Roguelike Inspired Game Mode: Strategem

This major update comes with a New game mode, many bug fixes, and a focus on reducing game friction.

- It has become obvious that many things are causing friction within the game. This is not difficulty friction, although there is a learning curve. This is friction to physically playing the game: Dying and being sent to the main menu, saving and having to reload, loading screens from traveling, lengthy story dialogue, animation waits, the slow post battle screen. These are among many things that impact your ability to play the game from moment to moment. So in this update I have attacked MANY of the unnecessary friction points.

New Game Mode: Strategem

- Strategem is a new roguelike inspired game mode that focuses on the combat of the game. Test various weapon combinations against various troops. And test your sustain across multiple increasingly more difficult fights. There are currently 5 difficulty levels, each with their own modifiers. New Main menu

- Added a new main menu that leads into either story or Strategem mode. Time Trials and Gallery will be coming in a future update.Game Over Menu

- The game over screen now has a choice menu to immediately continue from the last save without having to do a long load. Speaking of Loading...Less "Loading..."

- Angelic Statues no longer trigger a Loading... screen.

- The following regions have been combined to eliminate Loading...: [Church+Shanty Town] [Lucredia's Landing+Trenches+Inerva's Camp] [Entire Blackship dungeon]

- Load data now persists through overworld deaths, which means if you die in the overworld you do not need to go through a "Loading..." screen to continue playing.  Post-Battle victory Screen Sped up.

- Drastically sped up the post battle victory screen.

Items/Equipment/Skills Menu Navigation sped up

- Navigating the book menu is now instant. It no longer waits for the page flipping animation.

Bosses

Gravis

- Health percent required to win: 10% (prev 20%)

- Gravis's phase 2 now gives her a true double action, instead of a double turn. Bleeds will no longer double proc and 'Anti-Snow Binding' will hit twice between grapples.

- Anti-Snow Binding damage nerfed by 30%

Lotus Assasin

- Health increased to 200hp (prev 100hp)

- Shadowclones will no longer be dispelled after one hit, they must be killed. Or the window must be opened.

Cruck Trio

- Cruck trio fight area now invokes clausterphobia

Gallium Ambush

- Health increased to 250 (prev 200)

- Flees at 10% HP (prev 40%)

- new p2 starts at 50% health

Overseer's Peepshow

- Skirmishers start with inreased energy.

Kraken-Form Gallium.

- Health increased to 500 (prev 200)

- Armor/M.Def increased to 8/8 (prev 3/3)

- p2 starts at 50% hp.

- Tendrils health increased to 100 (prev 30)

Espada

- Health Increased to 500 (prev 300)

- Armor/M.def increased to +10/+10 (prev +6/+6)

- Rapier Posture broken now reduces evasion instead of Armor.

Black Sword, Espada's Blade

- Health increased to 100 (was 30)

- Armor increased to 15 (was 8)

- Black sword now gains immunity shield in phase 3

Battle Enemies

Trench Horror

- 'execute' damage increased by 30%

Gunwoman

- Armor/M.Def increased to +7/+7 (prev +6/+6)

- Health increased to 150 (prev 100)

Skirmisher

- Health increased to 200 (prev 100)

Cruck

- Health increased to 150 (prev 100)

- No longer has overworld armor.

Sea Mage

- M.Atk increased to 15 (prev 13)

Weapons and Armors

- Icebreaker stats changed to: +3 atk & +3 m.atk (prev +3 atk & +1 m.atk)

- Devil Contract changed to: Lose 75% Max HP, Gain 10 Atk. (Prev Lose 50% Max HP, Gain 6 Atk)

- Solara's Ward Ring: Increased magic evasion by 50% (prev 30%)

- Monstrosity Claw bleed damage increased to 100% (up from +50% bleed damage)

Combat Skills Balance

Being Grappled

- 'Use energy to break out' now gives these odds: 30en = 50% chance, 50en = 75% chance. (Previously 50en = 50% chance, 70 en = 75% chance)

- 'Brace' now gives 50 en.

Frost Skills

- Frost heal now costs 10 Frost (Up from 5)

Gauntlets

- Jawbreaker now costs 50 En (down from 70)

- Pawn takes cost increased to 10 Frostblood (up from 5)

Daggers

- Harlot's Flash cost increased to 1 AP ( Previously 0 AP)

- Daggerfan cost reduced to 0 En + 3 Daggers + 1 AP (Previously 50 En + 3 Daggers + 1 AP)

- Knight's Tour no longer scales with dagger count, now does: a.atk * 1.5 - b.def * 1

- Harlot's Tour no longer scales with dagger count, now does: a.atk * 2.6 - b.def * 1

- Glabella Flash damage increased by 20%

- Harlot's Reward damage reduced by 10%

Arming Sword

- Spinning blade damage increased by 15%

- Death's dance can now crit.

- Killing intent description updated: Buffs all deathstrikes by 50%, lasts 3 turns.

Greatsword

- B.slam dmg buffed by 10%, Stun chance increased to 30% (prev 20% stun chance)

- Queen's Judgement now deals magic damage.

- Carve the weak cost is now 25 en (down from 30 en)

Story Update

- Added a save point before the gravis fight.

- Moved Gravis's dialogue window at the intro.

- Shortened the church story sequence to increase story pacing.

- Shortened Inerva's tent dialogue.

- Shortened Solara's dialogue in Lucredia's landing.

- Shortened/altered Rime's Dialogue in the intro area.

Combat Flow

- Hit chance is now shown when targetting enemies.

- Skill damage type is now shown in the combat UI.

- Reduced the enemy turn time by 0.5 seconds

- Reduced Snow's turn time by 0.2 seconds.

- Sped up Enstep animation by 0.2 seconds.

- Enstep now only needs 1 confirmation instead of 2

World

- Removed "The door is locked" message from all doors in the game. As that is already implied by the choice window.

- Having the key for the first two gates will automatically bring up " Use X key" prompt. Any future keys added to the game will behave this way.

- Attunement: rest animation sped up.

- Attunement: 'quick buy' is now the default.

Dungeon update: The Blackship

- Removed Angelic Barriers on the center-front deck allowing a topdeck path to the brig.

- Added visible cell numbers to all cells in the brig.

Bugfixes

- Audio: The Blackship Dungeon's phase 2 music should no longer permanently shut off when entering certain areas.

- Audio: Lowered overworld parry sound effect

- Attunement skill:  Max En/Max Life no longer nets a permanent -10 to your stat upon reset.

- Animations: Added more animation safe guards against slide animation and attack/parry animation breaks. If this still happens, reloading the game will fix it.

- Combat: patched one potential reason for 'Make Targets' crash against canine horror. Still investigating.

- Combat: Enstep no longer causes a frame drop while targetting.  

- Combat UI: Skill list scrolling arrow is now much larger and animated.

- Combat UI: Gauge text vars no longer go off screen when max EN /Life/Frost is too low.

- World Enemies, The blackship: Center deck enemies should no longer despawn when climbing the ladder on the center deck.

- World UI: "You feel the walls closing in" no longer repeats when tipsy.

- World, the blackship: Fixed the slow motion canonballs in the bullet room on the blackship.