As summer fades into autumn here in the north, the work on Songs of Conquest marches on! While we're busy preparing for some big, exciting updates in the future, we’re also hard at work on current improvements, laying the groundwork for what’s to come.
Now, we know you're eager to hear about those major updates, and rest assured, an announcement is on the horizon. But this update is about something else, so stay tuned So, what’s this minor update all about? Well, it may not be our largest patch, but it has its share of new features and improvements.
One standout improvement ties directly into some behind-the-scenes work: AI turn speed. We're happy to say that AI turns are now significantly faster—by 30-80% depending on the map! That’s right, whether you're playing small skirmishes or epic larger maps, those AI turns will feel a lot faster, giving you more time for the action that matters
You don’t even have time to fix yourself a good cup of tea!
For all you intrepid cartographers out there, we’ve added a fiery new feature to the map editor. Now you can quite literally burn your bridges! It’s just one more tool in your arsenal for crafting the perfect map. Want your Wielder to destroy a bridge behind them to slow down the enemy? You can do that with triggers. Or perhaps you just want to showcase the devastation of a war-torn land? The choice is yours.
It’s never too late to burn a bridge or two. There’s no reason to look back!
Game balance is one of those things we’ll always be fine-tuning, and with this update, we’ve made some adjustments to the initiative of several troop types. There’s plenty more balancing work on the horizon, but it’s a delicate process that requires careful tweaks. If you want to join the discussions and give your suggestions, we suggest joining our Discord!
Faey Spirits initiative increased from 14 to 23 Faey Ragers initiative increased from 16 to 25 Footmans initiative increased from 25 to 26 Shield of Orders initiative increased from 26 to 27 Spectres initiative increased from 21 to 26 Seneschals initiative increased from 22 to 28
From 14 to 23 in initiative, so eager little spirits!
There’s always more, of course—there always is with us! Some of it you’ll notice right away, while other changes are behind the scenes, setting the stage for what’s to come. We can’t share all the details in the changelogs just yet, as some of it is work for things to come. We can’t wait to reveal what we’ve been working on, and you can expect plenty of exciting news in the coming months.
Turn to Conquest, Wielders—you’ve earned it!
/The Lavapotion Team
Upcoming DLC and what it should cost
Hello Wielders!
It’s me, your friendly neighborhood CEO, Magnus. Usually, Anders writes these posts, but he is knee-deep in design work with our upcoming DLC – Rise Eternal! So, I’ve decided to help him out with an update on what’s happening behind the scenes. I’m also hoping for your help to find a good price for the upcoming DLC. Find out more below!
Rise Eternal is a story-focused DLC. We call it a “tale” that complements the ordinary songs, or campaigns, of the game. In this first tale, we are visiting the faction of Loth and introducing a new Wielder, Kastus Maal. We are also reworking a few things related to the Risen troop in order to make them pack a bit more punch. The improved Risen troop mechanic will be part of a free update as well.
Say one thing for Kastus Maal. Say he’s a looker.
The tale of Kastus Maal will take you across four story-intensive maps. You’ll literally dig deeper into the earth of Aerbor and uncover untold secrets. Our team is working on perfecting the maps right now, and we are excited to introduce a few new buildings and special effects that we think future map makers will enjoy as well!
This is not a tavern, nor is it a stable. It’s a place where bones slowly wither to dust. You can visit it in Rise Eternal and find out more for yourself!
Now that you know a little bit more about what we are working on, we would like to get your help with figuring out the price for the DLC. We’ve prepared a simple poll where you can give us your opinion. It’s very important for us to get this right, and all replies matter!
In the future, we hope to release one tale for each faction. This will allow us to add more flavor to the Wielders of Aerbor, sometimes introduce a new one, and also expand the overall lore. Some narrative elements might tie into the overarching story of the full Songs of Conquest timeline. If you look closely, you can find clues to certain Wielders' ambitions and motivations.
Rise Eternal will see the addition of more artifacts. Artifact sets will also be added as a new feature to the game as a free update!
A large part of the team is also working on the regular game update that will be released alongside the DLC. We generally intend for game features introduced in upcoming DLCs to also be included for free in the base game. However, additional content such as campaign maps, characters, and map objects will be accessible through the purchase of the DLC.
