Dungeon Defenders: Awakened News

[p]Hey Defenders,
This hotfix is a follow-up to the 12/30 update and focuses on cleanup and consistency across a few key areas: fusion and item card display fixes, clearer pet and gemstone tooltips, Campaign chest and rune reward behavior, Crystal Core improvements, updated drop rules for several rewards, and a couple of important bug fixes. There wasn’t a PTR cycle for this one, so these changes are going live directly.[/p][h2]ITEMS, FUSION, AND UI FIXES[/h2]

• [p]Rifted accessories no longer improperly complete fusion armor sets[/p]
• [p]Weapon set bonuses now properly display on a weapon’s item card[/p]
• [p]Golden gemstone tooltips have been updated to reflect their proper effect[/p]

[h2]PETS[/h2][p]Tower Pet Description Updates[/p]

• [p]Updated all tower pet descriptions to highlight versatility, movement speed, and cast rate to aid in classification[/p]

[p]Yellow Ramster Can Rework[/p]

• [p]Yellow Ramster Can has been reworked to no longer loop and now applies a flat attack rate increase with a movement speed reduction[/p]
• [p]Yellow Ramster Can is now classified as a non-combat pet[/p]
• [p]Yellow Ramster Can no longer applies its effect to other heroes inside the hero deck[/p]

[p]Regular variant[/p]

• [p]Attack rate increase, 30% movement speed decrease[/p]
• [p]Coefficient 0.5 (down from 1)[/p]
• [p]Post multiplicative additive value -1[/p]

[p]Fused variant[/p]

• [p]Attack rate increase, 20% movement speed decrease[/p]
• [p]Coefficient 0.5 (down from 1)[/p]
• [p]Post multiplicative additive value -0.9[/p]

[p]Gold variant[/p]

• [p]Attack rate increase, 10% movement speed decrease[/p]
• [p]Coefficient 0.5 (down from 1)[/p]
• [p]Post multiplicative additive value -0.8[/p]

[p]Note on the change
This comes from the looping behavior not working fully as intended due to the pet’s original design. The looping behavior will come back, but on a pet designed from the ground up with this mechanic in mind.[/p][h2]CAMPAIGN CHESTS AND RUNES[/h2]

• [p]Fixed issues with the Campaign Rift + Hardcore chest so runes drop from the Victory Chest rather than the Wave 4 chest[/p]
• [p]Runes should now be properly awarded upon completing Wave 5 instead of the beginning of Wave 5[/p]
• [p]The proper Victory Chest should now spawn upon completing any Campaign mission with Rifted and Hardcore toggles enabled[/p]

[h2]CRYSTAL CORE UPDATES[/h2]

• [p]Golden Crystal Core is now tradeable[/p]
• [p]Rifted Crystal Core is now tradeable[/p]
• [p]The Crystal Core is now upgradeable[/p]
• [p]Crystal Core pets have been added into the transmogs[/p]
• [p]Crystal Core jump height boost has been doubled for all variants[/p]
  • [p]Base: jump height boost increased to 20% (up from 10%)[/p]
  • [p]Fused: jump height boost increased to 30% (up from 15%)[/p]
  • [p]Gold: jump height boost increased to 40% (up from 20%)[/p]

[h2]DROPS AND REWARDS[/h2]

• [p]Golden Lil’ Bomber now drops upon completion of the Skyward Revenge challenge with a 10% chance[/p]
  • [p]Must be in massacre mode,have a Bonus Difficulty enabled, and be in Rift Mode[/p]
• [p]Fused Lil Bomber now properly drops as intended upon completion of the Skyward Revenge challenge [/p]
• [p]Lapis Gemstone now has a 50% chance to drop upon completing Monster Fest in Massacre mode with Hardcore enabled[/p]
• [p]Topaz Gemstone now has a 50% chance to drop upon completing Death From Above challenge in Massacre mode with Hardcore enabled[/p]

[p]
[/p][h2]BUG FIXES[/h2]

• [p]Fixed visual bugs on The Keep that caused disappearing terrain[/p]

[h2]TAVERN UPDATE AND CORGI CYPHER[/h2][p]We’ve updated the Tavern wall with the deciphered corgi message now that the Corgi Cypher has been solved. A special thank you to everyone who participated in our very first cypher event. We learned a lot from running it, and we’ll be using what we learned to make future community events better. One common piece of feedback we heard was that not everyone uses Discord, and some players felt left out. We humbly apologize. This is the first of many community events we plan to hold in-game as development continues, and we’ll make sure everyone has a chance to be included. There were four winners, and they’ve been notified and contacted via Discord. The winners will get to name a weapon or pet and write its unique flavor text for a future update.[/p][h2]CONCLUSION[/h2][p]Thank you again for all the support and patience as we keep tightening things up after the 12/30 update. This hotfix focuses on making rewards behave correctly, improving clarity on items and pets, strengthening Crystal Core functionality, and fixing a handful of bugs and drop issues. Looking ahead, our focus for the next major update is improving the pacing of the game from start to finish, fixing as many bugs as we can, and adding portals to maps that typically run slow to help runs feel smoother and more consistent.[/p][p]Happy Defending,
The Community Development Team[/p][p]
[/p]

[p]Greetings Defenders,[/p][p][/p][p] Thank you again for everything you did on PTR. The testing, the build sharing, the bug reports, and the blunt feedback made this update possible, and we genuinely wouldn’t be here without you. As we close out 2025, this patch sets the stage for us to keep expanding these systems in 2026 with more rewards, more tuning, and more ways to play. We still have some early-game flow tweaks to make and a few bugs to iron out, but this gets us much closer to bigger goals like strengthening our foundation for future updates and continuing the work needed to support consoles and new content.[/p][p][/p][h2]SUMMARY[/h2]

