Patch 0.2.36 will release this Saturday. It contains some huge changes intended to shake up the meta and lead the game towards a bright new future. The rest of the team has been busy with IRL stuff, which means the next sisters patch is delayed, but, on the bright side, it gave me a lot of creative freedom with this patch. I’m very excited to share my vision with you!
Balance Changes
First of all, a card that needs no introduction — Swamp Entangler. Probably the worst card in the game since its creation, Swamp Entangler is getting a much-needed buff. I decided to go with old-school discoverable text in this case because ultimately it makes the game more fun and flavorful. Expect to see more of this in the future!
Serpenti is a beloved card, but one that has been meta-defining for too long — just the other day I lost a game to the Serpenti-Assassination Protocol combo. No more. Serpenti, as a neutral card, had too much Attack for its cost given the powerful Frenzy keyword. 4/4 is a much more balanced statline. I still expect this card will be wiping out my board more often than not.
That brings us to a similarly beloved card on the other end of the spectrum — Makantor Warbeast. Once the dominant species, this card has fallen into obscurity. I haven’t seen it played at all recently. Therefore, I am swapping its original statline with Serpenti’s. As a Magmar card, it deserves the extra Attack more than a neutral card with similar abilities and cost.
It’s no secret that I’ve always hated Abyssian, and as a dev I finally get to do something about it. This faction is ridiculously overpowered, with abilities from all of the other factions plus the insane Deathwatch keyword. Without the time to implement sweeping nerfs, I decided on a more elegant solution: nerf Lilithe again. The Abyssian Generals are being reduced from 25 to 20 Health. This avoids a faction rework and brings Abyssian’s powerlevel more in line with other factions.
Last but not least, a new keyword, UPGRADE! You will be able to pay 100 Shards to upgrade some cards up to 3 times. Phoenix Fire is just the first of these, since Songhai needs some help in the current meta. Imagine 7 damage for 2 mana! You can expect your favorite cards from all factions to get UPGRADEs in the next patch.
Board Game Crossover Event
But wait, there’s more! In a crossover with the board game, Zendo, Ronin Lord will be replaced by Grandmaster Zendo (board game version) for a month! I will also be sending out Zendo, Ronin Lord cards (and associated tokens) to those who purchased the board game soon!
Boss Battle
The Rasha’s Ghost boss battle will be releasing with this patch. This boss will grant more rewards than ever before! In exchange, it has an entry fee of 100 Shards per game. More info forthcoming!
Bug Fixes
- Matchmaking finds more players.
- Games are easier to win for affected groups.
- Players should no longer experience time loss.
- Increased granularity.