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Messages - CraigStern

#1
Changes for the next full update:

  • drew a new "star eyes" eye variant for lissit portraits.
  • wrote a new defeat response line for Disciplined characters.
  • the mask and hat accessory layers now support a new portrait data attribute called forceMaskType. If a custom asset for one of these accessory types has forceMaskType="Body", the game will use hair, skin, and eye-color hue values for any associated mask (instead of army color hue values).
  • fixed: selecting the last eye for lissit and golems in the custom character creator would throw a range error.
  • fixed: custom lissit portraits were not loading external, custom assets properly.
  • item descriptions (and most tooltips in general) now support special characters.
#2
Together in Battle / Re: Together in Battle Dev Log
June 16, 2025, 12:27:40 PM
Hotfixes v. 1.0.25c:

  • AI improvement: when the AI handicap level is set to less than 3, if there are a large number of enemies on the battlefield, the AI will now order the turns of all units making long-term moves by ascending distance to the enemy, lessening the likelihood of "traffic jams."
  • reinforcements in the blacksmith rescue mission will now pause while there are 19 or more enemies already on the map.
  • fixed: when generating a battlefield, the game could position enemies such that AOE from one of their skills could partially overlap a character's deployment spot.
  • fixed: when calculating a character's move bonus for purposes of setting up battlefields, the game was only accounting for the default 40% move bonus effect and not greater move bonus effects produced by skills like Engine Boost.
  • fixed: in rare cases, the AI could execute buffing skills targeting the space that an allied unit had just vacated.
  • fixed: the Hair 2 selector was no longer cycling through shadowling horns in the custom character creator.
  • fixed: a mask could sometimes inappropriately load for certain assets on certain portrait layers (e.g. shadowling horns).

Changes for the next full update:

  • Psy Clash cards can now be created and edited as part of a custom campaign.
  • heads now support img, folder, and override attributes in PortraitData, allowing people to override the game's default portrait head images.
#3
Together in Battle / Re: Together in Battle Dev Log
June 13, 2025, 06:00:33 PM
Hotfixes v. 1.0.25b:

  • fixed: tooltips for units with a bespoke class description (like Dhatuu Dil) were getting their data offset incorrectly due to a delimiting error.
  • fixed: the background layer of character hair for older proc gen human and spirit portraits was not loading.
  • fixed: the game was assigning older proc gen spriggat portraits an incorrect "useBody" parameter, leading to these portraits simply not showing up.
  • fixed: newly recruited characters could be assigned a prior relationship with a golem or spirit.
  • fixed: changes to the game's sprite palette-swapping logic to support player-created palettes had broken palette-swapping for minions in Psy Clash.
  • fixed: the male swordsman's Double Strike animation's compression settings had somehow changed, causing the game to display the animation with a blur and no palette swapping.
#4
Together in Battle / Re: Together in Battle Dev Log
June 12, 2025, 10:05:45 AM
- the game will now dynamically load custom portrait asset data from every single XML file containing the term "PortraitData" that it can find in Documents > My Games > Together in Battle > Mods > _Common > Portraits, allowing players to more easily amass custom portrait assets from multiple sources.

- added an alternative way to uncover the Wailling quest line, making it less difficult to unlock.

- updated some of the dialogue in the initial thief attack battle to make it clear that the reinforcements in the south will move and attack as soon as they spawn.

- added character screen class descriptions for bespoke classes specific to enemies and NPCs.

- updated the Bowmaster extended class description.

- when creating a bespoke class in a character not present in Classes.xml, you can now add a short tooltip description to it by adding a vertical bar and then writing out the description in the unit's charClass attribute in PremadeUnits.xml.

- fixed: a character's class name could get cut off in the character screen mouseover tooltip if it was too long.

- fixed: impact damage against the edge of the map was still using the old formula, resulting in inappropriately high damage amounts compared to collisions with other characters or terrain.

- fixed: it was possible to learn about the summer palace without having the relevant variable set to let the player actually recall it during the scene evidence-recounting scene.
#5
Together in Battle / Re: Together in Battle Dev Log
June 11, 2025, 08:29:23 AM
- when characters die, all of the items in their inventory (except for personal items) are now automatically transferred to the reserve supplies.

- added custom asset support for proc gen golem portraits.

- added custom clothing asset support for proc gen portraits.

- upon starting up, the game now checks for a Portraits subfolder within the Mods folder--if none is found, the game creates one and copies a new file called PortraitDataExplainer.xml to the folder with a detailed explanation of how to create and format custom portrait assets.

