Gordian Quest 1.0 is now LIVE! :) This is just a broadcast post. For the full details of our exit from early access and our future plans, please check out our official announcement here - https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/981430/view/3358010319627335196
Crafted with love, Mixed Realms Team
Gordian Quest is Leaving Early Access Soon!
Hey Heroes!
It’s been 2 years since we launched Gordian Quest in Early Access, right when the world started shutting down due to Covid. Ever since then, we had been working mostly from home until recently.
And things were just different. It was harder to communicate. Meeting on Zoom lacked the human touch.
But in spite of the challenges, we are finally at a stage where we can now happily announce that Gordian Quest will officially exit EA to launch on 23 June 2022!
Watch our Full Release Announcement Trailer:
A big thank you to you, for your passionate feedback has helped shape the game to what it is today. We have always taken all your suggestions and constructive words to heart, and we hope it shows in our efforts to continually improve the game with upgraded features and new content.
For instance, we added Realm Mode to enhance replayability, encouraging experimentation and adaptation for each run.
We added more Acts to the Campaign mode to keep you on your toes and continue your adventures in Wrendia. Initially beginning your journey in the undead-laden lands of Westmire, you made your way to the Azul Desert where you not only had to brave the punishing heat, but also the denizens that populated these sands.
Then to the frosty Faded Peaks …
But we are not done yet! We still have a final grand update for the exit from Early Access!
Here’s What In Store For You
A brand new hero: Stroud the Monk! Stroud is an acolyte from one of the few remaining monasteries in Wrendia. His skills revolve around multi-hit and single-hit attacks and abilities that can strengthen his friends.
Act IV, the Final act to wrap up the main story line. Act IV includes a brand new location,The Sky Imperium as well new enemies to face off in your journey.
Adventure Mode. Adventure Mode serves as the game’s post game adventure where you can continue with your Campaign party. They include the following new challenges: → The Maelstorm Gate: Your party charts through five different realms yielding a reward at the end. → Sciencer’s Trial: For solo challengers, you get to bring a single party member into this challenging trial of fire. → Fathomless Depths: A procedurally generated dungeon where players can explore to obtain resources and unlock areas in the Sky Imperium. → Puzzle Encounters: Battles that require more than just brute strength to plow through, puzzle encounters offer certain criterias to be met in order to clear.
Balance changes as well as new items and equipment.
Finally, we also want to announce that we are planning to launch a Kickstarter campaign to port Gordian Quest to console. Our priority is to port to Switch, followed by Playstation and XBox if we hit the stretch goals.
We would like to seek your help to tell your friends who may have wanted a copy of GQ on console. We would really greatly appreciate it!
We have a pre-launch page here which will be open sometime in July!
Meanwhile, we would still like to continue hearing from our players! Is there anything else you would like to share with us? Or if you have any particular events that have stuck out to you during the course of our journey?
We hope to deliver a wonderful experience on 23 June 2022!
Crafted with Love, The Mixed Realms Team
Got Ideas for new Realm Bosses? We'd love to hear them!
Hey Heroes!
As we arrive closer to release, we have a few more final updates that will make their drop!
We have been brainstorming and thinking about a new Realm Boss that all of you will enjoy going against in battle. You've given us really good insights on Discord and in our recent poll. So now, we decided to take it a step further with this open-ended survey. We wanna hear your CRAZZZZZY ideas!
What kind of boss would you like to see and fight?
It can be something completely different and crazy! Perhaps a certain archetype you have yet to come across in your adventures?
Share with us your thoughts and ideas. If you've got tough and exciting mechanics we can give to our boss, please drop them in the comments below ^_^ We can't wait to see what your creativity can bring!
There will be two more endgame areas arriving to Sky Imperium, each featuring unique rewards to strive for upon completing your adventures.
Sciencer's Trial A solo challenge that will test your mettle. Survive every round of the challenge with the chosen hero to obtain special variants of Augur Orbs that can be applied to Helmets, Gloves, and Boots to grant power ups to a hero's skills.
Fathomless Depths Once a prison, then a convenient dumping ground for failed experiments. Now, untold horrors live in its darkest depths. It is a procedurally generated dungeon that players can explore, building up the final reward by visiting certain nodes as they venture deeper into it.
