KickStarter Vagrus: The Riven Realms - post-apocalyptic fantasy caravan master RPG - now with Old Acquaintances DLC

[The Wall]

This game will be something beautiful one day

 

[Lares Hill]

[Source: Steam Store Page]

Hey everyone,

and first of all let us thank all of you who shared their views regarding our planned priorities. We took that to heart and worked tirelessly to implement Companion Progression, which includes raising the Prowess cap from two to five, introducing Companion-specific traits that increase stats, and much more.

It is important to mention that the Companion loyalty storylines that will in the final game open up Prowess 3 and 6, are not yet in the game and not planned any time soon either. Our plan is to add those once all the planned regions are added first, so those questlines can be placed to their ideal location rather than crammed into the currently available territory.

We have also made various other improvements that make Companion combat more interesting:

• Diminishing returns will help against enemies with high Block or Evade stats, and though it is applied on the player side as well, some of the Companions have access to the Resolute perk now that allows them to ignore diminishing returns, meaning they can Evade or Block without getting a debuff.
  
• Thanks to some AI improvements, the enemies will now be much better at using complex skills instead of spamming a unit's base attack or even just skipping turns or swapping when out of position somewhat.
  
• The mechanics of many combat perks, like Channeling or Life Leech, that are available through companion progression or as gear effects, have been implemented giving even more Companion upgrade options.

Beside changes on the code side, we are opening up a new subregion in this patch for the first time, the salt basins above the Mines of Plenty. The area includes Salum, the headquarters of the Scythichnis Covenant as well as the Auguros Work Camp, a prison colony of the Empire.



Let's dive into the detailed list of changes:

Patch 0.5.16 - codename: Salty!

New/Updated Features

• Companion progression
  - Prowess cap raised from 2 to 5
  - Second level skill upgrades enabled (and can be boosted to third)
  - New companion-specific Traits added that raise baseline stats such as VIT, ARM, ACC, etc.
  - For an interim period, companions can be 'reset' during camping (via the 'brain' button on camp/rest screens)
  
• Companion Combat
  - Diminishing returns on Evade and Block introduced
  - New 'Resolute' combat trait available for certain companions; this trait makes the companion unaffected by diminishing returns
  - AI improvements - enemies can now use complex skills and are less likely to skip their turn
  - Skills involving movement or two phases now work as intended (their animation is split into two so that is still not final)
  - Enemies may now seem to have gotten new skills whereas in truth, those just started to work properly
  - Initiative order altered to accommodate enemies with multiple actions per round; also to properly remove/add characters losing or gaining actions (i.e: Stunned or Aided)
  
• New combat traits implemented: Arcane Leech; Blood Magic; Channeling; Durable Spells; Frenzy; Life Leech; Siphon; Spell penetration

New/Updated Content

• The salt basins region added with settlements, events, and a questline
  
• Gor'Goro has a new fourth combat skill

UI improvements

• Camp UI 'X' button added (the most requested feature ever
  
  ) - goes inactive if any camp action is started, like banter, etc.
  
• Companion combat decal flips finally work for enemies used as allies, as well as some other decal effects fixed
  
• Animation and decal refinements
  
• Various smaller UI changes & Tooltip updates

Bug fixes

• A bunch of Resourcefulness/Authority/Perk base/effect related bugs/potential exploits resolved
  
• Save/Load issues around camping resolved
  
• Companion combat skill effect resists against Impervious enemies now properly work (no Bleed status vs Specters, sadly)
  
• DOT damage kills now trigger companion combat victory when defeating the final enemy
  
• Wrong node-path taken bug fixed
  
• Various smaller fixes

Known issues

• Scouting result crash - still unable to reproduce
  
• Crew combat looting does not work yet
  
• The visual presentation of companion combat skills with two phases are not final yet

'Is Vagrus properly balanced now'? - Nope.
'Was it a step in the right direction?' - We think so. Please let us know how you find it.

We are eager to hear how you find these new changes. With Companion Progression added, we are refocusing on the most critiqued area - well actually two areas - of the game: crew combat and companion combat. Our first priority will be to implement our planned Crew combat looting design and depending on how long that takes, we might take a crack at Crew combat Actions, too, soon afterward. While Companion combat has received a number of feature updates, the visual representation is still far from what we imagined. Beside the generic goal of making it 'better paced and more impactful', we are planning to improve specifically how we visualize targeting and complex skills, and also explore adding turn/round announcements and initiative order animations - the list goes on. This may take a while, so no promises on the deadline but we thought it was important to share that we are working on it. In terms of content, our eyes are set on Deven and the surrounding area already. It's coming.

