The distribution of islands and the content that they contain has changed. This is an optional upgrade for current saved games. With the addition of new content and island types throughout development, the distribution of islands and content has been something we want to re-balance. For example, some island types have become rarer than intended, while others too common. Also, it is often the case during play that you run into many islands in a row with very little content of interest then run across a single island with tons of content. All of this combined would occasionally cause unlucky players to play for long periods of time without the chance to experience exciting content. It is for this reason that we wanted to do some re-balancing.
These world changes are not automatically applied to existing saves. You can manually upgrade these saves by pressing the upgrade button next to each existing save file in the "Load" menu. If you have spent time mapping the world, note that this will render your map inaccurate as the placement of islands will change. However, if you have had the Cartographer NPC check your map, the game will offer to automatically populate a portion of your map for you based on how much and accurately you filled out your previous map.
ISLAND DISTRIBUTION
The chance for each island type to appear has been adjusted.
How far away from the origin certain island types can appear has also been adjusted.
Removed the too-vast expanses of ocean that could appear past 50 units away from the origin.
ISLAND CONTENT Spread out the content among islands so that you are now less likely to encounter many islands in a row without special content.
NEW HELP INTERFACE Replaced the old help book with a new help interface to make it easier to reference the topic you are looking for. Additionally, added pop-up notifications to direct new players towards particular help sections as they encounter related content.
NEW NPCS Added two new friendly characters to find in the world. Each offers a number of new quest and items to obtain.
OTHER CHANGES
Nearby dead enemies will no longer block you from saving the game.
Changed the way campfires and flags save their positions internally to reduce bloat in the registry.
Made question mark on merchant interfaces pulse to make it more noticeable.
Added close button to NPC dialog window
Fixed a bug where money would be given to the player when an NPC's wares would update due to a quest completion while the wares were visible.
Fixed money count in player equipment window not always updating properly when selling items.
Merchant inventories now start out scrolled to the top.
Increased the chance of named king challengers to appear.
Slightly improved map performance.
The whole number portion of the precise sextant's location now matches the normal sextant.
Notes For those of you waiting on multiplayer, don't worry. It is under development. This is one of a few smaller updates to be released during the multiplayer development period.
Update 1.9.1 - Sailor's Delight Now on Testing Branch
Hey everyone!
You can now download and play Update 1.9.1 - Sailor's Delight on the Steam testing branch. If you aren't already on the testing branch and would like to help us test the new update before an official push, you can follow the instructions here:
This update comes with a lot of new changes. Let me go over briefly some of what you can expect to see!
Island Distribution Changed
With this update we have changed the distribution of islands in the world. The new system better spreads out content and discoveries so that you'll be less likely to find multiple islands back to back with nothing on them. We've still got some content gated beyond a certain point and things of that nature to keep a sense of progression, but we wanted to decrease the lull a little bit and make it easier to find some of the unique content we've put into the game.
These changes will take effect to any new games you create and are an optional upgrade for previous save games.
New NPCs, Quests, and Items
Along with the new island distribution system, we've also implemented two brand new friendly characters with quests and rewards. These new characters are known as the Sea Fisher and the Sea Scholar. Each NPC will have five quests and as you complete the quests, you'll unlock access to rank 1 through 5 of their vendor gear. Once you hit rank 5, you'll be able to do a repeatable quest for a random loot drop. The random loot drop is guaranteed to be a rare item, but also has a chance to be an epic or even a legendary.
With these new NPC's we've introduced over 50 new weapons, armor, and items into the game to give you lots of new loot to work toward.
New Help Interface
This update also includes a new help interface intended to make it easier for new players to learn the mechanics of the game. The new interface is more intuitive to use and will direct players to a portion of the help journal as they encounter related content in the game.
In addition to all this we've also made some other changes. We've fixed a bug on the merchant window where the inventory would sometimes start out scrolled at the bottom. We've also made the question mark on the merchant interface pulse slightly to better indicate his available quest.
