Solium Infernum News

You’ve managed to escape the lustful Venus fly trap that is Luxuria, Stronghold of the Thrice Veiled … perhaps you bypassed our recent, torturous Playtesting Round.

Or you may have even spotted a recent PCGamesN Article...

It matters not. Here you stand, now in the presence of the Fairest of the Fallen, who defies the very essence of their surroundings. Despite the torments of Hell, their angelic visage remains untouched, a radiating celestial beauty among the ash and the dead.

The Fairest of the Fallen claimed themselves the favourite of the vanished Prince of Darkness, that their fall transcended all others, descending side-by-side with the Dark Prince. Bubbling beneath the surface of this beautiful Renaissance visage are ominous intentions. To the Fairest of the Fallen, the Infernal Crown is theirs and theirs alone – they are, after all, the ultimate being of divine light and shadow, the alpha and omega, worth worship above even the Throne Itself.

Frustratingly perfect and graceful in all things, their angelic exterior hides a monster of the most extreme kind, a side that is sometimes glimpsed like a crack in a perfect marble column.

They are known as…



The Fairest Among the Fallen will be a favorite for those who enjoy diplomacy and praetor dueling.

As a silver-tongued master of demonic society, Andromalius knows how to protect themselves behind powerful Praetors, and how to lure others into doomed duels within the greatest theatre of Pandaemonium - the infamous blood-soaked gladiatorial pits. Andromalius' champion will frustrate rivals, blunting their insults for fear of a challenge to personal combat, while leaving them free to push others around as they see fit.

Behind a charismatic visage lies a cunning and scheming monster, revelling in the torment of others. But what brings them even greater satisfaction is witnessing their enemies brought to their knees, their teeth gritted in agony, forced to offer praise to the very fiend who orchestrated their downfall.












Andromalius proves that a malevolent spirit can be found beneath a mask of beauty. It’s a common trick to make your villains physically deformed or hideous, to wear evil on the outside, but the tendency of human nature to distrust the different or atypical leads to the persecution of those with no choice but wear their differences openly. And a twisted personality just as often exists behind an attractive face.

The obvious inspiration is “Fallen Angel” by Alexandre Cabanel. Who could go past the best depiction of a raging, embittered fallen angel?

Andromalius represents the very worst of us; they’re vain, entitled and self-aggrandising. They believe themselves a perfect entity, looking down upon all others. We wanted a figure who could encapsulate these traits and who'd remind us of where the Fallen have come from - the Angelic Host from heaven. Andromalius would never accept the fall, would believe themselves higher than the Heavenly Throne itself, so would never choose to change their ‘perfect form’, nor take every chance to show it off. But there’s one tell - their eyes smolder with hatred and resentment.

Andromalius' Stronghold was treated similarly, a crack in the perfect structure symbolic of the broken mind behind the perfect exterior.



The Fairest of the Fallen holds a special allure for charismatic leaders who can navigate the treacherous landscape of power. Those with glorious purpose, a silver tongue, and quick wit will enjoy playing this mastermind.

Are you ready to conquer Hell with Andromalius?


Until then...

See you in Hell,
Ty

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If you've made it this far, thanks for following along. I intend to share more posts like this, detailing the development process as it unfolds and exploring the unique challenges the privilege of re-imagining a cult classic like Solium Infernum for new (and old!) audiences holds.

For now, you can join the League of Geeks Discord community for all the infernal news and discussion.

We're actively entering into our Playtesting era for Solium Infernum, so if you wanted to be part of that, we definitely encourage you to hop in the Discord. More information will come soon there!

P.S. You can support us and our re-imagining of Vic's "diamond in the dark" by Wishlisting Solium Infernum on Steam, if you haven't already. Wishlisting tells the all-great Steam algorithm that people like what they’re seeing and gets us in front of more eyes.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1893810/Solium_Infernum/

Greetings again Hellhounds and Heretics!

Last month, LoG conducted our “Technical Playtesting Round 1” (TP1). Our goal was to put the game in front of a small amount of eyeballs to gather external opinions on Solium Infernum (SI). The idea was to gather initial feedback from the perspective of Original SI players, as well as completely new players.

