Sep 18, 2015
Catacomb Kids - FourbitFriday
So this past month I added a couple new transitional stages, made some changes to magic, improved certain boons, and implemented end-of-run Reputations. Unfortunately we weren't able to get online leaderboards done, but I'm hoping the reputations will help tide y'all over in the meantime. I've had leaderboards in too many "next-build to-dos" without delivering yet which makes me feel bad, so I'll leave 'em off this time and maybe it'll actually get done next month! That's how these things work, right? (In all seriousness, Stevie and I have been making good progress on leaderboards so it shouldn't be much longer! <3)

Magic has changed in that all spells are now of a certain type, noted in the bottom-right corner of the spell learning screen (and to be made more clear in more places with further updates). Regaining spell charges (for the most part) is now limited to only recharging one type of spell at a time, though there are certainly exceptions to this.

Charge Stars, previously only used to replenish trance and overload spells, have also become a much more interesting item. They're not quite finished yet, but I've got some fun plans for them in the future.

And as always, there have been a number of bugfixes.

Next month I'll be focusing on a long-coming AI update, as well as improving performance issues.

Here's the full changelog!

Fixes Pressing "O" gives all grumbuls berzerk "Delete" crash when opening doors next to boulders Ice from ice bolt/cold burst/glacial shoes sometimes drawn behind tiles Game crashes if you pilfer a hated weapon Heavy bat and Hunter's Thrust don't work with sprint bound to a button Grumbul Tank pilot is immortal Still can burn your own shield Game sometimes freezes after level generation Byats can die by touching still boulders Hitting boulders on the back-swing will knock them into you New Stuff 2 New Transitional stages! End-of-Run Reputations (WIP) Status effect icons Changes Improved Tier 3 Axe skill Travels further, curves both up and down walls. Improved Mighty Stomp Range based on height of fall Reduced time after stomp before you can attack again Improved Tier 1 Sword skill Reduced time after landing before you can attack again Improved Disarm Weapons are flung further away, damaging other foes along the way Shield parrys disarm Improved Plague Infects corpses; infected corpses explode after time Effect of explosion depends on the type of corpse Hard Helms offer more protection Stone footwear offers more protection Haste increases attack speed Updated some spell sprites Fancier/improved event text Reverted 'Sprint button' to previous functionality; release to stop sprinting Can no longer roll with heavy lifted objects above your head Environmental green slime bounces items Changed Charge Stars (WIP) Stars are hidden in walls and no longer drop from enemies They begin as uncharged 'Hollow Stars' and must be charged before use Spikes can be broken Rewrote food eating and meal code (behavior is mostly unchanged) Byat meal doesn't stack Disease occasionally causes weakness Crouch-attacking on top of a boulder will strike the boulder Player no longer immune to [ ]'s destruction Placeholder sfx for swinging blade traps (WIP) Next Build TO-DO Better AI!
Sep 18, 2015
Catacomb Kids - FourbitFriday
So this past month I added a couple new transitional stages, made some changes to magic, improved certain boons, and implemented end-of-run Reputations. Unfortunately we weren't able to get online leaderboards done, but I'm hoping the reputations will help tide y'all over in the meantime. I've had leaderboards in too many "next-build to-dos" without delivering yet which makes me feel bad, so I'll leave 'em off this time and maybe it'll actually get done next month! That's how these things work, right? (In all seriousness, Stevie and I have been making good progress on leaderboards so it shouldn't be much longer! <3)

Magic has changed in that all spells are now of a certain type, noted in the bottom-right corner of the spell learning screen (and to be made more clear in more places with further updates). Regaining spell charges (for the most part) is now limited to only recharging one type of spell at a time, though there are certainly exceptions to this.

Charge Stars, previously only used to replenish trance and overload spells, have also become a much more interesting item. They're not quite finished yet, but I've got some fun plans for them in the future.

And as always, there have been a number of bugfixes.

Next month I'll be focusing on a long-coming AI update, as well as improving performance issues.

Here's the full changelog!

