Cross of Auria
The Orc War Begins
• If you have a save file from before 4.2 dropped on August 6th, there will be bugs. If you started a new save file after August 6th, there should not be bugs. I will not be able to patch issues relating to Ewynn with save files from before August 6th. As much as I hated forcing this on all of you, a new save file was unavoidable because of my poor use of self-switches. I've learned a lot - it won't happen again.
• The Orc War will trigger once you go to the world map from Auria if you've completed the third Veil scene. If it does not, reach out to me on Discord immediately (https://discord.gg/bMS9ktw)
Good luck. :D
5.0 [Build #96, Release Date: August 15, 2021]
Bugs to look for: Report them as a comment to the most recent patch notes or post them directly on the CoA channels using the invite link above!
- ??? There are a lot of crazy things that can happen here, just tell me all of it!
- It should not be possible to enter Auria after leaving.
- It should not be possible to enter Lvell during Day 4 (Orc War beginning day).
- All dungeons should feed back out to the Orc War World Map, which has different music than the regular world map of the previous days.
- Music should change when entering all available locations from the world map, and again when returning to the world map.
- No battle should result in an auto-win because the enemies were not there (report specifically where this was if it happens! It won't break the game, I've just been cleaning out unused Troops and Enemies.)
- No battle should not have a battleback (aka: you should not see Ruby & co. in the world where the encounter happened under the battle screen).
- Most importantly, the Orc War event should trigger immediately upon leaving Auria if you've already completed the third Veil scene.
New:
- The first steps of the Orc War are available! This is triggered by leaving Auria after the 3rd Veil scene. (Warning: the Orc War questline is not yet completed, and it will not be possible to re-visit certain locations until a future update. See the "Other" section below for details.)
- Elemental resistance states added to the game data. These last by default for 3 turns and are not removed at the end of combat. Additional applications will increase the turn count. Each state adds 30% defense to its element. These states exist for: Physical, Fire, Water, Electric, Ice, Earth, Wind, Poison, Dragon, Psychic, Holy, Dark, Soul, Ghost, Arcane.
- Details for item and equipment disassembly has been added to most items. However, there is currently no disassembler available. Expect the first permanent-use disassembler to arrive in 5.1.
Fixes:
- States "Mag Eva + 20%" and "Phys Eva + 20%" now last for 3-5 turns, instead of indefinitely.
- Set the amount of intended gem slots for all weapons and armor. Some gear will still drop with a random amount of slots.
- Quest Log details for Search for the Strongest have been replaced with minimalist info. The original details were lost and therefore will not be rewritten. Please keep in mind that the Quest Log is purely visual and has no entanglement with actual in-game functionality or rewards.
Changes:
- Enemy skill "Sharpen" now increases luck by 20% in addition to its other effects.
- Waterbolt and Vaporstrike now have a 10% chance to apply Soak and each higher tier skill adds 10% to that chance.
- The An'ura Expert moves to Annie's House in Lvell during the Orc War.
Other (Day 4 / Orc War Info): This information is specific to the 'Orc War Overworld Map' and does not apply for players who have not completed Auria's chapter of the Orc War.
- Raphael's Tower may be accessed from this World Map and the teleporter in this area may still be used to connect back to the Veil.
- It is not possible to use the Veil teleporter to enter Lvell during Day 4.
- It is not yet possible to enter zones other than The Black Forest, Scarlet Cavern, Den An'ura, Hell's Gate, Frost Forest and Agartha.
- Amaya's quest may still be completed during this day.
- Search for the Strongest may have progress during this day, as all necessary zones are available from the world map.
- Completing the Agartha questline on Day 4 will not grant progress toward the corresponding Rabbit's Foot Quest Log data, but it is possible to complete all the quest steps and unlock The Hall of Challengers, The Colosseum, and the Colosseum to Veil teleporter located in the basement.
- The Orc War questline itself currently does not have Quest Log integration.
Notes:
- If your save file is from earlier than August 6th, you will need a new save file to continue through the game bug-free. Certain interactions, like Ewynn in Market Town, cannot have individual fixes deployed for them due to their entanglement in multiple questlines. New save files should not experience these issues, and moving forward new save files will not be required.
What's Coming to Revan
Over the last few weeks, I've had an incredible amount of development time which has allowed me to do away with the test branch for fixing all of the things that were broken up to the current end of the main story in CoA. There are a few other things being worked on that I want to take this time to talk about, but first let me just let you know that there will probably not be a new patch this weekend.
The three major things I've been working on are:
• The Orc War - Continuation of the main story, beginning immediately following the third Veil scene.
