Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones News

We hail you, Worshipper of The Interminable Desolation

Here we are once again with new macabre tales that are invoked from the realms of endless depravity, where we are cooking the deliciously loathsome meal called Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones. Let's start our journey through the endless bleakness without further ado.



The map system is an important aspect of Stygian which adds another layer of gameplay to the experience, supported also by some basic survival systems built around it. Whether it's a must-go destination of a quest stage, specific hub or the location of a random encounter, all points of interest in a given instance will be displayed in the maps of the game.

There are two kinds of maps in the game: Area Maps and the Regional Map. A good example of an Area Map is the map of downtown Arkham, which displays various hubs within the downtown area. These hubs will be accessed manually, through regular means of travelling in the exploration screen.

The Downtown Area Map with four different hubs which the party can travel to.

Then there is the Regional Map, which shows the landmarks and hubs in the greater area of the game world. The party is able to travel long distances in the regional map, but in order to do that, the player must acquire the necessary information pertaining to the location and content of those landmarks.

The Regional Travel Map has several features like text log, which displays information that's relevant to all map events and the condition of party members. Other indicators include Kerosene meter (showing how much source for illumination you have left), Health bar, Sanity bar, Resource panel and finally; Rest and Halt buttons.

Here's how the Regional Travel Map looks like during a journey through the suburbs.

There are two types of map encounters: Obligatory and Random. Obligatory encounters are derived from quests and appear at a certain stage during quest progression. Random encounters on the other hand, as their name implies, will appear to the player through other variables and luck plays a big factor. The random encounters might take place as one of the many battle scenarios or as challenges in the style of a "choose your adventure" game, where the player will utilize its skills and stats through the selection of various dialogue options.

Next up on our unwholesomely nourishing recipe, we have some systems that we believe should make the game striking, if not unique among its peers.



Darkness itself will be one of your adversaries in Stygian. In a dimension without sunlight you'll be needing the company of your good old lantern more often than not and of course this will come at the expense of your precious Kerosene.

If you find yourself in darkness without a light source you'll start losing sanity. If you enter a combat scenario without a party member carrying a light source you'll have serious disadvantages against enemies (especially the ones that can see in the dark; such as Pickman ghouls).

Darkness mechanics video: https://youtu.be/dS_dnYeWkps

There are two levels of darkness in Stygian: Dark and Pitch-black. Pitch black represents a supernatural level of darkness that drains your sanity, even while holding a light source. Please note that we are not responsible for the strange visions you may see in pitch-black environments. Blame your own dark past for it...



Are you among those who like to min-max your combat potential? Do you find yourself comparing every little stat out there to maximize the pain you'll induce to your enemies? Then this system is for you! (You'll die anyway...)

Whenever you check the statistics of a weapon, you'll be able to see which stats are higher or lower than your currently equipped weapons, thanks to green and red coloured indicators.

Item comparsion video: https://youtu.be/JxFkl5aVshw

If you like a deeper comparison, you can always see the stats of your equipped weapon with a simple right click and examine both items' properties in detail.

Lastly, let's heed the call of the irrepressible voice that only gets louder with each passing minute in this extra-dimensional asylum. Lo and behold: The Madness Mechanics.

As we emphasized before, sometimes it helps to be mad in a world gone mad!





Increases Action Points but gives the character a small chance to lose control and attack the nearest enemy unit in combat.



Increases Reaction but gives the character a small chance to attack an ally in combat.



Increases Mental Resistance but gives the character a small chance to enter a catatonic state and lose a combat round.



Increases Critical Chance but gives the character a small chance to lose a certain amount of Sanity after killing a foe.

Until the next update cult brethren!

Continue dreaming the glorious fall.

Team Cultic

We salute you, Cult Brethren who impatiently wait for our eternal doom!

A date is set finally set for your visit of the town of Arkham. Mark September 26 in your calendars and start preparing your mind for the horrors lurking in the shadows. Please be warned that once Stygian wraps its tentacles around you, there is no going back...

Check out a trailer put together to celebrate that we finally know the day when the eternal doom arrives:

https://youtu.be/o-YaWAaJVd8

We also set a price that your visit will cost - $29.99 USD (24.99 EUR) and of course your soul (if you still have one).

Lasty we will be at Gamescom this year showing the game to both press and public. If you are attending, don't be a stranger and let's talk eternal abyss.

We salute you, Guardant of our Disastrous Salvation

In this most damnably auspicious update, we'd like to welcome you to our chambers of torture, where we churn out the abomination that we call Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones. Let's descend down the labyrinth without further ado.

Here in this update, we'd like to start off by talking about some of the game systems and have a look at the Crafting System.

There are three main skills associated with Crafting: Science, Medicine and Survival.

With the help of your Science skill you can discover (or learn) blueprints of gadgets and contraptions. With the sufficient Science skill value and the right components you'll be able to craft a variety of items from electric lanterns to prototypical weapons.