We had learned from experience of our previous game (Armello) that playtesting is one of the most important parts of game development. So much value came from our OG Kickstarter backers giving us feedback early in development. With that in mind, we knew it was going to be important for SI.

But a game like SI is really like nothing else, so there were so many twists and turns. It wouldn’t be Solium Infernum if there weren’t, right?

This was also the first time that Solium Infernum had been played by anybody outside our dev community.

So … a little bit of stress.

But, overall, it went … relatively smoothly.

And we learned quite a lot! Not only about how to improve SI, but also about Playtesting in general. As an indie studio, we’re always trying to punch above our weight, and gathering insights from playtesting rounds is another means for us to do so. We thought that we would take June’s Developer’s Log to explore those learnings and take you along for the infernal ride.

So, lo and behold, What We Learned From Playtesting (So Far) …


[h3]The Worst Could Happen … But People Will (Usually) Understand![/h3]
In discussions with Trent, fellow Co-Founder, and Studio Director, we both agreed that the most frightening thing about conducting Playtesting is to learn that the core of the game is not received well by the player base. If the community does not resonate with the bones of what the team has been building for years, it is a significant problem for an indie publisher.

Luckily, with both Solium Infernum’s Playtest and Jumplight Odyssey’s Demo (which you can still play, if you want a galactic change of pace!), our core communities were highly receptive of the fundamentals in both games. In the post-playtesting survey, over 90% of Players said that they found the game enjoyable – which is incredible to hear! And dare I say: Phew.

Of course, that’s not to say there is not an immense amount of work to be done. A game like Solium Infernum is a mammoth undertaking, even if you were to try and simplify its various mechanics and interactions.



[h2]Places of Power: Far and Few Between[/h2]
As to be expected with a game as early in development as SI, there were some fundamental bugs and limitations involved that had a significant impact on gameplay. Things that took us by surprise and surfaced late in Playtesting, like the Places of Power, were - of course - frustrating for everyone but helped us immeasurably (and is why we do the testing in the first place!).



In a typical session as intended by Game Design, there are no less than four Places of Power, all the way up to seven or eight on a map. However, as an unintended and near-invisible bug in the Playtest, it was unusual for more than two or three Places of Power to be present on the board, many of them too ambitious to conquer at low levels.

This seemingly small bug really impacted player behaviour! It also gave us important insights early in development on how Players interact with Places of Power and the board itself.

[h2]Getting Animal Control on the Phone[/h2]
Additionally, as part of League of Geek’s reinvention of original Solium Infernum, our team introduced a neutral foe called “Abyss Striders”. These Hellish beasts roam the board, wreaking chaos and sewing uncertainty wherever they go.

We didn’t expect them to breed like rabbits and completely overrun some boards, though.

And – even worse – we didn’t expect the Edict that conjures a Strider Infestation to outright crash games.

Our dev team quickly mustered, called up Abyssal Animal Control, and dealt with the Striders in a patch … but their existence on the map fundamentally changed the way that players interact on the playing board. Where players were once sure of victory or defeat, a Strider within three cantons adds an element of uncertainty – this was intended. What was not intended was the conga line of Striders – all supporting one another – demolishing Level 1 armies across the board.

This is why we find Solium Infernum so cool. The smallest thing can have the biggest impact on the outcome of the game, and these machination kinks need to be ironed out to function well.

[h2]It’s Lonely at the Top..[/h2]
One of the largest, most important fundamentals of the Original Solium Infernum was the importance of Diplomacy between the Archfiends. After all, this is the politics of Hell, and the path to the throne involves crushing others in your path using it. When TP1 began, there were still some important elements of Diplomacy in development, and it simply wasn’t ready to be unleashed upon the world.

From the start, we knew that there was going to be a lot of feedback on the lack of Diplomatic options that were available during testing. Not only was diplomacy the beating heart of the original, but also the beating heart of the re-imagination.