• Battlefront - a mini-game where Ruby commands troops on an exploration through various parts of the four kingdom's area.
• Battle Series I (DLC) - Level 25 maze dungeon featuring Zodiac themed bosses and loot.
I've mentioned the Orc War many times over the past probably a year and a half now, and I am sorry at how long it's taken me to be able to make progress on it. However, I am happy to say that development for it is well under way. In fact, there won't be a new update to the game until at least the first part of the questline is completely finished. This part takes Ruby & friends through the Nexus Waterway, an abandoned sewer system beneath Auria. I'm very close to finished with this part, but I need to iron out a few things before I publish it. Specifically, I need to connect the Day 4 (Orc War Day) map to the various locations around the world. Some events will only take place during the Orc War and will be missed once players progress past the core events.
Because the beginning of the Orc War is linear, there is no quest log details for it. Additionally, I have decided that keeping up on the quest log takes entirely too much development time, so moving forward there will be less dialogue related detail and more to-the-point 'what to do' and 'where you left off' information. Originally, I did want there to be a ton of extra readable dialogue, but at the end of the day I want to continue the overall project and getting bogged down in dialogue has already cost us a lot of time. This may be something I invest in once I consider CoA to be "complete" (as opposed to 'this is where the story stops for now' which is how I previously looked at it when I originally launched the game.)
In short: The first steps of the Orc War are set to happen following the 3rd Veil scene and are already intertwined with event coding, therefore there will not be an update to the game until it is finished and ready to go, which I estimate to take no longer than two weeks from today.
The Battlefront was an idea I had for a new game altogether, but decided to add to CoA as a test run. Ruby hires mercenaries who fight through contested areas, collecting resources and building support structures to secure Lvell's position throughout the northern forest region. On the world map, this first Battlefront zone is the entire snow and dead forest extending from the tower north of Lvell beside Scarlet Cavern.
Key mechanics for Battlefront:
• Only Ruby may participate. Other party members are removed unless otherwise specified (such as DLC character packs if that's something we ever do)
• Once KO'd, mercs will drop all their gear and return to level 1 to be hired again. The initial hiring process costs Gold, but all future hirings will cost resources of the area (Silver Piece, Gold Piece, Wood, Food, etc).
• The current test group of mercs are capped at level 20 and only have a handful of skills. This will be expanded on as further tests roll out.
• Similar to how the original Black Forest functioned, there is one zone per world map tile for the entire forest and structures included with some deviation for combined zones.
• Loot obtained from the Battlefront area will be optimal for further Battlefront usage, but also conform to the standard weapons and armor sets of the main story characters.
• Since there is very little story contained within, new zones can be deployed as part of any regular patch and will not impede other patches or updates.
• If you have any comments or recommendations about the event, feel free to let me know!
Battle Series I is an idea that came from me wanting to continue to fund this endeavor. Updates take a ton of time (I have 2884 hours in the engine as of writing this) and now over 20,000 people own a license to the game. As always, every DLC helps the project continue. So, about the details... I came up with 5 boss battles, whose details will remain a mystery until release, based on the Zodiac theme. Each boss has their own zone. Each zone has its own addition of unique battles and includes some from the previous zones. Each boss has a chance to drop gear from the Zodiac Weapons & Armor Set. The basic Zodiac set is a purchasable 260-point Defense and Magic Defense focused set, which you can get using the Astral Coins that drop from all enemies in the area and from Zodiac Coins which have a chance to drop off the bosses. Additionally, the bosses have a chance to drop enhanced versions of this set with their name attached, which are 325 point uncommon set and 350 point rare set. For the first time, this new set also includes weapons!
These bosses will find their way into the Pit with slight variations. In their pit alternative, they will not drop astral or zodiac coins.
Short: The is a battle-focused DLC with minimal story involvement. Possible rewards are weapons and armor.
Some other things to go over regarding the next update:
- There will be an increase in CoA's overall file size, the specifics of which I'm not yet sure. New background music was added for the new zones and I found dozens of new SV enemies to use in the future. Given some time, I will likely remove the unused assets until they're ready to appear in game. For the time being, their data will be present in the file size.
- The next download will be big, even relative to the above statement. Many character files had to be slightly updated which will cause the file to be re-downloaded. Additionally, all the details for Battle Series I is included in the current package even though it is not yet available.
Coming Soon, but later than everything above:
- The Pit will see a rework to save data space and development time. Custom non-boss battles designed for the Pit will be replaced with their regular-game alternatives and drop the same loot. Pit Coins and other Hall of Challengers specific loot will instead drop after the battle as a text prompt rather than directly off the defeated enemy.