Fixes Pressing "O" gives all grumbuls berzerk "Delete" crash when opening doors next to boulders Ice from ice bolt/cold burst/glacial shoes sometimes drawn behind tiles Game crashes if you pilfer a hated weapon Heavy bat and Hunter's Thrust don't work with sprint bound to a button Grumbul Tank pilot is immortal Still can burn your own shield Game sometimes freezes after level generation Byats can die by touching still boulders Hitting boulders on the back-swing will knock them into you New Stuff 2 New Transitional stages! End-of-Run Reputations (WIP) Status effect icons Changes Improved Tier 3 Axe skill Travels further, curves both up and down walls. Improved Mighty Stomp Range based on height of fall Reduced time after stomp before you can attack again Improved Tier 1 Sword skill Reduced time after landing before you can attack again Improved Disarm Weapons are flung further away, damaging other foes along the way Shield parrys disarm Improved Plague Infects corpses; infected corpses explode after time Effect of explosion depends on the type of corpse Hard Helms offer more protection Stone footwear offers more protection Haste increases attack speed Updated some spell sprites Fancier/improved event text Reverted 'Sprint button' to previous functionality; release to stop sprinting Can no longer roll with heavy lifted objects above your head Environmental green slime bounces items Changed Charge Stars (WIP) Stars are hidden in walls and no longer drop from enemies They begin as uncharged 'Hollow Stars' and must be charged before use Spikes can be broken Rewrote food eating and meal code (behavior is mostly unchanged) Byat meal doesn't stack Disease occasionally causes weakness Crouch-attacking on top of a boulder will strike the boulder Player no longer immune to [ ]'s destruction Placeholder sfx for swinging blade traps (WIP) Next Build TO-DO Better AI!
Aug 7, 2015
Catacomb Kids - FourbitFriday
Fixed a crash. Windows only for now but Mac+Linux should be coming soon.

Fixes: Crash upon using Trajectory Crash upon pressing Enter
Aug 7, 2015
Catacomb Kids - FourbitFriday
Fixed a crash. Windows only for now but Mac+Linux should be coming soon.

Fixes: Crash upon using Trajectory Crash upon pressing Enter
Aug 6, 2015
Catacomb Kids - FourbitFriday
Bugfix update!
Fixes 0.0.10b Magic Beam bending through portals Fullscreen not centered vertically on non 16:9 resolutions Wanderer instinct doesn't highlight stairs Charge stars for Trance/Overload are incorrect for many spells Stairs that look like blocks Mixing slimes and potions with alchemy only works when holding the potion Crash upon bottling orb of leveling Crash upon using trajectory with bottled balls of slime and mucus Alchemy and Dipper still say "unimplemented" in the Levels tab of the pause menu Waterfalls flowing into lava have don't have a graphic Heavy Lifting enemies while rolling still displays 'heavy lifted' even though it fails Shopkeepers with Undo crash the game Crash when looting a corpse with a burning stick anim_swordStab crash Learning 'Extra Tough' doesn't actually work :D Incantation doesn't properly increase spell cost Fixed and error with oogs that was affecting performance Improved performance of