Diplomacy is Not an Option News

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Good Lords, fair Ladies! A moment of your time, if you please.

Summer is here, with the annual Steam sale. This fact cannot be ignored, so Diplomacy is Not an Option is 20% off. The offer is active until the 13th of July.

And that's not the only reason to be excited. For today the June update arrives, alongside with a short story about its key features.

To begin with, Diplomacy is Not an Option expands the geography of localizations. From now on our game supports Chinese (traditional), Japanese, Korean, and Turkish. Breaking through several language barriers at once has been more difficult than we expected, to say the least. If you have any ideas how to improve the localizations, we’d be very grateful for your suggestions

In the June update the "Warrior's dance" section makes its debut in the Challenge mode. It will certainly be to the liking of players who do not want to be distracted by minor things such as economic and scientific development or like building a settlement. Naturally, this section is for those who prefer the good old-fashioned war. In the 'Warrior's dance" three challenges await you, where you will be countering enemy attacks, using the starting army and fortifications placed on the map.


Many of you said something like ‘we’re gonna need a bigger map’... Until today, we haven’t been able to make this wish come true due to technical limits. However, we managed to make significant progress in improving the performance of the game when processing attacking waves. As a result, the impossible has become possible. Large map presets appeared in the Sandbox mode. (Attention: loading large maps requires more time). As a nice addition we also made the presets with your Townhall located in the corner of the map; the preset with the flattest terrain possible (there is only one mountain to be found), and the preset with a narrow canyon that leads to your domains.

Moving on to the less important but still pleasant improvements. After the June Update troops under your control will no longer disappear from the selection if they are thrown into the air. You can also select them with a frame or using hotkeys, even if they haven't... landed yet.

The last thing we want to focus on today's story is fine-tuning the formation mechanics. In case you haven't used it before, here's a quick guide. After you select the troops holding down the RMB you can see the green circles indicating which formation your squad will have. With the keys Q and E you can change the length of the line and, therefore, the number of rows. After the June Update, you will notice that the formation looks more realistic. In addition, the width of the squad's row is no longer reset after loading a game. Also, when you create/re-create a Group, the width of the line is set and saved for the troops united in that Group.

Ladies and gentlemen, that's all we wanted to tell you today. The full list of changes, as usual, is attached below this very article.

We will never stop thanking you for your support. We hope that further development of Diplomacy is Not an Option pleases you in return. Thank you very much for staying with us! Until next time!

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Update 0.9.94

Features

• A brand new “Warrior's dance” section of the Challenge mode. In three challenges your goal is to protect the Astonishing monument using only your starting army, fortifications and traps already placed on the map (and, apparently, some spells). New challenges namely:
  
  1. Rebels' gambit - You must counter one attack of rebellious peasants;
     
  2. Triple Alliance - You need to repulse three attacks of enemy forces from three different factions;
     
  3. Storm of Swordsmen - A challenge in which you must fight purely with swordsmen.
• 6 new map presets for the Sandbox mode:
  
  1. Cosplaying 300 - Enemy can only get to your Townhall through a narrow canyon;
     
  2. Two corners - The Townhall is located in the corner of the map:
     
  3. XXL - The preset of a very large map (296x296 cells);
     
  4. Maze of terrors - The preset of a large map, the landscape of which is rugged with rocks and other obstacles;
     
  5. Fight on the beach - The Townhall is positioned in the corner of the large map, on the seashore;
     
  6. Plains are meant to be battlefields - The preset with almost no lakes and cliffs on the map (except for one special mountain with a stream).

General

• Language support has been added: Chinese (Traditional), Japanese, Korean, and Turkish.
  

Improvements

• Formation mechanics improvement:
  1. The formation of troops in a Group is now saved when creating a Group;
     
  2. The formation does not reset to the default configuration after loading a game;
     
  3. Improved UX of the formation change.
• When the fps limit is enabled, the Vsync option is set to 'Off', yet still available for adjustment. With Vsync option enabled, the fps limit automatically changes to 'Unlimited';
  
• Troops under Player's control thrown into the air do not disappear from the current selection. They also can be selected (using the selection frame or hotkeys), and may even take orders;
  
• Enemy corpses no longer disappear instantly from traps and farm fields. Bodies of large enemies (such as Nightmare generals) now smoothly disappear underground, just like the bodies of other foes;
  
• Improved game performance (when processing attacking waves behavior and controlling Player's troops movement/attack);
  
• Some UI and UX fixes and improvements;
  
• Some visual improvements and fixes (including new mountain models).
  