If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to reach out to us through our Steam Forums or chat with us on Discord. We love engaging with the community.
For more updates, please do follow us on our Steam page! Your support means a lot to our team. Gordian Quest is slated for a mid-2022 release. Thank you!
Crafted with Love, The Mixed Realms Team
Act 4 Beta Has Arrived + New Hero!
Greetings, Heroes.
The time has come again. Act 4 is now on the bleeding-edge build: this includes a brand new area to explore as well as the anticipated 10th Hero! We need your help to test drive this huge update before it officially drops to the live build about a month from now.
You can find the guide to accessing bleeding-edge here.
Translations for Bleeding-Edge will come later and due this being a beta build, expect bugs. If you do bump across any, don’t forget to hit F8 to send us that report.
What’s in Act IV?
A brand new area-Sky Imperium. (Level 48-60)
From the Faded Peaks, you will ascend up towards Sky Imperium. Unlike the previous, more widespread maps, Sky Imperium is a castle with multiple winding paths. Time to head upwards and onwards!
A brand new hero!
More enemy types, including the Steam Defender inspired by our community response.
New bosses
New Legendary items
A post-campaign game mode - a gateway to other worlds
Your adventure continues in the floating city of Sky Imperium, once the seat of Vanaiian power and the location of the mythical device known as the Maelstrom Gate, an entrance to many different worlds.
Your adventure this time will now be accompanied by a new face:
Introducing Stroud The Monk
As some of you might have guessed, the tenth hero to join the roster is Stroud the Monk. Across Wrendia lies hidden monasteries, passing down teachings of old. Stroud, one of the few acolytes from these monasteries, is here to fight against the evil that plague the realm.
Stroud’s skills revolve around these main themes:
Multi hit skills and abilities, chipping damage from enemies, allowing other heroes to finish them off.
Single hit skills and abilities, allowing a single strike that can take out a one pesky enemy and wound a boss.
Effects that can bolster those around you, the supportive Monk that can strengthen his friends.
Adventure Mode
Once you have completed Act 4, you will gain access to Adventure Mode, a more free-form mode where you can make use of the Maelstrom Gate to access Rifts.
Similar to Realm Mode, it comes with a twist - a Rift consists of five Realms, with a Realm Boss at the end of the last Realm guarding the spoils of a Rift Chest. The Rift Chest contains a powerful new item class known as Talismans.
Talismans take up a new inventory slot, and have randomized modifiers. One of these modifiers is a +1 rank to all cards containing a specific tag such as Fire, Buff, Heal, Melee, etc. Given the many possible combinations, these items can be farmed repeatedly by completing Rifts.
All Realm Bosses now have 2 thematic Legendary items added to their drop pool. These items contain cards from their deck, allowing you to mimic their abilities and opening up new build possibilities.
With the update of Campaign mode, Realm Mode has also received quite the overhaul. We are also introducing special crafting items and legendary consumables.
Special crafting items allows on the fly modification of items to ease the power curve and reduce the need to find merchants for item upgrades. Legendary consumables provide direct benefits like permanent stat bonuses.
The aim is to make Realm Mode more dynamic and consequences of actions more game changing to contrast the controlled, slower growth in Campaign mode.
Special Battle Events
To be added in the coming weeks as part of Rifts, you will come across special combat puzzle events. These differ from regular battles and contain special units that can be interacted with as well as unique objectives. This allows for more variation of battles with a more complex puzzle system and specific win conditions.
Thanks for reading. We will continue to work hard in bringing you more exciting features and improvements in the game the best we can. Early Access is coming to a close and we look forward to taking these final steps with you.
Gordian Quest is slated for a mid 2022 release.
As always, we hope to hear your thoughts below on what we’ve put forth so far. Feel free to join us on Discord to chat with us.
And last but not least, if you haven't already, please consider giving us a positive review on Steam if you like how we are doing so far. It would really mean a lot to us. Thanks! :)
Crafted with Love, The Mixed Realms Team
Gordian Quest Turns 2 and We Have Surprises!