We received some feedback that described how “lonely” Solium Infernum felt at times, and how many Player decisions were stunted because they couldn’t communicate, forge alliances and advocate their cause with others in the game. This feedback really cemented what the community finds most important in Diplomacy and has provided some much-needed understanding of specific pain points that our Game Design team can craft solutions around. In our review sessions, the Game Design team explained that they had all the mechanics for “Capital D Diplomacy” – demands, insults, etc – but it was the “little d diplomacy” that our TP1 players found lacking – elements that support tabletalk and roleplay.

This brings us around to a much-discussed problem in the development of Solium Infernum – facilitating these important functions. We’ve been trying to marry up the ambitiousness of being an indie studio with the realities of hosting tabletalk functionality. Game development is full of answering big problems like this… We’re working hard to deliver a solution that we all love.

Ultimately, even if we did anticipate the “little d” diplomacy as feedback, it’s really great that it was reiterated in such clear ways for the future of Solium Infernum.

[h2]Charisma and Manuscripts[/h2]
Balancing a game as complex as Solium Infernum is HARD. We are the first to admit that. A community member in the Playtest said once that Solium Infernum is as complex as a house of cards, and that pulling at one card has a collapsible effect that is often hard to gauge until folks are playing.

Our Principal Game Designer, Anthony, calls it an “infernal engine”. “You can pull the lever and be pretty sure of what's going to happen, but never 100% certain”.

(It bears repeating, but its why playtesting is so critical for us.)

Game Design knew even before TP1 launched that Manuscripts needed to be revised. There is a unique method of completing Manuscripts in the Original Solium Infernum that we intended to rethink.

Our plan, at least currently, is to implement the Manuscript system as fragments able to be collected, but not as specific pieces to a “puzzle” as in OSI.

The largest issue that we experienced as part of TP1 was that the pool of Manuscripts was too small – the Praetor Move Manuals are not yet added – and this made it a hell of a lot easier to find similar fragments.

(Praetors and their Move Manuals are something that we’ll explore later on 😈 )

This seemingly small change threw both Manuscripts and Charisma wholly out of balance. Quickly, our playtesting community illuminated the Charisma Tree as “OP” because of the Manuscripts. It became almost trivial to play non-Charisma-focused characters, and thus Andromalius and Belial were highly coveted Archfiends because of their initial Charisma buff.



Naturally, we’re trialling a lot of adjustments to Charisma, the Tribute economy and Manuscript mechanics for future iterations on Solium Infernum!

[h3]To Conclude on our First Learning[/h3]
We received some incredible, detailed feedback on very important systems. With tens of thousands of words and hundreds of Discord messages, it was a lot to wade through, but we did it! And with these in hand, we can identify which systems are going to be gameplay-affecting issues. This means we’re armed for future development and iteration.


[h3]Receiving Feedback is Great, but Organizing it in a Digestible Way is Better![/h3]

We knew our Original Solium Infernum fans would understand what we're trying to accomplish with our reimagining. There is a certain sticky tenacity to SI that keeps you awake at night, even while your computer is off; scheming and plotting like you’re inhabiting an episode of The Queen’s Gambit.



Upon entering TP1, we fully expected thorough, well-rounded, and OSI-comparable feedback from that group of fans. We also went to great lengths to recruit a second group of folks that had little to no Solium Infernum experience. This pillar of Playtesting is as fundamental as our OSI fans – Solium Infernum needs to resonate with new players as well as older players to be successful.

[h2]Know Your Players[/h2]
We found a great majority of those who stuck around to the very end of the month-long Playtesting period to naturally be those who'd previous experience playing the original.

This is, of course, something that we expected – SI in TP1 was very hard to comprehend for a complete beginner. Armed with only some tooltips, Discord Forums, and advice from our community, it takes an enviable amount of eagerness to hang around learning a complex game. This bit of feedback is – by far – the strongest that we received in our Playtest so far.

With this in mind, Game Design has now focused on Player Onboarding: tutorials, tooltips, and helpful indicators toward victory conditions. Our goal is to get folks as quickly as possible to the “sticky” parts of Solium Infernum – the parts that have made the original such a cult classic.

Some here at LoG have described OSI as a ‘Diamond in the Dark’ - we see our job as taking that diamond, shining it up, and letting the sparkle be seen by way more people than just those who did the digging all those years ago.



