Relic Hunters Legend News

Hey Hunters,

Hope you're having an excellent week!

After a long period without playable updates, we're glad to share with you the first glimpse of our massive Combat 2.0 update! If you missed the original post explaining what Combat 2.0 is, you can check it out right here on this link.

Combo System

New to the Combat 2.0 update is the Combo System promised way back during the Kickstarter campaign! Depending on your Hunter's Role, they will be able to either Prime enemies for Combos and Detonate the Primers that other Hunters have set up.

This feature was originally inspired by Mass Effect 3's multiplayer, but since we announced it in 2017 it has been included in the ill-fated Anthem. What we have learned with their implementation is that the Combo system should be a collaborative-only feature: you should not be able to set it up and trigger it yourself. So here's our design ethos behind it:

• Only Tank and Support characters can set up Combo Primers;
  
• Only Damage and Trickster characters can trigger Combo Detonators;
  
• Combo damage is very high and should compensate for extra enemy health when playing with multiple people;
  
• Combos will be clearly communicated through unique interface icons to make it easier to use them even with a group of strangers and no in-game communication;
  

We hope you like the current iteration of the system and look forward to hearing your feedback on it!

Hunter Skills: Pinkyy

Pinkyy is our aggressive Tank character, and her skills help her and her teammates survive while rewarding her for staying on top of enemies and in the thick of the fights.

Passive Skill: Iron Will

When Pinkyy has no Armor points left, her damage is increased by 30%.

Mobility Skill: Leap (Combo Primer)

Pinkyy's Leap

Pinkyy jumps high and far, landing and interrupting enemies around her. Every enemy hit is Primed for a Combo for 5 seconds.

Utility Skill: Barrier

Pinkyy's Barrier

Pinkyy puts down a Barrier which blocks enemy projectiles but allows her team to shoot through it.

Charge Skill: Iron Rush

Pinkyy's Iron Rush

A powerful dash attack that hits multiple enemies. Pinkyy can hold down the Charge button to empower Iron Rush, and while she is charging the skill, she gains Damage Reduction. There are 3 charge levels, with increasing damage. The final charge level also creates an explosion when the Rush ends.

Melee Skill: Titan Punch

Pinkyy's Titan Punch

Finally, Pinkyy can quickly summon her Titan gloves to punch nearby enemies, dealing considerable damage and restoring Armor points in the process!



Jimmy is our damage dealer, with unparalleled damage-per-second on single targets. He excels at gunplay and rewards careful and precise aiming.

Passive Skill: Bullseye

Whenever Jimmy hits an enemy with a Precision hit, he gains a stack of Bullseye. He can have up to 5 stacks, and each provides him with increased Precision damage for a few seconds.

To hit a Precision hit, you need to hit enemies dead center. Your laser sight will turn white to indicate you are aiming at the Precision spot, and the damage numbers of Precision hits are yellow instead of white.

Mobility Skill: Dash

Jimmy's Dash

Jimmy dashes, defying gravity for a brief moment. After the Dash, he gains an increased chance to Dodge attacks for a few seconds.

Utility Skill: Web Shot

Jimmy's Web Shot

After using this skill, Jimmy's next shot will inflict the enemy with a crippling Web. Enemies under the effect of the web are slowed, and take more damage from all attacks!

Charge Skill: Impact Grenade (Combo Detonator)

Jimmy's Impact Grenade

Jimmy's Charge skill is a grenade that deals heavy damage to all enemies in an area. Hold down the Charge button to increase the radius and damage of the blast (up to 3 Charge levels). If this Skill hits any enemy that is currently marked with a Combo Primer, it will Detonate, dealing extra damage in an area.

Melee Skill: Shield Drain

Jimmy's Shield Drain

Jimmy uses a special gadget installed on his shoes to deal Magnetic damage to enemies and at the same time recover his own Shields!



Raff is our Support character. She is pretty good solo, but shines when playing in a party, healing allies, increasing their damage and move speed with the power of her songs.

Passive Skill: Shifting Moods

Raff's mood in constantly changing - every 7 seconds, to be exact. When she is on her Good Vibes, her healing skills are amplified, while her Bad Vibes enhance her damage-dealing skills.

Mobility Skill: Up The Tempo

Raff's Up The Tempo

Raff increases the tempo of her beat, boosting the movement speed of herself and all nearby allies.

Utility Skill: Soundscape

Raff's Battle Song active

Raff always has one of her music auras active: either Soothing Song, which heal herself and nearby allies over time, or Battle Song, which increases weapon damage for her and everyone nearby. Activating the "Soundscape" skill changes which song is active. If you switch to Soothing Song during Good Vibes, you send out a healing pulse, while switching to Battle Song during Bad Vibes will create a damage pulse instead!

