Why Early Access?

“Ironwrought has five classes that play by different rules, enemies that can turn the board against you, and roguelike runs for up to four players. I can test all of that on my own, but I can't learn how thousands of different parties will break it. I'm one developer, and I'd rather tune the game with the people playing it than guess. That's what Early Access is for.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“I'm planning on roughly six to twelve months. I'd rather get it right than ship to a deadline, so it leaves Early Access when the content is in and the balance feels solid.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?

“The full version builds on what's already here. Some things I plan to work on:

- More hand-built encounters and more variety in roguelike runs.
- Deeper build options and ongoing balance work across the five launch classes.
- Smarter enemy tactics. Monsters already play to their combat roles, and I plan to keep sharpening how they position, focus their targets, and turn the battlefield against you. This is exactly the kind of thing that gets sharper with real players testing it.
- Better controller and Steam Deck support.
- UI polish and quality-of-life fixes that come out of player feedback.
- Commissioned art
- More modding documentation, building on the JSON mod system that's already in.
- More classes. Early Access ships five (Fury, Censor, Shadow, Troubadour, Talent); I plan to add the rest of the core roster (Null, Tactician, Conduit, Elementalist) during Early Access, and new ones beyond it (for example Summoner, Beastheart).

These are plans and not promises. Player feedback will decide what I tackle first and what can wait. At the start of Early Access, both roguelike runs and standalone battles are playable alone or with up to four players.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“The Early Access release has five playable classes (Fury, Censor, Shadow, Troubadour, Talent), eight ancestries, a character builder, hand-built encounters, and complete roguelike runs. Events and injuries follow your party from one fight to the next. You can play alone or bring up to three friends online or over LAN, in a standalone battle or for the whole run.

The combat already includes Draw Steel's power rolls, edges and banes, forced movement, heroic resources, core conditions, villain actions, and victories. What's unfinished is the breadth and polish: more encounters, more balance work, commissioned art, better input support, and fewer rough edges in multiplayer.”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?

“I plan to raise the price as the game grows during Early Access and when it leaves Early Access. If you buy during Early Access you get every update along the way at no extra cost.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?

“Feedback is the reason this game is in Early Access. Here's how I plan to use it:

- Reading and replying on the Steam forums and Community Hub, and talking with players directly on Discord.
- Letting balance and design feedback set what I patch next.
- Posting patch notes and a public roadmap so you can see what I'm working on.
- Using the built-in mod support so players can experiment. The whole game is data on disk you can edit, and good ideas can make their way back into the base game.

I can't act on everything, but I read everything, and Early Access players have a real say in where Ironwrought goes.”