Shields of Loyalty News

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀We understand that we have been less visible recently, but rest assured, our goal is to launch our game with its vision intact. Our team is diligently working to enhance, expand, and fortify our gameplay options. This includes addressing bugs, refining the UI for the best player experience, and crafting a distinctive environment for our story and gameplay to align with our release date and roadmap objectives. As we approach the final stretch towards the release of Shields of Loyalty, we value your feedback and ideas greatly. Be prepared, as you will soon hear from us more frequently than ever before.

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Warlords and warmaidens, hone your blades, ready your shields, and muster your troops, for the fate of Mantaria will soon rest on your shoulders.

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Thank you for believing in us and for your continuous support. We had a vision, you believed in it, and we are committed to delivering on it.

Mosaic Mask Studio
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⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀In the upcoming weeks, we will announce and share the new unit assets, animation GIFs, future ideas, and updates. We are looking forward to receiving your feedback and suggestions.



⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀First of all we would like to announce that Warlord faction leader Gormur is now a hero of the same faction (But because of his demotion we will be giving him an awesome attack animation so don't worry and also we keep the horns :D) . Instead of relying solely on human leaders, we embraced the idea that our world is rich in fantasy. Inspired by this notion, we introduced KARNOTH, the new Chieftain of the Warlords.

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⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Warlord Faction Old Avatar/Leader - GORMUR
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⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Warlord Faction New Avatar/Leader - KARNOTH
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⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Karnoth in game look
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⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Now, with the addition of Karnoth, players will have the ability to command huge units. Karnoth, a formidable minotaur warlord, will occupy 4 hex spaces instead of 1 to emphasize its colossal size. However, keep in mind that such large units will draw significant attention, making it easier for the AI to strategically position enemy units against them. This will also make managing the placement of your own units more challenging.



⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀We are dedicated to enhancing the strategic elements of the game by developing a spell system. This innovation will enable players to unleash new capabilities for building their armies and overpowering the undead adversaries. Additionally, a new troop tree for spellcasters will be introduced.

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Stay tuned for exclusive previews as we have already prepared some unit and spell animations for this exciting system.



⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀We have almost finished all the animation and game integration for the Warlord faction troops, so we are gearing up to launch this Undead-bashing faction soon.

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Here are some exclusive glimpses of the Warlord troops' animations and sprites.


Pyromaniac Idle and Attack Animations


Thunderbird Idle and Attack Animations


Valkyrie Idle and Hero: Skirmisher Vinur Attack Animations



⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀We will be sharing the troop tree of the Warlord Faction every week or every other day. Keep an eye out for these details as we continue to develop these units for you to enjoy playing with in the near future.





⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Since our campaign is centered around storytelling, we are enhancing our writing skills and conveying the narrative to you more effectively. We are currently making some adjustments to the story to enhance its flow and depth.



⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Our goal is to cultivate a creative environment for our players by enhancing our map editor, enabling easier sharing and playing of each other's maps. Introducing vast maps and mission scenarios in the realm of Mantaria will enhance replay value and bring players' visions to reality. Hence, we aim to develop an exceptional, user-friendly, and intricate map editor.



⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Before the game's final release, keep in mind that everything you see is subject to change. Share your thoughts and feedback to influence the future of Mantaria. Stay tuned and prepare for what's to come.

One of the bigger, behind the scenes, changes we've made was to move the game over to a much more recent version of the Unity engine. This includes a jump not only in a lot of minor but also a major engine release.
The decision was made for multiple reasons like the support for the previously used version will end in a very few months and the IDE was very unstable on our development systems to a degree hindering actual development.



- optimized internal fog of war management and overall performance (further visual and performance improvements planned)
- improved image compression/filtering quality in various areas of the game
- impact zones for particle effects added to all units so effects should most of the time happen on the actual unit's surface
- improved overall flow/speed of animations/actions, panels
- reduced the size of savegames by about 90-95%
- artifacts of fallen unit's will be added back to the inventory after the level has been completed
- added a "fast animations" option increase the overall speed of animations/transitions for a faster general gameplay
- improved input/controls
- map can now be dragged/scrolled using the middle mouse button and the arrow keys
- holding shift increases the scrolling speed
- improved camera handling, zooming in/out tries to focus around the position at the mouse cursor so it doesn't move around randomly anymore



- fixed some issues with localized texts not updating during language changes
- using special abilities (or even dismissing) of enemy units isn't possible anymore
- units can't move through a storm without any impact anymore

[h2]Warlords![/h2]
We have managed to acquire the needed funding to complete and publish Shields of Loyalty with its original scope in 2024!

Now with the funding in the bag, the roadmap will slightly experience a change but more shaped and valid. Most important milestones are:

1. [h3]Version 0.9 [/h3]will arrive about late spring 2024. Because now we're able to implement the full scope, more assets and code is needed. Therefore more time. It'll include more content as planned before. More to announce in January to this topic.
   
2. [h3]Version 1.0[/h3] on windows, mac and Nintendo switch will follow by late autumn 2024 and will include:
   
   • 2 additional new unit types,
     
   • one more player avatar,
     
   • one more AI avatar
     
   • as well as the whole new magic system.
     
   More to announce in January on this topic too.
   

We're very happy and excited to share this news with you today!

Thanks a lot for your ongoing suppertːsteamthumbsupː

[h2]Warlords & Ladies! [/h2]
It's time to go into more detail about the upcoming big content update. Today we want to tell you about mines and buildings.

We talked about mercenaries in the past. But mercenaries want to be paid. On the one hand with gold and on the other hand with gems. You'll find this new resource within mines in the future. And the mines are the next major content of the update. Here is a WIP screen for you:
The mine entrances are already present in the maps, but were not accessible this far. That changes now! Explore these regions and make big loots like gold, artifacts and gems!

The last major content of the update will be the reorganization of the management screens. We have bundled the army and training screen so that all settings and information can be made and seen on only one screen. Here we go: this WIP shows the level 2 buildings for a few units. Clicking a building will show a menu where you can select wheter you want to buy an unit or to update the buiding to research next higher tier unit.


Of course, there will also be bugfixes and many minor adjustments to the game. We'll announce more every week, so join our discord!
We are planning September/October this year for the release. But keep in mind that this is only an estimate. We will do our best to keep the date!

If you have not yet added Shields of Loyalty to your whislist, you can do so here:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1318240/Shields_of_Loyalty/

Enjoy the news and feel free to share them on your channels or communities.

Have a great day folks!

[h2]Warlords & Ladies! [/h2]
It's time to go into more detail about the upcoming big content update.
As you can see from the headline, it's about the mercenaries. We have already published first pictures on other channels --> Twitter - https://twitter.com/mosaicmask and Discord - discord.gg/gBGem9C7B9 . Here are the units collected again.


These can be hired in a new location, the "tents". Use these powerful fellowers to achieve your goals faster and more effectively. This will result in a better loot in the future!

And...by the way...we're animating them more powerful and brutal (still WIP). A perfect fit to our dark fantasy look, or not?


Of course, there will also be bugfixes and many minor adjustments to the game. We'll announce more every week, so join our discord discord.gg/gBGem9C7B9 !
We're aiming September/October this year for the release. But keep in mind that this is only an estimate. We'll do our best to keep the date!

If you have not yet added Shields of Loyalty to your whislist, you can do so here:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1318240/Shields_of_Loyalty/

Enjoy the news and feel free to share them on your channels or communities.

Have a great day folks!