The release date for Rise Eternal hasn’t been decided yet, but we hope it will be within just a few weeks from now! As always, drop a comment and let us know what you think, and please give us your feedback on the pricing for the DLC. We wouldn’t be where we are without your support. Expect more news and exciting updates during the fall!
Best regards,
Magnus and Team Lavapotion
PS. Remember to follow our developer page to stay updated!
Update 1.1.3
Fixed AI softlocking on The Lost Cliffs, The Marsh Provides and Trespassers challenge maps
Devtalks: Random Map Generator
Hello, dear Conquerors!
My name’s Emil, and today, I’m thrilled to take over the Steam post! I primarily write code here at Lavapotion, and for the past few years, part of my main focus has been the Random Map Generator (RMG).
With all the excitement surrounding our official release, future DLC, and roadmap, it’s been a while since we’ve delved into the RMG. However, I want to assure you that it hasn’t been forgotten. While it may not be our primary focus moving forward, we’re still dedicated to its ongoing improvement. So today, I’d like to talk about just that!
Here you can see a step by step process of how our maps are generated.
For those who have been with us since the beginning, you’ve witnessed the evolution of our random maps. The RMG has been a continuous process of innovation and iteration, with much of the groundwork laid by Patrik before passing the torch to me. Our goal was to create a system capable of generating maps with balanced resources, varied terrains, and engaging layouts, while also ensuring accessibility for modders. Though there's always room for improvement, we are proud of what we've achieved so far.
If you’re eager to explore more about the RMG, we have a dedicated section on our modding page that might pique your interest!
During early access, your feedback was instrumental in shaping the RMG. We’ve listened to your suggestions, concerns, and praises, making adjustments along the way and creating new layouts to meet your needs. This collaborative effort has ensured that the maps generated by the RMG are not only challenging but also enjoyable. I cannot emphasize enough how crucial the community's engagement has been in achieving the current state of the RMG. Without your invaluable input, we wouldn't be where we are today. For those of you with ideas or suggestions on how to further improve the RMG, your feedback is most welcome in our Discord channel dedicated to random map feedback. Even as we move past 1.0, we remain committed to ensuring that the RMG remains a cornerstone of your gameplay experience.
One of our new 2-player random map layout that you can find on mod.io
We’ve also recently released two unique random maps on mod.io, which some of you may have already discovered. These maps draw inspiration from our challenge maps but add a unique twist thanks to the nature of RMG. Both a single-player and two-player version are available, and we’re eager to hear your thoughts on them. Lastly, keep an eye out for a few special seeds. Who knows, one of them might even be the answer to the ultimate question.
The summer sale starts now. We partnered with the amazing Triumph Studios and came up with a great way to start your adventure in the world of Turn Based strategy games — Rulers of Realms Steam bundle, which allows you to get both Songs of Conquest and Age of Wonders 4 (or just one of the games) with an additional 15% discount for a limited time!
Please note that the bundle is dynamic: it means that if you already own one of the titles you can still get the other one with a discount!
We wish you all a great summer!
/Team Lavapotion
Summer Simplicity
Greetings Wielders!
As summer approaches here in Sweden, we're excited to bring you our first update since the 1.0 release. And what is a summer without a proper Summer Sale? We are thrilled to join up with our friends at Triumph Studios and Paradox in the Rulers of Realms bundle! For a limited time, you can get both Songs of Conquest and Age of Wonders 4 at an additional 15% bundle discount. If you already own SoC, then you’ll still get the extra bundle discount on top of the ongoing summer sale price!
But, let’s take a look that the new update! It includes much-requested new features, a small balance patch, and some very cool new obstacle modifications. While we've been hard at work on these improvements, we've also begun working on our upcoming DLC Rise Eternal.
In case the pixel art isn’t making it all too clear: This is a traditional Swedish Midsummers scene, with a smorgasbord, pickled herring and flower garlands on the head!
Our latest update introduces a new difficulty level for our Campaigns, tailored for those new to the game and the genre. We've named it "Simple," and it's perfect for when you want to focus on the story and enjoy a more relaxed playthrough.
And the difficulty levels are color-coded too, for convenience!
