Salt 2 News

Beta Branch Update: End-game Content and 1.0 Release Date

[p]Ahoy, mateys! [/p][p][/p][p]Our next update is now on the Beta Branch. Since Salt 2 entered Early Access a little over three years ago, you all have supported us in the addition of a ton of new content, mechanics, and fixes including cooperative multiplayer, a main quest line, many new points of interest, island types, quests, items, ships, underwater content, skill trees, and so much more. We couldn't have done it without the brave players who took a chance sailing the seas in another Early Access title. We appreciate you all.[/p][p][/p][p]While we will continue to release updates for the game as always, this update will mark our 1.0 release out of Early Access for Salt 2, once we transition it from the beta to the default Steam branch. We plan to do so on November 12th. [/p][p][/p][p]This update, launching alongside the 1.0 release, includes a brand-new endgame loop with a set of new legendary items, ship upgrades, world bosses, and new points of interest. Once you reach level 40 or higher, you'll find a new NPC in the world that will get you started hunting down rare items and bosses in exchange for legendary loot. We've also added a new endgame merchant with a set of expensive but unique ship decoration items.[/p][p][/p][p]So what's next after official release? We will continue expanding on the content in the game as usual. This will include adding more things to discover, new quests, new enemy types, new points of interests, more island types, new items, and other improvements. And we're always monitoring community feedback to see what type of content you want in the game. You can send bug reports and feedback through the in-game bug report window, or on our Steam forums.[/p][p][/p][p]Here is a list of the changes for this update:[/p][p][/p][h3]Patch Notes:[/h3]