Stay tuned, stay alive, conquer the wasteland!

- The Lost Pilgrims Team

P.s.: We are still receiving a high number of messages, bug reports, and improvement ideas via the various channels so we might not be able to respond to everyone but we're trying our best.

 

[Infinitron]

 

[fantadomat]

I am more curious if there is loot from those battles.

 

[Lares Hill]

[Source: Steam Store Page]

One of the most requested additions by our Early Access players has been Companion progression for a while now, and it's no surprise. Being a party-based RPG at its heart, Vagrus has a roster of unique Companions that are your most trusty lieutenants with their own backstories, skills, and personalities. It is only natural that they can become stronger with time and effort - and we have naturally designed this progression system in the beginning, but we held off on adding it because there were a lot of specifics to work out and the EA experience functioned fairly well without it.

Now, however, the time has come to introduce the progression system to see what our players and fellow vagri think about it.

Prowess and Insight

Character levels (exclusive to Companions) in Vagrus are called Prowess. You unlock new levels of Prowess by spending Insight - the same Insight you can spend on your vagrus. Once you gain a level, you can spend Proficiency points on your Attributes, Professions, Combat Traits... and now the all-new Companion Traits and revised Combat Skills, too. These round out progression with the ability to make your Companions much stronger in combat.

The Prowess cap will be 5 for the time being, as we are still testing higher-end progression (and mostly lack high-end content), but it is more than enough for a significant rise in power.

Combat Skills

You have seen them already but the Combat Skills now have fully developed second and third (maximum) levels. These level ups potentially change the Damage, Accuracy, Critical Chance, and effects of the Skills, often quite drastically. A good example is Garrik's Gas Bomb that covers more and more ground with level ups.

Additionally, several of the Companion Skills were revised to be more desirable in certain situations. A ton of enemy Combat Skills are also now working as intended, but more on that in another post.

Companion Traits

Each Companion now has a set of unique Traits that raise several baseline stats like Vitality, Armor, Resistances, base Accuracy, Power, and more. This is the only way to change these stats apart from Gear, so you will have to think hard about what to pick. Especially because most of the Trait levels - as well as Skill levels - have requirements.

Requirements

We've planned to include Attributes (Mighty, Savvy, Tough, etc.) one way or the other in the progression from the beginning but we did not want to assign incremental stat increases to them directly. The way it works now, most Combat Skill levels and all Companion Traits have Attribute requirements you need to unlock before being able to purchase them. This means that with each Prowess level, you need to consider what build you are going for, what your desired Trait is, and plan accordingly when it comes to purchasing Attributes.

This also means that no Companion will be able to unlock all their Traits and Skills by reaching Prowess 9 (the absolute maximum), so you'll have to plan builds.

As ever, we are very excited to see how the community reacts to the progression system. We hope that we can build on this system from now on and we'll be able to round out Companions fully in the future based on this. Even now, though, the system's depth is intriguing, and every Companion can focus on certain things ahead of others to specialize according to your needs.

Let us know what you think!

The Lost Pilgrims Team

 

[Darth Canoli]

Let us know what you think!

I think Vagrus JRPG battle system sucks, so let's hope you at least manage to create an interesting character creation and development with decent loot and equipment.

Also, make the animation faster than light (or an option to skip them) with possibly auto combat options if it's combat heavy, the whole combat process and UI should allow to play really fast.

 

[luj1]

They couldn't have made it more convoluted if they tried

 

[Infinitron]

 

[AwesomeButton]

Is the release date still "when it's done"?

 

[Lares Hill]

[Source: Steam Store Page]

What's coming in the next patch?
The Deven region and Crew Combat Improvements
Hey Folks,

we just wanted to give you all a quick development update. We are pushing hard to publish the next big release still this year. Here's what's coming if all goes according to plan:

New Content:

• The Deven region with one major settlement, Deven, and a smaller one, Sun Rock, as well as a lot of new ground to explore.
  
• The Church of Ahskul faction is fleshed out in all its macabre glory.
  
• Try your luck at tomb robbing in the Valley of Sleepers - if you dare.
  
• The Ratharnak Alliance's headquarters were extended and moved to the Mines of Plenty.
  
• Your journey with the Dread Reavers continues!
  
• A lot of new (shorter and longer) storylines you can follow through.
  