With Medicine you can discover (or learn) formulas of mixtures and drugs. With the sufficient Medicine skill value and the right components you'll be able to craft a variety of items from cocaine to pheromone cocktails.

And lastly, Survival gradually unlocks new survival recipes which can aid you in your desperate struggle such as ammo belts and handmade backpacks.

Here are some examples of crafting:



Check crafting demonstartion video here:

https://youtu.be/jbmzzDoLFvM

Lastly, there are two types of components which you'll be using to produce your much needed items:

Specific Components: If the plan requires a specific item and that item only, it falls into the category of Specific components
Components with Crafting Traits: If the plan requires an item with a crafting trait, any item that bears the same trait will suffice.


For example; If a plan requires an item with the Alcoholic trait, any kind of liquor or even pure alcohol itself will suffice to fill that particular slot. With this approach, we wanted to open up the way for a flexible system that enables situations like using the clothes you wear to make bandages. And we somehow feel that you'll find yourself in grim situations like this pretty often...

Now let's talk about the Resting system, which is essential for survival in these tumultuous times.

As you probably know, resting in Stygian is not just a mere tool for refilling your depleted stats in the blink of an eye, but a defined side system of preparation, risk assessment and research. We, the folk at Cultic Games tend to do all these before going to sleep, don't you too?

First things first! Let's have a look at our Rest Screen:

Outsider does not socialize

In Stygian, resting also represents the idle time your character and companions spend before going to sleep (or leaving for the Dreamlands). Each character has 5 Rest Points to allocate to a variety of activities which are connected to the acquired skills.

The descriptions of our Rest Activities are as follows:

Note: "Gouging your own eyes out" activity is discarded in the current build for balancing reasons.

Socialize: The character spends her time socializing with a companion, increasing the sanity of both party members.
Related Skill: Speechcraft

Keep Watch: The character stays awake and alert to possible dangers. Decreases the encounter chance while resting in Danger Areas.
Related Skill: Survival

Psychological Treatment: The character provides therapy to a mentally disturbed companion, raising the sanity of the target.
Related Skill: Psychology

Medical Treatment: The character provides medical treatment to herself or a companion, raising the health of the target. Requires Doctor's Bag.
Related Skill: Medicine

Weapon Maintenance: The character performs maintenance on weapon to improve its performance until the next rest.
Related Skill: Firearms or Melee

Physical Exercise: The character performs a series of physical exercises to improve physical endurance and ease the mind until next rest.
Related Skill: Athletics

Gambling: The character takes part in a gambling session in a suitable rest area, gaining Cigs in the process. If things go right..
Related Skill: Subterfuge

Scout: The character scouts the surrounding area for an escape route in case of ambush. The progression escape route will be opened more easily should the party get attacked.
Related Skill: Stealth

Reconnaissance: The character investigates the area to find the best spot to camp, providing a tactical advantage should the party get attacked.
Related Skill: Investigation

Pray: The character prays to the God of her faith, raising the sanity of the character. Requires a religious item.
Related Belief System: Divine

Read: The character reads a book or other publication in relation with her belief system, raising the sanity of the character. Requires a book.
Medical Research: The character searches for a formula by examining medical components in the inventory.
Related Skill: Medicine

Scientific Research: The character searches for a blueprint by examining science related crafting components in the inventory.
Related Skill: Science

Occult Research: The character studies a chosen tome, manuscript or artifact to gain more insight on the forbidden arts. Occult research is used for learning new spells along with identifying the powers and maledictions of artifacts.
Related Skill: Occult

Rest More: The character spends her remaining idle time by resting more, gaining additional health and sanity points.
Related Skill: None

This is the reporting screen that pops up after deciding on the activities

Feel free to throw away any questions you might have ladies and gentlemen!

Until we set sail for the black unknown with the elder race from the stars...

Team Cultic

The Gods have already set the stage upon which a forbidden covenant will be made at the sunset of reality.


We salute you hallowed children and all those who seek atonement in our beautiful doom!

First of all, please forgive our absence for all this time during which we had to lock ourselves inside our isolated vaults. We are indeed in the final months of the project and all the man (and undead slave) power we have has been concentrated on finalizing Stygian.

Picture of our team during the development

But rest assured that you'll be hearing more from us, since the beast that devours all is about to get awakened, and we'd like to herald the coming of the Black Day by sharing some new screenshots with our fellow cult brethren.

Please enjoy them and keep in mind that we are not responsible for any peculiar dreams that you may see after being exposed to them.

Even if the patterings and the creakings will leave your mind alone in this ghastly abode, the ominous violet luminescence certainly won't.

Can you make it through the ashen street of embrittled memories without falling prey to the colours?

Hi everyone,

we will be present at PAX South 2019 with the latest demo of Stygian! It would be our pleasure if we could meet some of you there to chat and showcase you the game!

We will be at booth #10220!

Looking forward to seeing you there ːsteamhappyː