• [p]Big tower balance passes (Series EV, Warden, Summoner, Guardian, and more)[/p]
• [p]Hero cooldown tuning across multiple classes[/p]
• [p]Pure Strategy and Challenge Mode reward/scaling fixes and improvements[/p]
• [p]Rift Mode tuning (spawn rates, resistance math, and problem enemy cases)[/p]
• [p]Tower weapons reworked to feel more tower-first, with dedicated passive pools and updated rolls[/p]
• [p]Fused accessories cleaned up, with better consistency and new passive behavior[/p]
• [p]Arcanist armor behavior updated for fairness, clarity, and less build bricking[/p]
• [p]Tower pets normalized and buffed (scalars, bonuses, range changes, naming cleanup)[/p]
• [p]Holiday and boss rewards expanded (Kringler’s Cap, boss accessories, Crystal Core, icons)[/p]
• [p]Rune drop fixes and improved low-tier rune frequency[/p][p][/p]

[h2]TOWERS AND DEFENSES[/h2][p]SERIES EV [/p][p]Proton Beam[/p]

• [p]Maximum beam distance increased from 750 to 1250[/p]
• [p]Minimum DU distance increased from 25 to 50[/p]
• [p]Maximum DU distance increased from 750 to 1000[/p]
• [p]DU health scale increased from 1.2 to 1.75[/p]
• [p]DU health exponent increased to 15%[/p]
• [p]Health drain per tick reduced from 4.5 HP to 3 HP[/p]
• [p]Defense Rate hero stat exponent increased from 0.20 to 0.25[/p]
• [p]Shock Rune stun duration increased from 3 seconds to 5 seconds[/p]

[p]Heat Cannon[/p]

• [p]Defense Range hero stat exponent increased from 0.30 to 0.50[/p]

[p]WARDEN
Roots of Purity[/p]

• [p]Tower Health scalar increased from 1.0 to 1.5[/p]
• [p]Tower Health exponent increased from 1.005 to 1.055[/p]

[p]Wisp Den[/p]

• [p]Defense Unit cost reduced from 4 DU to 3 DU[/p]
• [p]Wrath Defense Rate buff multiplier increased from 1.25 to 1.30[/p]
• [p]Rune explosion radius increased from 250 to 500[/p]

[p]Shroomy Geyser (Wrath Mode)[/p]

• [p]Now applies a 10% Strength Drain for 3 seconds[/p]
• [p]UI now properly reflects the de-buff[/p]

[p]Sludge Launcher[/p]

• [p]Sludge pool radius (from rune) increased from 300 to 400[/p]

[p]SUMMONER – ARCHER MINIONS[/p]

• [p]Tower Health scalar increased from 1.0 to 1.25[/p]
• [p]Life Leech Rune health penalty reduced[/p]
  • [p]Internal value reduced from 1.0 to 0.6[/p]
  • [p]Rank 8 HP reduction lowered from about 25% to roughly 10–15%[/p]

[p]GUARDIAN – DIVINE JUDGEMENT[/p]

• [p]Blast radius increased from 150 to 350[/p]
• [p]Spell-book updated to reflect the change[/p]

[p]HOLY BULWARK[/p]

• [p]Protection effect now applies correctly (range scaling fix)[/p]

[p]DEADLY STRIKER TOWER[/p]

• [p]Attack speed scaling improved[/p]
  • [p]Exponent increased to 0.85 (up from 0.77)[/p]

[h2]HERO ABILITY REBALANCES[/h2][p]SQUIRE[/p]

• [p]Blood Rage cooldown increased from 5 seconds to 8 seconds[/p]
• [p]Spell-book updated[/p]
• [p]Bowling Ball Tower description updated[/p]

[p]APPRENTICE[/p]

• [p]Overcharge cooldown increased from 5 seconds to 8 seconds[/p]
• [p]Arcane Blast Rune now applies a de-buff[/p]
  • [p]Enemies take 15% more damage for 5 seconds[/p]
  • [p]Stacks up to 3 times[/p]
  • [p]Tooltip updated[/p]

[p]HUNTRESS[/p]

• [p]Adrenaline Rush cooldown increased from 5 seconds to 8 seconds[/p]
• [p]Piercing Shot cooldown reduced from 7 seconds to 6 seconds[/p]
• [p]Second Chance now procs on damage dealt (instead of enemy killed)[/p]

[p]SERIES EV (HERO)[/p]

• [p]Series EV now has access to Arcane Blast Rune[/p]
• [p]Decoy Rune (Decoy GR)[/p]
  • [p]Duration increased to 8 seconds[/p]
  • [p]Post-multiplicative additive value increased from 1.0 to 1.4[/p]
• [p]Decoy scaling (EV ability 1)[/p]
  • [p]Full stat exponent increased from 0.33 to 0.50[/p]
  • [p]Full stat scalar increased from 0.1 to 0.2[/p]
• [p]Known interaction[/p]
  • [p]Arcane Blast Rune does not function correctly if Decoy GR or Second Chance Grenade overrides the ability[/p]

[p]MONK[/p]

• [p]Tower Boost cooldown reduced to 12 seconds[/p]
• [p]Hero Boost cooldown increased to 8 seconds[/p]

[p]SUMMONER[/p]

• [p]Pet Boost cooldown increased to 8 seconds[/p]

[p]WARDEN (ABILITIES)[/p]

• [p]Wrath cooldown increased from 5 seconds to 8 seconds[/p]
• [p]Empowering Rune linger duration after leaving the circle increased from 5 seconds to 10 seconds[/p]
• [p]Wrath tooltip updated[/p]

[h2]PURE STRATEGY UPDATES[/h2]

• [p]Hardcore can now be toggled[/p]
• [p]Bonus Difficulties can now be toggled[/p]
• [p]Special enemies added to Pure Strategy across all maps in Acts 1–3[/p]
• [p]Pure Strategy loot scaling updated to be in line with Mixed Mode[/p]
• [p]Pure Strategy loot floor now properly matches Mixed Mode[/p]
• [p]Bonus Wave and Bonus Wave Hardcore chests now properly spawn in all modes[/p]
• [p]All difficulties now correctly scale up when Hardcore and Rift Mode are enabled[/p]
• [p]Wave chest behavior fixed in Pure Strategy (Hardcore + Bonus Difficulty now correctly spawns a Hardcore chest and avoids accidentally awarding extra map-specific rewards)[/p]
• [p]Victory chest behavior fixed for Pure Strategy when using Bonus Difficulties[/p]