• The Dark Elf companion Renkailon can now be recruited through story progression.

Crew Combat Improvements:
Looting in crew combat

• Destroy the enemy or make it flee and get all their valuables
  
• Gather/Harvest items, money, and goods from fallen enemy units
  
• Catch - with a small chance - the surviving mounts of your outriders who fell in battle
  
• Extract supplies from mounts that did not survive

Of course, the Riven Realms remains a dog-eat-dog place, so none of this loot is available if you lose or are forced to flee. Also, 'immersion is king' even when it comes to looting. Do not expect desperate lowlife tugs attacking your comitatus carrying heaps of valuables. Now, in case you are the aggressor and ambush their camp with all their possessions... that is another story. Provided that you are okay to prey on the weak. Will your companions approve?

Combat preparations

• You can mount fighters, dismount outriders right before crew combat (except if you are ambushed)

Goal (objective) selection changes

• Now you select a goal on the defensive side as well, so you can choose what you defend the most (crew, beast, cargo)
  
• The main target of the enemies is only revealed in the second round
  
• You can change your objective at the end of each round
  
• Added the option to flee or retreat even during ongoing crew combat (albeit at potentially heavy losses)

New 'defense' stat introduced

• It better reflects how easy or hard it is to take out certain enemies and characters (i.e.: outriders are much harder to damage)
  
• You can improve your crews' combat strength and/or defense stats with equipment and properties separately

Actions in crew combat (tactical commands)
Giving more tools to the vagrus, we are now enabling 'Actions' in crew combat. These can significantly influence the outcome of crew level combat encounters. Our ultimate goal is to enable entering Companion combat directly from Crew Combat but even until then, players can choose from a number of actions (more to come), like:

• 'Launch a mounted attack' that increases the CS of Outriders for the round
  
• 'Form a Shield wall' to increase the Defense of your Fighters
  
• 'Insult' the enemy to increase the chance of them making a mistake

Impervious crew combat enemies
Specters, Haunts, Living Shadows. Horrors that are immune to mundane weapons. Improve your companions, gain the blessing of Gods, gather rare magical items to defeat them. Alternatively, do the only thing you can if you come across these deadly enemies... FLEE!

• Impervious enemies are marked with purple borders and their defense stat is colored as such, too
  
• Only your Enchanted companions and/or crew can damage Impervious enemies in crew combat. Enchanted Combat Strength is highlighted - the axe and the CS value are colored to purple.

Miscellaneous Changes:

• Event UI performance updates to ease the jittering (still not 100% but we are committed to fix it as soon as we are able)
  
• Higher Authority now reduces Companion loyalty penalties
  
• Outriders now automatically dismount to create cargo space in case the throw-out screen is (or would be) triggered

We are looking forward to all of you getting your hand on the new update and hearing about your experience. In case you like the game and/or the direction we are taking with it, please consider leaving a review. It's a huge help. Thanks and see you around, vagri!

The Lost Pilgrims Team

 

[AwesomeButton]

Do you have an approximate time for the final release?

 

[cyborgboy95]

https://store.steampowered.com/newshub/app/909660/view/2913229122644668005

A New Build is OUT - Patch 0.5.20. - Codename: Plunder!​

The patch brings Crew Combat Looting, Goals, Actions, a new region, and much more

Hey everyone,

a few weeks ago we published a long post on the changes coming. Today, we are happy to share that the changes are live as of posting this! Better yet, we have included two additional features that we managed to implement in the meantime.

A quick recap of what we have added:
(Skip ahead to see the bonus additions)
New Content:

• The Deven region with one major settlement, Deven, and a smaller one, Sun Rock, as well as a lot of new ground to explore.
  
• The Church of Ahskul faction is fleshed out in all its macabre glory.
  
• Try your luck at tomb robbing in the Valley of Sleepers - if you dare.
  
• The Ratharnak Alliance's headquarters were extended and moved to the Mines of Plenty.
  
• Your journey with the Dread Reavers continues!
  
• A lot of new (shorter and longer) storylines you can follow through.
  
• The Dark Elf companion Renkailon can now also be recruited through story progression.

Crew Combat Improvements:
Looting in crew combat

• Destroy the enemy or make it flee and get all their valuables
  
• Gather/Harvest items, money, and goods from fallen enemy units
  
• Catch - with a small chance - the surviving mounts of your Outriders who fell in battle
  
• Extract supplies from mounts that did not survive

Of course, the Riven Realms remains a dog-eat-dog place, so none of this loot is available if you lose or are forced to flee. Also, 'immersion is king' even when it comes to looting. Do not expect desperate lowlife tugs attacking your comitatus carrying heaps of valuables. Now, in case you are the aggressor and ambush their camp with all their possessions... that is another story. Provided that you are okay to prey on the weak. Will your companions approve? Will you provoke the Empire's ire?

