• Fixed where arm was colliding with star shaped lights.
  
• Removed F12 as Jingle key since this is the default screenshot key.
  
• Horn sound volume increased.
  
• Fixed issue where some controlpanel lights did not work.

- Map : Current value/unit is shown with a colored dot over.
- Slider : Fixed value initialization on project file load.
- Sample : Polyphonic play-head flood prevented.
- UI : various minor fixes.

This is a small patch containing some crucial fixes:

• Fix slow motion persisting after exiting battle
  
• Fix realistic player damage sometimes not giving the right values
  
• Fix half of the factions being disabled for the main campaign
  
• Fix some hover and focus issues in campaign UI
  
• Fix elite units sometimes instantly routing enemy army

It came as a surprise to us to see a lot of negativity towards the Starter Packs, which were available to purchase for real money. These packs were designed to help those players at the beginning of the game who have a hard time fitting into the new gameplay.

We didn't implement these packs as something unfair, since you're getting rewards of the same level for completing the story quests already at the second location, and after those quests even much better equipment.

Plus, the distribution system described in the previous post has already begun to put players who bought aftermentioned packs on their respective level of distribution, preventing conflicts with total newcomers.

However, we are trying to be very considerate of the community's opinion on such sensitive issues and have decided to stop selling Starter Packs in the store. All of those who bought them previously will still have them, of course.

We are very carefully considering all of your feedback, so any opinions are very welcome.

Always yours,
EXBO team.

Mercenaries!

Due to unforeseen circumstances, there was a minor server disconnection issue at 13:55(UTC).

The issue has been fixed, and the team will continuously monitor the issue until the servers are normalized.

In order to compensate for the disconnection, we have boosted EUROS by 200% for 24hrs.
[Double boost period] Dec, 10th 14:30(UTC) ~ Dec, 11th 14:30(UTC).

We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

Thank you for your understanding.

Sincerely,
Your AVA Operations Team

Welcome back to the biweekly hype updates for Clash: Robot Detective - Complete Edition's Steam release! Last week, I talked a bit about the main game: where it came from, why I like it, etc. Today, I want to look at the extra bits that were added specifically for the Complete Edition: the behind-the-scenes trivia and the post-main-story chapter, Steel Barista.



Yes, behind-the-scenes trivia is awfully self-indulgent. But I hadn't planned on it. I was trying to figure out how to code the "Play Bonus Story" menu button to show up only after the Main Story was completed. That code consistently crashed the game. So, biting back the frustration, I tried a different approach. What if the button was available, but just gave the player a reminder to finish the Main Story if they hadn't? That worked great: click Bonus Story, a black screen would pop up saying "You can't play this yet" and then boot the player back to the main menu. Then I though, "Wouldn't it be funny if Clash popped up and yelled at the player for trying to play the chapters out of order?" So i slapped one of the Clash sprites in there. At that point, I figured it would actually be kind of neat if there was a whole secret scene for players to find. Didn't want it to be story-related, in case the player missed it. So the trivia thing just kind of fell into my lap: it was easy to write out, it was fun to ramble about the making of the game, and it was just a neat idea. Then I felt bad about making it potentially missable, so I added some code that gave people who had finished the main story the option to pick between the trivia and the bonus story. Et voila! A nice chunk of bonuses dedicated to trivia, which had never been in my plans to begin with!

This was a very long-winded way to say "I pulled out of my rear end."



The bonus story is based on a couple of different interactive fiction pieces I wrote for a couple of different game jams. Both did very well in their respective competitions, and both added to Clash's character in ways I liked. My main idea with updating Clash to the Complete Edition was to bring these stories back to the main canon. This meant refining and editing them both, as well as adding visuals. Neither of the interactive fiction games had these.

The bulk of the story is patterned after Steel Barista (and is named as such). It was submitted to a jam with the theme of 'cliffhanger.' So it had to end in one. That theme made me think of mysteries and noir detectives. Which, of course, I already had one: Clash! I wanted it to be more tightly-paced and lower-scaled than Robot Detective, so instead of running around a high-tech cruise ship Clash would just be running around a city. I had trouble figuring out the story from there until I got to reminiscing about high school. In 11th grade, we read a very specific Agatha Christie book (which, if I tell you the name of it right now, will spoil the whole story). When I read that book's twist, I was both amazed and furious; I almost threw the book down the hall in sheer emotion! Then I thought, "I wonder if I could pull that twist off? Let's experiment and see!"