[h2]CHALLENGE MODE UPDATES[/h2]

• [p]Bonus Difficulties enabled and toggleable[/p]
• [p]Challenge Mode can now toggle Rift Mode (same spawn percentages as other modes)[/p]
• [p]Rift Mode now properly applies in Challenge Mode[/p]
• [p]Reward chest added to Challenge Rifted Mode on all maps[/p]
  • [p]Frequently drops Godly items[/p]
• [p]Challenge weapons renamed to match their Dungeon Defenders 1 counterparts[/p]
  • [p]Original DD1-style weapon descriptions restored[/p]
  • [p]Scaling and stats unchanged[/p]
  • [p]Rift Mode awards Rifted versions of all challenge weapons[/p]

[h2]RIFT MODE and ENEMIES UPDATES[/h2][p]Rift Conversion Scalar (what it means)[/p]

• [p]Rift Conversion Scalar is the chance for an enemy to spawn as a Rifted variant[/p]
• [p]Example: 0.8 means an 80% chance[/p]

[p]Current spawn behavior[/p]

• [p]Rift Conversion Scalar is 0.8 for all enemies in Campaign, Survival, Mix Mode, and Pure Strategy[/p]
• [p]Deeper Well updated to match these conversion settings across all game modes[/p]
• [p]Ogres now spawn Rifted 100% of the time[/p]

[p]Resistance and damage tuning (final values)[/p]

• [p]Non-Rift enemies now have 50% Rift damage reduction (reduced again based on Survival wave feedback)[/p]
• [p]Rifted enemies now take 150% bonus fusion damage to keep fusion damage behavior consistent when enemies spawn Rifted (This preserves the double damage nature of rift damage)[/p]
• [p]Sirens no longer have a Rift resistance (they were overly punishing to deal with)[/p]
• [p]Gold enemies buffed by a Rifted Djinn are no longer immune to crowd control (so players have a real chance to stop them)[/p]

[p]Training dummy updates[/p]

• [p]Non-Rift training dummy now matches the same Rift resistance non-Rift enemies have[/p]
• [p]Rifted training dummy damage intake updated to reflect the intended fusion math [/p]

[h2]ARCANIST ARMOR [/h2][p]Drop locations[/p]

• [p]Arcanist Crown and Arcanist Chest drop on The Keep[/p]
• [p]Arcanist Boots and Arcanist Gloves drop on Forsaken Temple[/p]

[p]Fusion behavior and set rules[/p]

• [p]Arcanist pieces will not fuse or complete the set bonus with the specific fused armor sets they are restricted from completing[/p]
• [p]Arcanist armor no longer completes weapon set bonuses[/p]
• [p]All Arcanist pieces can now be used to complete Regular armor sets[/p]
• [p]Updated descriptions on all Arcanist armor pieces for clarity[/p]

[p]Restriction mapping[/p]

• [p]Crown: grants fusion to Tower 1 and prevents completion of the Tower 2 Guard Armor fused set[/p]
• [p]Gloves: grants fusion to Tower 2 and prevents completion of the Tower 1 Ancient Armor fused set[/p]
• [p]Chest: grants fusion to Tower 3 and prevents completion of the Tower 4 Miner Armor fused set[/p]
• [p]Boots: grants fusion to Tower 4 and prevents completion of the Tower 3 Militia Armor fused set[/p]

[p]Stat roll consistency[/p]

• [p]Arcanist Gloves: no longer guarantees Tower Health (all stats now have equal chance)[/p]
• [p]Arcanist Boots: no longer guarantees Tower Health (all stats now have equal chance)[/p]
• [p]Arcanist Chest: no longer guarantees Tower Health (all stats now have equal chance)[/p]

[h2]TOWER WEAPONS[/h2][p]General rules[/p]

• [p]Tower weapons drop after completing Wave 15 and 25 (Hardcore on or off) in Pure Strategy[/p]
• [p]Tower weapons drop in all difficulties, in both Rift and non-Rift[/p]
• [p]Non-fused tower weapons can drop even in Rift mode[/p]
• [p]Tower weapons use a dedicated passive pool (separate from normal weapon passives)[/p]

[p]Tower weapon passive pool[/p][p][/p][p]Drop fixes[/p]

• [p]Glitterhelm’s tower weapon should now drop properly upon completion[/p]
• [p]Forsaken Temple tower weapons should now drop properly upon completion[/p]
• [p]Comically Large Sword can now be sold[/p]

[p]Updated tower weapon rolls (drop locations unchanged)[/p][p][/p][p]SQUIRE
Non-fused[/p]

• [p]Comically Large Sword (Magus Quarters)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Health[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Tower Speed (0.9), Tower Health (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Red Saber (Deeper Well)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Spireblade (Throne Room)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Speed[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Crystal Shard (Royal Gardens)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Oakheart (The Mill)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Range[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]

[p]Fused[/p]

• [p]Fidget Spinner (Deeper Well)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Saber (Magus Quarters)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Health[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Spireblade (Endless Spires)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Speed[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Oakheart (Promenade)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Range[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Crystal Shard (The Outpost)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Speed (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]

[p]APPRENTICE
Non-fused[/p]

• [p]Comically Large Tower Staff (Glitterhelm)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Tower Speed (0.9), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Bone Chill (Ancient Mines)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Tsuda’s Final Creation (The Outpost)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Speed[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Scarlet Prism (The Ramparts)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Health[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Oakshade (Arcane Library)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Range[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Speed, Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p]

[p]Fused[/p]

• [p]Spellbinder (Ancient Mines)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Ion Channel (Tornado Valley)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Speed[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Astralune (Throne Room)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Health[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Oakshade (Summit)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Range[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Crystal Staff (The Bazaar)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Speed (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]

[p]MONK
Non-fused[/p]

