The final day of Midvale’s Harvest Festival is in full swing, and that means tonight is Halloween! The Knights of Justice are volunteering to help the festival, and after work, decide to indulge in some Pumpkin Eggnog that Igor found.
However, Dorothy senses a strange aura in the fields, and goes to investigate. They say the boundaries between the mundane and the magical are thin on Halloween night. The Knights of Justice are about to find out just how true that is. Can they keep their souls until the sun rises?
You can get it on Itch.io or Wechange.me! As usual, if you’re a patron of 10$ or more over the last 3 months, DM us on Patreon to get a free copy!
If this sells 50 copies then Xandra will draw a Scarecrow Igna for everyone to enjoy.
Witches of Ravenbrook Wallpaper Sent to Backers!
Inky really went all out on this one, so check your KS inbox if you’re of the tier that gets the wallpapers. It’s amazing, and shows off some stuff that isn’t quite public yet. Enjoy!
WHI v1.35 Released, PaletteForms updated, AltPuppets3 Released
PaletteForms has been updated with another new form, as well as updated images for the Toy TF! I also overhauled how the new enemies spawn, there are dedicated areas for the new Nanites, as well as a new area for the gummies, emberwisps, and the kitsunes. New low-level areas for the shadow/nanite/silver/kitsune enemies were also placed in Bowmill Forest so you can get their essences early in the game.
Yep, from all the cats of varying degrees of black here at Bottled Starlight, we wish you happy Black Cat Day.
PaletteForms Mod Update is Soon!
There’s a major update for PaletteForms coming! In addition to redone graphics for the Toy TF, we get a new TF called the Nanite Girl form. I have also redone where the new enemies appear. You can now find small dedicated areas with the enemies in them, all at very low levels. You will be able to find level 3 Nanite Girls right across from the entrance to Heronstadt, for example, so you can get the charms relatively early in the game. The Nanites also appear in the alchemy lab, and some have late-game appearances.
This mod release requires me to update the base game, which will happen this week. In addition to some bugfixes, there was an error in the AIs which we have to sort out. I will do a post when everything is ready.
The Next Tales of Strings Releases on Halloween!
We bashed out a Halloween special story because when I mentioned scarecrow TF to Xandra, she went insane. It’s fun, it has sex, TF, and jokes! See you on Halloween!
Took a little break to work on the PaletteForms update. This is good, I was going bug-eyed on the RoP update. That should be done soon, at which point I will return to working on the combat. The ability icons are in progress, I have a few quests to go, and then – no idea! Hopefully we’re ready to begin testing in November. I’m tired!
As of today, Witch Hunter Izana is on sale on Steam and Itch.io for the rest of the month. String Tyrant is on sale on Itch.io right now, and will be on sale on Steam at the end of the month as part of Steam Scream Fest.
And the spooky book sale is still on if you haven’t looked at it yet. We typically only put things on sale in October (can’t imagine why) so get it while you can!
Development!
I have finished the 28 new class abilities for the 3 new forms, fixed the pile of bugs that the testers found and some more bugs behind it, and am working on placing enemy groupings. That should be done this week and by god maybe this mess will be somewhat playable. I still have a lot of NPC dialogue to put in, and Hund just finished the maps, and there’s all these sprites, and…
Still a lot of work to go but we are DETERMINED.
I know I said there’d be the next PaletteForms update but I ran out of time. I really need to get this next build up for the testers before I work on that :3
The first “draft” of the combat part of the chapter 2 update is in my hands. I need to proofread it, finish some skills, and get a test build ready. And place like 500 patrols. Hoo boy.
In addition, Hund is almost done the maps for the new chapter. Koops has a few more portraits to do and we’re ready to go on the art front!
I will not elaborate on what this is.
DB_Palette From Downtown!
DB_Palette has made a third alternate dolls mod! It even has a toggleable nude version (check the east side of the village). This will get added to Steam this week as it’s not quite tested yet.
An update to PaletteForms with yet another new playable form is also on the way, I just haven’t had time to actually make it yet. I’ll try to have it ready next Monday.
Tales of Strings: Knighttime is Now on Itch and WeChange!
That’s right, vampire bats are invading Midvale and it’s up to the Knights of Justice to stem the tide. Is anyone gonna get bit? Yes! You’ll just have to read to find out!
You can get it on Itch.io or on WeChange.me! If you’re a patron with 10$ or more over the past few months, send me a DM on Patreon and I can hook you up with a free copy!