We plan on pushing this update out officially soon but can use your help on the testing branch in the mean time. Thanks for reading and as always we'd love to hear your feedback!
Update on Multiplayer and New NPC's
Hey everyone!
We've got some fun stuff coming up for Salt and wanted to share some of that with you today. First, let me give you guys an update on our multiplayer progress.
Update on Multiplayer
As you may know, we are currently working on adding multiplayer into Salt. Right now we have been mainly working on getting the technical foundation of multiplayer implemented. This means getting the basic systems designed, written, and debugged. This largely consists of getting multiple player's games to talk to each other in an organized and efficient way.
We've also been working on integration with Steam friends so that you can easily invite your friends on Steam to join you in Salt. You will be able to invite your friends from the main menu, and select a current save to play on, or start a new game. Your friends will also be able to select a save file to play, as long as the world seed matches the seed of the world you choose. This allows players to progress their game either by themselves or with other people, whichever they are in the mood for at the time.
The Sea Scholar and Sea Fisher
In addition to working on multiplayer implementation, we have also been working on adding two new NPC's into the game. These new characters will be known as the Sea Scholar and the Sea Fisher. They will feature multiple quests that allow you to rank up with their guild. As you rank up, you'll be able to unlock and buy armor, weapons, and other unique items from these vendors. Once you reach max rank, you'll be able to do a repeatable quest for a rare random loot drop.
We've got some other big changes we are working on that we will talk more about soon. As always we'd love to hear your feedback and thanks for reading!
- Will Sterling (Sound Lead and Game Design)
Dev Update: Multiplayer and What's to Come
Hello everyone!
It's been a fun ride at Lavaboots so far. We've made a ton of changes to Salt from when we first released on early access. We've revamped graphics such as the grass, water texture, GUI, pirate models, ship models, and even added stars. We've added merchant quests, a main story line, tons of lore, new NPC's, new island types, and a whole bunch of armor, weapons, and new items. We've also added new functionalities such as in-game cartographer, a quest and player journal, controller support, and a bunch of bug fixes and polishes along the way.
We finally feel like Salt is at a good state as far as a single player game. This was always our goal before we moved on to multiplayer implementation. Now, that time has finally come.
Implementing Multiplayer
Over the past couple weeks we've begun the process of multiplayer implementation. This is going to be a lot longer than the average update since it's going to require a whole lot of foundation work. There's a lot of technical work that has to be done to get something like multiplayer up and running, as well as a lot of game design choices to be made. We don't have an exact time frame for how long this will take currently, so our goal to keep you up to date as best as possible along the way. As we progress in the multiplayer implementation process, we'll be updating you and getting your feedback along the way.
We are very excited about multiplayer and we think it's going to add an entirely new element to Salt for those that want to play with others.
Updates During Multiplayer
Since the multiplayer implementation is going to take some time, we want to release small updates during the process so that you'll still have some new content to experience. We've got some neat ideas for these updates and are excited to share them with you. One thing we are going to be adding is a set of new NPC's that have quests and ranks for completing their quests. As you rank up, you'll get access to higher level merchant gear through that NPC. If you get through all the ranks, you'll then be able to do a repeatable quest for a random loot drop from a really nice set of items, potentially legendary and epic items.
Along with these smaller updates we also plan on doing bug fixes and polishes.
Keep an eye on our dev blog for more updates regarding multiplayer and the patches to release during the multiplayer implementation.
Update 1.9 - The Summoning
Delve further into Salt's main quest line in update 1.9 "The Summoning". Along with this update comes more quests, a new boss, bug fixes, and lots of new legendary items. Are you tough enough to face the evils which lie hidden in the darkest corners of Salt?
Changes
The remainder of the main quest line is now available.
The legendary version of the northern scepter will now drop instead of the epic version.
Reset quarters sailed value on breezy scepter of northern wind.
