Greetings, Viceroys!

We’re back with yet another portion of features, UX improvements, and balance changes to keep you on your toes.

What’s new:

• Haulers revamp
• New perks
• New Forest Mysteries
• Storage reserve (lower limit)
• Cornerstones rebalance
• Recipe distribution rebalance
• And more!

Continue reading for our design notes and a full changelog.

DEVELOPER NOTES

In today’s update, we bring you a revamp of the hauler system (boy that was quick), a little bit of new content in the form of new perks and Forest Mysteries, some much-needed balance for Cornerstones, building, and Citadel Upgrades, and of course the cherry on top – community inspired UI improvements. So without further ado, let’s jump right into the nitty gritty details!

First off, the hauling revamp. In the last update, we introduced dedicated haulers together with two new buildings – the big and the small hauler stations. While this was a community-requested feature, we didn’t really manage to deliver it up to a satisfactory quality level. The main problems with this feature were the added blueprint bloat and the lack of a substantial boost or gameplay change offered by this new building type. In plain English – it was weak and unfun.

Now you might be wondering – why did we try this in the first place? Our initial goal with the hauler stations was to introduce a new type of choice in the game, a gameplay style less focused on a wide array of production buildings and oriented more in the direction of logistical optimization. But it quickly turned out that this wasn’t really feasible, and the original design goal felt forced in the end. That’s why we decided to revert this change and find a new place for haulers in the game.

After a few experiments, we arrived at a solution we think is both fun and rewarding, namely haulers being assigned to warehouses. This way we don’t add to the blueprint pool, and we introduce a system that is always accessible and easily balanced because of the worker investment (plus it’s just logical for haulers to be working in warehouses). We also considered some other solutions, like free workers carrying goods automatically, but that caused a lot more problems than it solved, both technically and in terms of user experience (as most of the game is built around the workplace system and dual/floating professions wouldn’t really work with existing mechanics). Additionally, to make things a bit more interesting, we introduced some new dedicated hauler perks into the mix.

Warehouse with Haulers and Hauling Cart

Speaking of perks – let’s move on to the new content. We added 4 new Cornerstones and 2 new trader/order perks to the game. Most of these are focused on haulers, like the Dual Carriage System Cornerstone, which adds 2 mechanized, autonomous hauling carts to the Main Warehouse. Additionally, we introduced 3 new Forest Mysteries (two negative ones and one positive) and 2 new Citadel Upgrades.

In this update, we also took some time to rebalance a few aspects of the game. Most importantly, we took a closer look at Cornerstones, trying to make some underwhelming ones a bit more attractive, while also nerfing two or three very powerful ones to make them less oppressive. Additionally, we decided to switch up some rarities and drop rates. After this patch, you might notice some “early game” effects having a slightly higher chance of appearing in the first few years of a run (and a slightly lower chance in late game). We also removed certain weak perks (such as Force of Nature or Blight Filter) to make the Cornerstone pools more balanced in general.

But that’s not all in terms of balance. There are also some changes to production buildings (recipe swaps and a shorter production time in the Clay Pit), as well as a cost rebalance in the upgrade tree in the Smoldering City. This last change is mainly aimed at new players, making some lower unlocks a bit cheaper to buy and speeding up early progression. This is just the first step, as we plan on doing a more extensive balance pass on upgrades once we’re closer to the 1.0 launch.

Let’s now move on to UI improvements. Probably the most exciting one is the ability to set a lower limit for a resource in the warehouse. This was requested multiple times by the community, and we finally came up with a way of allowing players to “reserve” a good. From now on, you can set a minimum amount for an item in the warehouse, and crafters won’t touch it unless there is an excess of it. However, scouts, hungry villagers, and builders will still take the item even if there is a limit set (but these interactions can be controlled through other means, like consumption control or selecting resources in the event UI).