In our review meeting, our Principal Game Designer, Anthony, quoted Derek Yu in their diagnosing feedback:

"Another way to think about interpreting a player’s feedback is as a doctor diagnosing a patient. A player brings his or her symptoms to the doctor ("My stomach hurts!") and may even offer a solution ("I think it could be the flu!"). In that scenario, it’d be a bad idea for the doctor to either dismiss the validity of the patient’s symptoms or to blindly accept that they have what they say they have. Like patients, players are often most in tune with how they feel about the problem rather than what is causing it."

Comprehending the feelings and symptoms of the problem is the most important thing to the Game Design team – they can then craft and ideate on the best solutions for the overall player base.

We used many Miro Boards to capture feedback: a separate spreadsheet and Board for the Survey-specific feedback, but we also created the following Board for interesting commentary from our Discord Server.


By separating our information out in these ways, it became easier to comprehend and digest as a team.

[h3]To Conclude on Our Second Learning[/h3]
All feedback is valuable, so long as you can understand where this feedback is most applicable, and recognize any biases. We have learned that our OSI fans are incredible balance-testers, able to play at a macro strategic level while being comfortable in most of the minutiae rulesets. The biggest piece of feedback, though, was the need for adequate onboarding for the newer players. The only blind spot our OSI Playtesters have is they know the game like the back of their hand, so intuitively understand gameplay that newer players find clunky, obtuse or otherwise impossible. Those paying attention might have deduced that the TP1 feedback requires a mammoth-level of work and revisions, meaning that it might be a while before you see another Playtesting round. Good things take time, and Solium Infernum is no different.


[h3]Especially in a highly complex, multifaceted game like Solium Infernum..[/h3]

[h2]Striking the Archfiend Balance[/h2]
Often feedback coincides with something that we felt strong about internally - that each Archfiend should feel different from another. Not only on a visual, aesthetic level, but fundamentally as part of their playstyle – their je ne sais quoi -- needs to be special and individualistic. We dub this internally as their “edge”.

If you think about it, these Archfiends have clawed their way up to a seat of power – accumulating enough notoriety to rival for the Throne of Hell. This immediately infers that the Archfiend needs two things: a clear sense of who they are, and why no one should get on their bad side. During TP1, the Archfiends had some unique mechanics, but we realise that these were not signposted very well, nor were their effects felt to an extent worthy of a real Archfiend of Hell.



Our Game Designers really wanted to foster moments where each Archfiend can “break the game” – we use this term internally to explore the sensation where a player can reach into the game and massively alter it. If that unique ability is used – and we’re doing our jobs right – nobody should miss that moment. That player should feel like an absolute boss, and everyone else should be ducking for cover.

The passive abilities seen in TP1 were placeholder, while we worked on each Archfiend’s Dark Art. Rather than being a passive ability, each Dark Art is an active ability unique to each Archfiend that emphasises their theme and allows them to really meddle with the game in interesting ways. In a game as complex as Solium Infernum, it takes time to balance these independent abilities and understand their effect on the game ecosystem. This will keep being iterated on right up to launch (and maybe after too!)

We’ll discuss more about Dark Arts in future developer logs!

[h2]The Greatest Challenges: As Identified By the Community[/h2]
Other than Rules and Communication, Bugs and Balancing, UI and UX – all things that we are actively working on – there were two major challenges identified by the Community.

It is undeniably complex to navigate through Solium Infernum. It is also hard to understand the repercussions of the decisions that you make in early game, and often the best decisions to make were to accumulate Tribute and increase Rank rather than engage with your fellow Archfiends. It is also a big challenge to present this information in a succinct tutorial, that gives enough information to get started, but not so much that it overwhelms new players.

“Early Game” – probably best defined as the first 10 turns of a game of Solium Infernum – was a large pain point for some playtesters. Because the “best options” in the mind of most players were to request Tribute, move toward Places of Power and increase Rank, it meant that the Early Game in TP1 felt “slow”.