- The next tier of the An'ura Rift for the Colosseum will not come as originally planned. Instead, the current rift will be brought to level 25 and all data for lower level enemies will be adjusted. Ultimately, these changes will keep these 'endgame activities' in line with the highest level Ruby & co should be provided the player does mostly everything along the main story path.
- Multi-map zones will be mostly replaced moving forward with full scale maps where it is possible to do so. For instance, Scarlet Cavern and Den An'ura use mostly the same tileset throughout and could all be on one map rather than be spread across dozens.
That's plenty of information for one post, wouldn't you say? Stay tuned for patch notes in the coming weeks for the official release of 5.0 and the first steps of the Orc War!
4.2.0 - End of the Test
- New playable character Eurus.
- New Veil zone which links Colosseum, Hall of Challengers, DLC redemptions, Eurus's Quest, the Trophy Room, and more things to come.
I had originally planned to give a small gift to only the people who took part in it and another for only the people who had originally purchased CoA, but given the time it would've taken to do that, I think the best gift to all of you is to just keep working on the game for everyone and get progress out there.
4.2.0 [Build #95, Release Date: August 06, 2021]
Warning: The 5.0 Alpha branch has been discontinued. The re-connection of the beginning of the game to the end of the current main story has been made. From this point forward, all updates will be posted directly to the main branch that everyone has access to by default. If you did not participate in the 5.0 Alpha branch of the game, you will need to make a new save file to progress. Otherwise, the change in skill effects, states, learned-by-level-ups, switches, and other back end processes will cause the game to not function as intended. New save files should not experience these issues.
Bugs to look for: Report them as a comment to the most recent patch notes or post them directly on the CoA channels using the invite link above!
- Hell's Gate units should not use Gust and should not try to use a skill with no data.
- If the screen ever flashes when Ruby uses her psychic power. My goal is to remove the flash feature permanently - please let me know if I missed any.
- If during dialogue conversation, Ruby triggers a game crash. This is due to a removed picture file - please screenshot exactly where this was so I can patch it right away.
New:
- A small goodie box has been added to the Veil with crafting materials for the Research Shack in Auria.
Fixes:
- Hardy's Headgear now correctly adds a 2% resist to Poison, Burn, and Bleed.
- Ewynn no longer uses Self Switches and should be more stable.
Changes:
- The Flame Titan event and dialogue has been moderately changed.
- Increased Jack's HP for the training battle to 999,999.
- Phoenix Ash introduction questline can be completed on Day 1 or Day 2.
- Removed the first copy of Disabling Slice and Silencing Slive
- Party members who did not participate in the battle also receive a share of the EXP gained through battle and quests.
- Removed the enemy version of Gust.
- Hell's Gate units now use either Airblade or Airslash instead of Gust at the end of each turn.
- Since the ele-nulls can be applied out of battle, they will no longer be removed at the end of each battle.
- Screen flashes have been removed.
Known Issues:
- Killing a Drahkin with Arcane Missile will appear to cause the game to stop, but this is because the dialogue of having collected the egg appears. It did not freeze.
Raphael's Tower - 0.05 Details
tldr build notes: new playable character is available for everyone doing the 5.0 alpha tests. Opt in instructions at the bottom. Find him through the Veil in Ruby's House at any point in the game. Quest designed for level 1 new save files.
Like main party characters, Eurus is not currently permitted in the Battlefront area.
0.05 [5.0 Alpha Build #5, Test Date: August 05, 2021]
What's In This Version:
- Preparation for day 2 tie in is under way. Elena Katali will prompt Ruby to visit Officer Rose, who sends her home. If you enter Ruby's Room, you will be stuck there until the patch which adds Day 2.
What To Look For: Look for these and other bugs and report them on Discord!
- Eurus properly joins the party after his quest is completed.
- Music properly changes between Ruby's House, The Veil, Raphael's Tower Area, and Raphael's Tower.
- Lighting returns to normal after leaving Raphael's Tower Area.
New:
- Debug Unit has been added to Lvell to remove Quest #8, which was previously "Nightmare of Lvell". This quest had no further details than a title and should be removed from all active save files.
- Elena Katali of the Phoenix Ash now prompts Ruby to return to Officer Rose after her questline is complete.
- The Veil now connects to the Raphael's Tower Area. Visit this location to help Eurus.
Changes:
- The store page listing for the Cross of Auria demo has been delisted. This demo may be safely uninstalled.
Character Highlight: Eurus
Elemental Affinity: Wind
Weapon Type: Scythe. Adds "Scythe" battle commands.
