Darkest Dungeon® II News

[p][/p][p]Hello everyone,[/p][p]Our latest Steadfast Steward coming_in_hot build has been available to play for several days now, which means it's time for our fourth Exit Survey! [/p][p]This survey covers build 2.02.78390 that we released on June 19, and contains a total of 10 questions. Contained within this survey are questions regarding our recent experimental change to weak tokens, and more! Find the full list of patch notes for this update here: [dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p]Please only fill in the survey if you have tested the current coming_in_hot build. [/p][p][/p][p]Fill it in here: https://forms.gle/eCdUeCtKavg62AXx7 [/p][p][/p][p]This survey will remain open until June 26, 10am PT. [/p]

[p][/p][p]Welcome to the fourth build of our Steadfast Steward's Update. Over the next several weeks we will be deploying a new build with many experimental changes that will live on our public beta branches. Please use the in-game feedback tool or join our Discord to let us know your thoughts on these changes. We are trying out many changes and will be doing adjustments weekly. [/p][p][/p][p]This update features work on the Runaway's Wanderer and Survivor paths, and new battle modifiers.[/p][p][/p][h2]HEROES[/h2][h3]RUNAWAY[/h3][p]Wanderer[/p]

• [p]Backdraft and Backdraft+ cooldown reverted to 1[/p]
• [p]Backdraft no longer clears Burn from the source target[/p]
• [p]Backdraft+ damage calculation increased from 75% to 100% of Burn[/p]
• [p]Backdraft+ now clears the Runaway's skill cooldowns on CRIT[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Backdraft experiments continue. We often limit high damage potential moves to less frequent use but the constant give and take tick rate of DOTs as the core calculation for this skill's DMG means it's more about timing than spamming, so we decided to return the cooldown to its previous value.[/p]
• [p]Cauterize and Cauterize+ launch ranks increased from 1 2 3 to 1 2 3 4[/p]
• [p]Dragonfly now has 10% Burn RES Piercing when the Runaway has Stealth[/p]
• [p]Dragonfly+ Burn RES Piercing when the Runaway has Stealth reduced from 20% to 10%[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Dragonfly is a pretty loaded skill already. We wanted to retain some Stealth synergy but not as potent as the single target options.[/p]
• [p]Firefly and Firefly+ change to the direction of Combo Burn has been reverted[/p]
• [p]Firefly now gains 10% Burn RES Piercing when the Runaway has Stealth[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Nice when it worked but it introduced issues with size 2 enemies that we're not inclined to solve with unique, special case rules for Combo consumption. Reverting the change guarantees that the Burn at least always has a target to which it can apply.  Stealth synergy is now available at the base level instead of requiring mastery to get some benefit.[/p]
• [p]Firestarter and Firestarter+ Burn buff reduced from 3 to 2[/p]
• [p]Firestarter and Firestarter+ Use Limits have been removed[/p]
• [p]Firestarter and Firestarter+ Burn buff is now compatible with effects that influence Burn duration and amount such as trinkets or other buffs/debuffs[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: We thought we'd try a balancing experiment with Firestarter by making it more readily available (AKA no use limit) at a slightly lower Burn value that could benefit from other influences, such as Physician's Cause of Death or trinkets.[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ are now considered Ranged skills[/p]
• [p]Ransack and Ransack+ no longer spread Burn vs. Combo[/p]
• [p]Ransack and Ransack+ no longer ignores 20% Burn RES when the Runaway has Stealth[/p]
• [p]Ransack now grants 1 Stealth vs. Combo[/p]
• [p]Ransack+ now grants 2 Stealth vs. Combo[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: After some deliberation, we decided to try positioning Ransack as a sister skill to Run and Hide as a Stealth setup with Forward movement instead of Back, enabling front rank skills such as Dragonfly and Searing Strike to more readily benefit from Stealth synergies.[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike and Searing Strike+ Combo effect has been changed to the random Burn spread[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike gains +1 Burn when the Runaway has Stealth. This applies to the base Burn and the spread.[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike+ gains +2 Burn when the Runaway has Stealth. This applies to the base Burn and the spread.[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike+ Burn value increased from 2 to 3[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: With Ransack losing the random Burn spread, Searing Strike felt like the right place to gain it. We feel that, between the differences in direct DMG, reach, and how the Stealth synergy interacts with the Combo effect, Searing Strike and Firefly can now serve different purposes. Searing Strike gets bigger spread while Firefly does it more reliably.[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen has had all changes reverted[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: We considered making adjustments to base Smokescreen to give it the same cooldown or restricting its ranks, but it's become an integral part of so many kits that we've decided to just leave it as-is on Wanderer.
    [/p]

