Solasta: Crown of the Magister news & patch notes

Adventurers, the time has finally come! We set sail for Neokos, each and everyone of us! Grab your sword, your boots, your spellbook - anything you think you’ll need to brave the harsh roads ahead of you. Those with the wisdom of age will remember: it is time to gather your party. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/67e8a141bb9d611bcbec24e631329c1e85846ea7.jpg Hark brother! Winter is over. The game is finally out, our masters will return to feed us at last. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Available on Steam now!

It’s been a little more than a year since we’ve announced Solasta II to the world, and another one since we’ve started working on it. Our Steam Next Fest Demo has now also run its course, living way beyond its intended lifespan - did you know we originally planned to take it down after the Next Fest ended in February 2025? Thankfully we realized that many more people would come to try it out… Hundreds of thousands in fact! Adventurers from all over the world, discovering Solasta II through the quaint village of Tor Wen. But now is the time to say goodbye to the Tor Wen demo, and welcome to the Early Access of Solasta II. Forged in the flames of passion and the many feedback from you, our players, the game is finally available on Steam, with a little launch discount for the next 14 days to celebrate its release! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/fb70b01d50e1ae61eb49aa82c6ee705c0b422c3c.jpg And just like in our previous game, we have a little Supporter Pack DLC available for those who wish to give us a little extra to support the studio. Don’t worry though - no game content is locked behind this DLC! Think of it as a tip jar, which gives you a few fun cosmetic items as a little thank you. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/3657216afe7fa468f20f19a421c10a7bdb07b1db.jpg Also, for those who own Solasta: Crown of the Magister on Steam, make sure you grab the Franchise Bundle for an additional discount! Heroes of the Rift, we salute you for your service.

Launch Celebration Stream with the Devs!

You’re happy, we’re happy - you know what we should do? Celebrate! We’ll be live for a few hours following launch, mostly drinking beers and eating snacks in the studio while discussing with various members of the team about the game and creating a few characters to play with. Come join us while you wait for the game to download, or if you’re stuck at work and can’t play at the moment (we won’t tell)!

• Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/tacticaladventures
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TacticalAdventures/streams

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/1ca8256742b52f7bfd4d5b3d497c863e19e1a655.jpg Oh and also… We’ll be giving away a few Solasta II Steam Keys for the occasion! If your wallet’s feeling a bit tight, or if you want to gift the game to a friend, make sure you enter the raffle! You can join us on Twitch or on YouTube, and get to know many faces that haven’t been on stream yet.

Bugs? Feedback? Where to go!

So you’re eager to help us during Early Access, you’ve found out about an obscure bug by making four rogues sneak attacking the same target at the same time? Say no more, we got you covered (and also, thank you for reporting it). Simply head to our official website, and in the Support Section you’ll find a big “Submit Feedback / Report a Bug” button. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/2e55b0a76242f8e3c35e26dd00687da07cc13fdd.jpg This will allow you to either send us Feedback about how you think the game could be improved, or report a bug that you encountered. Keep in mind that in the case of bugs, we will need a save file! Without a save file it can become very time consuming for us to get to the bottom of the issue. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/62d949161b670c1745adae4eb06ede86f48f090e.jpg Since this ticket system is pretty new, make sure you share this information around if you see other people asking or suggesting interesting things online! This will save us a lot of time trying to cross reference reports from the Steam forums, Discord, Reddit etc. As always, thank you so much for helping us make our game better!

What’s next?

You didn’t think that we’d leave you to dry just because the game’s out now, did you? Right now, we’re standing at the bottom of the mountain - the climb has just started! Feast your eyes on the roadmap of upcoming Early Access updates. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/124e519117614d6d130c726167e033fae0c01308.jpg And that’s not all! Just like in Solasta I, we’ll be hosting various Community Contests so we can build this game together. Fancy adding a few Random Events on the World Map? Keep an eye out… Alright, that’s it for today - why are you still here, go enjoy the game now! And let us know if you enjoyed your stay in Neokos, make sure you leave us a review to help Solasta II grow! Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Hello future heroes of Neokos! Welcome to our final Dev Update before the release of Early Access. Only two weeks left! The studio is abuzz with anticipation, excitement, and to be honest - a sprinkle of anxiety as the game is about to leave our hands and head into the wild. They grow up so fast… That said, we’ll still be watching over it for quite some time. This is only the beginning after all, there are plenty of large updates in store! But enough dillydallying, we have a Character Creator Tool to present. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/aeaec01f1356079026c9a90a3f9ff065ee4417cf.jpg If only the benefits of Long Rests could be transferred from our pets to us… We’ve all broken out the IRL Coffeelock build for the last straight! Just kidding, some of us are tea-powered. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Time to create your team!

You’ve launched the game, clicked on New Adventure, ready to start a new journey and…Wait, where is everyone? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/989c59abc663cb9ad1debcd6e3eb85ca38b27243.jpg Aawwww dangit, this is just like my IRL tabletop sessions! Not cool, guys! Just kidding, we have a full video right below walking you through all the aspects of Character Creation. Turns out we realized while writing this article that we’d need waaaay too many screenshots to showcase everything, so a showing video would be much easier to explain everything. Still have more questions about it? Feel free to drop by our official Discord server and head to the #Ask-a-dev channel so we can give you answers!

… Is that Ben and Dev?

In case you missed it, we just released a video last week with our lovely Ben and Devora going over their 5 Top Improvements of Solasta II. Look forward to more videos featuring them in the days / weeks to come! Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Salutations you monster bashers! Tick-tock tick-tock goes the clock, we’re just a little more than a month away now! And not a moment too soon, for we are starting to run out of topics to tease in these Dev Updates - the game, we want to give you the game! But you and I must bide our time, if only for a tiny bit longer. Without any more delay, let us jump into battle… and talk about the Ready Action! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/93c0bfb20eb0e1492dc3a5dcc10cf69fe409b299.jpg Don’t you look at me like that and eat your pancakes read your article, Kaiju. You know that’s all I can give you for now. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Community Stream #14 - Friday February 13th

Your monthly developer Yapatron-3000 is back for February, with plenty of fun anecdotes now that we’re heavily diving into debug and polish territory in anticipation of the Early Access release on March 12th. Have a question, or just want to share a fun moment with us? Make sure you drop by on Friday!

• Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/tacticaladventures
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TacticalAdventures/streams

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/4d761431f384b832a8b77020165f7ac34b3a35f1.jpg

Wait, what are we readying for?

Before we start diving deeper into the subject, some of you might be wondering: What even is Ready Action? Why is it so important? To put it simply, Ready Action allows you to prepare an action in advance, and execute it when the right time comes. If you played other more firearms-heavy tactical turn-based games, you might be more familiar with the term “Overwatch” - a very useful feature when trying to lure the enemy in open grounds before shooting them. Ready Action is most useful in a couple of situations, such as when an opponent is hiding behind cover and hitting them would be too difficult during your turn, or waiting for a foe to come to you instead of you running to them - but that’s just the start. Once you start taking into consideration initiative and turn order, and the vast arsenal of actions that each of your adventurers has access to… Plans can start getting very elaborate. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/945df88944700ffec977d3cd928017518f4dbf09.jpg

An arsenal of actions? Are we not just hitting the bad guy?

An excellent observation! If we were still in Solasta I, you would be right - the only possibility would be to ready a Melee Weapon Attack, a Ranged Weapon Attack or a cantrip. However, in Solasta II this is no longer the case - we aim to have most actions compatible with Ready Action over time. At the start of Early Access, Ready Action will also work with single target spells on top of the previously mentioned weapon attacks. Can’t reach your wounded buddy? Prepare a Cure Wounds and have them run to you on their turn. Worried that the Berserker next room might run in and cleave you in half? Prepare a Hideous Laughter and drop him as he rushes past the door (just pray that he fails his saving throw). That pesky crossbowman keeps popping in and out of cover to spray you down with bolts? Let’s see how they like a little Guiding Bolt to the face next time they try to do that.

How does it work?

Normally on Tabletop you would be able to specify exactly when to trigger a Ready Action during combat. Keep in mind, unlike most games with the Overwatch feature, Ready Action can only be used during combat - no pre-fight Ready shenanigans! As soon as a hostile action is taken we roll for initiative! Now, we would have loved nothing more than to make it exactly like on Tabletop and give you all the possibilities you could imagine on how to trigger Ready Action… but this would be a liiiittle overwhelming - if we did, we’d have to code a puzzle game inside your tactical CRPG, and as much as I love Baba is You we are not aiming to create the next Action is Readied. Let’s take an example. On Tabletop you could say “I will prepare Scorching Bolt and fire all 3 projectiles towards any Kobold who puts their filthy claw on that lever”. There are many conditions there, so let’s break them down. First, it will only trigger if someone touches the lever - someone could be barreling down the room towards you with a howling lust for your head, and you still wouldn’t be casting that Scorching Bolt. Second, if it’s not a Kobold, no Scorching Bolt either. It could be your (non-Kobold) archnemesis pulling the lever while staring you in the eye, no dice. Third, depending on how mischievous your DM wants to be at that moment, they could argue that a Kobold using any type of tool to pull the lever instead of using their claw… But now you’d know they’re just in for the love of the game. Let him know that he’s a doodoo-head and that you won’t be bringing snacks next time. Anyway, see how far that would take us? All of this to say, Ready Action will be very straightforward at the launch of Solasta II Early Access - it triggers whenever a valid target enters the range of your Ready Action. If you ready a ranged damage spell, it triggers whenever an enemy moves within that range. If you ready a melee healing spell, it triggers whenever a wounded ally moves by you. So on and so forth. As stated above, for now only single target spells and weapon attacks will be available to Ready Action - but in the future, we plan to have AoE spells and multi-target spells (like Magic Missile) be usable too with this feature. Our Tech Director even tells me that he would love to add different conditional toggles if we ever have the time, such as not triggering Ready Action if you currently have disadvantage, or if the enemy is beyond a certain range… But no promises here - it’s no secret that there’s a lot we want to do, but only so much time to do it! Alright, that’s it for now! Come back in two weeks for a deep dive into.. The Character Creator! It wouldn’t be Solasta if you had to stick to premades after all. And don't forget to drop by to say hello to us on Friday! Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Greetings, glory seekers! Our inevitable march towards March 12th continues, with packs laden with fresh rations and strength coursing through our veins. Two more months folks. We’ll be getting there soon enough, just you wait! In the meantime, let’s reveal some more mysteries shall we? We shared that each class had two subclasses - let’s get into the thick of it! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/064482ad50a9491a9e024f6de0ce08123b0a00a2.jpg It is dangerous to go alone. Take these. For real though please don’t, my Associate Producer would kill me. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Before we start, friendly reminder that on March 12th the level cap will still be level 4. While we are going to reveal quite a bit about the future features of our new subclasses, we also want to remind everyone that Early Access means things may change. What is presented below is our initial intentions for the archetypes, but it’s always possible that a feature may be tweaked or replaced during development. And with that out of the way, leeeeet’s go! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/493e23d72d3efa15b34ad57d6f5b37d8c1e262b1.png

The Fighter

Starting with the vanilla ice cream of the lineup (ain’t no shame in liking vanilla), let’s talk Fighter! Being considered the most basic class in Tabletop does not mean they’re bad - far from it in fact. Having received a slew of improvements with 2024 Ruleset, the once humble Fighter now can inflict various ailments thanks to Weapon Masteries, such as Sap forcing the target’s next attack roll to be made with disadvantage, or Topple potentially knocking one’s opponent prone.  Second Wind is also getting buffed with additional charges being available (2 at level 1, 3 at level 4, and finally 4 at level 10), and those charges can be used out of combat to help with Ability Checks thanks to Tactical Mind. Of course, the Fighter wouldn’t be themselves without their key feature - Action Surge, which lets them take an additional action on their turn… although now it can no longer be used to cast a spell, as the Magic Action is not compatible with its use!

The Commander

Returning from Solasta I will be the Commander Subclass! A rare martial class with strong support capabilities, the Commander was one of the fan favourites - and in a game where team coordination is key, it is without surprise that we chose to bring it back.  Gruff Authority gives them more out of combat tools by giving them two skill proficiencies, as well as adding their Strength modifier to all their Intimidation and Persuasion checks. Unsurprisingly their key feature Rousing Shout returns as well, giving them the ability to grant all themselves and all friendly creatures advantage on their next attack by filling them with determination.  Later on when the level cap increases, they will get access to Coordinated Defense which allows them to forgo one of their attacks to grant the benefit of the Dodge Action to an ally. They also unlock an upgrade to their Rousing Shout by making it also grant temporary HP to all affected allies, massively increasing their survivability throughout any fight.  {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b504d30224ca877331b9f04742347160d95a0658.jpg

The Aether Warden

Originally pitched as the Earth Warden, the Aether Warden was imagined as an ancient and illusive order native to Neokos, composed of roaming mythical warriors able to tap into the power of the land while fighting. We wanted another go at a half-caster Fighter, with Spellblade having quite a few issues in this regard - it started much too similar to the official Eldritch Knight, and the adjustments we did afterwards did not help much as it left a fairly fundamental issue. There was no real payoff for Spellblades to be casting spells in combat instead of just attacking like every other fighter (until level 15 with Arcane Escape). The Aether Warden, on the other hand, starts off much stronger with Mythology of Might - making them a Constitution based half-caster as their Spell Save DC and Spell Attack Modifier all rely on Constitution instead of Intelligence. Experienced Tabletop players will know that Constitution based spellcasters are by nature freakishly powerful, as they are able to massively increase both their survivability and offensive capacities at the same time; which is why being a half-caster helps keeping the Aether Warden’s magic powers in check. This allows the Aether Warden’s spells - limited as they are - to have a high save DC, making them more efficient at disabling enemies with control spells such as Sleep or Hideous Laughter… and also for the Aether Warden to more reliably keep their concentration up when damaged, which feeds into their level 7 feature Arcane Strength - increasing their Strength and AC while concentrating on a spell, scaling with the level of the spell slot used. At last, level 10 will unlock Earthen Succor, a straightforward feature which heals the Aether Warden based on the level of spell slot used and increased effect if the casting time takes an action.  A monstrous juggernaut on the battlefield, a high level Aether Warden is incredibly hard to take down as they prioritize a high Constitution score which means a large HP pool, and they have access to multiple sources of healing with both Second Wind and Earthen Succor. Arcane Strength improves their fighting capabilities with additional Strength and AC as long as they keep concentration, which again is beefed up by their high CON, and their spells are also hard to resist since they don’t have to split their attention between highly valued Fighter attributes and Intelligence. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/0a5005bf012f99530d16ed1fdb73fef799b55567.png

The Wizard

At the opposite spectrum of the Fighter, we have the good old Wizard! Spellcaster supreme, versatile as can be, the 2024 ruleset did not change much for them. They do get a couple of new features, such as Scholar at level 2 granting them expertise in one skill and Memorize Spell allowing them to swap a prepared spell after a Short Rest, but they mostly remain the Wizard we all know and love. Someone who casts a lot of Fireballs. 

The Court Mage

Another fan favorite, the Court Mage is coming back to Solasta II. Magic-wielding bodyguards, they are proficient with Shields and can use their reaction to increase a nearby ally’s AC when they get attacked. Their signature feature is their Spell Shield which can be cast on an ally to absorb a large amount of damage before breaking, protecting them (and the Court Mage) from harm.  Solasta II’s version of the archetype has also been heavily reworked at higher levels to fit the Sourcebook version of the Court Mage. Their level 6 feature becomes Vigilant Protector instead of Counterspell Mastery, allowing the Court Mage to teleport next to whoever is protected by their Spell Shield with a bonus action and granting them bonus AC while next to them, while their level 10 feature Shield Resonance allows them to select a damage type whenever they create a Spell Shield to gain resistance against it while protected by it.  Most of those changes were to give the Court Mage a more unique identity playing around their Spell Shield, instead of leaning too much into Counterspell / Resistance to Magic. While the latter thematically fits an anti-magic bodyguard, it also infringes a little too much on the playground of the official Abjuration Wizard to our liking. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/63fd7b1035c2b762d04d4cff34fc64bd407eacc3.jpg

The School of Ruin

New to Solasta II, the Ruin Wizard is a damage focused archetype adept at taking down other spellcasters (and anyone else as well, don’t you worry about that). At level 3, Ruination Savant grants them 2 additional spells that deal damage to add to their spellbooks, with another one as well each time they level up. Destructive Magic, their second feature, gives their spell 1 additional damage for each damage dice they roll. For instance, Scorching Ray would deal 2d6 + 2 fire damage per ray, and Shatter would deal 3d8+3 Thunder damage in its AoE.  At higher levels, Mana Feedback allows the Ruin Wizard to return a portion of the damage received when they are hit by a spell once per short rest, punishing spellcasters for targeting them. Finally, Deadly Resonance is a limited power that allows them to repeat a portion of the damage they inflict on their target with spells at the start of their next turn. Note that both of these features allow their victims to roll Constitution saving throws to dampen the damage received.  The School of Ruin is a straightforward subclass, it’s there for those who just want to see their enemies’ HP burn down to zero as fast as possible. Everything in their kit is about dealing damage, and they excel at nuking down large swathes of foes. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/f61ca1f9b4fcc77a287bf6c125eb26ae862b8881.png

The Rogue

Another classic of D&D, the Rogue gains a few tools with the 2024 update with Steady Aim at level 3 that gives them a more reliable way to hit their Sneak Attack at range and Cunning Strike at level 5 that allows them to trade a part of their Sneak Attack damage for various effects such as poisoning or tripping their enemies instead. They also benefit from the addition of 2024 Weapon Masteries, as they also get two weapons to master! The most notable mastery being Nick which lets them attack with two light weapons without having to spend their bonus action, thus allowing them to use Cunning Action as well (this has always been a pain point for dual-wielding rogues in the past). 

The Shadowcaster

Compared to the Commander and the Court Mage, the Shadowcaster was not a fan favorite… and yet it is returning? Why is that? Well my good readers, those who played a Shadowcaster in Solasta I know that one of its major flaws was that its identity, Shadow Casting, only came at level 13. Which is a little problematic when you start at level 1. This archetype was in our bucket of “thematically interesting, but poorly executed” which we wanted to revisit, and so we did! Shadow Casting now unlocks at level 3 when you unlock the subclass, and allows you to use Sneak Attack on spells with attack rolls. You are also no longer limited in the schools to choose your spells from, which means you have more options to choose from. At higher level, the Shadowcaster gains a stronger version of their previous Shadow Dodge, now named Into the Shadows, which allows them to teleport up to 25’ as a bonus action multiple times per day, as well as granting them two additional cantrips to learn.  {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/97af198499fffad45ae2986a59356e6bb85f2bdc.jpg

The Scavenger

Inspired by the faction of the same name who calls the Badlands home, the Scavenger Rogue is a survivalist who turns trash into treasure. Serrated Edge gives them additional slashing damage when attacking with a weapon once per turn, increasing their burst potential when stacked on top of a Sneak Attack. Haggler is a utility feature that adds a 10% price modifier when they buy or sell anything when dealing with merchants.  At higher level, Slippery Fellow allows them to use Cunning Action to take the Dodge action a certain number of times per day. Simple, but very effective at keeping them alive!  {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/27d3669f6d1b96de537a3c21408e4d1410e26099.png

The Paladin

Our sacred warrior will be here for the launch of Early Access, ready to smite! Speaking of which, the Paladin had some limitations added with the 2024 update - with Divine Smite becoming a Paladin-only spell using a Bonus Action. While some people see that as a large nerf (which let’s be honest, it is), the good thing about this change is that Paladins are no longer encouraged to hoard their spell slots to spend it all in one or two turns spamming Divine Smite - opening their choices by taking down the former obviously optimal option.  But it’s not just limitations they were stricken with. Lay on Hands is now a Bonus Action, removing the awkward moment of “should I risk trying to finish my foe, potentially dying if I miss? Or heal myself but potentially lose all the health I gained back if I get hit, effectively wasting a turn”. Nahhh, now we healing AND killing on the same turn! They also get Abjure Foes at level 9, a new way to use their Channel Divinity by frightening a number of foes, severely impairing their ability to fight. Oh and unsurprisingly, they also get to benefit from the Weapon Mastery addition! 

The Oath of Judgement

Coming straight from the Lost Valley DLC, the Judgment Paladin is an offensive archetype that chases the unjust and exact punishment (usually in the form of a swift death). As they were already pretty solid in terms of gameplay, very little has changed in Solasta II.  Weight of Justice still restrains a target when hit, although it now also does a small amount of Force Damage on top and no longer needs a Bonus Action to avoid preventing it from being used with Divine Smite. Purge Corruption can now remove additional conditions now such as Stunned and Restrained on top of the previous ones like Poisoned and Paralyzed. And Aura of Righteousness, which increases damage dealt while under its effects, now clarifies that it only works with attacks - so no longer will it make Magic Missile the equivalent of fantasy shredder bullets.  {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/6d4251c944f148403c69e69b10d6213a65de7918.jpg

The Oath of Liberation

Unsurprisingly when a large nation such as Manacalon thrives on slavery, freedom becomes an ideal that many start to seek. The Oath of Liberation originates from the common folks who through small everyday acts of valor fought to free and protect slaves from the Manacalon Empire, later becoming a Paladin order after the formation of the Argad Republic.  At level 3, they can use their Channel Divinity to blind an enemy at range for up to 1 minute with Blinding Castigation, or shroud their allies for a turn with Slip Away - which in the complete game will give them Invisibility, for now it has been replaced with Blur since… well invisibility hasn’t been implemented yet. The joys of game development!  At level 7, Aura of Liberation prevents you and any nearby allies from being Restrained or Paralyzed. Take that, annoying Entangle users! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/8b86bc27d49c2779f0b3c122f7db2cbf95a26263.png

The Sorcerer

The seventh and first post-launch class of Solasta I, the Sorcerer will be available from the start of the Early Access in Solasta II. Often compared to Wizards, Sorcerers now have access to a few more tools with the 2024 update to distinguish them from their cousin, such as Innate Sorcery which is somewhat like a magic equivalent of the Barbarian’s Rage, increasing their spell save DC and giving them advantage on spell attack rolls for 1 minute. This, on top of the already existing Metamagic feature, gives them a solid position: the Wizard may be more versatile and know more spells, but the Sorcerer can cast their own arsenal more reliably and with stronger effects. Is that enough to tip the scales? That is for you to judge! 

The Mana Painter

Now that Multiclassing is official, the Mana Painter received quite a few changes to avoid their strongest feature being available at level 3. Mana Absorption, which allows them to use their Charisma Modifier for any Saving Throws against a spell, has now been moved to level 6! In exchange, they get Mana Shield at level 3, which grants them temporary HP any time they use a spell slot. Mana Drain has also received a strong buff, dealing a lot more damage than before and recovering Sorcery Points scaling with your level, effectively giving the Mana Painter another way to recover Sorcery Points outside the base class Sorcerous Restoration. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/bf0700bb9182787098cabe960bba6914151fe579.jpg

The Star Child

A rare gift once only found among Siklas of the Lost Empire, a Star Child can now manifest in any family no matter their ancestry (although it is still an extraordinary occurence). Blessed by the night sky their affinity to mana is incredible, naturally marking them as powerful Sorcerers.  At level 3, Shooting Stars manifest whenever they use Metamagic in the form of small stars flying towards the target, dealing additional force damage. At level 6, a Star Child can call upon a Guiding Star several times per day, granting them an advantage on their next D20 roll.  {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/bcf5e8f69d878522a56230743fbade754321799f.png

The Cleric

Can’t start Early Access without a Cleric, can we? The last of the classic 4 (with the Fighter, Rogue and Wizard), the Cleric is ready to roll out with its 2… wait, 3 subclasses? Yes, turns out the Cleric does not follow any rules! 3 archetypes instead of 2, all of them from Solasta 1 and even featuring the SRD Life Domain when none of the other classes had an SRD archetype! What’s up with that?  Well, domains are a little more complicated than archetypes for other classes - gameplay speaking there are already a whole buttload of official ones we need to work around, and lore-wise it’s a story centered around Maraike, the goddess of life and death of Solasta - meaning not having the Life and Oblivion Domain would be a little strange. And if you’re wondering why not stop there at 2 domains, well… Neither of those two encourage a frontline type of Cleric in 2024, so we decided to bring back the Battle Domain as well for those looking to run in mace swinging. 

Life Domain

Unsurprisingly the Life Domain does what many imagine Clerics do best - healing. For those who want a dedicated healer, Life Cleric is your best choice for now! Disciple of Life grants additional HP whenever you heal someone, Preserve Life uses your Channel Divinity to heal your allies as well, and Blessed Healer helps you heal yourself while healing others. Healing ahoy! Oh and for those who were scratching their head when I said Life is not a frontline cleric anymore - the heavy armor proficiency has now been moved to the level 1 Divine Order of the base Cleric class, so being a Life Cleric no longer means you are among the few to have access to Heavy Armor.  {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/d8e3b6679b8e80513e97cd2e487b084511276698.jpg

Oblivion Domain

Where there is life, there is death. And there are buffs too, as the Oblivion Domain has gotten some love! Gate Keeper now gives the Cleric the ability to heal unconscious allies to 1 HP from range with a bonus action a few times per day on top of giving advantage to death saving throws like it used to do. Herald of Pain damage now properly scales making it a respectable way to deal AoE damage on top of its weakening effect. And Mark of Fate got standardised to only work once per turn - but deal more damage in exchange. 

