Serpent in the Staglands news & patch notes

We're ready to push out the second part of some optimizations we've been testing to follow up with our last update. Of note:

• Some maps causing occasional performance hiccups have been fixed
• Combat performance update
• Herbology UI has been updated
• Polymorph Wolf no longer utilizes range of missile weapons equipped
• Sound and Music levels balanced since last update

Cheers!

In celebration of the Winter Solstice and Necholai’s worst after party, we’re ready to release update 17! We’ve been poking at Shroomers and Serpent for a while now to optimize a lot of the behind-the-scenes systems, especially load times. The engine has been updated and with some heavy optimization to art and loading structures we’re looking at 60-70% speed increase. Maps should load in at ~5 seconds, depending on your system or how large the map is. Besides that we’ve had some other system updates for stability and content tweaks listed below. We have some art and content for the expansion, A Banquet For Fools, that we’re planning on releasing next year. There is the perfect amount of monks, mead and illuminated manuscripts. Merry Christmas! Joe & Hannah Update log: System

• Load time optimization
• Revamped ammunition system — for fringe cases of some equipped ammo disappearing on game loads

UI

• Cursor can move off the edge of the screen in windowed mode in Windows

Gameplay

• Stabilized fringe cases of temporarily de-syncing party order in inventory screen when a member is removed in certain conversations
• Seraphim will allow you to retry to let him in your party after refusing him.
• Various dialogue and NPC inventory tweaks

This version is up on Steam, and GOG should be as soon as they push it live on their end. If the game was purchased on our site DRM free you can also re-download it from your purchases page — that's automatically updated with the latest version for you. We're depreciating our old patching application, but if you prompt the download on startup it will instead contain an updated game you can swap with your existing one, there's some brief instructions in the folder if needed.

In celebration of the Winter Solstice and Necholai’s worst after party, we’re ready to release update 17! We’ve been poking at Shroomers and Serpent for a while now to optimize a lot of the behind-the-scenes systems, especially load times. The engine has been updated and with some heavy optimization to art and loading structures we’re looking at 60-70% speed increase. Maps should load in at ~5 seconds, depending on your system or how large the map is. Besides that we’ve had some other system updates for stability and content tweaks listed below. We have some art and content for the expansion, A Banquet For Fools, that we’re planning on releasing next year. There is the perfect amount of monks, mead and illuminated manuscripts. Merry Christmas! Joe & Hannah Update log: System

• Load time optimization
• Revamped ammunition system — for fringe cases of some equipped ammo disappearing on game loads

UI

• Cursor can move off the edge of the screen in windowed mode in Windows

Gameplay

• Stabilized fringe cases of temporarily de-syncing party order in inventory screen when a member is removed in certain conversations
• Seraphim will allow you to retry to let him in your party after refusing him.
• Various dialogue and NPC inventory tweaks

This version is up on Steam, and GOG should be as soon as they push it live on their end. If the game was purchased on our site DRM free you can also re-download it from your purchases page — that's automatically updated with the latest version for you. We're depreciating our old patching application, but if you prompt the download on startup it will instead contain an updated game you can swap with your existing one, there's some brief instructions in the folder if needed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDsRs-r93As Hi everyone! If you wanted to check out how the system we're using for the Serpent expansion is shaping up, our cyber-espionage game Copper Dreams is the start of it! Vol will certainly have less firearms, but you can see the movement, 3d world and how combat works. We'll be going over a lot of the systems in detail throughout the campaign, but the Burning Candle ruleset section will be essentially the same for the expansion. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1649838104/copper-dreams/description Below is the Greenlight link, we'd love your support getting it on Steam! http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=682999664 Also, one of the miniatures we'll be offering for the KS will be a Pasaaran Bloodless Hunter in all their 3d glory, we'll be sure to post a picture. Cheers!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDsRs-r93As Hi everyone! If you wanted to check out how the system we're using for the Serpent expansion is shaping up, our cyber-espionage game Copper Dreams is the start of it! Vol will certainly have less firearms, but you can see the movement, 3d world and how combat works. We'll be going over a lot of the systems in detail throughout the campaign, but the Burning Candle ruleset section will be essentially the same for the expansion. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1649838104/copper-dreams/description Below is the Greenlight link, we'd love your support getting it on Steam! http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=682999664 Also, one of the miniatures we'll be offering for the KS will be a Pasaaran Bloodless Hunter in all their 3d glory, we'll be sure to post a picture. Cheers!

We're back and excited to share some information with you about the free Serpent in the Staglands expansion! Titled "A Fool's Banquet," the expansion takes place in the Lachovinian Isles in the aftermath of the Moon Lord's journey through the Staglands.

A New Engine and Ruleset

As we began designing the campaign for A Fool's Banquet, we had a ton of ideas that we wanted to implement for the expansion and for future games set in this world. While we could have shoehorned some of these into the Staglands engine, we decided to do something drastic and create an entire new engine that was set up to handle all of the new really neat mechanics and optimizations we wanted to ad in. Thus decided, we started designing and have been spending the last few months building a new and improved engine that will have much faster loading times, better performance, has taken user feedback into account and will be able to support a lot of fun new features like larger maps and stealth systems as well as utilize the height of a 3d world. We have a feature list with some highlights listed below. The mechanics will be using a new ruleset that we think you'll love as well, but the atmosphere, lore, items, characters and, most importantly, your saved games will still be there. A Fool’s Banquet began with one premise: authentic castles, and heists and infiltration within. Castles are fascinating, with mazes of corridors, intrigue, workers, gorgeous courtyards, and secrets waiting for a good crawl, and to adventure through all that the way we wanted, we've created a ton of new systems and put them in a neat package we're calling the Burning Candle ruleset. The Burning Candle ruleset has been designed for the Serpent in the Staglands expansion, but will also be used on our new cyberpunk game, Copper Dreams, and you can see a preview of some of the mechanics and alpha art in action here. Right off the bat you might notice a few differences, one being the game is 3d. While we love pixel art, the move to 3d is necessary to create the interesting tactics that come from height and stealth, and opens up a lot mechanics that aren't available in a low resolution 2d game, like more accessibility in controls, UI and text. To keep the aesthetic as similar as possible and something we'll continue to enjoy working on, we've chosen a 3d style that utilizes the same filterless textures as pixel art, and are really happy with how it's turning out. We'll have some images throughout the year for you to check out the new Vol, now in full 3d!

