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Spellswords

A high-fantasy rolepalying game for 1 or more players · By DungeonGobbo

Update Notes

A topic by DungeonGobbo created Sep 02, 2025 Views: 231 Replies: 8
Viewing posts 1 to 11
Developer

Here I will post all notes related to updates made to the game

Developer

Version 0.8 

Here's a brief breakdown of the changes to be found in version 0.8. These changes are not comprehensive but should list most things.

Rulebook

  • Typo and formatting changes
  • Added in many illustrations (see the note about illustrations on the second page)
  • Added an illustrated cover page
  • Changed the rules for travelling to be more simple and for you to encounter something every turn
  • Added an Optional Rules section (some parts are still work in progress)
  • Added a draft of information for The Game Master section (to likely be completed in the next version)
  • Updated some old pictures that didn't represent the current version of the game
  • Changed 'Casts/Day' to be 'Casts/Turn' to clarify how regaining spells works
  • Added a section about the front and back rows in the Combat & Death section
  • Added a table regarding Combat Actions
  • Added further clarifications as to how actions work
  • Added several changes to different sections of the rules for the sake of clarity
  • Added a new form of treasure called 'Artifacts'

Dwellings Sheet

  • Greatly expanded the content for several dwellings
  • Created a first draft of the following dwellings: Werewolf Den, Elden Citadel, and Winterhaven
  • Removed 'Zyphus' and put it in the new Sky Encounters table

Character Sheet

  • Changed 'Casts/Day' to 'Casts/Turn' in accordance to the change made in the rulebook

Adventure Book

  • Changed the name of the 'Book of Tables' to 'Adventure Book'
  • Updated a few spell names
  • Rebalanced several encounters
  • Added a new encounter table: Sky Encounters
  • Split the Treasures table into Treasures and Artifacts

Map

  • Removed Zyphus from the map (it can now be found i nthe new Sky Encounters table)

Cities & Villages Sheet

  • Renamed the 'Castles & Towns' sheet to 'Cities & Villages'
  • Updated several things here to match with current rule changes
Developer

I put all of the files in a zip folder to make downloading everything easier. I'll still maintain version numbers for each individual file within the zip folder.

Developer (1 edit)

We just reached 200 downloads! 

Thanks everyone! I'm hoping to get new updates coming in before the end of the month. Stay tuned here for all details regarding those updates.

Developer (4 edits)

NEW UPDATE

Hey guys! I'm back with another update. This one focusses on fixing a lot of minor things while also introducing some new mechanics such as new functionality for the longsword, being able to now dig your own tunnel out of jail, and a huge section on how you can claim and build up your own fortress.  

Rulebook (0.9)

  • General
    • Updated the wording of the ‘File Naming’ section
    • The ‘Tent’ and ‘Large Tent’ had different die values in several sections of the rulebook. All of the values have been updated to match those found on the Cities & Villages sheet.
    • Updated the wording on many different sections for clarity, consistency, etc.
    • General typo fixes
    • General formatting fixes
  • Game Setup 
    • Slightly updated wording in some sections
  • Glossary 
    • Defined ‘Follower Skill’ under ‘Level Up’ 
    • Fixed the formatting of the ‘Optional Rules’ section 
  • Character Creation
    • In the ‘Pre-Made Characters’ section, changed the wording of ‘Trained Skills’ to ‘Skills’
  • Encounters
    • In the ‘Encounter Roll’ section, changed the wording regarding the section on ‘Travelling’ to better reflect the most current rules for encounter rolls
  • Combat & Death
    • Made a note about that you cannot make melee attacks from the back row
    • Updated the ‘Using Items to Rest’ example
  • Optional Rules 
    • Adjusted the wording in the ‘Cooking’ section from ‘3 days’ to ‘3 turns’
    • All of the rules regarding building your own fortress has been added in
  • Magic
    • Reworded some sections that mentioned ‘daily casts’ to ‘casts per turn’
    • Updated the Spells table to match the one found in the Adventure book. The spheres of magic were also connected to the wrong spells, so that’s been fixed as well
    • Added a note that you do not gain XP from making tests against the Miasma die

Adventure Book (0.9)

  • Adjusted the ‘Talking’ enchantment wording of ‘day’ to ‘turn’
  • Changed the ‘Tent (d12)’ to ‘Large Tent (d10)’
  • Shortened the ‘Binding’ enchantment so that the note regarding the usage of enchantments would fit on the enchantments page again
  • Updated the ‘Longsword’ and ‘Magic Longsword’ with the newly introduced ‘Parry’ effect
  • Re-alphabitized the chaos spells 

Dungeon Maps (0.8)

  • Updated the quality. It was very pixelated before.

