Warlords Battlecry: The Protectors of Etheria News

[h2]AI[/h2]

• [p]AI players now prioritise construction related powerups earlier on (faster build times, cheaper construction costs etc...)[/p]
• [p]Autocasting of Epidemic no longer prompts a placement radius and now only triggers on buildings that can produce units or be garrisoned[/p]
• [p]AI players no longer put injured units into diseased towers to heal, unless those units are immune to the effects of disease[/p]
• [p]When the AI is running low of build room, it’ll try placing new buildings closer to others than usual before resorting to building another keep[/p]
• [p]Improved the AI’s handling of seeking buildings in difficult to reach locations[/p]

[h2]
Scenario[/h2]

• [p]Added 1 new skirmish map: Scarab Hills (4v4 players)[/p]
• [p]Forest Lakes Remastered: The blue player is no longer locked to random race[/p]

[h2]
Campaigns[/h2]

• [p](WBC2) Updated Mountain Point campaign map[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where resetting a conquest campaign wouldn't reset death messages - resulting in players being instantly vanquished at the start of the campaign[/p]
• [p](WBC2) Sartek’s Maze: Fixed bug where the witch would not turn enemy once you get caught stealing her book[/p]

[h2]
Multiplayer[/h2]

• [p]Fixed critical bug where all players were being made to use the same side slot - preventing multiplayer games from starting[/p]
• [p]Players attempting to join the host’s game is now more reliable[/p]
• [p]Fixed another, more recent, crash regarding the host leaving before the clients[/p]

[h2]
Editor[/h2]

• [p]Fixed bug where the cover brush would default to ‘Autocover’ but claimed it was set to ‘No Cover’[/p]
• [p]AddBuilding NIS command now tries to push the building into a valid location[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where auto-selected units via NIS events wouldn't change button and placement modes (which would allow the newly selected unit to carry out build orders from the previous unit)[/p]
• [p]The Editor no longer deselects events from the event list after making changes to any event (including adding / removing events)[/p]
• [p]SideMessage NIS command now allows inputting NIS modifiers[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where the Editor would not fully remember some manually changed file directories when switching between game modes[/p]

[h2]
Spells[/h2]

• [p]Epidemic now prioritises affecting buildings that can produce units and those that can be garrisoned[/p]
• [p]Rally The Tribe now correctly gives the affected building +50 armour and corrected text to state armies are produced 500% faster[/p]
• [p]Enrage now has new visual effects[/p]

[h2]
Items[/h2]

• [p]Runeshield: Offers +2 Endurance (was +1) but now only +2 Toughness (was +3)[/p]
• [p]Runemail: Offers +2 Endurance (was +1) but now only +3 Toughness (was +4)[/p]
• [p]Woodland Cloak: Offers +4 Endurance (was +3) and is now a Lesser item (was Minor)[/p]
• [p]The Captain’s Tunic: Offers +2 Ferocity (was +1) and is now a Lesser item (was Minor)[/p]
• [p]Elven Boots: Offers +2 Endurance (was +1) and is now a Lesser item (was Minor)[/p]
• [p]Summoner’s Robe: Offers +2 Endurance (was +3) and +3 Magic Armour (was +2)[/p]
• [p]Howl of the Pack: Offers +6 Calling (was +2) but offers -4 Ferocity and is now a Lesser item (was Minor)[/p]
• [p]Shield of Justice: Offers +4 Evasion instead of +4 Ferocity[/p]
• [p]Added 1 new item: Pack Control[/p]
• [p]When in a shop or a decurser, the item popups will be displayed higher than your mouse cursor to avoid overlapping with important buying/selling info[/p]
• [p]Fixed the 1 crown bug when selling items[/p]
• [p]Shop and Inventory Selling screens no longer close separately[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where buying an item would not update the backpack in the selling screen[/p]

[h2]
Gameplay[/h2]