After our Friends & Family (F&F) round of playtesting, we implemented a Turn Timer that ensured games of Solium Infernum ticked over once every 24 hours. This seemed like a great decision – we found most games in F&F were stalled when one person did not take a turn. This “stalled” feeling continued over -- in spite of the implemented Turn Timer – to TP1, where matches begun and at least one player did not regularly submit their turn. This meant that some matches were slowed to an infernal snail’s pace.

In future iterations, there will be adjusted timers and methods to remove inactive players – we’re just ironing out how that looks now!

[h2]Interesting Tidbit: How Players Describe the Game[/h2]
[h3]When asked how they would describe Solium Infernum, our testers said:[/h3]
“Complex turn-based strategy, with interesting diplomacy system and wonderful style.”

“The experience of playing feels the same as watching the first couple of seasons of Game of Thrones”

“Would you like to play a game of asynchronous bureaucracy with a topping of skulduggery?”

[h2]Some Interesting Statistics[/h2]

• Over 90% of those that provided feedback on the playtest enjoyed Solium Infernum!
  
• 50% of the folks that had played Original SI knew how to win, whereas 25% of the new users felt they knew how to win
  
• Out of the Archfiends, Murmur’s aesthetic is regularly praised, Belial’s cunning is strong and Astaroth has earned their title as a “loveable himbo”.

[h2]& Some Really Kind Comments From the Discord[/h2]


[h3]Conclusion[/h3]
Technical Preview 1 was an insane ride, but we’re ecstatic about having been able to present our first iteration of SI to testers! We hope that this Developer’s Log has given you an insight into some behind-the-scenes thinking of our team, and given you faith for the future development!

A massive thank you to all the community members who volunteered, played and participated actively – we’re only an indie studio, so all of the love is very much appreciated!

Thank you again, and until next time…

See you in Hell,

Ty.


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If you've made it this far, thanks for following along. I intend to share more posts like this, detailing the development process as it unfolds and exploring the unique challenges the privilege of re-imagining a cult classic like Solium Infernum for new (and old!) audiences holds.

For now, you can join the League of Geeks Discord community for all the infernal news and discussion.

We're actively entering into our Playtesting era for Solium Infernum, so if you wanted to be part of that, we definitely encourage you to hop in the Discord. More information will come soon there!

P.S. You can support us and our re-imagining of Vic's "diamond in the dark" by Wishlisting Solium Infernum on Steam, if you haven't already. Wishlisting tells the all-great Steam algorithm that people like what they’re seeing and gets us in front of more eyes.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1893810/Solium_Infernum/

Perhaps you’ve recently marched from Tenebris, the Stronghold of the Prince of Lies, or you narrowly escaped the maw of the terrifying Titan, The Devourer…

Regardless, you find yourself here -- a witness to another Archfiend ready to reveal themselves.

In the depths of this infernal realm, where souls are eternally tormented and the fallen endure the chaos of the abyssal, we find ourselves in the presence of a strange, alluring figure…

Here, every whim, every impulse is indulged without remorse or restraint. Through her alluring presence and insatiable desires, she entices both mortals and demons alike, weaving a web of temptation that fuels her insidious agenda to claim the Throne of Hell.

Her name is called out in both agony and yearning.

She is known as…


[h2]The Thrice Veiled[/h2]

The Thrice Veiled will be a favourite for those who enjoy conquering.

While many might dismiss Erzsebet as a threat due to her proclivities, she very carefully formulates her schemes; have the other Archfiends writhing at her feet, utterly and hopelessly broken and bound to her by their pathetic desires.







Erzsebet revels in the pursuit of power, and the manipulation of desires and ambitions that increases her power. Offering infernal gifts that are hard to refuse, Erzsebet is easily able to seed chaos and revel in the suffering she causes. Her focus is to control the theatre of war, engage openly in diplomacy and push her own agenda.








Erzsebet represents the negative aspects of Lust - manipulative, mocking, and unquenchable. We didn’t want her read as a victim, or as a passive courtesan type. Erzsebet had to be a real hell-boss lady. A vamp!

Erzsebet went through a number of iterations to reach this vision. Early versions were too soft - alluring, for sure, but lacking the frightening energy of a blood-drinking bad girl, who was definitely in charge.

