An absent-minded man of mysteries, Franz Lohner relies on his bulging journal to keep track of occurrences, intrigues and arguments around Taal's Horn Keep. Sometimes his notes are even useful, believe it or not. The Franz Lohner Chronicles are extracts from that journal.


So, Kruber was asking about Mannax Grimblood – you know, the fellow whom Grimblood’s Stronghold is named for? – and I’ll be honest, there’s not much to tell.

By that, I don’t mean to say that Grimblood’s not an accomplished chap, far from it. He’s earned a bleak reputation all along the northern coast. Places big or small, they all know him. Or at least, they know of his ships, and his flag of writhing tentacles on a black field. Made a real mess of Erengrad a few years back, and the number of fisher villages Grimblood’s wiped off the face of the map truly beggars belief.

Thing is – and I mean this with all the deference due to our northlander cousins, which isn’t a very great deal, if I’m honest – so what? Raiding chieftains are ten a pfennig on the Sea of Claws. Worse than that, they tend to show up as a job lot. No sooner has one raid ended than another begins. Murder, pillage, the slaughter of the defenceless … doesn’t exactly help you stand out from the next man, not when the next man’s just burned the same village you’re eying up for tomorrow’s raid.

I think that’s what really gets me about northlanders, if I’m honest. No imagination. No effort to build something that’ll last. It’s just “might makes right” and “victor takes all” to that lot. Sure, it takes guts to charge a shield wall, but it takes a damn sight more to hold the line against a frothing maniac, knowing that even if you survive the day, there’ll be another just like him come hoving into view before the week’s out. Especially when he’s bigger than you, and likely better armed. Because that’s the other thing about northlanders: they’re bullies, through and through.

So yes, Mannax Grimblood? An unremarkable bully. If he’s not dead, he soon will be, and another ruffian like him will take his place. Northlanders might think that’s worthy of song, but that just goes to show what questionable judgement they have. The stronghold, on the other hand … ?

You see, that particular patch of ice has a much longer history than the stockade raised above it. They do say that there was a battle there, some centuries back. Classic last stand stuff. An Ulthuani expedition got itself a bit lost – as folk so often do up there – and made matters worse by somehow drawing the attention of every northlander tribe for miles around.

Ten days the elves held out, despite being outnumbered and undersupplied. But Ulthuani are like that. They’re proud, shading hard into stubborn, and don’t like to admit when they’ve made a dog’s breakfast of the whole thing. Then, just as it looked like they were about to be overwhelmed, the weather changed. The ice, which had been hard as rock to that very moment, shattered, and the grim seas claimed every one of those battling souls, northlander or elf.

They’re still there, trapped beneath the surface – frozen, but kept cruelly alive in all the years since. Like I’ve said before, time flows funny up in the wastes, so maybe to them its still the moment after their heads went under the waves for the last time. Then again, could be they’ve been like that for centuries, trapped, frozen solid and steadily going mad. Or maybe there’s nothing truly alive down there any longer, just undead spirits sealed in the ice. It’s enough to make anyone shiver.

Olesya reckons that’s why Grimblood made the place his lair. Having tortured souls close by lends a certain … puissance … to prophecy, and northlanders like their portents as much as anyone.

All told, I think it’s better that the Five don’t go swimming in those waters any time soon.

An absent-minded man of mysteries, Franz Lohner relies on his bulging journal to keep track of occurrences, intrigues and arguments around Taal's Horn Keep. Sometimes his notes are even useful, believe it or not. The Franz Lohner Chronicles are extracts from that journal.


I find myself with what you might call a conundrum.

One of my lads brought me a letter this morning. Not an unusual occurrence in itself, of course. Folk like writing to me. Others write to me because it’s the only way I’ll sign off on their expenses. And still more drop me the occasional line with interesting titbits out of hope it’ll stop me exposing their gross financial irregularities to the Imperial court. But I digress.

Suffice to say, I wasn’t expecting this particular letter, which purports to be from one Sofia Fuegonasus, our own Sienna Fuegonasus’ twin sister. Hard to tell whether that part’s true. By all accounts, Sofia’s dead and gone – at Sienna’s hand no less – but necromancers have a way of floating to the surface of the spiritual mire, don’t they?

Now, I hear you ask, why would Sofia Fuegonasus – if Sofia Fuegonasus she truly is – be writing to Franz Lohner, innkeeper, raconteur and journeyman poet? Surely she’d be writing to her sister? Well, leaving aside the whole “incineration” incident, Sofia’s more interested in twisting the arm of yours truly. Specifically, she wants an assurance of my cooperation in some future deed. No details, not as yet, but you can bet it involves Sienna. There’s also an implicit promise that if I don’t do exactly as she asks, then some of my secrets will mysteriously come to light.