Spoiler

Combat preparations

• You can mount Fighters or dismount Outriders right before crew combat (except if you are ambushed)

Goal (objective) selection changes

• Now you select a goal on the defensive side as well, so you can choose what you defend the most (crew, beasts, cargo)
  
• The main target of the enemies is only revealed in the second round
  
• You can change your objective at the end of each round
  
• Added the option to flee or retreat even during ongoing crew combat (albeit at potentially heavy losses)

New 'defense' stat introduced

• It better reflects how easy or hard it is to take out certain enemies and characters (ie: Outriders are much harder to damage for example)
  
• You can improve your crews' combat strength and/or defense stats with equipment and properties separately

'Actions' in crew combat (tactical commands)
Giving more tools to the vagrus, we are now enabling 'Actions' in crew combat. These can significantly influence the outcome of crew level combat encounters. Our ultimate goal is to enable entering Companion combat directly from Crew Combat but even until then, players can choose from a number of actions (more to come), like:

• 'Launch a mounted attack' that increases the effectiveness of Outriders for the round
  
• Form a 'Shield Wall' to increase the defense of your Fighters
  
• 'Insult' the enemy to increase the chance of them making a mistake

Impervious crew combat enemies
Specters, Haunts, Living Shadows. Horrors that are immune to mundane weapons. Improve your companions, gain the blessing of Gods, gather rare magical items to defeat them. Alternatively, do the only thing you can if you come across these deadly enemies... FLEE!

• Impervious enemies are marked with purple borders and their defense stat is colored as such, too
  
• Only your Enchanted companions and/or crew can damage Impervious enemies in crew combat. Enchanted combat strength is highlighted - the axe and the CS value are colored purple.

Miscellaneous Changes:

• Event UI performance updates to ease the jittering
  
• Higher Authority now reduces Companion loyalty penalties
  
• Outriders now automatically dismount to create cargo space in case the throw-out screen is (or would be) triggered

And the additional changes we managed to squeeze in:

• With the game growing, so did loading times but finally, we got around to add a loading screen that also gives tips to new players.
  
• Made a massive number of smaller performance improvements, which together - hopefully - have a tangible effect on how the game runs.
  
• Implemented the Command leadership perk that opens up advanced Crew Combat Actions.

Let's dive into the detailed list of changes:

Patch 0.5.20 - Codename: Plunder!

New/Updated Features

• Crew Combat changes
  - Looting added
  - Goals on the defender side added & option to change your goal between rounds
  - Defense stat introduced
  - Actions & Advanced Actions with the Command Leadership perk added
  - Impervious enemies now appear
  - Mount/Dismount at start of combat added
  - Retreat/Disengage/Flee options mid-fight now possibel - they take a full round to execute
  
• Load Screens added with tips
  
• Updated mechanics
  - Outriders auto-dismount to free up cargo space if needed
  - Keeping an 'army-sized' comitatus got a little harder

New/Updated Content

• Deven region added with the settlements Deven and Sun Rock and a ton of new content
  
• Renkailon can be now recruited normally (without Braxius' involvement)
  
• Ratharnak HQ moved to Mines of Plenty; Church of Ahskul more prominent in Deven (their new HQ)
  
• The Dread Reavers hit the road again and get into all kinds of shenanigans

UI Improvements

• Progress Counter shown on certain Quality journals
  
• Animation and decal refinements
  
• Various smaller UI changes & Tooltip updates

Bug Fixes

• Sorcerer's Apprentice background is back
  
• Shedload of smaller fixes

Known Issues

• We will explore options to reduce the initial loading time
  
• Scouting result crash - still unable to reproduce
  
• The visual presentation of companion combat skills with two phases are not final yet

'Is Vagrus properly balanced now'? - Nope.
'Was it a step in the right direction?' - We think so. Please let us know how you find it.

Stay tuned, stay alive, conquer the wasteland!
- The Lost Pilgrims Team

P.s.: If you like the game and/or the direction it's heading, consider nominating Vagrus for a Steam Award. Originally we meant to recommend the Story Rich category but people kept referring us to the Games you suck at award which is for hard games. What do y'all think?