Hey Heroes,
It has been a wild ride since Gordian Quest hit Early Access 2 years ago! Gordian Quest has grown exceptionally with the input from our ever growing fanbase and active community, and we have every one of you to thank.
Last year’s highlight was the launch of Act 3, peppered with lots of polishing, balancing and well, even more balancing.
There is still a ways to go, but we can now see the exit of the Early Access tunnel! Soon, Gordian Quest will be officially released with its completed Campaign and End Game goodies.
Speaking of which, let’s begin with one of the more exciting news!
Of course, we have brand new content waiting for you. As you might already know, we have a tenth hero joining the crew! Any guesses?
Clue #1 - Notice anything different about our birthday artwork above? Clue #2 - Many of you have been eagerly requesting this hero class!
This brings us to our next question: When can you meet this new mystery hero?
Act IV BETA Drops on 1st April!
This isn’t a joke, we promise! We will be dropping the final Act of Campaign mode under the bleeding-edge build on 1st April. The final Act will be released alongside this new Hero, so be sure to stay tuned to our update announcements.
Community Fanart
But of course, beyond just gameplay feedback, we have received other kinds of support from our imaginative community.
The team is always excited to see our heroes drawn by others in various styles, ideas and concepts, and here are some of the fanart we have received over the years.
A lovely piece by Del on Twitter and Steam! The Gordian Quest heroes when they have that max supply camp :).
A Genderbent Lucius by Joi Rudin on Artstation. They have also done other Genderbent Gordian Quest heroes so do check them out!
@karee5050 on Twitter. Note their Twitter contains Mature Content!
Ida the Druid, Wild and Free by @elinorveron_ on Instagram.
Chibi art of our faithful Catherin by tipa.media on Instagram <3.
Do go over and give these artists a follow if you enjoy their work!
Thanks for reading. We will continue to work hard in bringing you more exciting features and improvements in the game the best we can. Early Access is coming to a close and we look forward to taking these final steps with you.
Gordian Quest is slated for a mid 2022 release.
As always, we hope to hear your thoughts below on what we’ve put forth so far. Feel free to join us on Discord to chat with us.
And last but not least, if you haven't already, please consider giving us a positive review on Steam if you like how we are doing so far. It would really mean a lot to us. Thanks! :)
Crafted with Love, The Mixed Realms Team
Who should be the 'Steam Defender'?
Hey Heroes!
If you’ve been following our development journey long enough, you know exciting updates are about to drop when we’ve been quiet for a while.
Next month, we will be releasing the bleeding-edge build featuring the final act for Campaign Mode which will wrap up the story in Wrendia. You will be venturing into Sky Imperium, a grand floating city that was once the Vanaiian seat of power, to hopefully find a rewarding end to your gordian quest.
Along the way, you’ll face some familiar opponents, particularly the Constructs. You might recall the rather formidable Ancient Defender back in Act II and his posse of Defense and Attack constructs:
Vote for your favorite concept!
We are working on concepts for the Steam Defender, an upcoming enemy from the same family of Constructs and we need your help to pick the most suitable design.
The Steam Defenders were made by a branch of sciencers who wanted to intertwine technology and magic together, thus creating these sentient beings. Although the Steam Defenders are not going to be one of Act IV's final bosses, they're still bound to give you an ironclad challenge.
The winning concept will help us set a more solid direction for our next enemy, the Flying Gunbot.
Share with us your top design picks. If you've also got some ideas on what unique skills / mechanics we can assign to the Steam Defender, please drop them in the comments below ^_^ We can't wait to read your suggestions!
If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to reach out to us through our Steam Forums or chat with us on Discord. We love engaging with the community.
For more updates, please do follow us on our Steam page! Your support means a lot to our team. Gordian Quest is slated for a mid-2022 release. Thank you!
Crafted with Love, The Mixed Realms Team
The Act 3 Patch Is Now Live!
Greetings, Heroes.
An avalanche of updates has landed on Gordian Quest! For the duration of the Steam Halloween Sale, Gordian Quest will also be on 30% off so if you've been wanting to join in on the adventure, now is a really good time! :)
What's in this big update?
Let's dive straight into the maw of madness!