Features

The Burning Ruleset includes the following features:

• A volumetric line of sight
• Light and shadow system with dynamic lights for sneaking movement
• Fully climbable and traversable height
• Isometric view with four direction camera
• AI with environmental tactics as well as last known position indicators
• Turn based combat with timed resolution
• Ailment based health system
• Multi-species companions
• Inventory items with a range of uses in and out of combat
• Global clock with time of day lighting

The Story

Disclaimer: These stories in Vol follow specific characters, and Serpent in the Staglands leads directly into the expansion, so any plot discussion will inevitably involve spoilers. At the end of Serpent in the Staglands, Necholai receives an unexpected summons from the East, and is preparing to sail there with a son of Erlein, a young Varuchov named Lucian. Through the series of events that Necholai's meddling inadvertently triggered, namely the death of the goddess of portals, known as the Wandering Lady, many portals once opened are now sealed, causing the magic harnessed from gods to dwindle to nearly nothing over the course of the months since your original descent. As Necholai and Lucian begin their adventure in A Fool's Banquet, their party has to cope with a world devoid of sorcery. Divine Magic, as it were, has been closed off from Vol, and all that remains is rune writing and some very disgruntled mages. Playing as an acolyte for the Moon Lord that has been posted to gather information on the Lachovinian Isles, you and your fellow celestial spies are sent on a mission by Necholai, leading you to a dangerous castle with an elusive host.

Timeline

We'll have more updates throughout the year as the expansion comes together, and will be posting more in-depth explanations of features on our blog. Cheers! Hannah and Joe

We're back and excited to share some information with you about the free Serpent in the Staglands expansion! Titled "A Fool's Banquet," the expansion takes place in the Lachovinian Isles in the aftermath of the Moon Lord's journey through the Staglands.

A New Engine and Ruleset

As we began designing the campaign for A Fool's Banquet, we had a ton of ideas that we wanted to implement for the expansion and for future games set in this world. While we could have shoehorned some of these into the Staglands engine, we decided to do something drastic and create an entire new engine that was set up to handle all of the new really neat mechanics and optimizations we wanted to ad in. Thus decided, we started designing and have been spending the last few months building a new and improved engine that will have much faster loading times, better performance, has taken user feedback into account and will be able to support a lot of fun new features like larger maps and stealth systems as well as utilize the height of a 3d world. We have a feature list with some highlights listed below. The mechanics will be using a new ruleset that we think you'll love as well, but the atmosphere, lore, items, characters and, most importantly, your saved games will still be there. A Fool’s Banquet began with one premise: authentic castles, and heists and infiltration within. Castles are fascinating, with mazes of corridors, intrigue, workers, gorgeous courtyards, and secrets waiting for a good crawl, and to adventure through all that the way we wanted, we've created a ton of new systems and put them in a neat package we're calling the Burning Candle ruleset. The Burning Candle ruleset has been designed for the Serpent in the Staglands expansion, but will also be used on our new cyberpunk game, Copper Dreams, and you can see a preview of some of the mechanics and alpha art in action here. Right off the bat you might notice a few differences, one being the game is 3d. While we love pixel art, the move to 3d is necessary to create the interesting tactics that come from height and stealth, and opens up a lot mechanics that aren't available in a low resolution 2d game, like more accessibility in controls, UI and text. To keep the aesthetic as similar as possible and something we'll continue to enjoy working on, we've chosen a 3d style that utilizes the same filterless textures as pixel art, and are really happy with how it's turning out. We'll have some images throughout the year for you to check out the new Vol, now in full 3d!

Features

The Burning Ruleset includes the following features:

• A volumetric line of sight
• Light and shadow system with dynamic lights for sneaking movement
• Fully climbable and traversable height
• Isometric view with four direction camera
• AI with environmental tactics as well as last known position indicators
• Turn based combat with timed resolution
• Ailment based health system
• Multi-species companions
• Inventory items with a range of uses in and out of combat
• Global clock with time of day lighting

The Story

Disclaimer: These stories in Vol follow specific characters, and Serpent in the Staglands leads directly into the expansion, so any plot discussion will inevitably involve spoilers. At the end of Serpent in the Staglands, Necholai receives an unexpected summons from the East, and is preparing to sail there with a son of Erlein, a young Varuchov named Lucian. Through the series of events that Necholai's meddling inadvertently triggered, namely the death of the goddess of portals, known as the Wandering Lady, many portals once opened are now sealed, causing the magic harnessed from gods to dwindle to nearly nothing over the course of the months since your original descent. As Necholai and Lucian begin their adventure in A Fool's Banquet, their party has to cope with a world devoid of sorcery. Divine Magic, as it were, has been closed off from Vol, and all that remains is rune writing and some very disgruntled mages. Playing as an acolyte for the Moon Lord that has been posted to gather information on the Lachovinian Isles, you and your fellow celestial spies are sent on a mission by Necholai, leading you to a dangerous castle with an elusive host.