[p]Survivor[/p][p]Dev Note: The Survivor Path has been retooled to be able to brawl rather than being forced into a support role with mechanics and skills that support an ebb-and-flow of health, alternately drawing fire and disappearing when needed. While Stealth still offers some Burn synergies, it can also be expended in bulk on various skills to sacrifice defense for more immediate gains.[/p]

• [p]If the Survivor's health is still below 75% after receiving any heal, she has a chance to gain Dodge (50%) or Dodge+ (25%)[/p]
• [p]Cauterize is no longer affected by this Path[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Survivor is intended to be more mid-and-front ranks capable as a combatant and not relegated to a support role, so we've decided to normalize the extremely "Wanderer+" Cauterize. There are other skills on this Path to provide additional avenues of healing. [/p]
• [p]Controlled Burn is no longer affected by this Path[/p]
• [p]Dragonfly is no longer affected by this Path[/p]
• [p]Firefly is no longer affected by this Path[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: These skills were only negatively impacted by the Path previously, having reduced Burn RES Piercing. We further wanted them to match the new Wanderer versions of the skills so that Survivors would still have some Burn options that, in the case of Dragonfly and Firefly, synergized with Stealth rather than expending it in bulk in the fashion of some new Survivor skills.[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight is now a Path skill[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ target a single Hero[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ launch ranks are 1 2 3[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ target ranks are 1 2 3 4[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ are considered Heal skills[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ have a cooldown of 2[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ require the target to have Stealth[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ remove all Stealth from the target[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ heal for 10% per Stealth token on the target[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight applies Regen 1 per Stealth token on the target[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight+ applies Regen 2 per Stealth token on the target[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight+ heals 1 Stress per Stealth token on the target[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: The Survivor has a broader recovery option available in her version of Hearthlight, albeit at the cost of somebody's defenses. When mastered, it offers her a way to potentially alleviate some of the stress she's likely to absorb while tanking hits. Despite being a heal, we opted to keep Hearthlight strictly cooldown instead of use limited due to the Stealth cost. There was some consideration to make this purely cost the Survivor's Stealth but there are more interesting synergy options in trinkets, quirks, and other Heroes if it requires the target's Stealth instead. This one might be a bit loaded but it's more difficult to get the maximum effect out of it on other Heroes. We'll see how it goes.[/p]
• [p]Ransack and Ransack+ no longer have innately reduced Burn RES Piercing[/p]
• [p]Ransack and Ransack+ no longer spread Burn to a random adjacent monster vs. Combo[/p]
• [p]Ransack and Ransack+ now remove all Stealth from the Runaway when used if there are positive tokens on the target that can be stolen[/p]
• [p]Ransack DMG reduced from 3-6 to 3-5[/p]
• [p]Ransack now steals 1 positive token per Stealth on the Runaway[/p]
• [p]Ransack now ignores Block while the Runaway has Stealth[/p]
• [p]Ransack+ DMG reduced from 4-8 to 4-7[/p]
• [p]Ransack+ now steals 2 positive tokens per Stealth on the Runaway[/p]
• [p]Ransack+ now ignores Block and Dodge while the Runaway has Stealth[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Since the Survivor is meant to be more survivable, we felt it appropriate to have Ransack provide a way to reduce enemy tokens while providing her with her own. In order to facilitate stealing the more defensive tokens, Ransack has gained some conditional ignores so that it doesn't consume what you may wish to steal. DMG has been slightly adjusted in accordance with the ignores and new utility.[/p]
• [p]Run and Hide is no longer a Path skill[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Same reason as Cauterize; this was purely a "Wanderer+" version of the skill. [/p]
• [p]Searing Strike and Searing Strike+ no longer have innately reduced Burn RES Piercing[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike and Searing Strike+ have retained their former Wanderer DMG values[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike has retained the former Wanderer Burn value of 2, or Burn 4 vs. Combo[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike+ has retained the former Wanderer Burn value of 3, or Burn 6 vs. Combo[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike and Searing Strike+ remove all Stealth from the Runaway[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike and Searing Strike+ gain +50% CRIT per Stealth token on the Runaway[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike and Searing Strike+ increase the duration of the Combo / non-Combo Burn by +1; this explicitly only applies to Searing Strike's Burn[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: We wanted to remix the former version of Searing Strike that Survivor had in a way that paired with her melee Stealth consumption for added effect. Is +50% CRIT a lot? Sure, but at a single Stealth token it's no different from a Grave Robber's Combo bonus and at 2 Stealth tokens you're sacrificing a lot of safety for the payoff.[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen is now a Path skill[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen and Smokescreen+ launch ranks changed to 1 2 3[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen is now a self targeting buff instead of an enemy debuff skill[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen and Smokescreen+ move the Runaway Forward 1[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen and Smokescreen+ grant 2 Taunt to the Runaway[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen and Smokescreen+ grant a buff that applies Blind to any monster that attacks the Runaway. This lasts until the start of her next turn.[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen and Smokescreen+ apply 2 Stealth to the Runaway at the start of her next turn[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen cooldown is now 3[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen+ cooldown is now 2[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen+ enhances the buff to apply both Blind and Combo to any monster that attacks the Runaway. This lasts until the start of her next turn.[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: We thought we'd try something a little different with Smokescreen, providing a way for the Runaway to pull hits -- giving her the necessary health runway for her Path passive -- before disappearing to make use of her various Stealth benefits. Depending on timing and maybe a little luck, there's a lot of potential Blind output. In addition, we've added a Forward movement so that she can be sure to be in the front ranks.[/p]

