Draft of Darkness News

- Fixed a bug where lever controlled door in the Factory area made the character stuck.
- Fixed a bug where Hospital was accessible through Factory before it's unlocked.

This new update adds a new area to the game; explore the dark depths of the Factory, try to overcome new challenges, defeat extra-twisted terrors and fight the new boss: The Frail.

[h2]The Factory[/h2]
The Factory is the new area added to the game. Being a horizontal expansion, it's located between the Residence and the Hospital just like the Streets. For new players, the Factory area will be locked by default, and you will be able to unlock it simply by coming across a certain event (Public Phone) in the Streets. On the other hand, it wouldn't be fair to require an extra run for the returning players. Therefore, if you've played the game before and visited the Hospital in a previous run, the Factory will be automatically unlocked for you. Once it's unlocked in the "Flowchart", starting a new run and completing the Residence area will give you a choice to go to the Factory.



The Factory comes with 3 new enemies, 1 new boss and 3 new events. I aim to add another set of enemies, 2 more bosses and new events to this area in the upcoming updates. For now, the "story" part of the Factory area isn't yet in the game. This means that the decision events in the area won't progress the story. The "Part 2" story events will be added altogether, when the last area of the game is finished.

Quick warning: You won't be able to unlock the Hospital via the Factory, since it requires defeating the Baron. After unlocking the Hospital, you should be able to complete "Part 1" events by passing through the Factory as well.



I aim to make the Factory the heaviest area in terms of the horror theme. Being inspired by the Silent Hill's alternate world, I'm hoping that horror fans will have a good time with it. With more polish coming in the future updates, you can be sure that this area won't be a walk in the park!

[h2]New Enemies[/h2]
In the Factory, you will come across abominations who have fallen victim to the darkness-infested world. The factory workers whose brains are sucked dry by acid worms, "puppets" who were put together to obey their master, failed experiments tucked away in the dark corners...



The new enemies are themed mostly around "Acid Damage", "Corrosion" and a new condition called "Headache" which will make you re-think your strategy when fighting against them. The new boss, Frail, is a deceptively weak looking creature who will find ways to mitigate your attacks and summon minions.



[h2]New Events[/h2]
With the added events, I wanted to use the procedural generation system in new ways. The multi-part events are designed to be more quest-like, instead of being one-shots. I feel like the new events need further randomisation; rest assured that this is in the plan for the future updates.



[h2]Winter Sale[/h2]


Draft of Darkness will take part in the 2021 Steam Winter Sale. It will have a 10% discount until January 5th, 2022!

[h2]The Future of Early Access[/h2]
With the Factory Update, we hit the end of the first part of the EA plan. I'm happy that we've come this far in the EA journey with little to no hiccups. First of all, I thank you all for your support and positivity. I try to take into account all your feedback and be motivated with your good words. Every bit helps!

Draft of Darkness is in a much better shape compared to the start of the Early Access phase. With several improvement updates, the game now has a better equipment system, gamepad support, mouse-only support and performance improvements! The 2 content updates added a new hero, a new companion, 6 enemies, 2 bosses, 53 new cards, 30 new items and more! From now on, the updates will focus heavily on content to reach our goal of doubling it by the end of EA.

The next part of the Early Access plan will be announced in the first weeks of 2022. With the new roadmap, you'll be able to see the rest of the plans for Draft of Darkness up to the point of full release! Make sure to follow the game to catch the announcement.

Make sure to send your feedback about the update and the game through our Discord Server, or Steam forums. Now is a great time to do that, I will make sure to take into account your suggestions while finishing up the rest of the Early Access plan!

Happy new year and see you on the next update!