Timeline

We'll have more updates throughout the year as the expansion comes together, and will be posting more in-depth explanations of features on our blog. Cheers! Hannah and Joe

Earlier this month we were on Richard Cobbett's "The Scrolls of Honour" , listed as: "The Scroll of Histories: Serpent in the Staglands". We thought that was very neat and we wanted to share the article with you, and the whole thing is a very fun read if you hadn't seen it yet, check it out. As we close out the year we wanted to say thanks to everyone who supported us with feedback and played Serpent in the Staglands since the release in May! We wanted to post some information on the free expansion, but decided we could do better with a proper reveal with more actual content early next year. Big changes coming to Vol that we think you'll enjoy! So expect some news on that and Copper Dreams , as well as a small Vol chronology site which will house content on the different campaigns happening in it. Hope all you Spicers have a wonderful new year! Cheers

Earlier this month we were on Richard Cobbett's "The Scrolls of Honour" , listed as: "The Scroll of Histories: Serpent in the Staglands". We thought that was very neat and we wanted to share the article with you, and the whole thing is a very fun read if you hadn't seen it yet, check it out. As we close out the year we wanted to say thanks to everyone who supported us with feedback and played Serpent in the Staglands since the release in May! We wanted to post some information on the free expansion, but decided we could do better with a proper reveal with more actual content early next year. Big changes coming to Vol that we think you'll enjoy! So expect some news on that and Copper Dreams , as well as a small Vol chronology site which will house content on the different campaigns happening in it. Hope all you Spicers have a wonderful new year! Cheers

There are some late game encounters and enemies that have been tweaked to add difficulty and some resistances, along with an overhaul of smaller changes and improvements to many of the spells. The update list below is a bit long, but besides the gameplay/quest updates, most of it is spell tweaks we've been wanting to fix up. Many of these have just had updated language in their descriptions to be more accurate to their output ( like removing proc/duration for spells that end when casting stops), while others had various stability changes or tweaks to their math. You shouldn't see anything that abruptly changes builds, but improvements overall. * Note: The Balance section has some spoilers of enemies in the game Update log: UI

• Added diagonal direction option to keys (can hold two at once)
• Various spelling updates in conversations and items

Gameplay

• Trap re-loading bug in Lumen Caverns fixed
• Kyrilu dialog endless loop fixed
• Cave Journal in Ista Cale populates as normal under all conditions

Balance:

• Spider summons do less poison damage
• Goblin summons: -1 Dex
• Ista Cale Manor and Lighthouse Guards AC, Dex, and Str upgrades
• Octavian & Mya stat upgrades all around
• Ice Spider AC upgrade
• Slavers: Dex upgrade
• Slaver Cook: Str upgrade
• Fighting Pits: various Str, Occ upgrades for opponents

Skills/Spells

• Nauseate: Cast times updated
• Strangling Vines: Cast times update
• Searing Light: initiates hostility
• Siphon Poisons: skill and proc times now accurately affecting each other
• Arcane Attack: displays all hit information in game feed, small tweaks
• Feverish Haze: proc inconsistencies fixed
• Arcane Shield: Description update
• Festering Ooze: Description update
• Morph Into Cat: Description update
• Morph Into Bats: Movement speed updates, INT-dependent
• Polymorph into Wolf: weapons disappear under all situations now, duration time fix, various tweaks
• Hallucinogen: Fixed disappearing enemies (if they travel off screen from fleeing and return)
• Foul Creep: Stat affliction now works under all circumstances
• Amplify: augments cast speed as expected
• Shimmering Scales: Math update
• Blood Cocoon: Math tweak for healing output
• Parasitic Orb: General and duration updates
• Planar Jump: Damage fix for all situations on use
• Turn to Stone: loops spell cast on miss now (instead of stopping), game feed updated to reflect
• Magic Shield: Protections end as expected, various stability updates and description in game feed

There are some late game encounters and enemies that have been tweaked to add difficulty and some resistances, along with an overhaul of smaller changes and improvements to many of the spells. The update list below is a bit long, but besides the gameplay/quest updates, most of it is spell tweaks we've been wanting to fix up. Many of these have just had updated language in their descriptions to be more accurate to their output ( like removing proc/duration for spells that end when casting stops), while others had various stability changes or tweaks to their math. You shouldn't see anything that abruptly changes builds, but improvements overall. * Note: The Balance section has some spoilers of enemies in the game Update log: UI

• Added diagonal direction option to keys (can hold two at once)
• Various spelling updates in conversations and items

Gameplay

• Trap re-loading bug in Lumen Caverns fixed
• Kyrilu dialog endless loop fixed
• Cave Journal in Ista Cale populates as normal under all conditions

Balance:

• Spider summons do less poison damage
• Goblin summons: -1 Dex
• Ista Cale Manor and Lighthouse Guards AC, Dex, and Str upgrades
• Octavian & Mya stat upgrades all around
• Ice Spider AC upgrade
• Slavers: Dex upgrade
• Slaver Cook: Str upgrade
• Fighting Pits: various Str, Occ upgrades for opponents

Skills/Spells

• Nauseate: Cast times updated
• Strangling Vines: Cast times update
• Searing Light: initiates hostility
• Siphon Poisons: skill and proc times now accurately affecting each other
• Arcane Attack: displays all hit information in game feed, small tweaks
• Feverish Haze: proc inconsistencies fixed
• Arcane Shield: Description update
• Festering Ooze: Description update
• Morph Into Cat: Description update
• Morph Into Bats: Movement speed updates, INT-dependent
• Polymorph into Wolf: weapons disappear under all situations now, duration time fix, various tweaks
• Hallucinogen: Fixed disappearing enemies (if they travel off screen from fleeing and return)
• Foul Creep: Stat affliction now works under all circumstances
• Amplify: augments cast speed as expected
• Shimmering Scales: Math update
• Blood Cocoon: Math tweak for healing output
• Parasitic Orb: General and duration updates
• Planar Jump: Damage fix for all situations on use
• Turn to Stone: loops spell cast on miss now (instead of stopping), game feed updated to reflect
• Magic Shield: Protections end as expected, various stability updates and description in game feed

We're doing some final testing on a spell and skill balance update which has a myriad of small usability improvements, math tweaks, or terminology on a lot of spells and skills. There's also some balance updates for some some encounters and enemies. Nothing too game changing, so builds and load-outs should continue just fine. That should be available soon. Meanwhile, we had an interview about some of the story elements and thematic design of Vol and Serpent in the Staglands in an interview with The Existential Gamer. I don't think there is anything in spoiler territory there, so check it out if you're interested! http://existentialgamer.com/interview-whalenought-studios Lastly, we have a small website coming together to chronologically record games in the Vol campaign, starting with Serpent in the Staglands and its Expansion. It will house bigger news in general there, and will be available as well with more information on the expansion in the near future. If you heard news of our new game in development, you'll be happy to know the expansion is also benefiting from such developments. Vol will be expanding in the future, and owners of Serpent will be getting the next giant step forward in tech and interactivity for free! We're confident that will be worth the wait.