• [p]Pillaged buildings now re-enable their auto-repair upon becoming functional again[/p]
• [p]Converting a building now re-enables its auto-repair[/p]
• [p]Destroying a Dwarven Outpost no longer disables auto-repair for the mine[/p]
• [p]Archfiends, Archangels and Hero Spirits now require a level 3 keep for production from an alignment temple[/p]
• [p]Diseased buildings now pass on disease to units that garrison them[/p]

[h3]
Knights[/h3]

• [p]Order of Crux Sira: Fixed bug where Sirian's Glory wouldn't always work correctly[/p]

[h3]
Barbarians[/h3]

• [p]Lindenloth: Replaced Pegasi in the ASP for Wyverns[/p]

[h3]
Minotaurs[/h3]

• [p]Order of the Broken Sword: Fixed missing Indignation powerup[/p]
• [p]Order of the Broken Sword: Fixed typo on the faction details page that incorrectly claimed they had access to Lighting Hawks instead of Umbral Phoenixes[/p]

[h3]
High Elves[/h3]

• [p]Fixed bug where Blinding Arrows were giving +3 range instead of +2 and there was no damage bonus for additional levels[/p]

[h3]
Fey[/h3]

• [p]Sacred Guard of Vivellius: Now have Venerable Wisps in the ASP screen instead of Ancient Wisps[/p]

[h2]
General Bug Fixes[/h2]

• [p]Fixed crash when checking summoning spells with the spellbook when within range of a Circle of Power[/p]
• [p]Fixed hero creation pages lingering on screen when using Escape to close the creation system down from the scenario lobby[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where units could be affected by some afflictions that they were meant to be immune to (such as Golems being affected by poison auras)[/p]
• [p]Fixed crash when hovering the mouse over the control panel's info area when a selected building has been destroyed while Floating UI was disabled[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where income powerups and bonuses would influence negative income rates as well[/p]
• [p]Possibly fixed bug where item chests in random maps could be placed overlapping a building[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where the hero’s spellbook wouldn’t display spell specifications correctly for spells from the Poison, Divination, Time and Contagion spheres[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug with long ability descriptions[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where a unit casting a spell would cancel the placement of a building with a selected unit[/p]

[p][/p][p]Changelog: [/p][p]https://www.moddb.com/games/the-protectors/features/changelog-092d[/p][p][/p][p]Steam: [/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p]
Discord: [/p][p]https://discord.gg/vqVqssE[/p][p]
Forum: [/p][p]http://the-protectors.forumotion.com/[/p][p]
Donations: [/p][p]https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/TPCtreasury[/p][p][/p]

AI
Lower level AIs now delay the production of certain unit types after producing one to make such units rarer (these are advance units, archers, workers, ships and dragons)
Fixed bug where units on guard could become immobilised if they tried moving to their designated target and the path to it was obstructed in some way
Guarding units no longer get stuck “dancing” on the edge of their guard range if there was a threat just beyond that
The AI no longer attacks invulnerable buildings and all AI levels now ignore invulnerable units (was just Prince and higher)
The AI can now send workers into mines that are on impassable terrain that can still be reached normally

Visual
Reduced the translucency of Water Elementals
Spectating now allows the player to see enemy timer bars
When a unit casts a spell from within a tower, their casting PFX will be positioned at the tower’s effect point (was the base of the tower). When spell missiles are created, they’ll now be shot from the tower’s attack points (was the centre of the tower)

Replay System
The player now counts as spectating when watching replays
The AI system is no longer running during replays - fixing issues where AI players and attitudes would try issuing and cancelling orders to units and buildings, resulting in units sliding around and misleading production data being displayed in the control panel
Powerup dialogues, such as Knight’s Quest, are no longer displayed in replays