Charge Skill: Keytar Blast (Combo Primer)

Raff's Keytar Blast healing allies

Raff can Charge up a blast from her Keytar which heals allies and damages enemies. There are 3 Charge levels with increasing amounts of healing/damage. Any enemy hit by this skill will get a Combo Primer for 5 seconds.

Melee Skill: Wrench Raff's Wrench

Of course, Raff is still an engineer - which means she fixes problems using a wrench. A really big wrench. The Wrench deals damage to enemies in an area, but can also be used to recover Armor and Shields of allies in range!



Our favorite space donkey Ace is our Trickster character, combining great mobility, crowd control and single-target damage, with a bit of support thrown in for good measure! Ace's kit has been completely redone as a rogue-ish jack-of-all-trades, and we hope you have a lot of fun with him!

Passive Skill: Donkey From Above

Anytime when using Focus Aim (right mouse button / left trigger) in mid-air, Ace will hover with his jetpack, triggering this Passive skill. Hovering in the air is not only super cool, it also gives him bonus Critical Hit Chance and Critical Hit Damage to boot, so stay in the air as often as you can!

Mobility Skill: Jetpack

Ace's Jetpack

Ace's Jetpack throws him quickly into the air - it's very handy for escaping attacks, quickly being able to trigger Donkey From Above or just navigating terrain. Any enemies caught around Ace when he takes off will also take Fire damage and suffer from a Burn Condition for a few seconds.

Utility Skill: Improvised Plan

Ace can use his Improvised Plan skill to recover a big chunk of Skill cooldown for himself and all allies around him! When playing solo this can drastically reduce the cooldown of Holo-Sandwich and/or allow for a fast combo of multiple Jetpack and Rocket-fist maneuvers. But it really shines in party play: with good planning your party can chain together a bunch of skills at the same time!

Charge Skill: Holo-Sandwich

Ace's Holo-Sandwich

Ace's holographic projector has been calibrated for crowd control: he can charge and throw a fake Sandwich across the battlefield, luring nearby enemies and confusing them when they try to eat it. Charging the Sandwich for longer increases its duration, providing you with ample time to run away - or hit your enemies in the back!

Melee Skill: Rocket Fist

Ace's Rocket Fist

Well, Ace's plan was to do a cool rocket punch, but it ends up being a clumsy head-butt instead! This skill was reworked to deal single-target damage instead of AoE, but now launches you into the air after you hit an enemy. You can use this to trigger Donkey From Above and finish them off, or just as a free escape tool to do a hit-and-run tactic!



If you have access to the PTR, we have just uploaded a first taste of the Combat 2.0 on the PTR.

We want your feedback on some of these changes and the direction we're headed.

Here are the major changes on this patch:

• All-new Skills and Combo system (however, there is NO feedback on the interface for Combos right now)
  
• Regular and Elite enemies' effective Life increased by 400%
  
• Champion enemies' effective Life increased by 200%
  
• Relative Skill damage increased by 200%
  
• Non-Mobility Skill Cooldowns drastically increased
  
• Potion Cooldowns drastically increased
  
• Enemy Mortar skills deal a little less damage, are much faster
  
• Weapons are much less accurate when you are not using Focus Aim (laser sights)
  
• Enemies change positions less often, and have a "tell" before their attacks
  
• All-new enemy attack patterns: no homing projectiles, easier to dodge, higher damage
  
• New attack patterns for Regular enemies and the Ducan Demolisher
  
• New spawn system that allows us for better control of the encounter size and enemy types
  
• The time before you can self-revive in co-op matches has been drastically increased
  
• Multiplayer enemy scaling has been tweaked up a little bit (enemies have more life and damage proportional to how many players are in the match)
  
• Enemies now have collision and you can no longer walk through them (they also cannot walk through each other)
  

Here is how to play it:

(FIRST: RECOMMENDED) By accessing the PTR, your save files will be lost. Please back up your files first by navigating to "C:\Users\YOUR_USER_NAME\AppData\LocalLow\Rogue Snail\Relic Hunters Legend" and making a copy of all the files within.

• Go to your Steam Library
  
• Right-click on the game and select "Properties"
  
• Navigate to the "BETAS" tab
  
• Select "public-test-realm (PTR)" from the drop-down menu
  
• Click on "CLOSE" and wait for the update to download
  

If you have any questions come to our Discord channel, we can help you out.



We also have a confirmed release date for the full Combat 2.0 update, with new mechanics, new enemies and gameplay: December 23rd!