• [p]Comically Large Tower Polearm (Forges and Foundries)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Range[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Tower Health (0.9), Tower Range (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Red Twin-Saber (Lava Mines)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Health[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Crystal Polearm (Tornado Highlands)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Speed[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.5)[/p]
• [p]Talonheart (Summit)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Health[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Ankhfeather (Forsaken Temple)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Speed (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]

[p]Fused[/p]

• [p]Fused Crystal Polearm (Lava Mines)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Speed[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Twin-Saber (Tornado Highlands)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Range[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Oakspike (Arcane Library)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Range[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Warfang (Forges and Foundries)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Health[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Thrustworthy (Glitterhelm)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower speed (0.9)[/p]

[p]HUNTRESS
Non-fused[/p]

• [p]Comically Large Tower Bow (Endless Spires)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Speed[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Tower Range (0.9), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Hen Blaster 9000 (Tornado Valley)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Speed[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Wyrmbolt (Alchemical Laboratory)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Speed (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Crystal Bow (The Keep)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Health[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fragmenter (Promenade)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Range[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p]

[p]Fused[/p]

• [p]Fused Massfire (Alchemical Laboratory)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Speed[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Scorcher (Throne Room)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Speed[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Paintstorm (Royal Gardens)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Damage[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Oakbolt (The Mill)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Health[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p]
• [p]Fused Crystal Bow (The Keep)[/p]
  • [p]Main stat: Tower Range[/p]
  • [p]Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p]

[p]Extra drop notes[/p]

• [p]Lost Metropolis drops a random staff[/p]
• [p]The Bazaar drops a random polearm[/p]
• [p]King’s Game drops a random Huntress weapon[/p]

[h2]FUSED ACCESSORIES[/h2]

• [p]Fused accessories now have their own passive pool[/p]
• [p]Fused accessories drop after completing Wave 15 and 25 Pure Strategy on a boss map (Hardcore on or off)[/p]
• [p]Fused accessories are exclusive to Massacre difficulty (lower difficulties will drop a regular accessory)[/p]
• [p]Rift boss accessories cant be used to complete fusion armor sets [/p]

[p]Fused accessory passive pool[/p][p] [/p][h2]PETS[/h2][p]Tower pet scaling sweep[/p]

• [p]All tower stats on tower pets had their scalars increased to 1.0 (anything below 1.0 was raised to 1.0)[/p]

[p]DPS pet range changes[/p]

• [p]Rift DPS pets received a 25% range increase[/p]
• [p]Gold DPS pets received a 50% range increase[/p]
• [p]Happy Hera range increased from 700 to 900[/p]
• [p]Raging Zeus range increased from 700 to 900[/p]
• [p]Lil’ Bomber did not receive an increase[/p]

[p]Animus pets (returning class DPS pets)[/p]

• [p]Added Squire, Apprentice, Monk, and Huntress Animus pets[/p]
• [p]Drops in place of gemstones on Mix Mode Summit[/p]
• [p]Fires up to 3 projectiles that explode on impact[/p]
• [p]Rolls with a random element (excluding fusion)[/p]
• [p]Current tuning[/p]
  • [p]Range: 2200[/p]
  • [p]Damage Scalar: 185[/p]
  • [p]Attack Rate: 0.4[/p]
  • [p]Explosion Radius: 500[/p]

[p]Mini Demon Lord caps[/p]

• [p]Gold Mini Demon Lord fastest attack rate capped at 0.25 seconds[/p]
• [p]Rift Mini Demon Lord fastest attack rate capped at 0.30 seconds[/p]

[p]Class Guardians[/p]

• [p]Class Guardians are functional copies of gemstone buffs and drop on Summit:[/p]
  • [p] Squire Guardian: "health gemstone" style buff. Focuses on tower health, with tower damage and tower speed as secondary stats.[/p]
  • [p] Monk Guardian: "range gemstone" style buff. Focuses on tower range, with tower health and tower damage as secondary stats.[/p]
  • [p]Huntress Guardian: "rate gemstone" style buff. Focuses on tower rate, with tower health and tower range as secondary stats[/p]
  • [p]Apprentice Guardian: "damage gemstone" style buff. Focuses on tower damage, with tower health as a secondary stat.[/p]

[p]Tower Giraffe on a Treadmill[/p]

• [p]Awarded on completing Wave 25 in Pure Strategy[/p]
• [p]Provide 10% Cast Rate and 5% Active Hero bonus[/p]
• [p]Roll with 0.85 scalars and have 4 builder-style variants[/p]
• [p]There are 4 variants, each tuned for different builder styles:[/p]

[p]  1. Rolls with Tower Speed, Tower Range, Tower Damage.[/p][p]  2. Rolls with Tower Health, Tower Damage, Tower Range.[/p][p]  3. Rolls with Tower Health, Tower Speed, Tower Range.[/p][p]  4. Rolls with Tower Damage, Tower Speed, Tower Health.[/p][p][/p][p]Pet naming and cleanup[/p]

• [p]Rifted Propeller Cat renamed to Fused Propeller Cat[/p]
• [p]Yellow Ramster Can renamed to Fused Yellow Ramster Can[/p]
• [p]Rifted Mista Mine renamed to Fused Mista Mine[/p]
• [p]Rifted Mystical Genie renamed to Fused Mystical Genie[/p]
• [p]Golden Dice pet name fixed to match “Golden” naming[/p]
• [p]Fused Mista Mine no longer has double names[/p]

[p]Per-pet bonuses[/p]