Battle Domain

To battle! Where the Oblivion Domain received a little more oompf, the Battle Domain needed to be reined in a little more as it severely stepped into the realm of the Paladin. Divine Fortitude and Armed and Ready remain the same, granting a healthy dose of Temporary HP once per day and allowing them to cast spells even with both hands occupied with weapons or shields.  Decisive Strike received a little boost damage-wise but now incapacitates instead of stunning (let’s leave that to the Monk). And finally, Herald of Battle is no longer an aura (let’s leave that to the Paladin) and instead empowers your allies whenever you use Decisive Strike. While empowered, all attack rolls are automatically rerolled on a miss, and an empowered strike deals scaling additional force damage (once per turn).  Wew! That’s the end of a long, long list! I hope you found this article exciting and are already starting to plan your party composition. We sure had fun designing them! See you in two weeks for our next article. Article by Tactical Myzzrym Follow us on:

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Warm greetings friends! We hope this cold festive season has treated you well, for its harsh wind fell some of us for a bit. But let that not be an obstacle to our work, for Tactical Adventures is back at the office and firing on all cylinders to get our Early Access out on March 12th as recently announced! And just like most of you… we can’t wait for the day to come! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/0509de83931546f0122d86dbcf9c743acecc71c2.jpg Code faster, human. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Community Stream #13 - Friday January 16th

Wew! With all the announcements back to back, I just realized our last chill Community Stream was in September - how time flies. It’s time to take a little breather and relax around the campfire - yours truly Myzzrym will be here on Friday to answer your questions and show you the game. A little. We wouldn’t want to spoil too much before you get to enjoy the game on your own after all!

• Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/tacticaladventures
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TacticalAdventures/streams

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/79085ea4a64b7e4e160e6a618e8ea93105607468.jpg

Meet the Voice Actors

Joining Amelia Tyler in our latest story trailer were Ben Starr, Devora Wilde and Ellen Thomas! After wrapping up Solasta I, one of our main wishes was to shake things up a little on the narration side - and one thing that came up which we all agreed on was that we wanted to introduce more memorable characters to our storytelling. And more important NPCs also meant we started looking into more specific talents! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/2b57f71d9904569cf2f778fa1c564173d968bc50.jpg We first thought about Amelia Tyler when we were working on Shadwyn - that many may know as the narrator of Baldur’s Gate III (or more recently as Hecates in Hades II), we felt she would be perfect as our mysterious and villainous antagonist. I’m going to let you in on a little secret - some of you may remember that she was in many CRPGs in the last decade such as Divinity: Original Sin II and the Pathfinder games. Well, that’s also why her voice came to mind very quickly… Since, you know, most of us play a LOT of CRPGs in our spare time. A great vocal range, a natural ease to weave both strength and gentleness… Yep, we wanted Amelia for Shadwyn! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/81c766a8d09a4a2d8d913b421f02f31551767cb5.jpg Ellen Thomas on the other hand was more of a “oh wait, did you watch Arcane? Wouldn’t she make a perfect Anabasia?” moment. A powerful character that commands authority naturally without having to resort to open threats, with full confidence in her own abilities - an absolute unchallenged ruler. We are excited to see how far Ellen Thomas will push her character and play around her… yet unrevealed particularities. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/edb6afc3e0b25fe23c10b7f80b3f67adac105181.jpg For the characters of Deorcas and Rickard we had quite a few ideas in mind and bounced them around until we decided to go with Ben Starr and Devora Wilde. Ben Starr because his performance as Clive in FF XVI was pretty incredible and because we knew he was a huge D&D nerd like us with Natural Six. Funny story, Rickard changed quite a bit since Ben started breathing life into the character - adding a few layers of issues such as alcoholism. Because we all love characters with problems in their lives, makes them more relatable eh? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/27d825ee0d944153dcaf52ce781bd4a18027ad70.jpg Devora Wilde caught our attention with her role as Lae’zel in Baldur’s Gate as a very confrontational yet lovable character, with a complex story arc that could lead her to… very different and potentially tragic ends. This made her a prime candidate for Deorcas in Solasta II, a character driven by her violent bursts of emotions, lost in anger and doubt. Fun fact, we did not know about her working with Ben on Expedition 33 when we made that choice - which made them joke on site that they were once again reunited as brother and sister in another game (guess it was fate).

Early Access - A Primer

So, what can you expect from Solasta II at the launch of Early Access, versus what are we aiming for 1.0? Let us walk you through some of the most important points!

Character Creation & Customization

The Character Creator will be available from the start of the Early Access, meaning you can create your full party from the get-go! Worry not, for those of you who may not want to spend too much time in the Character Creator, we have also prepared one premade for each class if you want to jump into the campaign immediately. Solasta II will start with 6 classes at first: Fighter, Cleric, Wizard, Rogue, Sorcerer and Paladin - with more coming in future Early Access updates (ideally we aim to have all 12 classes playable at 1.0). Each class will feature 2 subclasses, one returning from Solasta I with some balance tweaks, and another one exclusive to Solasta II - with an exception for the Cleric, who has 3 subclasses previously seen in Solasta I instead.  Multiclassing will be available from the start, and additional class & subclass features will be added over time (same goes with spells, we’ll be adding more as time goes on). The max level cap will start at 4 and make its way over time to 10 for the 1.0 release.  The game will also feature 4 ancestries at launch: Human, Elf, Dwarf & Halfling - with more coming in future EA updates.  {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/25c23fd4911aa93845ba87a2eb66dbd624553537.jpg

Content & Length

At the launch of Early Access you will have access to a portion of Act I, which we estimate might take you around 10h to 15h to complete (for a single run). Note that the foes you will encounter and challenges you will face will likely change over time as we fine tune the balancing and add new monsters to the bestiary. For this reason, make sure you send us feedback about your experience - it helps us a lot to understand what you like and what you… liked a little less, shall we say! Some gameplay features such as flight and multiplayer are currently in the pipeline so they won’t be available in March, but rest assured that we’re working on them (and making good progress may I add). Of course, you can expect many more quests, locations, items and QoL settings to be added over time as well over the length of Early Access (and even beyond)! If you have any questions feel free to drop by our Monthly Community Stream to ask us directly, or contact us via our Discord server. Cheers, and see you soon! Only a little more than 2 months left before Neokos opens its doors!   Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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It is finally time, adventurer! Solasta II’s newest trailer is out, and with it the secret of the Early Access release date is laid bare. Grab your gear and polish your weapons, for we sail for Neokos on March 12th, 2026! In the meantime, come sit by the hearth to learn more about the characters and their talented voice actors who will accompany you during your journey. Are you ready for more? Good, because we’ll be here on Tuesday December 16th to show some more of Solasta II live on stream! Mathieu (Creative Director), Xavier (Game Director) and I (Community Lead) will be playing and streaming some combat encounters and tackling any questions you may have. That’s right, it’s time for fisticuffs! Too long has it been since we’ve directly shown battle in a live environment. Be ready to witness in action the classic four: Fighter, Cleric, Rogue and Wizard… plus a little companion joining the party!  Make sure to join us on Tuesday December 16th, 9 am PST / 12 pm EST / 6 pm CET​

• Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/tacticaladventures
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TacticalAdventures/streams

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/45343416/011bb3595af774d439925b5559905e5252850ce0.jpg Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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How are you doing, adventurers? After learning about Neokos, you may think exploring it will be a leisurely stroll. Sure, you may run into a few bandits and monsters, but nothing a good walloping can’t fix, right? WRONG! As your party grows stronger, the various factions of Neokos will seek to know about your… dispositions. Are you friends? Or foes? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/4c85514053221223317f6d8b6936417a7bfbe680.jpg Simba bellyrubs only unlock after you're done with the Feline faction questline. Now get to it! https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/c90ef888f0b7f143f33b48dc8b18d193005b0bc0.png

The Beacon

A powerful mage once said I am a Beacon of knowledge blazing out across a black sea of ignorance - oh wait, “wrong game” I’m being told. Regardless, one could argue that members of the Beacon probably regard themselves as such. Originally established by a large expedition from overseas, the Beacon was named as such as they were “bringing the light of the Manacalon Empire” to the savage lands of Neokos. Their expansion efforts started with carefully prepared intelligence work, staging local revolts to destabilize the established Siklas empire while the main forces landed. With strong arcane prowess and military might bolstered by the massive army of slaves Manacalon is known for, the Beacon quickly wrestled almost half the continent away. This aggressive expansion was suddenly halted by the Cataclysm - in the ensuing chaos, most of the slaves they brought along escaped their shackles and turned onto their masters. The Beacon, suddenly losing massive amounts of manpower and access to their most powerful tool, arcane magic, had to quickly retreat. With the inability to get reinforcement from Ferendragh and the fall of the Manacalon Empire, the Beacon ended up confined to the northern peninsula of this continent, with Caer Mar as its main fortress. Over the centuries since the Cataclysm, the Beacon has switched to a more diplomatic approach. Everyone knows it would take too much bloodshed to completely wipe them out due to their fortified position and geographic advantage - and with the tenuous relations between the other factions, the Beacon’s existence is… mostly accepted. A remnant of Manacalon, Caer Mar is still governed by strong laws and guards posted on every wall, ruled by a certain Lady Anabasia with a silken glove wrapped around an iron fist. However, the great city has long since opened its doors to travelers and merchants - these days, it is not rare to find people from other factions perusing wares or sampling ales in the streets of Caer Mar… although one wrong word and you could quickly find yourself rotting in dungeon cells for a long, long time. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/4b88d465e81c3782c5ec33b93b1f5a4f786758e5.png

The Argad Republic

Named after Argad Ironfist, the main leader of the massive slave revolt following the Cataclysm, the Argad Republic is an aggregation of folks of any kind, from anywhere, who value personal freedom above all. Its people refer to themselves as Argeides, Argads or even “The Free” - which is a perfect reflection of the fact that the Argad Republic is not a monolithic faction. In fact, it is a faction full of contradictions. While they value freedom and equality, they also tend to have militaristic tendencies against those who do not share their view of the world. That same equality which is paramount to an Argad often only applies to other Argads, not to outsiders. And while they loathe slavery and lordship, their pursuit of wealth and land often means some people end up… more equal than others, to say the least. You will find many kinds of worship in Argad. As they like to say, “You can never have too many gods looking out for you!”. That being said Misaye is favored amongst other deities, with most major Argad settlements displaying Copper Tablets of “The Declaration of Misaye and the Free” in their central market square - a permanent and visible declaration of Argad freedom. Argad politics can be extremely volatile with frequent clashes and arguments. Between the 2 appointed Consuls in charge of Civilian and Military matters, the 13 Senators supporting them and the Tribunes of the Hundred ratifying each proposal, discussions tend to be very lively - to the point that most end up retiring after a while due to stress. Unsurprisingly, this structure led to the formation of two major political groups, one in support of more militaristic measures while the other favors commerce. Interestingly, Bard Colleges are an integral part of the Argad Republic as many who follow this path share the Republic’s love of freedom and individualism. Beloved by common folks and naturally roaming the lands to share music and stories, these Bards tend to accumulate a lot of information which they then share to uncover corruption, infiltration and other nefarious plots. This allows the Republic of Argad to remain fairly protected against outside interference even without a strong central government. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/274fc07238f1977a050ef86e6750d1dcf09a1809.png

The Combers

Very likely the most non-aligned faction on Neokos, the Combers are a loose organization of freelancers specialized in finding and trading all sorts of goods. If it sounds similar to the Scavengers, it is not by chance! The founders of the Combers created the guild after hearing about the Scavengers from a rare sailor hailing from Ferendragh, and decided to organize in a similar fashion on their own turf. Combers are an eclectic group of people who mostly left their former allegiance at the door. They don’t ask too many personal questions, they do not judge your appearance, all that matters is that you can hold your own when it comes to work. In the past, many Combers would actually delve into ruins themselves in search of rare treasures - but with many dying to traps and monsters they slowly settled for safer options, letting adventurers take the risk and providing services for a smaller cut of the profit. Some would belittle the Combers and regard them as mere junk gatherers, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. When you need a specific item found, you go to the Combers - they are the ones who could find a needle in a haystack. An unbelievable amount of items, valuable or not, go through their hands, and they have a knack for sifting through them to make sure each finds the right buyer. The Combers also have a fair share of researchers and scholars, who pour time and effort going through every obscure document found by others. It is not rare for a party of adventurers to find hidden doors or secret rooms thanks to Comber help - though of course, rarely for free. To be fair, do you really want to spend the next few days excavating each valuable item from the ruins you just cleared? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/ec34013d986de1ad529f18ff78456772ac307ac3.png

The Ka'Umm

Claiming to be the oldest dwellers of Neokos, the Ka’Umm are a collection of nomadic tribes of varied origins who roam the lands following a path known only to them. They claim to have no enemies and live a simple - although dangerous - life centered around traditions, the pursuit of wisdom and understanding of magic. The People, as they call themselves, can be found all over Neokos. The vast majority of them are physically fit as they mostly travel on foot, with some even pulling wagons by hand when not enough draught animals are available. They have a strong affinity with magic, with most tribes having at least a druid or a wizard amongst them. Ka’Umm tribes are not only defined by blood or legacy - one can freely leave their tribe to join another. Tribes can split if internal tensions arise, or if they feel like they became too large, with most consisting of about 50 to 150 people. They value friendship and knowledge above all; one is considered rich not by the amount of gold they possess but by the wisdom they share and the number of friends they can count on. Gold and silver are but a decoration, and they trade through barters, gifts and favours. Interestingly, although their culture predates the Cataclysm, the Ka’Umm have taken to the worship of Arun and Maraike alongside their native belief of the Dream Song - a huge tapestry of resonance and harmonic sounds that they believe holds the universe together. Most Ka’Umm idioms reflect this, with phrases such as someone lacking harmony denoting a person’s poor character, or giving praise by calling someone a good listener. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/a7b9de7868819b8dee88ecf0d9c0a1a66e484ad1.png

The… other factions?

Those four are not the only ones you will run into during your journey on Neokos, but we do not wish to reveal all of them just quite yet - where would be the fun in that? We will just leave you today with the knowledge that… Yes, there once was a Siklas Empire, and yes it was destroyed. And no, they are not the only endemic ancestry of Neokos. Alright, that’s it for today. Look out for more news of Solasta II… very soon! Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Look sharp adventurers! Does everyone have their backpack ready? Ration check? Alright, it’s time to head out into the wild unknown! Join us today on a trek to discover Solasta II’s World Map - and the vast freedom of exploration you will enjoy (especially compared to Crown of the Magister). Let’s go! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/5986bf5ea5c1e3c63ea12318d5cfb6775f2cd008.jpg To adventure we go, follow Emji and fortune will follow! (possibly. maybe.) https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

A whole new World

A new fantastic point of view! Alright alright, let’s stop lest we anger the great rodent god from beyond. Although we revealed Solasta II’s brand new world map on stream a few weeks ago, we wanted to do a little deep dive for those who might not have been here to listen to us yapping for almost 2 hours about it. Behold! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/9cb7f715b22104d0115f36ca64342cbcc833673f.jpg Oh boy, where do we even start! If you played Solasta: Crown of the Magister, you’re already seeing a lot of differences with the first game. First is the fact that the world map is now in 3D, and no longer a 2D illustration upon which the party travels. Which allows us to do this! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/0af5dd4a7813f0848605953ab4ac5408bb8a1e54.jpg You can zoom in quite far to appreciate each landmark you come across and get a slight idea of what’s awaiting you inside if you enter. Forests have trees, coasts have sand, and most importantly - you are no longer limited to traveling from location A to location B. That’s right, this is a hex-based map that you can uncover one tile at a time!  That’s also why you’re seeing a Movement bar on the bottom of the screen - with 4 Regular Move points, and 4 Forced March points. Depending on the terrain you’re crossing, you will burn a different amount of movement points - forcing you to take more time when not sticking to the roads between major settlements. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b3832d33f5ad0ff544baeee59d611520fb4f5282.jpg As you can see here when hovering the neighbouring tile, you are informed of the type of terrain as well as its movement cost (Grassland, 2 points). It’s also warning you that attempting to move will trigger Forced March, which is a nasty condition that can really ruin your day if you happen to get into a fight while exhausted! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b3744cbbdfc1ae2985bb616c315b002e89b83e50.jpg As you can see here, after moving through two different tiles under Forced March, some of my party members gained a level of exhaustion, decreasing the result of all their D20 rolls by 2. One even gained two levels, meaning they’re getting a -4 penalty! If that wasn’t enough, they also move slower in combat by 5 feet per level of exhaustion. But what’s this? Is it night time? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/bb25ae38a665784aa00757f100512d505da98f89.jpg It absolutely is! When moving under Forced March, you will no longer be traveling under the sun and will be relying on the stars to guide you instead. This means encounters could get more dangerous… Is it really a risk you’re willing to take in order to save time and food rations?

World Map Events

Remember when we showed you Random Encounter Maps and told you that you might come across these small combat arenas during your travels? Well, the good news is - Solasta II does not limit its World Map Events to combat encounters! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/bac84ff57248eeed25733a03e594c15ee97135e5.jpg When roaming the map, you have a chance to stumble upon random events. Some of them only appear under certain conditions, such as being confined to a particular biome, time of day or even depending on the outcome of some previous encounters - which makes exploration that much more interesting!  In this example, you can see that during Forced March (since we’re at night), our party has spotted a kettle of vultures circling the skies. You have several different options to choose from, some of which may result in combat! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/0fd2279cadd6747ce4d7ff5db17134c4b1d74664.jpg Here we decide to roll a Perception check to learn more about the situation. Uh oh, turns out these might not be “just vultures”. Had we approached immediately, we could have been in some serious trouble. Maybe we should just steer away for the night, and not risk a combat encounter while exhausted. Some of you may have noticed that our little scene here takes place in the forest - that’s because our party is currently traveling through a forest tile! Had it been a coastal tile, or a grassland tile, the background wouldn’t be the same. We have made several little scenes in each biome to give random events a little more life as you travel, so you get to see your party not only during fights but also while they roam the lands. Alright, that’s it for today! As we’re creeping closer to the release of Early Access, we’re back to a steadier rhythm of two news per month - so expect more from us very soon. Don’t think our Galaxies Trailer is all we were going to give you!  Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Alright folks! With the release of the Twitch Galaxies Showcase Trailer and the announcement of our Early Access release window, many of you have a burning need for answers - many of which we provided in our Community Stream earlier last week! Here is a recap of the most frequently asked questions, as well as some more specific ones that we noticed during our livestream. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/756a6ceaaca181f4290defa26c9334c241d6ed71.jpg Sherlock has answers if you have coins... For those who wish, you can also watch the VOD of the livestream available on YouTube, where we not only answer questions, but also reveal Solasta II’s World Map in-game for the first time! When you say Early Access in early 2026, do you mean Q1 2026? Yes! As Q1 is more of a business term, we opted for early 2026 instead to avoid confusing people. For those who may not know, Q1 means 1st fiscal quarter, which stretches from January 1st to March 31st. This gives you a little more information on when to expect the Early Access to hit the Steam store page! Can you give us the release date then? Pretty please? Hahah no, that’s as much information as you’ll get for the release date. That said, we have a lot more prepared, so keep an eye out - you will find out more in the coming months! Any chance we get Spanish localization? Absolutely! We are happy to announce that we will have Spanish localization ready for the launch of Early Access. I know we have many passionate (and vocal) Spanish fans, so this one is for you folks out there! We also have a few more languages in the pipelines that were not available in Solasta I, but these ones shall remain secret for now… What about consoles? We are aiming for console releases around the launch of 1.0! So no consoles during Early Access, but (hopefully) no waiting a year or two after the full game releases to join your PC compatriots either this time! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/36805f105e3dd568afe723b2632fb608bdf59474.jpg For those who want to support you, will there be a Supporter Pack at launch? Yes, just like in Solasta I we will release Solasta II with a $10 USD / 10 euros Supporter Pack. And just like in Solasta I, we want to remind everyone that this DLC is absolutely not mandatory, and is just there if you want to give our relatively small team a tip. There is very little value in getting it for the content, which will be a few cosmetic items - and yes, while they will look very cool, they will not impact your gameplay in any sort! Will we have Ready Action? Yes! Funny story, Ready Action is among the many reasons why we moved the release date back a bit as it’s a costly feature that we originally planned for 1.0, but after going through the demo feedback decided to implement in Early Access instead. On top of that, we spent some time upgrading the feature - unlike in Solasta I where you could only prepare Melee / Ranged Attacks and Cantrips, the new Ready Action in Solasta II can be triggered with most actions - such as preparing Guiding Bolt or even Cure Wounds to heal the next wounded ally who moves next to you. What’s actually in the Early Access launch version of Solasta II? At launch, the Early Access will feature more than 10h of gameplay and a max level cap of 4, with access to the Character Creator to build a full party. The six classes available immediately will be the Wizard, the Sorcerer, the Paladin, the Fighter, the Rogue and the Cleric, with the four ancestries being Human, Elf, Dwarf and Halfling. And yes, you will be able to multiclass! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/83b6af2724e9678ffa2d1f5bd8563cb7a6d6b3bc.jpg When can we expect the remaining classes to be released? We aim to have all the classic tabletop classes to be available at the 1.0 launch, however we can’t promise that yet as game development can be very tumultuous. Ideally we want to release new classes alongside our Early Access updates, and hopefully by 1.0 all of them will be ready! Will the game have co-op multiplayer? Yes it will! Our plan is to release co-op multiplayer as an Early Access update so we have more time to fine-tune it before the 1.0 release of the game. Meaning you’ll be able to play with your friends sooner rather than later! Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Well met adventurers! Our new trailer is finally out, and oh how we’ve been waiting to show you this one! We hope you’re as excited (if not more!) to set foot on Neokos now that you’ve watched it - and if you haven’t already, just scroll down a bit and you’ll find it here. The cat is out of the bag, Solasta II’s Early Access is coming early 2026! You heard that right, we’re taking a few more weeks (months?) to polish everything - we want to make sure we give you the game in a state we can be proud of. Now, I’m sure some of you will still have questions for us. Which is why we’ll be here with our CEO Mathieu to answer any questions you have live next Tuesday Oct 28th with a special Community Stream. We’ll also be showing off the actual overworld map travel in-game, so if you’re curious about how it looks and plays, don’t miss it! Make sure to join us on Tuesday October 28th, 10 am PDT / 1 pm EDT / 6 pm CET (careful, the start time is slightly different than usual!)

• Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/tacticaladventures
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TacticalAdventures/streams

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b19234e78cfea320327b8a58aac5e8887a1605a1.jpg Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Hello there folks! We can see many of you wondering “Is it Early Access yet?”, and my answer to you is… a little more, just a little more! I promise you we will have something to announce soon, so please bear with us a little more. Oh how we wish we could simply reveal everything right now, but some things must remain behind the DM screen. Now this doesn’t mean we don’t have anything to show - let us share with you our monthly allocation of development tidbits! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/9416c261b0975464729bd610b2b145928ff86f45.jpg Don’t look at me like that, I told you already I can’t reveal the Early Access date yet. No, not even to you. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Live Art Stream & Giveaway - Join our Art Director to chance winning Solasta II Steam Keys & hand-drawn sketches on October 9th!

After our very surface-level delve into The Temple of Elemental Evil, we’re now back to more Solasta II content! This time we’re doing something a little different by inviting our Art Director Thierry to sketch live on stream while we discuss lore and world building with our Game Director Xavier - namely to know more about the Siklas! Strange and mysterious folks native to Neokos, what secrets do they possess? We will be holding giveaways during the livestream to give out the drawings as they are being made (we estimate there will be three in total), which we’ll then send via postal service in the following weeks. Please note that French shipping services unfortunately can’t deliver mail to Syria, Yemen and Haiti. We will also be giving away 3 Steam Keys of Solasta II over the course of the steam, which will give you access to both the Early Access and the 1.0 version of the game once it is released! Make sure to join us on October 9th - keep in mind it’s a Thursday and not a Friday this time!

• Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/tacticaladventures
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TacticalAdventures/streams

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/6f2359569085e9b70212f8647b3bd48086eb16fc.jpg And with that out of the way, it’s time for some Development news!

Heading to town

Adventuring is a hard life, full of dangers and uncomfy nights spent in the wilderness - which is why every so often you will need to head back into town to unwind… and more importantly, sell your trinkets and baubles that you looted legally acquired along the way! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/e19cac3b0e13f4e9b4f1df5ae29b953cc3a665e2.jpg Where did we get those paintings? Errrr turns out one of the bandits we took care of was an art collector, yea sure let’s go with that. Speaking of looting, we’ve also added a grid view to the inventory following feedback from the demo, as many of you were concerned about having to scroll endlessly to find your items once you start carrying a bit more stuff in your backpacks. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/3a908ca180fd348e4d797ee1901c9c17bcf58bbb.jpg More items! MORE!

