Build 1184 is live!

We have been hard at work overhauling some of the outdated mechanics from the earlier incarnations of the game to lay the groundwork for a much more robust narrative experience. In addition to a host of bug fixes, the new 1184 build contains your first early peek at Critical Decisions, my personal Holy Grail feature that I've been searching for a way to make work since I started on Epic Tavern.

Here's an advanced look at what this new more robust style of questing looks like...

The previous version of Bandito Verde had the heroes attempting to negotiate with a group of goblin raiders. Walk there, roll once, walk home. Super simple, kinda boring. Here's what it looks like after being overhauled with new features...

Before the fight, your crew encounters an orc barbarian also scouting out the goblin encampment. A potential ally in the fight ahead?

Which leads to a choice on how to proceed...

Critical Decisions can offer up to four choices, including conditional choices only available if you have certain heroes, skills, artifacts, faction affiliations and such. Since the pyromancer Murgul is in the party, the conditional button appears for FIREBALL! Let's try that...

By unleashing a fireball on the unsuspecting raiders, the heroes weaken them, leading to an easier version of the key stage...

...but the fireball destroyed the treasure chest in the camp, so instead of receiving the Bandolier of the Goblin Chief, you receive the slightly less powerful Charred Bandolier of the Goblin Chief.

And about your new orc friend...

It turns out that's Grusilla Marrowsucker! If you pay attention to character backstories, you may recall that Grunson Wolfspawn was imprisoned by the Marrowsucker Clan, who exterminated his people. And that Grusilla is also no friend of her own clan due to her mother murdering five of Gru's six sisters in hopes of avoiding a prophecy that she'd die at the hands of her daughters. So what happens when Grunson and Grusilla come face to face?

Will Grunson lash out in anger, alienating a potential ally...

Or will Grunson and Gru put their past differences aside and learn to work together...

With this whole new narrative toolset, writing encounters in Epic Tavern feels more than ever like DMing a tabletop session. I'm currently locked away adding Critical Decisions all over the place for our next big content patch, as well as relationship-defining moments for characters like Grunson and Grusilla who have overlapping backstories.

Another big upcoming change is that if you fail to recruit a hero, they'll no longer just vanish from the story world... Grusilla, for instance, signs on with one of your rival taverns, The Hungry Huntsman, and you'll cross paths again. When presented with a four-way choice between pursuing Horley Halfast, Wallace Wilder, Juliana Jaggedheart, or Tatiana Tanglewood, the other three will sign with rival taverns and become enemies. I've always loved the idea that the heroes of one playthrough could be the villains of the next.

Epic Tavern already tracks more than 500 story variables for each playthrough, in addition to quest results. With our new narrative tools, I now have everything I need to take full advantage of that data, shaping the story to your past decisions, successes, and failures. With that comes an increased focus on clearly communicating when your actions have impacted the story world. IGNATIUS WILL REMEMBER THAT.

Okay, enough babble out of me. In case it isn't clear, I am crazy excited about Critical Decisions and I can't wait to unleash a bunch of them on you in our next content patch. Back to the writing dungeon I go!

We Want to Hear from You Is there a feature you want to see in Epic Tavern? Stop on by our Discord and let us know: https://discord.com/invite/epictavern