Another new feature is one that hot-seat players have been eagerly awaiting. Previously, you could catch a glimpse of your opponent's tactics and the map when you pressed the end turn, but not anymore. Now, At the start of each turn, the adventure map is covered with a dark overlay, allowing you to surprise your hot-seat adversary with your brilliant tactics.
You’ve got this, your royal highness!
We mentioned obstacles. We've added a new feature: debris in battle. When most obstacles are destroyed, they now spawn "debris" that prevents new obstacles from being placed or summoned on that hex. However, debris can be freely moved through, clearing it as you go. And added bonus is that it looks great!
This new feature really is a barrel of laughs!
Balance is a tricky thing, especially in strategy games, and Songs of Conquest is no exception. Thanks to our active Community, we receive invaluable feedback on how to improve it. Our latest changes are steps in that direction. Rest assured, this won't be the last balance update. But this is a list of balance changes for now:
Essence shield protection lowered to 25% / 50%
Rigor bonus increased to +3HP / +6HP
Increased Impressive bonus to 15% / 30% / 50%
Increased troop size research of Bones to 3 / 3 / 4
Acid Cloud damage lowered to 20 / 40 / 60
Rupture t3 damage lowered to 220
Cost of Chain Lightning reduced to 13
And is that it? Of course not! The list of changes is a bit too long to detail here, so as always, we recommend reading the full changelog—there's something for everyone! And, if you are looking forward to some more undead experiences, don’t forget to wishlist Rise Eternal which will come out this fall!
As you can imagine, we've been quite busy since the 1.0 launch, but soon it will be time for a brief respite. Even in the cold Swedish north, summer is a time for holidays. We'll now be taking a four-week break, so our responses may be a bit slower during this period. But don't worry, we'll be back soon and ready to dive back into development mode!
Fixed third mission of Barya campaign not completing if your teammate defeats the enemy by claiming their last town (includes fix for currently broken saves)
Prevent ending up in a position that you can't move from when using teleporter on fourth Barya campaign mission
Fixed being able to miss an important story trigger on fourth Barya campaign mission
Fixed issue with the game freezing when using alt-tab on Macs (removed unsupported v-sync options)
The future looks bright!
Hello Wielders!
My name’s Carl Toftfelt and today I’m writing the Steam post, a friendly takeover of sorts! I’m the Lead Game Designer of Songs and have been working on this project for the past seven years. Releasing from Early Access into 1.0 has been exhilarating. All the kind words and calls for more content for the game have been amazing. I truly feel privileged to share that Songs of Conquest has now hit an incredible milestone!
There was more than a few high-fives at the office when we reached this milestone!
Of course, with over half a million players and a passionate community I’m very pleased to tell you the following: There’s an expansion coming with two new factions. There will also be four DLCs that will expand existing parts of the game.
New factions take quite some time to develop. We want to keep telling the story of Songs of Conquest at a higher pace than only faction expansions would allow. So we’re introducing something we call Tales of Conquest in the form of DLC, releasing roughly every quarter. These Tales will move the story of Songs of Conquest forward, as well as expand our gameplay, through story missions following each one of the existing factions.
Our first Tales of Conquest is called ‘Rise Eternal’ and it will focus on our undead faction - the Barony of Loth. You will follow Kastus Maal, a scholar slain by Lady Stoutheart at the battle of Grey Tor. He will be seeking vengeance from beyond the grave against the Arleon baroness, and with his guidance the Risen will be more powerful than ever before.
We’re planning to release Rise Eternal this Fall. It will be a paid DLC, and it will bring new artifacts, set bonuses, and general improvements to the Risen of Loth. And the sweet thing is that most of these things will be added to the base game for free so that everyone can enjoy the hordes of the loyal Risen, even if you don’t choose to buy the DLC.
The next DLC that we hope to release around December this year is called ‘Essence Awakened’ and will see Arleon as the protagonist faction. This DLC will focus on new and strange Essence beings in the world of Aerbor. More will be revealed as we get closer to release! The two remaining DLC’s are focused on Barya and Rana, and will be released in the second half of 2025.
Lots can be said about Kastus Mall, and as far as wandering corpses go, he is a beauty!
All right, here’s the big one - we’re aiming to release Songs of Conquest’s first major expansion in the early summer of 2025. I know that’s a full year away, but we just wanted to let you know right away that we plan to support Songs of Conquest for years to come, and that of course means more factions!