[h2]Full Patch Notes for v0.7.0[/h2]
[h3]Content[/h3]
- New area added: Factory. Added as a 2nd area to the game, serving as an alternative to the Streets. Currently only includes non-story events (except old ones). Unlocked by interacting with the "Public Phone" event. Also automatically unlocked for players who have reached the Hospital area before the patch.
- (New Enemy) Puppet: Fast enemy inflicting Bleeding and Wounded.
- (New Enemy) Zombie Worker: Acid and Physical damage inflicting enemy.
- (New Enemy) Cargo: Acid damage and Radiation inflicting enemy. Has a chance to explode on receiving critical damage.
- (New Boss Fight) Frail: A fragile boss with low health. Uses summons and other means to defend itself.
- (New Enemy Status) Ranged Resistance: Receive 50% less damage from ranged attacks.
- (New Enemy Status) Explosive: Have a chance to explode, dealing damage to other enemies and the attacker.
- (New Enemy Status) Burglar: Enemy steals an item and runs away after certain amount of turns.
- (New Buff Condition) Acid Infusion: Deal additional acid damage upon dealing physical damage.
- (New Debuff Condition) Headache: After certain amount of moves in a turn, start losing HP per move.
- (New Event) Nest: Spawns a new special encounter. Lost items can be obtained back from the nest.
- (New Event) Jail: If the key is found, a companion can be freed from the cell to join the player's group. Currently has a nurse, planned to have more companion types later.
- (New Event) Gear Machine: A mechanically locked door blocks the path. At least 2 of the 3 special encounters should be defeated to collect cogwheels.
[h3]Improvement & Balance[/h3]
- (Card/Chainsaw) Max Setting: Energy Cost 4->6.
- (Perk Status) Repellent: Effect now applied only when spending resource.
- (Perk Status) Scorching: Effect now applied only when spending resource.
- Door animation speeds are increased by 20% and delay is decreased by 50%.
- Intro sequences are changed to be progressed with player input, instead of being timed.
- Changed acid shoot sound.
- Removed the constant chainsaw sound which plays in the background when the chainsaw is on. Shortened and lowered chainsaw attack sound.
- "Quick Enhancement Machine" equipment upgrade cost is reduced from 30 to 20 pennies.

In this improvement patch, gamepad support, an "Archive" section, 2 new perks and 11 new trophy items are introduced to Draft of Darkness!

[h2]Gamepad (and Steam Deck?) Support[/h2]
I'm happy to announce that Draft of Darkness now supports gamepad controllers! Although I've spent a lot more development time than initially calculated, I have to point out that is not yet a finished feature. That's why I'm labeling the gamepad support as "experimental", meaning it's another part of the game that will be tweaked and improved with future patches. That said, our tests showed that it's completely usable and already in a good shape. Here's the default key bindings shown on a controller:



This also means that you should be able to play Draft of Darkness with the Steam Deck! Unfortunately, we weren't able to test the game on a Steam Deck console, since we don't have access to it yet. Hopefully we'll get our hands on one soon! (Come on Mr. Valve, send me one please!)

The game should detect the input method you're using automatically. You can peek at the newly added bar at the bottom of the screen to remember relevant key bindings. This piece of UI can be toggled off in the options menu, if it bothers you.

[h2]The Archive[/h2]
The new "Archive" section now resides in the Library and allows you to list all cards, items and enemies in the game. Once you use/encounter these, the corresponding archive entry will unlock, allowing you to see the details of the entry. You can also filter & sort entries using various options.



Card and item details will show additional info and statistics such as "times collected/used", while enemy details will list their moves. The listed moves give hints at what an enemy can do, allowing you to prepare beforehand or apply your strategies accordingly during combat. To access the detail screen at any time, simply click on the item/card/enemy with your middle mouse button (or other bindings depending on your input method). One of the ideas for a future update is: for cards, a breakdown can be shown for each value on the card, giving you a better idea for how the damage values are calculated.



[h2]Weapon Skills & Content[/h2]
A "Weapon Skill" system is added to the game, mainly as a way to allow switching initial Chainsaw weapon states. Before this addition, a chainsaw equipped character always started with "Engine: On" condition, causing an unavoidable 1 fuel loss at the start of the encounter. As a solution, you can now toggle between "Engine: On" and "Engine: Off" in the exploration phase, by clicking the new "Chainsaw Skill" slot near the party UI. I'm planning to expand this weapon skill system to other weapons, giving each weapon an extra effect during exploration or encounters. For example, flashlights can give "Vision" during exploration (like Matches), while spray guns can create smoke clouds for a similar effect like the "Smoke Grenade" item (but costing Chemicals). In essence, weapon skills are special "items" kept in a separate slot instead of inventory. Let me know what you think!

Content-wise, 2 perks are added to the chemist companion, further enhancing their own damage output, as well as giving them a way to boost allies' damage. 12 new trophy items also wait for you to discover their combo and synergy potential! See the full changelog below for details.