Cities & Villages (0.9)

  • Adjusted to presentation of the power and cost of items to make it more clear that the cost of items is tied to their power die value
  • Slightly adjusted the formatting of the ‘Tavern’ table
  • Added a ‘Parry’ effect to the ‘Longsword’
  • Slightly reformatted the ‘Jail’ section for readability
  • Added an option that characters who are jailed can attempt to dig a tunnel into the sewers to escape

Dwellings Sheet (0.9)

  • Goblin Fortress: Added a note that if Grubfang wasn’t encountered in the first two fortresses, then you are forced to encounter him in the last room of the third fortress.

Chaos Spellbook (0.8)

  • Changed the ‘Fear’ spell to ‘Cause Fear’
  • Changed the ‘Deathspeak’ spell to ‘Speak with Dead’

Arcane Spellbook (0.8)

  • Changed the ‘Enchant’ spell to ‘Acid frog’

Character Sheet (0.9)

  • Added a section for players to write in which temple their soul is bound to
  • Character sheet should also appear in a better quality as the last version 
Developer

400+ Downloads! 

Whoo! Thanks to everyone who've downloaded the game!

What have I been up to?

Hey guys! It's been a while since my last post as I needed to take some time away from actively developing the game so I could have some time playing it and also just get a break for a bit to get to work on other things going on in life. Well, there's no way I'm giving up on this game in case anyone was wondering. In fact, I would like to share a sneak peek at what I've been up to! 

I'm currently trying to bring the tables from the Adventure Book back to their original card forms (fonts will need some changing for readability... I mean, just look at that 'M' for 'Monster' for the Gaseous Spore), Here's what they used to look like:

What's the plan?

So, yeah, definitely a pretty big upgrade will be coming at some point. I wish I could say when I'd have all the cards done by, but it's hard to say at the moment as I've been quite busy with other responsibilities as of late. At the very least I would like to share my plan for the next update:

  • Turn all encounter tables into encounter cards 
  • Turn all dungeon related tables into dungeon cards
  • Turn the quests, reactions, and some of the character tables into character cards
  • Turn the spells, enchantments, curses, goods, treasures, and artifact tables into loot cards

So, in total, there will be four decks of cards. It's possible that an oracle deck will be coming at some point, but that's going to be very low on the list of priorities. I'm also going to create the sky encounter deck separately as (1) there's no way I could fit it with all the other encounters on the encounter cards, and (2) the sky encounters are insanely difficult so I'm thinking they will be more like an optional addition to the game for those seeking an even greater challenge (maybe it will be a part of a 'Challenge Deck' that will have some other terrain like water and the desert). 

Keeping these cards constantly up to date with the latest version of the game will probably be a huge chore that will take away precious game development time, so I can't guarantee that I will update them all that often if at all after creating their first versions. For that reason, the Adventure Book will be staying for those who wish to have the most up to date encounters, loot, etc.. 

Developer (3 edits)

NEW UPDATE

UPDATE SUMMARY

  • Advanced Spellswords
    • Tons of new optional rules have been added and moved into a separate file called ‘Advanced Spellswords’ (originally they were in the section titled ‘Optional Rules’ in the main rulebook). 
  • Action Overhaul
    • A reference sheet has finally been added. The first of the rules to be summarized are the actions a player can perform in their turn. The action system has also been completely overhauled. 

DETAILED UPDATE

Advanced Spellswords

  • This is a new component that has been added and contains all optional rules. The section ‘Optional Rules’ from the core rulebook have all been moved to this new component. This file can be found in the ‘Optional Rules’ folder.
  • Fortress Building
    • Added rules for other players to be able to participate in player-held tournaments
  • Advanced Alchemy 
    • The ‘Shockwave’ potion effect has been changed to ‘Healing’
    • Added a note regarding that each monster part can only be used in a single recipe
  • New Sections Added: The following sections have been newly added with the addition of some new illustrations as well
    • Racial Abilities
    • Racial Reactions
    • Animal Activities
    • NPC Activities
    • Mortal Wounds
    • Camp Encounters
    • Pick Pocketing

