Abalon News

[h2]Greetings D20 Fans![/h2]
Thanks so much for your feedback! Here's another round of fixed and improvements for Abalon :)

1. Fixed bug where it was possible to equip more than the max items on a character if the equipped item removed one of their native abilities. (Thanks Swaglord)
   
2. Updated to SteamWorks v1.61 to use the latest Steam integration.
   
3. Improved gamepad controller polling to reduce stuttering on SteamDeck.
   
4. Improved gamepad controller by adding rumble support to accompany explosions that use the screen shake VFX.
   
5. Fixed bug where the Weighted Dice is used to free captured hero from the Marauders, but was not sent to the AI worker, and thus, a sync error was triggered.
   
6. Fixed bug where player could trigger a ListDataView BadData by sorting their cards after selling to show all the cards previously in their deck/tortoise.
   
7. Fixed bug where you could add more than 20 cards to your deck by selling cards in your deck to the Traveling Salesman at camp, then, going to tortoise to add cards in your deck back up to 20, then, returning to traveling salesman to buy the sold cards back and returning to the tortoise a final time.
   
8. Fixed bug where clicking sell at the same time as space key on card in deck at a shop throws exception.
   
9. Fixed bug where using Antarus with exploding fireball to knock character in the water, his special ability triggers a second knockback that was causing the Deep Water effect to trigger a second time (potentially killing the unit) and resulted in the unit being returned to the board after battle, causing various sync errors. (Thanks Guest_200637)
   
10. Fixed bug where using polymorph to transform unit into a squirrel and then knocking them in the water resulted in the original unit getting a marker to emerge from the water even though they were defeated. This could result in desync error and/or softlock.(Thanks Guest_176348)

While these features aren't directly player facing, I wanted to share them with you here for 1) for transparency so you know where some of my time was spent this update and 2) to show how I'm supporting my goal of responding faster to player feedback by enabling more frequent small updates between major release:

1. Created a pipeline that automates the process of building and deploying the game to all platforms. Prior to the pipeline, new builds required multiple manual steps that took hours and diverted time and focus from other tasks.
   
2. Created a bug analyzer script to help automate cataloging of reported issues so I can better understand patterns and prioritize fixes.

Some other ideas I have for the future on the back-end include:

1. Creation of a Discord integration that would allow me to receive and respond to in-game feedback communications directly from my phone. While I currently read all in-game feedback, I don't always respond directly or as timely as I would like due to the overhead involved in the current setup.
   
2. Scripts to automate database and server maintenance
   
3. Scripts to detect and mitigate abuse of the leaderboard

Major updates in the works along with our regular updates include:

• Asynchronous Multiplayer
  
• Leaderboard System Revamp, feel to check out the post here and share your thoughts. This update will also include some balance changes to the XP curve, gold costs, and other such items.
  
• Caves Expansion

Many of our players have asked me for a way to help support the continued development of Abalon, so I setup a "Buy Me a Coffee" page where you can make one-time or recurring contributions.

[h2]Reviews[/h2]
My year-end goal for 2025 is for Abalon to achieve "Overwhelming Positive" rating which requires a total of 500 or more reviews an overall rating of 95% or more. As of today, we're at 421, 94%, so while this is highly ambitious, I believe this is something we can achieve together. I care a great deal about providing you the best experience I can, so please share in your review what you like about Abalon and also where I can continue to improve and do better.

Thank you so much for your thoughtfulness and consideration :)

~Ross

[h2]Release Notes:[/h2]

1. Created a fix for the sync errors caused by the equipment system change released in v2.37.0 intended to allow players to automatically swap equipment when at max item count without having to first unequip items.
   
2. The sync error was caused by the simulation engine actually performing the action, but the undo command for this simulation was not being passed to the AI, resulting in a desync between the player and AI board states.
   
3. The change uses the EquipmentChangeGetter, which doesn't actually perform an action, but instead simulates by applying the new equipment on the player board state only, then undoing it. We check to see if statuses were removed in response to adding the equipment to determine whether or not a gear can be equipped while at max item count.
   

[h2]Greetings D20 Fans![/h2]
Thanks to your feedback, the latest version of Abalon improves the equipment and card selling features of the game plus many other fixes.

1. QoL: Automatic Re-Equip: By popular demand, I've added a memory system to the gear you equip to your guardians. When a defeated guardian is removed from your party, a snapshot of that guardian's equipment is stored before the gear is returned to your satchel. When that guardian is returned to the board under your control, they will automatically re-equip any of their previous gear still in your satchel. Note: The re-equip action is not tied to the command system, so if you revive a guardian with equipped gear, then undo that action, then revive them again they will not re-equip their gear again as their gear map is cleared once they return to your party.
   
