwake Throne
- Beat the Marginwake Sovereign for credits and a Realms of Wands 2 tease
- Gear: Margin Edge, Second Voice Staff, Binding Wake Blade,
Marginwake Crownblade
- Spells: Margin Cut, Second Voice, Binding Law, Wake Seal

UNWRITTEN HOURS
- Optional 30-map side campaign from Emberhold (after Act III)
- Chapters: Lost Hour, Stolen Line, False Ember, Quiet Choir,
Unnamed Hero, Last Minute

NEW HEROES
Fenwick, Alder, Rue, Caldora, Wren, Parch, Lumen, Pell —
each with a signature weapon.

AFTEREMBER SPELLS
Write Bolt, Unwrite, Seal Ward, Dawnflare, Redact, Footnote,
Palimpsest, Margin Step, Ink Nova, Quill Lance, Blank Shield,
Choir Write, Ash Letter, Index Bind, Colophon Burst, Afterember

TITLE MODES
Ink Trial, Afterember Raid, Margin Gauntlet, Hours Rush,
and the Emberhold Bounty Board

STEAM HQ AUDIO
~400 MB HQ soundtrack pack on desktop Steam (field / act / boss loops,
ambient beds, and stingers). Title theme unchanged.

GRAPHICS & POLISH
- 4K Ultra graphics + denser FX (Settings → GAME)
- 120 Hz display option (sim stays locked at 60 FPS)
- Scene fades when traveling / returning home, plus region enter banners
- Animated menus (pause, gear, shop, settings)
- Smarter foes — line-of-sight chase, attack tells, aggro hysteresis
- Wyn visual upgrade (blue cloak, brown hair); refreshed bosses
- Animated PNG sprites for heroes, enemies, bosses, NPCs, weapons,
and spell bolts
- Act VIII–X and Unwritten Hours bosses use shared court sprite sheets
- Locked 60 FPS simulation + Auto / Performance graphics for low-end PCs
- Cleaner boot intro, loading title, and mystic-ember loading screen

EVENTS
- Yulewake Xmas — full Christmas theme (loading, intro, title, biomes,
HUD, menus, foes, bosses). Santa sleigh on the title, Emberhearth
feast board, merchant gifts, and Hearthwake / Frost Hearth skins.
Toggle in Settings → GAME → YULEWAKE XMAS (Dec 20–Jan 1)
- All Hallows — full Halloween theme with pumpkin moons, bats / embers,
and harvest wash. Toggle in Settings → GAME → HALLOWEEN EVENT
(Oct 26–31). Theme is temporarily off in this build until re-enabled.

HOTFIXES / SMALL FIXES
- Desktop EXE uses less RAM and fewer helper processes
- Melee hits land on the slash peak (synced with arc VFX)
- Stronger ranged muzzle flash, outlined damage numbers
- Walk bob, foot dust, richer biome ambient (incl. Afterember courts)
- Brief death pose before Game Over; cast pose when casting
- Reduced Motion softens combat shake, hitstop, and particle bursts
- Continue after a fall no longer loads you with 0 HP
- Continue resumes the map and spot you left (campaign autosaves)
- Sanctum and trials no longer overwrite your Story Continue slot
- HQ audio plays when enabled on Steam (falls back if a track is missing)
- Controller X / Magic no longer closes menus
- Overlay back / exit is consistent across Help, Updates, Skins,
Records, Codex, shop, pause, and region menus
- Settings uses AUDIO / GAME / CONTROLS tabs
- Emberhold plaza cleaner — services on walls, clearer Adventure path
- Hollow Crown has a proper EXIT tile after the boss
- Weapon HUD icons match every campaign weapon id
- Multiplayer: other heroes only appear after friends join; leaving
online clears ghosts so Continue is solo again
- Pause LEAVE ONLINE exits co-op/PvP anytime
- Windows EXE opens and boots the title screen reliably
- Official Realms of Wands logo on desktop / Start Menu / installer
- Main menu music is 2% quieter; loading screen lingers a touch longer
- Ashfall Sovereign unlocks Act IX instead of rolling credits early
- Halloween Event theme and Settings toggle temporarily hidden
- Debug cheats stay locked in the public Steam build
- In-game: title or pause → Update Notes (version 2.0.26).

Thank you for playing Realms of Wands.

Kindly regards,
Lumenrift Games