Songs of Conquest News

It is that time of year again. Up here in the cold north, the sun is making its return and nature is busy doing its thing. Sprouting, blooming, all that. I will not pretend to be an expert on that sort of thing, but I do know a lot about our upcoming faction, Roots!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3511790/Songs_of_Conquest__Roots/

Last time we took a broad look at the faction, so today I want to get a bit more specific. I will introduce the lineup and take a closer look at some of these glorious fungi-covered creatures.

In truth, this faction has been growing beneath the surface for a long time. We have had Roots in the back of our minds for over seven years, ever since Songs of Conquest was first taking shape. We even explored early concepts for them back then.

As you will see, some of them are sort of still here, others have been composted!

Roots is a visually unique faction. We wanted them to inspire dread, disgust, and strangeness while still being beautiful and full of splendor. It was a challenge, and still is but we are very proud of the results.
We are still in the process of early play-testing, Trying out new traits, and playstyles and just enjoying the feel and atmosphere of them. But, let's look at that promised Lineup.

Eeringly similar to my old classphoto lineup!

As is tradition in these devlogs, I will not go over every unit. Instead, I will highlight a few favorites and leave the rest as lovely pixelated surprises for when Roots is released. That is planned to happen before we disappear on our very Swedish summer vacations.

Let’s start with something small.



"...at first I thought it was my imagination. But they move and have purpose." ~Hami Bronze, Baryan Botanical Collector

Swarms, or clusters of fungi, form the backbone of any Root army. They are weak but cheap, and with the right research, you can field them in massive numbers, overwhelming stronger foes with sheer swamp-like mass.

These semi-sentient mushroom creatures have their own place in Root society. In battle, they provide their Vessel Wielders with creation essence. Their evolved form, the Spawn, spreads a poisonous cloud around them, slowly wearing down anything that threatens the Tree Mothers.

I doubt those horned ones think he's such a fungi



"...found them too late. A scrap of armour was all that remained now that the body had been claimed by the Roots." ~ Stenhild, Huskarl of the Vanir.

Broken and blighted vessels are remnants of failure. In their attempts to create Wielders, or Vessels as the Roots call them, they use humanoid remains found in their lands or after battle. They try to capture the last flicker of life and forge something new.

In extremely rare cases the process succeeds. These vessels become powerful extensions of the Roots called Vessels, leading armies and communicating with outsiders. But more often than not the result is failure.

Yet the Roots waste nothing. These broken experiments of flesh, bone, and living vines are repurposed as laborers and shock troops, defending Roots expansion and survival. Their numbers swell after every battle as long as there are bodies to claim.

Flesh will rot, but Roots will grow



"Burned to a crisp, he was. Mark me, them floaty things ain't to be trifled with." ~Ash, Forester from Arleon.

The Hearts of Roots and their evolved form, Pulse, are strange, beautiful, and terrible. They are formed and grown in dark morasses, deep within the woods of Roots. Their glow and rhythmic pulse inspire those around them, granting nearby allies increased magic resistance and defense

Though their floating form may seem harmless, they are anything but. Their energy beam lances across the battlefield, striking anything in its path. A poor decision or placement could see them turned against you, becoming weapons for your enemy instead.

BZZZZT!


It is hard not to rant about Roots. We are having a lot of fun creating them, and we hope you will have just as much fun playing them. Picking up old ideas and making them feel new again is both a challenge and a reward.

What do you think of the lineup? Which units stand out, and what questions do you want answered? We cannot wait to hear what you think.
Wishlist Roots now and learn more in the months to come. Flesh will rot. Steel will rust. Roots will rise.

/Anders and everyone at Lavapotion

Yesterday marked two major milestones in the journey of Songs of Conquest. We already talked about one in our update on Sim-battles, but the other deserves its own spotlight.

Our friends at Coffee Stain Mobile have just launched Songs of Conquest on mobile, letting you take our beloved strategy game with you wherever you go! Bringing the game to Android and iOS has been quite the challenge, but the results speak for themselves, and we’re incredibly impressed with how well it turned out.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
Of course, we at Lavapotion have been involved in the process, but the real heavy lifting was done by the team at Coffee Stain. We’ve mostly been watching proudly as they worked to bring Songs of Conquest to even more players.

Playing on an iPad or phone feels almost surprisingly natural, and passing the device to a friend for a hot-seat game is just a great experience. Not all features made the transition to our newest format, though. user-created maps, the map editor, and online multiplayer aren’t included, but for single-player and local multiplayer, it’s a perfect fit.

The developers spent a lot of time making sure the interface was mobile-friendly!

We can’t recommend this enough. Songs of Conquest is available now on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store for €11.99/£11.99/$11.99. Playing through our Conquest maps or tackling the four campaigns on a mobile device is a real treat, if we say so ourselves. It runs smoothly and still delivers the same tactical and strategic challenge, just as it should.

Battling Arleon and freeing the march can now be done just about anywhere!

Regardless if your an avid mobile-gamer or not, it really does belong in the literal hands of players everywhere. Now is obviously a fantastic time to take Songs of Conquest just about everywhere!

/Everyone at Lavapotion

Today is a big day, especially for those who enjoy playing multiplayer with friends (or enemies). Simultaneous battles are finally here, letting everyone do battle at the same time! Matches will be faster and more dynamic, making for a smoother experience.

Update 1.5 brings more than just this major feature. It also introduces improved random maps, skill caps for Wielders, along with a range of adventure and balance improvements. More refinements are on the way, but for now, this post focuses on the highlights. Those who enjoy a deep dive into the details will find a full changelog linked at the bottom.