[p]Added new NPCs and endgame loop for obtaining unique legendary recipes (this content can be found once you reach world tier 5).[/p]
[p]Added new legendary items.[/p]
[p]Added new world bosses.[/p]
[p]Added new points of interest.[/p]
[p]Added endgame merchant with new unique ship decoration items for sale.[/p]
[p]The game now pauses while in the difficulty settings, help, controls, and multiplayer interfaces (singleplayer only).[/p]
[p]Fixed some NPC names not showing up in their dialogue.[/p]
[p]Slightly adjusted the volume of enemy footsteps.[/p]
[p]Fixed an issue where you would sometimes hear reverb effects when underwater.[/p]
[p]Fixed an error when killing an archer while they are drinking a potion.[/p]
[p]Allow jumping when swimming on the water surface.[/p]
[p]You can now close the loot summary UI with the same hotkey as salvage/destroy.[/p]
[p]Fixed no sound playing when picking up a journal.[/p]
[p]Fixed some hotkey indicators not updating when keybindings are changed.[/p]
[p]Fixed the Guise of Jones effect not occurring again after the cooldown is finished.[/p]
[p]Made the old guardian's compass a little easier to read during hours when the sun is low in the sky.[/p]
[p]You can now put down a journal with the interact hotkey.[/p]
[p]Added an option to loot everything in a small area when mousing over some lootable objects such as coins.[/p]
[p]Adjusted the brightness of some lanterns so they are less blinding against your weapon.[/p]
[p]You no longer aim down the sight briefly when hip-firing a flintlock.[/p]
[p]Added mute in background setting.[/p]
[p]Fixed swimming backwards sending you downwards.[/p]
[p]Fixed the weaving station causing strobing shadows.[/p]
[p]The bug report window now auto-closes after sending the report.[/p]
[p]Fixed save indicator appearing in world space when using a spyglass or sextant.[/p]
[p]Fixed save indicator not going away in the pause menu.[/p]
[p]Fixed the stamina bar not animating properly when spending stamina while it is regenerating.[/p]
[p]Made holding the attack button to raise up a power attack more responsive.[/p]
[p]Reduced the volume of the male wave emote sound.[/p]
[p]The collect animation can no longer interrupt other combat animations like draw bow.[/p]
[p]Reduced the length of the trail visual effects on bullets.[/p]
[p]Fixed buried treasures not saving their un-buried state.[/p]
[p]Fixed some translation issues.[/p]
[p]Right clicking while a fish is hooked will now catch the fish if you are within the success window, or display a message if you are not.[/p]
[p]Fixed a number of places that had double colliders, which could cause a spam of footstep sounds when standing there.[/p]
[p]Fixed some doors not blocking projectiles or enemy sight.[/p]
[p]Added entry for toggling chat input in keybindings menu.[/p]
[p]Fixed a rare crash.[/p]
[p]Fixed an issue where you could loot multiple quest items as part of the "Picking Up The Pieces" quest.[/p]
[p]Fixed some items being interactable at the Hunter's Guild Outpost that shouldn't have been.[/p]
[p]Adjusted the weights of the fishing commission quests at world tier 2 - 5 to give a better spread of quests.[/p]
[p]Fixed a spot in Barlow's House you could get stuck falling.[/p]
[p]Fixed some typos.[/p]
[p]Adjusted the volume of some ambient sounds that were a bit too loud.[/p]
[p]Fixed depth of field effect in the Sea Diver's Guild.[/p]
[p]Added footstep sounds to wolves.[/p]
[p]Fixed players other than the party leader being unable to use the mirrors in Mad King's Shipwreck.[/p]
[p]Item looted indicators now appear when looting from containers.[/p]
[p]Fixed an error when the host quits as they are receiving a trade request.[/p]
[p]Updated Unity engine version to address a memory leak and possible crash related to particle effects.[/p]
[p]Fixed double-clicking the respawn button in the death interface causing an error and sending you somewhere strange.[/p]
[p]Fixed the loot bags being empty for some enemies. (These are the bags that appear on the ground if you don't fully loot them right away).[/p]
[p]Fixed one of the ladders on the sea fortress exteriors putting you in a weird spot when climbing down.[/p]
[p]Adjusted the hit position on large spider models to reduce their chance of missing you with some attacks.[/p]
[p]Fixed doorknobs blocking door interaction on some buildings.[/p]
[p]Made adjustments to movement and combat input to improve responsiveness.[/p]
[p]Added forward and back buttons to crafting stations and remember the last recipe you had selected.[/p]
[p]Ship decorations now maintain their last rotation when you pick them up.[/p]
[p]You can now rotate decorations with the mouse scroll wheel.[/p]
[p]Fixed an issue where you could get stuck in slow motion if you died while the radial wheel was up.[/p]
[p]Fixed an issue where you would continue to move sometimes after dying or when lockpicking.[/p]
[p]The sextant no longer spams sounds when looking at a celestial object through close together objects such as ropes.[/p]
[p]Fixed the names of looted items in the popup UI being cut off sometimes for long named items.[/p]
[p]You can now filter options when selecting an item in the equipment screen.[/p]
[p]Fixed continued movement if you die or start lockpicking while moving sometimes.[/p]
[p]Fixed being able to block and parry before the potion drink animation was done.[/p]
[p]Allow dodging while swinging a weapon.[/p]
[p]Allow hitting tab to cancel decoration placement.[/p]

Bug Fixes

[h3]Changes[/h3]

Fixed the locations shown on some map items being inconsistent between play sessions.
The location shown for a quest now uses the closest relevant map item you have in your inventory (or storage), rather than just the first one.
Fix hunters guild interior area labeled as blacksmith's shop.
Slightly increased the drop rate of yellow flowers.
Fixed some weapons that were unable to be sold.
Fixed the bug report hotkey not working.

Bug Fixes

[h3]Changes[/h3]

Fixed being unable to place the ship helm decoration.
You can now place the ship helm decoration on the floor and ceiling as well as the wall.
Added a setting to switch from fullscreen to windowed mode.
Fixed some achievements not being granted.

Update - Hunter's Guild and Additional Enemy Behavior

This update includes new content, some additional enemy behavior, and fixes.

[h3]Hunter's Guild[/h3]

This new guild is a ragtag band of hunters. Discover their island outpost and join them to start their questline of hunts.

[h3]Enemy AI Changes[/h3]

Some enemies have a couple of new behaviors that they can decide to do during combat. This includes the ability to block attacks and drink potions. Both of these actions can be interrupted by a heavy attack or a lucky normal attack.

[h3]Favorite Items[/h3]

To avoid accidentally selling or destroying items, you can mark them as favorite. Using the previous "mark junk" hotkey will now cycle through marking an item as junk and favorite.