Which secrets? Well, the letter was a bit vague on that score and all, but there are certainly plenty to choose from, and more than a few that wouldn’t exactly endear me to current associates. Might get a bit ugly, you might say. The real question – and I speak as something of an expert in the field of arm twisting – is whether Sofia really knows anything, or whether this is a bit of a bluff on her part. Trouble is, there’s no way to know without actually calling said bluff.

Only thing I know for certain is that I’m not going to talk to Sienna about this. At least, not yet. There’s still every possibility that it’s one of the lads playing a prank on their Uncle Franz, and I’ve got me pride – I don’t want to be thought a complete muggins. Yes, maybe it’s that. I’ll keep my ear to the ground.

If it isn’t, and this really is Sofia Fuegonasus, back from the dead and looking to involve me in something I’d rather be no part of? Well, that’s going to require a bit of careful consideration. I’ve a few tricks in me yet. Could be I manage to resolve this without anyone else finding out about it. That’d be nice. A man’s secrets are sacred.

Related note: I should probably hide this journal better.

An absent-minded man of mysteries, Franz Lohner relies on his bulging journal to keep track of occurrences, intrigues and arguments around Taal's Horn Keep. Sometimes his notes are even useful, believe it or not. The Franz Lohner Chronicles are extracts from that journal.


It’s all go around here again. Saltzpyre’s taken it upon himself to convert one of the outbuildings into a chapel. Spending a good deal of his time in solitude, he is, and doesn’t seem at all inclined to share his thoughts.

Still, I’ve a suspicion he’d have a crack at preaching, were anyone inclined to listen. But my lads have never exactly been what you’d call regular supplicants before the hammer and the comet, and as for the rest of the Five? Well, I don’t see Kerillian seeking out the word of Sigmar, do you? And the last time Bardin joined in with one of those dirges the faithful insist on calling hymns, it caused a bit of a quarrel. Apparently, shifting the tune up tempo and transposing from a minor to major key is a big no-no. But that’s Bardin. He’d make a lament sound like a drinking song.

Anyway, I’ve been doing a bit of digging into Cinder Peak. Sienna’s been insisting for weeks that there’s a ghastly face peering out of the mountainside, and wouldn’t you know it, seems that she might be right. Records are a bit sparse, of course. They always are once you get north of the Sea of Claws, but there are a couple of legends worth tucking into.

Seems that way back when what’s now Cinder Peak was the site of a cataclysmic battle against a Bloodthirster. Now, for the uninitiated, Bloodthirsters – as the name might suggest – ain’t exactly the sorts of chaps you invite over for a bit of socialising. They’re greater daemons of Khorne. You know, the Blood God? Taker of Skulls? Lord of Slaughter? Always a mite angry, so I understand, and his Bloodthirsters are every bit as bad. Also, they’re bleeding enormous and nigh unkillable; slayers of heroes and levellers of armies. I’m not in the business of ranking monstrosities, but if I were, Bloodthirsters’d place somewhere near the top of the list. And this one in particular is, as my old mother would have said “bloody enormous”, so he probably ranks even higher still.

That being the case, I’m inclined to believe these legends when they talk about the showdown with this Bloodthirster – Va’Kharr’oth – “laying waste the mountain”. Daft bugger found himself beaten down, overpowered and sealed away inside the mountain – trapped in a cage of living rock for millennia to come. Impressive work, and no mistake.

Thing is, there’s a bit of a conflict when it comes to who actually did the beating down and sealing away. The dwarfs claim it was Grimnir, which is credible enough as daemon-hunting was very much in his wheelhouse. Adepts of the White Wolf point to Ulric, citing the icy shackles as definitive proof, while in Kislev they tell stories of an epic mauling delivered by Ursun himself. The elves, of course, tell it differently. They say they’re perfectly aware of who did a number on Va’Kharr’oth, but that “we’re not ready for the knowledge”, which is exactly the kind of thing an elf always says, regardless of whether or not they actually know the truth.

One thing’s for certain. You can bet Va’Kharr’oth’s not in the happiest of moods right now. If he ever gets out, I’d rather yours truly wasn’t in his path. I mean, the Ubersreik Five are good, but we’ve all got our limits. Fortunately, I don’t see anyone setting him free any time soon.

I mean, what kind of idiot would do that?

An absent-minded man of mysteries, Franz Lohner relies on his bulging journal to keep track of occurrences, intrigues and arguments around Taal's Horn Keep. Sometimes his notes are even useful, believe it or not. The Franz Lohner Chronicles are extracts from that journal.


Sonnstill’s here, with all the merriment and cavorting that’s to be expected. Folk like a good party, especially when times are hard. We’ve something of a feast planned for tonight, and I doubt there’ll be a sober head up or down the mountain by morning. 