I also wanted to give Clash a conundrum. He is a nice robot man. TOO nice. Dangerously close to Gary Stu levels of nice. What if he had to make a tough decision? A decision between doing the right thing or doing what he wanted to do? A choice between reason and passion? Could he do that? WOULD he do that? That was my cliffhanger: no one will know what Clash chose. I don't even know what he would have chosen. I refuse to say what his canonical choice was. That's up to you to decide.



The epilogue for the story is a heavily-edited Curious Set, which due to the content of that story NEEDED to be heavily edited. In this story, Clash and my self-insert character Victoria "work together" so that Clash can learn more about himself and the passionate side of humanity. It goes off the rails from there.

So the epilogue stays firmly on the rails (if you want to read the off-the-rails version, you will need to be an adult and you will need to go to itchio and find it yourself). But that whole "a robot not built for romantic endeavors will not understand them, but wants to know because he needs to understand why humans let their romantic endeavors lead them to crimes of passion" angle was one that I wanted to keep in the canon. It sums up a part of Clash's character: he constantly wants to learn. He wants to understand so that he can do his job better and help others more efficiently. And maybe he gets a little too attached to the people in his life. It happens.



And those are the bonuses! Two weeks from now will be the third hype update. In it, I will talk about some of the smaller details that make Clash Complete worth looking in to. Also, general Christmas well-wishing. Because I'm that kind of person. :-)

• Added 2 new characters (with 2 new challenges / achievements)
  
• Added 6 new items
  
• Weapons now show how much damage they've dealt during the last wave
  
• Secondary stats are now displayed in a new tab in the stats container (explosion damage etc.)
  
• Some items and weapons now keep track of and display more info (damage dealt, materials earned, stats gained etc.)
  
• The character now appears first in the inventory
  
• Reworded "unique weapon" to "different weapon"
  
• Having multiple copies of the same weapon is now counted as a different weapon. E.g. having two Knives and one Sword with Gladiator now gives you 2x the Attack Speed bonus instead of 1x.
  
• The real value of Crit Chance is now displayed on weapons instead of stopping at 100%
  
• The current level of the character is now displayed in the stats container
  
• Added an option called "Optimize end waves" which might help if you're experiencing crashes at the end of waves
  
  
• Horde waves drop 15% more materials
  
• Eggs deal less contact damage, have less health and take 1 more second to hatch
  
• Chef Boss: last phase attacks cooldown increased
  
• Wave 12 or lower Elite HP: -15% => -25%
  
• Monk Boss: slightly lowered HP
  
  
• Gladiator: +15% Attack Speed per unique weapon => +20%, -30% Attack Speed => -40%
  
• Saver: +1% Damage every 30 Materials => every 25, +10 Harvesting => +15
  
• Loud can now start with Thief Dagger
  
• One-Armed can now start with Screwdriver
  
• Farmer: can now start with Potato Thrower, Taser, Screwdriver, Wrench, -25% Damage modifications => -0%
  
• Artificer: can now start with Wrench
  
  
• Blunt weapon set: -3% Speed per additional weapon => -2%
  
  
• Chopper: 80% Melee Damage scaling => 50%, +20% Max HP scaling
  
• Potato Thrower: +20% Max HP scaling
  
• Flamethrower: direct Elemental Damage scaling 10% => 1%
  
• Torch: direct Elemental Damage scaling 0% => 50%
  
  
• Incendiary Turret: 5x5 (25% Engineering) damage => 5x8 (33% Engineering) damage
  
• Bag: +20 materials => +15, Unique => Limited (3)
  
• Padding: +3 Max HP, +1 Max HP every 80 Materials => every 100
  
• Tyler: +50% attack speed
  
• Rip and Tear: 10% activation chance => 20%, Limited (10) => Limited (5)
  
• Alien Worm: +1 HP Regeneration => +2, +2 Max HP => +3
  
• Spider: +5% Attack Speed per unique weapon => +6% per different weapon
  
• Chameleon: -6% Damage => -4%
  
• Barricade: +6 Armor while standing still => +8, -8% Speed => -5%
  
• Torture: +10 Max HP => +15, +3 HP / sec => +4
  
• Eyes Surgery: +15% burning speed => +10%, -12 Range => -10, Unique => Limited (3)
  
• Retromation's Hoodie: +10% Dodge => +0, -50 Range => -80
  
• Poisonous Tonic: +8% Crit Chance => +5%
  
• Small Magazine: -10% Damage => -6%
  
• Focus: -3% Attack Speed for every weapon you have => for every different weapon
  
• Power Generator: price increased
  
• Explosive Shells is no longer unique
  
• Dangerous Bunny: price decreased
  
• Medikit: +8 HP Regeneration => +10, -15 Luck => -10

• Fixed a bug where text that should be displayed in red was displayed in green (Esty's Couch etc.)
  
