Hey again everyone! Just my monthly posting to share what progress has been made...below you'll find the usual setup, but because I have just started classes again at university (yay...?) my work output is going to slow down a bit. That being said, while I know I finished the last big update well ahead of schedule, I think I will be trying to stick closer to the November 3rd target I had set, and will use the extra time to do more quality improvements for the game overall (as with the last update). Currently, I'm working on implementing a more realistic lighting system for caves and other dark places, so expect a big change in that arena! 

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The money saved will go towards a fully developed website for GFE, and as more people sign up I will be able to give away all sorts of awesome loot, starting with buttons, stickers, etc. and moving to bigger things like T-Shirts, posters, and more! If you can offer even a dollar a month I'd truly appreciate it, but if you're not there yet, thank you for just being here :D

Without further ado, the devlog:

Update – “Crime and Punishment” …Release Date November 3rd!

• -NOTE: Players who previously completed the demo and chose to return to the mainland will be able to return to the point where the demo left off by speaking to the man next to the bus stop in Pedregal Springs.  
• -15 new quests
  • Advances existing storylines for Delphine and Stark
  • Introduces storyline for Lucas (New Character)
  • New Deadhander faction quests (2)
  • New Hunter faction quest
    • Seeking the Truth, pt. 3 (Delphine Storyline Quest)
    • Heroes and Thieves (??? Storyline Quest)
    • A Marked Man, pt. 1 (Lucas Storyline Quest)
    • A Marked Man, pt. 2 (Lucas Storyline Quest)
    • Rebel Without a Cause, pt. 3 (Stark Storyline Quest)
    • Locked and Loaded (Deadhanders Faction Quest)
    • Crime and Punishment (Deadhanders Faction Quest)
    • Vengeance and Valor (Hunters’ Faction Quest)
    • The Lost Patrol (Freeform Quest)
    • The Runaway Crook (Freeform Quest)
    • The Lost Prototypes, pt. 3 (Freeform Quest)
    • Royal Assassins (Bounty Quest)
    • Jurgen’s Burden (Bounty Quest)
    • The Truth Revealed (Eloin Quest)
    • Supply and Demand XV (Item Gathering Quest)
• -New Areas Opened:
  • Party can now enter Monolito Canyon.
    • Once starting the first quest for Eight of Spades, the party can begin entering.
    • Located along the western edge of the Deadlands, the valley is home to countless Mareman military robots, as well as the restless spirits of Deadhanders killed during The Reclamation.
    • Additionally, the party will be able to enter the Monolito Weapons Plant (West) after beginning the Deadhander quest “Locked and Loaded”.
    • Additionally, the party will be able to enter the Monolito Weapons Plant (East) after beginning the Deadhander quest “Crime and Punishment”.
  • Party can now enter Old Panavinto (Interior)
    • Area will be accessible from the start of the game; however, the enemies will likely be too strong for most parties the first time passing through this area. (Enemy Level 35)
    • Accessible from the Old Panavinto Outskirts, the Interior is home to a wide variety of threats including hostile wildlife, Sentry Drones, and Scavvers.
    • The Interior is a large maze of ruined buildings and destroyed streets, with multiple pathways leading to the Old Panavinto Depths.
  • Party can now enter Old Panavinto Depths
    • Area will be accessible from the start of the game; however, the enemies will likely be far too strong for most parties the first time passing through this area. (Enemy Level 50)
    • Accessible from the Old Panavinto Interior, the Depths are home to a wide variety of threats including hostile wildlife, Sentry Drones, and Scavvers.
    • Though much smaller than the Interior, the Depths conceal a number of winding pathways and valuable loot for the player to discover
    • The final Hunters’ Guild quest, “Vengeance and Valor” will require the player to track down a massive dragon hiding in the Depths.
• -Changes to Existing Areas
  • Encounter tables changed for St. Joseph’s Road