We're doing some final testing on a spell and skill balance update which has a myriad of small usability improvements, math tweaks, or terminology on a lot of spells and skills. There's also some balance updates for some some encounters and enemies. Nothing too game changing, so builds and load-outs should continue just fine. That should be available soon. Meanwhile, we had an interview about some of the story elements and thematic design of Vol and Serpent in the Staglands in an interview with The Existential Gamer. I don't think there is anything in spoiler territory there, so check it out if you're interested! http://existentialgamer.com/interview-whalenought-studios Lastly, we have a small website coming together to chronologically record games in the Vol campaign, starting with Serpent in the Staglands and its Expansion. It will house bigger news in general there, and will be available as well with more information on the expansion in the near future. If you heard news of our new game in development, you'll be happy to know the expansion is also benefiting from such developments. Vol will be expanding in the future, and owners of Serpent will be getting the next giant step forward in tech and interactivity for free! We're confident that will be worth the wait.

Now featuring AAA graphics. Update 15 has a few small fixes, a UI update, and a new accessibility option: there's now a new graphics setting you can access within a game (this will save on start up next time you play) that will smooth out the pixels. It's not a perfect system and may cause a few graphical hiccups, but does a pretty neat job of smoothing pixels together, so if you were having issues reading the text over long periods of time it may help! This setting requires a shader model 3.0 compatible GPU, along with playing the game in at least 200% or 300% scale, obviously we can't do anything when you're playing at actual pixel-level resolutions. Change-log below: UI

• Smooth Pixel option added which blends pixels edges and creates smoother text and 'oil painted' effect on the art.
• Implemented a smoother scroll for the dialogue menu
• FIXED player selection hot keys interrupting incantation typing
• Missiles listed more accurately as 0d2 instead of +2 in inventory descriptions
• new Game Tips

GAMEPLAY

• FIXED locked door in Hallowed Doors after saving
• FIXED Mikalus is in Lebez after leaving your party
• FIXED Kreel can use Quick Strike upon joining your party

SKILLS

• FIXED NPC spell casting aimed at target instead of location to left when casting Magic Shield
• FIXED Snapping Muscle potions working as expected

Cheers! Keep up with news, updates and future games from Whalenought on our blog Or on Twitter!

Now featuring AAA graphics. Update 15 has a few small fixes, a UI update, and a new accessibility option: there's now a new graphics setting you can access within a game (this will save on start up next time you play) that will smooth out the pixels. It's not a perfect system and may cause a few graphical hiccups, but does a pretty neat job of smoothing pixels together, so if you were having issues reading the text over long periods of time it may help! This setting requires a shader model 3.0 compatible GPU, along with playing the game in at least 200% or 300% scale, obviously we can't do anything when you're playing at actual pixel-level resolutions. Change-log below: UI

• Smooth Pixel option added which blends pixels edges and creates smoother text and 'oil painted' effect on the art.
• Implemented a smoother scroll for the dialogue menu
• FIXED player selection hot keys interrupting incantation typing
• Missiles listed more accurately as 0d2 instead of +2 in inventory descriptions
• new Game Tips

GAMEPLAY

• FIXED locked door in Hallowed Doors after saving
• FIXED Mikalus is in Lebez after leaving your party
• FIXED Kreel can use Quick Strike upon joining your party

SKILLS

• FIXED NPC spell casting aimed at target instead of location to left when casting Magic Shield
• FIXED Snapping Muscle potions working as expected

Cheers! Keep up with news, updates and future games from Whalenought on our blog Or on Twitter!

Come join us to talk about Serpent in the Staglands and whatever else Shane would like to talk about out tomorrow! Live! 1:05 PM CST Saturday Little Rock: 96.5FM Edit: Download version available here: http://shaneplays.com/podcast-episode-10-serpent-in-the-shanelands/ Cheers! Keep up with news, updates and future games from Whalenought on our blog Or on Twitter!

Come join us to talk about Serpent in the Staglands and whatever else Shane would like to talk about out tomorrow! Live! 1:05 PM CST Saturday Little Rock: 96.5FM Edit: Download version available here: http://shaneplays.com/podcast-episode-10-serpent-in-the-shanelands/ Cheers! Keep up with news, updates and future games from Whalenought on our blog Or on Twitter!

Francisco of Vox Ludi has written a thorough write-up of Serpent in the Staglands and his experiences. If you’re on the fence or wondering about the game, check it out! Full link after some choice quotes we enjoyed: “Like the seafaring Amethyvians that worship Necholai, Serpent in the Staglands’ foremost quality is its ambition, which looms like a mountain over the smaller hills that are its flaws. If you choose to venture into the peninsula, I tell you this: the Staglands are a dangerous place, and the carrion god takes mortals and gods alike.” “This lack of hand-holding and the multitude of applications you can give to your aptitudes lend the game a truly pen-and-paper role-playing game feel, leaning not only on its choices, writing and story to summon this feeling but on the fact that you have many tools you can put to use throughout the game.” Link to full review Cheers! Keep up with news, updates and future games from Whalenought on our blog Or on Twitter!