Story
The 5th Horseman (WBC3): Fixed bug where killing all enemy units in Ragnar’s Pass would result in a victory before meeting Ragnar
Battle For Etheria (WBC2): Fixed bug where AI heroes in lands not owned by any conqueror would have all campaign bonuses (such as the ability to walk on water)
Fixed bug where campaign item smiths could display hidden item effects on the upgrade page
(Prologue) Fixed bug where you could bring retinue in all missions
(Chapter 1) Fixed bug where you could gain multiple Setroth companions upon loading a saved game after the final dialogue in the first mission
(Chapter 1) Fixed bug where Setroth would appear in dialogues even if he was slain
(Chapter 1) Meet Lord Bane: Fixed bug where you could bring retinue
(Chapter 2) Fixed bug where you could gain multiple Kaari companions upon loading a saved game after the final dialogue in the first mission
(Chapter 2) Break Free: Fixed bug where you could bring retinue
(Chapter 2) Release the Slaves: Fixed crash that would happen a few minutes in the battle
(Chapter 2) Release the Slaves: Added consequences for the case in which you ally with the Guardian Knights before releasing the barbarian hero
(Chapter 2) Release the Slaves: Removed the bottom-left Goblin Lair and added a few Prisons
(Chapter 2) Release the Slaves: Upon accepting alliance with the barbarians, you auto-convert your starting mines to avoid them being “stolen” by your ally
(Chapter 2) Silvermyr: You can no longer lie to the captain you have your own ship if you did not spot the docked ship in the port
(Chapter 2) Fixed bug where you could steal a ship even if you already had one
(WBC2) Fixed Marak, Sartek’s Maze, Solhaven and Khaz-Elenak location descriptions text overlapping
(WBC2) Barad Dumyr ambush: Fixed bug where dragon would be allied, removed starting units and increased ASP
(Chapter 6) An Alliance: Sir Melvin is now King AI regardless of difficulty (was always Prince AI)
(Chapter 6) An Alliance: Robert is now added to the companion control panel
(Chapter 6) Rescuer: Reduced difficulty by lowering some of the orc AIs to Prince (was King)
(Chapter 6) Dhun-Kor Ambush: Neutrals are now allied with all AI (avoids lair units killing event groups)

Heroes
Fixed bug where heroes would not gain XP from their own kills unless they were equipped with an item that gave XP as a bonus
Improved the game’s handling of corrupted hero data. Unloadable heroes will now be deleted and will no longer prevent anymore heroes from being loaded
Fixed bug where Galesinger ability would never be present on Rangers
Fixed bug where the player would not receive their bonus starting resources from merchant and resource generating skills

Items
Tweaked the default mana cost of no-cost spells / abilities for SP calculation. (This is used to determine how many upgrades a spell power can have and how high it can start at). Adjusted some items accordingly

Spells
Heroism now correctly makes the unit good vs. large / huge units (was just double damage vs. large / huge units)
Fixed bug where the caster of a spell wouldn’t always be affected by their own spells when they could

Gameplay
All races can now use Slavehorde from any building which has this ability
Buildings can now be set fallback thresholds to be applied to newly produced units
Fortitude now protects against Silence, Acid, Bleeding, Blinding and Crippling
Units can no longer go invisible during an attack
Rally points to towers no longer block unit production when the towers are all full if there are still other available rally points
Non-spell explosions, including Cyst Hydra’s acid blood explosion, now ignore cover
Missiles no longer collide with pillaged mines or temples
Right clicking to cast spells for all selected units now also works for all units inside a selected building

Knights
Fixed outdated description for Holy Word
Medicinal Salve now functions as described by the Battlefield Medicine powerup (was +500% HP regen and no expiry)
Theiran Trollslayers: Bounty Hunters now correctly gives +20% pillaging (was 40%)

Dwarves
Fixed bug where mine outposts would not accept workers
Non-Dwarven players who acquire a mine with an outpost can now Ctrl + D the outpost (since it won’t accept workers for non-Dwarven players)
Masonry now actually works
Fixed bug where Runes of Flight would offer more damage than intended
Engineering no longer claims it only affects new structures