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Act III - The Faded Peaks (Lv 36 - 48)
Leave the Azul Desert and continue your adventures in the Faded Peaks, an icy mountain region once home to the Vanai. Where Act 1 and 2 were much more open and vast, Act 3 features a challenging trek from base camp to summit - a more linear route but interspersed with multiple branching paths.
11 new enemy types to test your mettle.
5 new bosses - the Beholder, the Blue Dragon, the Hellserpent, the Hobgoblin Warlord ... last one's a surprise!
40 new Legendary items to discover.
Campaign Changes
You can now play a concurrent Campaign or Realms game on the same profile. Gone are the days of switching profiles or ensuring the current run is completed.
Campaign is now considered a persistent mode - continue playing with your party even after the Act has ended while you wait for Act 4 and endgame modes.
In campaigns, the Renown counter at the top now displays your lifetime amount.
An item Stash has been added to the Guild Hall and Operations Tent, allowing you to store items.
Exploration
Exploration is a new node mechanic that captures the spirit of the party venturing through an area, interacting with collectables, and making micro decisions.. When entering an Exploration node, a random map will be generated, littered with various interactive elements.
This feature is present in all Acts, and is intended to reduce the abundance of combat nodes.
Missions
First introduced as Kyreal's function back in Act 2, we had always wanted to cycle back to it and make changes to address its usability. With more of GQ's core features in place, we are ready to refresh Missions as an endgame feature.
Heroes that you've acquired can be set to focus on one of two missions.
While travelling, you can meet up to 3 heroes while in Explorations - interacting with them will trigger their mission, revealing an object of their interest or granting you a side benefit.
Kyreal now also sells Maps, and you can run them by him to trigger an Exploration.
Maps can also come in the form of Raid Maps, which are suped-up versions of normal Maps.
Camping
Updated camping mechanics. There are now more varied reward mechanisms, methods of interactions, as well as deterministic ways to gain the base benefits of camping (rest and recovery).
Previously, hero field abilities were gated behind artifacts. These abilities have been changed to be part of the heroes' camp abilities.
Instead of paying a lump Supply cost to set up camp, the cost has been transferred to specific actions, so there can be more granular usage of Supplies based on what the party requires.
Realm Mode
While this patch cycle gives more love to the campaign side of things, Realm Mode is not forgotten and enjoys all of the above changes in a modified form.
Weekly/All-Time leaderboards have been added.
And More!
We've again simplified various status effects to make the game easier to understand and process. Burn, Chill, Poison, Bleed, and Shock are now back to being value-based, and always trigger before a unit's turn start.
If you've fully cleared an area, resting in an inn allows you to partially regenerate map nodes, allowing you an avenue to continue adventuring through Acts even after completion.
Updated visuals on enemy intents to better let you identify enemies using AOE attacks, Potent skills, or skills that track specific heroes.
Thanks for reading. We will continue to work hard in bringing you more exciting features and improvements in the game. We thank you for your support and patience as we continue to build this game with you.
As always, we hope to hear your thoughts below on what we’ve put forth so far. Feel free to join us on Discord https://discordapp.com/invite/tce6YMW to chat with us.
And last but not least, if you haven't already, please consider giving us a positive review on Steam if you like how we are doing so far. It would really mean a lot to us. Thanks! :)
Crafted With Love, The Mixed Realms Team
The Act 3 Beta Has Arrived
Greetings, Heroes.
The time is nearly upon us. We welcome the bravest of you to test drive the latest changes in the Act 3 update, before it officially releases one month from now.
As per all our bleeding-edge updates, we preface them by letting you know the following :
Expect bugs. Do use the F8 reporting tool so that we can identify and solve these issues asap!
Language translations will be added and updated prior to official release, as mechanics may change.
Additional polish e.g quest icons, event art, item art will be added prior to official release.
To opt-in to bleeding-edge, go to Gordian Quest on your Steam launcher and click on the following - Manage > Properties > Betas > Opt-in to bleeding-edge
What You Can Expect In The Act III Update
Act III - The Faded Peaks (Lv 36 - 48)
Leave the Azul Desert and continue your adventures in the Faded Peaks, an icy mountain region once home to the Vanai. Where Act 1 and 2 were much more open and vast, Act 3 features a challenging trek from base camp to summit - a more linear route but interspersed with multiple branching paths.