Francisco of Vox Ludi has written a thorough write-up of Serpent in the Staglands and his experiences. If you’re on the fence or wondering about the game, check it out! Full link after some choice quotes we enjoyed: “Like the seafaring Amethyvians that worship Necholai, Serpent in the Staglands’ foremost quality is its ambition, which looms like a mountain over the smaller hills that are its flaws. If you choose to venture into the peninsula, I tell you this: the Staglands are a dangerous place, and the carrion god takes mortals and gods alike.” “This lack of hand-holding and the multitude of applications you can give to your aptitudes lend the game a truly pen-and-paper role-playing game feel, leaning not only on its choices, writing and story to summon this feeling but on the fact that you have many tools you can put to use throughout the game.” Link to full review Cheers! Keep up with news, updates and future games from Whalenought on our blog Or on Twitter!

BuzzKirill on Deviantart made a wonderful piece from the game, you can check out more of his work here! Small update featuring some text and item updates, augmented enemy poison, and some skill/spell updates. This is currently available for all platforms on Steam, patches for standalone (and GOG), and GOG proper will be up probably Monday. But first – what’s next before the expansion! Our next update we’re looking into an option we have for a post-effect that will reduce the sharp edges in the art — for those of you who have mentioned having strained eyes over a period of time due to the zoom level, this should profoundly help with that. It’s similar to what some graphic drivers and DOS-emulators can do where it blends the pixels together as a sort of noise-reduction. Should be neat for those who’d like to toggle that and see Vol in smooth, fancy visuals! Our current solution for that requires Shader Model 3.0 for your graphic driver. So while this will be a toggle in the options, you’ll need (generally) Nvidia cards since 2004, AMD from 2005, and Intel from 2006 to make it work. We’re still testing out options for that, and will make an official announcement if we add that in! We’ll also work on updating the skill/spell tables back into the website. Along with new content and gameplay mechanics, the expansion will have any of the heavier tweaks we may need for skills/spells, along with grade 4. Well have more information on that later this year when we announce it! Main patch notes:

• Enemy Posions — changed: FROM procing every 5 seconds, 5 rounds at 1d5 TO procing every 3 seconds, 10 rounds at 1d8.
• SKILL: Rapid Draw: working as expected in all circumstances
• SPELL: Arcane Shield: Spell has changed to reflect description (OCC changed to FullOCC)
• SPELL: Amplify: if stopped during recasting, there is a fringe case where it could stack or stay over the course of the map — fixed.
• Racial Trait: Disciples: There was an issue where this could override other health boosts from stat distribution during character creation – fixed.
• SKILL: Pin Shot: fixed description error
• Gameplay: Possible fix for a fringe case where enemies (who can initiate dialogue) are killed, with auto-pause on (with enemy sighted / not in combat), and are disabled from executing their deaths. Fix in place.
• Racial Trait: Faithful: description error updated
• ITEM: Inquisitor Mask updated with description stats
• UI tweak for Auto-pause toggle appearing correctly
• Various spelling errors fixed
• COMPANION: Serafim had a hole in his dialogue events where you could get him in your party after talking to him twice without the necessary Nobility points.
• Secret room in Hallowed Doors ground visual fixed.

Cheers!

BuzzKirill on Deviantart made a wonderful piece from the game, you can check out more of his work here! Small update featuring some text and item updates, augmented enemy poison, and some skill/spell updates. This is currently available for all platforms on Steam, patches for standalone (and GOG), and GOG proper will be up probably Monday. But first – what’s next before the expansion! Our next update we’re looking into an option we have for a post-effect that will reduce the sharp edges in the art — for those of you who have mentioned having strained eyes over a period of time due to the zoom level, this should profoundly help with that. It’s similar to what some graphic drivers and DOS-emulators can do where it blends the pixels together as a sort of noise-reduction. Should be neat for those who’d like to toggle that and see Vol in smooth, fancy visuals! Our current solution for that requires Shader Model 3.0 for your graphic driver. So while this will be a toggle in the options, you’ll need (generally) Nvidia cards since 2004, AMD from 2005, and Intel from 2006 to make it work. We’re still testing out options for that, and will make an official announcement if we add that in! We’ll also work on updating the skill/spell tables back into the website. Along with new content and gameplay mechanics, the expansion will have any of the heavier tweaks we may need for skills/spells, along with grade 4. Well have more information on that later this year when we announce it! Main patch notes:

• Enemy Posions — changed: FROM procing every 5 seconds, 5 rounds at 1d5 TO procing every 3 seconds, 10 rounds at 1d8.
• SKILL: Rapid Draw: working as expected in all circumstances
• SPELL: Arcane Shield: Spell has changed to reflect description (OCC changed to FullOCC)
• SPELL: Amplify: if stopped during recasting, there is a fringe case where it could stack or stay over the course of the map — fixed.
• Racial Trait: Disciples: There was an issue where this could override other health boosts from stat distribution during character creation – fixed.
• SKILL: Pin Shot: fixed description error
• Gameplay: Possible fix for a fringe case where enemies (who can initiate dialogue) are killed, with auto-pause on (with enemy sighted / not in combat), and are disabled from executing their deaths. Fix in place.
• Racial Trait: Faithful: description error updated
• ITEM: Inquisitor Mask updated with description stats
• UI tweak for Auto-pause toggle appearing correctly
• Various spelling errors fixed
• COMPANION: Serafim had a hole in his dialogue events where you could get him in your party after talking to him twice without the necessary Nobility points.
• Secret room in Hallowed Doors ground visual fixed.

Cheers!