[p]Plague Doctor Trinkets[/p]

• [p]Annotated Textbook: Now has Target: Hero: Invert 1 Negative Token (95%) or +1 Stress (5%), +50% Healing Given from Skills when Restoration Item is equipped and Turn Start: Vulnerable when first in turn order[/p]
• [p]Early Experiment: Now has +1 Blight when Noxious Item is Equipped, Apply On Crit: Invert 2 Positive Tokens, and Gain When Moved by Enemy: Bleed 1 (15%) or Blight 1 (15%) or Burn 1 (15%)[/p]
• [p]Storage Room Key: Now has Target: Ounce of Prevention Skills: Block Token, Target: Emboldening Vapours Skills: Regen 2, +1 SPD per Medicinal Gear Equipped, and Gain On Miss: -1 SPD (3 Turns)[/p]

[h2]Battle Modifiers[/h2][p]Dev Note: When looking at Battle Modifiers, we found that 8 was a fairly low number, which led to encountering the same battle modifiers too frequently. We decided to add several new battle modifiers to help add variety. We wanted to keep the buffs and effects relatively simple, and to tap into token interactions and effect triggers that most enemies can take advantage of. In addition to new battle modifiers, we updated several existing battle modifiers to reduce duplicate buffs and reduce frustrating stat buffs.[/p][p]
Current[/p]

• [p]Ambush: Unchanged[/p]
• [p]Elite Enemies: Removed +1 SPD[/p]
• [p]Frenzied Enemies: Replaced +25% DMG with Combat Start: Strength Token and Gain When Hit: Strength Token (20%)[/p]
• [p]Hale Enemies: Moved +15% Debuff RES to Impervious Enemies[/p]
• [p]Hastened Enemies: Reduced SPD buff from +4 to +2[/p]
• [p]Impervious Enemies: Reduced Stun RES buff from +50% to +25%. Gained +15% Debuff RES from Hale Enemies[/p]
• [p]Infection Enemies: Unchanged[/p]
• [p]Sturdy Enemies: Replaced +25% Max HP with Combat Start: Block+ Token x2[/p]

[p]New[/p]

• [p]Entropic Enemies: Turn End: Add 1 Random Token[/p]

• [p] Dev Note: Basically True Entropy for enemies[/p]

• [p]Prowling Enemies: Random Enemy on Combat Start: Stealth Token x2 and +15% CRIT while Stealth[/p]
• [p] Dev Note: Round Start was considered, but we opted to stick with Combat Start for now so it's not persistent throughout the fight which could lead to frustrating moments.[/p]
• [p]Vengeful Enemies: Ally Death: Add 1 Positive Token[/p]
• [p] Dev Note: We're starting with this single line effect for now as it's simple and clear around what's happening, even if it may not be as potent as some want it to be.[/p]
• [p]Intimidating Enemies: Apply On Crit: Weak Token, Vulnerable Token, Knockback 1[/p]
• [p]Dormant Enemies: Combat Start: Daze (33%) and Turn Start: Crit Token when Last in Turn Order[/p]

[p][/p][h2]GAMEPLAY[/h2]

• [p]Update weak token so it is actually a 50% reduction after all other modifiers are applied[/p]