To push the boss angle, and to avoid falling into stereotypes of beauty, we fell upon the wicked nosferatu look. We played with the idea of what a power suit in hell might look like - Adam pushing towards the pre-history vibes, with an ingeniously designed collar feature reminiscent of a Venus flytrap (which for many reasons was perfect for Erzsebet).



The Thrice Veiled will delight the conquerors out there. Those who know what they want and take it. The battlefield will be at your mercy, especially when you employ Erzsebet’s Unique Ability… (More to come on this in the future.. But, as usual, we’re taking guesses.)

Are you ready to conquer Hell with Erzsebet?

Until then...

See you in Hell,
Ty

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you've made it this far, thanks for following along. I intend to share more posts like this, detailing the development process as it unfolds and exploring the unique challenges the privilege of re-imagining a cult classic like Solium Infernum for new (and old!) audiences holds.

For now, you can join the League of Geeks Discord community for all the infernal news and discussion.

We're actively entering into our Playtesting era for Solium Infernum, so if you wanted to be part of that, we definitely encourage you to hop in the Discord. More information will come soon there!

P.S. You can support us and our re-imagining of Vic's "diamond in the dark" by Wishlisting Solium Infernum on Steam, if you haven't already. Wishlisting tells the all-great Steam algorithm that people like what they’re seeing and gets us in front of more eyes.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1893810/Solium_Infernum/

Archfiends and Anarchs both,

We’ve been incredibly busy over here, preparing for everything coming in these next few months! On top of that, our first round of Solium Infernum Playtesting started only last week. Very exciting times for Solium Infernum!

So, this month, we are providing you with a smaller update, affectionally dubbed a MiniLog… And to cater for the bite-sized Dev Log content, we’re going to make it about one of the NEWEST and BIGGEST forces coming to the game.

[h2]Unleash the Titans![/h2]
Titan units are a new and visually exciting treatment of a classic unit type we’re bringing to the reimagining of Solium Infernum. Imagine colossal monstrosities, single gigantic figures stomping their way across the ashen wastes, incredibly powerful units that make up part of the hazardous entropy of Hell.

We believed that the most dangerous units from classic Solium Infernum deserved the epic treatment, fitting of their infamy, so we created a new classification of legion just to accommodate them. When a Titan is summoned, everyone should experience sheer terror!

Titans are purchasable from the Bazaar like regular units, towering far above the regular legions fielded by Archfiends and with incredible combat abilities, however, they are costly.



Expensive and rare, these monstrous giants can rapidly change the balance of power in a game, but beware… Each one has an ongoing Upkeep of infernal tribute that must be paid to keep them in your service.

Controlling Titans is never a walk in the park. They are inherently very chaotic – and once they are brought to the playing field, they bring that chaos everywhere they go.

Let’s take a look at one of the more interesting Titans that will be available to players in Solium Infernum…

[h2]Enter: The Devourer[/h2]


Appearing as an immense, mawed creature, the Devourer has a number of special abilities that give a powerful advantage to whosoever dares control it.

Firstly, its Devour ability effectively annihilates Places of Power – literally dissolving them with its infernal stomach acids - obliterating them from existence rather than capturing them. Very useful if you’re feeling vengeful, or need that pesky PoP out of your way for your dastardly plans.

The second ability out of the Devourer’s arsenal is entitled Demon Envy. This means that every non-excommunicated opponent will lose 2 Prestige every turn while it’s fielded. Envy, indeed! It will be every rival’s mission to end the presence of the Devourer.





[h3]Summoning the Devourer[/h3]
The Devourer is not easy to summon. It’s a diabolical process that ends with a terrifying ritual.

In order to get started, one must first outbid your rivals for the Artifact of Sorcery: The Devourer Statuettes. These statuettes are placed within your Ritual Circle, taking up a precious ritual slot, to bestow the summoning ritual that calls the Devourer and places the behemoth under your power. Once you have the statuettes installed, you then gain access to the ritual itself.