Adventurers by day, adventurers by night

Similar to Solasta I, your journey into Neokos will see you roaming through the lands in light and darkness alike! Make sure your party has at least one member with a good Perception score, you wouldn’t want to end up ambushed during your rest… {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/7d059b82e008efe8bdbc6c009ea3992f9a85761e.jpg A nice clearing by day… {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/5499360dda5e05ac508a64b1faca4ede793cf6c5.jpg Can become a deadly trap by night! Remember that Solasta II will allow you to explore its world freely, unlike our previous game where you could only travel to and from known locations. But with freedom also comes danger - take care not to go too far, lest you run into some nasty monsters you aren’t prepared for… {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/a4896d9004d8ae5e331d619ff91a7bfc0dbdc285.jpg Say, are you sure this is the right way? I don’t believe our contact said anything about crossing the desert…

Chipping away at new features

Now all this is nice and beautiful, but what about the nitty gritty stuff? Well we’ve got something for you today. A new feature that we didn’t have in Solasta I, which is the ability to swap damage types! Some spells such as True Strike use this, but more importantly it’s the Sorcerer’s Transmuted Spell Metamagic’s whole shtick. Take a look! Another thing we’re currently working on is… well, what is it you see? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/d83d4e9097fe78de12372727fb9fc86b3c95d1b9.jpg These footsteps don’t look human… Be on guard, we won’t be facing bandits it seems.

Might and Magic!

We’ve shown you a few spells in the last updates, it is only fair that we show you some class features in return. Let’s take a look at Solasta’s Paladins today, with two Channel Divinity powers: Purge Corruption, which removes a negative condition from an ally within 30’ - and Blinding Castigation, from the new Oath of Liberation, which blinds an enemy for up to 1 minute. The battle is not yet over, keep fighting my friend! You find the battlefield a little dark? Here, let me help you. Thought we were going to leave you with that and nothing about spells? That’d be forgetting that our CEO’s favorite class is Wizard, and somewhere in the contract is stipulated that one must talk about spells in each and every article posted. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/1da5604a84853a569eca4e009d744d20f3f2f5cf.jpg Look at all these spell icons, how much easier to understand they are compared to before!

An outfit for the road?

As always let us end this news with a new outfit to share - this one being not for the players but for the sand-dwelling travelers that you will come across! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/40e2bb3f8f77a021f0476db239de11a63488d111.jpg That’s it for today! Keep an eye out as we will have more… much more to share soon! And see you on Thursday at 9 am PDT / 12 pm EDT / 6 pm CEST for those joining the Live Art stream giveaway! Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

• Discord
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• Bluesky
• YouTube
• Twitch

Well met adventurers! As summer is on its last leg, we’re finally seeing cooler days ahead. Huzzah! And that also means we’re creeping ever closer to the release of the Early Access, doesn’t it? Soon my friends, soon! Let the cooks in the kitchen the time to finish preparing your meal, as we want to give you something meaty - even if it’s “just” an Early Access and not the final release! We know you want to see more, hear more, learn more about Solasta II and we can say - we want to share more about the game too. We’ll have to wait a little more for that - but know that once the floodgates open, they won’t be closing back! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/3f160feb526591d9d240104958a00305fe6d1586.jpg A new adventurer has joined the party! Say hello to little Sanpo, level 1 kitten now part of the Marketing Team. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Community Stream #12 Friday September 5th - Temple of Elemental Evil Part 2

After wandering around the hamlet for about an hour and a half, our party is now ready to face the wilderness! This Community Stream will mark our second (and likely last) stream of The Temple of Elemental Evil, one of the original inspirations for the Solasta franchise. Come and witness yours truly Myzzrym fumble around the 3.5 ruleset that he has forgotten most of and watch him lament his subpar decision-making skills as his party dies in horrible ways.

• Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/tacticaladventures
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TacticalAdventures/streams

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/3ba474cf0b090c141573f87aac4ff7bebe388ad0.jpg After this stream, we’ll go back to Community Streams that are 100% focused on Solasta II as we’ll be getting closer and closer to the release of the Early Access!

NOT THE BEES!

What started as a fun little homebrew spell that we made in Crown of the Magister to shore up our lack of variety and number of cantrips slowly turned into one of the more beloved spells in the entire franchise (we have JoCat to blame for that). Annoying Bees is a cantrip that deals a guaranteed 1d4 piercing damage and gives the target disadvantage on Concentration Saving Throws until the start of your next turn, making it the bane of spellcasters. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/6a867f4dd2630f31f8b0fe59fc1613ab40245b71.jpg Who would win? One venerable wizened wizard, or a bunch of jacked-up magical bees? (Art by JoCat) Now forever part of the Solasta franchise, we couldn’t simply forget this silly little cantrip on the sideline. We proudly present you, Annoying Bees, Solasta II edition. Oh my lord they even properly follow you around for the entire round now, what a nightmare! Also, we should probably call it Annoying Bees now, seeing how many bees there are. If you’re wondering about why Joralas is charmed, he isn’t (although he wishes he were) - it was just a placeholder condition while we worked on the Concentration Saving Throw disadvantage part. Now, wizards aren’t the only ones eating good today. Divine spellcasters behold, a new homebrew cantrip for you as well! Holy Conduit is a melee spell that deals 1d6 radiant damage on hit… and then explodes, dealing an additional 1d4 radiant damage to all enemies within 5 feet if they fail a Constitution saving throw. Boom goes the baddy! While this cantrip may seem powerful with its AoE effect, remember that on a single target it deals at most 1d10 damage, requires you to be in melee range, and that’s if you both succeed a spell attack roll AND they miss a Constitution Saving Throw. If you’re wondering why we’re making homebrew spells (especially as the Solasta franchise tries to remain faithful to the tabletop ruleset as much as possible), the reason is fairly simple - there are just not that many cantrips / spells available in the SRD in some cases, and we still want players to have the ability to choose between different options.

Solasta… Evo.. Malmis!

We’ve often had players asking if we would keep Verbal Components for spellcasting in Solasta II; and while we have already answered that we would, a video will probably speak (hahah, get it?) better than ever could. As a reminder, the way spell incantations are broken down:

• The source of the spellcaster’s magic: Divine, Arcane, etc
• The school of the spell: Evocation, Divination, etc
• The effect of the spell: Healing, Damage, Utility, etc

What do you mean, game over?

Ahhhh, we can’t forget about good ol’ Game Over when working on a video game! So far, we didn’t have anything yet on that end - so even after losing a character you could keep running around, breaking all the quests and dialogs in the process and ruining your save file in the process. This era of the wild wild west is now over! When one of your characters dies, you will be prompted to resurrect them or reload a save file. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b4caf13d1d12968cbb5de8e30021d51ff0a48e5e.jpg Make sure you stock up on scrolls of Revivify if your party members have a tendency of not being too careful!

Making a pit stop in the countryside…

As you walk the peaceful coast of Neokos, your sixth sense starts to tingle. When was the last time you saw any animal? Should the seaside be this quiet? You look around you, your companion taking note of your sudden realization. Everything seems as peaceful as could be, yet you feel like you should be on guard… What’s your passive perception again? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/5360d06c0b2f83ad1613185dfbe7ec215fe7fe7a.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/9ab0b37169a2cb07f3fe7bd8c922c97598bd3e30.jpg Here is a first glance at one of the many random encounter maps that will be in Solasta II - for they will be sorely needed, considering the amount of travel you will be doing on the world map! Whether it is fighting monsters or encountering traveling NPCs, you will soon get to see more of them on your own. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/22c71ba7a5c2f546092eaecf45dabe1fa30d2b39.jpg And in bonus, steal a glance at another upcoming level that will be included in the Early Access! All the grass!

Let’s wrap it up with some more fashion

“More armour!” the people clamored. Then more armour we shall deliver! Take a gander at this magical half plate armor, a 3D version of the studded leather armor we showed last month and some priestly garbs worn by religious figures. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/0371f407244d0483193e7a631a13f0b71ba3c8d5.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/91e32687d0f2b98fe203b3457c0d5e9ebad12c5a.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/22a1ccad9a8bf560b7eedc6f61de29ec491df98b.jpg Oh and, lest we forget - we’ve also got a 2D draft of the shields we are going to start producing! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/6925dc6032435d91a5f69f7e288a14f61cd55df9.jpg And that’s it for today! Come back next time for more news about the game, and see you on Friday at 9 am PDT / 12 pm EDT / 6 pm CEST for those joining us on our September Community Stream. Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

• Discord
• Twitter / X
• Bluesky
• YouTube
• Twitch

Good day to you, adventurers! How is summer treating you so far? Are you accruing levels of exhaustion through failing the onslaught of heat-induced Constitution saving throws, or did you manage to find a place safe and hidden from the almighty Sun (CR Unknown)? We at Tactical Adventures are pursuing the development of Solasta II through what we colloquially call the “Summer Cheese” (hon hon so French) - with a schedule full of holes due to people taking a long rest with some well deserved vacations. But worry not, yours truly remains here to share new project advancements! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/78035d3bc80c130bedfd14dc78ec71f0df86ed62.jpg New project advancements AND cute animal pictures, I know some of you come for that sweet dose of serotonin. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Community Stream #11 Friday August 8th

A new month means a new Community Stream. Join us this Friday to discuss everything Tactical Adventures and Solasta II… with a little something more! We’ll be diving back into some of Solasta’s original inspirations - starting with revisiting The Temple of Elemental Evil!

• Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/tacticaladventures
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TacticalAdventures/streams

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/008429a8535666c74209ae5c258429019aacbbf9.jpg For those who may not know this game, The Temple of Elemental Evil (or ToEE) is a D&D 3.5 game released in 2003 by Troika Games, who also made both classics Arcanum (2001) and Vampire Bloodlines (2004). It is a Turn-Based Tactical RPG with full party creation which was arguably the most faithful representation of the 3.5 ruleset at the time. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/d7ec8dbe4dc047addda4334c677dab05bd10caa2.jpg Turns out I still had the game box in French lying somewhere in my house. Perception check, success!

More traps, more boom boom!

Last month we showed you scalding hot geysers, this month we’ll show you a bit more of the traps we’re currently adding to the game - starting with magical runes that will lay in wait for greedy pillagers venturing into long forgotten ruins If you’re thinking “well obviously let’s not walk onto the glowing sigils”, first of all congratulations you’re probably smarter than the average adventurer who likes to touch everything that glows and eat anything that grows, but just know these magic symbols will NOT be visible to you unless you succeed on a Perception Check.

Fashion is mandatory

Many of you let us know that you enjoyed seeing the various armors we’re working on, so we’ll be sharing a few more today! Here are researches we’re doing on magical versions of the Studded Leather Armor and the Hide Armor. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/d472125a8f90baf24f3d7dec24beb11b47d96f01.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/e39fbcfa98060655251e7a98d3ddea5e847923f1.jpg We’ve also had a few questions regarding Wondrous Items and if they would appear on your characters when equipped. We are happy to say that some items such as gloves, bracers and boots will be visible on your character! Smaller items such as rings, bracelets and necklaces won’t be as they are a little too tiny to be visible most of the time so we prefer spending time working on other things instead. Headgears are also a little complex so they are not planned at the moment (as always, a smaller team means choices must be made…) {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/c1b580acff03a5989441d0948c6f15e886ad6479.jpg

Let us see more of that brand new world…

As we’ve said in the past, Neokos is vast and varied in biomes and environments - all of which will need to be visible on the world map. We’re continuing our research on how to make your exploratory journey through the continent an interesting and visually pleasant one! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/8dc2f6ab35d97f5c99be7cc6a46508234439da49.jpg But the world map alone isn’t enough to make for an exciting adventure, so we’ve started creating smaller levels for random encounters! Did you ever wonder how they look very early on before we start adding all the visual fluff? Let me draw back the curtain for once. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/42d072a3608b192e8b46f9e3cf42bde052a3e852.jpg Oh boy there isn’t much to see here! Are those spherical green blobs native to these lands? Yes, every single location you’ll be walking through in the final game has started looking somewhat like this! But with just a few strokes of our talent level builders (alright I lied, more like a few days to a few weeks), all these barren levels soon become like… this!

Pretty stuff aside, what about the gameplay?

While we obviously can’t show you TOO much, we’re of course also working on adding new features on the gameplay side! For example, some of you noticed that in the Solasta II demo items wouldn’t stack properly - this is no longer a problem. That aside, we’re also slowly adding new class features and spells to get ready for Early Access. Today we’re sharing with you the new Innate Sorcery power of the Sorcerer! Starting at level 1, they can use a Bonus Action to enter a heightened state during which their Sorcerer spell DC increases by 1 and they gain advantage on their Sorcerer spell attack rolls. Oh and before we close this article, here are some fun facts from the survey!

• Although no longer officially in the 2024 edition, the Half-Elf ranked amongst the most popular ancestry! The Half-Orc, not so much. Also, most of you would prefer us to keep their gameplay bonuses as close as possible to the 2014 version.
• Among the classes that won’t be implemented at the start of Early Access, they were all surprisingly close in ranking, although the Warlock does eke out a win here.
• The Ready Action is your top choice among the combat features you’re looking forward to.
• Unsurprisingly, one of the things you look the most forward to in future post 1.0 launch content is a higher level cap (it’s also the hardest to do because of the implications, but hey never say never!)

And that’s it for today! Come back next time for more news about the game, and see you on Friday at 9 am PDT / 12 pm EDT / 6 pm CEST for those joining us on August’s Community Stream. Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

• Discord
• Twitter / X
• Bluesky
• YouTube
• Twitch

Praise the sun, adventurers! Actually scratch that, it’s been getting a little TOO hot for comfort lately. Summer do be hitting hard, and we poor developers have not yet developed resistance to fire damage (oh how we wish we did). On a more serious note, today we’re returning to the roots of our Dev Updates - just like we did on Crown of the Magister, it’s time to take a look at what we’re working on! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/7f3763dd90fc04cd94c6410d119f323fa294355a.jpg Strategically positioned between the keyboard and the screen in order to stay close to the fan, 3 INT my left buttcheek. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Community Stream #10 Friday July 11th

For those of you who want to chat directly with us, July’s Community Stream is right around the corner! Join us this Friday to discuss everything Solasta II. We’ll notably be tackling the worries some shared about using the 2024 Ruleset before moving back to talking about the development of the game itself, so don’t hesitate to come talk to us if you still have questions about that topic! And as promised, we’ll be live both on YouTube and Twitch from now on.

• Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/tacticaladventures
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TacticalAdventures/streams

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/5d61d8984df4e4cdd1c7a95fadb3d2142813a0a0.jpg

It’s a trap!

While we all love a good round of fisticuffs whacking monsters without a care in the world, the battlefield may feel a little bland without environmental hazards. So… we’ve been working on implementing a few! He hates those indeed. Those hot, scalding water spurt will ruin your day if you stay close to them as they explode upward. And they also work in combat of course, not just during exploration - with their very own turn at the start of each round where they will show signs of pending activity. If you don’t pay attention, you might find yourself missing a fair chunk of HP when the next round comes around! Marvel the beautiful bicolor tiles of our battle test map. Of course, geysers are not the only traps you will run into during your travels. Good old spikes and dangerous magic runes are already making their way into our Early Access build, with of course more to come as we get there! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/1cedb47724c178d88cfe9892f94513074f510898.jpg Beware your feetsies, kobolds very smart make bestest hidden traps, yes yes!

You stand before the Gates of Caer Mar…

And boy do they look good. We often forget about the little things, but there’s always someone behind everything you see in-game. Let’s take a closer look at some WIP environments! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/24865bdd97fc93bff72520f7b47a8c5ee02fb970.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/4c827c8ca0f7e91e0f7b27707542c4451fc1a3f7.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/1c107ed7aee1d29ca6db736e1fffed4c7d2431ad.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/c0f1df369e3ba936c3c2025c7135a3e9c1a75eff.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/4d9f6f4b8ece18b7234c4f4b15960d909607a445.jpg

Look ma! Actual playable levels!

We’ve shared some beauty shots in the past on our socials, but you might be more interested in knowing about how it would look to someone playing the game. Here’s a sneak peek of a location which you will be able to visit when Solasta II goes live! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/842ca26dcf2ea2cb87d52c1583bbd17641967e36.jpg Ahhh, the great outdoors! With a very recognizable “gather your party” behind the tree. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/0ce40c9cf95dba16b68ada6ed2de82646c4b96ec.jpg Exploring the caves, please ignore the minimap being all borked for now. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/a055bf827ef230a0b61051ad162e110b13ec0a94.jpg And even deeper inside with the Light spell coming handy!

Dressed to kill… and to look good while doing it!

We’ve also been working on adding new armors to the game so you can look dapper while roaming the countryside searching for monsters to slay and loot to… well, loot. Adventuring would be pretty bland if you didn’t find any gold, items and other doodads to play around with, wouldn’t it? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b9fa1b90ae8f3baf921a0fbf2b7bd8d5b47093fd.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/a23a6e4e7a44a0c3c30ccb60ffee9930d8ce1c13.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/8abd9db9fec5680d72092be739c6aa2f3b6312ff.jpg And for those wondering if they look the same in-game, we've included that on the right! And that’s it for today! Come back next time for more news about the game, and see you on Friday at 9 am PDT / 12 pm EDT / 6 pm CEST for those joining us on July’s Community Stream. Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

• Discord
• Twitter / X
• Bluesky
• YouTube
• Twitch

Hey there folks, Two weeks ago we announced that Solasta II was switching to the 2024 Ruleset! Unsurprisingly, that led to many questions being asked - with the usual whys and hows, but also a large amount of more specific ones such as “what will happen to the Half-Elf ancestry” or “How will the Fighter’s new Tactical Mind feature work”? We’re here today with answers! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/2ed4eef16379871ed1b91465261b97459efe8627.jpg Temperature too hot please just end my entire existence. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

VOD of the Community Stream

Before we jump into the Q&A, here is the VOD for those who missed the Community Stream from June 10th with our Creative, Game & Technical Directors joining me (your faithful Community Lead) to talk about the 2024 Ruleset Update. You can watch it on YouTube below! Also remember that there’s still a Survey going on to give us your opinion on what you want to see in Solasta II - so don’t forget to fill it out if you haven’t already. And with that out of the way, let’s dive into the questions! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b36163aec347ec17f93a11eade40a0218ef8de0d.jpg

Q&A - 2024 Ruleset Section

What is this 2024 Ruleset Update & what does it change? We’ve already answered that in our previous article, which you can read here: https://www.solasta-game.com/news/208-solasta-ii-is-switching-to-the-2024-ruleset. To make it simple: Think of it as a massive balance patch!  Is it possible to have both the 2014 & 2024 Rulesets available in the settings menu? Unfortunately that will not be possible, as explained previously there are just too many adjustments that would need to be made for Solasta II to support both Rulesets. We would rather focus all our time on making a game using one ruleset than split our attention on making two different versions (which would mean less overall content). Why didn’t you include a 2014 vs 2024 question in the survey? You could have asked us before switching. That’s a fair thing to ask. When we send you surveys, we want to ask questions that can have an impact on the game. Seeing which ancestry you’d like us to add first. Which class. What features are most important to you. What future content you would want us to work on. While we do often ask our players for their input, you have to remember that we developers are also individuals with our own passions and ideas. Switching to the 2024 Ruleset is an important decision, one which we looked at for quite some time before deciding to do just that.  It was something we wanted to do. We’ve carefully read through the new ruleset, started a new campaign on Tabletop, experimented with the options… and we found ourselves enjoying the changes it brought. Sure it’s not perfect - after all, no system ever is - but we like it! We want to bring it to life in a video game, just as we did the original 5e ruleset when we worked on Solasta: Crown of the Magister. This means including a 2014 vs 2024 question would serve very little purpose as we do not want to mislead people into thinking that we would potentially switch back to the 2014 ruleset.   Now, we fully understand that part of the community would have preferred it if we stuck to the 2014 ruleset, and there’s nothing wrong with disliking the 2024 ruleset - as with every new edition, some people will prefer the previous one. I (Myzzrym) remember being super against 4e myself back in the 3.5 era. And even when 5e first came out, it took me years before finally giving it a fair chance (what can I say, I liked my crunchy numbers). So who knows, maybe in the future you'll play 2024 some more on Tabletop and change your mind - and if not, that’s okay too.  Will you be adapting the full 2024 Ruleset to Solasta II? We will try to be as faithful to the 2024 ruleset as possible (after all that’s one of the franchise’s promises to our players!), but just like in Solasta I there might be features that need to be slightly adapted to work more smoothly in a video game.  For example, the Fighter’s new Tactical Mind feature which improves their utility outside combat would normally allow you to expend a use of Second Wind in exchange for adding 1d10 to an ability check if you were going to fail it. However, if implemented as such you would see a pop-up going “Do you want to use Tactical Mind?” every time you fail an ability check, slowing down the game significantly (and making it feel like you’re browsing the Internet in the early 2000s).  Instead, we changed it to give you +1d10 to your ability checks for the next minute - which is more powerful as you can use it for multiple ability checks, but also less flexible as you need to proactively use it and the use of Second Wind isn’t refunded if you fail the roll. Hurray for less pop-ups!  Will you update Solasta: Crown of the Magister to the 2024 Ruleset as well? Nope! We don’t intend to change what already exists, the development on Solasta: Crown of the Magister (and its DLCs) is over so it will remain under the 2014 Ruleset.  Will you update the Solasta II Demo to the 2024 Ruleset? Updating the Demo to the new Ruleset would take a fairly significant amount of time, which would in turn delay the release of the game. As you can imagine, that’s something we don’t really want - we’re focusing on working on the Early Access!  Isn’t the Demo going to be different from the actual game then?  A little bit, yes! Keep in mind that there is no character creation nor leveling up in the demo, and you’re playing a pre-made party of low level adventurers. The differences between 2024 & 2014 rulesets are thus fairly limited there (even if they do exist!), and the demo remains a good representation of what Solasta II aims to be - a Tactical RPG using a familiar Tabletop ruleset where you play as a party of 4 adventurers. Any chance of adding the Artificer? Quick little reminder, we’re using the SRD not the full D&D ruleset! That means there are quite a large number of things that we can’t add to Solasta II (unless WotC grants us a special license). The Artificer class is one of them, but another example that we’ve seen being asked is the Aasimar ancestry.  Will the 2024 Ruleset Update delay the release of the Early Access? For now we’re still aiming to release our Early Access in 2025. Keep your eyes peeled for future announcements later this year!  Will the Half-Elf & Half-Orc still be playable in Solasta II? That will depend on our players’ answers in the survey! We won’t be able to include all the available SRD ancestries, so we want to know which ones you prefer to see if we can work on those first. Just keep in mind that some are harder to implement than others (Dragonborns are much more complex to add than Gnomes)!

Q&A - Other Questions

Speaking of Demo, do the Demo protagonists survive? Well their situation didn’t look too good now, did it? Remember that the Demo is a standalone adventure featuring an alternate reality of the party you would be playing in the actual game. It’s not like Solasta I where the Ruins of Telema Demo featured a totally different party of adventurers (that you actually end up meeting in the Palace of Ice DLC).  How will the World Map work in Solasta II? Unlike in Solasta I, you will be able to travel and explore tiles the old fashioned way! We are giving the World Map more love in this new opus, as events won’t be limited to random combat encounters anymore. Look forward to lore events, skill checks, friendly NPCs and wandering merchants on top of the usual monsters attempting to gobble you whole! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/43cc54779923778a727cc40ba3946ac9d074b289.jpg This new hexcrawl worldmap is also more modular, which means that if & when we finally manage to release a Dungeon Maker mode, you should no longer be limited to using the official campaign World Map and instead would be able to make your own by swapping tiles around.  {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/38524ae24bba952c562d8cd725a27c9e543422fb.jpg Will you have player-submitted Community Quests? This is something we considered back in Solasta I and we came to the conclusion that it is simply too complex to do, as quests are fairly long and difficult to implement even if you’re familiar with our tools already - so trying to make a quest without knowing the possibilities and limitations of the game engine make it even more of a headache.  However, as our World Map develops over the Early Access, we intend to host Community Contests to add player-submitted events to let your creativity shine through your imagination and writing. Stay tuned! Will you have Custom Backgrounds in Character Creation? That would need to be discussed, but it might conflict with how Backgrounds could influence dialog options. But that would be cool, yea! Will we see Soraks in Solasta II? Haven’t you had enough Soraks already? Here, have a Basilisk instead. ​{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/948ec389aded45a5631857bd7ac642a5977f4ec8.jpg Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Well folks, this is it. Big changes are coming! Ever since the announcement of Solasta II, many of you asked us if we would ever consider updating our game’s ruleset from D&D 5e’s original 2014 version described in the SRD 5.1 to the new 2024 version. To which we answered - let’s wait for the new SRD to be released… which did eventually happen on April 22nd, a little more than one month ago. Since then we’ve been working tirelessly to see if we could make that change happen! Verdict? Well, it’s today’s entire article! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/4e3d286055e0524f998af7e9a40b731c84d90afb.jpg Wake up. Tactical Adventures finally announced the switch to the 2024 ruleset. The wait is over! https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Community Stream #10 starting in 1 hour!

Before we start diving into our usual wall of text, we’re sure many of you have burning questions regarding the switch to the new 2024 ruleset. This is why we will be hosting a Community Stream with our CEO (Mathieu), CTO (Karim) & Game Director (Xavier) alongside yours truly (Emile, Community Lead) right after this post is released, in about an hour. And for once, we'll be live both on Twitch and YouTube at the same time! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/3285d32c421124dee5e92f02f612ef254295ea64.jpg Starting at 9 am PDT / 12 pm EDT / 6 pm CEST, we will be here to talk about the changes and take questions from all of you. We might not be able to answer everything in a single session, but know that we will take note of every question - and we’ll tackle those that we didn’t have the time to answer in a later update (alongside those that we already answered, for those who don’t necessarily have the time nor interest of joining the livestream).

2014? 2024? What are you talking about?