• [p] Dev Note: This is a very experimental change with the hopes to improve the potency and clarity for Weak token effects. There's a lot of knock-ons and risks that come with something like this and we'll be monitoring the impact closely. Similar to the flat damage buff change with Ordainment, we have back up plans to revert if it introduces more problems than it solves. Please try out the change, provide any and all feedback around it, and we hope you enjoy it, even if it's short lived.[/p]
• [p]Adjusted Memory Reroll pricing to be more accurate to full release intention: New prices are 4 > 8 > 16 > 32. Resets on next Altar Visit[/p]

• [p]Adjusting quarter notches and health bar to be more accurate in combat[/p]
• [p]Added line break to Requires and Ignores lines on enemy academic view[/p]
• [p]Fix issue preventing Memoried heroes from obtaining hero goals again after they have been completed[/p]
• [p]Fixed Bounty Hunter immobile in Kingdoms after respawning[/p]
• [p]Fixed FACTION Hater quirks not displaying +15% DMG when facing FACTION correctly [/p]
• [p]Added button on hoarder to allow players to see torch tooltip[/p]
• [p]Fixed Visit a Shrine of Reflection hero goal never generating[/p]
• [p]Fixed Swine Skulker Academic View[/p]
• [p]Fixed Daemon's Pull hero goal being generated when Altar of Hope is completed[/p]
• [p]Blessed and Cursed skill assignment now selects from all skills when skill bar isn't fully equipped[/p]
  • [p]Known Issue: If there are already Blessed/Cursed skills, any newly blessed or cursed skills will be randomly selected from all skills[/p]
• [p]Fixed an issue with not being able to close the Dam screen with left click[/p]
• [p]Gamepad: Kingdoms Campaign creation should use default name[/p]
• [p]Gamepad: Error when Quitting Name field on the Profile creation screen in Big Picture mode[/p]
• [p]Gamepad: Fixed an issue with complete your Confession focus isn't on the signature button after quickly selecting Confession[/p]
• [p]Fixed an issue when Memory screen would jump scroll positions when clicking memory slots[/p]
• [p]Fixed Bounty Hunter hero sheet from showing "visit shrines to unlock"[/p]
• [p]Fix for Body of Work's crown VFX disappearing after a skill[/p]
• [p]Act 5 Ordainment buff blight amount applied to attacker when crit reduced from 3 to 1[/p]
• [p]Shambler's Eye: Fixed incorrect Healing Given per Stress debuff, it should be -5% per Stress rather than -10% per Stress[/p]
• [p]Spearman: Spear Toss can now target rank 3 or 4 when they have combo, it now ignores Block and has increased crit against targets with combo, and will not apply combo if they have combo[/p]
• [p]Warlord: Paro now applies small horror[/p]
• [p]Fixed it so that other regions should be displayed first when The Mountain is enabled at all Inns[/p]

• [p]Cruel Intent: Replaced Gain On Crit: Blind Token with Gain On Non-Crit: Blind Token.[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Cruel Intent is the most polarizing Cultist trinket around its use and concept, and with enough feedback that we've decided it needs to be adjusted (again). This change is a last attempt at keeping the core concept. Depending on feedback, we'll be considering a complete overhaul to this item.[/p]
• [p]Stealth token icon has been updated[/p]
• [p]Taunt and Stealth tokens now negate each other[/p]
• [p]Favorite Toy: Now has +1 Bleed Dealt when Serrated item equipped, +1 Blight Dealt when Noxious item equipped, +1 Burn Dealt when Flammable item equipped.[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: After reviewing feedback during testing, we've decided that Favorite Toy is still too strong compared to other Memories. Since it buffs ALL DOT types, we opted to add a condition that we feel is appropriate thematically and mechanically by adding item equipped conditions based on the respective DOT types. There are still other Memories on our watch list that may be adjusted in a future build.[/p]

[p]EDIT: Fixed a formatting issue and added a missing Dev note on the experimental weak token change[/p]

[p]Hello everyone, [/p][p]Our third Steadfast Steward's public beta build has been live on coming_in_hot for several days now. [/p][p]Like previous weeks, we have a new exit survey ready for you! This survey contains 7 questions, and should take you less than 5 minutes. [/p][p][/p][p]Please only fill in the survey if you have tested the current coming_in_hot build! This survey covers the Steadfast Steward's build number 2.02.78247 that was released on June 12. We will keep it open until June 19, 10am PT. [/p][p][/p][p]You can fill the survey in here![/p][p][/p][p]Our next Steadfast Steward's build [/p][p]On Thursday, we posted our final poll on our Discord asking the community which they would prefer we tackle: Battle Advantage Modifiers or Repair Fight Improvements (As this is the final poll, the following weeks ahead of our retail release will be spent on remaining work). Based on those results, Battle Advantage Modifiers is the winner![/p][p]You can expect more Battle Advantage Modifiers, as well as more updates to the Runaway in our next update, due this Thursday June 19.[/p]