• [p]Tower Dice: all variants now have 25% Move Speed[/p][p]Note: The tower dice gives build mana to the hero when it crits[/p]
• [p]Tower Fairy: all variants now have 30% Cast Rate[/p]
• [p]Tower Genie: all variants now have 15% Versatility[/p][p]Note Attacks give build mana with the tower genie's effect active[/p]
• [p]Tower Griffin: all variants now have 15% Versatility[/p]
• [p]Tower Prop Cat: all variants now have 30% Cast Rate[/p]
• [p]Tower Steam Robot: all variants now have 15% Versatility[/p]
• [p]Tower Raging Zeus: all variants now have 25% Move Speed[/p]
• [p]Tower Demi-Demon Lord: all variants now have 15% Versatility[/p]
• [p]Tower Ancient Baby Dragon: all variants now have 30% Cast Rate[/p]
• [p]Tower Etherian Ancient: all variants now have 15% Versatility[/p]
• [p]Tower Hammel: all variants now have 25% Move Speed[/p]
• [p]Tower Happy Hera: all variants now have 30% Cast Rate[/p]
• [p]Tower Little Wizard: all variants now have 15% Versatility[/p]
• [p]Tower Lycan Prince: all variants now have 25% Move Speed[/p]
• [p]Tower Mega Chicken: all variants now have 30% Cast Rate[/p]
• [p]Tower Monkey King: all variants now have 15% Versatility[/p]
• [p]Tower Paddle Ball: all variants now have 25% Move Speed[/p]
• [p]Tower Chargin’ Ramster: all variants now have 30% Cast Rate[/p]
• [p]Tower Yellow Ramster Can: all variants now have 15% Versatility[/p]
• [p]Tower Zephyr: all variants now have 15% Versatility[/p]

[p]Golden gemstones[/p]

• [p]Golden Gemstones now drop at Wave 100+ Survival on The Summit[/p]
• [p]20% drop chance (mimics the survival pet reward for act 3)[/p]
• [p]A Golden Gemstone can contain one of the 4 different buff effects[/p]
• [p]Requirements: Rift Mode toggled + Bonus Difficulty toggled[/p]

[p]Other pet and gemstone fixes[/p]

• [p]Yellow Ramster no longer incorrectly applies its effects to towers[/p]
• [p]Gold Genie now correctly gives Ability Mana[/p]
• [p]Chubs the Corgi now correctly applies its damage boost[/p]
• [p]Chubs self-damage buff increased from 15% to 100% (self-buff only, stacks with other hero buffs)[/p]
• [p]Lapis and Topaz gemstone item cards updated for clarity[/p]

[p][/p][h2]HOLIDAY AND BOSS REWARDS[/h2]

• [p]Kringler’s Cap now drops in Yuletide and has scalars equivalent to a boss accessory[/p]
• [p]Kringler’s Cap now also drops in Survival, Mixed Mode, and Campaign (with both Rifted and Non-Rifted toggles active)[/p]
• [p]Boss accessories added to their respective boss maps in Pure Strategy (roll as normal accessories)[/p]
• [p]Seal of the Forsaken added as a new boss accessory (Forsaken Temple)[/p]
• [p]Rift icons added for Sapphire Brooch, Soldier’s Bracer, Ancient Monocle, King’s Face, and Seal of the Forsaken[/p]

[p]Crystal Core[/p]

• [p]Crystal Core now drops on Warping Core and Creeping Core (including Gold variant)[/p]
• [p]gold variant is a 10% drop chance[/p]
• [p]Increases Jump Height and Cate Rate[/p]
• [p]All Crystal Core variants are now sellable[/p]
• [p]Regular variant: Tower Damage main stat; rolls Tower Damage (1.0), Tower Health (1.0), Hero Ability (1.5)[/p]
• [p]Fused variant: rolls Tower Health (1.0), Tower Damage (1.0), Hero Ability (1.5); no main stat[/p]
• [p]Gold variant: rolls Tower Health (1.0), Tower Damage (1.5), Hero Ability (1.5); no main stat[/p]

[p][/p][h2]RUNE UPDATES[/h2]

• [p]Yuletide Village Campaign now properly drops its rune collection[/p]
• [p]King’s Game Campaign now properly drops its rune collection[/p]
• [p]Nightmare rune quality now drops lower-level runes more frequently[/p]
• [p]Quick note: progress was made tracking down the “rune crash” from enemy rune drops, but it still needs more time to fully dial in[/p][p][/p]

[h2]CLOSING[/h2][p] That’s the full package that came out of PTR testing and refinement. Tower defenses and hero abilities should feel more consistent, Pure Strategy and Challenge Mode rewards and scaling should finally line up the way they’re supposed to, Rift behavior is clearer and less punishing in the wrong places, and builder gear should feel a lot more exciting to earn and use. Thank you again for showing up, speaking up, and helping us improve the game step by step. We genuinely wouldn’t be here without you. If you want to stay involved, come hang out with us in the official Discord (best place for feedback and build talk), and if you’d like to support the game’s continued development, please consider checking out our cosmetic DLC on Steam. [/p][p][/p][p]Until Next Time,[/p][p]The Community Development Team[/p][p]
[/p]

[p]Hey Defenders,[/p][p]
[/p][p]Thank you again for all the feedback and support you’ve been giving us on PTR, it’s been a huge help. This update focuses on making tower weapons feel more exciting, tightening up fused accessory rewards, and cleaning up a bunch of pet, rune, and Pure Strategy issues that you all helped surface, and we’re on track to bring these PTR changes to the live branch before the new year as long as everything stays stable and the feedback continues to look good[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]TOWER WEAPON CHANGES[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]
[/p][p]We heard the feedback that tower weapons didn’t feel “special” enough, and that they needed more tower-focused power. This update pushes them further in that direction.[/p][p]
[/p][p]General changes[/p][p]- Tower weapon stat rolls have been updated (drop locations have not changed).[/p][p]- Tower weapons now drop in all difficulties, in both Rift and non-Rift.[/p][p]- Non-fused tower weapons can drop in Rift mode.[/p][p]- Non-fused tower weapons now drop after completing Wave 15, with or without the Hardcore toggle.[/p][p]- Fused tower weapons now drop after completing Wave 15, with or without the Hardcore toggle.[/p][p]- Tower weapons now have their own passive pool, separate from normal weapon passives.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower weapon passive pool (from screenshot)[/p][p]Passive Name   | Passive Weight (higher = more common)[/p][p]% Dmg          | 60[/p][p]Tower Dmg      | 375[/p][p]Tower Health   | 375[/p][p]Tower Range    | 375[/p][p]Tower Speed    | 375[/p][p]MP Regen      | 60[/p][p]Move Speed    | 60[/p][p]Cast Rate     | 375[/p][p]