• Fixed a bug where the player's health bar wouldn't be displayed above everything else
  
• Fixed a bug where effects for unique weapons would get applied multiple times after quitting the game and resuming a run
  
• Fixed a bug where the reroll button's text would stay red even when having enough materials after recycling a weapon
  
• Increased the size of the "+" sign in the font
  
• Reduced the transparency of explosions
  
• The "IJKL" keys can now also be used to move
  
• Fixed a bug where having too much negative range would increase the range of melee weapons
  
• Fixed a bug where having negative flat damage and negative % damage would sometimes increase damage instead of lowering it
  
• Fixed a bug where Dangerous Bunny free rerolls would get cancelled by buying out the shop

I was looking again and... there was some small stuff to improve.

• Fixed a save point towards the end of the game

Greetings warriors of Calradia!

We were very excited back in April, when we announced the second iteration of the Bannerlord Creative Competition, with the first one bringing many modders and creators together to turn in their submissions.

We were amazed by the quality of creations and the variety of ideas brought to the table back then, and that hasn’t changed with the second iteration. We’re thrilled to report that many modders answered the call. After a thorough evaluation conducted by our developers, we’re now pleased to be sharing the winners of the Bannerlord Creative Competition 2!

It brought new challenges for the participants in the form of three contents - designing hideout scenes, producing royal melee weapon sets and making a comic set in the Dark Ages of Calradia.

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Scene designers were invited to create a hideout, a sanctuary for thieving bandits who prey on the innocent that pass through the surrounding lands. The hideout mission is only reachable during the night - which is something the contest participants had to keep in mind while designing their submissions.

Our judges were attentive to the composition of the scene props, the quality of the ground texture and painting work, terrain realism, how well the scene plays out in a hideout mission and the use of new and fresh concepts while designing the look and setting of the scene.

Without further ado, let’s begin with the Scene Design Contest’s third place, achieved by Athaelas for their scene Abandoned Mine.


Abandoned Mine by Athaelas

The name suits the scene very well! We feel that the linear layout combined with ample torches to guide the player creates for an effortless bandit cleaning of the hideout. The location of the player spawn sets a great tone for the rest of the scene. It keeps the player entertained through unique touches such as the remnants of the mine, a great crane location that overlooks the hideout and the tree full of pottery and bags - which it seems like was used for target practice by the Steppe Bandits.

Moving on, let’s take a look at the scene that won second place, the Battanian Burial Mound created by Klassix. Placed in the middle of a swamp, surrounded by deep forests, the player finds himself combating the formidable Forest Bandits.


Battanian Burial Mound by Klassix

This scene captures the artistic style of Battania very well, making great use of the lights and fog to guide the player through the swamps. The great placement of invisible barriers prevent the player from wandering into unintended areas while keeping sufficient movement freedom. The AI troops can seamlessly move to every corner of the scene with the help of the well made navigation mesh.

The hideout boss fight unfolds in the tumb, which is very thoroughly detailed through a smart re-usage of assets in creative ways, not to mention the crack in the ceiling which fills the room with moonlight. The overall atmosphere of the scene feels fantastic, making this for a great second place!

And the winner’s cup goes to Levente and their scene Valeria Lookout! It’s most impressive when eying it for the first time, utilising a vertical layout to bring uniqueness to both the gameplay and visuals of the scene.


Valeria Lookout by Levente

The impressive backdrop gives a sense of scale, with the homesteads and castle seen in the distance. The mission can be approached via two different paths without skipping any of the bandit locations and not having to backtrack which is quite impressive.

It was great to see that a lot of work went into the details and placement of assets, bringing the scene to life. For example, the manually created shooting star in the sky, the flying birds and the gaps above the caves.