[p][/p][p]Welcome to the third build of our Steadfast Steward's Update. Over the next several weeks we will be deploying a new build with many experimental changes that will live on our public beta branches. Please use the in-game feedback tool or join our Discord to let us know your thoughts on these changes. We are trying out many changes and will be doing adjustments weekly. [/p][p][/p][p]For full details on what to expect from our Steadfast Steward’s Update and how to participate, please check out our Participation Details blog post, or see our intro post in the #general_info channel on Discord.[/p][p]
You may notice that these patch notes are more detailed than usual. We have included a number of ‘Developer Notes’ beside many of the entries here, to better express the intent behind the changes. By outlining our goals we hope that this will help measure if our intent is matching our implementation.[/p][p] [/p][p]This update features the Runaway's Wanderer path, updates to the Occultist's Ritualist and Wanderer path, adjustments to Memories, as well as adding game speed options.[/p][p][/p][p]You can start playing now! Remember to leave your thoughts on our most recent update in the Steadfast Steward’s section of our Discord, send your feedback to [email protected][/p][p] or discuss it in this Steam discussion thread.[/p][p][/p][h2]HEROES[/h2][h3]RUNAWAY[/h3][p]Wanderer[/p][p]Dev Note: The Runaway's kit has been adjusted to provide her with some previously lacking options for Stealth synergy, RES piercing, and general improvements to utility skills. Few skills (Backdraft, Hearthlight) received any extensive revisions. Most received refinements in power or identity, particularly in regards to her activities in the front ranks.[/p]

• [p]Backdraft and Backdraft+ cooldown increased from 1 to 2[/p]
• [p]Backdraft and Backdraft+ now benefit from all standard damage-affecting tokens, trinkets, and other sources[/p]
• [p]Backdraft now has a CRIT value of 5%[/p]
• [p]Backdraft DMG calculation increased from 50% of Burn to 75%[/p]
• [p]Backdraft now removes all Burn from the source monster when unmastered[/p]
• [p]Backdraft+ now has a CRIT value of 10%[/p]
• [p]Backdraft+ DMG calculation reduced from 100% to 75%[/p]
  • [p]Dev Notes: The Runaway's DOT bomb regains its previously unique nature among the skill type, allowing it to interact with all of the standard tokens (for better or for worse) in addition to the DOT-based calculation for damage. Some values have been adjusted to keep it moderately in line in light of recent increases in Burn availability and the unmastered version does retain some normalized DOT bomb behavior (removal of the DOT source).[/p]

• [p]Cauterize and Cauterize+ launch ranks changed from 2 3 4 to 1 2 3[/p]
• [p]Cauterize and Cauterize+ no longer require that the target have Bleed[/p]
• [p]Cauterize now only provides the 25% heal if the target has Bleed; otherwise it heals for 1 point[/p]
• [p]Cauterize+ now only provides the 33% heal if the target has Bleed; otherwise it heals for 5%[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Being unable to use Cauterize in rank 1 didn't feel great for a character that can easily dance to the front. We adjusted the condition restriction to allow for desperate Death's Door saves (and to give some legitimacy to all those Heroes getting angry that they aren't on the receiving end of the hot poker).[/p]

• [p]Controlled Burn and Controlled Burn+ are now considered Ranged skills[/p]
• [p]Controlled Burn initial (non-token) Burn value reduced from 3 to 2[/p]
• [p]Controlled Burn+ initial (non-token) Burn value reduced from 4 to 3[/p]
• [p]Controlled Burn+ now ignores Guard[/p]
• [p]Controlled Burn and Controlled Burn+ (token) Burn values are now compatible with buff/debuff effects on monsters that influence DOT values, such as Physician's Cause of Death[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Burn values have been reduced to match the values on the token of the same name, given how much DOT potential the skill has as a whole. While other external factors can now increase the continuous Burn, this only applies to buffs/debuffs on the monster, as the continued effect lives on the token and not the Runaway. As an experiment, Controlled Burn is allowed to ignore Guard tokens in order to place its rank-locked token but, being a non-damaging skill, it will not remove those tokens. It's not a clearing skill.[/p]