Small Warehouse reserve

There are also multiple smaller UI changes in this update, like a recipe/ingredient toggle in the recipe panel, a new tier 0 recipe icon, a checkbox for needs in service buildings (so workers don’t stockpile goods unnecessarily), or the option to unassign just one woodcutter using the “unassign woodcutters” button on the HUD. And, as is tradition with every patch, we fixed a lot of bugs, typos, and inconsistencies.

Services checkbox

Tier 0 recipe

As always – thank you all for providing feedback and suggestions for the new update. If you’d like to share your ideas for upcoming updates, here are some useful links:

• Steam Discussions, Discord, Reddit – discuss the game with the community and share your impressions
• Feature Request Tool – suggest specific new features

May the storm be gentle on you,
Eremite Games

P.S. One of the best things you can do to help indie games is to leave a Steam review. If you’ve had a chance to play Against the Storm, we’d love to hear any feedback, positive or negative. Thanks!

CHANGELOG

Changes marked with ⚡ were inspired by community.

New content and features

• ⚡ Haulers are now assigned to Warehouses instead of Hauling Stations.
  • The Main Warehouse has 3 workplaces for haulers, and the Small Warehouse has 2.
  • Haulers work the same way as they did before – they transport production yields and ingredients between buildings.
  • Haulers (in both Warehouse versions) now have a much larger range – 25 tiles instead of 12.
  • Both small and big Hauler Stations have been removed from the game. They will no longer be offered as blueprints or appear in glades.
  • Haulers are now unlocked via the upgrade tree in the Smoldering City. They are divided into two separate unlocks – for the Main Warehouse and for Small Warehouses. 
  • Both unlocks are new and can be found in the First Dawn Company branch of the upgrade tree.
• ⚡ Added 4 new Cornerstones.
  • Hauling Cart (Legendary) – An automated rainpunk cart will be assigned to every warehouse in the settlement to help transport resources between buildings.
  • Dual Carriage System (Legendary) – Two rainpunk hauling carts will be assigned to the Main Warehouse to help transport resources between buildings.
  • Reckless Plunder (Legendary) – Scouts are so focused on looting that they unintentionally damage the environment. Increases the chance of bringing back twice as many resources from Abandoned Caches by 100%, but newly discovered resource nodes have fewer charges (-5 charges to small deposits, -15 charges to large deposits).
  • Travel Rations (Epic) – There is no need to return to the Hearth when you have provisions with you. Time between breaks for Haulers is increased by 50%.
• Added 2 new perks that can be acquired from traders, orders, or glade events.
  • Specialized Workwear (Rare) – Specialized equipment enhanced with rainpunk technology. Haulers move 25% faster.
  • Safety Ropes (Rare) – A set of strong ropes to secure any shipment. Haulers and mechanized carts can carry 5 more goods at once.
• Added 3 new Forest Mysteries.
  • Unnatural Erosion (Storm) – The wind and rain in this region seem more destructive than usual. Pay 5 Oil with each storm (multiplied by the number of years played). If you don’t, 2 random resource nodes will be destroyed.
  • Shifting Paths (Storm) – The road to the village is long and winding, so some newcomers need a bit of extra motivation. Pay 2 Packs of Luxury Goods with each storm (multiplied by the number of years played). If you don’t, the next newcomer group will arrive 50% slower.
  • Inspiring View (Drizzle) – The astonishingly beautiful view motivates villagers to work. The time interval between breaks is increased by 25%.
• Added 2 new Smoldering City Upgrades.
  • First Dawn Company Headquarters Level 10 – unlocking Haulers for Small Warehouses and giving a passive double yield chance increase.
  • Vanguard Spire Level 5 – giving Bricks as a guaranteed starting bonus and increasing the total amount of node charges.
  • The hauler unlock for the Main Warehouse was squeezed in into an existing upgrade (and other upgrade rewards were reshuffled – you can find out more about that in the balance section of this changelog).
  • Due to this change, some players might be missing an upgrade or two after installing this update. This is because we inserted new unlocks in the middle of the upgrade tree, thereby bumping some existing upgrades higher up.