If everything that we wrote so far sounded like arcane gibberish to you, worry not and let us explain. Our first game, Solasta: Crown of the Magister, used the SRD 5.1 ruleset - an extract of D&D 5th edition core system, also known as the 2014 version, as the core rulebooks were released in 2014 (that’s now 11 years ago, holy guacamole). If that’s too many acronyms being thrown around, just think of Solasta 1 as using the 2014 ruleset. Now, about 3 years ago Wizards of the Coast announced and then released a new version of D&D, initially called One D&D during playtest and then later changed to D&D 2024 (its first sourcebook’s release date). This new 2024 version is stated to be compatible with the 2014 version, and share most of its core components. However, it also introduces a lot of improvements that many D&D fans always hoped for - such as more combat options for martial classes with the Weapon Mastery system, and reworking some features that just felt too conditional like the Ranger’s favored terrain (enjoy playing your Forest Ranger when the campaign takes you to the Underdark…). This, to make it simple, is the 2024 ruleset - presented mostly as an upgrade to the 2014 ruleset. Of course, due to the release of this 2024 version, many Solasta fans started asking us if we would use this new ruleset in Solasta II, which is what this article is about. Hopefully that makes it a bit clearer if you aren’t following D&D!

An upgrade? Then why is the Solasta II demo using the 2014 ruleset?

You have a good eye! For those who played the Solasta II demo during February’s Steam Next Fest, you already noticed that it was using the same ruleset as Solasta: Crown of the Magister - the 2014 version. So! If the 2024 ruleset is already available, why isn’t Solasta II using it? Keep in mind, Tactical Adventures is not using the D&D ruleset per se - we are using the System Reference Document which Wizards of the Coast kindly provides to all creators, containing most of the rules necessary to play D&D. This means until now, there were three main points that prevented us from implementing the 2024 ruleset:

The new SRD was not available yet, meaning we could not legally implement the new ruleset to Solasta II

We did not know its content, we did not know what would be included in the SRD or not.

We did not know its release date, so we couldn’t know if we would be able to change our ruleset in time for Early Access (and the demo). For those following the scene, you know that the SRD 5.2 was released on April 22nd of this year - and yet we’ve been silent so far as to whether or not we’d make the change to 2024. This is mostly due to point #3 - updating our game’s ruleset is no simple task, and we needed to make sure we could commit to it before making any announcement. Can we implement those changes and still make it in time for Early Access? Do we need to sacrifice something to make it fit the schedule? Is there anything in there that doesn’t work well in a video game? So, can we definitely say now that we’re committing to the 2024 ruleset? Like everything in life, rolling a 1 is always possible even though we don’t wish for it. But yea, we have started converting our system to follow the SRD 5.2, a.k.a. the 2024 version - so that’s a 99% sure in our book!

What are the new things?

If you know nothing about the 2024 update, you are in for a treat! While we won’t cover everything that changed (the SRD 5.2 is 364 pages long, we’d probably be able to talk about it for days on end), let us share two highlights of what you can look forward to: Weapon Masteries Each weapon now has a special Mastery that can be used by martial classes. When a Cleric hits you with a Mace, you’re going to feel that 1d6 bludgeoning damage the next morning. But when a Fighter hits you with a Mace, you're going to have disadvantage on your next attack roll on top of the damage you just received! Rude! There are a total of 8 weapon masteries: Cleave, Graze, Nick, Push, Sap, Slow, Topple and Vex - each of them granting more utility to martial classes on top of the damage they already bring. Look forward to playing around with this new feature! Class Upgrades Most classes have received a new paint-job and feel fresher than before! The Cleric for example no longer have their Heavy Armor tied to their Divine Domain, instead they can choose at level 1 between being a Protector (unlocking Martial Weapon & Heavy Armor proficiency for a more frontline role) or a Thaumaturge (for a more spellcaster playstyle). The Sorcerer now gets some exclusive new shiny tools like Innate Sorcery, similar to the Barbarian’s Rage but for spellcasting, increasing their save DC by 1 and giving them advantage on spell attack rolls. The Fighter gets more non-combat utility with Tactical Mind allowing them to use Second Wind to succeed ability checks. And that’s just scratching the surface!

Is it possible to have both 2014 and 2024 ruleset as an option?

Ever since the discussion around 2024 started, some people have asked if it would be possible for us to include a setting to switch between 2014 and 2024 rulesets for those who prefer one or the other. This is unfortunately not something we can do, as it would almost be equivalent to us releasing two games at once - Solasta at its core has a strong focus on tactical combat, and it is known for its faithfulness to the ruleset. Making sure our game works in two different rulesets (even though they share similarities) would take us an incredible amount of time, not to mention the massive amounts of mental damage it would inflict upon our small (and beloved) QA team. Design-wise, every monster, every class and subclass would need two different versions, and many spells no longer work the same. So… yea, this is just not a possibility for us. But worry not, the 2024 ruleset is going to be fire. With us at the wheel, fun is and will always be mandatory!

Let your voice be heard

We want to know what you think about it! Just like for Solasta: Crown of the Magister, we intend to make the game with you - our players - in mind. This is why we have a short survey ready for you! Make sure you leave your opinions for us to read. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/094c64f61f337854a6baf9e08313478c5e6723d7.jpg And then… we wait. No but seriously, we are still cooking up the Early Access which is slated to release later this year (and this is still the plan!), so we’ll have to ask you to be a little more patient before we can announce the date. We want to make sure the game we release is up to your expectations! In the meantime, make sure you drop by our Discord server and our Community Streams to ask your questions if you have any! Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Hey there folks, We’re back with the winner of the Trades & Sails Community Contest! This article will be a short one as we’re cooking something fierce for our next news - so keep an eye out for June 10th, which will hold June’s Community Stream at 9am PDT / 12 pm EDT / 6pm CEST. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/5753424a102a81bbfbaa5c76314c1697f20627d7.jpg Hey guys I just rolled 12 on my Stealth Check, do you think it’s going to be enough? https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

And the winner is!

Without further ado, we present to you the winner of April’s Community Contest: Captain Tucker Stoutarm, aboard their ship The Sea Mermaid. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/da62703a127364a3e5f2fd961a911610d42ec7e9.jpg With its shipment mostly comprised of alcoholic beverages, the Sea Mermaid will make many locals merry and slightly less productive for a period of time. Congratulations! We will be contacting the winner shortly by mail with the rewards.

You have questions, we have answers

As you all know by now, our line of communication has always been about honesty and transparency - so when we saw questions arise after announcing the results of the previous Community Contest in March, we decided that we’d go ahead and give everyone a little more context. The main question we want to answer today is: “Hey, how do you actually choose the winners?”. A very fair question! After all, many of you put a lot of time and effort into participating in these contests, so you might want to know a little more about the process.

How did we select the winner?

First things first! When a contest ends, we usually have a LOT of submissions to go through. Usually what will happen is that we’ll first quickly go over each of them to strike those we deem invalid - for example, referencing copyrighted material, not following the rules of the contest, being incomplete, asking for content that we wouldn’t be able to implement, etc etc… Once those are removed, we are usually left with… a lot of entries still, which is not surprising since many of you put a lot of thoughts into your submissions (for which we are ever grateful). Now, from there we’ll have two different “types” of contests - those with long answers that are usually related to design or creative writing, and those with short answers that are usually more about names or images. Of Quills & Ink, March Community Contest, is of the former type. In this case, we will read through every single remaining entry (that wasn’t in the first pass) and we make a rather large selection of favorites. Then a core group will step in, which usually consists of me (your community lead), our game director, our lead gameplay designer, our creative director and our writers plus sometimes others depending on the nature of the contest (for example if it’s a contest about designing a new subclass, we’ll involve our technical director as well to make sure that the subclass features are feasible). This group will make a final selection by voting to crown a winner. Trades & Sails, April Community Contest, is of the latter type. Choosing between several hundreds / thousands ideas of ship emblems is much harder than judging someone’s creative writing or design suggestion, as we did not want to limit submissions to actual drawings (which would make it harder for non artists to participate). In this case since all the remaining submissions could be winners, the fairest way we found was simply RNG - we randomly pull a selection of twenty to thirty entries, and we vote on our favorite within that selection.

What did I do wrong?

When you put time and effort into your submission, it is understandable to feel a little down when you’re not selected. We want to reassure you that not winning does not necessarily mean that your submission was “worse” - there is no objective way to judge here, there isn’t a right or wrong answer. Sometimes we really like an idea even though the writer’s skills may not be fantastic, because it’s original or it resonates with one of us. Sometimes something oozes flavor, but unfortunately would be too costly to implement. Sometimes it simply comes down to preferences, or the reader’s mood! That also means - if you’re worrying that you’re not good at writing or that your English is bad because you’re not a native speaker, it’s alright! Writing is a medium to convey ideas and feelings, and you don’t need to do it perfectly to do so. Let’s be honest, we’re constantly amazed by the creativity you have shown. To the question: “Why don’t you give more specific guidelines as to what tone/topic you want to see?” the answer is that it is not the point. The goal of our contests isn’t to replace our writers by giving you clear instructions about what WE want and have you write it - it is to let you write what YOU want so that we can add it to the game. Long story short - don’t let failure prevent you from joining future contests. And with this, we’re out! Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Ready your quills, students. Today we will be learning about the most refined of all classes, the distinguished and esteemed Wizard. For knowledge is power; and you are here to accumulate, to devour, to consume every last bit of it. May you have a spell penned for every situation, or rightfully suffer the consequences of your own ignorance. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/717131d038951abb81a07191f36de3a41c9600a8.jpg Only simpletons sleep in my class. I should have known to expect this behaviour from a cat named Chat (no, seriously, that’s his name). https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

The arcane at your fingertips

Ahhhh the good old Wizard, formerly known under the simple name of “Magic-User” in the Original version of D&D and Advanced D&D 1st Edition. In the past they were THE weakest class at low levels, with a measly 1d4 HP per level and no cantrip to speak of! I hope you like throwing daggers and shooting crossbow bolts while hiding behind other party members, because you’d do that a lot back then. And dying too. You’d die very easily. Nowadays however, Wizards pose a respectable threat straight from the get-go - not having to rely on their low physical ability scores to score a hit with their crossbow or quarterstaff, instead being able to cast an endless amount of cantrips like Fire Bolt or Shocking Grasp. And with a d6 HP Die plus defensive spells like Mage Armor, Shield or even the newly buffed Blade Ward cantrip, they are a lot harder to take down too! But enough reminiscing. Wizards, what are they good for? Absolutely n- no no no that’s not how it goes, if anything they are good at almost EVERYTHING. This is due to Wizards being the only Arcane spellcasting class that can accumulate an endless amount of spells thanks to their ability to scribe more spells in their spellbook. Unlike other arcane magic users, they are not just limited to learning new spells when leveling up. With enough gold and time, you can just copy any wizard spell from Spell Scrolls or other Wizards’ Spellbooks into your own. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/9254253d3fa68dc05b556fb021a1cfea1551c1fd.jpg You might be wondering - aren’t Divine & Primal spellcasters able to prepare spells from their entire class spell list without restriction? So why are we talking like the Wizard is anything special here? Well, that would be because the Divine & Primal classes spell list are much more restrictive than the Wizard’s. They sport the insanely high number of 241 spells available in the PHB 2024. Compared to that, Clerics have 117 spells and Druid 135 spells. This, in THEORY, gives Wizards the widest selection of spells and thus unreal versatility as there’s a spell for everything out there (there was even an attempt at giving Wizards the Modify Spell and Create Spell features in the Unearthed Arcana leading to D&D 2024). Now in practice it depends on how often you stumble upon Spell Scrolls and Spellbooks to copy spells from, as otherwise you’re still limited to 2 new spells per level (and that’s not a lot). Because outside of spells, Wizards don’t get that many features. At level 1 Arcane Recovery gives them the ability to regain a few spell slots to avoid running out of fumes too early. At level 2 Scholar gives them the opportunity to specialize in one of the Knowledge skills (Arcana, History, Nature, Religion), Medicine or Investigation by giving them Expertise - which makes sense considering Wizards are supposed to be well learnt (although Investigation might feel a little outside that box). At level 5 Memorize Spell allows them to swap one prepared spell after each short rest to help with “oh no, I forgot to prepare that one spell which could really help us with this situation”. Their next feature only comes at level 18, with Spell Mastery allowing them to choose one level 1 and one level 2 spell with a casting time of an action to cast at will - and the ability to swap them on a long rest. At last at level 20, you can select two level 3 spells to cast for free once per short rest with Signature Spells (although these ones can’t be swapped). {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/f5cfbea7d9b1745d8bb3d28d6f6b1adb74d54402.jpg Now some of you newer players may wonder - how come Wizards get so few features? Well, you have to understand that each new spell you learn is somewhat like unlocking a new feature, but that you can choose. Wild Heart Barbarian can fly using Power of the Wilds (Falcon) at level 14? You can simply cast Fly from level 5. The Rogue’s Cunning Action allows you to Dash as a bonus action? Expeditious Retreat can do that too! The Shadow Monk gets Darkvision with Shadow Arts at level 3? Guess what, Darkvision is a level 2 spell as well. Of course, it would be disingenuous to say every class feature can be replaced by a spell (and false) - not to mention you have a limit to how many spells you can prepare and cast every day. However, it does highlight just how versatile you can be as a Wizard if you learn the right spells for the right occasion. When people complain about the Martial vs Spellcaster gap, it’s most often due to outside combat activities. Infiltrating a castle becomes much easier if you can cast Invisibility. Who needs to roll Athletics to climb a wall when you can just use Fly? You intercepted a letter but no one can read Goblin? Comprehend Languages is here for you! So, who’s up to roll a Wizard and become the magic-wielding swiss army knife of the party?

The Wizards of Solasta

Alright, time to dive into the Wizards from our first game! Which archetypes were good, which ones weren’t, and who was our favourite of the lot? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b6f32594d386d0e31f7fca25e4ed44f590e98a54.jpg

Shock Arcanist (Crown of the Magister)

Before we jump into the Shock Arcanist, let’s first talk about a little issue that pertains only to the Wizards. While all other classes had their SRD subclass with two homebrew subclasses, the Wizard’s subclasses were themed around the eight schools of magic - Abjuration, Conjuration, Divination, Enchantment, Evocation, Illusion Necromancy, Transmutation - with only Evocation being available in the SRD. Consequently, we thought it would be a little strange if we had Evocation but none of the other schools of magic as subclasses, so the Wizard was the only class to not feature their SRD subclass. Due to this, The Shock Arcanist was quickly designed at the very start of the development cycle to have a functional Wizard subclass - which is why it has a lot of “video game” feel to it (vs the usually more Tabletop-driven approach we’ve taken in the subclasses that were designed later). Very much a lore-driven archetype, it was meant to represent the elite war wizards of the Manacalon Empire and to act as a parallel to the Evocation SRD subclass - a sort of “blaster” archetype with focus on pure damage numbers. One consequence of needing to be playable very early can be seen with their War List spells, which instead of being selectable by the player were imposed on them. Those 15 spells were not given to you automatically - you had to select them when leveling up or scribe them, meaning you could theoretically be a Shock Arcanist with no spells that would benefit from your Arcane Warfare feature in-game. Not an ideal situation! For those who never played Shock Arcanist, this feature made you cast any spell from your War List as if you were using a spell slot of one level higher. At level 6, you gained the ability to use a Bonus Action to enter Arcane Fury for one minute, increasing the damage of evocation spells by a flat amount scaling with your Proficiency and INT mod once per long rest. Unsurprisingly this caused a lot of inconsistencies as the wording wasn’t clear, with some assuming that multi-projectiles spells would multiply that extra damage (and to be fair there was a bug at first that did just that with Scorching Ray, making that one spell deal an disgusting amount of damage). Our intention was to make it proc’ once per spell at most, but we never properly wrote it down. Looking back there was also the issue of Arcane Fury being a little too similar to the Evocation Wizard’s level 10 Empowered Evocation feature (+INT mod to evocation spell damage), which isn’t great as we want our homebrew subclass to have their own identity. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b920179ee7ce4fa0ad13efbbb8487dbb678fb0b2.jpg At level 10 things were starting to get even funkier, with Arcane Shock taking a Bonus Action and forcing YOU to roll a CON Saving Throw DC 14 (why 14?) or take 2D6 psychic damage. In return, you would become restrained but spells would deal no less than half of the maximum dice roll value - for example, a fireball (8d6) would deal at least 24 damage (out of a maximum of 48 damage). You also did gain Proficiency in Constitution Saving Throw at that same level to offset that a little, also boosting your chances to keep concentration when hit. Finally at level 14, Greater Arcane Shock would similarly force you to roll a CON saving throw DC 16 or take 7d6 psychic damage, but this time maximizing the dice value on your next spell damage roll - usable only once per long rest. Now of course those designs parallels that of the Evocation Wizard’s Overchannel, which in exchange for forcing the spell to deal maximum damage would deal 2d12 necrotic damage per spell level if you used it more than once a day. Again, a result of us rushing to make a usable Wizard subclass when we decided Evocation wouldn’t be implemented - many features do feel very similar, and not in a better way either - arbitrary DC and damage numbers with little rhyme or reason were not the way. Understandably when we started working on the revised Sourcebook, we went back to the drawing board with the Shock Arcanist to try and pry it away from its Evocation roots. Arcane Warfare now worked on all spells that would increase their damage roll when upcast and was no longer at will, having a set number of uses per day. Arcane Fury was removed and the entire identity of the archetype, Arcane Shock, was moved to level 6. It would allow the Shock Arcanist to access different options, all with different drawbacks - but only if used more than once a day. Arcane Shock (Power) would be unlocked straight away at level 6, and would allow you to roll the spell damage twice and keep the highest of the two rolls, with the drawback of taking psychic damage equal to twice the spell slot used. Arcane Shock (Pierce) got unlocked at level 10 and allowed you to bypass Magic Resistance and any damage resistance, with the drawback of taking damage equal to thrice the spell slot used. Finally, Arcane Shock (Overwhelm) became available at level 14, allowing you to inflict full damage on your spell even if your target succeeds on their saving throw (only affects the damage, not the other effects) - with the drawback of becoming blinded and deafened until the end of your next turn. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b47f92af66cb4737ab1110deeaa9a4b82aaf641f.jpg Additionally, you also unlocked Prepared for War at level 10, a unique feature that improved your Wizard Hit Die from D6 to D8 to better soak the damage from Arcane Shock, and Wrath of the Magister at level 10 improving Arcane Warfare to cast spells as if you used a slot of two level higher (instead of one), and allowing you to combine different options of Arcane Shock together (also combining the drawback). Final Verdict? You could very much feel the circumstances that led to the birth of the Shock Arcanist, who very much started as an offshoot of the Evocation Wizard (and not in a good way). However even with all their issues, many players do appreciate having a full blaster spellcaster archetype as - let’s be honest - it is very much entertaining to see big numbers and make enemies go boom. Still, after the rework the Shock Arcanist manage to stand on their own two feet with a strong identity, without treading into the Sorcerer’s Metamagic either (which did happen in some of the rework iterations).

Greenmage (Crown of the Magister)

Another product of its time, the Greenmage was our way to add Primal spells to a game that did not have the Druid planned! You have to remember that Solasta 1 was intended to launch with only 6 classes: Fighter, Rogue, Cleric, Wizard, Ranger, Paladin - plus the promise of the Sorcerer after launch. However, we were not sure we would ever get around to adding the 5 other classes: Barbarian, Druid, Bard, Monk, Warlock - as there were debates between supporting post-launch with DLCs or moving on to another project. As Crown of the Magister’s release was well received, we ended up deciding to stick around for a bit longer - and that “bit longer” became even longer when the addition of Multiplayer gave our game a second wind with Lost Valley. Which in turn motivated us to make that one last push to get all the missing classes AND a higher level cap (the two most popular requests by our players) before moving on. Anyway, back on track with the Greenmage - as you now understand, this archetype was created to make use of Druid spells as we did not know if we would ever implement the Druid. But did you know Greenmage almost got shelved? All the way back in December 2019 just 3 months after our Kickstarter Campaign, we held a vote to see which Wizard subclasses we would keep - with the 3 choices being Loremaster, Greenmage and Stonemage. While the Loremaster won convincingly with 44% of the votes, the Greenmage was barely 2% ahead of the Stonemage. You almost got a Stone / Rune / Dwarf themed Wizard in Solasta 1! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/dbbdea8c9f6edb272e9e382558825258e74a90bb.jpg Woops, got sidetracked again. Lorewise, the Greenmages were the counterpart to the Shock Arcanists. Sylvan elves who broke themselves away from the High Elves Manacalon Empire, they developed more hybrid skills as skirmishers and managed to tap into Primal Spells on top of Arcane ones. They not only covered the lack of Druids, but also of Multiclassing - giving you a full caster with some martial options. This made them very popular with our players, but let’s be honest balance-wise they were a little too strong, not to mention they stepped on both the Ranger’s and Druid’s toes (one foot for each). Starting with Green Magic at level 2, which simply gave them access to most Druids spells available in Solasta. This alone would make the subclass broken on Tabletop, because unlike Divine Soul Sorcerers who can learn Cleric spells or Bards who can learn spells from almost all lists with Magical Secrets, the Wizard… has the ability to scribe spells in their spellbook. So they’re not just learning one or two spells for each level up, they are potentially penning down the entire Druid spell list into their sourcebook, pushing their versatility even further beyond! Because of that, their other level 2 feature is often forgotten, even though it’s also extremely strong too. Warden of the Forest provides the Wizard with Light Armor proficiency (removing the need of casting Mage Armor and allowing Wizards to benefit from magical Light Armors later), Archery Fighting Style AND the Ranger’s Natural Explorer (Forest) feature. So not only are we stealing from the Druid, we’re also blatantly taking the Ranger’s belongings as well. You wouldn’t scribe a carriage, would you? Moving on to level 6 with Entangling Shot, which allows you to restrain enemies you hit with your arrows for a round if they fail a STR saving throw. This feature is interesting as it gave you more crowd control that did not rely on you using Spell Slots - and while as a Wizard you would often rather be casting spells, at level 6 your cantrips still haven’t completely eclipsed your bow shots with Archery Fighting Style if you have a decent DEX score. Effectively, you could think of Entangling Shot as a limited use Cantrip that could also restrain, which is pretty good! At level 10 you got one of the more powerful defensive tools in Solasta’s arsenal: Leaf Scales. Using your reaction, you could halve any damage from a spell or ranged attack - not unlike the Rogue Uncanny Dodge, but with a twist. And a rather positive one at that! Being able to halve damage from spells that don’t require an attack roll is pretty huge, as the damage of a single spell tends to quickly overshadow the damage of a single attack. From the simple 8d6 Fireball to the 7d8+30 Finger of Death, you’ll be glad to halve those, especially as a squishy mage. We round it up at level 14 with Weakening Entangling Shot, an improvement to the level 6 feature that gives its target disadvantage on all saving throws for a round. A simple, yet deceptively powerful debuff - usually when class powers inflict disadvantage, it’s limited to one instance (like against the next spell), or to you (only get disadvantage against spells cast by you). But this power gives disadvantage on ALL saving throws to your target, no matter the situation, no matter who is targeting them, it doesn’t even care if it’s from a spell or not! Obviously a little too overtuned, it would likely need to be hit with a nerf bat pretty hard. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/e8187c2b39f3701dc35be84a5a579df179e8271a.jpg So how did we balance all that in the Sourcebook, which had to take into account both Multiclassing and the fact that Druids simply exist? Well, first Green Magic had to be reined in. We decided to tune it more to the likes of Domain Spells for Clerics, with the Greenmage getting access to an expanded spell list at level 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 with spells from the Druid Spell List. Spells that lore-wise would fit the Manacalon era conflict like Animal Friendship, Call Lightning, Freedom of Movement and Insect Plague. It does cull down the versatility of the Greenmage by quite a bit, but it was necessary for it to not power creep all other Wizard subclasses. Warden of the Forest remained relatively the same, with the only change being the removal of the Natural Explorer (Forest) part since that was 100% a Ranger Feature (which also got removed in the 2024 edition, and we wanted our Revised Sourcebook to be as 2024 friendly as possible). Level 6 Entangling shot was tweaked a little by now requiring a bonus action to trigger after the hit (to avoid cheating the action economy too much), but now also added your Wizard level as extra damage to give it a little more oomph. And while the power Leaf Scales remained unchanged, the level 14 feature changed to Infused Shot. And oh boy, where to start. Infused Shot as an idea came from the Arcane Archer prestige class in 3.5e, who from level 2 got the Imbue Arrow feature. This would allow them to cast area spells into an arrow, then shoot the arrow and have the spell trigger from where the arrow lands. Theme-wise, perfect for the Greenmage! Gameplay-wise, when you start digging into it you realize how complex it became - what happens in this case? That case? Even though it was a huge headache, we still decided to go with it as it really felt right for the Greenmage to have that - and considering it is a level 14 feature (and for Tabletop and not the video game), we could afford to take a little more risks. Using Glyph of Warding as a baseline, we wrote a long set of rules to hopefully make sure everything was clear. First of all and independent of all that, you would now be able to use range weapons with your INT instead of DEX at level 14 (to avoid the situation of feeling frustrated to be gated by your DEX instead of using your INT as every Wizard does). Only spells with a cast time of 1 action and not a range of self could be infused in the arrow. Spells would automatically fail if the target was invalid (like shooting a Haste arrow on an unwilling creature). So on and so forth. Honestly the list is very long, but for those of you who are curious remember that the Revised Sourcebook is being sold by Modiphius (both in physical and PDF format) so you can grab a copy if you want! Final Verdict? The Greenmage is extremely interesting as an archetype, as it was born from a void left by another official class not existing in Solasta 1.0. Obviously if you were to take the original Greenmage and put it on Tabletop, it would make little sense - but the fact that many players loved them likely points to the lack of “multi-spellcaster mix” archetypes like the Mystic Theurge in 3.5e, who would level both arcane & divine spellcasting classes at the same time. Reworked Greenmage feels more like a Wizard-Ranger, but where Ranger is 80% martial 20% caster, Greenmage is more 90% caster and 10% martial. An unique archetype that really pulls the Wizard away from their classic staff-wielding book-reading robe-wearing elder image.