 

[cyborgboy95]

https://store.steampowered.com/newshub/app/909660/view/2913229756366515254

A New Build is OUT - Patch 0.5.21. - Codename: HighLife!​

This patch brings many fixes to the 'Plunder' content but also some great Quality of Life features

Hey everyone,

our last patch with the Deven subregion and Crew Combat improvements was our biggest release since entering Early Access. Unfortunately, it also brought more bugs/setup issues that slipped through the cracks. Sorry about that. But now we are happy to share with you this 0.521 build that is, though, mostly a hotfix patch for 'Codenamelunder', also has some new Quality of Live features we have been planning for some time.

Let's start with those QoL additions:

• Objective area markers added on the Chart for a number of questlines - typically for those where you need to scout within a given area, so you would know at least the approximate location. Note that this is the first version of this feature and will change over time when we add Mercenary and Exploration tasks as they will use the same system. Also, we might add an option in the main menu to turn these off so hardcore explorers can hunt for these locations solely based on rumors and other clues.
  
• Exploit Leadership perk is enabled, which now allows players to use Resourcefulness to reroll available Trade faction contracts in settlements once per seven days.
  
• Goods category filters added on the Market to help finding the exact things you are looking for.
  
• Specify quantity button added for those playing via Steam Remote Play using their iPads (or somethin').

Okay, so what got fixed? Here go the patch notes.

Patch 0.5.21 - Codename: HighLife!

New/Updated Features

• Objective area markers
  
• Exploit Leadership perk to reroll available Trade Tasks
  
• Goods category filters on the Market
  
• Specify quantity button on the Market
  
• Goods pilfered by the enemy can be taken back if you destroy them in Crew Combat
  
• Entering major settlements with a larger armed force now requires a license
  
• Vagrus now runs in the background

Spoiler

Bug Fixes

• Heritage of Hatred questline location is now actually on the map
  
• Blessing of Unbiding works on companions - time to hunt some specters
  
• Eliminated over 300 nodes and 2000 lines from the overpopulated areas of the campaign map
  
• The Wyrm's Teeth shows up on the Chart as intended
  
• The event connected to the Wyrm's Teeth now properly pops up (if all dependencies are met)
  
• Initiating banter during the rest before the Gor'Goro Arena match no longer breaks the game
  
• Chapter I. save in the PotW story fixed
  
• Applied a great many changes to Crew Combat calculations
  
• Approximately 300 Crew Combat templates rebalanced (probably needs 3-4 more passes before release )
  
• Crew Combat Action with 'Not against Beast/Undead' requirement fixed
  
• Crew Combat casualties now properly show up on the conclusion screen and at the time of camping

Known Issues

• We will explore options to reduce the initial loading time.
  
• Scouting result crash - still unable to reproduce.
  
• The visual presentation of Companion Combat skills with two phases is not final yet.

'Is Vagrus properly balanced now'? - Nope.
'Was it a step in the right direction?' - We think so. Please let us know how you find it.

Stay tuned, stay alive, conquer the wasteland!
- The Lost Pilgrims Team

P.s.: thanks for all the Steam award nominations. We love you too!
If you like the game and/or the direction it's heading, posting a review is a great way to help the development. Much appreciated. Cheers!
MORE ABOUT THIS GAME

 

[Lares Hill]

[Source: Steam Store Page]

Hey everyone,

first of all, Happy New Year. We made it to 2021 at last.

It's been a while since we posted a devlog entry and we figured that this would be a great time to do so. Today's topic, Dynamic pricing, has been on our minds for a long-long time, and finally, we've decided to pull the trigger on implementing it. To provide a little background on why we need it, let's review what happens in the current build of the game when you go trading.

Current Goods Pricing

Buying and selling goods on the market do not affect those respective prices. The first stack you buy will cost exactly the same as the last one you grab from that market. Similarly, the first unit of pottery you sell will go for the same amount as the 535th unit you dump on the locals.

This means that after you figure out what makes sense to trade in small quantities, you can rely on repeating that no matter how big your comitatus grows and end up making the same rounds over and over again. The whole thing turns into grinding, which never was our intent, of course.

It's problematic from an immersion perspective as well since dumping twenty stacks of pottery on an oasis camp makes absolutely no sense. What the heck would they do with that many, right?

Lastly, but just as importantly, that system created an economy balancing issue, too. As once the size of your comitatus grows, it becomes more and more profitable to repeat tried and static routes. While the buy and sell prices are the same regardless of the quantity, the other costs (upkeep, consumption, etc.) are not scaling linearly with the cargo size.

