- Building the Foundations of Stormbane’s World - 22 May 2026
Hello everyone,It has been a while since our last development update, so we wanted to share what we have been working on and why things have been quiet.Much of our recent work has been focused on foundational world systems. These are not always the most exciting features to show on their own, but they are important building blocks for the kind of game we are making.We have been working on our settlement generator, river system, and roads system.At first glance, that might not sound as exciting as new enemies, quests, weapons, or dungeons. A road is just a road. A river is just a river. A settlement is just a place on the map.But for Stormbane, these systems are more than scenery.They are the foundations of the world simulation.The settlement generator gives us a way to create places that feel connected to the world around them. Rivers help shape the landscape, create natural boundaries,…
- Quick Playtest Update - 24 March 2026
Just a quick update to say thanks to everyone who signed up for the Stormbane playtest, and to those who have already jumped in and tried it.It has been good to see the response, but the more useful part is what people say once they actually get in and play it.One of the first bits of feedback I got was that the combat feels nice, but the camera is fighting movement a bit, both in combat and when just running around.I think that is fair.That is exactly why I wanted to do the playtest. When you have been deep in a game for a long time, it is easy to get used to how everything feels. Real players show you very quickly what is working and what is not.So thank you. I am working through that feedback now, and it is already helping shape what I work on next.If you have played and have thoughts, please keep sharing them. The specific feedback is the most useful.More soon.
- Stormbane Playtest Now Live - 17 March 2026
Stormbane playtest is now live.This is the first fully playable build, with core systems running in a live environment — including our custom AI, rebuilt UI, and online systems.We’ve already hit (and fixed) real issues in the live build, which is exactly why this phase matters. Now it’s about testing everything under real player conditions and iterating quickly.Access is currently limited while we stabilise and expand the test.If you have access, jump in and let me know how it feels.If you hit any issues or have feedback, join the Discord:https://discord.gg/49m7ACXh6VI’m actively monitoring and pushing fixes based on what comes in.
- Preparing Our First Combat Playtest - 13 March 2026
Stormbane Public Playtest IncomingWe’re preparing the first public playtest for Stormbane.This will be a focused early test centered on one core system: melee combat.Over the past six weeks we’ve been developing Stormbane’s combat and enemy behavior systems, and we’re now ready to begin testing them with players.What This Playtest Focuses OnThis test is intentionally narrow in scope. The goal is to evaluate combat before expanding into more systems.During the playtest you can expect:• Melee combat encounters • AI enemies designed for group fights • Early versions of Stormbane’s combat systems • A small playable test environmentMany of Stormbane’s larger game systems are still under development.What We Want To LearnThis playtest will help us evaluate:• How melee combat feels • Enemy AI behavior during group encounters • Combat readability and timing • Player feedback on combat flowYour f…
- Stormbane Dev Update – AI Battles & Playtest Readiness - 1 March 2026
Stormbane Development UpdateThis week marked an important milestone for Stormbane as we completed the AI test battle framework and brought it to a playtest-ready state.AI vs AI Test Battles CompleteAutonomous AI groups can now engage, resolve combat, and transition states without player intervention. These battles are stable, deterministic, and suitable for extended simulation.Key outcomes:Reliable AI group engagement and disengagementStable battle resolution logicRegion-level conflict flow functioning end-to-endEdge case handling around state transitions improvedThis gives us a controlled environment to validate combat pacing, balance, and systemic behaviour before opening wider play access.System Stabilisation & UI HardeningAlongside the AI milestone, we focused heavily on stability and correctness.Refined character creator filter logic to eliminate inconsistent selection statesCorrec…
- Stormbane – Weekly Development Update - 22 February 2026
This week focused heavily on AI-driven combat and large-scale encounter behaviour.Team AI BattlesContinued development of coordinated AI vs AI engagementsImproved how squads evaluate targets during multi-actor fightsRefined behaviour during flanking and pressure scenariosThe goal is to move away from chaotic dog-piling and toward more readable, intentional combat flow.Target Claims SystemExpanded and stabilised the claim system used to prevent over-stacking on a single targetImproved resolution when claims shift during fast combat transitionsReduced edge cases where AI would stall or overcommitThis system is becoming central to how Stormbane handles large skirmishes without losing tactical clarity.Combat PacingTuned stamina interaction in AI engagementsAdjusted aggression curves to reduce overwhelming spikesImproved decision timing during multi-enemy pressureThe aim is consistent tensio…
- Stormbane – Weekly Development Update - 13 February 2026
Stormbane – Weekly Development UpdateThis week has been focused on AI stability, faction correctness, and large-scale combat reliability. A lot of the work happened under the hood, but it directly improves how battles feel and how systems behave under pressure.AI vs AI Combat – Nearly ThereWe are now very close to fully reliable AI vs AI battles.What changedRefined threat detection logicImproved target reevaluation rulesFixed edge cases where AI would:Drop targets unexpectedlyFail to re-acquire after controller changesStall in combat statesThe result:AI now maintains combat intent more consistentlyEngagements feel deliberate instead of chaoticFaction battles behave predictablyLarge encounters are starting to resemble actual battlefield skirmishes rather than isolated duels.Faction & Team Resolution ImprovementsWe spent significant time tightening up the Faction → Team mapping system.Imp…
- Stormbane Weekly Devlog – Combat Polish, AI Refinement - 6 February 2026
Combat, AI, and Core SystemsThis week was focused on tightening melee combat, refining AI behaviour, and strengthening the core systems that support moment-to-moment gameplay. Much of the work was foundational rather than flashy, but it directly impacts how responsive, predictable, and stable the game feels.Combat ImprovementsWe spent time stabilising melee combat flow and ability execution. This included improvements to attack timing, telegraph windows, and combo sequencing to ensure actions resolve consistently against animation and network state.Guard and block behaviour was validated across start, loop, and end phases, with particular attention paid to server authority and montage synchronisation. Dodge behaviour was also corrected to ensure camera-relative movement behaves consistently across local and networked play.AI Behaviour RefinementOur melee AI systems were refined to impro…
- Combat polish: when the AI forgets it’s dead - 2 February 2026
While testing melee combat, we ran into a fun little edge case. An enemy hit its death animation… but never quite got the memo that it was supposed to stop thinking. Result: a technically dead AI, still fully committed to the fight. This was a clean example of why animation state and gameplay state must always be hard-gated. The fix was straightforward: once an AI enters the Dead state, all combat logic, movement, and targeting are immediately shut down. These are exactly the kinds of edge cases we’re hunting down as we polish Stormbane’s combat and AI systems. (And yes — the AI is now correctly dead.)
- Development Update: Core Combat and AI Systems - 31 January 2026
Development Progress UpdateThis is the first in a series of development updates for Stormbane, sharing progress as core systems come together and the game takes shape.Recent work has focused on stabilising and unifying the foundations of the game — particularly combat and AI behaviour — resulting in a much more coherent and playable core experience.Combat: Deliberate and Timing-DrivenMelee combat in Stormbane is built around intent rather than speed. Attacks, blocks, parries, and movement are governed by stamina, recovery windows, and positioning.Recent work has focused on:Directional attacks and defensive responsesClear stamina costs and consequencesKnockback and recovery that reward good timingReducing button-spam in favour of readable fightsCombat is now closer to its intended final feel: slower, weightier, and more tactical.AI: Playing the Same Game as the PlayerA major milestone ha…