Undead
Reapers now state they have Despair attacks in the context area
Slayer Knights and Doom Knights now state they have Bleeding attacks in the control panel’s flag page after researching Torture
Fixed bug where the spell level minitext that appears on casting a spell didn’t include bonus levels from Licheking
Activate Conduit now correctly states it offers +15% income (was +17%)
Gravestones now only generate corpses for Zombies / Ghouls garrisoned within rather than for themselves
Necromantic Reconstruction now states Zombies use up their corpses and fixed bug where no corpses would be lost if the building was free to construct via Necromantic Reconstruction
Gahredlun: Fixed bug where Garden Bliss wouldn’t reduce enemy unit speeds
Licheguard of Zhur: Fixed bug where Azarel's Darkest Rites wasn’t reducing HP of casters correctly
Zombie disease strength 2 > 5

Barbarians
Lindenloth: Pack Hunting now affects Wolves
Lindenloth: Removed Reavers and Wardogs from the ASP screen and replaced them for Pegasi and Warlords
Lindenloth: Fixed Rune of Cielos description
Dragonslayers of Northern Reach: Made the description text for Ragnar’s Saga more clear
Alfheim: Fixed bug where Nature’s Shroud would only offer a critical hit bonus to ranged heroes becoming visible

Minotaurs
Order Of The Ironfist: Fixed bug where Wrath of Sartek was removed instead of Training

Orcs
Graww: Trolls no longer glitch out when trying to eat corpses
Fixed bug where the effect radius of Overrun! was smaller than the displayed radius
Added detailed description to Horde Call
Fixed Ferocious Instinct always triggering at max effect (400%)

Wood Elves
Fixed bug where tree mines would not accept workers
Fixed alt descriptions of Runes of Cielos, Runes of Manos and Runes of Animos incorrectly describing the High Elf variants

Dark Elves
Fixed alt descriptions of Runes of Cielos, Runes of Manos and Runes of Animos incorrectly describing the High Elf variants
Yrm: Fixed bug where sacrificing a unit with Necrotic Weave would also self-destruct the first army / building owned by player 1 (usually a tower)
Doomwood: Fixed bug where enabling production looping would allow Spy Squad to continue to be researched even when the building could not take any more spies
Doomwood: Deploy Spy now only uses a spy if the target building is valid. Converting a building now also causes any installed spies to be removed if the new owner is allied with the spy owner
Doomwood: Fixed bug where Perfect Dominion could not convert towers affected by spies

Empire
Suppressing Volley now correctly ends after 5 attacks and only affects enemy targets equal or smaller than the attacker
Selentine Empire: Possibly fixed an issue where Cultural Dominance would sometimes fail to change the owner of the affected mine
Professional Camaraderie now also requires Revitalising Command

Plaguelords
Acid no longer gives raw damage bonuses to Slimes and Gelatinous Cubes (was +2 and +4)
Plague Piles no longer increase disease strength across the map
Flesh Division now also requires Abominator Strain

General Bug Fixes
Fixed bug where missiles would ignore the good vs. / excellent vs. system when striking a unit
Fixed bug where the scrollbar for the Diraqine Empire lore page would sometimes have an incorrect range or no range at all - preventing the player from being able to view all of the faction’s description
Fixed bug where the player would be charged for mercenaries bought with resources by an AI player
Fixed bug where a bunch of non-important buildings would prevent a side from being defeated and some important ones weren’t
Fixed bug where units being transported would be lost but not killed if the transporter morphed or changed sides. This can lead to a side never being defeated unless they resign
Fixed bug where music could play during the opening video if the player tried to interact with the game during the initial loading screen
Fixed text bug with Assassinations that would always say +100 gold instead of stating the actual acquired gold amount
Fixed a bunch of attitude and fallback related issues in the ability manager
Scourge no longer claims it can’t be cured
Fixed bug where a rebuilt Pantheon Temple would still be treated as the previously upgraded temple
Fixed bug where disabling I Am The Greatest wouldn't revert your panel slot correctly, allowing for your entry to be duplicated that allows you to kick yourself from your own game
Fixed bug where splash attacks could hit the initial target twice
Fixed bug where some special melee combat vs. mechanics stopped working again (good vs. buildings for example)
Fixed bug where the 4th unit in a tower would not cast their spells when ordered to