The festivities themselves? Last I heard, Kruber and Sienna were quarrelling over the details. One of those “quantity versus quality” arguments, I reckon. Our wizard does like the finer things in life, whereas old Kruber? Well, he’s more of a “just keep it coming” sort. Harsh words have been exchanged, but it’ll all sort itself out once the event gets underway – always does with that pair.

The only black cloud on the horizon – not counting whatever devilry’s going on up north – is a rash of disappearances. Last week or so we’ve had folk vanish off the roads. No blood, no muss, no fuss. Just gone. Wasn’t until yesterday that we had a witness offer any explanation for what was going on. Claimed the trees took ‘em, would you believe? You should.

I did ask Kerillian what was going on with all that. Her answer? That the trees were just being friendly, and if it bothered folk that much they should stay away from the forest until the equinox was over. Stay away from the forest? This is the Reikland! It’s all forest. 

But what can you do? Our elf likes to play at being this all-knowing herald of the Weave, but between you and me I don’t think she’s got as much influence as she claims. Or maybe she’s just pretending to be powerless to cover up for some malevolent scheme. I wouldn’t have believed that of the old Kerillian, despite her manner, but this “improved” version? Haven’t figured her out yet, and I reckon that’s how she wants it.

If you’re reading my journal again, Kerillian, do me a solid and give me a few pointers, there’s a good lass. Thanks.

I do hope the trees really are just being friendly. That way, those poor souls might turn up again, sooner or later. I don’t mind telling you that it’s going to put a bit of a downer on the festivities if the abductees have ended up as root-mulch. 

Maybe I should ask Sienna to have a word. She’s about the only one around here that Kerillian makes much practice of listening to and, the human cost aside, she won’t want anything souring her Sonnstill feast. It’s supposed to be a time of life and rebirth, after all, and bough-beaten corpses ain’t exactly conducive to frolics.

Welcome to Patch 4.4.1. This patch fixes a bunch of crashes, various bugs and some UI/UX fixes and adjustments.

Crashes

• Fixed some miscellaneous crashes.
  
• Fixed crash that would happen when a client tries to lift an AI unit with the Lifestaff that has already been despawned on the server.
  
• Fixed a crash that could occur if a player somehow tried to join a lobby as "Prologue Kruber".
  
• Fixed a crash caused by changing skin on melee weapon equipped in ranged slot.
  
• Fixed a crash that could occur if a terror event was spawned as a level was being unloaded.
  
• Fixed crash caused when SotT gets despawned (dies or leave the game) before a placed Thorn Wall expires.
  
• Fixed a crash that could occur if an enemy highlighted by Kerillian's Trueshot activated ability was killed by another source.

Heroes and Weapons

• Fixed some Javelin melee attacks counting as ranged kills
  
• Fixed Rapier special sidearm shots counting as melee kills.
  
• Fixed Javelin automatically issuing a light attack after a charged attack if player has high attack speed.
  
• Fixed Bounty Hunter's 'Just Rewards' not working when the ranged crit is triggered with the 'Locked and Loaded' ability itself.
  
• Bounty Hunter's career ability animation now scales properly with speed buffs.
  
• Saltzpyre should no longer get stuck in aiming (third person) after shooting with the crossbow.
  
• Fixed an issue where Sienna would remain fully slowed despite having vented to below the threshold.
  
• Fixed an issue where the Trollhammer Torpedo showing the ammunition when out of ammo.
  
• Fixed a minor animation issue on Kerillian's Greatsword where transitioning from light attack hit to heavy charge would cause a frame flickering.
  
• Fixed a minor animation issue with Engineer's piston during reload of Trollhammer Torpedo.
  
• Fixed a super minor issue where changing Staff whilst in the air would cause the Staff to glide/animate weirdly.
  
• Fixed a minor animation issue where a nocked Arrow could become misaligned with a bow.
  
• Fixed an animation bug where Kerillian got stuck aiming with her bows (third person) if shooting too fast.

General

• Fixed an issue where breakable planks/blockades would still be impassable for players who hotjoin a map, despite the party having already broke them, rendering the now joined player stuck further back in a level.

UI/UX

• Fixed some Shade items which were presented incorrectly in Lohner's Emporium of Wonders.
  
• Blocked the chat window from accidentally opening when the Twitch username textbox has focus.
  
• Fixed a graphical glitch in the Twitch vote UI.
  
• The extra resource bars (overcharge, energy & career ability) are now displaced upwards whenever Twitch mode is active so they don't overlap with the vote UI.
  