Looking forward to deliver this Christmas gift for you!

I (Mark) will be with you on the Livestream this Friday at our usual time to show the new Combat 2.0 and discuss the upcoming changes with you.

Our Twitch channel: http://twitch.tv/playrelichunters

That's all for today! See you on Friday!

Cheers,

~Mark

Invite your friends to our Official Discord Channel and win a Custom Pop Funko of Spooky Jimmy!

This Halloween month we’re doing the event “Relic Huntober” alongside our partner Sivicks. For you participate in it, you have to join our Official Discord Channel, create an invite code and call as many friends as possible to join our community. For every 10 people that join, we’ll add a Relic Hunters Alpha key to a giveaway that Sivicks is going to host on Halloween (31th October).

We’ll also make a Rank tracking the number of successful referrals per participant, and the top three places will win prizes, but only the first place will receive the Custom Pop Funko. So, get ready to call your friends to win this HUNT!

Check out the rules of participation and other details about the event on our Discord Channel (discord.gg/relichunters).

Hey Hunters,

How have you been?

We're already in October, oh my! I heard our Community Manager Lucy and one of our Partners Sivicks are cooking up something nice for Halloween - make sure you're following us on social media to stay up to date!

We've been hard at work on what's next for Legend. Our Steam Early Access release is fast approaching, and we are trying to hurry up and cram it with as much love, polish, cool features and content that we can!



Our most handsome Team Voyager is still focusing 100% on story and the Secret Market - our Social Hub. I wish I could show all the cool things they are working on, but spoiling story stuff is a no-no.

What I can talk about though is how cool these story tools are!

Our story editor tool

We have taken the amazing open-source storytelling tool Fungus and made it ours - we have completely rewritten all commands to fit our game's architecture, while also improving the workflow and UX to fit our needs.

Gabe and Nathalia have done a great job at this, and if you've messed around with Chroma Squad's Episode Editor before (Gabe was the programmer for that!), this is similar but a thousand times more flexible and powerful. Our story designer Pedro is already working on many quests and side stories, and I can't wait to see them in-game.

Top View of the current state of The Secret Market development

Meanwhile, The Secret Market is also going super well. It is by far the biggest and most detailed location in the game, and we hope it will feel like home when you are there.

We are still holding back most details so that we don't spoil too much - that's why you are only getting the aerial view for now, sorry :p

Here are some non-spoilery information about the Market, though:

• It will be the Social Hub of Relic Hunters Legend with multiple online shards with lots of players in each of them.
  
• We still don't know how many online players we can fit into each shard because of performance (both CPU and server-side). We are aiming for as many as we can! The dream is 32 or more players, and hopefully it is feasible, but we will try our best to fit as many as we can.
  
• The Secret Market will be home to all kinds of vendors and quest givers, and most adventures will start there.
  
• If you backed the game on the NPC or Distinguished NPC tier, you will probably be a resident of the Secret Market, going about your day ;)
  
• The Market will have a day and night cycle of a couple of real-time hours.
  
• Spoiler-free lore information: the Market sits right in the middle of Hilltown, which is Ducan-controlled territory. The Market hides in plain sight from the Ducans though, using an ancient cloaking technology called The Perception Drive.
  
• The visual inspiration for the Secret Market is Brazilian favelas, especially the Santa Marta community in Rio. It is colorful and dynamic, full of art, music and creativity, contrasting with the dull, grey and sad Hilltown, which is controlled by Ducan forces.
  

We at Artemis have recently released the Full Party Update, which included Raff's full skill kit and general improvements on skills and our internal skill tools.

Moving on, we have decided to tackle something I am personally extremely excited for: combat.

The core combat mechanics of Legend have been largely untouched since the Kickstarter demo, almost 2 years ago. There was always something riskier, more technical, more important for the vision of the game, more requested by the Founders, etc.

We think now is the time to finally get the combat gameplay of Legend to match our original vision of the game. I'll try to explain the goals and major changes the best way I can, and I very much look forward to hearing your opinions on this - join us on Discord if you haven't already!

Design goal of Combat 2.0

To improve the flow of combat, increasing the relevance of Skill use, reading enemy behavior, and proper positioning. To improve co-op, making player collaboration more important. And finally, to improve the game's challenge in a fair way, allowing us to create meaningful challenge for an experienced group of 4 players.

What do we want to do to get there?