- added a new optional parameter to the StripItemsFromUnit action: include personal items. (If not set to true, personal items will remain with the unit even as all other items are stripped.)

- fixed: changing a golem from one type to another (stone to bronze, or vice versa) in the custom character creator would mess up the portrait's stored body data for that character.

- fixed: golem portraits in the custom character creator could cover up some of the buttons used to change portrait elements.

- fixed: the page selector buttons for the clothing selection subwindow in the custom character creator weren't working.
#6
Together in Battle / Re: Together in Battle Dev Log
June 10, 2025, 08:29:40 AM
- added portrait hats, glasses, and masks to the accessories window in the custom character creator in the campaign creation suite.

- added custom hair asset support for proc gen human portraits.

- added custom asset support for proc gen lissit portraits.

- added custom asset support for proc gen spriggat portraits.

- added custom asset support for proc gen shadowling portraits.

- fixed: if the altar puzzle wasn't solved but a character had the Strangely Cut Gem in their inventory, the Strangely Cut Gem would get permanently stuck in that character's inventory. (Under these circumstances, the game now pulls it into the reserve supplies so it can be sold.)

- fixed: shadowlings--who do not have legs--could get a cavosphere camp activity narration that described them as dashing and kicking.

- new script action: StoreItem. Will find the named item for a specific character (or among all characters in a specified army or roster) and store it in a specified roster's reserve supplies.
#7
Together in Battle / Re: Together in Battle Dev Log
June 06, 2025, 10:06:27 AM
- the game can now dynamically load custom portrait assets located in Documents > My Games > Together in Battle > Mods > _Common > Portraits!

- fixed: using Levitate Other on a character submerged in water or lava would change their move type to Flying but would not actually lift them out of the liquid, making them impossible to move.

- fixed some inconsistent spelling of Dayaan's name during the earliest stages of the investigation plotline.

- fixed: the enemy in the recruitment duel event was being leveled twice--once during the event dialogue, and then again at the start of the subsequent battle--leading to the inspection option showing incorrect information prior to accepting the duel.
#8
Together in Battle / Re: Together in Battle Dev Log
June 05, 2025, 11:13:08 AM
- spent more time laying the groundwork for fully supporting custom assets for proc gen character portraits.

- more enemies now appear in the first random bandit battle if it occurs at or after midway through Duomensis.

- wrote new, distinct defeat reaction lines for arrogant, blunt, friendly, loyal, narcissistic, religious, and vindictive characters.

- clarified the tooltip descriptions for Kinetic Gust, Kinetic Pull, and Grapple Pull.

- fixed: non-hot-tempered characters could be generated with the hot-tempered defeat reaction line.
#9
Together in Battle / Re: Together in Battle Dev Log
June 04, 2025, 08:34:43 AM
Back to changes for the next major update:

- added two new mask accessories for human portraits: pleague doctor and venetian masque.

- added two new glasses accessories: glasses and bifocals alt.

- gasul are now sturdier to make them better serve their hybrid role as front-liner. The gasul class's base health has been increased by 5; they now get an extra Strength or Health stat proficiency in their early skill progression; and protector and prophet bonus health has been increased by 5 and 6, respectively.

- fixed: the Pyro Hail sound effect was too loud by about 6 decibels.
#10
Together in Battle / Re: Together in Battle Dev Log
June 03, 2025, 09:44:52 AM
For the next major update:

- custom characters can now be exported and imported as text, allowing easy sharing between players!

Changes for hotfix version 1.0.10c:

- added +3 to starting Health for assassins to make them a bit more survivable in the early game, reduced assassin salaries to make them a bit more competitive with other classes on a cost basis.

- fixed: after the blacksmith rescue mission, the game was skipping straight to the calendar screen, ensuring both that payday could not occur and that characters scheduled to return to camp that evening would not return.

- fixed: under certain circumstances, the game could still get locked up if a MoveUnit script action was unable to complete successfully.

- fixed: certain script actions were still missing checks to ensure that they possessed the minimum number of required parameters.

- fixed: a handful of events were still missing animations where a character visibly walks up to the player from offscreen.
#11
Together in Battle / Re: Together in Battle Dev Log
June 02, 2025, 10:11:52 AM
- when moving onto the stairs down during cavern exploration, the game now prompts the player before moving to the lower floor.

- increased the intensity of rain particle effects for the Storm weather type in cut scenes.