Editor
NIS conditions good/evil/neutral now check against your hero’s alignment psych perk (was a combination of vanilla races and classes)

Misc
Switched the effects of Ctrl + click and Alt + click with each other when selecting an AI player in the scenario lobby. In addition, the effects now also pass on race, faction and starting resources when used on the AI slot. Race and faction are now only passed on when used on the race or faction slots. Starting resources are only passed on when used on the resource slot
Improved the game’s performance regarding building repair checks and missile collision
Research complete notifications now take iamawatcher into account and will display the observed side’s powerup notifications instead of your own



Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2420170/Warlords_Battlecry_The_Protectors_of_Etheria/

Discord: https://discord.gg/vqVqssE

Forum: http://the-protectors.forumotion.com/

Donations: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/TPCtreasury

AI
Tweaked the AI’s handling of Dwarven Mines
Tweaked the priority of units seeking corpses to eat
Fixed bug where the auto-casting of Gather Corpses wouldn’t check for any carried corpses before making the unit devour them to restore HP

Heroes
Fixed description error with Ritual Combat. Heroes only ever gain 20% of their maximum mana regardless of the target sacrificed and monstrous units can’t be sacrificed

Items
Fixed missing and outdated items
Fixed bug where some crown chests would be displayed as an actual item chest and give nothing when interacted with

Spells
Fixed bug where Create Item would leave the curse data on newly created items blank, which prevented them from being upgraded by Item Smiths
The caster of the spell is now only targeted by their spell if they are viable for it

General Bug fixes
Melee attacks that cause inflictions now correctly trigger Fortitude on the victim if they successfully resist the infliction
Fixed bug where Undead lost their Poison, Lethal Poison and Ghoulplague immunities
When viewing a hero in the scenario lobby, you can no longer interact with their inventory unless it’s an AI hero and you are the game’s host
Fixed bug where key presses that performed actions based on the mouse cursor’s location (such as pressing Alt to view more details of a production item) wouldn’t work in windowed modes
Fixed rare bug where selecting a Reformatory with Dark Path daemons would display miners in the control panel
Fixed bug where selecting a multi-level building that’s being converted would display miners in the control panel
Fixed bug where a selected building’s view stat would be partly seen under the production queue in the control panel (when Floating UI is set off for productions)
Fixed Crusade research descriptions

Gameplay
Missile units no longer lose range when shooting at higher targets
Tongu Snakepriests now have 17 mana (was 16) - allowing them to cast Spray Acid

Story
(WBC2) Silvermyr: you can now search the Mystic Tower for a special event
(WBC2) Silvermyr: fixed some grass coast to sand coast terrain transitions
(WBC3) Visit The Seers: fixed bug where you would instantly win the scenario

Misc
The Escape key now has a delay between activation when used in the menus (so it doesn’t trigger multiple times a second and close through all menus and then the game)
The WBC2 campaign now plays the conquered citadel video upon you vanquishing an enemy player



Changelog: https://www.moddb.com/games/the-protectors/features/changelog-092b


Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2420170/Warlords_Battlecry_The_Protectors_of_Etheria/

Discord: https://discord.gg/vqVqssE

Forum: http://the-protectors.forumotion.com/

Donations: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/TPCtreasury

This update mainly focuses on bug fixes, stability improvements, some quality of life additions and important balance changes. Despite it being a smaller update, it still contains a vast number of changes (spanning 2 ModDB article pages) so be sure to check those out to see everything change and new addition. But below are some highlights:

• Minotaurs, Plaguelords and Swarm economies have been revisited. These races are no longer dependent on the opponent's actions to get their unique economy going.
  
• Plaguelords have received a lot of quality of life additions that makes playing them much more user-friendly.
  
• Fixed common bugs and crashes with shipyards that made naval maps largely unplayable.
  
• Plague of Revenge custom chapter can now be played (previously would result in instant-defeat on the first mission after a certain point).
  
• And a massive amount of bug fixes and stability improvements!
  

