KickStarter Knights of the Chalice 2 Thread - Augury of Chaos

[Darth Canoli]

I played and finished the game at release. During that time it was maybe one or two mini patches. Dunno about game state atm.

It works perfectly and the ultra-fast combat option is just a gift from the gods of cRPGs.

 

[Iluvcheezcake]

I played and finished the game at release. During that time it was maybe one or two mini patches. Dunno about game state atm.

It works perfectly and the ultra-fast combat option is just a gift from the gods of cRPGs.

Glad to hear that.
My main beef was Kickstarter where it was "Giuse teh gaem is 1.0, practically done, engine done, kickstarter is for funding more modules, promotion and fluff." Then i fired up the game and found out that quicksaving crashed it, drinking pots crashed it, using certain spells crashed it, etc. I still had a lot of fun, hell, i completed the game with 6 wizards which i wrote about previously (ye im that retard).
I expected something different from the crazy dude who made Kotc1, not selling me late alpha/early beta as a full product.
For a indie developer its a shit way to treat your customers.

 

[Darth Canoli]

Glad to hear that.
My main beef was Kickstarter where it was "Giuse teh gaem is 1.0, practically done, engine done, kickstarter is for funding more modules, promotion and fluff." Then i fired up the game and found out that quicksaving crashed it, drinking pots crashed it, using certain spells crashed it, etc. I still had a lot of fun, hell, i completed the game with 6 wizards which i wrote about previously (ye im that retard).
I expected something different from the crazy dude who made Kotc1, not selling me late alpha/early beta as a full product.
For a indie developer its a shit way to treat your customers.

I exchanged dozens of e-mails with Pierre since last summer and i can tell you he's working hard and he's receptive to any feedback, he improved the speed of a couple of spells and introduced faster modes up to ultra-fast because of the feedback about spell animations and combat being slow, for example.

He's working on the sprites for the same reason, because many players are expecting them.
I get used to it but many players are still expecting their sprites and they shall have it.

So, he's doing his best with his limited resources and he's not giving up anytime soon.

I'll go on and give him some feedback about chapter 4 as soon as i'm really at it, i launched it again recently but i'm slowly cleaning the castle surroundings after the first huge battle.
Really slowly but surely.

 

[Mortmal]

Most sprites look quite good in action and perfectly fit the environment. It's a huge upgrade, I hope people who were relunctant about tokens will be aware of it.

We were reluctant about the artstyle used not the use of token per se. Something tell me artstyle doesnt bother you in games.

 

[Darth Canoli]

We were reluctant about the artstyle used not the use of token per se. Something tell me artstyle doesnt bother you in games.

Artstyle bothers me but i find the original tokens quite alright, some characters portraits aside.
Then again, you can chose not to use them and there is a shitload of token packs either from the official forum, from nexus and some lost in this very thread.

Meanwhile, i can't stomach animu style nor Serpents in the staglands retro-hipster-pixel-art.
And then there's the new 8-bit hyper-retro-hipster-3colors-pixel-art which is even worse...

 

[Pink Eye]

If there's any 4chan users here. I created a roll chart. Which you can use to determine your next party. I am for sure going to be using this bad boy to create my next party after I finish my Iron Man run. So far, I've been getting decent rolls.

Spoiler

 

[Darth Canoli]

Next Steps for Knights of the Chalice 2
Now that I've finished the big work on sprites, I can focus on much more interesting stuff.

• Add the new content in the village map and a few extra quests in chapter 2 and 3.
• Add the main difficulty slider and the two new options (more campfires, easier encounters).
• Implement the Barbarian Class upgrade. Add local-map screen. Add features suggested in forum.
• Create the tutorial module. Add module-creation info in guidebook. Fix any remaining bugs.
• Add feat-selection recommendations. Add the new feats / items / spells / features as promised.
• Read & reply on HeroicFantasyGames.com forums, Discord server and here on Kickstarter.
• Add backer names to the KotC 2 Credits Screen as appropriate, and assign forum labels for backers.
• Continue working on the Steam page for KotC 2 and start working on the Steam version of KotC 2.

Didn't notice the 1.11 release, I'll wait for the additional content and the Barbarian class to start from the beginning again.
Last run, I tried the Mage-Knight because the Barbarian wasn't revamped yet and he's not very good, well, it's some additional nuking but he's just average at everything and the Druid was way better.

Next Run, I'll go for my classic dream team while maybe replacing the cleric by a Bishop.
Warrior, Barbarian, Wizard, Psionicist, Druid and Bishop, maybe with an additional Gladiator if i can because aside from Pizarra, hirelings aren't very good.

