New Patch - Spirit Points!

Hi Adventurers, Spirit Points!

This new mechanic has now been added to the Guiding Spirit demo!

To manage expectations, this is a pretty SIMPLE mechanic. I currently do not intend to radically change how the game plays, but my roadmap allowed a little extra space to experiment with a simple, additional system. I wanted something optional, so players who don’t want it can turn it off. Something that keeps the player a little on their toes during the story, something that doesn’t steal the spotlight from the trial-and-error style of gameplay, and something relatively easy to manage, since a couple of players mentioned they don’t want too much micromanagement.

I plan to fine-tune this feature based on further testing and your feedback. Steam post image

How it works currently:

· You get a free Spirit Point early in the tutorial chapter, once your heroes get out of the first room (if they do, khm).

· After that, you will earn a point only when a party member reaches 80 Motivation points.

· You can spend these points to give them to any party member, raising their Skills by +25. This applies to active and passive skill-checks, both individual and team-based.

· This is a permanent bonus that lasts until the end of the chapter.

The interesting part is that you can re-allocate these points anytime, except during skill-checks. If you know your party well and understand the story mechanics, you can plan ahead: boost the character who needs it most in the moment, then shift the power to someone else to help with a future challenge. This also lets you subtly influence inter-party conflicts in the direction you prefer. It’s not an instant win, but if used well, it can make a real difference.

As of now, Spirit Points reset at the start of each chapter (the Spirit also needs to rest!). I added some tooltips to introduce the new mechanic. Make sure tutorial messages are turned on in Options, and keep in mind, you can also reset them there anytime if you missed something.

You can turn the new feature on or off when you start your adventure (currently it’s turned on by default!) by clicking the Arcane Star icon next to the Difficulty options.

Hotfixes. Hotfixes everywhere!

A lot of features and fixes were added or polished through several hotfixes released over the past few days, all based on your feedback. These changes range from Character Creator improvements through Story updates (don't pet the zombie!) to Follower and Class adjustments.

Please note that some tweaks only apply if you create new characters / start a new story. For example, to get the fixed proficiency for Druids, you will need to make a new Druid. Most of these changes do not apply retrospectively to your existing heroes or save files.

Beyond adding Spirit Points, this patch also fixes a couple of instances where characters were interacting with themselves (although I do admit, sometimes I flirt with myself too!). And to think, I haven't even added the Shattered Mind personality yet...

The Future

There are still updates coming to the demo. In the upcoming weeks, I want to test combat and magic a little more. There are still some bugs on my list to squash and some tweaks to implement based on your feedback. After those are handled, I will slowly shift my focus back to work on the full release! We recently crossed 2700 wishlists, and the demo received a couple of very positive reviews! That means the world to me. Steam Next Fest was a blast, the demo was shown/mentioned in a couple places around the internet, and I also took some time to try out some very cool demos myself, as a break between crafting those hotfixes. I shared my experience via the Spirit's social media channels (X, Bluesky), in case you are interested.

You send me incredibly detailed feedback every day, which helps me a lot to understand what is working as intended and what isn't. Thank you very much for your support!

Please note that even if I don't get back to each of you, I read everything.

Until next time, Dice