Armor Type: Leather
Learned by level up:
1: Singlehand Stance
1: Doublehand Stance
3: Arcane Shock
3: Swing
6: Airblade
8: Airslash
10: Arcane Shock II
16: Airslash II
18: Airblade II
20: Reave
30: Airslash III
36: Airblade III
Attack State: Air Current (5%) [Air Current increases the chance of Wind-Weak applying to the afflicted target by 300% and may be applied by any skill which adds the Normal-Attack state, which is most non-elemental physical skills.]
Resist State: Wind-Weak (100% Resistance)
About Singlehand Stance
Singlehand Stance...
- Applies "Singlehand Scythe" to Eurus, which increases MP cost by 20% and increases magic damage by 20%.
- Removes "Doublehand Scythe" and allows access to Magic, but prevents the use of Skills.
- Starts with a 2 turn warm-up and has a 2 turn cool-down.
- Is a Scythe-type ability.
- Has a chance to freecast various magic in a single turn depending on Eurus's level.
Under level 10: Airblade + Arcane Shock
Level 10 to Level 20: Airblade x2 or Airblade + Arcane Shock
Level 20 to Level 30: Airblade x2 or Airblade + Arcane Shock or Airblade + Wind Buffet
Level 30 to Level 40: Airblade + Wind Buffet or Airblade x2 or Wind Buffet + Gust
Level 40 to Level 50: Airblade + Wind Buffet or Wind Buffet x2 or Wind Buffet + Gust
Level 50 to Level 99: Airblade + Wind Buffet or Wind Buffet x2 or Wind Buffet + Gust or Gust x2 or Gust x3.
About Doublehand Stance
Doublehand Stance...
- Will always cast Attack + Swing regardless of level.
- Applies "Doublehand Scythe" to Eurus, which increases Physical damage by 25%.
- Removes "Singlehand Scythe" and allows access to Skills, but prevents the use of Magic.
- Starts with a 3 turn warm-up and has a 3 turn cool-down.
- Is a Scythe-type ability.
Alpha Opt-In Instructions
1. With the Steam client open, right click Cross of Auria and select Properties
2. In the new window, navigate to the Betas tab
3. Enter the following beta access code: version5alpha
4. Press the "opt-in" button and make sure the branch listed is "alpha5 - 5.0 Alpha Branch" in the drop down menu. Then, it is safe to exit this menu.
To switch back to the retail version of the game, select "None" in the drop down menu instead.
0.04 [Live Now] Details & Plans for 0.05
There are still a handful of things I need to do to finish up the first day, including fix the "nightmare" quest log information to reflect the changes in the quest. As of right now, it will not progress past a certain point regardless of having completed the steps. When the quest details are filled out, a debug NPC will be added to Lvell until 5.0 merges with the default retail branch of the game. If you do not debug the quest log information before then, it will never update to be accurate unless you start a new save file. Keep in mind, the Quest Log is purely visual and has absolutely no effect on anything inside the game. It merely exists as a resource for extra reading or help if you've put down the game for a while and have forgotten where you left off.
This build includes the next day 1 quest - the Phoenix Ash introduction. This quest should progress from start to finish without errors. I just spent the last four or so hours testing it, so I very much hope this is the case. As always, if you find any issues, please report them on Discord or as a reply to this post!
This build does not include major additions or changes to the Battlefront arena.
Over the next few updates, my goal are the following:
• Add the new party member Eurus for players who purchased CoA before it became F2P. This exclusivity will be temporary and last no longer than six months after the release of 5.0, after which point his addition will be permanent for everyone.
• Add a thank-you box in the Alpha build to be carried over in the merged retail build later for those of you who participated.
• Tie together the current point in the story up until the end of Hell's Gate. Sadly, this is the next roadblock as Historian Ewynn needs to be completely rebuilt, as he has entanglement which does not function correctly spread out across multiple quests. I don't estimate his repair to take very long, but it isn't possible to merge the retail build until he's fixed.
0.04 [5.0 Alpha Build #4, Test Date: August 04, 2021]
What's In This Version:
- Major overhaul to the States system. Completely removed extended turn and variable states and replaced with streamlined states listed below. Due to this change, every actor, class, item, enemy, armor, and weapon had to be looked at to remove the previous state and apply the new one in its place where applicable. Example: If a weapon would apply one of the previous types of poison, its reference position in the database was changed to the new one.
- Enemies who visibly have an elemental type now share those type weaknesses - see the elemental resistance chart here: : https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1AxJJBGunGnyzHuWEemJvEQRHmEkEtSi7HaNkJJGtCSI/edit?usp=sharing
What To Look For: Look for these and other bugs and report them on Discord!