• Changed the Okri's challenges summary to tally claimed instead of completed challenges. This solves an issue that would show that there were incomplete challenges even though all challenges were claimed.
  
• Fixed illusions showing "n/a Illusion" in tooltips instead of the item that they can be applied to.

Chaos Wastes

• Chaos Wastes - Fixed an issue where the mouse cursor could remain on-screen and interactive when the player leaves the game whilst the party is in a Map Shrine.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Animated Portrait Frames should now properly animate on the Chaos Wastes UI.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Player levels should now display properly when invoking the player list within the Map Shrine UI.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Cinder Peak - Fixed some land geometry that just wasn't up to par.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Cinder Peak - Fixed a spot where terrain wasn't solid, and adjusted a chest and enemy spawn point to suit.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Cinder Peak - Made optimisations to reduce hits to FPS in areas with a lot of lava.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Cinder Peak - Fixed some bits that weren't network synching properly.
  
• Chaos Wastes - The Foetid Gorge - Fixed an issue where a player disconnecting with a barrel could softlock the level.
  
• Chaos Wastes - The Foetid Gorge - Fixed various spots where players and bots could get stuck.
  
• Chaos Wastes - The Foetid Gorge - Fixed an issue where Olesya could repeat event VO once the event had ended if a player re-entered the area which triggers said VO line.

• Enemies that are pushed outside of maps and cannot return via normal means are now killed.
  
• Fixed crash related to switching hat and starting a level.
  
• 'Shall Not Pass' Okri's Challenge now also works for clients.
  
• Additional Forgotten Relic illusions have now been granted to all owners of the weapon pack

---


We just put live Patch 4.4.0.2 which fixes various bugs and crashes and tweaks some of the numbers behind Sister of the Thorn's 'Radiant Inheritance' talent. You can see the patch notes below. Stay tuned after the notes for a bit about today's changes to the Forgotten Relics as well!

• Fixed various miscellaneous crashes.
  
• Fixed various localisation issues.
  
• Sister of the Thorn: Tweaks to 'Radiant Inheritance;
  • Overall duration reduced to 10 seconds (down from 15). (new!)
    
  • Power Level increase now 20%, down from 50%.
    
  • Critical strike chance increase removed.
    
  • Critical strike power now 20%, down from 40%.
    
  • Movement speed increase now 20%, down from 30%.
    
  • Attack speed increase unchanged.
• Javelins should no longer float if buried in to a target that can move/disappear (like a breakable shield or a Sackrat's sack).
  
• Fixed an issue where Sister of the Thorn's finger trail didn't stop after Life Staff's idle rune animations were interrupted.
  
• Fixed an issue where a client-connected Sister of the Thorn's ranged attacks would appear to pierce through the Thorn Wall. They effectively wouldn't but visually it was misleading.
  
• Increased duration of Life Staff's painting trail length by a lot, also made all SotT trails look smoother on extreme settings.
  
• Moonfire bow now has arrow notched as it should.
  
• Fixed 'A Bitter Rose Among Thorns' not counting on Cataclysm difficulty runs.
  
• Fixed 'Weaves Bounty' not counting on clients.
  
• Fixed Life Staff 'vortex' having the wrong sound on clients.
  
• Fixed Sister of the Thorn's THP leech perk not working if Kerillian is captured and gets rescued.
  
• Bot Kerillian with Javelins should no longer become confused by Bardin's Throwing Axes.
  
• Boss Walls will be removed if the boss becomes untargetable, in an effort to prevent soft locks caused by bosses becoming stuck out of play.
  
• Chaos Wastes - The blessing and boon buying action on Map Shrines has been changed into a 'hold to buy' instead of a 'click to buy'.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Khaine's Fury should now work more consistently.
  
• Taal's Horn Keep - Fixed a location in the keep where players could get stuck.
  
• Bretonnian Longsword - Corrected charge animation when going from light 2 to heavy 3. Increased precision of heavy 2 swing.
  
• Bretonnian Longsword - Increased widow to go into block after light 1 and light 2.
  
• Grail Knight's career ability shouldn't break third person crouching animation anymore.
  
• The command wheel should now offer all suitable commands to players using a gamepad.
  
• Tweaked the formatting of achievement descriptions in Okri's challenges so they are easier to read when there's many lines of texts.
  
• Fixed an issue on the controller UI where some hero equipment would be seen on the 'ESC' menu.
  
• The 'Iconic Presence' Challenge should now display the time requirement appropriately.

During the past weeks many of you have ventured into the Chaos Wastes in search of the Citadel of Eternity. Together with the Chaos Wastes update we also released the Forgotten Relics Pack. We have had a great time watching all of the clips of Skaven being blown to bits by the Trollhammer Torpedo.