Inky is currently working on the Kickstarter-Exclusive goodies. The stickers are done, and she’s going to be working on wallpapers and posters and stuff soon. She wants to keep this under wraps though as it’s KS-only so I managed to talk her into letting me post a pissed-off Lore.
There is also a VERY cool advertisement/front-page poster in the works. I’m psyched!
I was also authorized to show you the mosquito nurse enemies! Dahlia doesn’t just have a mansion, gardens, and a lovely lakeside. She also has an asylum where these blood-suckers are waiting to see you. For medical reasons. You want to donate blood, right?
And here’s what Chris looks like if they get a bite! It itches at first but that goes away…
Koops is going to be working on these in the near future once the remaining Chapter 2 stuff is ready. Way to go, Koops! The enemy concepts are by Inky of course.
That’s all for this one, we’re still busting our humps to get the Chapter 2 update out so we can switch focus to WoR. Inky and Koops will be getting the art ready ahead of time. I am hoping in November to do a big “Salty Talks Game Design” post where I go into my plans for character building, threat management, and more.
I’m currently working my way through the new abilities you’ll be able to get in Chapter 2. The new forms are Kitsune, which has some Crusading damage skills plus a passive that boosts crit damage, Raccoon which can manipulate and shift threat, and Raptor which has a lot of FIRE. Fire is good.
I should be done the new skills this week, and then it’s on to enemy skills and placement for balance work. Whoo.
Hund has finished the exterior maps and is working on the interior maps now. Koops is actually working on some WoR stuff and we might have a cross-promotion coming up too.
The Knights of Justice: Three Short Steps is out
It’s out on Itch.io, the WeChange version will be out a bit later. This one is free, as I don’t feel right charging for it given its subject matter. It’s a lot less of a TF story and more a complex exploration of psyches, along with action and jokes. Art is by the wonderful Judith, thanks to Mario for editing it so the prose is less not-good.
The next one is more of a TF story and much more light-hearted so look forward to that.
October Book Sale!
Over on Welcome Change we’re doing a big October sale! All our books are 25% off AND a ton of the other creators are also offering deals! Plus there’s free comics you can find with the ol’ searchbar so give them a look.
And if that wasn’t enough, the books are also on sale on Itch.io for 25% off, or you can get them all in a big bundle.
The games will go on sale in the second half of October to align with Steam Scream Fest. Between 20 and 50% off depending on the game. Get psyched!
The WoR Post
Will be next week. There’s some stuff cooking which you’ll like but it’s not quite done yet, so we’ll show it off next Monday. Look forward to it!
I spent the weekend overhauling the spawn system in preparation for having to put 100 enemy patrols in all the new areas. It now uses a more dynamic prefab spawn system rather than the old ad-hoc one. What does this mean?
For you? NOTHING. Probably.
For me, it means enemy groups can be placed with a single click rather than having to edit their properties in the map editor. Modders can still do that, and editing properties manually can still allow weird things like making certain enemies belong to a different paragon cluster for no reason. Things that basic RoP has no reason to do.
This also allows full-dynamic random spawning. WHI does this by using a lookup table, but the limitation was that the game couldn’t show you what enemies were which on the field. The game used a black-robed sprite (which also meant we didn’t need 500 sprites for all the enemies so it also saved on costs). RoP can now do WHI’s style of random spawning but can generate the entire patrol pseudorandomly, changing when you rest! Yay.
As we are now almost done September, I have put a hard cap on the new stuff. I will be adding three more “things” to chapter 2. Raelynn, Takahn, and Gina/Dawn will be added. Unfortunately I have to cut some things, the Orcs quest in the hotel will likely not make it in. I’ll still try.
I am almost complete the Jake and Kate quest! Yeah smaller quests like this I can knock out in a much shorter timeframe, and I even went and overcomplicated this one by making you go get a wooden rabbit’s foot blessed with canola oil.
Once this quest is done, I have to make a bunch of masked kitsune puzzles (aiee) and then some other crap based on my own discretion.
I will likely start doing the massive balance work this week, depending on how many quests I want to cram in. The ride never ends!
Koops has also been “balling out of control”, making like a dozen portraits in 3 days. Wild stuff. Maybe we’ll make our deadline! (No).
Koops just finished the eagle boss and is going to be knocking out some more portraits and such. Hund is working on the map, hopefully it’s ready in time for the release. I have my guy working on getting some balance stuff in place while I’m working my way through the minor quests. This week I have to code a blackjack implementation and a roulette implementation which is pretty easy but I made the NPCs very sarcastic which should help.
