We would like to thank all of you who participated in Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown’s Closed Beta these past few weeks. Together, you form a grand Curia, advisors who help us to ensure that we can deliver the best experience to all of our players as we approach Early Access in 2024.
Your feedback through the Closed Beta period has helped us to identify where we excel, where we can improve, and well…that perhaps there are a few too many fires (ah, medieval construction). This feedback will shape the future of Thrive’s development over the coming weeks and months.
In 2024, your knowledge of Nysamor will greatly increase. We will be releasing a playable demo in February as part of Steam’s Next Fest, which will introduce players to more details and gameplay elements related to the Waelgrim and the Wyrmaxa. There are also rumors that an Early Access release announcement may be on the horizon, so remain ever vigilant and keep watch over Discord and Steam for updates.
Wherever you are and wherever you may roam, we hope this year’s end finds you in a land filled with merry company and good cheer. Have a wonderful holiday season and a Happy New Year. Long may you reign, and long may you Thrive!
Branden, CEO/Creative Director
—————
Until we next meet…
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown is available to Wishlist on Steam now!
To learn more about Zugalu Entertainment, please visit its official website
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown Dev Blog: Closed Beta Extension
People of Nysamor,
We’re happy to announce that the Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown’s Closed Beta has been extended to the 18th of December, 4PM MST.
The response from our community has been incredible across the Closed Beta period to date. Our goal for the Closed Beta has always been to use this period to get you, our players, hands on with the game, and to collate invaluable player feedback. Your time playing Thrive: Heavy Lies The Crown has allowed us to identify several areas of development focus, and highlighted some of the things you’ve really loved about that game.
From the bottom of our hearts, we’d like to thank each and every player who’s stepped into the world of Nyasmor over the Closed Beta, and we’d love to invite all of you to continue your adventures for a little while longer. Extending the Closed Beta allows players more time with the game, and gives us better insight into how we can improve the gameplay experience for all players as we approach Early Access next year.
If you haven’t signed up yet, you can request Playtest access via Steam now and our team will work to grant you access immediately!
Please be sure to join our community on Discord to chat to the dev team and other players, and please feel free to leave the development team feedback via the Closed Beta Survey.
CLOSED BETA PATCH UPDATE
Thank you all for reporting bugs and issues, this is very helpful to our team! We are looking to release a patch over the next few days to fix issues raised by the community, including:
Multiplayer loading issues
Pathfinding fixes
Single-player save/load issues
Text edits and minor bug fixes
Increase stockpile worker limit 3-5
Decreased food market worker limit 5-3
Increased road movement speed by 10%
Reduced fire chance, and added delay between fast fire can spread
—————
Until we next meet…
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown is available to Wishlist on Steam now!
To learn more about Zugalu Entertainment, please visit its official website
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown | Closed Beta | Dev Stream
Kat and Greg are back with another developer update to celebrate the rollout of the [I]Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown Closed Beta. Watch now for a summary of our latest updates:
New Buildings including the Fire House and military buildings
Insight into Trading and the Tome of Knowledge (tech tree)
Differences between classes of people
...and some helpful tips on how to get started!
The Closed Beta concludes shortly, so make sure you request access NOW on Steam to take part. Join the Discord to stay in touch with devs and have your say.
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown Dev Blog: Closed Beta Update (Patch 0.0.0.134)
People of Nysamor,
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown’s Closed Beta is live, and we’re happy to confirm that all ThriVIP members and applicants have been granted access. We’ve been humbled by the response so far and are excited for more of you to venture into the world of Nysamor.
If you haven’t signed up yet, you can request Playtest access via Steam now and our team will work to grant you access immediately! As a reminder, the Beta ends 11th December, 4PM MST, so get in quick.
CLOSED BETA UPDATE
Thank you all for reporting bugs and issues, this is very helpful to our team! Our intention with the Closed Beta was always to closely monitor game performance and actively seek feedback from our players. From your feedback, we've been able to identify several issues affecting some of our player base, including performance, AI and pathfinding issues impacting caravan mechanics, multiplayer desyncs and UI improvements. To that end, we have just released the first patch, V0.0.0.134 which should include fixes across all of the above. Full patch notes, along with notes and known issues can be found below.