Balance

• ⚡ The Rotten Rain Forest Mystery no longer spawns Blood Flowers on farm fields. It now simply spawns them in a random place in the settlement (close to the Main Hearth if possible). 
• ⚡ The Waterskin recipe now requires one less Oil on every tier.
• ⚡ Rebalanced multiple Cornerstones.
  • Local Taxes (Epic) – now gives 12 Amber every 50 Ale produced instead of 20 Amber every 100 Ale produced.
  • Force of Nature (Epic) – this perk was removed from the game.
  • Well-Rested Workers (Epic) – increased the chance for double yields from 20% to 25%. 
  • Value Added Tax (Epic) – instead of giving 2 Amber for every 6 Packs of Trade Goods produced, this perk now increases the sell price of Packs of Trade Goods by 25%.
  • The Sparkcaster (Epic) – changed the rarity of this perk from Epic to Rare and removed it from Cornerstone pool. It can now be acquired from traders, orders, or events.
  • From the Ashes (Legendary) – increased the number of Wildfire Essences given for solving dangerous events from 1 to 2.
  • Market Shift Plan (Legendary) – decreased the number of trade routes needed to remove the trade block drawback from 8 to 5.
  • Rich Glades (Legendary) – lowered the number of extra big node charges from 20 to 15.
  • Hidden from the Queen (Legendary) – moved the Impatience penalty from year 8 to year 9.
  • Blight Filter (Legendary) – this perk was removed from the game.
  • Counterfeit Amber (Legendary) – lowered the amount of rainwater required to generate Amber from 75 to 50. Changed the Blightrot Cysts growth increase from 20% to 25%.
  • Firelink Ritual (Legendary) – changed how this perk’s bonus is calculated. Instead of removing 25 Hostility for every 5 villagers with a need fulfilled, it now decreases Hostility by 5 for every 1 villager. 
  • Work Safety Guide (Legendary) – changed how this perk’s bonus is calculated. Instead of increasing global production speed by 25% for every 5 villagers with a need fulfilled, it now increases the production speed by 5% for every 1 villager.
  • Obsidian Runestone (Legendary) – removed the drawback from this perk, changed its rarity to Epic, and decreased the HEarth Resistance bonus from 500 to 400.
  • Queen’s Gift (Legendary) – changed how this perk works. Instead of giving Hearth Resistance for Impatience points, it now increases the Hearth Resistance by 250 for every 2 woodcutters in the settlement.
  • Alarm Bells (Legendary) – increased the double production bonus chance from 20% to 25%.
  • Trade Hub (Legendary) – changed the Resolve to Reputation growth speed reduction from a 50% to 75%.
  • Prosperous Settlement (Legendary) – increased the amount of Amber required to trigger the Resolve bonus from 45 to 50.
  • Protected Trade (Legendary) – changed the Hostility reduction from -15 to -10 for every 30 Amber traded.
  • Farsight (Legendary) increased the time limit of the working speed bonus for discovering small glades from 120 seconds to 180 seconds.
• ⚡ Tweaked the drop rates of multiple Cornerstones in the game.
  • Some Cornerstones are more beneficial when offered early during a game (like bonuses for opening glades or non-retroactive trade route effects), while others might be more attractive later on.
  • That’s why we decided to slightly increase the drop rates of “early” Cornerstones in the first few years of a game, and slightly reduce their drop rates during late game.
  • The Cornerstone pool is still the same, so it will still be possible to get an early Cornerstone near the end of the game (but it should happen less frequently).
  • As with every balance change, we will monitor its effects. If at any point the drop rates become too skewed in any direction, we will adjust.
• ⚡ Rebalanced the recipe distribution in a few buildings.
  • Artisan – removed the Pigment recipe (★★)  and added the Packs of Luxury Goods recipe (★★).
  • Cooperage – removed the Training Gear recipe (★★) and added the Coats recipe (★★). The Flawless version of this building was also changed accordingly.
  • Leatherworker – removed the Pack of Luxury Goods recipe (★) and added the Pigment recipe (★★). The Flawless version of this building was also changed accordingly.
  • Smithy – removed the Coats recipe (★★) and added the Training Gear recipe (★★).
  • Clay Pit – decreased the production time of Clay and Reeds from 84 seconds to 60 seconds.
• ⚡ Rebalanced Citadel Upgrade prices. Some early unlocks were not aligned with the pricing pattern from other branches. At the same time, we wanted to slightly speed up the first 2-3 levels and make it easier for new players to get early upgrades.
  