Niche Gamer hosted a thorough review of Serpent in the Staglands worth checking out! Link below image and snippet that made us laugh. "Most of the world’s people are either one foot in the grave or mentally deranged. You have corrupt government officials, a woodworker that tells you about his torture fetish, and bounty hunters who are just as happy to clear out a cave of thieves as they are murdering you for your spare coins. There is very little help to be found in the Staglands." Full review here!

v.13 Live

We've updated some remaining kinks, notes below. This is currently up on Steam and our stand-alone version for updating, and GOG most likely Monday when they are back in the office. V.13 updates: UI

• Various spelling/grammar updates for Inv items and dialogue
• Targeting consistency with AI OFF updated - only targeted enemies will be attacked, rather than toggling an attack state. Also fixed various other fringe cases with targeting walk or enemies to follow through as expected.
• Issue with Fuldea Mare crossing getting visually removed from overworld map fixed
• Duke of Whales text conversation loop fixed
• If stat numbers get too low they turned into decimals, fixed
• Fixed potential issue with arrow count dropping to zero transitional or saving hiccup
• Fixed issue with Gabi where she wouldn't display correct dialogue if talked to prior to getting quest

Spells/Skills

• SPELL displays appropriate game feed info on proc
• SPELL game feed display updated
• Fixed issue with Seismic Swing not displaying/working correctly
• Fixed fringe issue when polymorphing while polymorphed or interaction and equipment not being usable again

Gameplay

• Goblin King - removed instance where you could submit Necholai
• Fixed ending scenario with companions being visual where they shouldn't
• Fixed a few various quest saving issues if saving/reloading during interactions
• Kreel conversation issue in Hallowed Doors fixed
• Fixed interaction issue with Bloodless prior to polymorph
• Fixed an issue where there were two clickable locations for a corpse's head on the ground in Lebez, now just the one is there and is easily clickable, the empty one made that difficult to get right
• If traveling with certain requirements to Lev, only Southern guard gives XP as expected (removed Northern XP gain)
• Fixed issue in Fuldea Mare crossing with the rope-use to descend where it removed >1, now just removes one to be used.
• Nobility bookshelf in a Fuldea Mare Crossing Ruin fixed for use with 5 Nobility
• Fixed visual issues with FOW visual size and night-effect if changing or selecting characters within inside/outside sub-maps during night or day. Visuals as expected now
• Fixed issue with adding some Companions more than once or twice after removing (without binding)
• Fixed loot issue where some enemies drop rates were too high (harvesters and some other various non-critical drops)

Cheers!

Niche Gamer hosted a thorough review of Serpent in the Staglands worth checking out! Link below image and snippet that made us laugh. "Most of the world’s people are either one foot in the grave or mentally deranged. You have corrupt government officials, a woodworker that tells you about his torture fetish, and bounty hunters who are just as happy to clear out a cave of thieves as they are murdering you for your spare coins. There is very little help to be found in the Staglands." Full review here!

v.13 Live

We've updated some remaining kinks, notes below. This is currently up on Steam and our stand-alone version for updating, and GOG most likely Monday when they are back in the office. V.13 updates: UI

• Various spelling/grammar updates for Inv items and dialogue
• Targeting consistency with AI OFF updated - only targeted enemies will be attacked, rather than toggling an attack state. Also fixed various other fringe cases with targeting walk or enemies to follow through as expected.
• Issue with Fuldea Mare crossing getting visually removed from overworld map fixed
• Duke of Whales text conversation loop fixed
• If stat numbers get too low they turned into decimals, fixed
• Fixed potential issue with arrow count dropping to zero transitional or saving hiccup
• Fixed issue with Gabi where she wouldn't display correct dialogue if talked to prior to getting quest

Spells/Skills

• SPELL displays appropriate game feed info on proc
• SPELL game feed display updated
• Fixed issue with Seismic Swing not displaying/working correctly
• Fixed fringe issue when polymorphing while polymorphed or interaction and equipment not being usable again

Gameplay

• Goblin King - removed instance where you could submit Necholai
• Fixed ending scenario with companions being visual where they shouldn't
• Fixed a few various quest saving issues if saving/reloading during interactions
• Kreel conversation issue in Hallowed Doors fixed
• Fixed interaction issue with Bloodless prior to polymorph
• Fixed an issue where there were two clickable locations for a corpse's head on the ground in Lebez, now just the one is there and is easily clickable, the empty one made that difficult to get right
• If traveling with certain requirements to Lev, only Southern guard gives XP as expected (removed Northern XP gain)
• Fixed issue in Fuldea Mare crossing with the rope-use to descend where it removed >1, now just removes one to be used.
• Nobility bookshelf in a Fuldea Mare Crossing Ruin fixed for use with 5 Nobility
• Fixed visual issues with FOW visual size and night-effect if changing or selecting characters within inside/outside sub-maps during night or day. Visuals as expected now
• Fixed issue with adding some Companions more than once or twice after removing (without binding)
• Fixed loot issue where some enemies drop rates were too high (harvesters and some other various non-critical drops)

Cheers!

"Serpent in the Staglands is a little gem and a great new entrance to the old school RPG renaissance. It has an excellent RPG rule system and a wonderful, magical and unique world." The very nice folks at Ragequit.gr took the time to settle into Vol and review Serpent in the Staglands, and gave it a very mechanically in-depth and thorough review! We'll put this on our fridge. Check it out! It's worth a read, or in our case a translate, for anyone on the fence and it's a very knowledgeable overview. Many mentions of questmarker-dependent lads need not apply made us chuckle. http://ragequit.gr/reviews/item/serpent-in-the-staglands-pc-review

"Serpent in the Staglands is a little gem and a great new entrance to the old school RPG renaissance. It has an excellent RPG rule system and a wonderful, magical and unique world." The very nice folks at Ragequit.gr took the time to settle into Vol and review Serpent in the Staglands, and gave it a very mechanically in-depth and thorough review! We'll put this on our fridge. Check it out! It's worth a read, or in our case a translate, for anyone on the fence and it's a very knowledgeable overview. Many mentions of questmarker-dependent lads need not apply made us chuckle. http://ragequit.gr/reviews/item/serpent-in-the-staglands-pc-review