Rulebook

  • General
    • Slight formatting, grammar, and typo fixes
    • Slightly reworded some sections for clarity and correctness
    • All references to the ‘Dwellings Sheet’ have been changed to the ‘Dwellings Book’
    • Actions in the game have been redefined and more explicitly defined to help clear up any confusion as to what types of actions can be performed and what skills to use to conduct such actions. Before it was purposefully somewhat vague and more open to interpretation to encourage players to focus on using their imagination to resolve encounters.
  • Glossary
    • Added the following definitions 
      • ‘Party’
    • Reworded several definitions for clarity and correctness
  • Actions
    • This section has been overhauled and moved to fit in the Actions, Skills & Followers section (orginally the Skill Tests & Followers section)
  • Encounters
    • Added a heart symbol in the ‘Hit Points’ section
    • Slightly reworded the section on ‘Power Dice’
    • Added a new heading under ‘Power Dice’ called ‘Modifiers’
  • Skill Tests & Followers
    • Added an ‘Item Bonus’ optional rule under the section ‘Skill Tests With Items’
    • Reworded the section on ‘Follower Skills’ for the sake of clarity
    • Rewrote how skill tests work 
    • Fixed a typo in the example regarding Logar gaining XP in his encounter with a thief
  • Combat & Death
    • Reworded the section on ‘Death & Retirement’
    • Reworded the section on ‘Calm & Befriend’
    • Rewrote the section on ‘Combat Actions’
  • Oracle
    • Slightly reworded the example in the section ‘Strange Results’
  • The Game Master
    • The contents of this section have been temporarily removed. Once the writing is finished, everything will be added back in.
  • Optional Rules
    • Removed the Optional Rules section from the rulebook and created a new component called “Advanced Spellswords” where all optional rules will be maintained. All notes regarding changes made to the optional rules are mentioned under the the ‘Advanced Spellswords’ section

Map

  • Changed ‘Capitals’ to ‘Cities’
  • Changed ‘Towns’ to ‘Villages’
  • Added a section called ‘Dungeons’


Actions Reference Sheet

  • This is a newly added game component that summarizes the types of actions, how to perform them, what skill to use, and whether they are a primary or free action.
Developer(+1)

UPDATE IN PROGRESS

Just a quick update on where things are at. After doing the last update, I've gotten back into designing the cards and have decided to replace the Adventure Book with the cards when they are done.  Every time I'm playing the game, I get annoyed at flipping through the adventure book so much and I think it could put people off from playing the game. I remember when I used to play with the cards that I loved how fast it was to draw all sorts of cards and generate encounters and characters so quickly.

The Travel cards that contain all the overland encounters are almost done. Once I have all the card decks done, I will upload them to the current version of the game and remove the Adventure Book. Not going to make any promises, but I would like to have all the decks done by the end of January. Hopefully I can also do another playthrough video at some point, but I'd rather focus more on game development than making another video. 

Developer (5 edits)

NEW UPDATE + 500 DOWNLOADS!

UPDATE SUMMARY

  • CARDS!
    • Say goodbye to the Adventure Book because cards are now in! This update introduces 4 decks of cards so you can very quickly generate random results without having to flip through pages of random tables.

DETAILED UPDATE

Rulebook

  • General
    • Since the Adventure Book has been replaced by decks of cards, many sections in the rulebook have been changed to reflect this. Listing all of the changes would make for a huge list, so you’ll have to just see for yourself. 
  • Character Creation
    • Reworded the lore descriptions for the following races: Vasilith, Orc, Tsar (Human, Dwarf, and Elf still need to be done). The wording before felt more like disjointed facts as it was mainly written as my notes about the races. The writing for these entries should now be more cohesive and flow better. I’ve also tweaked some aspects of the lore to fit better with my current vision of the story behind the Sundered Kingdoms.
    • The names from the Adventure book have been moved to their respective race sections to make coming up with a name during character creation easier and more accessible. 

Travel Deck

  • This update re-introduces the travel deck with a much needed visual overhaul. Many cards have also been updated for balance and clarity.

Loot Deck

  • This update re-introduces the loot deck with a much needed visual overhaul. Many cards have also been updated for balance and clarity.

Dungeon Deck

  • This update re-introduces the dungeon deck with a much needed visual overhaul. Many cards have also been updated for balance and clarity.

Character Deck

  • This update re-introduces the character deck with a much needed visual overhaul. Many cards have also been updated for balance and clarity.


What's on the Horizon?

This update is somewhat incomplete as I still need to create the Oracle Deck and update the Advanced Rulebook to reflect the changes that were introduced when the Adventure Book was replaced with decks of cards. So, the next update will for sure be bringing in those changes. Some other things I'd like to introduce in the next update but I'm not sure if it'll happen so soon are the following:

  • Big Example: I want to write out a huge example at the end of the rulebook that takes an example character from character creation to many other things that will show how the rules work in action. 
  • Drive Points: I want to find a way to fit a section for Drive Points on the character sheet.
  • Dwellings Book: I really don't like the layout for the Dwellings Book, so I would like to completely overhaul it so it looks more visually pleasing.