Please note that this update will sadly cause a loss of save files and game progress for our early Closed Beta players. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience, but unfortunately were unable to find a solution to maintain save progress with updated builds through the Closed Beta period.
As mentioned, we'll continue to monitor game performance, and your feedback throughout the Closed Beta, so please continue to share any issues you may run into in Discord.
Don’t forget to check out our Helpful Hints below to learn more about your first journey in Nysamor.
PATCH NOTES
Fixed issues with Events starting but quickly disappearing, causing progress to halt.
Fixed issue with players getting stuck during an Event conversation.
Fixed issues with units getting stuck while pathfinding.
Fixed issues with desync during multiplayer matches.
Fixed bugs loading into the multiplayer menu both client and host side.
Added multithreading to unit move calculations.
Fixed issue where the Farmers assigned to a Resource Flag would continue to work on their assigned resource node when the AOI (Area of Influence) was no longer contained in that node.
Fixed issue where the same resource can be added multiple times in the top resource bar from the dropdown menu.
Fixed issue where removing and then adding a worker to a building with another worker already assigned no longer results in their animations overlapping.
Fixed an issue with loading where units may not responding to users.
Add space-to-pause.
Esc menu no longer blocked by Event UI.
Added Event UI minimizing.
Fixed locked upgrades not locking correctly
NOTES & KNOWN ISSUES
We are aware of an issue affecting frame rates and memory usage. Please make sure to enable V-SYNC and restart your computer.
Some labels on buttons may be displayed as ‘Default’
Multiplayer load times are longer than expected.
Localization is still in progress; certain text prompts may display incorrect information.
Some animations may not seem 100% correct with villagers appearing to walk in place outside buildings where they are assigned to work, or performing incorrect actions.
Fires in the early game may feel overwhelming. Ensure that you have placed Wells within the Area of Influence, and have villagers working at Wells. This should enable you to extinguish them.
Some buildings may not seem to generate their resources. Ensure that the structure has access to a Primitive Stockpile/Stockpile in range (or more than one!) and is not overworked. If this does not solve the problem, demolish and rebuild the structure to solve the issue.
Apple production may feel slow. Ensure plenty of apple orchards are planted to support the village.
Edict menu may behave unusually during onboarding. This will cease once it is complete.
UI popups may appear on top of each other - and you can continue to play the game while they are open. This applies to Tutorial steps, Menus and Narrative Events.
Events currently do not pause gameplay, as the intent is to be able to minimize them and revisit as-needed. This feature is coming soon.
Within the Jobs menu, the Tavern icon may incorrectly display the Farmer icon.
The count of resources may spill over the allotted space within the top bar HUD
You can only prioritize one building at a time. This is an intended limitation.
You are unable to delete a trade route once it has been created. You can, however, change the resource slots as desired.
Waelgrim Surges are present but will be expanded in Early Access.
The game may take a long time to exit to the main menu (after building a large village)
Loading and Saving the game can take some time to complete. After the ‘Preparing for Expansion’ tutorial step, you will need to establish a proper settlement and not just a wheat farm, for the settlement to properly function.
You will need a Grim Stores to properly deal with Waelgrim Crystal. It can be unlocked through Events.
The Tome of Knowledge (research tree) can be accessed through your Keeps UI, or via the top-left menu. The second button from the left (Sword and Book icon) represents this tree, and will allow you to unlock various new elements of gameplay.