explosions Hits don't always connect when pouncing on enemies Can't pounce when recharging energy Infinite controller rumble upon death Controller rumble when using keyboard Unending purple sparkles when blocked energy is equal to max energy Off-slot spell charge numbers drawn in wrong color with two-spell option Blink Trance doesn't use charge star Air Dash doesn't consume energy overcharge Undo restores the energy overcharge used to cast it Small pools of lava don't light up Disappearing platforms insta-kill the reaper Max mp STILL doesn't increase with the proper meal Crash in shops selling unstable potions Changes 0.0.10b Push now has instant recovery Slight changes to Grumbul Tank AI Less lava in Grumbul Tank arena Grumbul Tank doesn't lose as much mobility with busted legs Break breaks boulders Boulders break bottles Overwhelming's speed boost lowered Overwhelming no longer counts bosses Changes to Hammer vs arena Only need to tap sprint button to sprint, rather than hold Assigning sprint to a button disables double-tap sprinting Improved accuracy of Chain Lightning and Dark Arts Tome
Aug 6, 2015
Catacomb Kids - FourbitFriday
Bugfix update!
Fixes 0.0.10b Magic Beam bending through portals Fullscreen not centered vertically on non 16:9 resolutions Wanderer instinct doesn't highlight stairs Charge stars for Trance/Overload are incorrect for many spells Stairs that look like blocks Mixing slimes and potions with alchemy only works when holding the potion Crash upon bottling orb of leveling Crash upon using trajectory with bottled balls of slime and mucus Alchemy and Dipper still say "unimplemented" in the Levels tab of the pause menu Waterfalls flowing into lava have don't have a graphic Heavy Lifting enemies while rolling still displays 'heavy lifted' even though it fails Shopkeepers with Undo crash the game Crash when looting a corpse with a burning stick anim_swordStab crash Learning 'Extra Tough' doesn't actually work :D Incantation doesn't properly increase spell cost Fixed and error with oogs that was affecting performance Improved performance of explosions Hits don't always connect when pouncing on enemies Can't pounce when recharging energy Infinite controller rumble upon death Controller rumble when using keyboard Unending purple sparkles when blocked energy is equal to max energy Off-slot spell charge numbers drawn in wrong color with two-spell option Blink Trance doesn't use charge star Air Dash doesn't consume energy overcharge Undo restores the energy overcharge used to cast it Small pools of lava don't light up Disappearing platforms insta-kill the reaper Max mp STILL doesn't increase with the proper meal Crash in shops selling unstable potions Changes 0.0.10b Push now has instant recovery Slight changes to Grumbul Tank AI Less lava in Grumbul Tank arena Grumbul Tank doesn't lose as much mobility with busted legs Break breaks boulders Boulders break bottles Overwhelming's speed boost lowered Overwhelming no longer counts bosses Changes to Hammer vs arena Only need to tap sprint button to sprint, rather than hold Assigning sprint to a button disables double-tap sprinting Improved accuracy of Chain Lightning and Dark Arts Tome
Catacomb Kids - FourbitFriday