Loremaster (Crown of the Magister)

As if we were going for opposites after the Greenmage, the Loremaster’s role was to be the Wizardiest Wizard to ever wizard. Winner of the 2019 December Wizard Community Vote, this archetype took everything from their core class and offered just more of that. To be to the Wizard what the Champion is to the Fighter. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/90c2021daf006461d9bbcaa0d00f6d66e75f2198.jpg And it did its job very well! At level 2, Keen Mind gave them advantage on Arcana, History and Investigation checks - something that we did quite a bit in Solasta, giving advantages on Skill Checks, not necessarily for the best - including the Arcana Check to scroll new spells into their spellbook. To top it off, they also reduced the time required to craft potions and scrolls by half. Nothing flashy, but that made your life as a Wizard easier. At level 6, Spell Academic simply gave you an extra spell each time you leveled up. Granted this feature would be much better on any spellcaster that is NOT a Wizard (due to them being able to scribe more spells already), but since you’re not always guaranteed to find the spell you’re looking for out there it helped plan out your spell list with more consistency. Arcane Lore at level 10 let you learn 2 additional cantrips and increased the maximum number of spells you could memorize, giving you more versatility by having more spells prepared than your peers. And at last, at level 14 came Arcane Professor, granting you 4 additional cantrips from ANY class, and an extra level 1, 2, 3 and 4 spell slots. More spells! Now compared to most other subclasses we designed, the Loremaster is one of the most straightforward ones so there is fairly little to say. With its Revised Sourcebook rework, we mostly aimed at ironing out the kinks in its design. Keen Mind no longer gave advantage on some skill checks, instead giving out skill proficiencies. An additional feature called Pursuit of Knowledge was given at level 2 that grants one additional level 1 spell and cantrip from any class to the Loremaster, giving them a little more of an interesting welcome package to play with. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/47d765eef5d6c2242ed03e8549b13adb9e82f0a3.jpg Spell Academic got a little boost as well, allowing the 3rd spell each level to be a spell of any class as long as they had the ritual tag - giving them a little more identity than simply “I learn more wizard spells, which spell scribing already allows every wizard to do”. Arcane Memory also changed a little, removing the two additional cantrip (since Arcane Professor which stayed the same already gives you four more later) but instead allowing you to replace a prepared spell after each short rest on top of the rest of the feature. But wait isn’t that…? Yep, that’s 2024 Wizards’ level 5 Memorize Spell feature! Turns out many wizards out there wanted such a feature, so it’s not surprising that some ideas between our homebrew and the official 2024 D&D ended up the same. Final Verdict? The Loremaster is as Vanilla as can be, but sometimes vanilla is just what you want. For Wizards that just want to learn more spells, memorize more spells, cast more spells and borrow a few from other classes, that’s what the Loremaster does perfectly.

Court Mage (Lost Valley)

Our final wizard archetype, and probably our… strongest one? Arguable, considering what we said about the Greenmage. But where Greenmage shines by their vast selection of spells and their tendency to “borrow” features from other classes, the Court Mage simply does one thing extremely well: protecting their VIP. The idea of the subclass comes from the Solasta lore - in the Manacalon era Arcane Magic reigned supreme, so unsurprisingly the need of expert bodyguards specialized against magic would appear. Where Shock Arcanists make the brunt of the elite warforce, Court Mages would be more a private service for nobles and rich aristocrats. After all, in such a society, accidents tend to happen… right? But thematic isn’t the problem with this Lost Valley subclass - it's the power level that’s a little overtuned. Starting at level 2, you get proficiency with Shields and the Protection Fighting Style. So far, nothing crazy. But then comes Spell Shield, a power that grants an ally AND you a shield with Temporary HP equal to FOUR times your level. Just… let that sit for a moment. 4 HP per level is more or less how much a Wizard with 10 CON would have as max HP. So this power would not only almost double your own HP, but also grants that amount to another party member. Independently (your shield and their shield don’t share the HP pool). For an hour. Twice per long rest. Yeaaaaaa you can start to see how that was a tad bit too much. So what comes after this? Counterspell Mastery at level 6 gives you advantage on your checks when casting Counterspell against level 4+ spells, and enemies have disadvantage on their Counterspell rolls against your spells. Nice, and in line with the idea of protecting your client against other mages. At level 10 Improved Spell Shield further boosts the feature by granting advantage on all saving throws against spells and magic effects when you’re under the effect of Spell Shield. Now here’s a fun tidbit - due to how Spell Shield was coded, even at 0 HP the condition was still applied (and lasted for the full hour). So due to technical limitations, it would still work even if the Spell Shield was broken. And finally at level 14, Expanded Spell Shield shielded an additional ally. Simple, but again mathematically that’s boosting its efficiency by a whopping +50%. Now, some of you might be wondering - wait, it also says that it extends the casting range to 60’, what’s that about? Well originally Spell Shield had a limited range (like a tether): if you got more than a certain range away from your shielded ally, the shield would disappear. This would add more limitations to this extremely powerful feature. However, it is very simple for people (especially in video games) to move a little too far, and having a twice per day power suddenly get cancelled because you mistakenly moved away felt very bad. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/058625359f8ce606145c4741e8542b7564fc228d.jpg This is why the range limitation was removed in the video game version of Solasta. Now, in the Sourcebook we put it back as you can remind your ally not to do that (as opposed to “whoops I clicked too far guess it’s too late” on PC), and also reduced the amount absorbed to three times your Wizard level. The duration was lowered to 10 minutes (to make it less of a fire and forget move), but the amount of uses now increases with your Proficiency Bonus - starting at two per day, but scaling up at higher levels. Funny anecdote, we had to modify the rest of the archetype quite a bit not because the features didn’t fit or because they were too strong / too weak, but because… we noticed Court Mage was just way too similar to Abjuration Wizards. Arcane Ward vs Spell Shield granting a temporary shield. Improved Abjuration vs Counterspell Mastery granting bonuses to Counterspell. Spell Resistance vs Improved Spell Shield granting Spell Resistance. So, Counterspell Mastery made way for Careful Protector, instead allowing the Court Mage to teleport at will to their ward by using a bonus action, and granting passive flat AC bonus to allies next to them. After all, the easiest way to take down a target is to get them away from their bodyguard, a quick stab to the guts can be harder to prevent and more unpredictable than a Fireball in a society of Wizards. Improved Spell Shield was replaced by Shield Resonance, which instead gives you the ability to choose a damage type to resist when creating the Spell Shield. Did your boss happen to piss off a circle of famous Pyromancers? Well, Fire resistance it is then. And finally, at level 14 Expanded Spell Shield became Shield Shatter. Instead of the boring +1 shielded target, you instead get a Spell Shield that explodes when reduced to 0 HP, potentially blinding, deafening and silencing surrounding enemies and granting resistance to all damage types to the Spell Shield target for one round. A sort of final layer of protective magic - get through the Spell Shield, get hit with a powerful flashbang that prevents you from casting most spells for a bit. And good luck bursting your target down with that damage resistance. Thinking back on it, that was probably a little overtuned again. Damnit! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/5dd5eb9c206ba3d8579893428bb42debe6cce0b1.jpg Final Verdict? The Court Mage oozes flavour and we love them - which is probably why they were given a little too much power at first. We also ran into the “lore vs gameplay” issue where going straight for our own ideas, we realized only later that it was too similar to an existing subclass. But at the end of the day, the Court Mage is now its own archetype with a well defined role and a good synergistic set of features.

The… ??? (Solasta II)

No Wizard was in the demo, so what could the Wizard archetype from Neokos be? We’ll let you guess, what do you think it will be? Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Good day recruits, Stop waving your hands and chanting your whimsical incantations, today’s Class Spotlight is on the Fighter. Pick up a weapon and start swinging, for heaven’s sake! Your job will be to be in your opponent’s face, stand your ground and make their life miserable. Sure you won’t get to play with fancy powers or colorful spells, but by the gods as your friends run out of magic or get caught out of position, you WILL still be standing firm and resolute. Now keep swinging, and don’t let me catch you slacking. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/530763ca6e9369cd4fbc8ad11d84f283ca3bcf4c.jpg For those who wish to multiclass into Monk, you may seek ol’ Kaiju’s wisdom (please don’t, Fighter/Monk is terrible). https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

By Blood and Steel!

While the others out there are playing around with forces they cannot comprehend, Fighters are your good old reliable - give them a weapon, any weapon, and point them at the enemy. With their D10 HP die (only second to the Barbarian), the ability to wear any type of armor and their extensive weapon proficiencies, Fighters make for perfect frontliners. And although high-level Monks can attack 5 times through Flurry of Blows with unarmed strikes, Fighters are also the only class with the ability to strike up to 4 times with a single Attack action. … And that’s without taking Action Surge into consideration! Do you want to attack even more? Pop that Action Surge and lay down the pain. Put a powerful magic weapon in a Fighter’s hands, and watch your enemies melt. Within the 2024 D&D Rules and the new Paladin Divine Smite restricted to once per turn, the single target nova potential of the Fighter may be the highest among martial classes. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/720a7f2cd3ef6117523633821aa4f9319ca90023.jpg Now for those who may not know, nova is a term used when someone goes all-in to deal massive amounts of damage in one go, burning down their resources in order to do so (like a Supernova blowing up and dying down). It used to be that Paladins could quickly burn through their spell slots by attacking multiple times and using Divine Smite on each blow in D&D 5e 2014, but this is no longer possible in 2024 D&D thus limiting their nova potential. The Fighter, on other hand, still scales fantastically well with weapons that deal extra damage such as Flametongue - a sword that deals an extra 2d6 fire damage on hit. At level 11 with 18 STR and a Flametongue Greatsword, you are looking at 6 attacks with Action Surge, for a potential 24d6 + 24 of single target damage (without counting any other flat bonuses)! Wowwee, whoever is on the receiving end is in for a world of pain. And that’s not all the Fighter has, far from it, especially looking at the 2024 upgrades. Second Wind keeps you in the fight by giving you a multi-usage self-heal. Weapon Mastery allows you to add all kinds of effects to your attacks to ruin the day of your foes, from slowing them down to making them easier to hit. Tactical Mind allows you to add 1d10 to any failed ability check, improving the Fighter’s capacity to perform outside combat. Indomitable almost guarantees that you turn a failed saving throw into a success by allowing you to reroll it with a bonus equal to your level, making you much less vulnerable to save or suck spells. At last, Studied Attacks gives you advantage on your next strike when you miss one, lowering the odds of your target eluding you too many times. One last thing that we didn’t mention yet - Fighters also get feats more often than any other classes. While almost all classes gain those at level 4, 8, 12 and 16, the Fighter gets two extra at level 6 and 14. More chances to raise your ability scores or grab those nifty feats! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/99eac7db34fe9abf6988f252a5308e1e96ee3f95.jpg Actually we lied, there's another thing we forgot to talk about. While most picture the Fighter wearing heavy armor with a sword and shield, the beauty of that class is that it’s very customizable. Dexterity Fighter sporting dual blades and light armor? Sure. Longbow Fighter banking on their extra attacks to provide massive ranged damage? Go for it. Want to swing a Greataxe or a Maul with indiscriminate violence while protected in heavy armor? You’re on! So, are you ready to roll a Fighter? Just don’t name them Bob and you’ll be fine.

The Fighters of Solasta

Alright, now let’s see how our armored folks fared in the first opus of Solasta. Considering Crown of the Magister was very combat-focused, the gap between spellcasters and martial classes tended to be less prevalent. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/be7a359b423b75ccbb7fe62a93d2ead2d0753878.jpg

The Champion (SRD)

It is hard to be more “vanilla” than the Champion Fighter. With almost all of their features being passive upgrades, the Champion is just… an extension of the core Fighter class. After writing all these retrospectives about 4 classes and their 20 subclasses, it’s funny that we’re getting stumped by the Champion of all archetypes. We start with Improved Critical, increasing your critical range to 19-20, which gets further improved later with Superior Critical for a range of 18-20. Now don’t get us wrong, rolling a crit is fun. It is exciting! So, rolling more crit isn’t bad per se - no, the issue mostly lies in the fact that critting with a regular weapon isn’t that impactful. Rogues love crits because their Sneak Attack already makes them roll a truckload of dice. Paladins love crits because it also doubles the impact of their Divine Smite. Fighters don’t really have something of the sort to take advantage of their crit. It used to be that in 3.5e there were crit-fishing builds (the term used to try and “fish” for a critical hit), as there were special weapons, feats and features that would complement each other well for that purpose. We even found builds (although we didn’t verify if they were legit) where you ended up critting on a 9+, but even then most people would argue that crit-fishing wasn’t really good. It was fun, that’s for sure - but you could probably get more out of your character with a non crit-centered build. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/98600af60b66eb3a33d9c2bf11d90081534fd2a9.jpg Going back to 5e, there is much less support for crit-fishing than 3.5e - making a niche build even less viable. Gone are the days of Keen Kukris on Psychic Weapon Master. So you can imagine why for many more veteran players, Improved Critical just didn’t feel very exciting in the end. Unfortunately for the Champion, the next few features were no more exciting. At level 7, Remarkable Athlete allowed you to add half your proficiency bonus to STR, DEX or CON checks - but only if you did not already use your proficiency bonus. A strictly worse Jack of All Trades that all Bards get at level 2, with the only upside being that you could jump a little further. Thankfully in the 2024 version, this feature instead unlocks as soon as level 3, and changed to grant you advantage on Initiative Rolls (which is huge!) and on Athletics checks. Additionally, you can now move for free without provoking Opportunity Attacks after scoring a Critical Hit - boosting the interest of Improved Critical by providing synergy. Huzzah! The Champion also gets an additional Fighting Style (at level 10 in 2014 / level 7 in 2024), allowing them to further specialize or keep their options open. Now at level 10 in the 2024 ruleset, they get an archetype defining feature - something that the old Champion truly lacked outside being able to crit a little more often than others. Heroic Warrior gives them Heroic Inspiration at the start of each of their turns! This allows them to reroll ANY die after they rolled it once per round. You missed that last decisive strike on the big bad? Reroll. The evil wizard managed to use Charm Person on you? Reroll! The Champion just. Does. Not. Fail. EVER! This is the perfect flavor for them - they are THE Champion after all. Just remember that Heroic Inspiration doesn’t stack, so make sure you use it when you can. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/801bee6249e705bdc9b70f41c89f77ad580f70c9.jpg The rest of the Champion’s features remain relatively the same after that, with Superior Critical at level 15 and Survivor at level 18 - the only upgrade in 2024 being that Survivor gives you advantage on Death Saving Throws and also makes your 18-20 crit range work when rolling them. Once again, a perfect fit for the Champion’s fantasy - you don’t miss, you don’t fail, and when you fall your rise again. Ah, let’s not forget to mention what Survivor did in the first place: While under half-HP (bloodied) and above 0 HP, you regain HP at the start of each of your turns. Final Verdict? Honestly, Champion went from a fairly bland and weak archetype to something that’s genuinely fun and exciting with a strong flavorful identity. If we were not so limited in the number of Subclasses we could implement in Solasta 2 (due to team size and time), it’d definitely be one of the more interesting choices to select.

Mountaineer (Crown of the Magister)

Aaaah the Mountaineer, one of our first subclasses ever designed. We imagined the Mountaineer as this axe and shield dwarven fighter holding out waves of monsters inside tight tunnels underground. This one went all-in trying to bank on the shove feature - something that started as very interesting and filled with potential, but that tapered on the later you get in-game. Why is that? Well, turns out most larger creatures that you start encountering at higher levels are immune to shove and prone from Medium size creatures (hint: that’s you). They start out with Shield Swipe, giving advantage on shove rolls when wielding a shield, and Tunnel Fighter giving them a flat AC bonus when next to a wall. You can see here the idea of fighting in confined spaces with very little room to manoeuvre, where controlling where the enemy position with shove can really change the flow of the battle. Fun fact, in the very early conception stage of Solasta 1 (waaaay back, even before we started working on the Kickstarter demo), the game had a much smaller scope. We’re talking 4 classes, no character creation, and a focus almost exclusively on dungeon diving. Here, let us share an early Concept Art from that time to illustrate what we mean. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/67026a454c8dbeba25dc9182f39b038bc2193f9d.jpg Just pulled that one from the Solasta 1 art vault. Our party of 4 adventurers are about to square off against a troll on a tight hanging bridge in the dark. As you can imagine, that changed quite a bit (notably with the success of the Kickstarter), and Solasta 1 grew into the game we all know and love nowadays; with a Character Creator, all 12 classes, and a vast world with diverse locations not limited to caverns and corridors… Which means the Mountaineer just became a lot more situational! Dang it! Moving on, at level 7 they got Close Quarters which gave them the ability to swap position with an enemy with a bonus action and gain advantage on attack rolls against it. An interesting feature, unfortunately hindered by the prerequisites to make it work: it only worked on creatures of your size or smaller (medium), and you needed to win a contested shove roll (albeit with advantage thanks to Shield Swipe). Close Quarters itself is an interesting idea, but its limitations made it very situational - especially later when many enemies are bigger than Medium size. At level 10 they got Shield Push, another buff to their shove by making it a bonus action - once again putting all eggs in the shove basket without giving a solution for larger creatures. And finally at level 15 they had Pack Strider, which basically gave you the equivalent of Pack Tactics - giving you advantage on melee attack rolls if you have another ally next to the target. Wew! Now that we know the weaknesses of our dear Mountaineer, how did we rework it in the Sourcebook? Well, we kept the initial idea of this shield-focused fighter, but without the whole shoving theme as it would quickly become size-gated - and the Mountaineer is no Path of the Giant. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/91bdf52c45b35944eab976a10aed42708b5d3e62.jpg At level 3, we start with Shield Expert instead of Shield Swipe, giving you the bonus of the Shield Master feat with a bit of extra on the side - being able to use the shield as a 1d4 bludgeoning weapon and strike with it as if it were a light weapon with your bonus action. We also get Close Quarters instead of Tunnel Fighter, which now both allows you to move through the space of any creature of a larger size than yours (making it useful against bigger creatures) and to swap place with creatures of your size instead of shoving them if you so desire (keeping it useful against smaller creatures). At level 7 we see the return of Tunnel Fighter, which only sees a little update in its wording to clarify that the bonus AC is granted when next to an obstacle that can grant total cover (so not limited to walls). At level 10, Shield Push is replaced by Shield Bash, giving you the ability to force enemies hit by your shield to roll a CON save or be… Dazed? Wait, that doesn’t exist! But you’ve got the idea - we didn’t want to hand out too many hard CCs when making our subclasses, so Shield Bash would only halve the target’s speed and prevent them from using Bonus Actions and Reactions until your next turn. At last, at level 15 you would get Watchful Sentry instead of Pack Strider, allowing you to use your reaction to swap places with an ally next to you that is getting attacked (and forcing the attack to target you instead). After all, with the Mountaineer archetype being all about defense, positioning and control - we had to make it so they could protect their allies properly! Final Verdict? The Mountaineer is a real window into the very first drafts of Solasta 1 - its entire theme born from our original game plan: a deep delve into dark caverns with a small party of four: Fighter, Wizard, Rogue and Cleric. The theme of the Mountaineer was good, its execution needed a little bit of readjusting but overall we believe that there’s a lot of room for a shield-focused archetype for the Fighter.

Spellblade (Crown of the Magister)

The Spellblade is where we start to get into some design struggle - we want a Fighter that can cast spells, but that’s already the turf of the Eldritch Knight. Does that mean there is no room for something new? No, of course not! But theme-wise we are bound to have some similarities because they both fulfill the same fantasy, a magic wielding fighter. Small funny anecdote: we remember seeing a comment about the Spellblade that made us laugh quite hard. “This is not a fighter, this is a rogue running on fighter hardware”. Let’s forget the Spellblade for a moment and think about the idea of a spellcasting Fighter. What does a Fighter want to do to be relevant in a fight? Well, they need to be attacking to make use of all their extra attacks, which is the main draw of the class. But that means spending a turn casting spells is not a good thing, right? Well then, how do we make it work? There are a couple of solutions. First of all, spells are also useful outside battle - that’s one of the main reasons why people complain about the spellcaster vs martial gap at higher level on tabletop. Spells can give a lot of utility, like helping to sneak into a castle with Invisibility and Sleep, preventing combat with Suggestion or illusion spells, and so on and so forth. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/f52609611fb27486cb6eda925f14a3a268bcd63c.jpg But as you already know, Solasta 1 is mostly combat focused. So that doesn’t work out for us. The second solution is bonus action spells and reaction spells, which allow them to keep their main action to attack. Problem is, there are only a few of them (wizard spell list) - such as the well known Shield spell which is already something the Eldritch Knight has. The third solution is encouraging spellcasting by giving something in return. For example, Eldritch Knight’s Eldritch Strike makes your opponent roll their next saving throw with disadvantage if you manage to land a weapon attack on them - encouraging you to cast spells by making them more likely to land. Now let’s go back to the Spellblade. When we started working on this archetype, we hadn’t come to such conclusions quite yet, so we were mostly testing things around to see what stuck. At level 3, Magic Weapon made your weapon be considered magical against creatures resistant to non-magical damage. Honestly, this one was completely a filler feature - something that quickly became irrelevant as you would find +1 weapons while adventuring. At level 7, Into the Fray made you able to use Melee weapons as spellcasting focus and the ability to cast somatic spells even while wielding such weapons - as well as allowing you to cast ranged spells without disadvantage while in melee. This feature was much more on point, as one of the biggest issues for spellcasting martial classes is the inability to cast somatic spells if both of their hands are occupied, with the only option being to drop a weapon to cast or to be playing Two-Handed weapons. At level 10, Spelltyrant was a strange telekinesis power which allowed you to shove enemies from afar with a bonus action. While interesting, it didn’t really synergize with the rest of the Spellblade’s features - and a 5’ shove rarely mattered anyway. At last, at level 15 they got Arcane Escape, which made Spellblades get the benefit of Dodge whenever they cast a spell. This was a strong feature which fell into the 3rd category - giving you a reason to cast a spell by rewarding you with something significant. Normally, dodging would take your main action anyway - so being allowed to cast a spell for that is just cherry on the top! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/486a5ac878625f43055b6ca45d31cc209a5bdd13.jpg After all of this, and looking back at it, when we started writing the revised Sourcebook Spellblade was one of the archetypes that we decided to completely rework. Into the Fray got moved to level 3 so that Spellblades could immediately start casting somatic spells when they got their subclass going. At level 7, they get Arcane Conduit which makes them imbue their weapon until the end of their next turn whenever they cast a spell with a casting time of 1 action, making it deal an extra 1d10 force damage. With the amount of attacks a Fighter can dish out, this bonus damage would quickly stack up. At level 10 Arcane Shield now gave them temporary HP when casting a spell, allowing them to stay in the fight longer. And at level 15, they would get Swift Cast to change the casting time of a spell that used a main action into a bonus action once per short rest (while still getting the benefit of Arcane Conduit). As you can see, the Spellblade now had a much clearer pattern of play - one that was easy to understand. Unlike the Eldritch Knight that would cast spells and still attack thanks to War Magic, the Spellblade was supposed to alternate between spellcasting on one round to receive buffs and attacking on the other to spend them. Later on they would get the ability to cheat once per short rest by cutting the first round of spellcasting with Swift Cast, vastly improving their initial impact on the battle. However, the pattern remains simple: cast a spell to get damage buffs and temporary HP, then go slap the baddies with indiscriminate violence. Final Verdict? The Spellblade wasn’t terrible in its first iteration, it got two good features for two mediocre ones. Previously an “okay” archetype, it fortunately became quite a lot of fun to play around with thanks to its rework, and managed to find its own identity!

Commander (Lost Valley)

With the Commander the aim was to provide a non-spellcasting support archetype, not unlike the 4th edition Warlord. Rallying the troops while standing beside them, without any divine blessings or magic shenanigans - just pure unadulterated guts. The fact that you could now have a strong frontliner who could also empower the rest of the team was a godsend for many players, who really enjoyed the addition of the Commander in Lost Valley. At 3rd level, the Commander gains proficiency in Intimidation and Insight, as well as Rousing Shout - a bonus action to give all nearby allies (including themselves) advantage on their next attack. This feature can be used multiple times per short rest, allowing the Commander to heavily lower the chances of his party missing during combat, giving them a good use of their bonus action. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b7409603ed92b1cf0af442ee413cba4e83d7feeb.jpg At level 7 they get Coordinated Defense, where they can sacrifice one of their attacks to grant any ally (or themselves) Dodge - again boosting their action economy by making Dodge usable without having to sacrifice a main action, and massively increasing the survivability of their teammates. At level 10, Invigorating Shout increases the range of Rousing Shout and now also grants a small amount of temporary hit points, which over time considering the high amount of uses this feature has adds up to quite a lot, further enhancing the team’s tankiness. And at last, at level 15 Lead by Example marks enemies that you hit - making them additional damage any time someone makes a successful weapon attack against them. As you can see, a very straightforward fantasy of a commander leading their troop to victory, by increasing both the offensive and defensive capabilities of nearby allies. There isn’t much to add since the Sourcebook version only saw minor tweaks, such as changing the name of Lead by Example to Take Them Down and increasing the additional damage from 1d4 to 1d6, and giving a name to the level 3 Bonus Proficiencies. It is now Gruff Authority, which on top of giving the 2 skill proficiencies also allows them to add their STR modifier to Intimidation & Persuasion checks. Final Verdict? The Commander had an idea in mind when it was designed and they perfectly filled their role. A strong support martial class that can still kick ass on their own!