- if the selected control scheme is mouse and keyboard but a gamepad is plugged in when the title screen comes up, the gamepad cursor now starts off hidden until the player presses a gamepad button.

- if on the title screen with a gamepad plugged in, if the player hasn't used the gamepad (or deliberately changes the controls to Mouse and Keyboard) before entering the character creation screen, the game will now assume that the player doesn't want gamepad controls and won't display the virtual keyboard.

- fixed: the treasure map event was no longer checking the player's current level of aura correctly.

- fixed: during deployment in cavern exploration missions, the game would say that the maximum deployment was 6 even though you could send no more than 5 characters.
#12
Together in Battle / Re: Together in Battle Dev Log
June 01, 2025, 01:08:51 PM
- fixed: the AI could get stuck in a loop when running path-clearing behavior if a unit was stuck behind scenery and the game decided to have them charge an obstacle unreachable due to them being blocked by other destructible objects.
#13
- reformatted morale effect descriptions with symbols to replace most of the text.

- fleshed out the explanation of morale contained in the game's glossary.

- tweaked the changes the game makes to the witness protection battle on Brutal difficulty. (The witness now retains his medicated bandages rather than being swapped to regular ones, and one of the enemies for the later stages of the battle is buffed instead.)

- fixed: skills that swap positions (such as Twirl and Trade) could change the facing direction of the unit swapped with.

- fixed: due to an incorrectly set default army palette color in the character sprite shader, the lightest shade of secondary army colors (light red) was not being palette swapped properly for sprites in the new palette-swapping system.

- fixed: the game was inappropriately using forward slashes appearing within generated dialogue noting the ends of formatting tags (such as [/b], [/i], and [/CAP]) as delimiters if they appeared within a block of alternate phrases, cutting off the relevant portion of dialogue.

- fixed: adding actions to scripts in the dialogue editor had been broken by a different bug fix.

- fixed: when flushing the actions queue for actions stuck behind a Wait command, the game would run subsequent Wait-type commands normally, sticking some of the actions to auto-execute behind a second Wait behavior and failing to execute them as intended.

- fixed: ending a dialogue (whether by script action or otherwise) was not auto-executing remaining script actions stuck behind a Wait command.

- fixed: switching a cutscene's narration frame (whether by script action or otherwise) was not auto-executing remaining script actions stuck behind a Wait command.

- added villagers to the list of universally available default units for custom campaigns.

Pushed the above (except for the new clothing) as hotfix version 1.0.10a.

For the next update:

- spirits now have their own distinct group practice narration.

- fixed: spirits would participate in group practice and lose morale.
#14
Pushed the above early as version 1.0.10.

For the next update:

- created new clothing for male and female humans: Governor, Barbarian.

- the character screen now shows the specific number for a character's morale in lieu of a text description.

- fixed: eyedrops held by certain enemies in the final battle were misformatted.
#15
- increased the minimum healthy roster size for the smuggler's den event to activate from 6 to 8.

- added a bit of extra text to the objectives screen in Battle in the Smuggler's Den to reiterate that this is a battle where you're expected to retreat at the end.

- added a bit of extra text to the event narration in Battle in the Smuggler's Den to emphasize that the escape point is the exact same point your characters spent the first 8 rounds of the fight dropping in on.

- reduced the intensity of the point light over the escape point in Battle in the Smuggler's Den to make the objective reticle stand out more.

- in the Battle in the Smuggler's Den, when an enemy says "Ahaha, here we come! I hope you're ready to die," the game now explicitly tells the player that this means a whole lot of enemy reinforcements are about to flood into the cavern rather than letting them infer it from the dialogue.

- if a character says something that demands a response line of a type a character doesn't have, the game now attempts to generate one for the responding character on the fly.

- fixed: the game was never bringing up the objectives screen at the start of the Battle in the Smuggler's Den.

- fixed: when playing in roguelike mode, even though the restart battle button was grayed out, clicking it would still restart the battle.

- fixed: the army-wide danger zone function (a.k.a. the Q key) wasn't accounting for offensive knockback skills without baked-in damage (like Shove or Kinetic Gust) the way that simply clicking individual enemies was.

- fixed: when playing with gamepad, if a character wandered into a snare trap and became stunned, the character could still be rotated.

- fixed: when playing with gamepad, if character dialogue was initiated during camp, opening a different menu would cause the game to not return focus to the dialogue window afterward.

- fixed: when playing with gamepad, the gamepad would lose focus upon winning a game of Psy Clash.