Upgraded engine to Unity 5.3.5.
Added stamina regeneration effect to breezy scepter of northern wind.
Fixed health and stamina bars showing incorrect percentage when unequipping an item that boosts max health or stamina.
Fixed a bug where using the revert to manual save option would load the game world of the default seed even if you were playing on a custom seed.
Effects that change player speed now show duration left in the description.
Fixed the sun in the main menu using the wrong bloom effect.
Fixed the island painting giving you the wrong painting back when picked up.
Fixed poachers not attacking you on sight.
Innkeeper now has a dialogue option to search for tier 2 pirate islands once the player reaches the "hat for hat" quest.
Fixed regular spider debuff damage. It is now properly tagged as poison damage.
Dev Update: Sneak Peek at Final Boss Battle
Hey everybody!
We are really excited about the next update which will introduce the last remaining main story quests and most importantly, the final boss. Today we just wanted to share with you a few glimpses of the boss battle. We have put more effort into this boss battle than any other to make it more fun, interesting, and engaging, and we can't wait to share it with you all!
This update will be coming out soon so stay on the lookout for more information in the coming weeks!
Update 1.8 - The King's Bounty
Update 1.8 brings tier 3 pirate islands to the world of Salt! These islands are swarming with some of the hardest pirates seen yet, and with some of the best treasure. With the update comes new enemies, fish, lore, quests, and items, including game's first legendary quality items.
Change Log
Added tier 3 pirate islands. Note that the new pirate islands will appear where some other island used to be in the world.
Added some new quests.
Added new fish.
Added new lore books.
Added new items including some legendary items.
Adjusted world lighting and bloom.
Added new recipes.
Added new collectable resources.
Ironite boulders now look slightly different. Their blue cracks have been replaced by silvery ones.
Added new "Throne" map mark.
Fixed bug where arrows would get stuck in jungle vines.
Fixed a bug where you were able to interfere with boat physics while jumping. This would occasionally cause you or the boat to go flying.
Plunderer's beacon is now sellable.
Fixed night vigor flowers sometimes failing to spawn correctly.
Patch 1.7.1
If you haven't already, you can read about our recent Cartography Update below! We've also added Patch 1.7.1 to include some additional bug fixes and improvements.
Update 1.7 - Cartographer's Journal Patch Notes
Update 1.7 introduces a number of new major features that will aid you in your quest to explore the world of Salt. This update also provides some bug fixes, performance improvements, and new content.
Journal
You now have at your disposal an in-game journal, which works both as a quest journal and a place to make your own notes. Open the journal by pressing ‘j’. It is divided into three sections. The first section, the “Main” section, is for you to add your own notes as you please. You have unlimited pages to make as many entries as you want. As well as normal entries, you can also make links to subsections within the journal, allowing you to keep things organized.
The second section section, the “Quest” section, is not editable. Instead, quest entries will automatically appear here as you find new quests, and complete quest tasks.
The third section, the “Map” section, can be edited as you please, but it also closely integrated with the map (see below). From your map, you can add notes the correspond to certain locations in the world. This section will store those notes.
Map
The map has arrived to the world. Open it up by pressing ‘x’ or ‘m’. Keeping with the raw do-it-yourself style of Salt, this map starts out completely blank. It is up to you to fill out out as you travel. Mark location of islands as well as add icons that indicate what you find on those islands. As you explore and map the world, find ways to unlock new features and handy shortcuts within the map interface. As mentioned above, the map is also integrated with the journal to make it easy to make notes in your own words about what you find on the islands that you explore.
Button Changes
Be prepared to be thrown off kilter. Some controls have been changed. Most notably, the functions of left and right mouse clicks have been reversed. Left click is now performs the main interaction on items, while right click opens up the item details window.
Also, the way you pick up placed items, such as those placed on your boats, has changed. You now press-and-hold the interact button (E by default).