[/p][p]Updated tower weapon rolls (drop locations unchanged)[/p][p]
[/p][p]Squire – Swords[/p][p]Non-fused[/p][p]1. Comically Large Sword[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Health[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Tower Speed (0.9), Tower Health (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Magus Quarters[/p][p]
[/p][p]2. Red Saber[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Deeper Well[/p][p]
[/p][p]3. Spireblade[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Speed[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Throne Room[/p][p]
[/p][p]4. Crystal Shard[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Royal Gardens[/p][p]
[/p][p]5. Oakheart[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Range[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: The Mill[/p][p]
[/p][p]Fused[/p][p]1. Fidget Spinner[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Deeper Well[/p][p]
[/p][p]2. Fused Saber[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Health[/p][p]   Rolls with: Hero Health (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Magus Quarters[/p][p]
[/p][p]3. Fused Spireblade[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Speed[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Endless Spires[/p][p]
[/p][p]4. Fused Oakheart[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Range[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Promenade[/p][p]
[/p][p]5. Fused Crystal Shard[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Speed (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: The Outpost[/p][p]

[/p][p]Apprentice – Staves[/p][p]Non-fused[/p][p]1. Comically Large Tower Staff[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Tower Speed (0.9), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Glitterhelm[/p][p]
[/p][p]2. Bone Chill[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Ancient Mines[/p][p]
[/p][p]3. Tsuda’s Final Creation[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Speed[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: The Outpost[/p][p]
[/p][p]4. Scarlet Prism[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Health[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: The Ramparts[/p][p]
[/p][p]5. Oakshade[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Range[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Speed, Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Arcane Library[/p][p]
[/p][p]Fused[/p][p]1. Spellbinder[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Ancient Mines[/p][p]
[/p][p]2. Ion Channel[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Speed[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Tornado Valley[/p][p]
[/p][p]3. Astralune[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Health[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Throne Room[/p][p]
[/p][p]4. Fused Oakshade[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Range[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range(0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Summit[/p][p]
[/p][p]5. Fused Crystal Staff[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Speed (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: The Bazaar[/p][p]

[/p][p]Monk – Polearms[/p][p]Non-fused[/p][p]1. Comically Large Tower Polearm[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Range[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Tower Health (0.9), Tower Range (0.9)[/p][p]
[/p][p]2. Red Twin-Saber[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Health[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Lava Mines[/p][p]
[/p][p]3. Crystal Polearm[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Speed[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.5)[/p][p]   Drops: Tornado Highlands[/p][p]
[/p][p]4. Talonheart[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Health[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Summit[/p][p]
[/p][p]5. Ankhfeather[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Speed (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Forsaken Temple[/p][p]
[/p][p]Fused[/p][p]1. Fused Crystal Polearm[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Speed[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Lava Mines[/p][p]
[/p][p]2. Fused Twin-Saber[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Range[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Tornado Highlands[/p][p]
[/p][p]3. Fused Oakspike[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Range[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Arcane Library[/p][p]
[/p][p]4. Fused Warfang[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Health[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage(0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Forges and Foundries[/p][p]
[/p][p]5. Fused Thrustworthy[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Glitterhelm[/p][p]

[/p][p]Huntress – Crossbows[/p][p]Non-fused[/p][p]1. Comically Large Tower Bow[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Speed[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Tower Range (0.9), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Endless Spires[/p][p]
[/p][p]2. Hen Blaster 9000[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Speed[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Tornado Valley[/p][p]
[/p][p]3. Wyrmbolt[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Speed (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Alchemical Laboratory[/p][p]
[/p][p]4. Crystal Bow[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Health[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: The Keep[/p][p]
[/p][p]5. Fragmenter[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Range[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Promenade[/p][p]
[/p][p]Fused[/p][p]1. Fused Massfire[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Speed[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Alchemical Laboratory[/p][p]
[/p][p]2. Fused Scorcher[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Speed[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Speed (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Throne Ramparts[/p][p]
[/p][p]3. Fused Paintstorm[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Damage[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Health (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Damage (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: Royal Gardens[/p][p]
[/p][p]4. Fused Oakbolt[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Health[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Range (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Health (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: The Mill[/p][p]
[/p][p]5. Fused Crystal Bow[/p][p]   Main stat: Tower Range[/p][p]   Rolls with: Tower Damage (0.9), Hero Ability (1.5), Tower Range (0.9)[/p][p]   Drops: The Keep[/p][p]
[/p][p]Extra drop notes[/p][p]- Lost Metropolis drops a random staff.[/p][p]- The Bazaar drops a random polearm.[/p][p]- King’s Game drops a random Huntress weapon.[/p][p]

[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]FUSED ACCESSORY CHANGES[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Fused accessories now have their own passive pool.[/p][p]- Fused accessories now drop upon completing Wave 15, with or without the Hardcore toggle.[/p][p]- Fused Seal of the Forsaken is now properly classified as a brooch (same for the normal version).[/p][p]- Note: Fused accessories are exclusive to Massacre difficulty.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Fused accessory passive pool (from screenshot)[/p][p]Passive Name      | Passive Weight (higher = more common)[/p][p]% Dmg (Repair)        | 60[/p][p]MP Regen          | 33[/p][p]Move Speed        | 33[/p][p]% Armor (Repair)      | 60[/p][p]% Armor (Upgrade)     | 60[/p][p]% Dmg (Upgrade)       | 60[/p][p]HP Regen          | 33[/p][p]