Surprise! Something new! It wouldn't be a TPE update without any new content. XD



Changelog:

Part 1: https://www.moddb.com/games/the-protectors/features/changelog-092a

Part 2: https://www.moddb.com/games/the-protectors/features/changelog-092a-part-2


ModDB: https://www.moddb.com/games/the-protectors

Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2420170/Warlords_Battlecry_The_Protectors_of_Etheria/

Discord: https://discord.gg/vqVqssE

Forum: http://the-protectors.forumotion.com/

Donations: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/TPCtreasury

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

The Protectors’ latest update, version 0.9.2, introduces a wealth of changes and enhancements aimed at improving the gameplay experience while staying faithful to the core values of Warlords Battlecry. Following feedback from the community, this patch revisits several mechanics and features, refining them to appeal to both long-time fans and new players. The update brings back damage types and armour systems, significant quality of life improvements, hero and item overhauls, a revamped building interface, and an updated Warlords Battlecry 1 soundtrack.

[h3]Damage types and armour system[/h3]
The reintroduction of damage types and armour systems marks a major step towards restoring the tactical depth of the original games. Units now possess specific armour percentages against different damage types, offering players a clearer understanding of their strengths and vulnerabilities. This overhaul ensures tactical variety and intuitive unit roles, while also addressing issues caused by the previous unit type system. Dual-damage mechanics have also been refined to make them more effective and strategically valuable. Additionally, each race now has access to new dual-damage type research, enhancing their ability to counter opponents effectively.



Unit statistics have undergone extensive revision, with elite units and titans becoming more cost-effective and powerful. A new cost calculation system ensures fairness in unit and building costs.

[h3]Dual-wielding items for all heroes[/h3]
Heroes and items have also seen substantial updates. Instead of wearing a sword and a shield, any hero may now opt to wield two swords instead. Perks like Archery, Magery, and Throwing have been removed, allowing any hero to equip any weapon with appropriate stat requirements. New skills such as Spellslinger and Runecrafting further enrich hero customization. The introduction of two-handed weapons adds another layer of diversity, and the updated item upgrade system makes high-rarity items more desirable and easier to identify.



[h3]User interface and buildings[/h3]
The update also introduces a new building production wheel, streamlining the interface and improving accessibility. Other building-related improvements include visible conversion progress and expanded garrison options, which now accommodate more unit types. Towers can now contest conversions, enhancing defensive strategies.



[h3]WBC1 Soundtrack modularity[/h3]
A new modular soundtrack, based on Warlords Battlecry 1, adds immersive audio elements, complete with an adjustable volume slider for stingers.

[h3]AI improvements, conqueror diplomacy and some extra content[/h3]
Numerous bug fixes and AI improvements enhance the stability and intelligence of the game. AI units now utilize abilities, items, and garrisons more effectively, while new mechanics like unit pathfinding and spell-casting adjustments improve overall gameplay flow. Other updates include the addition of diplomacy features in the Warlords Battlecry 2 campaign and new content such as buildings, afflictions, and faction-specific mechanics.



[h3]Adjustable key mechanics[/h3]
Key mechanics like the base radius, resources, and upkeep have been revisited based on community feedback. The base radius now limits forward bases and emphasizes racial distinctions, though options exist to disable it for those who prefer a different playstyle. The resource system, while simplifying unit production, has been fine-tuned to maintain balance and thematic coherence. Upkeep has been adjusted to encourage comebacks while mitigating the economic dominance of leading players. Future iterations of these systems are under active consideration to address lingering concerns.

[h3]Updated campaigns and chapters[/h3]
Finally, campaigns have been improved to align with these changes. Updated mechanics ensure better balance and functionality, providing a more cohesive experience for players revisiting the original campaigns.

This comprehensive patch not only addresses the feedback from 0.9 but also sets the stage for a promising future for The Protectors, delivering a richer and more balanced gameplay experience. We thank you for the continued support and hope to see you on the battlefield!

The Protectors Team

Changelog: Changelog 0.9.2

ModDB: https://www.moddb.com/games/the-protectors

Donations: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/TPCtreasury

Discord: https://discord.gg/vqVqssE