We have struggled with this through numerous attempts at balancing, failing in a new way every time.

1. A low profit per stack created a suitable challenge for bigger comitati but smaller ones had an extremely tough time surviving.
   
2. When we raised the profits high enough to make it relatively easy for smaller comitati to make a living, by the mid-late game players were swimming in money (known as the golden age of vagrus players, with many owning 10,000+ Bross).
   
3. Right now we are in the middle where smaller comitati still struggle while there is little challenge for high-end caravans since money is never a constraint for them.

Our solution?

Dynamic Pricing

The main change in this system is that markets react to the quantity available to them. The more of the same goods you sell on a market, the less they are willing to pay for it and similarly, the less quantity of a trade good remains on the given market, the higher the price they expect for it. It's a well-known concept: in economics, they refer to this as the 'invisible hand' that balances demand and supply at the right price.

But how does this help with the issues we listed above?
It allows increasing the profit margins to the high spectrum, so smaller comitati would have an easier time while effective trading still maintaining a challenge for mid- and large-sized caravans. The higher quantities you buy and sell, the closer the buy and sell prices become, so the profit margins stick closer to your cost-efficiency.

Does that mean that the game will become much harder for mid- or large-sized comitati?
Yes and no. Doing the same as before, running exactly the same trade rounds regardless of size, will not work well any longer. Players trying that will quickly see their profits dwindle and might feel that the game just got harder for them.

The answer is partly in: 'the bigger no longer means better' but also in: 'diversity over grinding'. Instead of trading in 2-3 types of goods in massive quantities, the best profits (better than before in small quantities) can be achieved in trading in many goods at once. Getting great deals and distributing between multiple locations along a trade route work much better.

It will be something new and challenging until players figure it out; also much less repetitive, hence more enjoyable, we hope.

It will surely take several iterations to balance this new system. We have already started testing it internally but the ultimate trial by fire will come when we make this available to you all and hear your insights: stories of success and failure. Learning those will help us tweak the system further and get closer to a good balance between challenging and enjoyable.

Hope you are just as enthusiastic about these upcoming changes as we are!

The Lost Pilgrims Team

 

[kreight]

Would be great to apply this philosophy to their actual game pricing. Rught now theuly have no regional pricing and their early access noname studio euro jank game costs as much as Cyberpunk 2077.

 

[agris]

Lol they implemented y=mx+b. Such innovation!!

 

[fantadomat]

Would be great to apply this philosophy to their actual game pricing. Rught now theuly have no regional pricing and their early access noname studio euro jank game costs as much as Cyberpunk 2077.

And yet it has 10 times more RPG gameplay and a lot less bugs.

 

[Sztaszov]

Lol they implemented y=mx+b. Such innovation!!

The infographic shows it linear to be easy to read but it's actually exponential so it's more like f(x)=a^(1+r)x. It's true, though. It's nothing new. As the post says, it's a basic economic concept.
For now, the model considers the rarity of goods and simulates the flow of goods between settlements based on what's the demand for them there and how much is produced locally and in other locations (import-export between settlements).
Later on, we are planning to add shifting economic trends to make it more dynamic.

Cheers

 

[fantadomat]

Lol they implemented y=mx+b. Such innovation!!

The infographic shows it linear to be easy to read but it's actually exponential so it's more like f(x)=a^(1+r)x. It's true, though. It's nothing new. As the post says, it's a basic economic concept.
For now, the model considers the rarity of goods and simulates the flow of goods between settlements based on what's the demand for them there and how much is produced locally and in other locations (import-export between settlements).
Later on, we are planning to add shifting economic trends to make it more dynamic.

Cheers

I am curious,does the game have timed events and such that happen after X month/years. or you could explore freely?

 

[Sztaszov]

Lol they implemented y=mx+b. Such innovation!!

The infographic shows it linear to be easy to read but it's actually exponential so it's more like f(x)=a^(1+r)x. It's true, though. It's nothing new. As the post says, it's a basic economic concept.
For now, the model considers the rarity of goods and simulates the flow of goods between settlements based on what's the demand for them there and how much is produced locally and in other locations (import-export between settlements).
Later on, we are planning to add shifting economic trends to make it more dynamic.

Cheers

I am curious,does the game have timed events and such that happen after X month/years. or you could explore freely?