[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]PET CHANGES[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]
[/p][p]General[/p][p]- All tower stats on tower pets have had their scalars increased to 1.0 (any tower pet below 1.0 was raised to 1.0).[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Giraffe on a Treadmill[/p][p]- Versatility is now 10%.[/p][p]- Casting Rate is now 25%.[/p][p]- Now properly drops on completion of all maps in Pure Strategy.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Dice[/p][p]- All variants now have 25% Move Speed.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Fairy[/p][p]- All variants now have 30% Cast Rate.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Genie[/p][p]- All variants now have 15% Versatility.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Griffin[/p][p]- All variants now have 15% Versatility.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Prop Cat[/p][p]- All variants now have 30% Cast Rate.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Steam Robot[/p][p]- All variants now have 15% Versatility.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Raging Zeus[/p][p]- All variants now have 25% Move Speed.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Demi-Demon Lord[/p][p]- All variants now have 15% Versatility.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Ancient Baby Dragon[/p][p]- All variants now have 30% Cast Rate.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Etherian Ancient[/p][p]- All variants now have 15% Versatility.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Hammel[/p][p]- All variants now have 25% Move Speed.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Happy Hera[/p][p]- All variants now have 30% Cast Rate.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Little Wizard[/p][p]- All variants now have 15% Versatility.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Lycan Prince[/p][p]- All variants now have 25% Move Speed.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Mega Chicken[/p][p]- All variants now have 30% Cast Rate.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Monkey King[/p][p]- All variants now have 15% Versatility.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Paddle Ball[/p][p]- All variants now have 25% Move Speed.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Chargin’ Ramster[/p][p]- All variants now have 30% Cast Rate.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Yellow Ramster Can[/p][p]- All variants now have 15% Versatility.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Zephyr[/p][p]- All variants now have 15% Versatility.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Crystal Core[/p][p]- All variants are now sellable.[/p][p]- Regular variant rolls with: Tower Damage (1.0), Tower Health (1.0), Hero Ability (1.5). Main stat is Tower Damage.[/p][p]- Fused variant rolls with: Tower Health (1.0), Tower Damage (1.0), Hero Ability (1.5). No main stat.[/p][p]- Gold variant rolls with: Tower Health (1.0), Tower Damage (1.5), Hero Ability (1.5). No main stat.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Fused Mista Mine[/p][p]- Fused Mista Mine no longer has double names.[/p][p]

[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]RUNE UPDATES[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Yuletide Village Campaign now properly drops its collection of runes.[/p][p]- King’s Game Campaign now properly drops its collection of runes.[/p][p]- Nightmare rune quality should now drop lower-level runes more frequently.[/p][p]- Quick note: we’ve made major progress tracking down the “rune crash” dropping from enemies, but it needs a bit more time to dial in. That fix will come after the big patch we’ve been working on all month goes live.[/p][p]

[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]PURE STRATEGY UPDATES[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]
[/p][p]- All difficulties now correctly scale up when Hardcore and Rift Mode are enabled.[/p][p]- The Wave Chest in Pure Strategy (with Hardcore and a Bonus Difficulty) now correctly spawns a Hardcore chest, instead of spawning the Hardcore Bonus Wave chests and accidentally awarding extra map-specific rewards.[/p][p]









[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]CONCLUSION[/p][p]-------------------------------------------------[/p][p]
[/p][p]That’s the big PTR pass for this update: tower weapons should feel stronger and more unique, fused accessories should be cleaner and more consistent, tower pets got a big sweep to bring their tower scaling up, and we’ve fixed up several drops and reward issues in Campaign and Pure Strategy. As always, thank you for testing, sharing builds, and calling out what feels good (and what doesn’t). We genuinely wouldn’t be here without you. If you want to stay involved, come hang out with us in the official Discord (it’s the best place to share feedback and talk shop with other Defenders). And if you’d like to support the game, please consider checking out our cosmetic DLC on Steam.[/p][p]
[/p][p]See you on the PTR, and happy defending.[/p][p]
[/p]

[p]Merry Christmas, Defenders![/p][p] We hope you had a fantastic holiday and were able to enjoy the Christmas Eve update we rolled out yesterday. Today, we’re following it up with another PTR patch, aimed at further polishing some of the feedback you provided, especially around Arcanist armor, Tower Giraffes, and loot inconsistencies. As always, this update is still on the Public Test Realm to give us the chance to gather your feedback and make sure everything is tuned just right before it hits the live branch. Thank you for being such an awesome community, and for helping us make Dungeon Defenders: Awakened even better with your thoughts and ideas![/p][p]Changes in this PTR Update:[/p]

• [p]Tower Giraffe on the Treadmill now has the proper range scaling.[/p]
• [p]One of the Duplicate Tower Giraffes now rolls with Tower Health, Tower Speed, and Tower Damage for more variety.[/p]

[p]Pure Strategy Changes:[/p]

• [p]Loot Floor of Pure Strategy now properly matches the scaling and loot drops of Mixed Mode, ensuring consistency across modes.[/p]
• [p]Kringler’s Cap now drops in Survival, Mixed Mode, and Campaign, with both Rifted and Non-Rifted toggles active.[/p]

[p]Arcanist Armor Fusion Fixes:[/p]

• [p]Arcanist Armor now properly no longer fuses with the Primitive armor set.
  [/p]
• [p]Arcanist Gloves no longer have Tower Health as the guaranteed stat when rolling. All stats now have an equal chance to roll.
  [/p]
• [p]Arcanist Boots no longer have Tower Health as the guaranteed stat when rolling. All stats now have an equal chance to roll.
  [/p]
• [p]Arcanist Chest Piece no longer has Tower Health as its guaranteed stat when rolling. All stats now have an equal chance to roll.[/p]

[p]Community Feedback Notes:[/p]

• [p]These changes to Arcanist armor stats, particularly with Arcanist Gloves, Boots, and Chest Piece, come from consistent feedback we’ve received. We heard your concerns when the gloves were first introduced, and the community continued to point out that the other pieces lacked the stat roll consistency seen with the Arcanist Helmet (the first piece released). To keep things consistent across the set, these changes have been made.[/p]

[p] We really appreciate everyone’s feedback and continued support. Your input makes these PTR updates possible and helps us ensure the changes are heading in the right direction. We’re looking forward to wrapping up the year with the Christmas Day update, but the work doesn’t stop here; this is just the beginning! If you’re enjoying the changes and want to support the game’s ongoing development, consider checking out our DLC on Steam. And if you’re ever looking to connect with other Defenders, share your builds, or give us more feedback, come join the official Dungeon Defenders: Awakened Discord server. From all of us on the Community Development Team, we want to thank you for making this game so much fun to work on. We hope you had a great holiday and wish you a fantastic rest of the year. Happy defending, and we’ll see you soon![/p][p]Cheers,
The Community Development Team[/p]

