Throughout August, the development teams at Depths of Erendorn made substantial progress across multiple facets of the game. The 3D modelling team advanced character customisation with new hair shaders and dynamic hairstyles, while the Set Piece Design team enriched environments with detailed melee weapons and interior decorations. The client team enhanced gameplay functionality, focusing on inventory systems and combat mechanics, and improved the Map Panel and tooltips. The server team optimised backend infrastructure, addressing critical issues and preparing for auto-scaling capabilities. The sound team expanded the auditory experience with new and refined audio assets, while the environment team advanced the settlement area with structural enhancements, dynamic weather effects, and improved lighting. Finally, the animation team refined player locomotion and combat animations, and the VFX team enhanced visual effects for abilities and enemy attacks. Collectively, these updates contribute to a more immersive and engaging gameplay experience. As always, join us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Reddit for daily updates on Depths of Erendorn. Alternatively, join our Discord for all the latest! - now let’s get into it!
3D Modelling
The 3D modelling team made significant advancements in enhancing character customisation within the game. Early in the month, the team completed work on hair shaders, introducing a vibrant new palette that greatly expands the range of hairstyle options available to players. This update allows for a more diverse and personalised visual experience, offering players a broader selection of colours to choose from. Building on this, the team began working on a new dynamic hairstyle that features long strands of hair, capable of being adapted into various styles such as braids and ponytails. As the month progressed, further refinements were made, with the team focusing on adding realistic details, like additional strands to create a slightly messier and more natural look. With the ponytail nearing completion, this hairstyle will soon join the growing roster of customisation choices, providing players with even greater freedom to create unique and personalised avatars within the world of Erendorn. Examples of the work completed by the team can be seen below.
Set Piece Design
Throughout August, the Set Piece Design team at Depths of Erendorn made significant strides in enriching the game’s environments with detailed and immersive elements. The team began by crafting a diverse array of melee weapons, including swords and axes, each designed with varying levels of wear and degradation to authentically reflect their use within the world of Erendorn. Additionally, they created wall-hanging trophies adorned with skulls, which enhance the visual storytelling and atmosphere of settlement interiors. As the month progressed, they introduced a set of gnarly, leafless trees to the landscape, adding a hauntingly eerie atmosphere to certain areas. The team also commenced work on Viking-style tents, which will further enhance the authenticity and character of the settlements. Examples of the work completed by the team throughout the month can be seen below.
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Programming
Client
The client team at Depths of Erendorn made substantial strides in refining and expanding the game’s functionality, with a strong focus on enhancing the overall player experience. Throughout the month, key efforts included extensive work on the inventory system, particularly in relation to vendor interactions, where several challenging bugs were resolved to ensure smoother transactions and a more intuitive interface. The team also concentrated on improving combat mechanics, addressing critical issues such as hit reactions during basic attacks and refining player movement within the dry test environment. Significant progress was made on the Map Panel, with the implementation of core functions such as two-dimensional scrolling, accurate zoom and pan scaling, and the addition of interactive markers for better navigation. Additionally, the team worked on updating tooltips within the character creation menus, ensuring consistency and clarity, while also preparing new enemy NPCs for in-game testing. These efforts, alongside the removal of outdated assets and ongoing system improvements, have contributed to a more polished and responsive gameplay experience, setting the stage for further advancements in the coming months. Additional work completed by the team can be seen below.
- Ensured new NPCs had functional assets and correct references.
- Tested a number of new buggy enemies.
- Removed old Settlement and contained assets.
- Removed references to missing assets.
- Fixed an issue where a previous party was restored when relogging.
- The Log Book Widget now clears when switching session.
- Created Data Assets for all new NPCs.
- Icegrip Centaurs (Explorer, Slaver).
- Icacian Necromancer.
- Frogs (Small Stone, Elder Stone, Venomspitter).
- Bears (Brown, Black).
- Hulking Blackhorn Rhinoceros.
- Boars (Glacial, Giant Glacial, Fleshrender).
- Eagles (Brown, White Crested).
- Cannibal Wolf.
- Savannah Dog.
- Novice Human Mages (Standard, Elementalist, Pyromancer, Vitalist, Student).
- Small Ogre.
- Rockbark Sapling.
- Stone Golem Slave.
- Bats (Vampire, Sonomatic).
- Beetles (Heavyhusk, Flare).
- Thunderclaw Crab.
- Fen Elf Plague Scout.
- Skeleton Mages (Novice, Novice Temporal, Cryomancer).
- Coldweave Spider.
- Human Rangers (Wandering, Survivalist).
- Storm Elves (Civilian, Initiate Wizard, Wizard Overloader).
- Parakaws (Civilian, Watcher, Ice Watcher, Fire Watcher).
- Watertargs (Traveller, Swift Traveller, Warrior Traveller).
- Forest Druids (Juvenile of the Snake, of the Grove).
- Zentragals (Lesser, Lesser Shadowmancer).
- Cleared a large number of references to old assets that were contributing to slower load times when logging into the world.
- Prevented any looping animations for new NPCs.
- Applied any missing core animation events to new NPCs.
- Updated Blueprint positioning for new NPCs.
- Created Map Marker Widgets for tracking various objects of interest.
- Defined a method to near-automate map re-rendering.
- Explored methods for implementing the ability to scroll in two dimensions.
- Added markers for Entities, Fast Travel Points and Interactables.
- Added the ability to focus map markers.
- Added controls for map panel alpha and marker scale.
- Removed more outdated assets that were being loaded on login.
- Party members are now shown on the Map Panel and update correctly when joining/leaving.
- Modified scrollbox widgets in order to allow two-dimensional scrolling.