11 new enemy types to test your mettle.
5 new bosses - the Beholder, the Blue Dragon, the Hellserpent, the Hobgoblin Warlord ... last one's a surprise!
40 new Legendary items to discover.
Campaign Changes
You can now play a concurrent Campaign or Realms game on the same profile. Gone are the days of switching profiles or ensuring the current run is completed.
Campaign is now considered a persistent mode - continue playing with your party even after the Act has ended while you wait for Act 4 and endgame modes.
In campaigns, the Renown counter at the top now displays your lifetime amount.
An item Stash has been added to the Guild Hall and Operations Tent, allowing you to store items.
Exploration
Exploration is a new node mechanic that captures the spirit of the party venturing through an area, interacting with collectables, and making micro decisions.. When entering an Exploration node, a random map will be generated, littered with various interactive elements.
This feature is present in all Acts, and is intended to reduce the abundance of combat nodes.
Missions
First introduced as Kyreal's function back in Act 2, we had always wanted to cycle back to it and make changes to address its usability. With more of GQ's core features in place, we are ready to refresh Missions as an endgame feature.
Heroes that you've acquired can be set to focus on one of two missions.
While travelling, you can meet up to 3 heroes while in Explorations - interacting with them will trigger their mission, revealing an object of their interest or granting you a side benefit.
Kyreal now also sells Maps, and you can run them by him to trigger an Exploration.
Maps can also come in the form of Raid Maps, which are suped-up versions of normal Maps.
Camping
Updated camping mechanics. There are now more varied reward mechanisms, methods of interactions, as well as deterministic ways to gain the base benefits of camping (rest and recovery).
Previously, hero field abilities were gated behind artifacts. These abilities have been changed to be part of the heroes' camp abilities.
Instead of paying a lump Supply cost to set up camp, the cost has been transferred to specific actions, so there can be more granular usage of Supplies based on what the party requires.
Realm Mode
While this patch cycle gives more love to the campaign side of things, Realm Mode is not forgotten and enjoys all of the above changes in a modified form.
Weekly/All-Time leaderboards have been added.
These are a look at the major changes - read the Patch Notes to get the full scoop!
Thanks for reading. We will continue to work hard in bringing you more exciting features and improvements in the game. We thank you for your support and patience as we continue to build this game with you.
As always, we hope to hear your thoughts below on what we’ve put forth so far. Feel free to join us on Discord https://discordapp.com/invite/tce6YMW to chat with us.
And last but not least, if you haven't already, please consider giving us a positive review on Steam if you like how we are doing so far. It would really mean a lot to us. Thanks! :)
Crafted With Love, The Mixed Realms Team
The Strategies and Synergies Update Is Now Live! What's Next?
Hey Heroes,
The Strategies and Synergies Update is now live! To celebrate this update, Gordian Quest will be available at a 25% discount for the duration of the Steam Summer Sale.
Updating to this version will require starting a new campaign due to many changes to hero progression, so you'll be prompted to do so when you first load this update up.
If you prefer to finish up your current run, we've got you covered as well - you can quit when prompted and instead switch to the legacy (build 103f) branch, which contains the previous update. This branch will stay alive for another month, at which point it will be disabled.
So, what can you expect as a returning player? Let's take a dive into the major changes!
Torment Difficulty
For players who want an even greater challenge, we've added a new difficulty mode called Torment. It ties in strongly with enemy traits, which we'll describe more in detail below. We've also allowed opened up Realm Mode to all difficulty modes (not just Normal or Nightmare).
Many of you ask about being able to change difficulty levels in game. That is now possible from the escape menu.
A Fresh Coat of Paint
We've gone over a majority of the UI to better improve the production quality as well as consistency of various interface elements. We're not totally done with it, but you'll be able to notice the differences instantly in your playthroughs. Here are a couple of shots for comparison!