  • Obsidian Archive Level 3 – lowered the cost from 24 to 12 Food Stockpiles.
  • Obsidian Archive Level 4 – lowered the cost from 24 to 18 Food Stockpiles.
  • Obsidian Archive Level 5 – lowered the cost from 30 to 24 Food Stockpiles.
  • Obsidian Archive Level 6 – lowered the cost from 36 to 30 Food Stockpiles.
  • Pioneers’ Gate Level 3 – lowered the cost from 36 to 30 Food Stockpiles.
  • Brass Forge Level 1 – lowered the cost from 24 to 18 Food Stockpiles.
  • Brass Forge Level 2 – lowered the cost from 30 Food Stockpiles and 6 Artifacts to 24 Food Stockpiles and 3 Artifacts.
  • Brass Forge Level 3 – lowered the cost from 48 Food Stockpiles and 6 Artifacts to 36 Food Stockpiles and 6 Artifacts.
  • Brass Forge Level 10 – increased the cost from 132 Food Stockpiles and 40 Artifacts to 144 Food Stockpiles and 40 Artifacts.

  • Dim Square Level 1 – lowered the cost from 24 to 18 Food Stockpiles.
  • Dim Square Level 2 – lowered the cost from 30 to 24 Food Stockpiles.
  • Dim Square Level 3 – lowered the cost from 36 to 30 Food Stockpiles.
  • First Dawn Headquarters Level 2 – lowered the cost from 24 to 18 Food Stockpiles.
  • First Dawn Headquarters Level 3 – lowered the cost from 36 to 30 Food Stockpiles.
  • Vanguard Spire Level 1 – lowered the cost from 24 to 18 Food Stockpiles.
  • Vanguard Spire Level 2 – lowered the cost from 36 Food Stockpiles and 6 Machinery to 24 Food Stockpiles and 3 Machinery.
  • Vanguard Spire Level 3 – lowered the cost from 36 Food Stockpiles and 6 Machinery to 30 Food Stockpiles and 6 Machinery.
  • Vanguard Spire Level 4 – lowered the cost from 48 Food Stockpiles and 6 Machinery to 36 Food Stockpiles and 6 Machinery.
• Reshuffled a few Citadel Upgrades.
  • First Dawn Company Level 3 – removed starting Bricks (moved to the new upgrade in the Vanguard Spire branch), added the Herbalists’ Camp Embarkation Bonus.
  • First Dawn Company Level 5 – removed the Herbalists’ Camp Embarkation Bonus, added the Main Warehouse hauler unlock.
• Reshuffled a few level up rewards. 
  • Level 12 – removed the Hauling Station blueprint, added the new Hauling Cart Cornerstone instead. 
  • Level 17 – added a new unlock, the Reckless Plunder Cornerstone.
  • Level 18 – added a new unlock, the Dual Carriage System Cornerstone.