HELPFUL HINTS
We’ve includes some helpful tips and tricks to getting started in Thrive
Preparing for expansion
When deploying a caravan, the placement has to be within range of a stockpile – but not too close - An alert (red triangle) may show on the menu pop-out that there is no storage within range This is a minor bug – and the caravan can be filled with resources - Press the purple button to automatically load the caravan; it may take some time to load, but the caravan will be loaded with stones, rocks and farmers for settling in a new province - Players need to press the green deploy button to continue through the tutorial
Cultivating Wheat
Once they have traveled to a new province, players need to deploy the caravan using the button on the caravan popup HUD - Select the Traders Hut after pressing deploy (this is not highlighted) - Begin building in a new province
Creating Trade Routes
Ensure the caravan is packed before starting this step to enable the creation of trade routes
Within trade routes, tooltips will display ‘default’ - The food category is represented by the fish icon - Wheat is the yellow icon (next to the water drop
To assign a caravan, press the ‘Add Caravan’ button near the top of the trade menu
Introduction of edicts step 1/3 may appear before pressing the Accept button at the bottom of the Trade menu - It currently activates with the trade menu open (before the accept button is pressed to begin a trade route)
You are unable to send villagers between villages through the trade route menu
Understanding Edicts
The Edict button is not highlighted when this tutorial is activated - It is the red button between Jobs and Trade - To view the Edict associated with Taxed Food Delivery, you need to scroll down in this menu
To construct a Smelter, the 20 laborers required is the count among all villages - The Smelter is found within the Laborers menu - The smelter can be constructed in either the starting or second village established
Military Preparations
Ensure the smelter is functioning to generate Iron Ingots to construct the Armory - When activating a smelter, ensure that you are generating enough Firewood - In order to produce military rations, ensure a Pork Ranch is constructed (found within the farmers menu)
Currently in the Beta build Hunting Lodge can be built anywhere including the starting province and it will produce the hide you need regardless of what animals
—————
Until we next meet…
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown is available to Wishlist on Steam now!
To learn more about Zugalu Entertainment, please visit its official website
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown Dev Blog: Closed Beta kicks off today!
People of Nysamor,
Your throne is calling. Do you have what it takes to guide your people to prosperity?
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown’s Closed Beta has now kicked off, providing our dedicated fans with an opportunity to explore Nysamor ahead of the Early Access launch in 2024. But hurry, the Beta ends 11th December, 4PM MST, so get in quick!
All ThriVIPs now have access to the build (via the previous key shared from past playtests), however, new applicants will receive access on a rolling basis over the next few days. Please be patient as we look to approve all requests shortly. As a reminder, you can request Playtest access via Steam now!
As with all Betas, our goal is to determine performance across a wide range of different hardware configurations, gain useful gameplay insights, and obtain more info about you, our players! So please share your insights via our Survey and on our Discord.
On behalf of the Zugalu Entertainment team, we’re delighted to be providing our passionate fans with this special early look at our labor of love.
BETA CONTENT & KNOWN ISSUES
While Early Access is slated for release in 2024, our Beta will provide you with a nice slice of the game to experience. This said, there will be certain elements of the game that are still a ‘work-in-progress’, not fully functional, or restricted during your playthroughs.
Localization: Currently auto-generated and temporary, so there may be some translations that do not properly align with the intended meaning or context of words and sentences:
French
Spanish
German
Simplified Chinese
Russian
UI: Some elements are currently placeholders or WIP.
Narrative: This Beta only features Act I of Thrive. Once this act concludes, a video will play, highlighting the paths that could await your reign in the full release. You can continue to play after this video, but the story and tiers will not progress. This also applies to available classes, buildings, and resources.
Tier Progression (Tome of Knowledge): Your tier progression, along with available classes, buildings, and even some resources will be limited to Act I during the Beta.
Happiness: The Happiness system has been tweaked to better assist with progression through Beta gameplay.
Map Terrain: Appearance is limited, will be more in-depth and detailed for EA.
Combat: Basic features are only available at this time.
Multiplayer: Players may experience some desync issues.
We would appreciate it greatly if you could reach out to us via the in-game feedback tool, and on our Discord, with any questions, concerns, bugs, or issues you are experiencing.
Thank you for signing up to help us test out the game. Long may you reign, and long may you Thrive!
—————
Until we next meet…
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown is available to Wishlist on Steam now!
To learn more about Zugalu Entertainment, please visit its official website
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown: Sign up now for the Closed Beta!
People of Nysamor,
We are delighted to announce our biggest playtest yet, and you are invited to get in on the action!
Our upcoming Closed Beta kicks off from 29th November, 4PM MST to 11th December, 4PM MST, giving our dedicated fans plenty of time to test all the latest features and functionality of Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown.
Want access? Request Playtest access via Steam now! Existing ThriVIP members will be able to access the Closed Beta via the previous key shared from past playtests.
Zugalu Entertainment takes its commitment to its community seriously and it is through your feedback that the game will grow. So join Discord to stay up to date with all Closed Beta details, Q&A times with developers and connect with other players to trial Multiplayer.
CLOSED BETA FAQ
What is Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown?