The… ??? (Solasta II)

In the demo, Neyra was a Cleric / Fighter who did not have the level to unlock her Fighter subclass, so there is very little that you could surmit from there. Let’s just say that we’re cooking something quite interesting, and we’re excited to see how you will like it!

Community Stream #09 Friday May 2nd

A little earlier than the other times, May’s Community Stream will take place later this week on Friday May 2nd! You’re many to have noticed the SRD 5.2 is now live, so we’re taking a deep dive into the document to discuss about the new content and what a passage to the 2024 ruleset would imply! See you on Friday, 9 am PDT / 12 pm EDT / 6 pm CEST! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/94dd4470d488745fe530fd49b57c86189058895a.jpg Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

• Discord
• Twitter / X
• Bluesky
• YouTube
• Twitch

Hey there folks! No news this week, just a big thank you for participating. We hope you enjoyed the contest! There will be more coming later (not next month though) so more of you get a chance to leave a mark in the world of Solasta II.  We will be contacting the winner of Trades and Sails in the coming weeks. Stay tuned for more news and contests, and drop by our Discord server to chat with other players! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/af3df319fa38b981c8ea03ae5d0b8d52072dc209.jpg Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

• Discord
• Twitter / X
• Bluesky
• YouTube
• Twitch

Hey there you wonderful folks! Today we’ll be diving into the powerful Cleric class - very likely THE most versatile class when it comes to rounding off a team. Don’t make the assumption that they are just healers; depending on their domain and spell selection, Clerics can become stalwart frontliners, devastating spell slingers, high value supports or all of the above. But before we jump into that… We have some winners to announce! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/c9d151c98a5545b5b9cb63d9df4da6817178fac7.jpg And a warm welcome to Emji, the newest member of the Tactical Adventures team! May his barks be sonorous and his meals plentiful. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Of Quills & Ink - Let’s Meet our Winners!

It took us quite some time to sort through all your submissions as we did not exactly expect the amount of participants to be this high. To give you an idea, the amount of words we had to read through added up to several novels in length… But enough stalling, who won? Now as there were a LOT of very good entries (and because it was our first Community Contest), we decided to select a lot more winners than we initially intended to. Here is the list of all 20 winners of the “Of Quills & Ink” Community Contest! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/35ba3e14995efdd668c611978e6e68c3e93e4437.jpg Hope you enjoyed participating in the contest! Don’t forget that there’s another one going on right now, ending next Tuesday. Children's Tale:

• John Kui'tunn - An Unseen Horror
• Augustus Pindrop - The Mess that Grew

Adventurer’s Journal:

• Thea Morningdew - Reverse River
• Crikk - Faded Diary

Herbalist’s Journal:

• Belmora Stormhammer - Fragmented Flora Log

Journal recounting events from Solasta I:

• Cyrania de Bergerac - Mage Tower's Library

Love Letter:

• Iela Valienne - Letter of Devotion
• Rune Sharstop - Tear-stained Letter
• Caedmon Delfias - Letter to a Daughter

Show or Circus Flyer:

• Rias Orde - The Circus is here!

Public Board Flyers:

• Milo Introcaso - Mushrooms Wanted
• Pym the Jug - Pogle’s Perfect Wigs
• Enialis Siannodel - Exterminators
• Valour - Sidekick Needed!
• Haris Murin - Looking for Maid
• Evan Boorthearth - Public Complaint

Complaint about a product:

• Rex Thunderquill - Delayed Doom
• Ragn Twinbeard - A poor ale delivery

Speculations about Shadwyn:

• Kaeroth Orinel - Dusty manuscript

Bogus research on Kobolds:

• Roth the Raucous - Horde Among Hoards

Just to be safe, we’ve elected to use the in-game pen name to announce the victors considering some people may have given us their real name to put in the credits. We’ll be sending the prizes later this week, so if you find your name up there make sure you check your emails! We’ll inform everyone on our Discord server once they are sent, in case you want to make sure you didn’t miss them Important: Please note that not all of the above entries may be included in-game from the start of Early Access! Some books / scrolls are likely to be added to areas that will only be available in the 1.0 release.

Your Prayers are Answered

One of the OG classes of D&D when it was first released in 1974, the Cleric is technically the oldest and arguably the only remaining class of the original game. For those who are curious, the other two were the Fighting Man which later became the Fighter in AD&D 1e, and the Magic-User which became the Mage in AD&D 2e and then the Wizard in D&D 3e. Only our good old Cleric got to keep their name for more than 50 years! Surprisingly, their well-known cousin the Paladin appeared as early as 1975 in a Greyhawk supplement as a subclass of the Fighting Man, later becoming a standard class starting in AD&D 2e. But enough history lessons you may say! Clerics! What are they good for? Absolutely noth… Scratch that, we meant to say absolutely EVERYTHING. As stated in the intro, playing Cleric is like ticking the “Fill Role” box when queuing for a game. 80% of the time you’re going to end up as a support, but you can still play any other role decently well (and with that we just lost everyone who never played a MOBA). Long story short, a Cleric may not be a better frontliner than a Barbarian, and they may not be as destructive as a Wizard when it comes to causing indiscriminate devastation from afar… but they sure stand a much better fighting chance than both a Wizard in melee range and a Barbarian unable to reach their target. And on top of that, think of all the support they can provide! Heals! Buffs! Resurrection spells! Even if you don’t specialize into it, every Cleric has access to those tools - simply getting access to these options make you an invaluable asset. Now this is the moment where we would go “and you too could become one for the mere price of 150 gold coins”, but this merchant is no charlatan - simply head to the nearest temple and you too could become a Cleric. For as you may already know, they get their powers from the deity they revere - they are their god’s chosen. No matter how devout, only a handful of followers are given this privilege. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/07b7e145189703842e771c5d308e76b56656c90d.jpg While all clerics have access to the same list of spells, depending on the divine domain they choose their Domain Spells will vary - sometimes even giving them the ability to cast spells from other classes, such as the well known Fireball for the Light Domain, or even Hypnotic Pattern for the Trickery Domain (both official D&D subclasses). It used to be that Domain also heavily influenced whether or not you would be more of a frontline cleric or a caster cleric, as in the original 2014 5e ruleset only some would get Heavy Armor proficiency, and their level 8 subclass feature would either be Divine Strike (encouraging you to swing your weapon) or Potent Spellcasting (encouraging you to use Cantrips instead). In the 2024 version this is no longer the case as those subclass features got merged into the base Cleric powers instead, allowing each and everyone to choose at level 1 if they would rather be a Protector (with Martial Weapons & Heavy Armor proficiency), or a Thaumaturge (with an extra Cantrip and a bonus to Arcana & Religion checks). Similarly, at level 7 (instead of 8, one level early yay) they get to choose between Divine Strike or Potent Spellcasting - it is no longer imposed by their Divine Domain. All and all, we believe that’s a good improvement - let players decide themselves what role they want to fill, regardless of the theme of their Divine Domain.

The Clerics of Solasta

Oh boy, this one is going to be massive. Unlike the other classes which each had 4 archetypes to talk about, the Cleric doubles that amount with 8 Divine Domains in total. But why?! Well, as gods were a fairly central theme for Crown of the Magister with all the focus on the Cataclysm, gods not being native to Solasta and their fight with Sorr-Tarr, we didn’t want each god to only have a single domain to lord over. So… we put some extra effort in creating more Divine Domains - some which worked better than others. Note: Before we dive further - please keep in mind that we may not be able to make the same exception for Solasta 2. Crown of the Magister released with 6 classes, each with 3 subclasses (except for Cleric with 7), for a total of 22 archetypes in total. If we manage to include all classes with 2 subclasses at the 1.0 release of Solasta 2, that would already be 12 classes each with 2 subclasses, for a total 24 archetypes (on top of implementing 6 extra classes). Now we repeat it often - with a studio of only 35 people, there’s a limit to the amount of content we can include! Anyway, let’s not bore you with production constraints. To the subclass breakdown we go!

Life Domain (SRD)

As with most of the SRD subclasses, the Life Domain fulfills the base Cleric fantasy very well. Most people would look at the Cleric in any game and immediately think Healer or at least Support - well, Life Domain is exactly that. Be it Domain Spells or subclass features, everything from the Life Domain is about keeping your allies (and yourself) healthy and ready to party (and by party we mean punching foes in the face, if that wasn’t obvious enough). {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/8bd1b95500008d1d866940c3a7a284f601fe4b62.jpg Immediately out of the gate, Disciple of Life squeezes more value out of your healing spells by healing more… With its well known 2014 loophole giving Goodberry incredible value on Life Cleric, as instead of 10 berries healing for 1 HP they would heal you for 4 HP each (for a total of 40 HP in exchange for a level 1 spell slot). This interaction has been removed in the 2024 version as the extra-healing only occurs on the turn the Life Cleric casts the spell, so no more bonus if an ally is healed during their turn or over time. Next comes Preserve Life, one of the least understood Channel Divinity out there - and for a good reason, it is quite convoluted. You can heal a number of HP equal to 5 times your Cleric level, distributed as you wish between multiple allies… but only up to half of their HP. Design-wise, this is likely because Clerics regain their uses of Channel Divinity on a Short Rest, meaning that if you could Preserve Life to heal allies to full health you easily keep your party at max HP without having to spend any Hit Dice or Spell Slots, completely bypassing those systems. Still, not a bad Channel Divinity at all considering you can heal multiple allies from range, which can save the day when things go south and you have multiple friends downed and you don’t have Mass Healing Word at the ready. The rest of the features are as straightforward as the previous ones. Blessed Healer grants you minor healing when you heal others, reducing the chances of you needing to spend your turn healing yourself because you took too much damage. And finally Supreme Healer simply removes the need to roll your dice when healing, automatically making it as if you rolled the maximum score. Technically speaking this is quite insane as variance is a very big part of D&D - so bypassing it as a passive feature without a limited amount of uses is very, very powerful. Final Verdict? What’s to say, really? It fulfills the healer fantasy and makes healing others feel good, instead of waiting for them to go down before dropping them a single Healing Word and pushing back into the action. With Life Domain on top of the buffs to healing spells in 2024, proactive healing may actually be pretty good!

Battle Domain (Crown of the Magister)

Like many of our fans would say, “That’s Battle!”. The Battle Domain is very well liked by Solasta players as it fits the fantasy of the “Cleric fighting on the frontline next to everyone else”. Put them in Half-Plate Armor with a Morningstar in one hand and a Shield in the other, and let them run wild. While they did not have access to Heavy Armor, they did get Martial Weapons proficiency and the ability to cast Somatic & Material spells even if they had both hands occupied. Now, not every table plays with spell components - in fact, when Solasta 1 Early Access came out many were confused as to why they couldn’t cast some spells (turns out quite a few have somatic components) - so this may not appeal to everyone, but for some the ability to cast spells without having to drop or sheathe your weapon every time was a god-send (haha). Divine Fortitude also granted them a large pool of temporary HP once per day, giving them more staying power when diving into danger. Now, the rest of the subclass features were a little controversial - not from an external standpoint, as stated above people loved the Battle Cleric - but mostly from a design perspective looking back at our own creation. First came Decisive Strike, their Channel Divinity - which gave them the ability to attempt to stun an enemy on hit… which stepped on the Monk’s foot (Stunning Strike). In the Sourcebook, we would rework that into Incapacitation instead of Stun. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/10f4dca185ac24641c15c9a59fe58f5f9383997b.jpg Next came Herald of Battle, at level 6. An aura which gave nearby allies +1 to attack rolls, damage rolls, AC and Saving Throws. Once again… biting into another class’ design, this time the Paladin. Now the difference was that Herald of Battle only worked when next to the Cleric (5’ radius only), but still. On top of that, flat +1 bonuses are usually not very common in 5e design as it both threatens bounded accuracy and creates complexity for tracking - anyone who played 3.5e knows that you would often have to calculate god knows how many +1s and +2s and -2s to add before you rolled your D20. Entangled? -2! Flanking? +2! On higher ground? +1, but only for melee attacks! Sun in your eyes? Believe it or not, that will be a -1 because we’re the DM and we make the rules! 5e generally did away with all of that by simply giving advantage or disadvantage depending on the situation, and with both cancelling each other out no matter how many there are. And finally, the Extra Attack. Instead of the classic Potent Spellcasting or Divine Strike, the Battle Cleric was the only one getting an Extra Attack just like a Fighter or a Barbarian would (although at level 8 instead of 5). For many, that was the selling point of the Battle Cleric - you get to attack twice! In all situations, an extra attack is better than Divine Strike too - two attacks means less chance of missing and dealing 0 damage, and even a regular non-magical morningstar would still be 1d8 + STR modifier, so you get a little more than the flat 1d8 damage from Divine Strike. This is where the issue lies - while it is great and gives a strong identity to the Battle Domain, this feature is just better than what the other Cleric domains offer. Balance-wise, this isn’t a great thing to do. It is difficult to know how the Battle Domain would change with the changes to Clerics in the 2024 ruleset - but one thing’s for sure, the Extra Attack feature would probably need to be reworked. Maybe they will still be able to attack twice per turn, but not without a cost! Final Verdict? A great domain beloved by many, fulfilling the promise of a strong “frontline full caster” fantasy. Inside though, a domain that likely borrowed a little too much from other classes, and which would need a few tweaks going forward!

Elemental Domain (Crown of the Magister)

Woowee this one was a bit of a mess! The Elemental Domain was effectively three very similar Domains: Fire Domain, Ice Domain, Lightning Domain. Half of their features were excellent, and the other half were fairly terrible. Let’s dive into it. First, the Domain Spells: almost none of them are from the Cleric spell list, granting them a lot of additional options. Area of effect spells such as Lightning Bolt and Thunderwave, mobility spells such as Fly and Misty Step, utility with Fog Cloud and Conjure Elemental… this was a huge boon for those looking to play a more “caster” type cleric. On top of that, you got Primal Harmony immediately granting you Resistance to either Cold, Fire or Lightning (depending on your domain). This was only possible because Crown of the Magister did not have multiclassing - otherwise the level 1 Elemental Cleric dip would be insane. You also got an extra cantrip, which may not seem like much but those of you who had to spam Sacred Flame during the entirety of Solasta 1 know that it was very welcome. Now at level 2, if you remember what we wrote about in our Sorcerer article about the Haunted Soul… a similar issue can be seen here. All three Channel Divinity Lightning Blade, Fire Burst and Ice Lance were just bad spells turned into a power instead. Lightning Blade dealt a laughable 1d8 damage, but could potentially stun for 1 round. Fire Burst dealt an okay 3d8 damage… but with no other effect. Ice Lance dealt a meager 2d8 damage and had the potential to… push 10 feet. That’s all it did. And all of those powers were single target on top. That’s pretty bad! Level 6 gave you a neat power that allowed you to use your reaction to absorb damage from your domain type, healing you instead of harming you. We envisioned the Elemental Cleric stoically standing in a Dragon’s Fire Breath and coming out unscathed. What we got instead were Fire Clerics running into the fray and Fireballing themselves to both destroy enemy packs and healing themselves in the process. Looking back on it, it was pretty obvious that this would happen. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/65a9434cdd87ca0a3e53671050c16b77419614a5.jpg Level 8 also had the mistake of not following the standard 2014 cleric subclass progression, with Herald of the Elements taking the place of Potent Spellcasting… and once again giving very mediocre spell-like powers. Lightning gets a 2d8+WIS mod AoE that can restrain for one turn. Fire gets a 1d8+WIS mod single target spell that can shove 5’. Ice gets a 1d8+WIS mod single target that can restrain for a turn. Yea, Fire got completely shafted there (and Ice too). As you can see, not our best work! Mostly because it was created at the very beginning when we were still running to get a few subclasses implemented and having very little time to change anything afterwards, but still - the three Elemental Domains were quite a mess. Which led to us reworking them into a single Elemental Domain in the Sourcebook afterwards. No longer would you choose Fire, Ice or Lightning - the Elemental Cleric is blessed to master all elements! First, as Multiclassing needed to be considered, Primal Harmony and its level 1 Damage Resistance had to go - instead giving the Cleric the ability to change the damage type dealt by their spells to Fire, Cold or Lightning when they so desire. The bonus cantrip also went from being pre-selected to allowing them to choose any cantrip from any class as long as it dealt fire, cold or lightning damage. The bigger changes came at level 2, with their Channel Divinity now offering them three choices (instead of being locked to one). Call upon Thunder is a teleport that deals AoE damage on arrival with a potential deafen. Call upon Wind deals damage in a line with a potential shove and prone. Call upon Ice deals single target damage with a potential restrain. And all of them deal the standard 2d8 + cleric damage which scales with levels, making this feature much less terrible (on top of giving them versatility since they can use all three). At level 6 the feature also changed to needing a use of Channel Divinity as it was too strong to have unlimited uses. And instead of healing, using your reaction would grant you immunity to either Cold, Fire or Lightning damage until the start of your next turn, and then grant you Temporary Hit Points equal to the damage that you would have taken plus resistance to that damage type for 1 minute. Finally, level 8 simply got replaced by Potent Spellcasting. Sometimes, simplicity is the best answer, and the level 2 Wrath of the Elements Channel Divinity already gave enough options to not need another three powers. Final Verdict? An interesting base that was left a little undercooked - a bit of shame really, as a large part of the archetype already had a lot of good things going for it. Would love to revisit it in the future if we ever have the time to give it due diligence.

Insight Domain (Crown of the Magister)

If the Elemental Domain was undercooked, the Insight Domain was simply raw. Sometimes you shoot and you miss the target by a little, sometimes the gun just blows up in your hand. And unfortunately, the Insight Cleric was more of the latter. Let’s be honest here, it was just bad. But why? Why, as its creator, are we so harsh on the Insight Cleric? Well, you have to remember that Solasta 1 was mostly combat-centric. With a small team such as ours, we had to make decisions as to what we would focus on - and for us Tactical Adventures, the choice was a given: Tactical Combat. That doesn’t mean we don’t intend to polish the other aspects of the game (especially now that we learned from Solasta 1), but when we started on our first project we had to make sure we got the core of our game right. So, going back to the Insight Domain… which as you would imagine from the name, was mostly suited for social exchanges. Dialogues. Investigations. None of which were very developed in Crown of the Magister. To the point that some players started saying that choosing the Insight Domain was like trying to play a Cleric without subclass. Ouch. Fair, but ouch. Let’s take a look. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/a676df9083531f1d1a09f6ae4b2cf878184392b8.jpg At level 1, they got Divine Intuition giving them advantage on Arcana, History and Nature checks - none of which are very useful in Solasta 1. They also got Inspired Diplomat to know the odds in dialogue choices, which is somewhat useful but often not required. Those were reworked in the Sourcebook to grant two extra skill proficiency and expertise in Insight, plus the ability to add your Wisdom modifier to any Charisma check when attempting to influence someone after observing them for 1 minute. At level 2, Foreknowledge makes the first attack directed at you be rolled with disadvantage, lasting 1 minute. Doesn’t sound so bad, but the kicker here is… First, you need to use your action to activate it. Second, it can only trigger once per round. Not per turn, per round. And since it’s not a reaction, you can’t decide on which attack it triggers - so if a tiny goblin attacks you before a Giant tries to punt you to Narnia, you are very much boned. In the Sourcebook, this was changed to make the Cleric actively target a creature, making that creature have disadvantage on all attack rolls against them for 1 minute, or until the Cleric uses a bonus action to switch target. At level 6, Divine Eye gave advantage on rolls to detect traps, hidden doors and objects. Once again, a nice little bonus but nothing great really - and again, completely useless in combat, which is the largest part of Solasta 1. In the Sourcebook Divine Eye permanently gave the effect of See Invisibility and Detect Magic to the Insight Cleric, on top of doubling their proficiency bonus when making an ability check looking for traps, hidden doors and objects. Finally at level 8, Divine Lore allowed them to read / speak all languages, with the addition of being able to identify one magical item for free per Long Rest. Again, could be great if the game had more uses of different languages being relevant, but that was not the case. Sourcebook just replaces it with the standard Potent Spellcasting. Final Verdict? The Insight Domain was just doomed from the very start. It carries an inherently social-heavy theme in a game that’s simply not very developed in the dialogue / investigation themes. We’d like to imagine it would have probably found a better home in a game like Baldur’s Gate 3, or Disco Elysium if it were a D&D game.

Law Domain (Crown of the Magister)

Now that the Insight Domain is out of the way, let’s talk Law Domain! This one is little more in the middle of the pack, a decent domain power-wise with a straight-forward theme: Protecting the innocents and pushing the guilty. The Law Cleric has access to quite some powerful tools but there are a few bits that needed a tiny bit more varnish. Let’s get into it! First came their Domain Spells, with access to two of the most powerful ones in Shield and Counterspell. This alone already pushes the archetype to the top of the pack… if not for two little tiny problems. Remember when I talked about the 2014 cleric subclass design pushing you towards either being a frontliner or a caster? Well, the Law Cleric is more of a frontliner… meaning they are likely close to danger with a weapon in one hand and a shield in the other. But wait! Isn’t Shield a somatic spell? Uh oh… so basically you either keep one hand free to be able to cast Shield, but lose out on wearing a shield (-2 AC) or having a weapon out (your attack of opportunity deals almost no damage), or you keep both your weapon and shield and can’t cast Shield (losing on a potential +5 AC). Damn it! And what’s the other problem? Well, in Solasta 1 you need to succeed an Arcana Check to recognize the spell being cast by an enemy, meaning you need Intelligence. Not a big problem if you’re a Wizard, but if you’re a Cleric… you’re often going to end up casting Counterspell blindly without knowing if it's worth it or not. This in no way makes the Law Cleric bad (those spells are still amongst the most powerful ones in D&D), but it makes the experience a little less smooth than we’d have liked. Arguably the Counterspell one is fine (after all you aren’t learnt like the Wizards, so it’s only fair that you might have to do a little bit of guesswork), but the Shield one is painful. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/f61ceb85dad24b5c254bc65532a2903483f49dca.jpg Jumping on the level 1 feature, Commanding Presence grants proficiency and advantage on Intimidation checks, and Unyielding Enforcer gives advantage on rolls made to resist being moved or shoved. In the Sourcebook we changed that to expertise on Intimidation (instead of advantage), kept the advantage against forced movement and also gave proficiency with Martial Weapons since it is a frontline archetype. Level 2 Holy Retribution is a reaction Channel Divinity, where getting hit with a melee attack allows you to strike back and deal psychic damage. Fun fact, there was a strange bug out there that sometimes caused Holy Retribution to damage the Cleric instead, leading some players to wonder why their Cleric decided to wack themselves. While quite powerful (as it used a reaction and not an action), one thing that felt quite bad was that you could completely whiff and thus “waste” a use of Channel Divinity. This is why in the Sourcebook we buffed it to deal even more damage and potentially frightening the target for one round, but looking at the 2024 rules it probably would have been better to simply add “you only expend a use of Channel Divinity if the attack lands”. Another use of Channel Divinity at level 2 is Force of Law (for some reason we gave them two choices), which simply makes the target of your spell roll their saving throw with disadvantage. This one was removed in the Sourcebook as it was just Heightened Spell Metamagic disguised under a different name. Level 6 gave them access to Word of the Law, an action which forced the target to roll a CON saving throw against your spell casting DC or lose their concentration on their spell. The Sourcebook changed it to a bonus action (since anyone can make someone lose concentration with an action, that’s called bashing them in the face), and turning it into an INT saving throw as it was more a battle of will than a punch in the gut. Thinking back about it, would WIS be more suited than INT here? At level 8 we continue on the non-standard streak with Anathema, a strange power that can be used once per short rest dealing minor damage each turn and restraining a target up to 1 minute. As with the other non-standard features this got changed to Divine Strike in the Sourcebook. Final Verdict? A strong divine domain with a lot of good tools under their belt, and only some little flaws to polish out. A solid choice!

