Update log
Full dotAGE update
The complete published notes, normalized for clean reading and source attribution.
Repeated intro
Hello Elders!
Extracted changes
- Gameplay
- Events
- Balance
I finished work on the Lava Update! Analyzing all events and all their intricacies took a good chunk of time, but I'm happy with the result.
Lava everywhere!
This new update brings a new resource (Lava), a new terrain (LAVA), 3 new buildings (Lava-related) and several new events (guess what? LAVA BASED!)
The lava buildings give you a new way to produce Heat if you find yourself full of LAVA, but they can be risky... All lava pits produce heat each turn, making they... not ideal during summertime.
The addition of lava introduces a change in how some events appear, as depending on whether your tree has lava or ice buildings, the system will adapt by generating events tied to the correct path.
You will find Lava as a new memory in the memories screen! Lava can appear during your run, similarly to snow, it can be strong if harnessed correctly, but you cannot rely on it from the start!
New Apocalypses!
While working on the event system, I also took the chance to revise the Apocalypse phase to improve the end game, which now has 4 different ways to appear (5 with Folkways)!
At the end of page 6 in the Prophecy, you will now be shown what Apocalypse type will appear, and can plan accordingly. This takes out the guesswork tied to cold and heat, and makes them more interesting, as each starts with a different bad effect! You can unlock them inside memories (and if you have unlocked everything you should already have all of them, plus the lava one!)
However, Apocalyptic event strength is not fixed anymore, so that losing by a little will net a lower strength event (apart from the last event, which is still Deadly). This should help players that are struggling with the Apocalypse.
Events balance!
I went over all events and systems and tweaked here and there both numbers and formulas to provide a better experience. The goal was to reduce the feel-bad moments, give players more leeway after losing events, and also make good events feel better as rewards.
Do note that the difficulty of the game is roughly the same, but this should help players that are struggling to avoid being obliterated by a single random event!
The number of changes is enormous, but here are the most important notes for what concern balance:
I added 20+ new good events, which will make your rewards more interesting
I added 9 new Omen scenarios, i.e. distribution of Omens in the prophecy, to provide more variety
At lower difficulties, higher level good events now have a higher reward multiplier
I improved the clarity of what Event Level will appear, and also increased the ranges to level up an event, making it harder to get too strong events at easier difficulties. Event level UX has been revised to make it cleaner as well.
Many Misfortune events are now Omens, increasing the overall variety
Events now hit fewer targets at the highest levels, making a single event less able to obliterate the whole village
Boss events are now all exclusive, making such events appear only if you fail a Doom
Many events that were too strong for small villages now require 15 Pips to appear instead
Events that spawn buildings now do so farther from the village, making it more interesting and useful
Rarer events are a bit less rare, making some cool interactions appear for more players (and allowing achievement hunters to get a better chance!)
Weathers are now less annoying, as they
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