Hello everyone!
Welcome to the last dev blog for this year!
This one is going to be rather short with the holidays getting closer. Many of us will be, or already are, taking a break from development stuff and will get back to work next year. On top of that, we have also been switching to a new engine version and are experimenting with new features and changes which came with the update.
However there won’t be any screenshots or hints at the new engine content from our side since we are only exploring new possibilities.
The Lindworm
This is rather old news at this point, but we know some followers prefer to read about updates in our dev blogs instead of our social media pages.
The Lindworm is now a playable creature and fully customizable like the European dragon. It comes with a new accessory set specifically made for this species, but also some backer and non-backer accessories which are available to European dragon players.
The Lindworm is one of the smaller dragons in the game and has it fairly easy when it comes to moving around on the ground and especially in caves and other narrow places.
It is not able to make burrows yet, but that doesn’t mean the mechanic has been removed from our to-do list. We will still add it later down the road when the foundation of our character system has been completed.
The Wyvern
Not so long ago, Lenar finished the Wyvern model, which many of you have been so excited for. We originally wanted it to have smaller, pointier scales all over the body, but made last minute changes and went for something less common in Wyvern designs and gave it more plated scales, which make the dragons skin look less impenetrable.
There is no date for when it will be playable yet because we still have the Eastern dragon to animate and implement, which has been modeled previously.
It will most likely be sneaked in when you least expect it
The Behemoth
Another model done and the next one already in the making.
Unfortunately we don’t have a preview of it yet because it is still in a very early stage and Lenar is taking some time off until next year.
However, you can expect a rather large redesign of the character. This doesn’t mean we have completely scrapped the original design, just that we wanted something more visually appealing to be the default model.
There is still a good chance the old concept will be turned into a playable creature.
In-Game Things
One of the main things we have been working on is our stats system, which is finished for the most part at this point, but will still require some minor edits as the games development progresses. The edits will mainly include the addition of unique or rare effects for specific scenarios (no spoilers).
With the system being mostly done, we were able to finally add consumables objects to the game. These are currently basic carcasses, chunks of meat and water sources, which restore thirst, hunger and/or health points – or drain one or more of these stats if you consume something “not so healthy”. Later we will add more unique consumables which will give your character rather complex stat boosts or even de-buffs. So if you decide to eat something rotten, we will make sure you will regret it. ;’)
But the stats system doesn’t only include the functionality of consumables. It also allowed us to manipulate stats like stamina and energy, which are partially being used in-game now depending on what your character does. Stamina for example is being used as soon as you move.
Even if you just walk around, you will notice that your Stamina points are slowly dropping. If you start to sprint or fly faster they will deplete quicker.
In many games stamina is only being used during attacks, sprinting or other fast and exhausting movements.
But everyone, who likes to walk longer distances knows that even normal walking can be exhausting over the long run. This means, if you want your Stamina to refill, you will have to stop for a moment and wait. The waiting time depends on your characters base stats, the resting state it is in and possible buffs or de-buffs affecting it.
Another thing we had briefly in the game is a new sky and weather system. Unfortunately we had to remove it, since it caused a fair number of problems on weaker pc builds. We are currently looking at alternatives on the side, which are easier on performance, but still have the same or at least a similar visual effect.
Final words
This year has been quite chaotic but we have made a lot of progress considering we were rebuilding the game from the ground up while some of us had and still have a full time job and other projects and tasks to work on on the side.
A huge THANK YOU also goes to our amazing community! The positivity, feedback, created content and the general support have helped us a lot. Especially during this pandemic, which will most likely follow us through the entire next year as well. It is a difficult time for many people in different ways, but we are doing our best to stay positive.
As mentioned at the beginning of this blog, many of us will take some time off during the holidays.
We will most likely release one more patch before we go into standby mode for the rest of the year to fix some issues and make smaller changes to the stats system. If you have been good this year, Santa Claws might also include a new playable creature (not the Eastern Dragon or the Drake)!
But enough for todays dev blog. We hope you are able to celebrate at least a little bit and wish you HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
Don’t forget to wishlist, follow and/or share the project:
Steam – https://store.steampowered.com/app/1295900/Draconia/
Patreon – https://www.patreon.com/draconiagame
Discord – https://discord.gg/draconiagame
Twitter – https://twitter.com/draconia_game
Reddit – https://www.reddit.com/r/draconiagame/
See you next year (or on Discord)!