As far as stories go, I just finished Tales of Strings #31. I have three stories in development for release right now, as always there have been some pesky delays but we’ll get them out as soon as possible.
I’m working on minor quests right now while My Guy is going to be getting the start of balance work done. I don’t know how long that’s going to take! Urimas has been working with me to make tiles and Hund is working on the new area maps. Chicken DOES think we’ll be able to cram the cavecrawler TF into the update, meaning there might be up to four new TFs for the update. That makes it pretty easily the biggest update for the game ever.
Inky has completed the NPC sponsor work and is working on the sexdoll TF. We might see this for next month’s WoR update, I’ve seen the concepts and they look awesome already.
Three Short Steps Out Soon (?)
In a big upset, Judith has finished the art for the story before the editing is done. That doesn’t happen often! Knighttime is still in progress, you might get two new stories this month.
Three Short Steps, due to its subject matter, will be released for free. I don’t feel right about charging for it. So enjoy it, it’s a good story!
Kitsune quest is DONE. Took forever, it’s done. I am now going to be working on balance, and have contracted my Balance Guy (oh dear god) to put numbers on things. I’ll be making skills and enemies and stuff for the next little while, might break things up with some of the minor quests like GAMBLING or the kitsune trials of cunning.
PaletteForms Updated to v1.30, Now With Gummies!
Yep, db_palette has done it again. You can find the new gummies on the south beach. I want to make an actual campaign for the PaletteForms mod, at this point there’s so much that it could actually carry a (short) game of its own. My to-do list is long, though, so maybe later.
Here’s our roadmap for the remainder of 2025. Inky has made a big dent on the sponsor concept work, in fact producing several final pieces. She also wants to prioritize the sticker/wallpaper rewards so they’re ready for Halloween. For those of you who are backers of the high tiers, we’ll be contacting you later in the year once a few other things are done. Keep in mind this is the roadmap, we’re working to get these things ready.
As for me, I’m making good progress on the RoP chapter 2 update. After that, an engine tune-up since there have been some odd texture problems reported. There’s also a very small puzzle game prototype I want to do this year and then it’s time for WoR’s tool work. I need to get 3D level editors ready and make a bunch of updates Inky wants for the new UI of the game.
So first, Inky intends to make a few changes to the designs. First, the Witch Queen has some tails and more eyes. Here she is showing off her ankles. Scandalous!
Dahlia is also getting a new design, obscured here with a pixellation filter because IT’S A SECRET. You can see that the colours are darker here, which will be reflected in the level design as well.
Sable! One of the sponsor characters, Sable is Alia’s band manager. She survived the mess at the carnival and made her way to the neutral area in the university hub. How? The skills a good band manager picks up over the years: Getting the hell out of there when things start to go bad.
Sable keeps track of rumours and potential missions for you, helping you find quests and digging up dirt on the other characters in the pactrealms.
Elly! Another sponsor character. She happened to be wearing a bee costume at the carnival and you’ll be able to meet her. When the witches attacked… well, Honeybunns and her minions thought she was one of them. She’s going to need your help to get out of this alive and human.
Pudicitia is a succubus, but she’s not out to steal your lust. Well, sort of. She’s willing to give you some buffs and special items, in exchange for applying Influence or even applying curses to your teammates. Is she an ally? She has her own goals. Stay on her good side.
The Living Sextoy! Another sponsor teaser, this is an enemy you’ll encounter and it’s a full transformation. You can probably guess it’ll be in the Lust realm, and hoo boy is it a fun one. You’ll lose access to most non-healing magic spells when transformed, but get a fairly big bonus to… healing… spells. Yeah, healing. Look it makes their HP go up!
Lastly, we have Trine. Why is he a magic bunny and a doll maid? Trine gets around, he’s looking for a way to escape, just like you are. Unfortunately, unlike your party, he’s… not very good at fighting or sneaking. You’ll have to bail him out more than a few times, but he’s always very grateful.
Now Inky has also been working on getting some of the other characters caught up. So here’s Clover as a waitress!
I have a lot of discretion here so I decided on what I was going to pick to show off.
I hope you think I chose right. It’s nice to see Penny actually happy with a status effect isn’t it.
That’s it for this month. Next month’s update depends on what Inky and the artists get done. Keep in mind she’s still working and we haven’t hired the new artists on yet (currently looking at some portfolios). Very excited!
Our Patreon and Subscribestar are great places to support development! You can also get cool bonus stuff like concept art and early releases of Pandemonium!
Pandemonium Development 