Art by Joe Gribbin

SO.

It's been a minute, eh? A minute and a half, even. That's fine though, because I'm still alive, and this is still happening. That's right! As a beaten, bleeding, heart-still-beating Kid once said; "I'm not dead yet!"

So what have I been up to, you may be asking yourself. Maybe you aren't. How would I know? I'm not your brain. I'll tell you anyway though:

Wandering is what I've been up to -- as in, making the new Wanderer class. They're speedy and have senses sharp as knives, they do. I hope you enjoy them. As well I've laid the groundwork for unique weapons and added a few, and made some not insignificant changes to the level generator, not least of which are locked doors and new premade rooms. It may have taken a while but I can say at last that the generator is ready to be iced over and flipped upside down for the coming Anticropolis.

I've also added Alchemy and Dipper, the two second-tier INT boons, which marks at last the implementation of all the first two tiers of stat boons. Some of the other boons, spells and skills have also been updated and improved.

For the next update (IN A MONTH I SWEAR) I'll be working on finishing the things I didn't manage to for this update: Daily run leaderboards, more and better transitional stages, and certain talked-about changes to magic that those who watch the dev streams might be aware of.

Full changelog below:
Fixes Casting Flame Wave burns your own shield Several crashes Kept gaining overheal even after hitting max hp limit Max mp doesn't increase with the proper meal Poets' tome is unwielded after going through a level door Class Input method doesn't save for gamepads Class ability icons appear incorrectly in the spell slots Third spell slot miscolored when low on spell charges Issues with using tome as a 'Skill' class input Food queue doesn't show up in pause menus Eating twins results gives a grumbul food instead of undead Heavy Lifting doesn't properly override normal object pickups when grabbing enemies Certain spells show a charge star when they shouldn't Tome attacks hurt your own followers Footwear with stats don't apply their stats New Stuff New Class! -- Wanderer New INT Stat Boons Dipper Alchemy Waterfalls Couple new weapons Locked doors and keys Wooden barricades Stairs Intra-floor doors New premade rooms Many changes to level gen Changes Sticks burn Fire spreads more from enemies to you Being struck physically by burning enemies has a high chance to burn you Limited foes' ability to spam kick Infernus flames start blue, but turn orange quickly Infernus now burns the caster once orange Sword Skill 3 (Hack 'n' Slash) is easier to use: Strikes at least 3 times in succession upon hitting an enemy Additional enemies caught in the flurry add more strikes Stun upon missing or ending the flurry is longer Gorhounds have more hp, more DEF, and are more evasive Crush trap chains behave more predictably when struck "Poised" now reflects knockback from attacks back upon the enemy A few new things Changed the way levers spawn and are placed Changed the way ladders/elevators spawn and are placed Improved Air Dash Now chains from enemy to enemy Added trances to Blink and Frost Bolt Left joystick now triggers class abilities on gamepad Class ability trigger now defaults to "Button" rather than "Combo" Poet's Tome behaves differently Activating Tome uses the books' ability rather than wielding/unwielding [except on 'combo' input] Charged Tomes follow behind the player charged until used again Grumbuls will stow items that spawn near them Relatedly, added two new grumbul types (based on what they grab) Grumbuls no longer wield bardiches Normal Grumbuls sometimes occasionally wield hammers Grumbul assassins slightly more common Blue slime balls (now "mucus") have their own properties Reaper no longer immune to invisibility Grumbul Turrets can now spawn on main floors Shop doors lock behind you Stat loss from severed limbs is now repairable Stat loss from severed limbs doesn't stack through repeated dismemberments Regeneration only restores one limb at a time Losing an arm penalizes both STR and DEF Learning points now appear next to the orb of leveling icon in the hud Haste is slightly slower Haste grants the auto-dodge from Freerun Haste auto-dodges jump attacks Removed auto-dodge from Freerun Extra Tough protects from death as long as your hp is over 75% Regenerate heals more slowly Overload Break deals more damage to equipment Jumping will cancel trajectory throws Stampede no longer runs through cornered enemies Stampede tramples multiple enemies at once Poison Blob bounces off of walls Temporal Tricks tome time bubble bigger by bunches Increased range of Slow Lucky footwear is luckier Byats are more evasive Next Build TO-DO Changes to Magic Daily Run Leaderboard / General Stat-Tracking (for realsies!)
Catacomb Kids - FourbitFriday

Art by Joe Gribbin

SO.

It's been a minute, eh? A minute and a half, even. That's fine though, because I'm still alive, and this is still happening. That's right! As a beaten, bleeding, heart-still-beating Kid once said; "I'm not dead yet!"

So what have I been up to, you may be asking yourself. Maybe you aren't. How would I know? I'm not your brain. I'll tell you anyway though:

Wandering is what I've been up to -- as in, making the new Wanderer class. They're speedy and have senses sharp as knives, they do. I hope you enjoy them. As well I've laid the groundwork for unique weapons and added a few, and made some not insignificant changes to the level generator, not least of which are locked doors and new premade rooms. It may have taken a while but I can say at last that the generator is ready to be iced over and flipped upside down for the coming Anticropolis.

I've also added Alchemy and Dipper, the two second-tier INT boons, which marks at last the implementation of all the first two tiers of stat boons. Some of the other boons, spells and skills have also been updated and improved.

For the next update (IN A MONTH I SWEAR) I'll be working on finishing the things I didn't manage to for this update: Daily run leaderboards, more and better transitional stages, and certain talked-about changes to magic that those who watch the dev streams might be aware of.