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown is a medieval fantasy city builder where the decisions you make weigh heavily on the fate of your kingdom. In Nysamor, you and your citizens will transform a settlement into a kingdom, staking your claim on its provinces while meeting the essential needs and demands of your people. A mysterious, devastating force known as the Waelgrim also lurks in these lands, but the Nysians do not fear it. The roaming Grimrot and ruling Wyrmaxans embrace its power, and see it as a gift. As your reign shifts toward a path of Benevolence or Tyranny, you too must decide if the Waelgrim becomes something to be honored…or subdued.
Grow a formidable kingdom, with more than thirty unique buildings and dozens of resources.
Address the needs of your people and kingdom through events and specializations to reflect your style of rule.
Amass a grand army and challenge the Grimrot, Wyrmaxans, or other players in RTS combat.
Compete with friends and foes in multiplayer with up to four players.
What are the objectives of the Closed Beta?
This Closed Beta gives our development team a chance to share the world we have built so far, and to learn from the experiences of our playtesters. Precious feedback on the concepts we have implemented, the mechanics in place, and the look and feel of Thrive will guide us forward into 2024, where future showcases, Early Access, and our full release await. Any issues or bugs that we can resolve during this Closed Beta will only help to ensure Thrive is a fresh, engaging addition to the city building genre.
What are the key differences since the last ThriVIP build?
Our last closed beta was in April, when we released build 106 to a small group of ThriVIPs. So much of the game has changed since then, both in terms of building off of their feedback, as well as implementing many systems and mechanics that were still in development at the time. Issues addressed include performance, graphic textures, lighting, various UI elements, onboarding, combat, fires, disease, attacks, trade, the strategic map, and, of course, multiplayer. We are excited to see what new feedback will arise from all that has been added and changed.
What can I expect in the Closed Beta versus the Early Access launch?
While many of the Early Access anticipated features are present in our Closed Beta, there are some items that are either still being tweaked and polished, or being withheld to build up anticipation for Early Access and Full Release.
In Early Access, you can expect:
Forty (40) additional buildings
Twenty (20) more craftable items
Discovering your path: Benevolence or Tyranny
Four (4) new classes of citizens once the Benevolent/Tyrannical paths are unlocked (two for each)
Acts II and III of the main narrative arc, along with Random and Building Specialization events
Increased military units and options
And more…
—————
Until we next meet…
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown is available to Wishlist on Steam now!
To learn more about Zugalu Entertainment, please visit its official website
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown | Disease & Happiness Update | Dev Diary Stream
Join Greg and Kat as they bring you another update. They discuss how Disease and Happiness will impact the citizens of your kingdom in Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown.
*This stream is pre-recorded*
---
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown is available to Wishlist on Steam now!
To learn more about Zugalu Entertainment, please visit its official website
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown Dev Blog: Managing Happiness and Disease
People of Nysamor,
Since our last dev update, we’ve been expanding our own horizons with the Publishing team showing off Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown as part of the official SXSW Sydney game selection.
In Thrive, managing your kingdom is a delicate balance of maintaining current wants and needs, and staving off future threats. Today, we’ll be exploring how Happiness and Disease can impact the lives of your citizens, and what you can do as a leader to make sure your subjects are healthy and productive.
Make sure to check out our recent Dev Update Stream where we covered Happiness and Disease in greater detail
HAPPINESS
Regardless of whether you’re Benevolent or Tyrannical, the overall happiness of one’s citizens can greatly affect the ability for your kingdom to succeed in Thrive. A variety of elements factor into how your people feel at any given moment.
In the current build of Thrive, event outcomes, goods, and luxury items have the potential to increase or decrease happiness amongst the populace. In addition to these, our team is working to add even more factors that will impact your kingdom’s happiness levels. These include: pollution levels, population, building density, taxation, and the effects of those mysterious magenta crystals that seem to keep spawning wherever the Waelgrim’s presence is felt…
In the future, players can expect being at war versus at peace, decorative structures around the kingdom, and having well maintained buildings (not destroyed or damaged) to also affect how happy your kingdom will feel.
DISEASE
Illness can spread quickly throughout your kingdom, so it’s advisable to keep a watchful eye on the health of your citizens. Should illness strike one home, it can quickly move between others. Working residents always have a chance to pass it on. Whatever the ailment, fermenters and infirmaries should be located nearby homes to manage these bouts of sickness before they get out of control.