[h3]Appetite for Destruction[/h3]

Keep an eye out for the Devourer in your next Solium Infernum game, or – if you’re yet to hop in and play – keep an eye out for when we open our next round of playtesting! Your best source of information is our Discord Server, but also on Twitter and our other socials. And, of course, you’ll have regular updates here on Steam!

We'll see you in Hell,



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you've made it this far, thanks for following along. I intend to share more posts like this, detailing the development process as it unfolds and exploring the unique challenges the privilege of re-imagining a cult classic like Solium Infernum for new (and old!) audiences holds.

For now, you can join the League of Geeks Discord community for all the infernal news and discussion.

We're actively entering into our Playtesting era for Solium Infernum, so if you wanted to be part of that, we definitely encourage you to hop in the Discord. We're currently in our Technical Preview 1, but there is plenty of room in our upcoming Technical Preview 2.

P.S. You can support us and our re-imagining of Vic's "diamond in the dark" by Wishlisting Solium Infernum on Steam, if you haven't already. Wishlisting tells the all-great Steam algorithm that people like what they’re seeing and gets us in front of more eyes.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1893810/Solium_Infernum/

Welcome back to the Depths of Hell.

Have you recently journeyed from Vestige, the home of the death-lord, Murmur? Or perhaps you’ve only just fallen among us?

In any case, you’ve now entered a lightless place where Archfiends conspire to become the new ruler of the Infernal Throne.

Today, beware not of the Archfiends who howl with infernal rage, threatening turmoil and blood, or those who drip with gold or exotic amulets. Reserve your true caution for the one you least expect, the Prince of Lies, for he is the true puppeteer who pulls at the strings of Hell.

His name is whispered in passing, the calculating Archfiend known as…




[h2]The Prince of Lies[/h2]

The Prince of Lies will be a favourite for those who enjoy deception.

Belial is the master manipulator; he's not interested in head-to-head conflicts, but instead wants to profit from the misery of others. Whether this is by inciting conflict between the other Archfiends, or using his shadowy rituals to steal from them, he always has a plan and an ulterior motive.



[h2]Belial's Starting Stats[/h2]


[h2]A Rake In Hell[/h2]

Belial is a collector of souls, and the trophies of those he’s fooled. A serpent-tongued and Machiavellian figure, Belial prides himself as being a step ahead of everyone else. Known for his strong opposition to both Heaven and Earth, Belial likes nothing more than to promote lawlessness and confusion, perhaps to better manipulate events. For Belial, power is all.



[h2]The Children of Belial: Belial's Personal Legion[/h2]






[h2]‘Tenebris’, Belial’s Stronghold[/h2]


[h2]Summoning Belial[/h2]
Belial was to be the ‘every-demon’ of hell, visually, as the first Archfiend that was created by the art team. We knew he had to be unassuming, a creature who could merge into the shadows, or the crowd of the Conclave, but who had the aires of something far far more potent. It was an opportunity to play straight into classic Baphomet by bringing the goat to the design-board!

Particular care was taken with Belial’s costuming. We wanted powerful, fancy duds for our main manipulator, but didn’t want them to stray too far into high fantasy. A particularly fun touch is the tip of Belial’s tail, which has its own mouth!

More to come here...



Are you ready to conquer Hell with Belial? The Prince of Lies will surely please all ‘Little-fingers’ out there, with his manipulating style and backroom dealing. And of course, we’re excited to release the all-important unique ability in the future … what do you think it could be?

Until then...

See you in Hell,
Ty

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If you've made it this far, thanks for following along. I intend to share more posts like this, detailing the development process as it unfolds and exploring the unique challenges the privilege of re-imagining a cult classic like Solium Infernum for new (and old!) audiences holds.

For now, you can join the League of Geeks Discord community for all the infernal news and discussion.

We're actively entering into our Playtesting era for Solium Infernum, so if you wanted to be part of that, we definitely encourage you to hop in the Discord. More information will come soon there!

P.S. You can support us and our re-imagining of Vic's "diamond in the dark" by Wishlisting Solium Infernum on Steam, if you haven't already. Wishlisting tells the all-great Steam algorithm that people like what they’re seeing and gets us in front of more eyes.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1893810/Solium_Infernum/