Kickstarter Update! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1649838104/serpent-in-the-staglands/posts/1268581 What ho, backers! We wanted to do a quick update thanking all our backers and all our new players for the post launch support! We’ve gotten emails and messages from a lot of you saying how happy you are to play a non-modern designed RPG like this, and some wonderful support from a lot of you spreading the word that the game is our there! It's been a pleasure to be able to design something like this, and while we'll refine our processes, this reception has made it clear that there is still an audience for RPGs with a learning curve, and we hope to cater to them for as long as we can. The game is looking better than ever with our last update, and we’ve just been adding some UI suggestions and ideas some users have had every so often now, so if you haven’t played it yet or have been waiting, now’s definitely the time to jump in! We’ve had such great help from you all the past month, from helping get the word around about the game to helping with finding any issues, and we really think it has embodied a lot of what the Kickstarter experience can be for small developers like us — a project, a game like this, really couldn’t have easily been made in reasonable time without your funds and support. We built this together, and with that support we'll continue to be able to make these kinds of games for you in the future. We’re so grateful for all the people that helped out and gave impressions and feedback throughout development and after, it’s been an exhausting year but we've learned a tremendous amount and are eagerly looking forward to the future. After a short hop to the west coast, (Whalenought is moving to Seattle!) we'll be right back in business and onto some real fun things we're excited to share with you. Marketing without an easy button While we've had and cherished a modest amount of user reviews, marketing continues to be a bit tough — it’s a game without an easy mode, and journalists can’t just jump in and make quick impressions, and we think that makes it difficult to get those early impressions reviews. We hear of a few folks that attempted that and got whiplashed with a learning curve like they haven't seen in years, which though kind of humorous to hear about, does filter the reviewers down to gamers that have patience, which is of course an incredibly slimming population. But learning to play and learning the world is part of the game, and a part we're really proud of. Try to sit me in front of an Ultima again and I’m going to need an hour just to learn the ins and outs of controls and how to interact with the world in all the various ways — but that’s part of it — it’s a game with learning, not just consumption like television — learning the game world is kind of lost in a lot of RPGs today, and it’s something that makes it so much more engaging. Hearing people's accomplishments of navigating the Hallowed Doors to traversing the death-bog is as much an accomplishment for us, and we're thrilled when we hear about people enjoying them. Games are certainly much easier to consume if you’re just jumping to conversation to quest with knowing exactly what to do, but we think that can get a little tired and misses something we love so much, which is the exploration of the world and how to win it. There’s a few wonderful reviewers that have contacted us saying they are really taking their time to finish the game prior to reviewing, and their initial playtime just wasn’t enough, they needed to actually finish it. Beyond exceptional journalism, we think that’s a testament to our open ended story and player explored world — it’s really about the whole experience, your whole adventure, and a couple hours getting stomped by foxes and wolves and learning how spells work isn’t really scratching the surface. While our next project will refine this, and maybe present this in a more sophisticated way, the ‘learning the world’ design is a philosophy and foundation we'll continue to use for all our games. It’s a concept we've heard a wonderful response for, and we'd love to fill that demand in new and fun ways in future games — we'll never take our p&p-inspired RPG roots and cater them to a modern audience for as long as we have an audience to continue. Expansion A lot of you have asked about the expansion, and while we can’t give you concrete details on a release and of course don’t want to spoil anything (for those of you who haven’t guessed who the antagonist is), we can assure you it will be available to anyone who purchased the game, and will be automatically added with a (big) update. You’ll be able to jump right into it with that final save, so if you’ve beaten the game you can just continue on right there. The expansion update will feature a few new systems, and include Grade 4 Skills and Spells along with any rebalancing needed for the core game. The expansion content is in the works, but we’ve been listening to players on what they like and want more of, and have already begun adjusting some things to fit that. We love hearing these ideas and building this game’s world mechanics, and the expansion will likely be the last time we visit Vol for a while so we want to end it on a wonderful note. We’ll have more announcements and blog posts on that in the coming months while we’re in full-development of it! Art Book The art book is finished and we’ll be sending that to everyone this weekend! It got a little bigger than we expected, but with just the two of us we had plenty of tidbits to share after living under a rock for a year developing the game. If you’re interested in art, process, our concepts for story structure or inane knowledge of Whalenought and development, give it a look through! It’s got lots of pretty pictures. THE FUTURE Like we mentioned in the video, we'll be trying to get some of you awesome players and community members on board earlier to help and give feedback for future projects. We'll have a more formal announcement regarding that on our website later this year, so if you're interested in getting some early looks and giving feedback we'd love your help! Our website will be updated soon with a blog, which will go into some design, technical, and random details of the Whalenought adventure, and we'll of course continue to be active on the forums. As always, if you have any feedback, suggestions or comments feel free to email us or message us. We look forward to providing you with more crpgs for many years to come, thank you again for making that possible. Cheers! Hannah & Joe