• [p]Dragonfly+ now has +20% Burn RES Piercing when Stealthed[/p]
• [p]Firefly and Firefly+ now apply their Combo Burn effect to the monster in front rather than a random neighbor[/p]
• [p]Firefly+ now has +20% Burn RES Piercing when Stealthed[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: We wanted to make the direction of the fire spread more controlled and this gives both Firefly and Ransack the ability to spread fire to rank 1, which they otherwise cannot reliably affect. Additionally, they can now synergize with Stealth for piercing resistance.[/p]

• [p]Firestarter buff increased from 2 Burn to 3 Burn[/p]
• [p]Firestarter+ now also grants the Runaway +1 Burn Duration for 3 Turns[/p]
• [p]Firestarter+ Use Limit increased from 2 to 3[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: We wanted to provide a little more incentive to spend a turn buffing an ally and this was inspired by a mix of the Survivor version of the same skill. This also helps make up for the fact that she can never target herself with Firestarter.[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ no longer ignore Dodge[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ no longer have to hit a target to remove Stealth; it is cleared from the team regardless[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ now apply a -10% Burn RES debuff to all targets[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight and Hearthlight+ now apply Combo on CRIT[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight now has a CRIT of 10% and can use CRIT tokens[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight+ now has a CRIT of 15% and can use CRIT tokens[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight+ no longer has a 25% chance of applying Combo[/p]
• [p]Hearthlight+ now grants +10% Burn RES Piercing to all Heroes[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Hearthlight has long been a divisive skill due to the specificity of its use case. While it shines in some areas, such as Coven battles in Kingdoms, it falls a lot flatter in others. With these changes, we've aimed to retain its core capability (widespread Stealth clearing) while applying some benefits that are more broadly applicable to the skills of the Runaway and other Heroes with Burn. Splitting the Burn RES effects into a buff and debuff means you get a chance to score double value but also guarantee at least half. Lastly, non-damaging skills that ignore defensive tokens such as Dodge are not meant to remove those tokens unless they are clearing skills (e.g. the Highwayman's Tracking Shot) so we've corrected the error in this skill. To compensate, we've made a change to guarantee that all Stealth is still removed from the enemy team.[/p]

• [p]Ransack and Ransack+ now apply their Combo Burn effect to the monster in front rather than a random neighbor[/p]
• [p]Ransack+ now has +20% Bun RES Piercing when Stealthed[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Same notes as Firefly[/p]

• [p]Searing Strike and Searing Strike+ have had their implementation of bonus Burn vs. Combo adjusted[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike DMG increased from 3-6 to 3-7[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike now gains an explicit +2 Burn vs. Combo[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike+ DMG increased from 4-7 to 4-9[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike+ now gains an explicit +3 Burn vs. Combo[/p]
• [p]Searing Strike+ Burn reduced from 3 to 2[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Searing Strike has a cleaner tool tip and now the bonus can apply to others effects riding on this skill from trinkets or similar sources. We wanted to try increasing her direct damage potential on this skill so that she had some front line offense that didn't feel as reliant on Burn, though we kept a wider DMG range in place since the skill does still carry significant DOT potential. We feel this also helps further differentiate Searing Strike's purpose from Firefly's.[/p]

• [p]Smokescreen+ cooldown increased from 1 to 2[/p]
• [p]Smokescreen+ CRIT increased from 10% to 15%[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: This has largely been considered too powerful for its short cooldown so we thought we'd try an experiment where only the mastered cooldown is increased, given all of the added power this skill gains on mastery. The unmastered skill remains untouched and is slightly more spam-capable, albeit less efficient in its token application over a longer period of time.[/p]

[p][/p][h3]Occultist[/h3]

• [p]Updated Occultist trinkets to better match the recent changes[/p]

[p]Wanderer[/p]

• [p]Binding Shadows and Binding Shadows+ ignore their Combo effect if the Occultist already has Stealth[/p]

[p]Ritualist[/p]