Oh yeah, did we mention the cave system? After fighting your way through the narrow paths, you find yourself in an open cave full of Mountain Bandits that can’t wait to throw you over the ledge. And this is where we get to the final boss fight which just happens to have one of the best views of the lands in the background. An awesome location to wrap up the hideout!

• OldVlandiaTown by ErdemliYns
  
• Urban Hideout by Sheepbitter
  
• Smuggler's Descent by dbwuh
  
• Ruined Castle Hideout by ImToni
  
• Brigands Keep by Ceftadzime
  
• Shipwreck Cove by Kazet
  
• Ruins of Erandel by Shishya

You can check out all of the winners as well as other entries on our forums, where you can also download the scenes and enjoy them during your next playthrough.

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Next up, we have the 3D art contest. Participants were invited to create a royal melee weapon set, worthy of being used in battle by the highest of nobles.

Each weapon in Bannerlord is composed of multiple crafting pieces which are spread across a number of categories, allowing for the creation of hundreds of thousands of different weapons. As such, their submission had to be implemented correctly, so that it fits with the existing crafting pieces and works with the crafting system. We evaluated each submission carefully and paid close attention to the visual appeal of the weapon set, the use of new and original concepts, the sensible usage of triangle counts, texture map sizes and how compatible the weapons are with the native crafting pieces and system.

Our judges had a very tough job picking the winners. The submitted weapon sets were nothing short of amazing and we do need to reiterate just how close these submissions came on the scoreboard.

Beginning with the third place, let’s have a look at the Ramsay’s Royal Set, created by Ramsay2710. It consists of a two handed sword, a one handed sword, a two handed polearm and a dagger.


Ramsay’s Royal Set by Ramsay2710

We feel that these weapons look elegant with well-made topology. The sword breaker, for example, looks mighty deadly! Some further improvements could be done to the textures but we couldn’t help to notice the details engraved on the polearm blade and the sword handles, all of which make this set suitable for a noble’s weaponry.

Moving on to second place, we have the Four Corners of Earth, made by Swordsman. The set consists of four two handed swords, each bringing its unique characteristics to the table.


Four Corners of Earth by Swordsman

All of the swords are connected by one common theme, the pattern welded steel used for the sword blades - and yet, they all look very much different. The flowing specular changes on the surface of the blades look especially satisfying.

The submission as a whole is further improved by the original holsters used for the specific blades, utilizing different materials for each. These swords are also very compatible with our crafting system and pieces, making this set for a great second place!

And for this contest’s first spot, we have the Royal Armoury Set, made by MajorRoyMcCalluster. It consists of a two handed polearm, a spear, a dagger and a one handed mace.


Royal Armoury Set by MajorRoyMcCalluster

The attention to detail displayed in this submission was awesome to observe. The intricate engravings present on most weapon parts, combined with some golden colour give a profound regal feeling and would make any noble pick these up at the blacksmith!

The topology, sensible usage of polygons and the beautifully baked textures all stood out to us when evaluating the set. Overall, a very well-rounded submission that hit the bullseye in staying compatible with the theme of the contest.

• Urkhun's Legacy by Dawa
  
• Guedin Royal Set by Guedin
  
• Swords of Nations by Vood
  
• Aserai Royal Weapons by John_M
  
• Dunlending Chieftain's Elite Set by KEYforce
  
• ochlaigan`s battle set by cycy
  
• Smashing Lioness by Agyra

You can again check out all of the submissions in detail on our forums as well as download the weapons and use them in your game.

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Finally, we challenged artists to create a short comic set in the Dark Ages of Calradia. We would certainly like to thank them for the giggles that followed these entries and congratulate them on the awesome art!


Untitled by lilly.mist

lilly.mist
https://www.instagram.com/p/Cgr3s0MKAv-/

emilienfort_art
https://www.instagram.com/p/CfeTg3TK1Ro/

superjewbl
https://twitter.com/superjewbl/status/1552785209338232832

dbwuh
https://www.instagram.com/p/Cgr6icoL3NT/

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We’ll be reaching out to all of the winners to arrange the delivery of your well-earned goodies so please make sure to stay available in the following days! Thank you to our friends at Intel for providing the prizes!



Our appreciation goes to everyone that participated in the contest and we feel blessed to have such a dedicated modding community. We look forward to exploring similar competitions with you in the future!