The Bleak East lies to the North-East of Patrium, and is the home of descendants from both Arleon and Barya. Hardy settlers who now live their lives free of their former masters on the coast of the Bleak East. But they are not alone, and we can barely wait to share their Song with you.
I don’t want to give away too much about the new factions, but rest assured that there will be more news about them as time goes on. So for now you will have to make due with their names and some sprites to pique your interest. They will be known as the Vanir and the Roots.
A tale as old as time, trolls vs plants.
Both new factions will be introduced through a new Song, a large single-player campaign that will tell the story of how they came to be and how they will affect the larger world of Aerbor. Will I personally be singing the campaign song again you ask? Very likely, as it takes too much time to find someone else with just the right amount of Swedish accent!
We will be sharing much more about the Bleak East, the Vanir and the Roots in the following months. We know that faction variety is super important for a turn-based strategy games like Songs of Conquest, and we heard your requests loud and clear. I hope the above visual teasers will sate your hunger for the time being!
If all that text was a little too much for you here’s the TL:DR in a fancy picture, or as you might say, a roadmap:
Click the image to see a larger version of the roadmap!
As always, this is a living roadmap - things will always change, and timelines can shift forward and back. We’ll make sure to keep you posted on any developments that happen along the way.
From the bottom of our hearts here at Lavapotion, thank you so much for believing in us and supporting our game, the reception of Songs of Conquest has completely blown us away. Thanks for making our dream come true.
With love and gratitude, Carl and everyone at Lavapotion
* Fixed third mission of Barya campaign not completing after defeating all enemies (includes fix for currently broken saves) * Fixed not being able to move wielder on first turn when starting a game with the complete map exploration option * Limit risk of rare bug where the campaign map selection menu is not loaded after choosing a campaign
1.0 is out now!
The time has come, Wielders!
The 1.0 version of Songs of Conquest is launching today. At the same time we are updating the soundtrack, releasing a digital Art Book and dropping the news of a console version! We know it's a lot to take in, so let's explore these subjects one at a time after you’ve checked out our new trailer:
Get ready to venture into the sandy dunes of Barya! In this final campaign you’ll conclude the epic adventure that began with the Baronies of Arleon fighting for power, the rise of the Rana to reclaim the Marsh, and the loyalist of Loth determined to bring back a dead Empress. Now, experience the ingenuity and independence of Barya as they challenge all enemies. In keeping with tradition, the campaign is accompanied by a song written and sung by none other than our game designer Carl. Incidentally, we’ve now added several more tracks to our official soundtrack!
The songs have always been an important part of our game, but so have the visuals. In fact, what started out as a humble indie pixel art style has over the years transformed into something quite extraordinary if we might say so ourselves. The makers of the game engine Unity nominated Songs of Conquest for having the best 2D visuals of 2023. So, we figured it would be worth celebrating this launch with an artbook, with foreword by none other than Gregory Fulton, the lead designer for Heroes of Might and Magic 3.
Nice soundtrack and lovely visuals, yes. But what about platforms other than PC and Mac? This has been an ongoing request over the course of our Early Access period. We are proud to finally reveal that we are working on console versions. In fact, the game is already up and running, performing beautifully on both PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.
Imagine sitting on the sofa and enjoying the game on your TV. It’s about to happen!
We're collaborating once again with the fantastic team at Bitwave, who previously assisted us with the Steam Deck version. We haven’t set a release date for the console versions, but this fall is looking very likely. Additionally, we plan to follow up with a Switch version as well!
From translations and marketing to pixel art and programming. Well over 100 people have in one way or another helped shape this game into what it is today!
Expect to hear from us again very soon, as we prepare more news about our upcoming development plans. And if you have the time, please leave a comment with a favorite memory from playing the game or just a cheerful note. The whole team will be reading and appreciating your feedback as we gather at the office, manage the release and livestream while we play the new Barya campaign! All your lovely feedback has helped us not only improve the game, but made it a truly joyful experience of development!
This is not the end Wielders, this is merely the beginning of a new chapter in our epic saga!
It’s never too late to burn a bridge or two. There’s no reason to look back!
