Here's a tiny development update from us here at Bromantic Games.
Build status
We are currently putting the final touches on the build that is going to be sent to approval by Steam for our Early Access launch - February 24th. As we mentioned in our last devlog, all major planned game features have been implemented and we're in full bug-fixing mode. As a small indie studio, "bug free" is a bold statement, but we're getting pretty close! Our current list is down to a mere 50 quality of life improvements based on some very early rounds of test feedback!
Early test round with the tutorial
Pre-release testing
We will open the game a few days early for some selected testers and reviewers, to see that everything is ready for launch. After launch, feedback from our players and supporters will guide us on where to go next, but the foundation is already pretty solid!
Come chat with us!
Want to see clips or talk with us? Join us at our discord server. Until then thank you for supporting us!
Here are the details for release 0.3.4.0. I'm pretty excited for the new features on offer here, it should really streamline play for those who like to use digital dice, without spoiling the low-friction setup for tokens.
I've also made some improvements to the Players' Game Lobby to accommodate the added information on Player Tokens, and fixed a number of bugs, including a Steam error that was causing high-CPU usage in steam itself during games.
Added a small character selection panel above the standard dice tray, which hides if there's only one choice, and automatically switches selection when initiative changes.
Added a button panel showing all of the selected characters rolls below the dice tray. Clicking a button once copies the saved roll into the tray, clicking again rolls it. Buttons can be right clicked to edit/delete the roll.
Players can now click the edit button in the lobby to change details about their character, this includes the new saved roll editor where you can add any number of rolls.
Added a saved roll editor to the DM's Token Editor tab, pre-defined tokens can have rolls saved and made better use of space on this screen in general.
Added a "save roll" button on the dice history list during play. This allows you to save rolls you previously make during play and assign them to one of your tokens.
Added a number of icons to identify saved rolls by.
Saved rolls can use '&' to denote multiple separate rolls, these rolls are clearly separated when loaded into the dice tray (appearing the same way as the "then" button will show).
Additional minor features and bug fixes in this release:
Reduced the player drawing overlay to just a top-bar.
Greatly reduced the busyness of the Game Lobby for players.
Added drawing tools, a collapsable dice tray, and initiative tracker panels to the fullscreen display.
Set a fixed width for roll history entries, this should resolve weird scaling issues for high-dpi screens
Fixed a fault in Steam API interactions that would infinitely retry when in a failing state, causing excessive CPU use by Steam.
Fixed a crash when players press Ctrl-C with a token selected on the map.
Added logic to create .bak files for tokens, and load those backups quietly in the event of corruption of the main file.
Fixed an oversight that prevented the GM from rolling nothing for an opposed roll (in opposed roll mode)
Fixed a bug that wouldn't allow character with / in their name to save. All symbols should now be valid in character names.
***Hotfix 0.3.4.1: This patch shifts the preference for new installs to store data in AppData instead of Documents, newer versions of Windows tendency to store Documents on OneDrive by default causes errors for frequent accessors and doesn't work well with built-in backup files Dudes now generates. Existing installs that store on OneDrive will receive frequent nagging to migrate now, and faults provide instructions for manual resolution of the migration issues. This patch should also reduce the annoyance level when save/load errors occur.
The next Nova Cup takes place February 12-13. Sign-up begins now. First come, first served.
Sign-up Instructions
Sign-up begins now and ends February 11 at 10am PDT / 7pm CET.
To sign up, find a teammate and log into Legion TD 2. Both players should join a unique chat lobby by typing /join team name (e.g. /join Snail Kings) in Global Chat. After you're both in the lobby, have one player type /signup.
The first 16 teams to sign up in each division can participate. Other teams are waitlisted. There are usually no-shows, so waitlisted teams are encouraged to be present in the Discord and ready to play. {LINK REMOVED}View the team list to see your sign-up position and division.
Teams must check in via the tournament website Challonge. Waitlisted teams should also check in. Instructions will be provided in the Legion TD 2 Official Tournaments Discord.
Any team that fails to check in will be disqualified. The next team on the waitlist that checked in will earn a spot.
Format
Mastermind 2v2
Hybrid is banned
Single elimination
Best of 3. Best of 5 final
Teams are seeded based on average peak rating this season
Prizes
Divisions are assigned automatically, primarily based on your peak ranked rating.
Division 1
1st: $500 + 3 League Points (LP)
2nd: $300 + 2 LP
3rd/4th: 1380 premium essence ($10) + 1 LP
Division 2
1st: $250 + 3 LP
2nd: 1380 premium essence ($10) + 2 LP
3rd/4th: 1380 premium essence ($10) + 1LP
Division 3
1st: 15,000 premium essence ($100) + 3 LP
2nd: 1380 premium essence ($10) + 2 LP
3rd/4th: 1380 premium essence ($10) + 1 LP
Division 4
1st: 7200 premium essence ($50) + 3LP
2nd: 1380 premium essence ($10) + 2 LP
3rd/4th: 1380 premium essence ($10) + 1 LP
The total prize pool this tournament is $1310, up from $600, due to a sponsorship from Nexus and from one anonymous sponsor.
Prizes are split between the players on the team. $ prizes are sent in USD via PayPal. If PayPal is not an option, the prize will be converted to Premium Essence.
League Points The 10 players with the most league points after the December 2022 Nova Cup will receive exclusive in-game badges, numbered 1-10 based on ranking.
Division Rules
Ratings are calculated at the time of sign-up.
Players must sign up with their highest-rated account. If a player signs up with a smurf, they will be banned from this Nova Cup and the next 2 Nova Cups.
Divisions are assigned automatically, primarily based on your peak ranked rating.
A team may be moved up or down a division at the discretion of the tournament director at any time. This can occur if a player has a high win rate or previously got 1st in their division, or if it will improve the overall fairness of the tournament.
Substitution Substitute players are not allowed. If a team cannot present both players in a timely fashion, that team forfeits the next game.
Lobby Creation and Position Priority
The team with the better seed has position priority in the first game of each match. Position priority then goes to the team that lost the previous game.
The better seed team always creates the custom game lobby and selects “Tournament” as the custom game mode.
The better seed always plays on the west team.
The team with position priority chooses the sending order.
Reporting Results The team that wins the match should report the match result to the match results channel in Discord. For example, "Banana Boys beats Brute Gang 2-1."
Remakes
In general, we will not honor remake requests. Remakes cause delays that compromise the entire tournament's schedule.
You should not request a remake, unless it's an obviously critical bug, such as being unable to build fighters. To request a remake, notify staff that you are requesting a remake immediately at the time of the game-impacting bug. Staff will make a decision based on (1) the severity of the bug, (2) the state of the game, and (3) implications on the tournament's schedule. If it is determined that the bug critically impacted the team's ability to win and if remaking wouldn't disrupt the tournament's schedule, a remake may be granted.
Remakes will never be granted if either player on your team leaked >= 40% on any wave (and either player on your team isn’t on fire) before the critical bug or if either opponent is on fire.
For questions, please @Seraphin in the Discord.
See you on February 12th! The Nova Cup will be casted and streamed at https://twitch.tv/ltd2