2. QoL: Equipping Units: Abalon now allows equipping units at max inventory if the new equipment would replace an existing equipment.
   
3. QoL: Sell Tortoise Cards: Added the ability to sell cards carried by your tortoise at shops.
   
4. Fixed bug where removing a Bow and Arrow from a ranged unit was not removing the bonus damage. (Thanks KittyMeow)
   
5. Fixed bug where entering an ambush encounter would count as having explored the map, even if the player decides to flee, potentially breaking ongoing Blizzard or Sandstorm weather effects. Prompted encounters will no longer count as having explored the map until the encounter is cleared. (Thanks KittyMeow)
   
6. Fixed bug where multiple artifact hearts (Void Heart, Arcane Heart, Celestial Heart) couldn't be stacked on the same unit.
   
7. Fixed bug with Exhaustion challenge modifier where the damage from Exhaustion could be absorbed by your armor before the battle starts. (Thanks Rhubarb314)
   
8. Improved Turkish translations and fixed bug related to non-functional cancel options within certain prompts. (Thanks Exolion)
   
9. Fixed bug where Boss map within the Forest biome near a river could be missing a blockading pillar. (Thanks Rhubarb314)
   
10. Fixed bug where splash damage hitting an enemy shrouded in the mist of mayhem soft locks the game if they are carrying a lore scroll. Enemies can no longer be secondary targets of attacks in explore mode. (Thanks Rhubarb314)
    
11. Fixed bug where, after having retreated from a dungeon room, player could not reenter the room as enemies had positioned themselves in front of the door, blocking entry. (Thanks yaroslav)
    
12. Fixed bug where, upon entering a bandit blockade within a dungeon and initiating a battle, guardians may get stuck in the previous room and unable to join the battle. (Thanks Rhubarb314 and NetManDeer)
    
13. Procedural Spawning: Fixed unusual spawning in the dungeon, where, after you retreat and return, the enemies are oftentimes surrounding you instead of repositioning in the opposite side of the map like they should.
    
14. Procedural Spawning: I also fixed the encounter spawning to ensure that if the number of enemy units intended to spawn does not fit within their designated spawn area, we'll now use the neutral zone as an extra set of spaces they can spawn after their regular deployment zone is used up.
    
15. Procedural Spawning: Added logic to prevent player units from raiding into the neutral spawn area of the map if their party is too large. This is to ensure at least some separation from the enemy and some room to move.
    
16. Procedural Spawning (Large Armies): Added a system to ensure that player units that do not fit within the battle are no longer truncated after saving the battle, leaving the game, returning, and ending the battle.
    
17. Fixed bug where Shatter spell was not destroying obstacles such as Spike blocks or units that had been petrified as indicated on the card. (Thanks Wesley)
    
18. Fixed bug where Choose button does not appear when using the Orb of Insight on touch screens with desktop UI enabled. (Thanks Arianna)
    
19. Balance: I changed Frost Nova for Cora so instead of doing a fixed 4 damage (which was also a bug, should have been 2) she now deals attack damage equal to her power. I also removed the equipment constraint that was attaching her frost nova to her right hand weapon. This change allows her to now work with Glyph of Nithsrot and also combine the effects of melee weapons with her ability. For example, using an Orc Warhammer, her stomp will now deal Knockback (3). Melee weapons that change her attack pattern (such as Firesword, which gives Swipe) will still replace her Frost Nova attack as before.

Major updates in the works along with our regular updates include:

• Asynchronous Multiplayer
  
• Leaderboard System Revamp, feel to check out the post here (https://steamcommunity.com/app/1681840/discussions/0/596262086078658592/) and share your thoughts. This update will also include some balance changes to the XP curve, gold costs, and other such items.
  
• Caves Expansion

Many of our players have asked me for a way to help support the continued development of Abalon, so I setup a "Buy Me a Coffee" page where you can make one-time or recurring contributions.

More than anything though, I ask that you please write the game a review :)
Reviews do so much to improve our discoverability and bring new players to the game. They also provide me with a lot of insights on what I'm doing right with the design and where I can still improve.

Thank you so much for your thoughtfulness and consideration :)

~Ross

Fixed issue where APAC fonts were missing for the Native Linux / SteamDeck branch

1. Fixed bug where Psychic Blast allowed Mind Control to occur without respecting the life remaining limit indicated on its ability.
   
2. Fixed bug where selecting an expansion locked Summoner in the mobile version would throw an exception.
   
3. Fixed bug where turning off the screen on iOS, changing the device orientation, then turning back on the screen would throw an exception.