[h3]Changes[/h3]

Added hunter's guild, including a new quest line and items.
Added a new boot-exclusive armor talent that reduces the distance enemies can hear you.
Enemies can now sometimes block attacks.
Enemies will sometimes try to drink health potions during combat.
Enemies with bows will now sometimes reposition.
Enemies with melee weapons can now switch to a bow if you are in a spot they can't reach.
Updated Unity engine version which addressed a security vulnerability.
Duplicate maps are now more likely to point to different islands than the maps you already have.
You can now rotate ship decorations that go on the wall.
You can now place the lunar calendar on the wall as well as a horizontal surface.
Item descriptions in the merchant interface now auto-scroll after a moment if their description contains a scroll bar.
You can now mark an item as favorite, which prevents you from selling or destroying it.
Slightly adjusted timing on enemy attacks.
Increased the amount of money earned from commission quests.
Increased the value of most fish, making fishing a more lucrative skill.
Strong health potions now require cave mushrooms instead of toadstool mushrooms, making them easier to craft.
Blacksmith Storage Chests are now a little more likely to drop rare ores.
You can no longer block attacks coming from behind you.
Allow placing other ship decorations on top of rugs.
Added sound when destroying an item.
Added sound when transferring items to and from ship storage.
Added mouse click sound when right-clicking an item in your equipment window to inspect it.
Added equip and un-equip sounds when changing equipment through the equipment window.
Fixed jitteryness of NPC health bars.
Fixed the Tempest Potion not working right in multiplayer when you are not the host.
Fixed NPCs not navigating correctly at some shipwreck points of interest.
Fixed client corpse appearance not matching their hair color.
Bears will no longer attack and kill Goldfang (a rare boar associated with an achievement).
Rite of Passage altar no longer makes the door open sound when used.
Fixed exploit where food items would not be destroyed if placed in storage before the consume animation finished.
Fixed some items having the wrong rarity.
Fixed some items having the wrong price.
Fixed NPCs being able to hit rocks when trying to hit the player.

Beta Branch Update - Hunter's Guild and Additional Enemy Behavior

New content is available for testing on the Beta Branch. If you wish to test the new content, instructions to access the beta branch can be found here.

This update includes new content, some additional enemy behavior, and fixes.

[h3]Hunter's Guild[/h3]
This new guild is a ragtag band of hunters. Discover their island outpost and join them to start their questline of hunts.

[h3]Enemy AI Changes[/h3]
Some enemies have a couple of new behaviors that they can decide to do during combat. This includes the ability to block attacks and drink potions, if they have one. Both of these actions can be interrupted by a heavy attack or a lucky normal attack.

[h3]Changes[/h3]

Added hunter's guild, including a new quest line and items.
Added a new boot-exclusive armor talent that reduces the distance enemies can hear you.
Enemies can now sometimes block attacks.
Enemies will sometimes try to drink health potions during combat, if they have one.
Enemies with bows will now sometimes reposition.
Enemies with melee weapons can now switch to a bow if you are in a spot they can't reach.
Slightly adjusted timing on enemy attacks.
Increased the amount of money earned from commission quests.
Increased the value of most fish, making fishing a more lucrative skill.
Strong health potions now require cave mushrooms instead of toadstool mushrooms, making them easier to craft.
Blacksmith Storage Chests are now a little more likely to drop rare ores.
You can no longer block attacks coming from behind you.
Allow placing other ship decorations on top of rugs.
Added sound when destroying an item.
Added sound when transferring items to and from ship storage.
Added mouse click sound when right-clicking an item in your equipment window to inspect it.
Added equip and unequip sounds when changing equipment through the equipment window.
Fixed the Tempest Potion not working right in multiplayer when you are not the host.
Fixed NPCs not navigating correctly at some shipwreck points of interest.
Fixed client corpse appearance not matching their hair color.
Bears will no longer attack and kill Goldfang (a rare boar associated with an achievement).
Rite of Passage altar no longer makes the door open sound when used.
Fixed exploit where food items would not be destroyed if placed in storage before the consume animation finished.
Fixed some items having the wrong rarity.
Fixed some items having the wrong price.
Fixed NPCs being able to hit rocks when trying to hit the player.