The Infirmary provides an area of effect wherein citizens can be cured. Any citizens who reside within its radius will receive treatment once a disease is present, provided that enough cure has been stored.
To make cures, you will have to grow an Herb Garden.
These harvested herbs can be used to create bottles of cure at the Fermenter.
Once created, the cures can be transported to the Infirmary, ready to both heal those actively sick, as well as potentially ward off the chances of illness.
—————
Look out for our next Developer Update in the coming weeks as we push towards Early Access in 2024. Make sure to join our Discord and learn the details for our upcoming Playtest if you’d like to check out all these features for yourself!
Until we next meet…
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown is available to Wishlist on Steam now!
To learn more about Zugalu Entertainment, please visit its official website
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown | Trade & Combat Update | Dev Diary Stream
Greg (Lead Designer) and Kat (Lead Narrative Designer) are back with another update on Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown, including details on AI towns and trade, as well as Military updates including formations and rations.
*This stream is pre-recorded*
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown Dev Blog: Expanding and Defending Your Borders
People of Nysamor,
Following on from our successful publishing announcement and trailer launch at Gamescom 2023, our team has been hard at work giving players new ways to stake their claim over hard-fought territory, be it through diplomacy or by the sword.
Make sure to check out our recent Dev Update Stream where we covered Expanding and Defending Your Borders in greater detail
AI TOWNS
Our Strategic Map is filled with provinces ready to be claimed, or already inhabited by AI or human players. Given combat and alliances are key pillars of Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown, having rich interactions with AI Players has been high on the agenda for the development team.
A zoomed out shot of the Strategic Map, with all of the provinces and Wyrmaxan kingdom on display. n.b. some names are placeholder (looking at you Tacotown)
To that end, players can now have both friendly and hostile interactions with AI towns. Conducting trade and fulfilling town requests can strengthen the bonds between your kingdom and native Nysians, while those looking to instill fear and sow discord can attack neighboring towns and make demands.
Trading and Requests
Players looking to establish new friendships throughout Nysamor can examine the Strategic Map to locate nearby AI towns. By selecting a town on the map, players can gain insight into its current status. This includes its alignment (neutral/Wyrmaxan, Benevolent, Tyrannical), allies, needs (requests), and available resources.
In order to trade with and fulfill requests from these towns, players must make good use of their caravan. The caravan’s Trade Menu is used for buying and selling, as well as exchanging requested goods. Engaging in trade and fulfilling requests will increase the player’s standing with these towns, becoming allies, and strengthening trade relations.
Attacking and Making Demands
Formations allow for greater tactical flexibility and improved survivability.
If striking up friendships sounds a little too wholesome for you, violence and intimidation are also an option. Players can bring their units to selected towns and Declare War to begin their attack. Players will need to come prepared with a variety of formations and troop types to break through defenses and exert their will on their fellow Nysians. Once a town has been brought to its knees, it will Surrender, and the player must then decide how to claim their victory. They can demand tribute (coins), demand resources, switch a town’s alignment, or even raze it to the ground. While AI towns will reset after a few days when their demands or alignment have been adjusted, towns that are destroyed will be gone forever…
MILITARY UPDATES: WALLS AND RATIONS
Of course, attacking is only one part of the equation. Players will also need to be careful to not overextend themselves or neglect critical defense infrastructure lest they be conquered themselves.
Manning walls is a great way of galvanizing your defences.
Players can now construct and utilize walls to defend their kingdom. These walls provide great protection for those dwelling within them. Their effectiveness can be increased through the addition of corner ladder pieces, which will allow troops (swordsmen and archers) to be assigned to patrol them.
Rations have also been introduced, and are essential to a military’s endurance and strength. Players must ensure their units are within the radius of a caravan or barracks to keep their rations full. Each unit, regardless of type, can carry up to three rations at a time. This ensures that troops not located near a caravan or barracks can still engage in battle with full health and heal, but it is always wise to keep a caravan nearby to ensure that these units can be well maintained.
—————
Look out for our next Developer Update in the coming weeks as we push towards Early Access in 2024. Make sure to join our Discord and learn the details for our upcoming Playtest if you’d like to check out all these features for yourself!
Until we next meet…
Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown is available to Wishlist on Steam now!