- When KO'd, Battlefront teammates should drop all gear, revert to level 1 with 0 EXP, and leave the party.
- Battlefront characters should leave the party when Ruby leaves the area, then return when Ruby comes back, keeping all of their gear and EXP intact.
- If any area returning to the World Map instead crashes the game on Day 1.
- Actors or enemies apply a buff or debuff that does not make sense relative to who or what they are.
- Weapons or armor do not protect against statuses which their flavor text says they do.
DLC Changes:
- Armor from the Founder's Pack V set now increases resistances to the new Poison, Burn, and Bleed. Previously, this set only added resistances to Poison and Burn.
New States:
- Some skill may override the reset turn function and add turns instead.
- There are no longer multiple variations of common damage over time effects. However, some special case variations remain - such as Devastating Poison, which will replace Poison on the afflicted target.
• Poison
-- DoT Formula - (a.mat * 2) + (a.luk / 16)
-- DoT Variance - 33%
-- Resets turns when reapplied.
-- Duration: 2-5 turns.
• Devastating Poison
-- DoT Formula - (a.mat * 4) + (a.luk / 8)
-- DoT Variance: 33%
-- Resets turns when reapplied.
-- Duration: 3-5 turns.
-- Added Effect: Immunity to regular Poison state.
• Burn
-- DoT Formula - (a.mat * 2)
-- DoT Variance - 33%
-- Added Effect: Reduces Attack by 33%
-- Resets turns when reapplied.
-- Duration: 2-5 turns.
• Bleed
-- DoT Formula - (a.atk * 2)
-- DoT Variance - 50%
-- Resets turns when reapplied.
-- Duration: 2-5 turns.
• Frostbite
-- DoT Formula - (a.mat * 1.15)
-- DoT Variance - 18%
-- Adds turns when reapplied.
-- Duration: 2-5 turns.
• Heal
-- HoT Formula - (a.mat * 2)
-- HoT Variance - 25%
-- Resets turns when reapplied.
-- Duration: 2-5 turns.
Fixes:
- Resolved an issue where the player could Game Over is Ruby was KO'd after the Spheria battle.
Changes:
- Phoenix Ash opened after water spirit quest & questline adjusted to reflect new states.
- Day 1 Shoreline box now contains a Minor Revive.
- Removed the 'Day 1 Revan' map.
- Spheria (Lv. 7) now conforms to Water-type defenses.
- 1st Den An'ura units now correctly apply the new Poison state.
- Scarlet Lava Spawn now has a 10% chance to cause Burn.
- Scarlet Cavern enemies now conform to Fire-type defenses. Drahkin, Egg, & Golem have custom type defenses instead.
- 2nd Den An'ura units now conform to Poison-type defenses.
- Updated all skills to conform to New States.
- Expose Weakness now reduces target defense by 33%, up from 30%.
- Instability now applies all three debuffs in one as opposed to three separate chances to apply a single debuff. Chance for Instability to be applied reduced from 75% to 50%.
- Molgoroth now follows Poison defense types with the addition of full immunity to Poison attacks.
- Frostbrood Minions now follow Poison defense types with the addition of 50% resistance to Ice. Normally, Poison types have no resistance or weakness to ice.
- Elementals which were previously immune to their own primary element now follow type defenses instead, which universally have a 50% resistance to their own element. The chart for elemental resistances can be found at the top of these notes.
- Frostbrood Titan now follows Ice-type defenses and is additionally 50% resistant to Poison-type attacks. Normally, Ice types have no resistance or weakness to poison.
- Flame Titan now follows Fire-type defenses but retains his story-based 200% weakness to Ice. Electric weakness reduced from 175% to standard fire-type defense which is 133%.
- An'rim Operant now has a 25% chance to apply Burn or Bleed and a 10% chance to apply Poison on attacks. An'rim units are not considered fire-type, but are immune to Burn.
- Agartha Rift units now follow Soul-type defenses.
- All mechs are considered immune to Bleed.
- Eldritch Wretch is now Dark-type.
- Frost Fortress units are immune to Freeze.
- Scorpio's Pupil is now Water-type, but retains his immunity to Water.
Alpha Opt-In Instructions
1. With the Steam client open, right click Cross of Auria and select Properties
2. In the new window, navigate to the Betas tab
3. Enter the following beta access code: version5alpha
4. Press the "opt-in" button and make sure the branch listed is "alpha5 - 5.0 Alpha Branch" in the drop down menu. Then, it is safe to exit this menu.