There are a few events that only occur after a certain date/period. Most due to their difficulty, not to overwhelm new players in week one, and very few due to our stubborn-selves sticking to the canon of the setting - as they happened during our ttrpg campaigns. Like a 'smaller colony lives at a certain location in a given time period and can be interacted with only during that time only' - kinda things. (These are fairly generous, though, measured in years.)
On the other hand, time buffers are often used for interconnected things. Like: if you completed quest x then three months later another event or new settlement option becomes available.
Faction standing tiers even more frequently trigger opening up new events. Just like companion loyalty does with dialog options (and eventually personal event chains when we get to adding those).

Hope this helps!

 

[fantadomat]

Lol they implemented y=mx+b. Such innovation!!

The infographic shows it linear to be easy to read but it's actually exponential so it's more like f(x)=a^(1+r)x. It's true, though. It's nothing new. As the post says, it's a basic economic concept.
For now, the model considers the rarity of goods and simulates the flow of goods between settlements based on what's the demand for them there and how much is produced locally and in other locations (import-export between settlements).
Later on, we are planning to add shifting economic trends to make it more dynamic.

Cheers

I am curious,does the game have timed events and such that happen after X month/years. or you could explore freely?

There are a few events that only occur after a certain date/period. Most due to their difficulty, not to overwhelm new players in week one, and very few due to our stubborn-selves sticking to the canon of the setting - as they happened during our ttrpg campaigns. Like a 'smaller colony lives at a certain location in a given time period and can be interacted with only during that time only' - kinda things. (These are fairly generous, though, measured in years.)
On the other hand, time buffers are often used for interconnected things. Like: if you completed quest x then three months later another event or new settlement option becomes available.
Faction standing tiers even more frequently trigger opening up new events. Just like companion loyalty does with dialog options (and eventually personal event chains when we get to adding those).

Hope this helps!

I played a bit of the game half a year ago and decided to delete it because i got hyped for it and didn't want to spoil it. Noticed that most of the timed things were logical and well implemented.Still had to ask about.

Did you improve the companion loyalty thing because it was very illogical and annoying. It would be better if it goes only upward and connected to companion missions or something. It was annoying that they got butthurt about event that i decided to explore and had nothing to do with them. Like agreeing to escort that dragon chick to the starting camp,a bunch of companions became butthurt and whiny wanting to leave. It was really bad since they are more like skilled hirelings that you pay to do their job,it doesn't make sense for them to want to leave when you are paying them well but are unhappy that you decided to explore something.

Oh and how does the faction reputation decline,does it degrade by time or by doing missions for another faction?

 

[Sztaszov]

Did you improve the companion loyalty thing because it was very illogical and annoying. It would be better if it goes only upward and connected to companion missions or something. It was annoying that they got butthurt about event that i decided to explore and had nothing to do with them. Like agreeing to escort that dragon chick to the starting camp,a bunch of companions became butthurt and whiny wanting to leave. It was really bad since they are more like skilled hirelings that you pay to do their job,it doesn't make sense for them to want to leave when you are paying them well but are unhappy that you decided to explore something.

There were numerous script fixes and tweaks to loyalty gains and losses. Also, the vagrus' authority attribute now influences reduces loyalty losses due to differences of opinion. So they are easier to keep.
The majority of the companions are balanced in general but almost all of them have 'triggers'. Like backing down from an honorable duel, etc. There are also a few companions who are more volatile and take issue with how the vagrus runs the caravan. Like being too altruistic, malevolent, too bold or acting cowardly will annoy this or that companion and if one plays consistently in a heavily skewed style then some might leave. Keeping completely opposing companions in one party is not supposed to be possible as Ms. GoodyTwoShoes and Mr. KillThemAll never gonna be happy at once. As we add more companions it will feel less of a problem to see a character go. (Typically you would not miss them anyway since their personality does not match with your views and not hearing their whining will feel like a blessing.)
And yeah, when we add their personal questlines, that will be the main source of earning their loyalty and making sure that they stick around.

Oh and how does the faction reputation decline,does it degrade by time or by doing missions for another faction?

Yes. Factions have complex relations (Allies, Associates, Opponents, and Adversaries), and working for those will have a knock-on reputation effect (a small portion of the direct gain or loss). Those marginal effects will not reduce you below and above a certain standing, though. So you would need to work for or against those Factions directly to completely ruin or raise your relations with them.

 

[fantadomat]

There are also a few companions who are more volatile and take issue with how the vagrus runs the caravan. Like being too altruistic, malevolent, too bold or acting cowardly will annoy this or that companion and if one plays consistently in a heavily skewed style then some might leave.