As a small compensation for the delays on this patch, Draft of Darkness will be discounted by 10% during the Weeklong Deals between Dec 6 and Dec 13!

[h2]Winter Patch (v0.7.0)[/h2]
The planned date for the Winter Patch is December 22nd. The update will focus on content, adding a brand new area with newly introduced enemies and events! This new area also will be a starting point for the second part of the story. In addition, I'm planning to complete the power/defense rework in this patch, making these mechanics more clear. See you on the next patch!

[h2]Full Patch Notes for v0.6.1[/h2]
[h3]Improvement[/h3]
- (Experimental) Gamepad support has been added.
- A new "Archive" section is added to the Library. Lists cards, items and enemies (including their moves).
- Detail screen is added, showing detailed info about items, cards and enemies. Clicking [MMB] while hovering over any of them should open the screen. Detail screen also lists enemy moves along with their types.
- Item suggestions are credited with their Discord IDs in the item detail screen (some of the items may be missing this information).
- Added support for Weapon Skills. For now, only chainsaws have a weapon skill, which is used to switch between initial Engine: On or Engine: Off states.
- Chainsaw equipment now won't start with an "Initial Engine: On" attribute. Instead, they will have a third attribute.
- Control tips are added at the bottom of the screen, showing key bindings depending on input method and current screen. This can be toggled off in the options menu.
- Status decays will now take into account revealed tiles instead of walking on unvisited tiles. When the player moves during exploration, each tile revealed in the map will count down status decays. All status decay intervals are adjusted to balance new faster decay rates.
- The Daemon won't move, if the player is in the pause menu (ESC menu).
- Added type icons showing buffs, debuffs, abilities and disabilities in the condition tooltips. This will be improved and more icons will be added signifying other types.
[h3]Content[/h3]
- (New Perk / Chemist) Dissolver: Deal 5% increased Acid Damage for each debuff or disability on the target.
- (New Perk / Chemist) Scorching: When you deal Acid Damage, increase Burn Power of all allies by 4 until the start of your next turn.
- (New Item) Elbow Grease: Increase Strength, Intelligence and Dexterity of the possessor by 3.
- (New Item) Scold's Bridle: Lose 8 health, gain 3 of a resource most required by the cards in your hand, until the end of turn. Can be used once per turn.
- (New Item) A+ School Report: Gain +5 to all stats during decision events. | Encounter: Once per encounter, give the acting character Stingy. (Credits: @Strikeing#1158)
- (New Item) Wind-Up Toy: Whenever you are hit with direct damage, gain Kickstart 1.
- (New Item) Wooden Horse: The possessor gains 3 block at the end of their turn. (Credits: @Yobee#0866)
- (New Item) Pumice Stone: Whenever the possessor receives self damage or condition damage, they gain block equal to half the damage. (Credits: @Anything Goes#5236)
- (New Item) Contact Lenses: At the start of posessor's turn, apply Revealed 1 to enemies who have Stealth. (Credits: @Anything Goes#5236)
- (New Item) Anti-Coagulant Mixture: Dealing damage has a 20% chance to apply Bleeding 1. (Credits: @KanadeBacon#0746)
- (New Item) Nozzle Extension: Whenever an ally deals Acid Damage, apply Corrosion 1.
- (New Item) Voltage Detector: Reveal the locations of terminals on the map.
- (New Item) Movement Detector: Reveal the locations of all regular enemy locations on the map.
- (New Item) Super Glue: Increase the effect of Slowness by 10% on enemies.
[h3]Balance[/h3]
- Drop system now takes into account items. As a result, Pavel will get batteries as a prioritized resource.
- Spray gun cards now have an Acid Damage dealing weak alternatives, instead of Physical Damage.
- (Enemy) Demikhov's Dog: "Delirium" won't give self Dodge.
- (Enemy) Rat King: "Bite" Base Damage 5->4.
[h3]Bugfixes[/h3]
- Fixed "Juggle" perk sometimes not applying at the start of encounters.
- Fixed damage over time effects dealing extra damage on trigger, if previously applied with a direct damage dealing card.
- Fixed a bug where it's possible to flee during a companion turn using keyboard input.