More Lore
As well as adding some more lore books to the game, we have also flagged many of them as unique. This means that if you already own a particular lore book, it will no longer drop or be found in chests. This will both keep you from finding duplicates as well as making it more likely that you find a variety of lore books during your travels.
Revert To Last Manual Save Option
Some aspects of the game are saved when you manually save the game, but many things items, quest progress, and object on your boat are constantly saved. You now have the ability to revert the entire game back to how it was when you last saved the game manually. There is a checkbox to do so within the Load interface in Salt’s main menu.
Change Log
<*>Added Journal.
<*>Added a map.
<*>Added a new NPC to be found in the world.
<*>Most journals are now flagged as unique.
<*>You now press and hold the normal interact button to retrieve placed objects.
<*>Reduced the density of some cosmetic foliage on jungle islands to improve performance.
<*>You can no longer save the game while dead.
<*>Added option in main menu load interface to load the game as it was when you last manually saved it. This will revert all inventory changes back to that point.
<*>Made saving system more robust (less error prone).
<*>Some performance improvements.
<*>Swapped left and right click functions when interacting with items in your inventory. Left clicking now equips/activates the item while right clicking now brings up the item details window.
<*>Increased the resolution of some item icons.
<*>Added new lore books.
<*>Added a new quest.
<*>Ancient guardian rocks will once again deal damage.
Update 1.7.1 Notes
This patch includes some bug fixes and improvments.
Changes
Inventory sections and the loot window now be scrolled all the way up when switching to them.
Added graphics option for VSync.
Added a sound when you loot items.
Added color difference to the journal button in the map when you have an entry in the journal for that location.
Made some changes to improve game CPU performance.
Fixed a bug where silver chests would sometimes not contain a quest hat when they were supposed to.
Fixed a bug that would sometimes cause the "loot all" hotkey to not work if you looted an enemy during its death animation.
Update 1.7 - Cartographer's Journal
Update 1.7 introduces a number of new major features that will aid you in your quest to explore the world of Salt. This update also provides some bug fixes, performance improvements, and new content.
Journal
You now have at your disposal an in-game journal, which works both as a quest journal and a place to make your own notes. Open the journal by pressing ‘j’. It is divided into three sections. The first section, the “Main” section, is for you to add your own notes as you please. You have unlimited pages to make as many entries as you want. As well as normal entries, you can also make links to subsections within the journal, allowing you to keep things organized.
The second section section, the “Quest” section, is not editable. Instead, quest entries will automatically appear here as you find new quests, and complete quest tasks.
The third section, the “Map” section, can be edited as you please, but it also closely integrated with the map (see below). From your map, you can add notes the correspond to certain locations in the world. This section will store those notes.
Map
The map has arrived to the world. Open it up by pressing ‘x’ or ‘m’. Keeping with the raw do-it-yourself style of Salt, this map starts out completely blank. It is up to you to fill out out as you travel. Mark location of islands as well as add icons that indicate what you find on those islands. As you explore and map the world, find ways to unlock new features and handy shortcuts within the map interface. As mentioned above, the map is also integrated with the journal to make it easy to make notes in your own words about what you find on the islands that you explore.
Button Changes
Be prepared to be thrown off kilter. Some controls have been changed. Most notably, the functions of left and right mouse clicks have been reversed. Left click is now performs the main interaction on items, while right click opens up the item details window.
Also, the way you pick up placed items, such as those placed on your boats, has changed. You now press-and-hold the interact button (E by default).
More Lore
As well as adding some more lore books to the game, we have also flagged many of them as unique. This means that if you already own a particular lore book, it will no longer drop or be found in chests. This will both keep you from finding duplicates as well as making it more likely that you find a variety of lore books during your travels.
Revert To Last Manual Save Option
Some aspects of the game are saved when you manually save the game, but many things items, quest progress, and object on your boat are constantly saved. You now have the ability to revert the entire game back to how it was when you last saved the game manually. There is a checkbox to do so within the Load interface in Salt’s main menu.
