Hello everyone! Its been a while since the last announcement! During this time, weve been working on lots of stuff: new enemies, locations, mechanics, quests, changes to combat, and other features - well tell you about it all in a series of devlogs prior to the City of Gold release, planned for this October. The first devlog will showcase the largest of the new systems: the global map.

GENERAL OVERVIEW

The global map is one of the most ambitious mechanics that we have ever worked on. Its vital for implementing the proper scale and introducing the intended progression system, so thats why it took the longest to make. We experimented with multiple map sizes, settling on a size smaller than what we had originally intended - this way the map will be denser with points of interest and random events. In the City of Gold update youll be able to explore Brynn and its surrounding areas - its about 20% of what we plan Aldor to be on full release and ten times larger than the existing map.
The map generation uses a mixed approach: some elements are static, while others are randomized with each new playthrough. The static locations are mostly tied to lore, they include cities, villages, some story locations, mountain ranges, the coastline, and rivers (although rivers will also be randomized in the future; well talk about them in greater detail in a separate devlog). Most points of interest, dungeons and their types, forests, some bioms, and roads are procedurally generated, preserving the spirit of exploration even after multiple playthroughs. In the future itll also be possible to use the caravan to travel across the global map, but it wont be just an unlimited fast travel option. Its more of a means to occasionally cross large distances rather than something you use to ride to a dungeon and back.

NAVIGATION

In a sense, the global map records your journey, only marking the locations you personally visit or hear about. The rest is concealed by the fog of war. Thats why instead of replacing paper maps, the global map will complement them. Youll still need to purchase paper maps in order to find points of interest and to navigate through new zones, comparing the information you learn from them with the global map. Naturally, therell be other ways to learn about interesting locations (rumors, for instance), but paper maps will remain the most readily available and reliable option to do so. They will more or less work as notes - the large part of their function, such as pop-ups with tile descriptions, was moved to the global map.
This function was greatly expanded as well: most locations now have lore descriptions, letting you better understand the game world. Abandoned carts, roadside shrines, graves, and other minor landmarks now have their own map marker. So does the player character, as its way too easy to get lost on such a large map without a character marker, especially after taking a long break from a playthrough. Our ultimate goal is to make exploration exciting and unpredictable, and the world - vivid and more detailed. Thats why we also added many new points of interest as well as places where you can rest and regroup for a fair fee, such as lonely homesteads or roadside inns.

SYSTEMS

The global map has a few hidden systems under the hood, meant to improve the player experience and make the world more logical and believable. The most important of them is the reworked progression of dungeons. Now that we arent limited by the maps size, we can place many more dungeons on it. As a result, therell be only beginner level dungeons around Osbrook, which will prevent sudden difficulty spikes and will make levelling smoother and more measured.
The dungeon respawn system was also reworked. First of all, it will take significantly longer for them to respawn: youll have to move between settlements upon completing all their contracts, otherwise youll waste a huge amount of time waiting. The level of enemies you encounter in dungeons is no longer static - it can shift with subsequent respawns, making enemies stronger or weaker. However, its still limited by the zones level: even by the time you reach the endgame, you wont be able to encounter rogue knights around Osbrook. Some dungeons can only be found far from settlements - youll have to search for them on your own, as they dont have contracts leading to them. The payoff is usually more than worth it: there you will find not only the strongest foes, but also the most valuable loot. Another important factor is the Wildness of an area. This hidden parameter influences many things: it increases the overall amount of animals, the chance of them spawning, and also reduces your chances to run into a random bandit group in the middle of the woods. This parameter is much lower next to cities and dungeons, so it will be a rare occurrence to come face to face with a bear or a huge wolf pack upon stepping outside of Osbrook. The wilderness factor also affects the chance of being ambushed: therell be less ambushes on distant roads and more of them near brigand Bastions.
Theres one more important addition - a new type of points of interest that can be called dens or habitats. These locations attract specific animal types, guaranteeing that you will encounter them there. Most large animals will have such locations: wolves, bears, moose, boars, etc. The habitats also increase the spawning chance for these animals in the surrounding map tiles, so discovering them can make hunting much easier. On the other hand, its best to exercise caution in your search - sometimes instead of a deer trail you can find a ghoul den or something even worse... ================================================== Thats all for now. Until the next devlog!