This image of the Moonfire Bow was spotted on Reddit not too long after the release, and we have received customer support requests wondering why this particularly cool bow and other illusions of the Forgotten Relics weapons were not featured in the DLC’s screenshots. The answer is simple: they were not supposed to be released.



Chaos Wastes was a big release and with big releases, there are a lot of new bits and bobs going into the game and a lot of communication that needs to be done. Somewhere between the lack of sunshine in Sweden and coffee refills, we forgot to communicate a change from a 02, to a 01 in the code.


We were left with a couple of options of what to do next. We could set things as they were meant to be, removing those illusions and stick with the original plan A, or we could go with plan B and provide the illusions to owners of the pack for use game-wide. We have decided that we are going to go with plan B -- grant all owners of the Forgotten Relics the awesome upgraded variants of the weapon illusions. These fancy illusions can be used in adventure mode, Winds of Magic and Chaos Wastes! This of course applies across all platforms.

An absent-minded man of mysteries, Franz Lohner relies on his bulging journal to keep track of occurrences, intrigues and arguments around Taal's Horn Keep. Sometimes his notes are even useful, believe it or not. The Franz Lohner Chronicles are extracts from that journal.


Kerillian’s back. Walked back in through the front gate as if nothing’s happened. So she’s alive, which is good. She’s definitely … different. I’ll get back to you about how I feel about that. As soon as I work out what it means. Don’t wait up. 

It’s not like she’s given me much to work with. Says she’s embraced the Cytharai and Cadai as never before, and her heritage alongside. She’s a Sister of the Thorn now, whatever that means. I reckon she’s gone a bit peculiar, truth be told. As if there’s a little bit less of her there in some ways, and a little bit more in others. Elves always teeter on the edge of mortality, and I’ve a sneaking suspicion that she’s finally tipped over the side. Seems more focused, too. That bit worries me. Obsession never ends well, especially when you’ve one foot in the Chaos Wastes.

After all, there is that small matter of the fourth and most insidious of the Chaos Gods being patron and predator of the obsessed. Sure, Slaanesh’s name gets bandied about in connection with perversions first and foremost, but if all we had to worry about was northlanders getting their jollies off in peculiar ways, then it wouldn’t be much of a threat, would it? We’d certainly spot it from a distance.

The problem with the Dark Prince is that he’s subtler than most think – including Saltzpyre’s lot at the Order of the Silver Hammer. Just takes a bit of pride to crack open the door … that small voice that whispers in your ear and asks you “wouldn’t you like more?” or “couldn’t you do better?” From there, it’s a thousand tiny compromises. Drip. Drip. Drip. Until one day you’re gone, and there’s something else standing in your place. It’ll look like you but you’d weep to see it, all the same.

That much, at least, I reckon the elves understand. They feel things keener than we do – pain, pleasure, boredom … the works. My old mate Elrod had a particular dread of Slaaneshi daemons, and maybe that was why. Never could get him to talk about it. Shared battlefields ain’t enough for sharing some secrets – especially the bad ones. 

Mark my words, if my Ubersreik Five fall foul of any of the Dark Gods, it’ll be Slaanesh. He’ll worm his way into what makes them strong – their faith, their duty, their desire to save lives or earn redemption – and make it their greatest bloody weakness. Well, all save Kruber, perhaps. That man’s so laid back I’m amazed his head doesn’t touch his heels.

Maybe that’s the answer? I just need to encourage my merry band to learn to let go a little bit. Yeah, that’ll work. The religious fanatic. The wizard with the addictive personality. The dwarf weighed down by guilt. Whatever it is that Kerillian’s become. Yeah. They’ll ease back if I ask them. Nothing simpler.

Hang on. Do I sound a bit obsessed?

Bugger.

• Between June 3 - June 13 the in-game event Skulls for the Skull Throne returns to Vermintide 2 on PC and Xbox. It is time to once again offer skulls to Khorne, the God of Blood and Lord of Skulls. All players playing during the event will receive a time-limited portrait frame.
  
  
• Warhammer Skulls is the annual festival of everything Warhammer video gaming. It runs between June 3 - 10 on PC and Xbox. Don’t miss to tune in to the Warhammer Skulls Showcase that kicks off the festival on June 3 at 6 p.m. BST / 10 a.m over on Twitch.

• In the Warhammer Skulls sale, running between June 3 - June 10, you can get up to 90% off on the Vermintide franchise! - CLICK HERE

• The Sister of the Thorn is a new support career for Kerillian. It contains the new playable career complete with new abilities, new weapon types, a new talent tree, a whole new skin, a new hat, new challenges, and new voice lines.
  
  Sister of the Thorn is available on Steam and Lohner’s Emporium of Wonders.
  