[h3]Balance[/h3]
- Bosses and elite encounters now drop rare cards.
- Police companions will now start with a flashlight equipped.
- Card drops will only include obtainable weapon cards (Shotgun and Chainsaw cards won't drop if the heroes who can use them aren't selected).
- Card selections after encounters will mostly let the player choose between the same weapon types. These drops are more skewed towards currently equipped weapons.
- Resource drops are more skewed towards usable resources.
- Reduced all non-acid damage dealing enemy Acid Defenses per level from 1 to 0.5.
- Fixed Fuel price (1->2).
- Slightly increased Fuel drop rate.
- Fuel is now printable with correct cost.
- Swapped the card "Make Fuel" with "Flame Thrower", making it a run card. "Flame Thrower" is now a starting card.
- (Enemy) Claw: Phys. Def Per Level 2->1; Acid Def Per Level 1->0.5; "Claw" Crit Multiplier 3x->2x; Now gets out of Stealth if she can't make other moves.
- (Enemy) Shield: Now uses its guard move before block.
- (Enemy) Daemon: Acid Def 0->5; Acid Def Per Level 0->0.5.
- (Card/Axe) Inner Peace: Health restore 6->equal to buff/bleeding stacks removed.
- (Card/Flashlight) Search in the Dark: Energy Cost 3->0.
- (Card/Chainsaw) Rev Up The Engine (On): Damage multiplier 2x->3x.
- (Card/Chainsaw) Stashed Fuel (On): Stash: Fuel Stacks 3->4.
- (Card/Chainsaw) Reverse Bash (On): Phys. Damage 3->10.
- (Card/Chainsaw) Max Setting (On): Energy Cost 6->4. Phys. Damage 5->7.
- (Card/Chainsaw) Chainsaw Massacre (On): Fuel Cost 3->2.
- (Card/Chainsaw) Momentum (Off): Added "Draw 1 card".
- (Card/Chainsaw) Momentum (On): Fuel Cost 3->2. Added "Draw 2 cards".
- (Card/Spray Gun) Corrosion Ball: Corrosion 3->5.
- (Card/Spray Gun) Clinging Acid: Acid Damage 4->3; Corrosion 2->3; Energy Cost 4->2; Chem Cost 2->1.
- (Card/Spray Gun) Inaccurate Eruption: Corrosion 1->2; Random Corrosion 2->3; Energy Cost 3->4; Chem Cost 2->1.
- (Card/Spray Gun) Corrosion Stream: Corrosion 3->6.
- (Card/Spray Gun) Make Fuel: Energy Cost 1->2; Chem Cost 3->1.
- (Card/Spray Gun) Pressurize Tank: Corrosion Increase 1->2.
- (Card/Spray Gun) Splash of Poison: Energy Cost 3->4; Chem Cost 2->1; Applies "Poisoned" instead of Corrosion.
- (Card/Spray Gun) Craft Battery: Energy Cost 1->2; Chem Cost 3->1.
- (Card/Spray Gun) Corrosion Wall: Corrosion 1->3.
- (Card/Spray Gun) Lube Up: Energy Cost 1->0.
- (Card/Spray Gun) Craft Acid Bombs: Will transfer attribute modifications to the bombs, will now combo with "Pressurize Tank" and "Potent Additive".
- (Card/Spray Gun) Acid Bomb: Corrosion 2->6.
- (Card/Spray Gun) Flammable Substance: Chem Cost 2->1.
- (Condition) Corrosion: Decay duration 4->3. Also reduces Physical Defense.
[h3]Bugfixes[/h3]
- (Workaround) Temporarily disabled Daemon's turn time limit until it's made more apparent and related bugs are fixed. Planned to be enabled back on the next update.
- Fixed "Football Helmet" (and some other items) not triggering when the damage value is exactly equal to health.
- Fixed equipment attributes increasing with the level of the character they are equipped to.
- Fixed a bug where Daemon spares the hero with 0 health.
- Fixed "Broken Fork" triggering before Riposte effect.
- (Workaround) Dodge won't trigger with 0 stacks. Workaround for the bug where the conditions get stuck at 0 stacks.
- Fixed "Inaccurate Eruption" not working properly.
- Fixed chemical drops not being prioritised for spray gun characters.
- Fixed Chemist starting with a syringe card.
- Fixed Chemist character floating in the recruit screen.
- Fixed some of the trophy items not having price values associated.
- Fixed decapitated entities reviving with missing heads.
- (Technical) Fixed error reports being generated.