To switch back to the retail version of the game, select "None" in the drop down menu instead.
5.0 Alpha #3 Details
I'm not sure if I posted patch notes for the 0.02, so they are also included in this one. Short version: day 1 questline expanded. Extra detail added to the Battlefront area.
0.03 [5.0 Alpha Build #3, Test Date: August 01, 2021]
What To Look For: Look for these and other bugs and report them on Discord!
- Quest with Rose progresses to a conclusion in the forest after the boss.
- Progress prevented after Jack leaves.
- Able to interact with Veil - Colosseum, Founder's Pack DLCs, etc.
- Should not be possible to enter the Phoenix Ash even after the water spirit quest is complete.
New:
- Intro quest extends from Ruby wake up to mid day 1.
Changes:
- Battlefront Gazer (Lv. 1) now has an additional 20% chance to drop a Silver Piece.
- Removed the detonation mechanic from Battlefront III.
- Removed percent-based and turn-based states. Added more streamlined hot/dot states in their place.
- Phoenix Ash questline adjusted to reflect new states.
- Removed all Deprecated skills.
Known Issues:
- In game version still reads "4.1.4.5 [Build #94-C]" - the only way to know you're on the correct version is to start a new game and see if the beginning has Hephaes and Ullr right away.
- The day 1 questline does not appear in the Quest Log.
Emergency Changes After Deployment:
- Blocked entrance to Phoenix Ash.
(The Phoenix Ash questline was not yet updated to include information regarding the new HoT/DoT system, but was left in my notepad as a 'to do' not 'is finished')
0.02 [5.0 Alpha Build #2, Test Date: July 24, 2021]
What's In This Version:
- Expands beginning of game to end of water spirit quest. Adds zones and functionality to Battlefront. Ability to leave Lvell after water spirit.
What To Look For: Look for these and other bugs and report them on Discord!
- Battlefront teammates are removed from team the turn after they are KO'd or after a full party wipe.
- Game Over is prevented when Ruby is KO'd but then leaves Battlefront area.
- Water Spirit quest is functional.
New:
- Day 1 event added to Lvell.
- Added 2 zones to Battlefront event.
Changes:
- Removed the following items from the game data: Apple, Orange, Carrot, Grapes
- Accidentally removed Quest Log data for Search For the Strongest - the details of this quest may change when this build advances to that point.
Alpha Opt-In Instructions
1. With the Steam client open, right click Cross of Auria and select Properties
2. In the new window, navigate to the Betas tab
3. Enter the following beta access code: version5alpha
4. Press the "opt-in" button and make sure the branch listed is "alpha5 - 5.0 Alpha Branch" in the drop down menu. Then, it is safe to exit this menu.
To switch back to the retail version of the game, select "None" in the drop down menu instead.
5.0 Alpha #1 - 0.01 & Opt-In Instructions
- I will be pushing updates to this branch of the game, not always with patch notes, in order to test the 5.0 format before it merges with the retail version of the game.
- Save files made in the 5.0 branch should not be loaded on a 4.X version, and vice versa. Only load your 5.0 save while 5.0 is installed, or else you will experience problems!
- I'm looking for bugs and oddities - specifically the ability to access content that should not be accessible yet. The short explanation is - I've inserted an entire "day" in between Ruby waking up and her meeting up with Jack. If you are able to escape this loop and see dialogue from any of the other party members or story content, please document how you were able to escape and report it here or on Discord (https://discord.gg/bMS9ktw).
- At this point, I am confident that save files made here in the Alpha #1 build will be able to be carried over all the way to the merged 5.0 retail build, so long as we don't find something game shattering in between now and then. That being said, I am also confident that all save files made on the 4.X builds will not be compatible with 5.0 and future builds. For clarification: the current default branch of the game is a 4.X build. A New Game file is required to participate in this test. If you do not participate in the test, a New Game file will be required once 5.0 is the default live branch.
- Expected play time of the default build: ~8 hours.
- Expected play time of the 0.01 build: ~15 minutes.
- Try to break it. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.
Expectations for the 0.02 build:
- Expanded minigame area.
- First major Day 1 quest.
- Activation of Phoenix Ash and the first Shoreline quest.
Alpha Opt-In Instructions
1. With the Steam client open, right click Cross of Auria and select Properties
2. In the new window, navigate to the Betas tab
3. Enter the following beta access code: version5alpha
4. Press the "opt-in" button and make sure the branch listed is "alpha5 - 5.0 Alpha Branch" in the drop down menu. Then, it is safe to exit this menu.