• Between June 3 - 10 you can enjoy many more Warhammer titles in Warhammer Skulls. Jump over to this page below to start exploring!

https://youtu.be/fD0p8JcjE2w


Today we are excited to announce that the new support career for Kerillian, the Sister of the Thorn, is available on Steam and Lohner’s Emporium of Wonders! Similar to both the Grail Knight and the Outcast Engineer, the Sister of the Thorn is available with our without the Cosmetic Upgrade.

The Sister of the Thorn is primarily designed to not be a heavy damage dealer, but instead, she is the master of crowd control. The unique career skill ‘Thornwake’ and the passive ability called ‘A Cluster of Radiants’ creates a unique career that you will want to master. You can read and learn more about the Sister of the Thorn below.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1629000/Warhammer_Vermintide_2__Sister_of_the_Thorn/

https://store.steampowered.com/bundle/21330/Warhammer_Vermintide_2__Sister_of_the_Thorn_Bundle/

The Sisters of the Thorn are renowned as the handmaidens of Ariel, the life-giving Queen of Athel Loren, but there are those among them who court darker, malevolent powers. Reborn into their mystical ranks, Kerillian engages in battle with spell-craft and javelins, drawing upon nature’s splendour to invigorate and protect her allies.

If you want to find out how Kerillian ended up a Sister of the Thorn, you can read the full story by clicking here to read Rebirth & Regret.

• Added dialogue to Deity Shrines in The Keep.
  
• The lobby browser now shows the Twitch logo for browsers that are connected to Twitch.
  
• All weapon inspects now have third person animations.
  
• Fixed various miscellaneous crashes.
  
• Fixed various miscellaneous localisation issues.
  
• Conversations should no longer start between heroes when they're too far apart and unable to hear each other.
  
• Fixed Grail Knight blessings sometimes not re-activating when bot is replaced by a player, who then leaves the game.
  
• Fixed some cases where Sienna's teleport would move you under terrain causing you to get stuck or fall out of the map.
  
• Fixed an issue where Kerillian could have no footstep audio when using the Repeating Crossbow.
  
• Player movement no longer resets when picking up objects that can be picked up instantly.
  
• Host can now see subtitles while in Twitch mode. Twitch UI has also been slightly rescaled and repositioned to work better with subtitles.
  
• Fixed an issue where Beastmen could still spawn in Bögenhafen maps.
  
• Fixed the 'Faithflight' Weapon Illusion appearing to be the wrong rarity.
  
• Weather related voice lines should no longer be heard whilst in combat.
  
• Fixed some cases of incorrect voice lines in The Keep.
  
• It should no longer be possible to break the 'Difficulty' selector by navigating backwards on the 'Game Type' selector in the lobby browser.
  
• Fixed an issue where certain Traits would not trigger on ranged attacks
  
• Fixed some texture issues in the UI.
  
• Fixed delayed sound effects on equipping Sienna's Fire Sword
  
• Fixed an issue with the landing sound effect when Saltzpyre and Outcast Engineer Bardin would jump.
  
• Kerillian should no longer have an arrow notched when out of ammo.
  
• Most of Bardins shields should now block less of the center of the screen (again!).
  
• World markers now fade out while aiming down sights.
  
• Purchasing a bundle now shows a popup for each acquired item.
  
• Skaven spawners (specifically spawners where they climb out of holes or down a pillar, etc) allow elites to spawn once more.
  
• Outcast Engineer Tinkerer's Coggrund cog is now turning the correct way
  
• Heroes should not trigger last man standing VO when entering the Skittergate whilst other heroes are alive and simply not yet through the gate.
  
• "Changes to Engineer Challenges:
  - 'Stout heart, Steady aim' - Reduced amount of hits required to 12 down from 30.
  - 'Targeting Array' - Reduced the amount of required headshots in a row to 6 down from 20.
  - 'I love the smell of black powder' - Reduced the amount of kills needed from a single powder barrel explosion to 10 down from 20.
  - 'Endrinkuli's War Song' - Reduced the time required to fire the crank gun in one activation to 40 seconds down from 50.
  - 'Patent Pending' - Removed requirement of completing all 'Trial by Plague' and 'Proving Grounds' challenges aswell as removing required completion of 'Interception Barrage'."
  
• Generic Terror Events will no longer wait for players to kill any special to be completed. (Sorceror, Leech, Gutter Runner, Ratling Gunner, Packmaster, Warpfire Thrower, Poison Wind Globadier, Standard bearer)
  
• Fixed an issue where clients could not tag Beastmen banners.

• Against the Grain - Fixed a case where bots could become stuck on a haybale inside a barn.
  
• Athel Yenlui - Fixed an issue where Specials could spawn at the Bridge of Shadows.
  