If you didn't already know, you can also use shortcuts to access the various context menus. Inventory - I Map - M Journal - J Skill Grid - P F1-F3 to select heroes
We'll know many of you will be looking for rebindable shortcuts - it's something that's on our to-do list.
Changes to Artifacts
Artifacts have had a slight rework in terms of their bonus, and they will also offer a bonus effect that can be unlocked with Renown. You can choose up to 6 Artifacts to bring on your run.
You will also have opportunities to find "Unstable Artifacts". These are lesser versions of artifacts that instead provide a one-off bonus when you activate them. These are rare items meant to fill in the gap for providing effects like being able to upgrade the tier of an item, forge a particular mod onto an item, grant a skill point, or revive a dead hero.
Renown can be used to obtain these artifacts on runs, and as such deadly encounters in the Acts will also grant Renown in a similiar fashion to that in Realm Mode.
You want more control? You got it.
Gordian Quest has always explored the intersection of building a hero in an RPG and deckbuilding context. We've further refined the ideas based on feedback from the community and we're excited to reveal the following big changes.
Edit your deck
We are introducing a new stat - minimum deck size, which starts at 12. This means that no matter what cards you learn, you can determine which 12 cards you want to bring into battle. Cards from items will always be added, but you can remove them via Void runes as before. You can reduce this value through the skill grid. We hope that this opens up the door to more fun trial-and-error combinations and strategic uses, and removes the feeling of deck bloat.
Item and skill sockets
We are differentiating legendary items and normal items by giving normal items skill sockets. Skill sockets come in five types (Attack, Defense, Ranged, Movement, Spell), and they allow you to input a skill of your own into it and modify it with runes. You can use this new system to empower your skills with runes like Power (+1 Rank), Efficacy (-1 AP cost on first use), or try out one of the new runes being added in this patch like Gambit (skill costs SP instead of AP).
SP? What's that?
SP (Strategy Points) is a new resource system given to heroes, much like a "Limit Break" or "EX Meter". Playing cards as per normal builds up this resource, and we've reworked various cards in game to use that instead. This system is intended to better control balance and improve card diversity across heroes, while removing the power cliff of finding "+1 AP" items. It led to many heroes feeling distinctly stronger than others simply because their cards were more cost-efficient in early game, and playing around with a fully geared 6-7 AP hero trivialized most fights.
Synergies
A new tab called Synergies allows you to set up a new mechanic among your party members. Every hero starts off at Synergy Rank 0, and they build this up by interacting in camp by chatting, or based off the decisions you make in certain events.
As a hero gains Synergy, they unlock special Stratagem cards. Stratagem cards are drawn whenever a hero has enough SP, and provide utility effects like free movement, bonus draw, bonus AP, HP recovery, and more.
When two heroes reach a specific Synergy level, they gain access to a special Synergy ability. Such an ability requires both heroes to spend the SP cost, activating a powerful effect.
We're still working on expanding this system, and it will serve as a framework for expansion in the future.
A Deadlier Challenge
We're reintroducing a new enemy class above Elite enemies, who will possess up to three Traits. Traits are special abilities that hinder the heroes or affect the battlefield, creating a unique scenario to fight in. Some examples of Traits include :
- Reality Warp : Randomly teleports one player to a random cell on round start. - Ruin : Every X card played by the party will be Expended. - Jailor : Roots a random hero on round start. - Wealthy : Drops Gold every time it is hit.
Status changes
We're slightly changing how damage status effects like Burn, Chill, Bleed, Shock, and Poison work. They are now charge based - when you apply up to the max stacks, that status is consumed and its special effect is triggered.
This change is intended to give to allow for quicker and more impactful "damage over time" effects if you can find ways to ramp up the status application such as by working together with various heroes, or finding combinations of talents and items, rather than waiting for round end to happen.
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Thanks for reading. We will continue to work hard in bringing you more exciting features and improvements in the game. We thank you for your support and patience as we continue to build this game with you.
As always, we hope to hear your thoughts below on what we’ve put forth so far. Feel free to join us on Discord https://discordapp.com/invite/tce6YMW to chat with us.
And last but not least, if you haven't already, please consider giving us a positive review on Steam if you like how we are doing so far. It would really mean a lot to us. Thanks! :)