Sun Domain (Crown of the Magister)

Onto the Sun domain! Considered by some to be the second strongest Cleric subclass in Solasta after the Battle Domain, it features strong AoE damage and debuff thanks to its Domain Spells, as well as good utility paired with great action economy. If that just sounded like a bunch of buzzwords mixed together, that’s because it kind of was - but long story short, it’s a very solid choice. Starting with the Domain Spells, Sun Clerics get an early access AoE damage from level 1 with Burning Hands, and Faerie Fire is quite a good tool to have in Solasta against Soraks who always try to remain in the dark. Later on you unlock spells like Scorching Ray (good damage spell with flexibility to target one to three foes), Hypnotic Pattern (one of the best control spells as it doesn’t allow repeated saving throws), Daylight (great against Defilers and Broods) and Wall of Fire (great to control tight spaces like corridors) - quite a good arsenal as you can see! At level 1 you also get Holy Radiance, which forces your foes to roll their saving throw against your Sacred Flame with disadvantage. While not a very flashy feature, Sacred Flame is often your bread and butter long range filler option as a Cleric in Solasta 1, so you’ll be casting it a lot - having a boost to help it landing adds up quite a bit over time. At level 2, Herald of the Sun is a Channel Divinity that damages a single target and can blind them for up to 1 minute. We felt that this was a little too weak so in the Sourcebook we gave a lot more flavour. You instead clad yourself in fire for 1 minute, shedding bright light in a 10’ radius around you with a small Spirit Guardians-like effect - foes take half your cleric damage when starting their turn or moving near you, while allies gain that amount in temporary HP. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/cb074ba70eb5526913cdb00dded8dec60b431071.jpg At level 6, Indomitable Light gave the Sun Clerics another use of Channel Divinity - however considering that it was extremely similar to the spell Daylight we simply removed it in the Sourcebook. The star of the show at level 6 though was Soothing Hands, a bonus action that not only healed an ally for an amount equal to your Cleric level, but also removed either Stunned, Deafened, Blinded or Frightened. As you can imagine, that was too powerful compared to most other cleric subclasses, and also a little bit too similar to the Paladin’s Lay on Hands. So in the Sourcebook it no longer heals, and the conditions removed also got changed to not overlap with Lesser Restoration (blinded, deafened, paralyzed, poisoned) - instead removing Charmed, Frightened and Incapacitated. Lastly at level 8 we changed Divine Strike to Potent Spellcasting in the Sourcebook. Many players did accurately point out that considering their other features, the Sun Cleric was more a long range spellcaster than a frontliner type, so it made more sense to give them Potent Spellcasting. Final Verdict? Both very straightforward in theme and execution, one of the better Divine Domains we made for Solasta 1.

Oblivion Domain (Crown of the Magister)

The last of the 7 original Divine Domains available at the 1.0 launch, the Oblivion Domain is interesting. Outside being a very solid Cleric subclass, it has one feature that made many claim that they are required for Ironman (no loading allowed, game over = run over) Cataclysm runs, thus catapulting its popularity amongst those seeking the hardest of challenges. What is that feature? Let’s take a look! At level 1 Oblivion Clerics get Gatekeeper, a passive feature that gives every ally (including yourself) within 30’ advantage on their death saving throw. Not a great proactive power, but it can save a few runs when things go sideways and you’re either out of heals or can’t spare an action to heal a downed ally. At level 2 comes Herald of Pain, a Channel Divinity that can make all enemies within 30’ get disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks for up to 1 minute. When successful, it increases the survivability of your party by a significant amount as your enemies will be missing a lot more under its effect. But the feature that takes the crown at level 2 for those Ironman runs is Peaceful Rest - a very simple power that lowers the chances of being attacked at night on the world map and makes it impossible to be surprised during those encounters. And if you’ve played a good amount of Solasta 1, you know how deadly random encounters can be. Fun fact, random encounters were reworked after the 1.0 launch as they were very inconsistent, and their difficulty was raised to make them challenging for freshly rested adventurers. After all, you enter a random encounter with all your HP and resources, and you long rest right after! Now that’s all good buuuut… The D&D 5e 2014 ruleset has an extremely powerful variable for any encounter… and that is getting surprised. In Turn-Based tactical games, there exists the concept of Alpha Strike - killing the enemy in a single round before they have the chance to react - and the 2014 ruleset made it possible to achieve in Solasta 1. Now in the 2024 ruleset surprise no longer makes you potentially lose your first turn, instead simply making you roll initiative with disadvantage which will significantly lower the variance created by surprising someone. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b2810a921ab63514beacaf862d22afdbdb3a58cd.jpg So how does that relate to the Ironman Cataclysm runs? Well, let’s just say that when you get ambushed by a deadly difficulty encounter at random while traveling on the world map, and with most of your party asleep… in the hardest game difficulty without the ability to load or run away, that’s often a death sentence. On top of that, we did go overboard buffing some of these random encounters, which made them very difficult to win even without being surprised. Most infamous at lower levels were the 8 bandits + 2 thugs (action economy hello), and at higher levels the twin Dragons or the Remorhaz trio (2 adults + 1 youngling). The biggest issue with random encounters in Solasta 1 was the variance added on top of the fact that unlike on Tabletop, we never implemented a feature to flee the encounter. Alright that’s enough for story time, going back to the Oblivion Cleric with Strike of Oblivion, which for some reason was a 1d6 Divine Strike at level 6 instead of 8, and Mark of Fate which was a sort of group hex on a single target (everyone who attacked them who deal extra necrotic damage equal to the Cleric’s WIS modifier). In the Sourcebook those were changed to Mark of Fate being moved to level 6, only triggering once per turn (to avoid having the target blow up when attacked by extra attacks or spells with multiple projectiles) and giving its target a saving throw on their turn to remove the mark (so it’s not 1 min of free pummeling on the poor chap). Level 8 saw Potent Spellcasting replace Strike of Oblivion as once again this domain is more of a spellcaster cleric archetype than a frontliner one. Final Verdict? Well, the Oblivion Cleric definitely does some things very well. While Gatekeeper isn’t great as it’s only useful when things go south (and even then usually Healing Word is a better solution), both their Herald of Pain and Mark of Fate are extremely potent at debuffing enemies or making sure that one target goes down fast. Peaceful Rest being what it is is less a testament of the Oblivion Cleric being good, and more a makeshift fix to a flaw that Solasta 1 had - namely, encounters being balanced for Normal Difficulty sometimes becoming a wall too tall to scale on Cataclysm, especially when layered with both the variance of surprise and the inability to run away. Not balancing for Cataclysm was intended (we simply don’t have the time for that), but we’ll be exploring options to lessen this feeling of inevitability in Solasta 2 (aka “the game decided that the run was over, without even allowing me a dice roll”).

Mischief Domain (Lost Valley)

Ah, the Mischief Domain! Last of the 8, introduced in Lost Valley with the addition of Misaye. It is… serviceable. Great domain spells, but the features don’t necessarily mesh well together. You’re encouraged to go in melee combat, but you don’t get Martial Weapons nor Heavy Armor proficiency. I guess Misaye does not only inflict mischief on others, but also on their own clerics! Mischief Clerics have a plethora of options to control the battlefield with their Domain Spells - Grease, Slow, Confusion, Mind Twist and the like, on top of getting also great spells to buff themselves like Blur or Greater Invisibility. The higher the difficulty, the more control spells become an invaluable commodity: it doesn’t matter how accurate your enemy is or how hard they hit if they can’t play! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b1c3055b134166c95aa8aa8ce70ae739c06153e4.jpg At level 1 Mischief Clerics get proficiency in Stealth and Deception, and get Borrowed Luck which allows them to use their reaction to reroll a failed saving throw that was rolled without disadvantage. Doing so will force disadvantage on their next saving throw, a fun design that pairs well with the name of the feature. In the Sourcebook this changed a little, you still get Deception but you get to choose between Sleight of Hand, Stealth, Performance and Persuasion instead of being forced into Stealth. You also get to learn Vicious Mockery as the little mischief maker that you are. Borrowed Luck also changed to be usable on any D20 rolls without disadvantage, usable without drawback a number of times per long rest. You can decide to use it even after running out of uses, but then your DM gets to inflict you with disadvantage on one D20 roll of their choice for each time you do later down the line… At level 2 you get Strike of Chaos, a Channel Divinity that inflicts a random condition to the enemy hit for up to 1 minute. As the Mischief Cleric wasn’t a frontliner archetype, in the Sourcebook this changed to Playful Whispers, with a similar effect but AoE around you and the condition only lasting 1 round, and making you go invisible for the same duration. At level 6 Elusive Target allows you to use your reaction to gain Dodge and Disengage until the end of your next turn after getting hit by a melee attack, making any subsequent attempts to target you less likely to be successful. At level 8 you get Divine Strike, later changed in the Sourcebook into Potent Spellcasting. Final Verdict? A fun subclass, really. Borrowed Luck is plenty flavorful, the Domain Spells are fantastic and with the Sourcebook changes Playful Whispers just adds even more to the potential for mischief and control on the battlefield. Even before that change, Strike of Chaos itself could be devastating - at best it could paralyze an enemy for a full minute!

The… ??? (Solasta II)

Can’t believe we’re finally done. That article took ages to write, we’re nearing 7,000 words there! Now for Solasta II, it is possible that Clerics won’t get a new Divine Domain considering the pantheon doesn’t change. We have a few designs ready in case we decide otherwise, but there are a few reasons as to why we might be reusing the updated version of Solasta 1 Divine Domains. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/882dc465ede08996288befe5d10dae6caa953072.jpg And with that, we’re done! See you next week for the end of the Trades & Sails Community Contest! Article by Tactical Myzzrym https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Follow us on:

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Heyo people! April has now started, and with it comes a new Community Contest for one of you to leave their mark in Solasta II! As a heads-up we're almost done selecting winners from the previous contest and we'll be announcing them soon. We haven't forgotten about it, no sir, not at all! (anxiously flips through pages like a DM going through their session notes to find the name of that one random NPC the party decided to hyperfixate on four sessions ago). {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/a3dd145e9ada336b2278f7524767c451eb4c9623.jpg Read faster, puny Community Lead. Your people demand to know their victors. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Community Contest - Trades & Sails

Solasta II's second Community Contest is now live! Fancy yourself the captain of a merchant ship? This contest will give you the opportunity of having your boat anchored in the port of Caer Mar, one of the largest cities in Neokos. Name your captain, name your ship, let us know what goods you're carrying and describe the emblem on your sails! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/e077066e2d3b43c53022cfc68ec2e10fd8e15b42.png

What is this Community Contest?

Trades & Sails is the second of many community events where anyone can participate to get their ideas implemented in-game. Trades & Sails is about implementing a Merchant Ship that you will find in Solasta II anchored in the port of Caer Mar. The winner will have his boat implemented in-game and available for anyone to find. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/36b4726bc43dc4f7c821341292b4d271e3978d42.jpg Want to participate? Simply click on the image and it will take you to the form!

What are the questions?

• What name do you want to appear in the credits if you win
• What's your Email Address (so we can contact you if you win)
• What's your captain's name (needs to be high-fantasy friendly)
• What's your boat's name (20 characters max)
• Describe your boat's emblem (we will design it according to your description)
• What's your emblem primary & secondary colors
• What trade goods is your ship carrying (70 characters max)

These questions are all explained in more details inside the submission form.

When does it start, when does it end?

It starts now (Tuesday April 8th 2025) and ends in 2 weeks, Tuesday April 22nd!

What are the prizes?

Well, have we something for you! Winners get the following:

• 1x Steam Key of Solasta II (playable once Early Access launches)
• 1x PDF copy of the Solasta Revised Campaign Sourcebook
• Their submission will be added in-game
• Their name will be added in the credits of Solasta II as Community Contributor
• The “Bard” role in our official Solasta Discord Server

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/006c8995850c78e6f751377ba9fe4de00749a515.jpgWhat is it that you bring in this fine city, captain?

What are the rules?

Please do not participate more than once

Please do not submit text from existing books / games / etc.

Please note that we may slightly adapt the text you submit

By participating, you agree to Tactical Adventures using the content you submitted. The legal guidelines can be downloaded here, if you’re proficient in legalese and want to dig into the document. TL;DR: If you submit something, you allow us to use it! Please only participate if you’re fine with all of the above.

How will I know if my submission is selected?

We will announce the winners in a future news post in the weeks following the end of the Trades & Sails Community Contest, and will reach out to them for the rewards around that same time! Again, we're almost done selecting our previous Community Contest Of Quills & Ink winners - it took us quite a bit more time than we originally expected due to the amount of submissions!   {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/bff00a6a646e28bb723168aa94ea7a2340eea3ee.jpg

Community Stream #08 Friday April 11th

We’re back with April's Community Stream! As a reminder, we’re now down to one Community Stream per month until Early Access gets closer. For this stream, we're going back to dissecting Solasta & D&D 2024 Classes & Subclasses! Let's talk design and power level! See you on Friday, 9 am PDT / 12 pm EDT / 6 pm CEST! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/46b97b7347fdf177d9564b9cafe7645b22558654.jpg https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Article by Tactical Myzzrym Follow us on:

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Hello adventurers! We’re back this week with a Class Spotlight, featuring the Sorcerer - the eternal rival of the Wizard. While these nerds have to learn magic by reading books and waving wands, us superior Sorcerers are naturally gifted with it. We feel it, we mold it, we bend it to our will. Mastery of magic? Oh my dear, wait until you hear about Metamagic… {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/9d787822b583f0c76974db5df54f013374eb73c8.jpg My dear, I do believe someone has Twin Cast Polymorph on our offspring. They are quite fluffier than last I saw them. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

It’s just in my blood…

Ahhh, the Sorcerer. Always compared with the Wizard - and for good reasons! Both are arcane spellcasters with access to very similar spell lists, which can sometimes make them hard to differentiate for newer players aside from their theme: Wizards being the studious spellcasters who scale off their Intelligence, while Sorcerers are natural born geniuses who rely on their Charisma. The consensus has always favored Wizards over Sorcerers however, as the former can learn an infinite amount of spells and thus become incredibly versatile, while the latter is stuck with learning only two spells per level. It turns out these nerds have unlocked the legendary power of LITERACY - truly the most overpowered skill in existence. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/fd7acd1deb07a95fe3bc348ae4967d884bb876e2.jpg During the 3.5e era, this was counterbalanced by the fact that Sorcerers could cast more spells per day - but this is no longer the case in 5e. Instead the class now focuses on Metamagic by making the feature more easily accessible (previously it would require you to upcast the spell, meaning you had to sacrifice higher spell slots to cast weaker spells with metamagic). Sorcerer subclasses also often allow them to dip their fingers into other spell lists - with the most well known on Tabletop being the Divine Soul Sorcerer who can tap into Cleric spells. Now for those not familiar with it, Metamagic is a very powerful tool. While newer players may be attracted to Empowered Spell or Quickened Spell seeking to deal more damage, veterans often eye Heightened Spell and Twinned Spell to ensure their opponents end up skipping their turn paralyzed, charmed, frightened or affected by any sort of annoying debuff - a foe that’s almost dead can still hit as hard as one that’s full HP, but a foe that’s stunned is effectively non-existent until the condition is removed. The 2024 edition also further pushed the differentiation between Sorcerers and Wizards by giving them the Innate Sorcery feature. Long story short, the idea here is: Wizards are more versatile and have access to a wide array of spells, but Sorcerers are just better at casting theirs.

The Sorcerers of Solasta

Alright, now that we’ve talked about the class, let’s take a look back at our subclasses from Crown of the Magister. How did they hold up compared to the rest? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/16b3433a4b858e6edd18a5b35cd58cbbdd546bcd.jpg

Draconic Bloodline (SRD)

Usually when we look at an SRD subclass, it’s the “vanilla flavour” of that class. Think Berserker Barbarian who is the embodiment of “I use Rage and I hit people”, or Life Cleric filling the classic healer fantasy role. But for Sorcerers… there isn’t really a “standard” Sorcerer, is there? Draconic Bloodline is pretty close to that though - a clear ancestry giving them access to magical powers, brimming with prestige and strength (who doesn’t like dragons?). It is also easier to picture than more esoteric archetypes like Aberrant Mind or Storm Sorcerers (my grand-grand-grandpa was a Dragon vs I was born during a tempest on a sinking ship somehow infusing me with the power of wind and lightning). This thematic simplicity was a boon when it came to work on facial features exclusive to Sorcerers - just add some dragon scales! While we usually like to keep our SRD subclasses as close to Tabletop as possible, we decided to give Draconic Sorcerers Origin Spells. Origin Spells are an addition to more recent Sorcerer archetypes, helping to mitigate the feeling of being too limited in known spells (2014 Sorcerers know less spells at level 20 than Paladins, a half-caster class!) - and we thought that was a great idea to give that class a little boost. Other than that, Draconic Bloodline is fairly straightforward - nothing overly exciting here. You basically get a permanent Mage Armor with Draconic Resilience, saving you a level 1 spell slot and more importantly allowing you to learn another spell instead. You also are a little beefier with +1HP per level, which is never bad when you’re rocking D6 Hit Dice. At level 6 Elemental Affinity and Draconic Resistance give you a little more damage and resistance when dealing with your ancestor’s element, and much later at level 14 you gain the ability to permanently fly (which in Solasta is pretty cool, it does put you out of reach of many more devastating melee attacks). Also before I forget: we did give them some of the best spells with Shield and Counterspell which turned Draconic Bloodline from an already pretty decent archetype to a really good one. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/30a4ed385dfd6001b615ab3a7af317b551ab3c70.jpg Final Verdict? While not the most exciting subclass, Draconic Bloodline did its job very well. Some might say it lacked the fun and wonders of the other archetypes and didn’t give you many new tools to play with, but you could never go wrong with it - it was rock solid.

Child of the Rift (Crown of the Magister)

Hohoho, the Child of the Rift. Where to start. Let’s say that most of you were very quick on picking up an oversight that came with Offering of the Rift. But let’s leave that for later and start with an introduction of the subclass. Our initial idea regarding our sorcerer archetypes was that each would have an underlying connection to a type of magic: Arcane, Divine, Primal (which was something One D&D toyed with during their playtest, but ultimately dropped). Draconic Sorcerers being related to dragons whose greater intellect often allow them to become powerful spellcasters, were given Arcane Origin Spells. Mana Painters, who draw Mana from the very land they walk upon, would be given Primal Origin Spells. Finally, Children of the Rift, whose power comes from the very cataclysm that brought Gods to Solasta, would have access to Divine Origin Spells. The first feature, Rift Magic, was an attempt at translating the supernatural instability that is the Rift into a power, allowing them to sometimes cast spells for free. However its low chance of happening and more importantly, its relatively low impact made it… not very satisfying. An immediate comparison that comes to mind is Wild Magic Surge, which solved both these issues: you can force it to trigger with Tide of Chaos, and its effect is much more entertaining - even if it’s not always positive, it’s sometimes to remember! On the other hand, “I can cast one more level 2 spell, yippee”... Rift Magic was just not enough in its existing iteration. But let’s not be discouraged by one dud. Rift Deflection came next at level 2, giving you a proactive defensive power in exchange for sorcery points. Although powerful as it protected you against both attacks and spells with saving throws, it was balanced by not being a reaction, making you preemptively use a bonus action if you thought danger was coming your way. A very strong tool for survivability! But wait a minute… A level 2 subclass feature on Sorcerer?! That’s not in the books! The story here is that early on we designed features using Sorcery Points, but only remembered later that they are unlocked at level 2 (since Sorcery Points = Sorcerer Level, we kind of glossed over that…). Now, we could have just removed those extra features, but considering the original Crown of the Magister 1.0 release was capped at level 10 and Sorcerers only unlocked Subclass Features at level 1 and 6… we decided to make a little exception and keep them so each archetype could build a stronger identity. Now, you were waiting for it - Offering of the Rift came at level 6. By sacrificing max HP you could regain Sorcery Points, and you would only get those HP back after a long rest. Again, the feature drew upon the theme of the Rift requiring sacrifice and giving power in return… But then came the exploit. Greater Restoration removes any effect reducing one’s max HP. And you know what Cleric spell Children of the Rift get in their Origin Spells at level 9? That’s right, Greater Restoration! This effectively gave Children of the Rift infinite spell slots. You’d use up your spell slots, convert your Sorcery Points into new spell slots, sacrifice your HP to get Sorcery Points again, and cast Greater Restoration. There you go, as good as new! This incredibly overpowered loophole catapulted the archetype to the front of the power chart - as long as you got to level 9. The final feature at level 14, Riftwalk, gave you free Misty Steps with very minor force damage on arrival a few times per long rest. A nice little power as mobility is always great, especially when you don’t have to spend spell slots on it - but nothing really new. At the end of the day, the star of the show was Offering of the Rift and the Origin Spells. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/ca781669b6c74b872e216af8ea7c994c02965754.jpg In the Sourcebook version we completely reworked the subclass to power it up while removing the exploit, slightly altering the angle from which we addressed its theme. Instead of honing into the raw, unstable and dangerous aspect of the Rift itself, we leaned into the idea that the Child of the Rift’s power came from the fusion of a soul from Solasta and Tirmar through the Rift. Rift Magic was transformed into Between Two Worlds. It now gave expertise in two skills, languages or tools of your choice, which could be changed after each long rest - the Child of the Rift would tap into souls from Tirmar and could therefore gain temporary understanding of any skill. It improved their versatility outside combat, which is always a good thing as the Sorcerer small spell pool limits their choices. Rift Walk moved to level 6 and now triggered whenever you used Metamagic to cast a spell, building upon the Sorcerer’s core identity instead of being another standalone power with its own resource to track. Rift Deflection moved from level 2 (since RAW Sorcerers don’t get subclass features at level 2) to level 14, changing from bonus action into reaction to avoid having to gamble your precious Sorcery Points away to prevent damage that may or may not come your way. In exchange, its power level was also lowered - it now granted damage resistance to a damage type of your choice until the start of your next turn, reducing instead of completely negating it (by making the enemy miss or by succeeding your saving throw). Final Verdict? Probably one of the best themes when you take into account Solasta and its history, and good ideas that probably just needed a little more time in the oven to make sure all the kinks were ironed out. The original version was obviously overpowered past level 9, but the reworked version has a lot of flair with a constant flickering around the battlefield to reward the use of metamagic.

Mana Painter (Crown of the Magister)

The Mana Painters are a middle ground between the “safe but kind of standard” Draconic Sorcerers and “broken combo” Children of the Rift. Drawing their power from the mana swirling around them, they had access to a few Druid Spells in their Origin Spell List. As a subclass, Mana Painters had excellent survivability due to Mana Absorption, their level 1 feature which allowed them to use their Charisma Modifier for all their saving throws. This was only possible because Crown of the Magister did not have multiclassing in mind, as a level 1 dip Mana Painter would make any Paladin insanely powerful with both Mana Shield and Aura of Protection. This made the subclass very front-loaded, with its most powerful feature - and arguably their identity - at level 1. At level 2, Mana Painters got access to Mana Drain, a high risk, unfortunately not high reward attack that would make them regain Sorcery Points if successful. While the idea was interesting (encouraging a range class to go into melee for a reward), the balance wasn’t good enough here: the damage was low and did not scale with levels, and it would only give back a single sorcery point. This made Mana Drain not worth using. This is especially the case since at level 6, Mana tap would allow you to regain half your maximum Sorcery Points after a short rest once per day. Now you might start to see a pattern here - the Mana Painter was supposed to be the Sorcerer with an overabundance of Sorcery Points, since they constantly draw mana from the land. This defining feature was supposed to be their greatest strength, but unfortunately got overshadowed by the Child of the Rift infinite Sorcery Points exploit. The last feature was the level 14 Mana Balance, which would make them regain 5 HP per Sorcery Points spent. Again, the issue we ran into was that regaining HP is a reactive power, something you would want on a frontliner like a Fighter or a Monk, not a Sorcerer. And without the ability to generate Temporary HP, most of the time Mana Balance would do nothing. It was a nifty tool in case you got targeted and needed a bit of healing, but you had little control over it. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/8301f3c91d54122a0cf2b7fd1c1264d089ce7373.jpg In the Sourcebook version we had to make a few tweaks, notably to prevent the level 1 dip exploit. Mana Absorption was moved to level 6, requiring a significant investment to unlock (while also not arriving too late as it’s their archetype-defining feature), getting replaced at level 1 by Mana Shield which grants Temporary HP equal to 3 times the level of the spell cast, helping Sorcerers build a little buffer in case they get targeted (instead of waiting to get walloped and heal afterwards). Mana Drain moved to level 14 as a reaction, highly empowered to give more flavour to the subclass. It would weaken a spell you see being cast, halving its damage and allowing its target to roll saving throw with advantage, while also regaining a number of sorcery points equal to the level of the spell cast. Final Verdict? Again, a very interesting theme and good underlying ideas. A few tweaks and a buff to Mana Drain was all it needed to express itself fully. It’s just a shame the Mana Painter couldn’t shine with their overabundance of Sorcery Points due to the Child of the Rift exploit.