 

[Pink Eye]

Welp. I just lost my run. Managed to survive to castle siege. But my game crashed. Terrific.

Spoiler

Good run, I guess. You can view the whole run here:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqGduWyxd-C-Zc00kL0koLFBnM65omBSC

 

[Darth Canoli]

Welp. I just lost my run. Managed to survive to castle siege. But my game crashed. Terrific.

Spoiler

Good run, I guess. You can view the whole run here:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqGduWyxd-C-Zc00kL0koLFBnM65omBSC

Ironman run up until the castle?
That's good, did you do all the optional fights like the sharkman druid and the snares on chapter 3?

Spoiler

Nope, i'm not watching the video.

 

[Pink Eye]

Yes. I did all of the optional fights. Only thing I didn't do was kill the Goblins at the camp, you get bonus experience for doing so. But I needed to abuse infinite rests. Going to try another run come next patch. Planning on using this party:
Evocation Specialist Wizard
Enchantment Specialist Wizard
Cleric
Druid
Monk
Either Mage Knight, Psychic Warrior, or Dual Wielding Barbarian

Completely underestimated the power of prismatic void and transformations in high level play.

 

[Darth Canoli]

Either Mage Knight, Psychic Warrior, or Dual Wielding Barbarian

Completely underestimated the power of prismatic void and transformations in high level play.

I'd pick the Barbarian if the Barbarian upgrade is ready by then, Mage knight last, he's really not that good.

I know monks are your gimmick but do you use them with weapons? I like the standard Fighter better.

 

[Pink Eye]

Yeah, only reason why I'm interested in rolling a Barbarian, is because of that upgrade.
>do you use them with weapons
Nah. Just fists. I requested Pierre to give some SLAs for Monk to use. He said he's going to give monk another look after the Barbarian Upgrade. So that's cool.

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.kickstarter.com/project...-revolutionise-old-school-crpgs/posts/3145751

Update #45: KotC 2 Version 1.12 Brings New Features, Maps, Music & Bug Fixes!

Hello everyone! Version 1.12 of KotC 2 Augury of Chaos is now available for download here for both Windows and macOS. The new version introduces many improvements.

New Option To Set An Overlay Image
I've added to the Module Editor the option to set an overlay image, that is to say an image that's displayed on top of almost everything else. This can be useful for when the party is walking behind something like a tree or a building. Using this feature, I've reworked the village map.

The overlay can also be used to have fog effects / cobweb effects / underwater effects / light effects (e.g. yellow, green, pink or blue light) displayed on top of both the characters and the environment using semi-transparent pixels in the overlay layer. Please see the entrance of the new map called Mysterious Cave for an example of this. The overlay setting can be found by clicking 'Edit Map Data' in the editor.

By the way, after watching the second tutorial video from PVG, the one about a foggy mountain bridge, I'm thinking to allow more background layers, including animated layers such as fog clouds slowly drifting in one direction, or a top layer for rain falling down.

Spoiler

Special Effects When Moving Through Water
I've added a bunch of graphical improvements when characters move through water/swimming squares and underwater environments. Please note: if these special effects slow your computer down too much, you can turn them off by switching off 'environmental particles' in the game options.

The new effects for water are the following: the lower part of the sprite of swimming characters will be displayed with transparency, water ripples will be displayed when moving or standing in water squares, and a white splash will be displayed when entering or leaving a body of water.

Additions To The Village Map And New Music
I've added a bunch of new isometric maps that can be accessed from the village map: Bailiff Tower, Mysterious Cave, Inn Ground Level, Inn Second Level. I'll fill them with cool NPCs, quests and monsters pretty soon. I made the maps using the resources from PVG. I hope you will like them!

I've only put a couple of monsters for your low-level party to fight, as an appetizer. See if you can use a particular spell on them to take advantage of the environment! ;-)

I've also added a bunch of roaming deer in the village map. It's nice just to watch them. Also added the tokens for the male and female deer. For those who're using the editor, please note that I've changed the names Buck and Doe into Deer-Male and Deer-Female, so please delete the folders Buck and Doe within the folder Graphics/Sprites/Complete.

Moreover, I've added four new soundtracks based on PVG resources. I've called them Cave of Whispers, Well of Souls, Corridor of Shadows, and Eternal Torment. Two of them are used in the Mysterious Cave.