Full changelog below:
Fixes Casting Flame Wave burns your own shield Several crashes Kept gaining overheal even after hitting max hp limit Max mp doesn't increase with the proper meal Poets' tome is unwielded after going through a level door Class Input method doesn't save for gamepads Class ability icons appear incorrectly in the spell slots Third spell slot miscolored when low on spell charges Issues with using tome as a 'Skill' class input Food queue doesn't show up in pause menus Eating twins results gives a grumbul food instead of undead Heavy Lifting doesn't properly override normal object pickups when grabbing enemies Certain spells show a charge star when they shouldn't Tome attacks hurt your own followers Footwear with stats don't apply their stats New Stuff New Class! -- Wanderer New INT Stat Boons Dipper Alchemy Waterfalls Couple new weapons Locked doors and keys Wooden barricades Stairs Intra-floor doors New premade rooms Many changes to level gen Changes Sticks burn Fire spreads more from enemies to you Being struck physically by burning enemies has a high chance to burn you Limited foes' ability to spam kick Infernus flames start blue, but turn orange quickly Infernus now burns the caster once orange Sword Skill 3 (Hack 'n' Slash) is easier to use: Strikes at least 3 times in succession upon hitting an enemy Additional enemies caught in the flurry add more strikes Stun upon missing or ending the flurry is longer Gorhounds have more hp, more DEF, and are more evasive Crush trap chains behave more predictably when struck "Poised" now reflects knockback from attacks back upon the enemy A few new things Changed the way levers spawn and are placed Changed the way ladders/elevators spawn and are placed Improved Air Dash Now chains from enemy to enemy Added trances to Blink and Frost Bolt Left joystick now triggers class abilities on gamepad Class ability trigger now defaults to "Button" rather than "Combo" Poet's Tome behaves differently Activating Tome uses the books' ability rather than wielding/unwielding [except on 'combo' input] Charged Tomes follow behind the player charged until used again Grumbuls will stow items that spawn near them Relatedly, added two new grumbul types (based on what they grab) Grumbuls no longer wield bardiches Normal Grumbuls sometimes occasionally wield hammers Grumbul assassins slightly more common Blue slime balls (now "mucus") have their own properties Reaper no longer immune to invisibility Grumbul Turrets can now spawn on main floors Shop doors lock behind you Stat loss from severed limbs is now repairable Stat loss from severed limbs doesn't stack through repeated dismemberments Regeneration only restores one limb at a time Losing an arm penalizes both STR and DEF Learning points now appear next to the orb of leveling icon in the hud Haste is slightly slower Haste grants the auto-dodge from Freerun Haste auto-dodges jump attacks Removed auto-dodge from Freerun Extra Tough protects from death as long as your hp is over 75% Regenerate heals more slowly Overload Break deals more damage to equipment Jumping will cancel trajectory throws Stampede no longer runs through cornered enemies Stampede tramples multiple enemies at once Poison Blob bounces off of walls Temporal Tricks tome time bubble bigger by bunches Increased range of Slow Lucky footwear is luckier Byats are more evasive Next Build TO-DO Changes to Magic Daily Run Leaderboard / General Stat-Tracking (for realsies!)
May 14, 2015
Catacomb Kids - FourbitFriday
What! What! Another bugfix update, as well as a few minor changes.

Fixes 0.0.9c Sometimes armors are mis-drawn with objects in them Fullscreen is offset/doesn't fit at certain resolutions Using shield-bash to pilfer weapons ignores missing arms Eating severed limbs with resourceful screws up food queue Shields are wrongly colored Game crashes upon startup if game_data.ck fails to load "MISSING DS MAP" In place of the Daily Run Weapons are called shields in the equipment menu Enders and their skeletal spawn aren't on the same team Poet's Tome disappears upon Undo death-save Closing doors forces you into crush-traps Can get stuck in walls when defeating the reaper Exit doors sometimes spawn in walls More objects properly darken when outside of viewing range Changes 0.0.9c Overheal maxes out at max hp+INT Wooden shields burn Shields degrade with use Health increase on level-up doesn't eat Overheal Added missing indicators on spellbook menu Changed Poets' "Combo" input to "Hold Stow" Spirit followers are immune to fire Being in lava deals more damage Clarified that Dagger Skill 3 (Execute) needs to be done in midair Evasion for Freerun and Acrobatic no longer trigger while attacking
May 14, 2015
Catacomb Kids - FourbitFriday
What! What! Another bugfix update, as well as a few minor changes.

Fixes 0.0.9c Sometimes armors are mis-drawn with objects in them Fullscreen is offset/doesn't fit at certain resolutions Using shield-bash to pilfer weapons ignores missing arms Eating severed limbs with resourceful screws up food queue Shields are wrongly colored Game crashes upon startup if game_data.ck fails to load "MISSING DS MAP" In place of the Daily Run Weapons are called shields in the equipment menu Enders and their skeletal spawn aren't on the same team Poet's Tome disappears upon Undo death-save Closing doors forces you into crush-traps Can get stuck in walls when defeating the reaper Exit doors sometimes spawn in walls More objects properly darken when outside of viewing range Changes 0.0.9c Overheal maxes out at max hp+INT Wooden shields burn Shields degrade with use Health increase on level-up doesn't eat Overheal Added missing indicators on spellbook menu Changed Poets' "Combo" input to "Hold Stow" Spirit followers are immune to fire Being in lava deals more damage Clarified that Dagger Skill 3 (Execute) needs to be done in midair Evasion for Freerun and Acrobatic no longer trigger while attacking
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