UX/UI improvements

• ⚡ Added the option to set a lower limit for resources in Warehouses.
  • To set a lower limit, simply select a Warehouse, find the resource you need, and type in a value. The lock icon next to the text box will change automatically.
  • Once a limit is set, a lock icon will also appear on the HUD, on top of the resource icon.
  • The limit is a lower limit, meaning that workers will only use the surplus for production. Everything below the limit will not be touched by them.
  • The limit only applies to production. Scouts will still be able to take a limited resource, villagers will still eat it (unless told otherwise in the consumption control panel), and finishing orders will still take a limited good from the warehouse. Same goes for Firekeepers and builders. 
  • You can quickly turn a limit on and off by clicking the lock icon next to the resource in the Warehouse panel (without needing to manually remove the value from the text box).
  • Just like tracked goods, lower limits in the Warehouse are automatically saved and loaded between subsequent runs.
  • Due to this change, the Warehouse panel had to change from a collection of resource icons to a scrollable table. This also means that the way you track resources now is not by clicking on the icon, but by using the “track” checkbox in the same row as the resource.
  • There is also a search box in the Warehouse panel to make it easier to find certain goods.
• ⚡ Changed the recipe/ingredient dropdown in the recipe panel to a toggle button.
• ⚡ Changed the tier 0 icon to a star outline (instead of a vague gauge/meter symbol) to bring it closer to the other tier symbols.
• ⚡ Added a checkbox to needs in service buildings. Unchecking it will prevent workers from stockpiling resources in these buildings.
• ⚡ Added a new option to the woodcutter button on the top HUD. Now using the middle mouse button, you can unassign a single woodcutter.
• ⚡ Improved the wording in the description of the No Strangers Deed.
• ⚡ Improved the wording of some effects blocking trader arrival. They now also state that traders currently residing in the settlement will leave.
• Changed the wording in the description of the Prestige 1 difficulty modifier to make it shorter and clearer. 
• Added a custom label to archaeology events in the Scarlet Orchard.
• Added a unique thumbnail illustration for Sealed Forest settlements in the trade route  and game history panels.
• Added a cart UI panel. You can now click on hauling carts or mine carts to see a short description and the goods that are being carried.

Bug fixes

• ⚡ Fixed a bug with Blight Fighters destroying ingredients when they are unassigned from their workplace in the middle of transporting them.
• ⚡ Fixed an issue with Inscribed Monoliths not giving resources when removed.
• ⚡ Fixed a few inconsistencies with the Training Expedition panel (wrong UI header, incorrect text formatting).
• ⚡ Added two missing town labels for trade route tooltips (for Cursed Royal Woodlands and Sealed Forest towns).
• ⚡ Fixed an issue with some buildings being incorrectly listed as “unlocked by deed” in the in-game encyclopedia. 
• ⚡ Fixed a bug with Daily Expedition town names not being displayed correctly in the Game History panel.
• ⚡ Fixed a missing tooltip when hovering over the Orders button.
• ⚡ Fixed an issue with background blends having different alpha levels in different UI panels.
• ⚡ Fixed a bug that caused the Ominous Presence and Flooded Mines modifiers to be generated next to each other during some Cycles. 
• ⚡ Fixed a bug with the Beacon Tower being shown as locked in the in-game encyclopedia.
• ⚡ Fixed an animation glitch in the Seal closing animation.
• ⚡ Fixed an issue with redundant minus signs in negative cycle effects that remove embarkation goods.
• ⚡ Fixed a bug with the sacrifice alert in the top HUD being covered up by the year counter.
• ⚡ Fixed an issue with the Cycle warning text having an incorrect font. 
• ⚡ Fixed a typo in the Russian description of the Exploring Expedition Cornerstone.
• ⚡ Fixed an issue with the Kiln and the Furnace being translated to the same name in Italian. 
• ⚡ Fixed an incorrect translation for Porridge in the Ukrainian version of the game.
• ⚡ Fixed a typo in the Korean description of the Guild of Traders, or Thieves? modifier.

Other

• ⚡ Added a new music track to the Marshlands (Drizzle).

The current game version is 0.60.1.

COMMUNITY CORNER

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