Balance

• Difficulty increased for the following Challenges:
  
  1. “Served up for dead” from the “What the…” section (for all difficulty levels);
     
  2. “Against royal forces” from the “Marathon” section (for all difficulty levels).
• Berry picker's house:
  
  1. Gathering Time: 4 -> 5 sec.
• Fishermen's hut:
  
  1. Fishing time: 0.12 -> 0.2 sec;
     
  2. Amount of food from caught fish: 1 -> 2.
• Population influx:
  
  1. House II: 3 -> 2 people;
     
  2. House III: 4 -> 2 people.
• “Burrdam Chimera”:
  
  1. Health: 80 -> 120;
     
  2. Movement speed: 0.9 -> 1 cell/sec.
• Ballista:
  1. Damage: 70 -> 65;
     
  2. Attack and target search radii: 16 -> 15 cells.

Bug Fixes:

• A rare bug with builders getting stuck after they became unemployed when got sick during the construction;
  
• Using the ‘Horse dose’ skill no longer can cause an attack notification;
  
• Some crash fixes;
  
• Multiple localization fixes.
  

[/expand]
Yours, the Door 407 dev team

We are really sorry that with the last update there was a bug, which prevented the game from working properly in the menu for the new players. It is now fixed and you can enjoy the game.

Bug Fixes:

• Broken menu and inability to play the game for the new players.
  

Hi all!
As you already know, the Spring update has arrived. We are keen on evolving the Sandbox mode, so we need to set the direction for further development. That is why we need your feedback. Please, do share with us your opinion on what you would like to see in Sandbox. From our part, we will try to take all the wishes and add all the stuff we can through the efforts of our small team.

Yours, the Door 407 dev team

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Good Lords and Fair Ladies!

The time has come for the large Spring update arrival! During the past month we have been telling you about what's coming in Diplomacy is Not an Option. If you had been following the news, you already figured out the key features of this update. Still, allow us to summarize what has already been said, and add a few more words.


To begin with, the Sandbox mode is here. In it, you can customize almost everything, from the starting conditions and appearance of the map to the enemies you want to fight. Build huge cities, assemble countless forces, and try to withstand the onslaught of the enemy when you choose to do so. In a nutshell, Sandbox mode gives plenty of room for your imagination.


With the Spring update, new structures will appear in the game: Guard towers of three levels, Massive guard towers (also of three levels), and the Watchtower II. With the latter it's clear - it's an upgraded Watchtower, with a better overview. As for the Guard towers, they are not as strong as the ordinary ones. However, they are much higher than any other fortification, which gives ranged troops placed on them the advantage of hitting the target at a longer distance.


Among the many ideas for Diplomacy is Not an Option, it was often suggested that there should be traps to put in the way of the enemy. Well, that is precisely what we came up with. A Barrel mine explodes after an enemy steps on it (with a slight delay), and a Slowdown trap - reduces the speed of enemies who try to pass through it. In addition, all stone fortifications gained the ability to pour boiling oil on the heads of your foes. However, for this perk to work, you must first complete the research. This brings us to the next point...


That's right, we've expanded the research tree once again. "Boiling oil" is not the only way to enhance your fortifications. We've added the Engineering miracle research to significantly increase their durability. You can also unlock abilities for some warriors through research. New passive skills allow Crossbowmen to increase their attack and search target radius, and Horsemen - to restore their health faster. Horse archers gain the active skill to shoot exploding arrows, and Mounted knights get a skill that temporarily increases their movement speed. It's worth mentioning that in case of Mounted Knights, this acceleration causes some damage. Knights can't die from it, but their health may be reduced to one unit.

Remember us adding the constant health growth of the enemies to the late game of Endless mode? Now you can turn this option off (or on) before starting a new game. It is called 'Skilled survivor'.

Besides that, we have again improved the performance of the game and added the option to limit FPS. We made enemies covered by the fog of war visible if they hit someone, and refined the logic of their behavior when passing through the Gates. Significant changes were applied to the game balance. In particular, Lumbermills I-III now produce more planks from the same tree.

That's all we wanted to tell you today in the Spring update introduction.
Thank you very much for your support and for staying with us. The full list of changes, as usual, is attached below.

[expand]
Update 0.9.86

Features

• New Game Mode: Sandbox;
  
• New Buildings: Guard towers I-III, Massive guard towers I-III, Watchtower II;
  - New traps added: Barrel mine (deals 200 damage in the cell of its placement if an enemy steps on it), Slowing trap (reduces enemy's speed by 30%, it gradually wears out when used);
  
• All stone fortifications have been provided with the "Boiling Oil" passive skill (to unlock it, you must complete the "Pipes inside walls" research);
  
• Research tree expansion:
  
  1. "Engineering miracle" increases the durability of all fortifications by 20%;
     
  2. "Extended helmet slots" increases the shooting range and target search radius for Crossbowmen by 1 cell;
     
  3. "Explosive mixture" unlocks the active "Exploding arrows" skill of Horse archers;
     
  4. "Ginger root ointment" unlocks the "Horse dose" active skill of Mounted knights (Mounted knight takes damage but increases his movement speed);
     
  5. "Warchestenshire oat" unlocks Horsemen's "Equine health" passive skill, which speeds up the regeneration of their health.
     