But let’s dive into those highlights like a well-armored frog dives into combat.

So very, very eager!

Let’s start with the big one: Sim-Battles! What is it, and how will it change your game? Since the early days of Early Access, players have asked for a way to fight separate battles at the same time. The goal was to make multiplayer less about waiting for your turn and more about strategy and skill.

At first, this seemed too complex to implement with limited resources, so it was set aside. But it was never forgotten. This winter, our developers took another look and found a solution. After testing last month, Sim-Battles is now ready for public release, you might call it a Christmas miracle!

Are there any limits on how many battles can happen at once? None that we have found. So now is the perfect time to jump back in and enjoy a faster, smoother multiplayer experience.

It’s time to build your forces, dig up those buildings, and conquer your enemies!

And what about those skill caps? The skill system in Songs of Conquest has never been front and center. So, many of you might not even notice this change, but some of you most definitely will! Skills will now have level caps, meaning you won't be able to reach tier 2 of a skill until Wielder level 4 and not tier 3 of a skill until Wielder level 10.

He’s such an archer, our little Peradine!

We have also introduced a more structured approach to randomness in our random maps. The goal is to create a more balanced and polished experience that better reflects our handcrafted Conquest maps. Resources will be a bit scarcer, and the maps themselves will be more visually appealing, with added elevation, beautiful forest and lake combinations, and greater variety in treasures and pickups.
For those who prefer the old style with more abundant resources, we are soon adding a "legacy" mode that keeps random maps closer to their original form.

Beyond these major updates, there are plenty of bug fixes and smaller improvements. One of our favorites is a slight adjustment to neutral hostile growth rates. Sometimes, the smallest tweaks make the biggest difference.

With the ongoing spring sale, this is the perfect opportunity for both new and returning players to jump into Songs of Conquest. There is a lot more happening for our little pixel game this spring. We will be back soon with more news about Roots and other exciting things, such as the imminent release of the mobile version!

/Anders and the rest of Lavapotion

The latest changelog

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[h2]Greetings Wielders![/h2]

A while back, we promised news, and today we deliver! Our next faction has taken root, literally. We’re excited to launch the Roots store page, giving you a first glimpse of what’s to come. Over the next few months, we’ll share more in a series of devlogs covering everything from troops and lore to biomes and abilities.

The Roots is our second faction DLC, bringing sentient vines, walking mushrooms, and the reanimated husks of fallen foes to the battlefield. If that sounds like your kind of army, be sure to wishlist it by clicking the banner below!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3511790/Songs_of_Conquest__Roots/?beta=0

But who, or rather what, are the strange creatures the Vanir call Roots? Deep in the dark Wyldwood of the Bleak East, an ancient, sentient colony of flora, fungus, and the bones of lost heroes thrives. Led by the enigmatic Tree Mothers, the Roots seek to expand their domain and, above all else, survive.

Unlike our other factions, the Roots do not consist of individuals with their own ambitions. They share a single mind, a collective consciousness that drives their relentless push to spread the Wyldwoods. Where Barya and Arleon are built on personal will and strategy, the Roots are bound by purpose—an unstoppable force of nature.

Sentient buildings, and dangerous creatures, they are all tools for a unified purpose.

The Roots understand that to lead their forces and communicate with other factions, they need intermediaries, and voices for the Tree Mothers. To fulfill this need, they create Vessels, repurposed corpses of the fallen, and given just a sliver of their former mind and essence.

The process is not perfect. The vast majority do not survive intact, their wills shattered by the transformation. These broken vessels, little more than husks of bone and vine-bound flesh, become mindless tools, sent into battle as relentless, undying servants of the cause.

I think this Arleon reconnaissance patrol might regret venturing into the Wyldwood.

More ancient than any other faction, the Roots are strange and twisted. Where did they come from? Why did they leave their former home, and why are they now mostly found in the Bleak East? Why does the dangerous Vildra hate them so much? Some of these questions, and perhaps more, will be answered in the two story-driven challenge maps that explore their past.

There will also be five Conquest maps, designed to introduce the new units, showcase how the faction plays, and bring their dark, swamp-infested biome to life. We’ll cover more about that in a future Devlog as it’s still a work in progress, but expect new map entities, dense shadowed forests, and plenty of creeping vines.

We can’t wait to see what you will create with all your new cartography toys!

It’s hard not to throw more fungi-dropping details at you, but the truth is that Roots is still a work in progress, even though production is going great! We see no issues sticking to our plan and expect to release the dark forests of the Roots this summer.

Now, before we continue, we want to acknowledge a mistake. When we released Vanir, we followed Valve’s recommended regional pricing, which we hadn’t done when we launched the base game. This led to an odd situation where the Vanir DLC cost more than what was reasonable in some countries. This wasn’t our intention, but rather an honest mistake on our end, and we understand why it felt frustrating.

We’ve taken your feedback to heart and are making changes. This time, we’re manually adjusting prices when we release Roots, ensuring a fairer approach. We’ve also corrected the mistake with Vanir, and price adjustments should roll out for the affected regions soon. Thank you for your patience and for keeping us accountable.

But back to Roots!

We can’t wait to share more about our newest faction in the coming months. Expect Devlogs covering unit rosters, giant creeps, tactics, essence, and new features. Stay tuned, and don’t forget to wishlist Roots now!

/Anders and everyone at Lavapotion