• Athel Yenlui - Bots should have an easier time grabbing the first Grimoire.
  
• Athel Yenlui - Fixed some funkiness with the ley lines on the end event.
  
• The Blightreaper - Fixed a hole in the bookcase found in the end event.
  
• Blood in the Darkness - Fixed a destructible blockade that was considered still blocked for players who had hotjoined, despite being destroyed by the team, causing the player to be unable to proceed.
  
• Blood in the Darkness - Fixed a respawn where waiting players could not be interacted with properly by the team attempting to rescue them.
  
• Convocation of Decay - Adjusted the end event to be slightly less punishing. Feedback welcome in the usual channels!
  
• Dark Omens - Fixed some terrain weirdness.
  
• Empire in Flames - Fixed a case where players could re-spawn behind the team beyond a point of no return.
  
• Empire in Flames - Fixed a case where enemies would regularly spawn silently.
  
• Empire in Flames - Fixed a case where Minotaurs could not break down a wall.
  
• Engines of War - Fixed Specials spawning too closely to players during the end event.
  
• The Enchanter's Lair - Random hero banter should no longer interrupt the introductory banter at the beginning of the level.
  
• The Enchanter's Lair - Fixed a case where a player who joined during the statue event could not pick up the gargoyle head(s).
  
• The Enchanter's Lair - Fixed a spot where patrols could get stuck.
  
• The Enchanter's Lair - Bots should no longer be able to pick items up through the gate in the blood pool room.
  
• Festering Ground - Fixed a case where the escape event could become blocked off for a last man standing attempting a clutch under certain circumstances.
  
• Festering Ground - Removed an invisible wall.
  
• Festering Ground - Fixed an issue where the map exit could become blocked.
  
• Festering Ground - Fixed an issue where the first Grimoire chest could not be opened easily.
  
• Fort Bobsburgers - The "Load the Cannon" objective marker should now appear for players who join the map during the event.
  
• Fortunes of War - Fixed a cheese spot.
  
• Garden of Morr - Fixed some spots where players could skip large chunks of the level.
  
• Garden of Morr - Fixed an issue where bots could become stuck on a ladder.
  
• Halescourge - Fixed over-extended collision on one of the houses.
  
• Horn of Magnus - Barrels thrown upwards towards the sky should no longer be despawned or be considered out of the play area.
  
• Hunger in the Dark - Fixed a number of locations in which Rattling Gunners could shoot through the environment.
  
• Into the Nest - Fixed some holes in geometry/terrain.
  
• Into the Nest - Fixed an issue where bots would not die when knocked out-of-bounds.
  
• Into the Nest - Fixed an issue where heroes could respawn too far ahead.
  
• The Pit - Fixed an issue where heroes could respawn too far ahead.
  
• Righteous Stand - Fixed some holes in geometry/terrain.
  
• Screaming Bell - Fixed an issue where bots would not always enter the end arena.
  
• War Camp - Fixed some spots where players could get stuck.
  
• War Camp - Fixed bots becoming stuck on the battering ram.
  
• War Camp - Fixed a case where patrols could spawn in plain sight.
  
• Weaves - Fixed some spots where players could get stuck, and some holes in geometry.

• Chaos Wastes - Fixed an interaction between Bardin's 'Parting Gift' talent and the 'Artillery' boon in which he would be left without a grenade when throwing his double grenade from within the smoke shroud, as opposed to being left with one as expected.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Fixed an issue where players could spawn in to the Chaos Wastes after host migration with their adventure weapons equipped (traits etc) included.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Valaya's Brew now uses the pseudo-random distribution system to smoothen the randomness of it.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Fixed an issue where some Pilgrim’s Coins would not carry over between runs since 4.3.0.6.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Fixed an issue where players could not view the 'Item Inspect' UI in the Chaos Wastes if 'Inspect Weapon' was bound to the mouse.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Fixed a scaling issue with player frames in the map Shrines.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Fixed an issue where Talent Boons were not being properly granted in the map Shrines.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Grail Knight duty talents no longer appear as Chaos Wastes powerups, things got kind of weird with those interactions.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Increased the bonus coins obtained when playing with bots.
  
• Chaos Wastes - 'Stromfels’ Savagery' no longer applies it's visual effect to all players.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Using Bounty Hunter career skill with 'Valaya's Brew' and 'Potion of Endless Bombs' no longer interrupt the career skill.
  
• 
  
• Chaos Wastes - Levels
  
• Chaos Wastes - ALL LEVELS - All the locations have had an optimisation pass, and should suffer less performance dips than before.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Citadel of Eternity - Fixed an issue where Specials could continue to spawn after event end.
  
• Chaos Wastes - The Foetid Gorge - Fixed a spot where players could get stuck.
  