• [p]Abyssal Artillery no longer has a chance to apply Combo when unmastered[/p]
• [p]Abyssal Artillery and Abyssal Artillery+ now spend 2 Unchecked Power to apply Blind[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: There was a lot of division on the Speed token On CRIT but, ultimately, we felt that more people were against it than for it. That being the case, we decided to move to a version that allowed a powerful debuff token at a cost (Unchecked Power) that would also benefit from the Unchecked Power's passive Debuff RES Piercing. While this makes it similar to Blinding Gas, we believe the DMG component, piercing, and cost help to differentiate it. Further, Combo was removed from the base version to differentiate it from Wanderer's unmastered Abyssal Artillery.[/p]
• [p]Malediction and Malediction+ no longer pierce Debuff RES inherently[/p]
• [p]Malediction and Malediction+ duration increased from 2 rounds to 3[/p]
• [p]Malediction Unchecked Power cost reduced from 3 to 2[/p]
• [p]Malediction+ defensive token distribution adjusted from 30% Block / 30% Dodge to 15% Block / 15% Block+ / 15% Dodge / 15% Dodge+[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: The piercing on this skill took away from the Ritualist's core capacity of being able to pierce RES via the Unchecked Power tokens. We're likely returning all Unchecked Power skills to the original design of having the same cost when unmastered but at reduced power and this is the first one to reflect that. Increases to duration have been made to make this more accessible and the type of tokens available on mastery have improved.[/p]
• [p]Sacrificial Stab+ now buffs the Ritualist's SPD by +3 for 3 turns when killing a target[/p]
• [p]Sacrificial Stab+ now shares Wanderer's +100% DMG vs. Corpse buff[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: Bringing Ritualist's Sacrificial Stab into alignment with Wanderer's.  It retains the reduced Unchecked Power generation as Ritualist has other skills for generating it but a non-token SPD buff will help get those debuffs out faster each round.[/p]
• [p]Vulnerability Hex and Vulnerability Hex+ Vulnerable tokens increased from 1 back to 2 to match Wanderer[/p]
• [p]Vulnerability Hex+ no longer clears Block from the target before applying Vulnerable[/p]
• [p]Vulnerability Hex+ now applies a debuff: if the target dies, the Occultist receives 1 Unchecked Power. This debuff lasts 1 battle.[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: We felt that Vulnerability Hex needed a little something more when mastered but still needed to stand apart from the Wanderer version, so this version has an additional method of feeding Unchecked Power to the Occultist at the expense of the previous Block removal. The unmastered version does currently rate as "Wanderer's but slightly better" but there's little that can be taken away from the unmastered version on Ritualist without making it an unsatisfying button to push or robbing it of the Ritualist identity.[/p]
• [p]Weakening Curse now applies a 1 turn version of the mastered version's debuff, granting the Occultist Unchecked Power if the target attacks[/p]
• [p]Weakening Curse+ CRIT increased from 10% to 15%[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: We wanted to speed up access to the specialized nature of how this Curse can generate Unchecked Power for the Occultist.  The limited duration means that timing it for maximum effect will be strict, however.  In order to make it easier for the skill to land when mastered and further differentiate it from its base version, the mastered CRIT rate has been increased.[/p]

[h3]Plague Doctor[/h3]

• [p]Surgeon Battlefield Medicine+ tool tip no longer incorrectly lists the healing bonus for Bleed twice; it has been corrected to Burn[/p]
• [p]Physician Noxious Blast no longer has Debuff RES Piercing vs. Combo when unmastered[/p]
• [p]Physician Noxious Blast+ Weak reduced from 2 to 1[/p]

[p] [/p][h2]MEMORIES[/h2]

• [p]Heroes no longer get re-rolled if they have a memory slot available, even if it's empty[/p]
• [p]Added the ability to reroll memories[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: In order to facilitate testing we’ve added this feature. Right now the amount and price are made to be easy for testing. The feature is also currently enabled always, which can cause weird behavior on an un-upgraded track. When and if we keep this for retail deployment the cost, amount offered, and access conditions will be changed to reflect the intended end-game/prestige system. [/p]
• [p]Memoried heroes can now be renamed[/p]

• [p]A Second Chance: Replaced +5% Deathblow RES with On Entering Death's Door: Heal 10% (Once per Region)[/p]
• [p]A Summer's Day: Replaced +15% Traveling Heal with +10% Resolute Chance[/p]
• [p]A Token of Friendship: Replaced +10% Positive Banter with +10% Healing Given from Skills[/p]
• [p]A Long Day's Work: Replaced Combat Start: -1 Stress (40%) with +10% Debuff RES piercing[/p]
• [p]Fresh Bread: +5% Max HP buff now lasts until the end of the Expedition[/p]
• [p]A Lucky Break: Replaced Combat Start: Dodge token (20%) with Gain When Dodging: -1 Stress (25%)[/p]
• [p]Father's Praise: Replaced Combat Start: Block token (20%) with +1 Regen Dealt[/p]
• [p]Dev Note: After discussions with the community we've learned there's preference to retain many of the passive buffs such as increased resistances, damage, speed, etc. There's also been a desire to keep buffs and effects on the simpler side since there are many other triggered effects from items and skills. These changes focused on improving the low performing Memories and replacing them with more useful, simple buffs and/or effects. Favorite Toy is on our radar as a highly potent Memory. We're typically in favor of buffs over nerfs, so we want to see how things shake out with these changes, but we're keeping an eye on Favorite Toy.[/p]

