Bloodgrounds News

[p]Ave, Patronus!

First of all, thank you for the very strong anticipation and feedback after our initial demo release - it meant a lot to us personally - especially meeting some of you directly at Gamescom in August. But without further ado - the time is almost here to let you decide your... our... - well, our all combined fate.

Bloodgrounds is releasing into Early Access November 5th on Steam!

Additionally as per the audience's request, we are releasing more Bloodgrounds content in a new demo already today, hoping to earn your favour.

After you battle through the desert arena of Zaharr, travel to the heart of the lush jungle Livia, where the Lys have established Inardia, a brutal arena born from an ancient temple and a shrine to Panacea, the goddess of life and good health. A place so mesmerizing that only the brutality and the perils of the arena can rival its beauty.

The new demo contains:

• The first 3 - 5 hours of Bloodgrounds
• Access to the entire first age and part of the second one
• 7 out of 9 gladiator classes
• Unlock up to 5 out of 7 abilities per class
• Max. level of the gladiators: 7 out of 15 in the full game
• 9 out of 13 base buildings and their first out of 4 upgrades
• Collect a variety of common, rare, and epic items (legendary items will be available in the full game!)

And as always, we hope you will share your game experience in the STEAM forum, or drop by our Discord server. Enjoy the new demo, and if you like it, don't forget to wishlist the game!

Vale, Patronus!
Exordium Games & Daedalic Entertainment[/p]

[p]Welcome, Gladiator! [/p][p]Training is key to surviving the bloody fights in the arena. Therefore, we prepared a little guide for you – don’t miss the developer overview video for BLOODGROUNDS![/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p]Play the demo and wishlist on Steam: [/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p][/p]

[p]Ave, Patronus![/p][p]The sands of the arena run red once again, and with your valuable feedback, we've tinkered with our demo quite a bit. Today’s update brings a plethora of new features, balance changes, UX improvements, and crucial bug fixes to help you experience full on gladiator mayhem…[/p][p]…Let’s dive into the full update:[/p][p] [/p][h2]Balancing Updates[/h2][h3]Audience Quests[/h3]

• [p]Balanced 14 Audience Quests by reducing complexity and simplifying objectives to make them more achievable.
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• [p]Improved quest design based on player feedback to ensure smoother progression.
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[h3]Status Effects[/h3]

• [p]Burn and Frost statuses no longer persist between battles, reducing long-term punishment and improving flow.
  [/p]

[h2]New Features & Additions[/h2][h3]City Management[/h3]

• [p]Level-Up Stat Rerolling: You can now reroll stat choices during level-ups using gold. Manage your training more strategically!
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[h3]Battle Pickups[/h3]

• [p]Favor of Cleansing: New pickup item that removes all stacks of a random negative status on pickup.
  
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• [p]Favor of Protection: New pickup item that grants 1 Invincibility status on pickup.
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[h3]Tactical Visibility Tools[/h3]

• [p]Movement Range Preview: Hold F to view hovered unit's movement range. This can be toggled to always-on in gameplay settings.
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• [p]Path Danger Indicators: Paths now display hazard indicators (e.g., traps, status zones). Enabled by default and toggleable.
  
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[h2]
UX & UI Improvements[/h2][h3]Battle UX[/h3]

• [p]Added new notifications for key events: Evade, Luck – Death, Luck – Status, and Critical Hits.
  [/p]
• [p]Evade Luck now displays when hovering over units.
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• [p]Default pathing uses safe paths, with a toggle to revert to "fastest path."
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• [p]Unit tooltips show clearer level, tier, and class icon tooltips.
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• [p]Improved readability for stack counts and ability damage numbers.
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• [p]Enhanced unit rotation targeting, especially for directional abilities like Vindicta.
  
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[h3]City UX[/h3]

• [p]Auto-close delay added to stat level-up screens for smoother progression.
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• [p]Added Graveyard “(!)” Indicator for unseen fallen Gladiators (reminder: equipment is preserved until graves are dug up in the full release).
  
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• [p]Improved tutorial flow during first academy ability unlock.
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• [p]Added consistent “(!)” indicators across Quarters, Map, and Academy.
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• [p]New tooltip explaining grave-digging mechanics.
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• [p]Better sorting and highlighting for gladiator selection and challenge assignment. For Example, a new sort option, differentiating between “in team” and “not in team” Gladiators.
  [/p]
• [p]Added Inn “(!)” notification when free Gladiators are available to recruit.
  [/p]
• [p]Fixed New Gladiator “(!)” indicator when gaining units via mercy.
  