Ahh this doesn't really make sense since they are mercenaries and shouldn't care about how you run your caravan. Especially the altruism,after all it is state of mind/soul not an action you do. You could do good deeds while having selfish goals and self interest. I was particularly annoyed by the retarded dwarf bitching about thing. A broke poor faliuar should be telling me how should i act in a event when my caravan is huge and cargo is filled with spices and gems from the four corners . Two times he was particularly annoying. One was when i saw some marble statue/block was about felling on to bunch of slaves and i send my slaves thinking that i could get some good favour or item from the other merchant,then dwarf begun bitching about retarded shit and i was "The fuck are you talking about nigga? I don't care about slave lives and shit,i wanted to get gibz,slaves are cheap! ". The other one was when i decided to help that dragon mage chick because i would get a mage companion which i was searching for the last 5 hours lol and some faction reputation. Then he went on bitching about how we shouldn't do it because it would distract is from our goal or something....and i was all "Ahhh i am the caravan master and i know where we are going,the fuck are you larping as you know shit ?!".
That said the other two companions i had never make problems for me,the bughand man and the bird bounty huntress.

Factions

I have noticed that the mysterious faction

Spoiler

most likely a slave rebellion,i assume

really hated me for some reason. Was that because i was buying and selling them or is there some other thing?

 

[Parsimonious cook]

Yeah the dwarf supercargo dude is an annoying bitch for sure (the ex-gladiator with mantis arm is close though). The most annoying aspect for me is that he actually never quits no matter how often he voices his displeasure (I was told on the dev´s discord that companions can leave you, but it never happened to me).

 

[Sztaszov]

Ahh this doesn't really make sense since they are mercenaries and shouldn't care about now you run your caravan.

Ah, now I understand how the root of the matter. Not all companions are mercenaries. Some of them are just people who happen to get involved in your stories and may decide to join you. They are very much their own man or woman and leave you if they do not like you. But you are right, the ones that are mercenaries or people who are accustomed to being part of a comitatus, are much less likely to get pissed off in general. Simply because of their background.

Especially the altruism,after all it is state of mind/soul not an action you do. You could do good deeds while having selfish goals and self interest. I was particularly annoyed by the retarded dwarf bitching about thing. A broke poor faliuar should be telling me how should i act in a event when my caravan is huge and cargo is filled with spices and gems from the four corners . Two times he was particularly annoying. One was when i saw some marble statue/block was about felling on to bunch of slaves and i send my slaves thinking that i could get some good favour or item from the other merchant,then dwarf begun bitching about retarded shit and i was "The fuck are you talking about nigga? I don't care about slave lives and shit,i wanted to get gibz,slaves are cheap! ". The other one was when i decided to help that dragon mage chick because i would get a mage companion which i was searching for the last 5 hours lol and some faction reputation. Then he went on bitching about how we shouldn't do it because it would distract is from our goal or something....and i was all "Ahhh i am the caravan master and i know where we are going,the fuck are you larping as you know shit ?!".
That said the other two companions i had never make problems for me,the bughand man and the bird bounty huntress.

Spoiler

Garrik is a loner whom you would not find any former partner of. Not because he's never gone on adventures but cause he backstabbed (literally or figuratively). He was forced to accept you as his boss due to the circumstances but that does not mean he is happy, at all. He is vile. If he could watch people getting squashed by a slab of marble and you deny him of the joy of helping them out don't expect him to stay silent. He is probably one of the evilest companions in the game. He is indeed opportunistic but 'gaining through good acts is not worth it'. Any wasted opportunity to cause pain and grief is just a sign of softness. Of course, if you do malevolent stuff he will forgive you for a little softness here and there.

I have noticed that the mysterious faction

Spoiler

most likely a slave rebellion,i assume

really hated me for some reason. Was that because i was buying and selling them or is there some other thing?

Oh yes.

Yeah the dwarf supercargo dude is an annoying bitch for sure (the ex-gladiator with mantis arm is close though). The most annoying aspect for me is that he actually never quits no matter how often he voices his displeasure (I was told on the dev´s discord that companions can leave you, but it never happened to me).

If they keep whining but do not leave that means that they are close to the threshold to leave but have not crossed it yet nor has their opinion of them changed for the better (not enough at last) to come out of that state. They can leave but they will complain quite a few times before they do so. That is intentional to give the chance to the players to turn things around, give them gifts, etc.

Hope this helps!