• Stagger System: enemies will have "Hit" animations that will not only make your attacks feel "heavier", but also interrupt their actions;
  
• Combo System: as promised since the Kickstarter video, we will introduce Skill Combos between the skills of different Hunters to encourage teamwork;
  
• Condition Triggers: all Damage Types (Impact, Frag, Magnetic, Fire, Water, Nature) will have a chance to trigger their respective Conditions (Stun, Injury, Silence, Burn, Freeze, Contagion);
  
• Ultimate Skills: all Hunters will charge and unleash their Ultimate skills through gameplay;
  
• Elite Rebalance: Elite enemies will appear on every Difficulty (but more of them will show up on Hard and Epic) and be significantly stronger to provide an "oh snap" moment and break the pacing of combat.
  

betu's concept of a new Kami enemy

• New Enemies and Bosses: Kami faction and more variants of Ducan troops;
  
• Improved Enemy Behavior: enemies will stop bouncing around all the time, will position themselves more sensibly and have clear attacks that can more easily be avoided;
  
• Major Life/Healing Rebalance: enemy attacks will be easier to read and avoid, but damage will be higher. Also, healing from the Potion will be on a drastically increased cooldown, which will increase the value of other healing sources such as Shield regen, Skills and items.
  
• Ammo Economy Rebalance: ammo will run out more quickly, especially for powerful weapons such as shotguns and marksman rifles, but will drop more often, especially during boss fights.
  
• Fixes: shotgun reloads, weapon reload animation speeds and other bugs that get in the way of combat gameplay more will be fixed;
  

Uh, not sure. We're focusing more on the quality than on a hard date for this one. Our internal goal is: before the end of the year. Does it mean November? December? One day before Christmas? Too early too tell. But I promise to keep you updated and give you more accurate estimates when we have them!



We probably won't be releasing it until we are very close to done (which should be right before our Steam Early Access release next year).



It's a surprise! But you can be the first to know by checking out our Social media and weekly Community livestreams on Twitch:

Twitch (Every Friday on Noon Pacific Time)

Twitter

Instagram

Facebook

That's it for today! Cheers!

~Mark, Lucy and all Rogue Snail Team

Our game is built with love and respect between us and our community. We want to find people with the same values as us to help us build a safe and welcoming place for everyone and spread the word about Relic Hunters Legend.

The Relic Hunters Partnership Program was built to support passionate content creators around the world that want to grow alongside us. Whether you're a big or small Streamer or YouTuber, we want engaged people with quality content to help us built this dream game.






Apply to our Partnership Program to become a Relic Hunter! You just have to fill out some info and join the fight against Ducan oppression across the galaxy!

You'll win a bunch of rewards on this adventure, such as giveaways, early access to new content, social media promotion, exclusive feedback channel for content creators and more.

Check more details about it here.

Cheers,

Lucy, Mark and all the Rogue Snail Team!

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Hi everyone,

Last week we deploy our new update and now our founders and backers can enjoy adventures in Relic Hunters Legend with a Full Party!

It was time for Raff, the Party Engineer, show up with all her skills implemented and now she is able to support her teammates through jammin’ tunes and pump out some damage with her trusty Keytar.

• THE WRENCH: The Wrench is Raff's Melee skill. It deals a lot of area damage, but can also hit allies to recover their Shields (blue lifebar) or Armor (yellow lifebar). Pretty handy!
  
• SOUNDSCAPE: Raff's Utility skill. It projects a constant aura of music around Raff that can buff her and nearby allies. By actively using the skill, you can switch between two songs: Soothing Song, which regenerates Life over time, and Battle Song, which grants +20% Weapon Damage.
  
• SHIFTING MOODS: Her Passive skill. Raff's humor is constantly changing, which affects her skills: every 7 seconds she switches between two stances: Good Vibes and Bad Vibes.
  If you switch to Battle Song while in Bad Vibes, you deal Magnetic damage in an area around Raff. On the other hand, if you switch to Soothing Song while in Good Vibes, you will instantly heal Raff and nearby allies for a good amount.
  
• KEYTAR BLAST: Raff's signature skill! By holding down the Charge skill, you can wind up a devastating attack with the Keytar that will hit everything in a large cone in front of Raff! Enemies will take a lot of Magnetic damage (which is effective against Shields in particular), and allies will be healed instantly!
  
• UP THE TEMPO: Last but certainly not least, if your party wants to slip away in style, Raff has her super cool Mobility skill called Up The Tempo. It gives a huge speed buff to Raff and all nearby allies, allowing you to sprint and zip around the battlefield!
  

And there are more things to come for Relic Hunters Legend! Participate in our Community at Discord, give us your feedback and ask us any question you want!

Don't forget to follow our media to not lose any news about the game.

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Cheers,
Lucy, Mark and all Rogue Snail Team.