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[h3]Dialog & Cinematics[/h3]

• [p]Skip button repositioned to bottom right for better visibility.
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• [p]Clicking during dialog now skips speaker fade-ins for faster progression.
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[h3]Other UX Tweaks[/h3]

• [p]Sliders, for example in Gladiator previews, vertical lists or pre/post battle panels, now display exact values (except XP).
  [/p]
• [p]Improved item tooltip positioning (no more tooltips off-screen).
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• [p]Added simple font option for accessibility (Bree-aligned duplicate of Liberation).
  [/p]
• [p]Added a location in each arena to show your chosen banner for improved visual flair.
  
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[h2]Fixes & Stability[/h2][h3]General Fixes[/h3]

• [p]Journal now returns to the previously selected option after dialog or custscene replays.
  [/p]
• [p]Fixed issue with dialog recap after saving post-first battle.
  [/p]
• [p]Dismiss Gladiator feature now available from game start. You still won’t be able to dismiss your last Gladiator.
  
  [/p]

[h3]

Combat Fixes[/h3]

• [p]Arena Modifier Fixes:
  [/p]
  • [p]“Spiked Arena” Modifier’s spikes no longer spawn on spaces occupied by a unit.
    [/p]
  • [p]“Opportunism” Modifier now correctly counts filled consumable slots, not unique items.
    [/p]
• [p]Prevented attacks through indestructible objects with melee spear/hammer abilities.
  [/p]
• [p]Updated Taunt to only expire on turn start (not on damage).
  [/p]
• [p]Fixed missing attack of opportunity animation for enemy Invicta.
  [/p]
• [p]Vindicta and other directional abilities now correctly rotate based on target alignment.
  [/p]
• [p]Fixed tooltips displaying out of screen bounds during battle and pickups.
  
  [/p]

[h3]City Fixes[/h3]

• [p]Fixed outermost gladiator class icon clipping in full party layouts.
  [/p]
• [p]Updated Novice Challenge behavior to prevent quest exploit.
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• [p]Fixed map node visibility after resetting challenges.
  
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[h3]Ability Fixes[/h3]

• [p]Clarified Headbutt tooltip: Stun applies only on collision.
  [/p]
• [p]Disabled initiative tooltip preview in invalid states.
  
  [/p]

[h3]AI Fixes[/h3]

• [p]Enemies now consider attack of opportunity risks and their own HP when moving or attacking.
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• [p]Age 1 Boss AI updated to use a more diverse set of abilities instead of repeating the most efficient one.
  
  [/p]

[p]This update is just the beginning of refining the demo and the development of Bloodgrounds in general. Your feedback is a vital part of its' evolution, and we’re honored to fight beside such an already passionate community. Keep the reports, ideas, and feedback coming - we’re listening.[/p][p]Now go... train your champions and claim your glory!
[/p][p]Vale Patronus!
Exordium Games & Daedalic Entertainment[/p][p]

[/p]

[p]Ave, Patronus!

Today marks a glorious day, as you finally can get your hands on our demo for Bloodgrounds!

We tinkered together an experience that should give you the best idea what we have in store for you in our full version. Obviously we dont want to spoil everything in the beginning, so - as you probably already thought for yourself - some parts of the individualization are reduced.
Here you can find a summary of what the differences are:

[/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p][/p]

• [p]Access the entire first Age[/p]
• [p]Master the first arena and get an initial peek of what awaits you in the second Age[/p]
• [p]6 out of 9 gladiator classes are available[/p]
• [p]Unlock up to 4 out of 7 abilities per class[/p]
• [p]7 out of 17 weapon types and 3 out of 11 armor sets are available[/p]
• [p]Max. level of the gladiators: 5 out of 15 in the full game[/p]
• [p]7 out of 13 base buildings and their first out of 4 upgrades[/p]
• [p]Collect a varity of common, rare and epic items (legendary items will be available in the full game),[/p]

• [p]20 out of 100 Achievements
  [/p]

[p]At this point in development, it would mean a lot to us, if you share your experience here in the steam forum and give us your honest feedback - we won't throw you into the pit, promised!

Enjoy our demo and if you like what you see, don't forget to wishlist!


Vale, Patronus!
Exordium Games & Daedalic Entertainment[/p]