Change Log
<*>Added Journal.
<*>Added a map.
<*>Added a new NPC to be found in the world.
<*>Most journals are now flagged as unique.
<*>You now press and hold the normal interact button to retrieve placed objects.
<*>Reduced the density of some cosmetic foliage on jungle islands to improve performance.
<*>You can no longer save the game while dead.
<*>Added option in main menu load interface to load the game as it was when you last manually saved it. This will revert all inventory changes back to that point.
<*>Made saving system more robust (less error prone).
<*>Some performance improvements.
<*>Swapped left and right click functions when interacting with items in your inventory. Left clicking now equips/activates the item while right clicking now brings up the item details window.
<*>Increased the resolution of some item icons.
<*>Added new lore books.
<*>Added a new quest.
<*>Ancient guardian rocks will once again deal damage.
Update 1.7 - Cartographer's Jouranl
Update 1.7 introduces a number of new major features that will aid you in your quest to explore the world of Salt. This update also provides some bug fixes, performance improvements, and new content.
Journal
You now have at your disposal an in-game journal, which works both as a quest journal and a place to make your own notes. Open the journal by pressing ‘j’. It is divided into three sections. The first section, the “Main” section, is for you to add your own notes as you please. You have unlimited pages to make as many entries as you want. As well as normal entries, you can also make links to subsections within the journal, allowing you to keep things organized.
The second section section, the “Quest” section, is not editable. Instead, quest entries will automatically appear here as you find new quests, and complete quest tasks.
The third section, the “Map” section, can be edited as you please, but it also closely integrated with the map (see below). From your map, you can add notes the correspond to certain locations in the world. This section will store those notes.
Map
The map has arrived to the world. Open it up by pressing ‘x’ or ‘m’. Keeping with the raw do-it-yourself style of Salt, this map starts out completely blank. It is up to you to fill out out as you travel. Mark location of islands as well as add icons that indicate what you find on those islands. As you explore and map the world, find ways to unlock new features and handy shortcuts within the map interface. As mentioned above, the map is also integrated with the journal to make it easy to make notes in your own words about what you find on the islands that you explore.
Button Changes
Be prepared to be thrown off kilter. Some controls have been changed. Most notably, the functions of left and right mouse clicks have been reversed. Left click is now performs the main interaction on items, while right click opens up the item details window.
Also, the way you pick up placed items, such as those placed on your boats, has changed. You now press-and-hold the interact button (E by default).
More Lore
As well as adding some more lore books to the game, we have also flagged many of them as unique. This means that if you already own a particular lore book, it will no longer drop or be found in chests. This will both keep you from finding duplicates as well as making it more likely that you find a variety of lore books during your travels.
Revert To Last Manual Save Option
Some aspects of the game are saved when you manually save the game, but many things items, quest progress, and object on your boat are constantly saved. You now have the ability to revert the entire game back to how it was when you last saved the game manually. There is a checkbox to do so within the Load interface in Salt’s main menu.
Change Log
<*>Added Journal.
<*>Added a map.
<*>Added a new NPC to be found in the world.
<*>Most journals are now flagged as unique.
<*>You now press and hold the normal interact button to retrieve placed objects.
<*>Reduced the density of some cosmetic foliage on jungle islands to improve performance.
<*>You can no longer save the game while dead.
<*>Added option in main menu load interface to load the game as it was when you last manually saved it. This will revert all inventory changes back to that point.
<*>Made saving system more robust (less error prone).
<*>Some performance improvements.
<*>Swapped left and right click functions when interacting with items in your inventory. Left clicking now equips/activates the item while right clicking now brings up the item details window.
<*>Increased the resolution of some item icons.
<*>Added new lore books.
<*>Added a new quest.
<*>Ancient guardian rocks will once again deal damage.