Kickstarter Update! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1649838104/serpent-in-the-staglands/posts/1268581 What ho, backers! We wanted to do a quick update thanking all our backers and all our new players for the post launch support! We’ve gotten emails and messages from a lot of you saying how happy you are to play a non-modern designed RPG like this, and some wonderful support from a lot of you spreading the word that the game is our there! It's been a pleasure to be able to design something like this, and while we'll refine our processes, this reception has made it clear that there is still an audience for RPGs with a learning curve, and we hope to cater to them for as long as we can. The game is looking better than ever with our last update, and we’ve just been adding some UI suggestions and ideas some users have had every so often now, so if you haven’t played it yet or have been waiting, now’s definitely the time to jump in! We’ve had such great help from you all the past month, from helping get the word around about the game to helping with finding any issues, and we really think it has embodied a lot of what the Kickstarter experience can be for small developers like us — a project, a game like this, really couldn’t have easily been made in reasonable time without your funds and support. We built this together, and with that support we'll continue to be able to make these kinds of games for you in the future. We’re so grateful for all the people that helped out and gave impressions and feedback throughout development and after, it’s been an exhausting year but we've learned a tremendous amount and are eagerly looking forward to the future. After a short hop to the west coast, (Whalenought is moving to Seattle!) we'll be right back in business and onto some real fun things we're excited to share with you. Marketing without an easy button While we've had and cherished a modest amount of user reviews, marketing continues to be a bit tough — it’s a game without an easy mode, and journalists can’t just jump in and make quick impressions, and we think that makes it difficult to get those early impressions reviews. We hear of a few folks that attempted that and got whiplashed with a learning curve like they haven't seen in years, which though kind of humorous to hear about, does filter the reviewers down to gamers that have patience, which is of course an incredibly slimming population. But learning to play and learning the world is part of the game, and a part we're really proud of. Try to sit me in front of an Ultima again and I’m going to need an hour just to learn the ins and outs of controls and how to interact with the world in all the various ways — but that’s part of it — it’s a game with learning, not just consumption like television — learning the game world is kind of lost in a lot of RPGs today, and it’s something that makes it so much more engaging. Hearing people's accomplishments of navigating the Hallowed Doors to traversing the death-bog is as much an accomplishment for us, and we're thrilled when we hear about people enjoying them. Games are certainly much easier to consume if you’re just jumping to conversation to quest with knowing exactly what to do, but we think that can get a little tired and misses something we love so much, which is the exploration of the world and how to win it. There’s a few wonderful reviewers that have contacted us saying they are really taking their time to finish the game prior to reviewing, and their initial playtime just wasn’t enough, they needed to actually finish it. Beyond exceptional journalism, we think that’s a testament to our open ended story and player explored world — it’s really about the whole experience, your whole adventure, and a couple hours getting stomped by foxes and wolves and learning how spells work isn’t really scratching the surface. While our next project will refine this, and maybe present this in a more sophisticated way, the ‘learning the world’ design is a philosophy and foundation we'll continue to use for all our games. It’s a concept we've heard a wonderful response for, and we'd love to fill that demand in new and fun ways in future games — we'll never take our p&p-inspired RPG roots and cater them to a modern audience for as long as we have an audience to continue. Expansion A lot of you have asked about the expansion, and while we can’t give you concrete details on a release and of course don’t want to spoil anything (for those of you who haven’t guessed who the antagonist is), we can assure you it will be available to anyone who purchased the game, and will be automatically added with a (big) update. You’ll be able to jump right into it with that final save, so if you’ve beaten the game you can just continue on right there. The expansion update will feature a few new systems, and include Grade 4 Skills and Spells along with any rebalancing needed for the core game. The expansion content is in the works, but we’ve been listening to players on what they like and want more of, and have already begun adjusting some things to fit that. We love hearing these ideas and building this game’s world mechanics, and the expansion will likely be the last time we visit Vol for a while so we want to end it on a wonderful note. We’ll have more announcements and blog posts on that in the coming months while we’re in full-development of it! Art Book The art book is finished and we’ll be sending that to everyone this weekend! It got a little bigger than we expected, but with just the two of us we had plenty of tidbits to share after living under a rock for a year developing the game. If you’re interested in art, process, our concepts for story structure or inane knowledge of Whalenought and development, give it a look through! It’s got lots of pretty pictures. THE FUTURE Like we mentioned in the video, we'll be trying to get some of you awesome players and community members on board earlier to help and give feedback for future projects. We'll have a more formal announcement regarding that on our website later this year, so if you're interested in getting some early looks and giving feedback we'd love your help! Our website will be updated soon with a blog, which will go into some design, technical, and random details of the Whalenought adventure, and we'll of course continue to be active on the forums. As always, if you have any feedback, suggestions or comments feel free to email us or message us. We look forward to providing you with more crpgs for many years to come, thank you again for making that possible. Cheers! Hannah & Joe

V.11 includes user requested UI additions for ease-of-use and a slew of other minor updates! Steam available, patches up, and full-games available for standalone download shortly, and GOG should be getting in tomorrow: UI addition/suggestions:

• Updated Spellbook and Warbook with procing information (numbered the every “X”)
• Selecting save field no longer has blank save slot name
• Tooltip updates for AI functionality update to reflect states (passive, aggressive, off)
• AI-off — targets now continue to attack targets
• Nobility crests ease-of-use update for various functionality, brainwashed now follow you longer
• Racial traits now visually display in game feed when used, not just character sheet
• Incantation ease-of-use update: curses now show up in game feed!
• Rally and other on-start Warbook skills now even easier to use – now trigger when a character just attacks target (swings or shoots missile).
• Missile damage additions now show up in Physical Damage
• Traps now have a hover state for easier selecting when disarming

Other/Minor updates:

• Ethereal weapon now adding mod where intended
• Philosophy stat-check skill could display stacked amounts of stats for enemies if continually checked, fixed to display relevant only
• post-polymorph armor set may not (visually) return as normal, fixed
• Incantation for citrine now working as intended
• Backup if something occurs wrong during saving/loading for NPC inventories – critical items will now always verify on load
• A couple items could be ‘consumed’ if right clicked that shouldn’t have been, fixed
• Various item description updates to reflect stats
• Couple modifier issues with Zana Spell fixed
• Cat and Bat Polymorph spell descriptions updated
• Autopause now works with NPC’s that turn hostile during conversation
• Darius’s fox now loads in correctly if saved nearby
• Some traps didn’t save correctly before or after discovery, fixed
• Companion Notol gains relevant XP like other companions when joining party
• Fixed issue when polymorphing at the end of the game
• Various art-tweaks and layering in maps
• A dresser in Orf’s Bridge Inn now locked appropriately