Other New Features In KotC 2 Version 1.12

• When you start a new game, all your characters will receive either a clothing item, or leather armour. They won't start out naked anymore. Mantis characters will be able to wear clothing items.
• Reworked the icons in the inventory screen, changed the icons for energy resistances. Please let me know if you like the new Inventory Screen in the Forums or here in the Kickstarter update page.

• In the Inventory Screen, added the 'Share Potions' icon. Drag a stack of potions onto it to distribute the potions to all party members automatically.
• Added a drop-down selection box in the Creature Properties screen of the editor in order to allow selecting the number of squares occupied by the creature (1 x 1, 2 x 2, etc). Previously, the number of squares was obtained from the size of the token image.
• Added large-size effect animations for the conditions Paralysed, Forcecage and Hideous Laughter.
• Using the Left or Right arrow keys in the character sheet will find the next party member who has a similar tab. For example, if you have two Clerics and you're viewing the Divine Spells tab of the first Cleric, pushing the Right arrow key will display the Divine Spells tab of your other Cleric. It will skip characters who do not have a Divine Spells tab.
• Added a new 'Set Facing' script command. Aside from the eight directions, this command can be used to make NPCs face the party leader when starting dialogue.
• Assigned a sprite to all of the pre-generated characters. If you'd like to see them (and you're using the Windows version), before installing, please change the name of your file 'CharacterRoster.cml' in the folder 'Saves'. Otherwise, the Windows installer will see that you already have the file and it will not overwrite it.
• Added a check-box in the Party Creation screen in order to hide pre-generated characters.
• Added a check-box in the Party Creation screen in order to hide characters that do not meet the module's requirements.
• Added new colour choices for the Plate Armour sprite with a red cape. Now we also have sprites for the Plate with a Blue / Golden / Purple / Green cape! Also changed the armour sprite names displayed in the editor to facilitate the selection of armour sprites for NPCs.

• In the editor's 'Module Data' screen, added a check-box allowing you to specify that levelling-up never costs any gold in your module.
• In the editor's 'Module Data' screen, added new boxes allowing you to disallow certain races or classes for the player characters in your module. For example, you can make a module without Mantis characters.
• In the Module Editor, when you're using the Edit & Select NPC mode, and you have selected at least one creature, you can use Left Alt + numpad arrow keys to set the direction faced by the selected creatures. This wasn't important when creatures were represented using tokens only. Now it's needed because sprites can be facing any of the eight directions.
• In the Script Editor, in number fields, you can now use 'roll(x)' to get a random die roll value. For example, you could set a creature to wait for a number of frames equal to 100+roll(150). Or you could set the creature to move to a random destination. Previously, you would have had to set the random roll into a variable. I've used this in the village map to set some non-combat paths for the deer. I've also explained it in the help entry about the Module Editor.
• Added new help entries about Party Creation, Difficulty, and the 5-5-5 User-Module Offer.
• Added the 'Difficulty' selection box in the party-creation screen. But the box doesn't do anything yet.
• The list of party members in the top-right corner of the main view will now display the names of all of the party members (up to 15; beyond 15, the game will display a scroll bar).
• I recently purchased almost all of the older asset packs of PVG, including Monsters Legacy 1. The packs contain some of the missing sprites of KotC 2: the Hydra, Giant Scorpion, Giant Snake, Giant Beetle, Gargoyle, Evil Eye, Harpy/Vrock, Naga/Marilith, more Elementals, more Golems, something I can use for the Crocodile, and something I can use for the Giant Frog (the 'Beast of Burden'). I will add those sprites and others to the game soon. Thank you H K for pointing me towards the packs!

List Of Bug Fixes In KotC 2 Version 1.12

• Fixed a bug during dialogue in full-screen mode. Thank you for the bug report Dorateen! By the way, your module Hearkenwold looks great!
• Fixed an AI bug that appeared in version 1.11 when the AI used the Slide action.
• Fixed bugs when an AOO would cause a balancing character to fall down and slide into a pit.
• Fixed bugs when fighting near the edge of the map (e.g. when fighting the Ancient White Dragon on the bottom edge of the map of Gleegold Keep).
• Fixed a bug/crash to desktop when casting a spell like Fireball that kills the caster.
• Fixed issues with falling damage when Gust of Wind sends you to a square of lower altitude.
• Fixed a number of issues and broken links in the help entries, thanks to reports in the Forums.
• Fixed an issue with alt-tabbing in full-screen mode when dialogue is taking place.
• Fixed issues with the walking animation when continuously pressing the arrow keys or mouse button out of combat, and the walking animations of creatures in a group.
• Fixed a bunch of graphical issues during combat when displaying creatures using sprites.
• Enemies will now face their target or target square when using their Breath Weapon or spells.
• Enemies who have a spell failure chance due to armour or shield will still try to cast somatic spells.
• Using the 'Search' box in the help system will no longer require you to mouse over the Search box when you push 'enter' to launch the search.
• Fixed a problem with NPC pathfinding out of combat, when there are NPCs who follow a scripted path.
• Fixed a bug with bags of holding and other containers. Previously, placing a consumable item inside a bag would provide infinite uses. Thank you Angry Lux for the bug report and congratulations for your Ironman Run! The Ironman Run can be watched on Youtube.
• Fixed an error in the display of the expected percentage of success of the Grease spell.
• Fixed a problem with the AI casting Spread spells (like Web) centred on obstacle squares, resulting in no affected area at all.