General

• Added "Skilled survivor" option to Endless mode. It disables or enables the continuous growth of enemy health in the late game;
  
• Fog of war temporarily clears around an enemy who has dealt damage to Player's army, buildings or citizens;
  
• Added the option to limit FPS in the game settings menu;
  
• Improved game performance.
  

Improvements

• New tab in the Build menu: "Additional defense" (it contains Guard towers, Watchtowers, and Traps) + "Defense" tab renamed to "Fortifications";
  
• Logic of enemy behavior when passing through the Gates (now most of the squad continues to go to the Townhall without being distracted by dealing damage to open Gates);
  
• "Cast healing" action (Healer's skill) can now target only friendly troops with reduced health;
  
• Enemies can no longer pass through walls at increased in-game speed;
  
• Visual improvements and adjustments;
  
• UI and UX improvements;
  
• SFX improvements (including high volume level when selecting certain troop types).
  

Balance

• Reduced population influx. House II: 4 -> 3, House III: 6 -> 4 people per day;
  
• Crossbowmen, attack speed: 0.5 -> 0.4;
  
• Crossbowmen, after completing the "Quick reload" research: +30% -> +25% to attack speed;
  
• Archers, "Battle trance" skill:
  
  1. Duration: 15 -> 20 sec;
     
  2. Reload: 200 -> 185 sec.
• Lumbermills I-III. More planks are now produced from one tree (the number of planks produced per minute remains the same);
  
• Foresters' cabin, cost: 10 wood + 10 stone -> 20 wood;
  
• Foresters' cabin, time to plant a tree for a forester: 40 -> 32 sec;
  
• Healer, range and target search distance: 5 -> 7 cells;
  
• Bonus to attack range and target search of troops placed on fortifications:
  1. Stone wall II: +20% -> +25%;
     
  2. Stone gates I: +30% -> +35%;
     
  3. Stone gates II: +40% -> +50%;
     
  4. Massive stone tower I: +20% -> +25%;
     
  5. Massive stone tower II: +30% -> +35%;
     
  6. Stone tower I: +30% -> +35%;
     
  7. Stone tower II: +40% -> +50%.
• Gates durability:
  
  1. Wooden gates: 300 -> 320;
     
  2. Stone gates I: 800 -> 850;
     
  3. Stone gates II: 1200 -> 1600.
• Target search range:
  
  1. Horseman: 4 -> 7 cells;
     
  2. Horse archer: 6 -> 7 cells;
     
  3. Mounted knight: 4 -> 7 cells.

Bug Fixes

• Builders and workers no longer perform "running in spot" exercises;
  
• Bug that caused troops under player control to halt during movement after receiving a new order, and enemies to pause while chasing a target (occurred when there was an obstacle in the path of a squad);
  
• Enemies will no longer stay long at the place where a player's warrior was killed;
  
• Bug that increases the chance of Soul crystal drop from dead enemies to 100%;
  
• Research that increases building durability or troop health will no longer cause damaged buildings or buildings under construction to regain durability/recover troop health after loading;
  
• Fixed a collision bug that caused even heavy warriors to be unable to push back enemies and break through the encirclement;
  
• A situation with the troops under Player's control not responding to movement orders (being locked between an impassable area and a large enemy);
  
• Bug that caused some troops to not always stop moving after receiving "Hold" or "Stop" orders;
  
• Bug preventing some enemies to join the final attacking wave;
  
• The research effect of "Reinforced Foundation" now applies to Iron and Stone works and does not apply to Stables;
  
• Bodies of player's troops and civilians killed on Farm fields no longer move out of the fields;
  
• Buildings in the red zone can no longer be built by fastclicking the hotkeys;
  
• Foresters can no longer plant trees where buildings are to be constructed (and planted trees in place of constructed buildings do not grow either);
  
• Fixed sudden periodic FPS drop during an epidemic when there is at least one Hospital in the settlement;
  
• Fixed incorrect timing of warning about the attacking waves consisting of Scott the Bloody’s clones in Endless mode;
  
• Fixed a rare case of troops refusing to leave a fortification when ordered to do so;
  
• Rare bug that caused player's troops to walk themselves to the place of death of enemies they killed;
  
• Rare bug with ranged troops not responding to the order to attack an enemy building if it is near a fortification;
  
• Rare bug with a deceased from hunger troops or siege weapons occupying a place on a fortification, and the destruction of that fortification caused the game to crash;
  
• Rare bug that caused the hiring queue to freeze;
  
• A rare bug with a disappearance of the requirement to do the research needed to build Iron or Stone works (in the Building description section);
  
• Some crash cases fixed;
  
• Multiple localization fixes.
  

[/expand]
Yours, the Door 407 dev team

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