Haunted Soul (Lost Valley)

Let’s be honest, Haunted Souls had a fair share of issues. While a lot of Lost Valley subclasses ended up being fan-favorites, we got a little stuck with the Haunted Soul. We had the theme figured out - drawing power from malevolent spirits, making them lean into Necromancy and Fear effects… but then realizing that not a lot of Necromancy spells were implemented in Solasta 1. This made us create very “spell-oriented” features for the Haunted Soul, as if they unlocked subclass-specific spells. Level 1 Spirit Visage would be a Bonus action “spell” that would force a target to succeed a Wisdom Saving Throw or be frightened until the start of your next turn. Level 6 Vengeful Spirits would be a Bonus action “spell” that was basically a long range Spirit Guardians that you could move once per turn. Only Level 14 Soul Drain broke the pattern by making you regain 1 Sorcery Point whenever you killed a CR1+ creature with a spell of level 1 or higher. In the Sourcebook, we tried to move away from that sort of design. Spirit Visage was replaced by A Helping Hand, giving you Chill Touch for free and allowing you to cast it as a Bonus Action whenever you cast a spell of level 1 or higher. That spirit haunting you is giving a hand, literally. Vengeful Spirit also changed into giving you resistance to necrotic damage and allowing you to use your reaction to spend sorcery points and haunt your attacker when you get damaged, making all attacks targeting them roll with advantage until the end of your turn. Clearly delivering on its name, Vengeful Spirits! Lastly, Soul Drain was simplified to be a singular use power per day. By touching the body of a creature that died within the last minute, you could regain up to half that creature’s number of Hit Dice in Sorcery Points. A little more sinister and requiring a conscious action rather than passively draining Sorcery Points in the battlefield by mowing down enemies with spells! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/e53a5da2e413bb1eac063c57df34facfbdefbbfa.jpg Final Verdict? Honestly, although its original design made a little bit of a faux pas by filling it with spell-like features, Haunted Soul wasn’t bad at all. It did not scale well, but for Tier 2 campaigns it did its job well. Flavour-wise, we like it! Especially on Tabletop, we could see it thrive as it has a pretty juicy thematic.

The… ??? (Solasta II)

Unlike Knut and Daisy who both teased the Solasta II Rogue and Paladin subclass in the Steam Next Fest demo, Joralas was a Mana Painter! Here’s a little secret: The Sorcerer’s new subclass oscillated between two different themes - so it needed a bit more time in the oven before we decided on which we wanted to go with. But this is a story for a future article! https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Article by Tactical Myzzrym Follow us on:

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Hoy hoy my good people, You've been many to participate to March's Community Contest, Of Quills & Ink - so many that I had to ask for help reading through all your submissions, something that never happened on Crown of the Magister! If anything we're a little sad that so many good reads willl not make it in, as ultimately we will have to select a handful of winners. Thank you for taking the time to make this event a success, we'll come back to you soon(ish) with the results! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/3cb4cb2986a77c0a69d79176c03a1ea094b98ab2.jpgYou who win shall become... King. Odin decrees it so. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/34d3d50048a13221f9cc0f287703ebe74ec1bbe0.jpg https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Article by Tactical Myzzrym Follow us on:

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Alright! It’s finally time to get around answering your queries from the Steam Next Fest AMA event. Get ready for us to go over a list of 30+ questions, as we will be answering each and every single one of them - and this time with directors from each department stepping in! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/3fe142fca532a280a0f56982906ae443d9ecb876.png Directors when they receive my mail with 32 questions to answer. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Steam Next Fest AMA

Will critical hits / misses have any special visual effects on the dice roll on screen? What about the damage dice rolls resulting from a Critical hit? (from LJ the Brave) Mathieu (CEO): This is an interesting suggestion! Depending on the time we have at hand (which isn’t a lot), it might be a little time consuming to create new VFX for that but we could try to look at better UI feedback, camera shakes and the like.    Will Solasta 2 have a higher difficulty, with more/unique enemies or with more/unique abilities, comparable to the changes of honour mode in BG3? (from Bloody Val) Karim (CTO): We plan on having customizable difficulty settings so that you can fine tune your experience to your liking, similar to Solasta I. If all goes according to plan, this should in turn impact the ruleset and basic AI behaviour. Regarding unique abilities like Legendary Actions, they represent quite a large time investment to implement so we believe everyone should get to enjoy them regardless of difficulty.    Are there any internal discussions or plans to develop a sourcebook for use as a setting for a tabletop/VTT D&D 5e Solasta II campaign? (from DiceWrangler) Emile (Com. Lead): We are indeed considering it. We already released a Campaign Sourcebook for Solasta I (available on Modiphius’ website), so we’d love to publish another one for Solasta II. That being said, creating a Sourcebook is very time consuming - and as you know, we’re already very busy developing a video game. We’ll probably take a more serious look at the question when we get closer to the 1.0 release!    {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b6b36991638e2ab8eb67b3b8f3a3ca2062af10a9.jpg Will there be a supporter pack for solasta 2 as well? (from Liza) Emile (Com. Lead): It’s very likely going to exist, yes! As a reminder, the Supporter Pack only exists for people who want to give us a little extra to help the studio - it is absolutely not interesting in terms of value, so don’t feel like you’re missing out if you don’t get it.    Will there be an option to make our party characters silent (no voice acting) so we can RP our own voice? (from Vollen_sl) Mathieu (CEO): This is not planned for now, but I suppose we could add that as an option in the settings. Note that even though it should be an easy thing to do, right now our planning schedules are packed to the brim with important features so even a feature being easy doesn’t mean that it will automatically be added!     {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/72e7be71ff58f8a837b42c9a4592deb860efa34c.jpg Will any of the longer-lived NPCs from COTM, Lost Valley or Palace of Ice make an appearance in this new continent and in the new time period? (from SirRupt) Xavier (Game Dir.): No, even though it’s still the same world and era, we wanted to bring our players to new faraway lands. While there will be mentions of events from Solasta I, there will not be any returning characters.    Are mounts gonna be a target for an expansion or dlc? (from Fenixy) Mathieu (CEO): This is unfortunately something we can’t commit to, as it would be a very costly feature to add. That said, one of our programmers managed to fuse a character to a crab while working on something completely unrelated, so I guess technically crab mounts did exist for a brief moment in Solasta 2.   Will Flying be just as easy as in Solasta I? (from Ressque) Karim (CTO): We are hoping we can make flying as smooth and intuitive as it was in Solasta 1, but with a new engine comes a new set of constraints. Just know that we love how flying worked back then, so we hope we can still replicate this as accurately as possible. That said, as long as it’s not implemented we don’t want to promise anything!   Will you guys follow BG3’s implementation of the ruleset / features for the development of Solasta II? (from Ryan Rinaldhi) Emile (Com. Lead): No, although Baldur’s Gate 3 is a fantastic game that many of us have spent countless hours in, Solasta has always based its ruleset on the SRD of D&D 5e. Note that it’s likely that some features will end up similar due to both games originating from the D&D ruleset.    Will Solasta II be optimised for older hardware, and I am screwed and need to upgrade from my GTX 980? (from Itomon) Karim (CTO): We will do our best to have a quality setting working for older hardware, but I fear a GTX980 will be out of our target minimum configuration (doesn’t mean it won’t work, but it means we can’t promise it will).   Will we see the return of custom difficulty sliders? (from Sigismund) Karim (CTO): As stated above in Bloody Val’s question, yes! We aim to have custom difficulty sliders / options just like in Solasta 1.    Are karmic dice going to be back and on by default? (from Princeps08) Emile (Com. Lead): Yes, something we’ve noted during the Early Access of Solasta 1 and looking up at other tactical games is that most players have a very skewed perception of probabilities, heavily favouring remembering bad streaks of luck over everything else.  For example did you know that in XCOM 2 Veteran difficulty, hit chances are multiplied by x1.1 behind the scene? So when the game shows you 50% chance to hit, in reality you have a 55% chance to hit. And if you miss, your next shot has a hidden flat +10 bonus which stacks until you land a hit (as long as your base chance to hit is over 50%). And even with all that (and more!), XCOM2 has a reputation of being hard!   There are plenty of other examples of games helping the player without telling them to make sure they don’t get too frustrated with RNG. Our take on this was the Karmic Dice setting, though we made the decision of allowing players to turn it off instead of hiding it in the code.    Can we romance the boss? She looks badass (from Papiko) Emile (Com. Lead): Unfortunately that’s not planned for now! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/68336305209831aada9b4db6dca44667eb5db810.jpg Do we need to play the first game to understand this one? (from Dead) Emile (Com. Lead): No, Solasta 1 takes place in the same world but it’s not directly related to the story of Solasta 2.    Is the Unstable Nexus from the demo something we can expect in the future Dungeon Maker? (from Agathys) Mathieu (CEO): That could be interesting, and who knows we might even have different nexus types in the long run. Note that the one in the demo had some complex scripting to destroy stone platforms, so I’m not sure it would be simple to replicate in a Dungeon Maker (though I have seen crazy stuff in community developed Solasta 1 campaigns). Also as a reminder, we can’t promise a Dungeon Maker yet, we still have to scope that feature!   Are there plans to eventually bring the level cap all the way to 20? (from LittleFadeleaf) Emile (Com. Lead): Not right now no, we want to avoid planning too far into the future and focus on finishing Solasta II first. That said, even with DLCs level 20 cap would probably not be something we’d go for. As I explained in a previous article, good high level adventures in D&D are incredibly challenging to run - on Tabletop your party would be zooming around with teleportation and would have enough power to raze entire countries and challenge gods, putting a lot of strain on the DM to adjust and improv’ accordingly. In a video game the options are predetermined, making it potentially frustrating for players - lore wise they have near infinite powers, but the game dictates that they can only do A, B or C.    Seeing so many steam threads asking for language localization, have you considered which will be implemented? (from LJ_the_brave) Pierre (Marketing Dir.): We’re super thrilled to hear how excited our community is to play Solasta II in their native language. Audio language will be in English only, but texts will be adapted to different languages. Localisation is an important topic for us and for a game such as Solasta II, because it supports our narrative and the gameplay, but also because of the sheer volume of texts (dialogs & answers branching, banters, cutscenes, adventure logs, item description, menus, etc.) that we’re expecting for the final game. Once we have a better understanding of the cost/time/resource we can invest, we’ll probably start working on a first batch of languages that should mirror the ones from the first game, and then expand to new languages depending on community (roaring) requests and opportunities.   Will the Dragonborn get a visual overhaul in Solasta II? (from Delta) Thierry (Art Dir.): Yes, in fact when we started Solasta II we’ve done research and experiments on each species. We’re still iterating on the Dragonborn at the moment, which is why there weren’t any in the Steam Next Fest demo.    Any chance for QWERTZ keyboard layout? (from Gildoriel) Mathieu (CEO): The plan is to have remappable key bindings!   Will the next demo/update come with character customization or a deeper look into classes and subclasses? (from H) Emile (Com. Lead): We will share more information about character creation and class / subclasses in upcoming articles before Early Access starts, however we do not plan to update the demo (or make a new one) because it would be a huge time investment! Time that wouldn’t be spent working on the final game…   Will Siklas be playable as a race for PCs? (from Pomellow) Eleonore (Production Dir.): This was not in our plans, but seeing how much the community loved Jabori we’ll consider it. One thing is that in terms of narrative, it would potentially cause some issues - though I’m being told elaborating more would be a spoiler! So… not a No, but not a Yes either for now!    {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/a33ee5cd66a5b4fde7bf7614f2cb53e2ae742aba.jpg Will we be able to customize the PCs personality? (from Pomellow) Emile (Com. Lead): Yes, we plan to allow you to select personalities during character creation, similar to Solasta 1 (although to a lesser extent). You will have less choices to choose from, but each personality should have more impact in-game.    Is free weapon switching something you intend to keep? (from Pomellow) Mathieu (CEO): For now we don’t plan to change it as it makes it easier to use and removes the frustrating “oops I switched but I apparently don’t have line of sight and now I’m stuck with a bow in my hand instead of my trusty sword and shield”. We understand it’s less faithful to the ruleset so let us know if it’s something you disagree with. Note that it’d be difficult to make this a toggleable option setting as it does have an impact on how some stuff work behind-the-scenes.    What are the Devs’ take on 5e 2024 Dual Wielding? (from NoWokLurker) Xavier (Game Dir.): This is a tricky question because the 2024 rules about light properties, weapon masteries (Nick) and the dual wielder feat make it quite complicated. There are those who would rule that a level 1 fighter with Dual Wielder and 2 light weapons including one with the Nick weapon would make 2 attacks with their main action (light + nick) and then an additional one with their bonus action (Dual Wielder) - while others consider that the convoluted wording of Dual Wielder simply means you’re able to make your second attack with a non-light weapon, and that it shouldn’t stack with light.  In any case, we haven’t decided yet on if we’ll be using the 2014 or 2024 ruleset for now.    Could we get enemy AI that frees its fellow enemies from control spells, like hypnotic pattern? (from Artyoan) Karim (CTO): I would love to have more interesting AI behaviors like that, which I hope we’ll have enough time to add. If you remember, you could see in the demo one Kobold running to get reinforcement instead of fighting - that’s an example of more exotic AI behaviours that we’d want to have.    Do you plan to use Epic Online Services for the eventual multiplayer for S2? (from Frost CA) Karim (CTO): Yes, that’s the plan for now - though as far as we know, you won’t need an Epic account to play multiplayer.    Will you add the function that lets you move the party by opening the map and clicking on a location? (from BlackguardRogue) Emile (Com. Lead): Yes, that’s planned.    {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/c232e4aee0fc045a59502fac6b1fe86b147820ac.jpg Since the story in the Demo is not how the main campaign starts, will you use metrics for popular choices to determine what the canon events are? (from Fawz) Emile (Com. Lead): Technically none of the events in the demo are canon, as you are sort of playing a version of the main game’s party. In terms of timeline, the demo story would probably be happening somewhere during the early-mid campaign. Although remember, it was a standalone adventure so these events won’t happen in the final game - think of it as an alternative timeline (where the party got TPK’d…)    Will there be upgrades to enemy AI compared to S1? While S1's AI is decent, even supposedly intelligent enemies give you too many attacks of opportunity. They rarely target your casters if you move a little bit out of the way. Enemies often cast too many cantrips, etc. I'd love a hardcore AI mode. (from Blackguard) Karim (CTO): AI is heavily dependent on creature type and designer will. While we want to have smart tactical AI, our main objective (as it is for some dungeon masters) is to make the fights fun while still challenging the heroes. We will try to balance things so that the AI is and feels smart, but still leaves openings for players to use to not pigeonhole them into that one optimal strategy to reach victory. That being said, we do plan on having the merciless AI make a comeback, and if time allows it would showcase more of the behavior you describe!   Will we be getting hand crossbows? (from Sigismund) Eleonore (Production Dir.): Not currently planned, but depending on if it’s highly requested by the community we could consider adding it in future updates or DLCs.    I was testing a few things and it looks like if you save before a combat round your next roll is locked in. Will it be possible to randomize it? (from Ankou) Emile (Com. Lead): Yes, that’s the plan. The option setting was just not implemented in time for the demo.    When is a console version expected to be released? (from Ephemerant) Pierre (Marketing Dir.): For the moment, we’re focusing on the PC experience first. That said, you’ve probably already noticed that the camera, the controls and even the UI are now better adapted for the gamepad. This is an important step for us to anticipate a future console release, and identify where we can implement common solutions vs. console-only features. At the moment, we are exploring our options for console adaptation, so it's a bit early to give you a precise date; but we can already say that Early Access will be PC only. Once the content of the game becomes more and more complete and we’re nearing 1.0, the decision on when to release on console will become clearer to us.   Will this game be complete after early access or is the plan to again hold back content to sell as DLC? (from MonoPegasus22) Emile (Com. Lead): So, there’s sometimes a misconception from players who joined later after Solasta 1’s release that we are “holding out content to sell as DLC” - which honestly, is understandable if you didn’t know about our initial promise. Why does Solasta, a game claiming to be based on D&D, not have all 12 official classes included in the 1.0? The answer is very simple - budget. Solasta started as a game promising FOUR classes: Fighter, Cleric, Wizard, Rogue. Through our Kickstarter we pushed through 2 other classes - Paladin, Ranger. At the end of the day, we delivered on everything we promised during Early Access - and more! Level 12 max cap instead of 10, a complete campaign, 7 classes by adding Sorcerers for free, a Dungeon Maker for players to create their own adventures and later, even Multiplayer for everyone (with DLC sharing!).  So, why couldn’t we simply add the other classes for free? Again, the answer is just “money”. As a company we can either just release 1.0 and move to our next game, leaving Solasta 1 as a game with 7 classes - or try to add the remaining ones (and higher level cap) through DLCs to pay for everyone’s salary. And as you all know, we did the latter!  Long story short, Solasta 2 will be complete after early access just like Solasta 1 was complete after early access. Just make sure you carefully read what our promises are so that you know what to expect from the 1.0 release, we are very transparent on what we can or cannot do.    Are quests going to be time-limited on the rest mechanic or can we play the game at our own pace? (from EE Eternal) Xavier (Game Dir.) In general we don’t want to put time pressure on the players. There might be one or two key moment where we might think about using time pressure, but we want to avoid at all costs players to play hours before realizing they’re now penalized for having been “too slow”   Why does the character switch from wielding sword and shield to wielding the sword 2-handed when attacking? (from Morghy) Emile (Com. Lead): Very simple, that’s because we did not have the attack animation for sword and shield in time for the demo so it used the two-handed sword attack animation instead.   {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/774783cafbac8d968a9e52fb28621dedc6d0c0a5.jpg https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Article by Tactical Myzzrym Follow us on:

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Well, folks. It’s been a week since the Steam Next Fest ended, and everyone here is back to their station, working hard on the upcoming Early Access build. Looking back and comparing the numbers of Solasta II to our first game, we feel overwhelmed by the amount of support y’all have shown us - seeing our demo in the top50 most played of Steam Next Fest was food for our souls. Thank you again! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/a3dd145e9ada336b2278f7524767c451eb4c9623.jpg We all can sleep better knowing how loved the demo was. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Community Contest - Of Quills & Ink

We’re finally here. The first Community Contest of Solasta II! Grab a quill and fill that inkwell of yours, let your hand glide free across the canvas of words. Would-be poets, it is time to show us your soul; Of Quills & Ink has begun. But you may be wondering - what is this Community Contest? Of Quills & Ink is the first of many community events where anyone can participate to get their ideas implemented in-game. Of Quills & Ink is about lore books and scrolls that you will find in Solasta II. Create a lore item around one of the 10 different themes available, from its name, to its short description, to the actual content of said book or scroll - and those that we like the most will be implemented and available for anyone to peruse. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/eac69e64cc594d0b95865f37bd7f1ccc2cf8fc79.jpgWant to participate? Simply click on the image and it will take you to the form!

What are the themes?

Spooky children’s tale warning about a monster

Page of an adventurer’s journal traveling through Neokos

Page of an herbalist book about folk remedies

Page of a faded journal recounting the events of Solasta I

Love Letter

Advertisement for a show, traveling circus, performance or the like

Flyers / Postings one could find on a public board

Angry complain about a late delivery / bad item quality / scam

Unfounded research notes / rumors about Shadwyn’s corruption

Pseudo-scientific research notes about Kobold social behaviour These themes are all explained in more details inside the submission form. Note that the length of the text you can submit is at most 1,500 characters (with spaces), so keep that limitation in mind when writing!

When does it start, when does it end?

It starts now (Tuesday March 11th 2025) and ends in 2 weeks, Tuesday March 25th!

What are the prizes?

Well, have we something for you! Winners get the following:

1x Steam Key of Solasta II (playable once Early Access launches)

1x PDF copy of the Solasta Revised Campaign Sourcebook

Their submission will be added in-game

Their name will be added in the credits of Solasta II as Community Contributor

The “Bard” role in our official Solasta Discord Server {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/5e7d90feb8a7daed7b3692f321052cefc0149f05.jpgFind your inspiration and start writing.

What are the rules?

Please do not participate more than once per theme

Please do not submit text from existing books / games / etc.

Please note that we may slightly adapt the text you submit

By participating, you agree to Tactical Adventures using the content you submitted. The legal guidelines can be downloaded here, if you’re proficient in legalese and want to dig into the document. TL;DR: If you submit something, you allow us to use it! Please only participate if you’re fine with all of the above.

How will I know if my submission is selected?

We will announce the winners in a future news post in the weeks following the end of the Of Quills & Ink Community Contest, and will reach out to them for the rewards around that same time! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/75115a0744534a948a55b6557364257e11e38714.jpg

Community Stream #07 Friday March 14th

We’re back with March’s Community Stream! As a reminder, we’re now down to one Community Stream per month until Early Access gets closer. We’ll be going over questions that were asked during the Steam Next Fest, some fun data we had in the demo and also check out the first Community Contest together. See you on Friday, 10 am PDT / 1 pm EDT / 6 pm CET - be careful, the time slot is slightly different as EU & US do not change to daylight saving time on the same date! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/62b994424563c510e52376569f99d72178415b14.jpg https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Article by Tactical Myzzrym Follow us on:

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Wake up, adventurer. The numbers, adventurer! What do they mean?! Well, that’s what we’re here to show you. Let’s dive into what you did during this week of Steam Next Fest. How many of you saved the Fishermen? Did Jabori survive the adventure? Did you find the Temple’s secret entrance? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/29bc0702e6749c6fb0ac92033dca9a48521b82b3.jpgIt’s been hard work trying out all of these demos, wasn’t it Sherlock? Take a well-deserved long rest. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Roll out the numbers, devs!

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/28e67e799f23d9227a014f5950e4eac59a840320.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/1ab308224aaebff786c1f320068fdd87288195a8.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/c601f885a02721f41095aec6ae7d69ac5047a8af.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/e03888df5152f1fa2e67b60f173435b44d1a8d72.jpg

An adjustment to Community Streams’ schedule

As we’re now going to be going full focus working on preparing Early Access, we are going to slow down on Community Streams. While you already know that I could yap for hours every week in front of a camera about game development and D&D, there is unfortunately little I could show on screen without spoiling too much! We’re therefore going from one stream every 2 weeks to one stream per month, with the next one being on Friday March 14th. Don’t worry though - once we get close to the Early Access launch, we’ll go back to more frequent streams! There will be plenty to show then. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Article by Tactical Myzzrym Follow us on:

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Alright everybody, Hope you’re all enjoying the Solasta II demo! We’ve put quite some time into building this short standalone adventure, but so far looking at your comments it’s been well worth the effort! For those who’ve already finished it - have you found all the little secrets? Did you know that there were two ways to enter the final chamber? Have you managed to save the fishermen? Did you get the Kobolds to help you in the last encounter? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/c28447251c9989f7916118fd1f47ee7dd9a0b0e1.jpgDo ferrets dream of tiny sheep? This is for you, random reader who keeps asking us for ferrets instead of cats. If you haven’t already, go play the Free Demo now! https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Steam Next Fest Dev Stream Tuesday 25th at 9am PST / 12 pm EST / 6 pm CET

And for once, I won’t be alone! In this special Steam Next Fest Dev Stream, joining me will be Mathieu (CEO & Creative Director), Xavier (Narrative & Gameplay Director), Karim (Technical Director) and Pierre (Marketing Director) - here to make sure we can cover all the different topics you might want to ask about. This stream will take place on both Steam and Twitch at the same time, starting 9am PST / 12 pm EST / 6 pm CET. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/00d622505371389e84b1e6a21934978fe31b671f.png

Ask Us Anything during Steam Next Fest!

But that’s not all! To make this week extra special - and for those who can’t attend the stream on Tuesday - we are hosting a special Ask Us Anything for the entire week! Simply ask your questions in the comments of this Steam News (either Solasta 2 or CotM) or go to our Discord Server in the #nest-fest-ama and we’ll try to answer as many as possible in an upcoming News Article! Small reminder: If you're running into issues with the demo, make sure you check out our official support page! You can also report any bug you come across and write feedback about the game through our demo online form. Some questions are Optional - you don’t have to answer those if you don’t want to, such as giving us your email address for us to contact you if we need more info (you can leave that blank). Make sure you send us plenty of feedback so we can improve the game as much as we can! https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Article by Tactical Myzzrym Follow us on:

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Look alive, adventurer. Roll me a perception check. NATURAL TWENTY? Well well well, among the sea of Dev Updates you find yourself a little gem - a message of a single line buried deep beneath a mound of words. It reads… The demo is available. Now. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/974b006c5a7c90be388abf906494a0ad6fdd8f36.jpgWe couldn’t wait until Steam Next Fest actually started to put the game in your hands. As a quick reminder, if you aren’t aware of the content of the demo, we wrote an article about it here: https://www.solasta-game.com/news/194-dev-update-09-ready-for-the-demo https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/

Want to take beautiful screenshots? CTRL+H is your friend!

Now we don’t have a photo mode quite yet (and probably not for a long while), but our programmers have implemented a quick shortcut to hide the UI so you can take nice screenshots without the UI cluttering the screen! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/66856510792f5699459b0217945c0fa525ca7750.jpgWith and without UI, you just need to press that ctrl+H! And… Here’s a little tip from yours truly - the UI is hidden, but it’s still there. So if you want to take screenshots of your characters preparing a spell, or arming an attack - try clicking where the buttons are and watch them take their battle pose! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/6306d0aa53b23ee2d57d87b1ecf568e70ff8068a.jpgEven if the buttons aren’t visible, they still work! Here Joralas is getting to cast Ray of Frost!

Houston I think we have a problem…

While we hope you don’t run into any unpleasant bugs or crashes, them buggers are always lurking in the shadows, hiding from devs while hunting for players. In order to combat that, we now have a Support Page available with plenty of help and known issues that we’ll keep up to date. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/b9362f3bd7f99de7fdaaa5736f7ef5c1a3ce2e5e.jpgNo more hunting left and right for information - instead of searching through Discord, Steam and news articles, you can head to the Support Page! You will also be able to report any bug you come across and write feedback about the game through our demo online form. As a reminder, some questions are Optional - you don’t have to answer those if you don’t want to, such as giving us your email address for us to contact you if we need more info (you can leave that blank). {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/35306982/cb62471052fb96e5bfedf68877e4dc7c52326c10.jpg Make sure you send us plenty of feedback so we can improve the game as much as we can! https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/ Article by Tactical Myzzrym Follow us on:

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