[h2]ORDAINMENT[/h2]

• [p]Ordainment Act 5 buff now has Apply to Attacker When CRIT: Blight 3 (3 Turns)[/p]
• [p]Reverted Ordainment DMG buff from flat to %[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: We are looking into adjusting how Weak tokens are calculated[/p]

[h2]GAMEPLAY[/h2]

• [p]Librarian Reduced Burn RES from IMM to 100%[/p]
• [p]Shambler trinkets updated[/p]
• [p]Collector: Life Steal now has a 1 turn cooldown[/p]
• [p]Fixed Death occasionally spawning in Catacomb repair fights[/p]
• [p]Focused Fault: Replaced +100% DMG per Seen token with +8 DMG per Seen token[/p]
  • [p]Dev Note: This should scale better with Weak tokens[/p]
• [p]Fixed an issue where the torch was unintentionally draining prior to the crossroads[/p]
• [p]Fixed an issue where Horseshoe swift travel icon wasn't removed when passing the day[/p]
• [p]Increased Biome select scroll speed with mouse scroll wheel[/p]
• [p]Removed Bounty Hunter hero sheet "visit shrines to unlock" text[/p]
• [p]Securis: Added Gain On Killing Blow: Strength Token & Block Token[/p]
• [p]Adjusted In Line Damage size for trinket damage poptext text to not be so large[/p]
• [p]Updated remove token/quirk logic to behave like copy/steal logic in that it is now pure random[/p]
• [p]Fix for abomination causing a softlock when switching from Beast to Corpse[/p]
• [p]Fixed some of the combinable tooltips incorrectly displaying massive missing blue strings[/p]
• [p]Updated Kingdom Siege Resolution UI to add a pulse to sieges that must be resolved, to assist users who forget that they must resolve these before they can continue elsewhere[/p]
• [p]Re-arranged some of the options in the pause menu[/p]
• [p]Added two new options to the GAME category[/p]
  • [p]Added a Combat Speed option[/p]
    • [p]Dev Note: We've rolled out an option that will allow you to increase combat speed to 1.5x of default. This also increases the game audio to match and remain in sync. The game will revert game speed to 1x for all in-combat cinematics (ie. Boss intros, deaths, resolve checks, etc), and then resume back to 1.5x.[/p]
  • [p]Added a Driving Speed option[/p]
    • [p]Dev Note: We've rolled out an option that will allow you to increase driving speed to 1.5x of default[/p]
• [p]Updated Jester Wanderer Finale, Crusader Aggressor Smite and Reap, Abomination Fiend Rage, and Smolder Hymnal on kill effects to trigger when killing a corpse[/p]
• [p]Bundle of Contracts, Kill List, and Crimson Tick tooltips now state the on kill triggers are ineffective against corpses[/p]
• [p]Retreating in Confessions effects have been updated; reduced Loathing from +3 to +2 and increased Stress damage from +1 to +2[/p]

[p][/p][p]Hello everyone,[/p][p]Our Steadfast Steward's public beta build received its second major update on the coming_in_hot branch on June 5. [/p][p]We hope you’ve been enjoying the changes to Ordainment and our updates to the Plague Doctor.[/p][p]In order to help collect more feedback, we have 2 surveys currently open that we'd like you all to take a look at.[/p][p]Survey 1[/p][p]The first survey is our Week 2 exit survey. This survey contains 5 questions, and should only take you a few minutes. Please only fill in the survey if you have tested the current coming_in_hot build![/p][p]This survey covers the Steadfast Steward's build number 2.02.78128 that was released on June 5. [/p][p]Fill it in here: https://forms.gle/Zi3EX3vHrb7oboh38[/p][p]Survey 2[/p][p]We also have a survey focused on the new Confessions retreat option.[/p][p]Please follow this link to answer the survey: https://forms.gle/4Y4Txm9XQaA9MJia6 [/p][p]Both of these surveys will be open until 10am PT on June 12.[/p][p]We'll have even more changes for you to test later this week! Our next build, also set for June 12th, will contain changes to memories, updates to the Occultist Ritualist path and more.[/p]