[p]Merry Christmas Eve, Defenders![/p][p]
[/p][p]Yesterday we released the first part of our holiday PTR update, and today we’re following it up with another PTR patch based on the early feedback and issues you’ve already found. Both of these updates are still on the Public Test Realm, which means everything you see here is still being tested, tuned, and adjusted with your help before we push it to the live branch. This pass is mainly focused on Arcanist armor, fusion interactions, Rift balance, and a few pet and reward tweaks that came straight from your reports.[/p][p]

[/p][p]ARCANIST ARMOR & FUSION BEHAVIOR[/p][p]
[/p][p]We’ve updated how Arcanist armor interacts with fusion sets to avoid bricking  builds and to better match how most players are currently gearing.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Arcanist Armor Changes:[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Crown:[/p][p]  - Grants fusion to Tower 1.[/p][p]  - Now prevents completion of the Tower 2 Guard Armor fused set.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Gloves:[/p][p]  - Grants fusion to Tower 2.[/p][p]  - Now prevents completion of the Tower 1 Ancient Armor fused set.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Chest:[/p][p]  - Grants fusion to Tower 3.[/p][p]  - Now prevents completion of the Tower 4 Miner Armor fused set.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Boots:[/p][p]  - Grants fusion to Tower 4.[/p][p]  - Now prevents completion of the Tower 3 Militia Armor fused set.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Player feedback note:[/p][p] Many players mentioned they had spent a lot of time farming the Crown, and after our earlier tower changes, most of their armor ended up being Miner Armor. In that setup, the previous Arcanist behavior could effectively brick their builds. These changes are intended to fix that and make Arcanist feel usable again without wiping out existing setups.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Rift boss accessories can no longer be used to complete fusion armor sets.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Arcanist pieces now correctly will NOT fuse with the specific sets they are restricted from completing.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Arcanist Gloves now properly drop on Forsaken Temple.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Updated descriptions on all Arcanist armor pieces to better explain their behavior.[/p][p].[/p][p]- Regular Soldier’s Bracers no longer count as Defense 5 / rifted.[/p][p]
[/p][p]RIFT & GENERAL GAMEPLAY TUNING[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Rift Mode should now properly apply in Challenge Mode[/p][p]
[/p][p]- The Bonus Wave and Bonus Wave Hardcore chests are now properly spawning in all modes.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Updated the Spider tooltip to better reflect its behavior.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Rifted Enemies and Resistance:[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Ogres now spawn as Rifted 100% of the time (up from 90%).[/p][p]- Rift resistance on non-Rift enemies has been decreased to 65%.[/p][p]
[/p][p]To keep fusion damage still feeling like a 100% bonus against Rifted enemies:[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Rifted enemies now take 165% fusion damage (down from 185%).[/p][p]
[/p][p]- The non-Rifted training dummy now has the same Rift resistance that non-Rift enemies have.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- The Rifted training dummy now takes 165% fusion damage, so tests on the dummies line up with the intended “100% bonus damage” behavior for fusion towers.[/p][p] [/p][p]PET CHANGES & NEW REWARDS[/p][p]
[/p][p]Naming & clarity updates[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Renamed Rifted Propeller Cat to Fused Propeller Cat.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Renamed Yellow Ramster Can to Fused Yellow Ramster Can.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Renamed Rifted Mista Mine to Fused Mista Mine.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Renamed Rifted Mystical Genie to Fused Mystical Genie.[/p][p]
[/p][p]-  The Golden Dice pet the proper “Golden” name so it matches other golden pets.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Tower Giraffes (Pure Strategy):[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Tower Giraffes are now awarded on Wave 25 in Massacre Pure Strategy [/p][p]
[/p][p]- Each Tower Giraffe provides:[/p][p]  - 10% Cast Rate bonus.[/p][p]  - 5% Active Hero bonus.[/p][p]- All Tower Giraffes roll with 0.85 stat scalars.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- There are 4 variants, each tuned for different builder styles:[/p][p]
[/p][p]  1. Rolls with Tower Speed, Tower Range, Tower Damage.[/p][p]  2. Rolls with Tower Health, Tower Damage, Tower Range.[/p][p]  3. Rolls with Tower Health, Tower Speed, Tower Range.[/p][p]  4. Rolls with Tower Damage, Tower Speed, Tower Range.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Animus tuning[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Animus pets now have a fastest attack rate of 0.4 seconds.[/p][p]
[/p][p]  - This is a cap on how fast they can attack once fully geared and optimized.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Golden Gemstones[/p][p]
[/p][p]- Golden Gemstones now drop at Wave 100+ Survival on The Summit.[/p][p]
[/p][p]  - 20% chance to drop when the conditions are met.[/p][p]
[/p][p]- A Golden Gemstone can contain one of the 4 different buff effects (matching the existing gemstone types).[/p][p][/p][p] Thank you for jumping into not just one, but two holiday PTR updates back-to-back. We know this is a busy time of year, so the fact that you’re spending part of your holiday testing builds, breaking things, and writing feedback for us means a lot. These kinds of quick follow-up patches are only possible because you’re so active on the PTR and honest about what feels good and what doesn’t. Everything in this update is still in that “work in progress” stage, so please keep telling us what works, what feels off, and where something still isn’t clear. The more we learn from PTR, the better shape these changes as we move towards our goal of patching before the new year. If you’d like to support the game’s development, please consider checking out our DLC on Steam, and if you want a place to share builds, report bugs, or just talk Dungeon Defenders with other players, we’d love to see you in the official Discord server (the link is on the store page and in our community posts).[/p][p]
[/p][p] From all of us on the Community Development Team: thank you for your time, your patience, and your passion for Dungeon Defenders: Awakened. Have a wonderful holiday, enjoy the PTR updates, and happy defending![/p][p]
[/p][p]The Community Development Team[/p][p]
[/p]