To switch back to the retail version of the game, select "None" in the drop down menu instead.
Changelog (This is from the "x. Patch Notes" file found inside the game folder)
0.01 [5.0 Alpha Build #1, Test Date: June 23, 2021]
- Some zones are save restricted.
- Do not play your regular file while 5.0 alpha builds are installed. Also, do not play your 5.0 save file while the regular build is installed.
What's In This Version:
- Expanded intro up to Day 1 Lvell. Progression past this point is blocked. The upcoming Day 1 events take place in between waking up from the Veil scene and meeting Jack on Day 2.
- Access to DLC is available starting at Ruby's House. Activate the statue next to the teleport pad.
-- The events in Lvell are not yet placed.
- Lvell Guards prevent progress toward Jack, Scarlet Cavern, Auria.
- The Colosseum basement events, The Pit, and DLC are accessible from the new room in Ruby's house.
- Framework for a new area (Battleground #) has been placed in the area north of Lvell.
-- Ability to recruit allies.
-- Function for dismissing hired allies when Ruby leaves the area, returns party members.
-- Function for dismissing party members when Ruby enters the area, returned hired Allies.
-- Progression is not currently set up.
-- Wood, Food, Leather, Oil, Iron, Coal, Steel, Stone, Silver Piece, and Gold Piece have been added to the item database as currency for this area.
What To Look For: Look for these and other bugs and report them on Discord!
- The orc war world map should not be accessible.
- There should be no soldier or vendor NPCs in Lvell.
- Only Lvell, Shoreline, Battleground, and Veil zones should be accessible.
- If you found everything in the Veil, the first torch should light up in the trophy hall.
- Dialogue with characters who are not yet in the party should not happen.
New:
- Intro slightly expanded.
- Battleground area under construction.
- Day 1 version of Lvell (currently restricted).
Fixes:
- Removed unused dialogue for the Moderate HP Potion Recipe in Ruby's house.
- The dialogue for pickups in the Elcott Mansion now matches the item received. Players who have already looted this location before 4.1.4.4 will be able to return and loot it again.
Changes:
- The Founder's Pack DLC, Headless Horseman DLC, Colosseum, and Hall of Challengers now have warp-in entrances from the Veil. This new Veil location will be accessible consistently throughout the game and from various interconnected points throughout the world.
- Ruby's Basement has been sealed off. DLC is no longer contained in that location.
- The Trophy Hall has been moved from Ruby's House to the Veil.
- Rift Beasts are now Soul type. Soul enemies have the following resistance changes (higher # = more weakness | 0 = immune)
-- Arcane (*167), Ghost (*133), Poison (*67), Soul (*50), Holy (*33), Psychic (*0)
- Details changed for the Poison ring from Den An'ura.
- It is not possible to engage the Frost Titan until the Old Junk is delivered if it is picked up. Moving forward is still possible if the item is never picked up or if the quest is completed.
- Minor terrain changes to the North and East sides of The Four Kingdoms Area.
Notes:
- Left blockers off map in Lvell. They will block the exit when the events of the day 1 morning are in place. For now, the path is open for testing functionality of the event.
5.0 Info - Q&A
Section 1: The game as it is right now.
Q: Will achievements be coming to Cross of Auria?
A: No. For the time being, it isn't possible to implement achievements. At some point in time, the plugin which connects the engine (RPG Maker MV) to Steamworks stopped working. I've tried on multiple occasion to fix it, you can even see some of the files leftover in the game folder. However, it appears to not be possible to re-establish the connection between client and Steam. In the place of achievements, I made a room in Ruby's house dedicated to trophies. They will be functional when 5.0 releases and will offer in-game rewards. At first, the room will be much larger than is necessary as to accommodate future trophies. If you happen to know how to code in Java or Ruby and are interested in making a plugin to make actual achievements work, feel free to let me know & join the Discord @ https://discord.gg/bMS9ktw.
Q: Where can I find herbs?
A: The "Herbs for Clarence" quest is unfinished and will not function as expected. Originally, details and a conclusion were planned but ultimately put on the back-burner in favor of preparing the 5.0 update.
Q: How do I get into the dojo?
A: The newer section of Lvell (main city area) is not yet finished. Some buildings, like the Dojo, are inaccessible.
Section 2: Updating to 5.0
Q: Will the Founder's Pack DLC still be available?
A: Yes. The FP DLC will be moved to a new location in the Veil which will be accessible at multiple points in the game. Additionally, the Challenge of the Headless will also remain accessible in a similar manner.
Q: Will I be able to keep my current save file?