    • The “Sampa” enemies have been removed from the encounter table
    • Frequency of remaining encounter types have been tweaked as follows:
      • There is now a 44% chance to encounter [Anidade x3]
      • There is now a 22% chance to encounter [Anidade x2 + Goni x1]
      • There is now a 33% chance to encounter [Goni x2]
• -Changes to Party Members
  • STARK’S SKILL PROGRESSION HAS BEEN CHANGED.
    • Stark now learns “Slumber” at Level 48 (+4)
    • If Stark has already learned “Slumber” and is not Level 48 or higher, he will retain the ability and will not learn anything at Level 48.
  • BRIDGET’S SKILL PROGRESSION HAS BEEN CHANGED
    • Bridget no longer learns “Douse” at Level 75
    • Bridget now learns “Holy Water” at Level 75
    • If Bridget has already reached level 75, entering the world map will swap “Douse” for “Holy Water” in her skill list.
• -Changes to Enemies
  • Experiment 415
    • Drop rate for “Salvaged CyTech” has been significantly increased
    • Drop rate is now 25%
  • Experiment 452
    • Drop rate for “Salvaged CyTech” has been significantly increased
    • Drop rate is now 25%
  • Sentry Drone
    • Sentry Drones now have the following special trait:
      • Advanced Targeting – Gains +10% Accuracy and a 2% Crit. Chance
  • Spooklight
    • Drop rate for “Ectoplasm” has changed
      • Previously, enemy had a 50% chance to drop a single Ectoplasm, and a separate 50% chance to drop a second Ectoplasm.
      • Enemy now has a 100% chance to drop a single Ectoplasm. Drop rate for second Ectoplasm remains unchanged.
    • The special trait for the rare enemy variant “Abyssal Spooklight” has changed
      • Enemy now absorbs [Holy] element attacks as health
      • Enemy no longer absorbs [Dark] element attacks as health
• -Changes to Skills
  • “Diamond Drill” skill now has an animation
  • “Holy Water” has been tweaked
    • In addition to dealing damage, the skill will now “Banish” spectral enemies, killing them instantly.
  •  “Silence Shot” now correctly has a chance to cause both “Silence” and “Nausea”
    • Previously, the skill was only able to cause “Silence”
  •  “Vitrify” skill now has an animation
  • Minor changes to some skill descriptions for consistency
  • Skills whose only purpose is to reduce an enemy’s stats (such as “Frustrate”) have had their chance of success increased to 50%
    • Skills which carry a chance of stat reduction as a secondary effect have not changed (25% chance)
• -General Changes / Bug Fixes
  • “MP Regen Rate” has been changed to “AP Regen Rate” in the attributes screen
  • “Crit. Hit Rate” has been changed to “Crit. Rate” in the attributes screen
  • Duration of negative and positive states has been tweaked for consistency
    • Most negative status effects with a “duration” now last 2-5 rounds
    • Most positive status effects now last 2-5 rounds
  • The “Machete” is now required to enter Unktomi’s Hut
  • Entering the “Empty Garage” in Pedregal Springs no longer stops the music while inside
  • Gregory no longer comments about Chusca Yacer when he is not in the party
  • A bug which was preventing the Lumva Beetle from dropping their rare component “Large Mandible” has been fixed. Standard drop rate is 12.5%.
    • Additionally, the component can be purchased from one of the Scavvers living in the Old Panavinto Depths for 387 Volts each.
    • Players will now be able to complete the item gathering quest “Supply and Demand VIII”, located in the Battler’s Dungeon.
  • Changed the name of the “Damaged Katana” to “Practice Katana”.
  • Added “Salvaged CyTech” to Nathan’s travelling store (one location only!)
  • Nyla can now scavenge additional items from broken machinery!
    • Searching any pile of broken scrap with Nyla in the party will yield additional salvage. This change also applies to piles of loot which were searched prior to the current update.
  • Added more spots to use your “Shovel”
  • Added more spots to use your “Screwdriver”
    • Note that some Screwdriver locations require Nyla in the party to use effectively
  • Added more spots to use your “Hooked Axe”
  • Added more spots to use your “Machete”
  • Added more spots to use your “Pickaxe”
  • Added more locked containers for Stark to open