• Chaos Wastes - The Forbidden Trail - Fixed an issue where enemies could be instantly killed on spawn.
  
• Chaos Wastes - The Forbidden Trail - Fixed several spots where players could get stuck.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Lost City of Marakza - Added a ledge that was previously missing.
  
• Chaos Wastes - Pinnacle of Nightmares - Added a failsafe timer to the end event in-case of incidental soft-lock.

Kerillian’s been a bit stranger than usual (these things being relative). Fortunately, Franz Lohner’s pieced together part of the puzzle. Might be he has more questions than answers, but we’ll see what happens.


So our elf’s not quite what we’ve come to expect from her, is she? In fact, I’m not entirely convinced she’s entirely an elf any longer. Fun times, eh? Just when you think you’ve got someone figured out they have some kind of transformative life experience. Selfish, is what it is.

… Don’t you dare repeat that to her, Kruber. I’ve got enough problems right now as it is …

So yeah, I thought we’d better have a little chat and straighten out what’s going on. Can’t guarantee accuracy, but between me, Olesya and Sienna, we’ve got most of the bases covered.
I’m not sure when all this began, not exactly, but Kerillian’s been in a strange mood for a while. First obvious sign was back during the Night of Masks - not that I’d expect any of you lot to remember, given what you was drinking until the small wee hours. Mirrored masks, crows and horrible spirits rattling the windows of the keep. Took some time for the mental cogs to start biting, but it did finally start to add up. Seems Kerillian’s faith in Lileath has taken the odd knock of late, and she’s been looking for guidance from elsewhere in the elven pantheon. Problem is, when you start looking for gods, they often start staring right back at you.

Then, of course, there’s the business of the Citadel of Eternity. You’ve all been a mite evasive about what you’ve seen and heard in there - and I’m not prying, believe me - but I’ve a suspicion that whatever it was Kerillian heard? Well, it kind of sealed the deal. Up and vanished shortly after that without a word, and by the time she came back? Well. You know as well as I do.

Near as I can tell, Lileath never answered our elf at the Citadel - or at least, if she did, she didn’t say anything Kerillian wanted to hear. Sent her packing back to Athel Loren looking for answers - Sienna’s vouched for part of that, even if she’s being tight-lipped about the details.

… I’m not blaming you for that, Sienna love. No one needs a bunch of homicidal asrai looking for them in connection with spilled secrets …

Looking for guidance, Kerillian rededicated herself to the Weave. Lots of wood elves do that over the course of their lives, or so I hear. Gives them a new perspective. A new purpose. Only Kerillian got more than she bargained for. She offered up her uncertainty and regret, and the forest gladly took it. However, it also scooped up a chunk of the rest of her for good measure, and gave something of itself back to fill the void.

As I said before, plenty of elves rededicate themselves to the Weave, and it ain’t unusual for them to come back more spirit than flesh as our Kerillian has done. Outsiders - what few there are who claim to know asrai secrets - say the men emerge as “Wild Riders of Kurnous”, the equerries of King Orion, and the women as “Sisters of the Thorn”, handmaidens to Queen Ariel. But there’s a whole parcel of assumptions bound up in those labels - mingling of status and vocation. Let’s face it, if Kerillian were truly a queen’s handmaid, she’d not be up here messing around with the likes of us, now would she?
There’s something more going on here, mark my words.

Maybe it wasn’t the forest who patched the holes in Kerillian’s troubled soul - or at least not the forest alone. Like I said, she’s been courting goddesses other than Lileath of late. Atharti, Lady of Desire. Morai-Heg, the crone of Fate. Isha, the Mother. Hekarti, the Mistress and Magic. And Ereth Khial the … Well, let’s just say you’ve got to be in a pretty bad way to want to draw Ereth Khial’s attention.
There’s a good mix of the generous (the Cadai) and the wicked (the Cytharai) in among that lot, but that’s nothing new for the asrai. Of all the elven nations, Olesya reckons they’re the closest branch - if you’ll forgive the pun - to what elves used to be, back in the day, balancing light and dark, and putting both to use as they see fit. Not that any of that should be news to you lot. You’ve hung about with Kerillian long enough to know that she’s a study in contrasts. Carefree and bitterly serious. Selfless and spiteful. Your best friend and your worst enemy. Well, I’ve a feeling those contrasts are about to get a lot sharper. At the very least, whatever handbook we had for dealing with our homicidal elf has just seen some hefty rewrites. At the worst, there might not be one any longer.

Now, I can’t tell you what to do, but I’ll be treading a lot more carefully around Kerillian until we know more. I suggest you do the same.

And let’s just keep this little chat between us, shall we? No sense antagonising her.