Kickstarter Labels In The Forums
I've assigned all of the Kickstarter Knight and Kickstarter Hero labels in the Forums. But I could only give them to you when your email address in the forums was the same as your email address on Kickstarter. So, if I've missed you, please drop me an email at enquiries@heroicfantasygames.com and I will give you your Forum badge.

Next Steps for Knights of the Chalice 2

• Add the new content in the village maps and a few extra quests in chapter 2 and 3.
• Work on the main difficulty slider and the two new options (more campfires, easier encounters).
• Implement the Barbarian Class upgrade. Add local-map screen. Add features suggested in forum.
• Create the tutorial module. Add module-creation info in guidebook. Fix any remaining bugs.
• Add feat-selection recommendations. Add the new feats / items / spells / features as promised.
• Read & reply on HeroicFantasyGames.com Forums, the Discord server and here on Kickstarter.
• Add backer names to the Credits Screen as appropriate. Continue working on the KotC 2 Steam page.

Some Questions For You! ^_^
Do you prefer top-down or isometric background graphics? Would it be annoying for you if an adventure module used both isometric and top-down maps? Do you prefer to play with the tokens or with the animated sprites? How do you feel about the fact that some monsters have to be represented using the sprite of another monster that's not entirely similar? How do you feel about the new character sprite system, is it mostly sufficient for the characters you've always wanted to create?

As always, I'll be very interested in any feedback, so please feel free to post any comment here or in the Forums, or you can email me at enquiries@heroicfantasygames.com.

Thank You For Your Support, Valiant Heroes of the Realm! Enjoy!!

 

[Pink Eye]

Yes! Lets goo!

 

[Reinhardt]

Is it out yet?
And can you play with tokens or they are replaced with sprites?

 

[Dorateen]

And can you play with tokens or they are replaced with sprites?

I haven't downloaded version 1.12 yet, but up to this point, there is a display option to select if you want to use animated sprites, or you can toggle off and creatures will show up as tokens.

 

[Reinhardt]

thanks

 

[Mustawd]

And can you play with tokens or they are replaced with sprites?

I haven't downloaded version 1.12 yet, but up to this point, there is a display option to select if you want to use animated sprites, or you can toggle off and creatures will show up as tokens.

Since I'm unable to buy this right now, can someone tell me what the image size is for tokens/sprites?

 

[Dorateen]

And can you play with tokens or they are replaced with sprites?

I haven't downloaded version 1.12 yet, but up to this point, there is a display option to select if you want to use animated sprites, or you can toggle off and creatures will show up as tokens.

Since I'm unable to buy this right now, can someone tell me what the image size is for tokens/sprites?

The art has been based on 64 x 64 dimensions. You can have larger tokens sized to 128 x 128.

 

[Pink Eye]

Here's what the new areas in the village looks like!

Spoiler

There is also a new underground area too! With spiders! Oh yeah, here's what the new difficulty options look like:

I don't think they do anything though.

 

[Bara]

Hmm the higher difficulties refrences caster titiles. This must be a not so subtle hint you should take more spell casters than martials in this mode. :D

 

[Pink Eye]

Yeppers. High Level Play is really just spellcasters throwing spells at each other. While melee units dig into trenches and try to stay alive during the fireworks of doom. Only emerging for clean up duty after the fireworks are done.

 

[Tweed]

The sprites look revolting, I'll stick to tokens, especially since there isn't any kobold representation.

 

[Cryomancer]

When the game will launch on gog/steam? "Coming soon" is not a date.

https://af.gog.com/game/knights_of_the_chalice_2?as=1649904300

 

[Pink Eye]

Up to Pierre. Technically, he can release it now - it's in a playable state. But who knows.