A: No. Once the new version of the game is released, a group of save file replacements will be launched to erase all currently held save files for all players. Playing the game in a 4.0 zone on the 5.0 framework will lead to crashes and other undesirable effects.
Q: Will all the blocked off cities open up in 5.0?
A: Not right away. When 5.0 launches, Ruby will be confined to the Lvell area for a short while. The beginning of the game is being expanded, so expect to spend more time in Lvell than you did before. Other unfinished or blocked off cities will open up at the rest of the game is opened up in the time following 5.0's release.
Q: Which areas will be included in the initial 5.0 release?
A: The Veil, Lvell, The Colosseum, The Pit, & Shoreline. The Agartha activities will be temporarily moved to a regularly accessible place within the Veil until Agartha is reopened later.
Q: After 5.0, what can I expect to be released next?
A: Originally, Ruby wakes up on the second or third day with the timeframe being unclear. With 5.0's release, Ruby will wake up from the Veil on the first day and the events of day one will be more clear. The events which take place during the current game will still happen, but the when of it all will be more ironed out. 5.0 basically encompasses the day one. After the initial release, the meetup with Jack and progression through Den An'ura and Scarlet Cavern up to Hell's Gate will be added, then Auria with the Rabbit's Foot and Frost Forest and the rest of the current game. I'm adding some time between launches in order to untangle the Rabbit's Foot from progression throughout Revan and to fix some incomplete or otherwise unintuitive questlines. For instance, Ewynn is completely broken and needs to be fixed from the ground up. I can't release Auria with Lvell at the same time without completely fixing the Rabbit's Foot questlines.
Q: When is 5.0 coming out?
A: I wish I could answer this, but making a promise before I'm sure would only lead to disappointment. As of right now, I'm entirely sure how much work needs to be done to untangle Lvell from other parts of the world. I also need to add worthwhile things to do for day one.
Whenever I come with another Q/A that needs to be posted, I'll edit it in. If you have any questions, let me know!
Development Stream Tonight
A few things to keep in mind before we get started here:
• I am currently developing a new version of the game which will expand the intro and some other parts of the current story. Because of this, a new save file will be required once 5.0 releases. If you choose to keep your previous save file from before 5.0, things are going to break!
• I originally intended to make the 5.0 branch an opt-in only, but with so many new people downloading the game, I feel it would be best to get everyone on the same version ASAP. Because of this, once I am ready to start redistributing the game with the new intro, 5.0 will be the only available version. Other branches will be disabled.
Moving on, the reason I'm writing this is to invite you all to a live stream in about 5 hours from now, at 3:00 PM EST. Today, I'll be spending the day preparing the Veil and Lvell area for immediate release. Additionally, I'll be preparing a new character to join the party with their own questline as a thank you people who bought the game before I changed the price to free. This character and questline will be exclusive to those players until Jan 1st, 2022. At that point, the area with the new character will be added to the primary game files. However, the other thank-you goodies will remain in the paid-only branch which is no longer available. Thank you to the hundreds of people who supported this project since it's release in 2018!
Please feel free to join me @ 3pm EST today here:
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If there are any changes to the stream time, the title of the stream will reflect that & an update will be posted on my discord (https://discord.gg/bMS9ktw)
See you there!
CoA Goes F2P & Other Updates
Anyway, if you're wondering why I decided to make the base game free to download... well, it's simple really. I originally was going to do the game as a series with episodes, with each game being about 6 hours of play time and costing $0.99 to buy. After much research, I finally came up with a way to expand the back-end limitations of the engine so I no longer have to worry about things like amount of enemies, amount of battlegroups, items, events, etc. Basically, there was a hard cap of things I could make, but now there's not. Between my cap being lifted and me already passing where the original story ended, I want to put the game in as many hands as would be willing to play it. That's what is most important to me. I want you all to play and enjoy what I've made.
For those of you who have supported me so far by purchasing the game when it still had a price tag, you will not be forgotten. I have made this poll for you & others to decide what you should get: https://www.youtube.com/post/UgzPSFxLHyRjAtiPj-Z4AaABCQ
A quick note about the 5.0 development before I go -
It's coming along just fine. I'm going to begin deploying the first builds in the next week or two once the back systems are completely finalized. Once a forced new save file will no longer be necessary (relative to other 5.0 files), I'll make the process to getting on this version of the game clear. Once this version catches up to the current public version, it will take the place of the current public version. Keep in mind that if you do not opt into the 5.0 version now, you will still have to replace your save file with a 5.0 new game later. Better to do it sooner so that your progress between now and public launch isn't lost!
Happy gaming everyone. Goodnight :)