- Added the ability to selectively block inputs while UI panels are open.
- Improved the zoom function and added scroll scaling to match.
- Improved the ability to focus on markers on the map.
- Added the ability to select and move the camera to party members from the map panel.
- Created functions for future implementation of pings, objectives and custom markers.
Server
In August, the server team at Depths of Erendorn made significant progress in enhancing the game's backend infrastructure and resolving critical issues to ensure a more stable and responsive gameplay experience. Key achievements included implementing a population monitoring plan, with ongoing refinements to address complexities in server transfers and streamline the process. The team focused on optimising server operations by updating the server coordinator and cache clearing code, allowing individual server restarts without triggering a full cache clear. Additionally, extensive bug fixes were made, including resolving issues with stat multiplications, equipping items, and several abilities, which have greatly improved gameplay mechanics. The team also worked on restoring dungeon accessibility from the newly developed three-dimensional navgrid adventures and finalising the re-mapping of the open world’s navdata. These efforts were complemented by upgrades to client-server communication, which enhanced server performance and added a layer of protection by concealing server IP addresses from clients. Furthermore, preparations for auto-scaling infrastructure were advanced by setting up install scripts and refining the server setup pipeline, laying the groundwork for more dynamic server management in the future. Collectively, these updates represent substantial strides toward optimising the game's server stability, functionality, and overall performance. Additional work can be seen below.
- Added Entity permeance value. (More info to come on this later)
- Fixed Dungeon Entrance Spawning.
- Updated XP Logging on enemy group spawning.
- Fixed enemy group spawning.
- Remapped some bad nav data.
- Fixed issues relating to dungeon server starting.
- Fixed Item Equip/Unequip on the dungeon server.
- Fixed Player to Dungeon Session mappings.
- Fixed Item Stat calculations on inventory load.
Sound Design
Substantial progress in enhancing the game's auditory landscape, focusing on both the implementation of new audio assets and the refinement of existing ones. A key achievement was the continued setup of the latest abilities within the engine, including the creation of cues and attenuation settings for a wide range of abilities, such as the Javelin Throw for Drovals and the Plague Arrow for Fen Elves. The team also developed new sound cues for Fen Elf vocals, applying pitch adjustments to increase the diversity of audio feedback. Significant improvements were made to the Plague Spread effect, with the coughing sound replaced by the more fitting buzz of flies, and the Coldweave Spider's vocals and attack sounds were successfully reworked and imported into the game. Additionally, the team focused on refining the Revenant and Black Bear vocals, enhancing their impact and presence during gameplay. Efforts also extended to the creation of new loop sequences for abilities like Arcane Mine and Static Impact, and the sound design for the Icacian Necromancer’s Necromantic Mending ability. A thorough clean-up of old audio files in the engine was completed, involving the deletion, renaming, and reorganisation of assets to ensure a more streamlined and cohesive audio experience. These updates contribute to a more immersive and dynamic atmosphere within the game, enriching the overall player experience. Examples of the work completed by the team throughout the month can be see below.
Environment Art
Throughout August, the environment team at Depths of Erendorn made considerable progress in developing and refining various aspects of the game's settlement area. Significant achievements include the completion of house foundations and the strategic placement of stairs, which have contributed to a solid and cohesive settlement structure. The team advanced the interior design of key buildings, such as constructing rooms and a balcony in the inn, and creating an outdoor work area for the blacksmith, enhancing the settlement's realism and functionality. They also introduced dynamic weather effects, including puddles and snow, and continued set dressing, with notable additions to the tavern that enrich its atmosphere. Further improvements involved integrating a stone circle, refining the prop master material to conceal intersecting grass, and creating a dynamic, lightweight interior lighting solution. Props like braziers and lanterns were added to blueprints to enhance the ambience of interior spaces. The team also began testing baked lighting within buildings to ensure optimal visual quality. These efforts are crucial in bringing the settlement to life and contributing to the immersive world of Erendorn. Examples of the work completed by the team can be seen below.
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Animation
August saw significant strides in enhancing player animations to improve realism and fluidity for the animation team. Their primary focus was on refining locomotion animations, with considerable efforts dedicated to improving the speed and dynamism of character movements. Notable progress was achieved with the Human Knight, whose animations now exhibit greater fluidity and responsiveness. The team continued to address and fine-tune the locomotion for Elf and Dwarf characters, working towards achieving a similarly polished experience for all character types. Additionally, the team expanded the game's combat animations by creating a new set for the magic sword, encompassing its entire lifecycle from spawning to executing attacks. Two distinct sword skins were introduced, and corresponding animation blends and blueprints were developed to ensure smooth integration. These updates have been crucial in delivering a more immersive and engaging gameplay experience, enhancing both movement and combat dynamics within the game.
Visual Effects
Finally, the VFX team at Depths of Erendorn focused on significantly enhancing the visual impact of in-game abilities and effects. The team developed dramatic OnRemove effects, such as explosions and pops, for abilities like Crystallic Preservation and Arcane Mines, adding a compelling conclusion to these actions. They also created several colour variants for the Icacian Necromancer’s attack, inviting feedback to determine the most visually appealing option. In addition, new effects were designed for enemy attacks, including both melee and ranged effects for the Sonomatic Bats, and Static Impact visuals with OnRemove effects. The first batch of enemy effects was completed, featuring distinct visuals for abilities like Gathering Storm, Spitting Venom, Binding Roots, Chain Lightning, Icy Spiderwebs, and Poison and Disease Arrows. These updates ensure that each ability is visually distinct and impactful, enriching the overall dynamism and engagement of combat encounters within the game.
That’s it for this months devlog, but have you seen our monthly roundup of July yet?!
