Altair — Balance Overhaul v1.1¶
Purpose: Address critical balance failures making the game trivially easy. Players should struggle to reach 20:00 even on Knight. A full clear should feel like an achievement, not a guarantee. Reference Games: Vampire Survivors (post-1.0 balance), 20 Minutes Till Dawn, Brotato, Soulstone Survivors Philosophy: The player should feel powerful by minute 10 but genuinely threatened by minute 15. Minute 18+ should feel like controlled panic. Sitting still and winning should be impossible at any point past minute 3.
Table of Contents¶
1. Root Cause Analysis¶
The current balance has five compounding problems that feed into each other:
Problem 1: Uncapped Pierce Creates Passive Play¶
Most weapons either inherently pierce infinitely (Storm Bow, Knife Storm, Garlic/Soul Eater, Death Ray chains, Lightning/Thunderstorm) or gain pierce through evolution. Once a player has 2–3 AoE/pierce weapons at mid levels, every enemy dies within frames of spawning. The player can literally stop moving and win.
Fix: Introduce pierce limits on all projectile weapons. No weapon should have infinite pierce by default. Pierce becomes a stat that must be invested in. AoE weapons get radius reductions.
Problem 2: Exponential Player DPS vs. Polynomial Enemy HP¶
Player damage scales as: baseDmg × 1.15^(level-1) × might × passives. This is exponential. A level 8 weapon does 2.66× base before Might. With 2.0× Might (easy to reach), that’s 5.32× base. With 4 weapons firing, total DPS is astronomical.
Enemy HP scales as: base × (1 + t×0.12 + t²×0.008). At minute 20, this is 6.6×. A Shambler goes from 8 HP to 53 HP. But a single level 8 Broad Sword with 1.5× Might does 20 × 2.66 × 1.5 = 79.8 damage per swing every 1.2s. One weapon one-shots the toughest-scaled Shambler.
Fix: Flatten player damage scaling, steepen enemy HP scaling dramatically, reduce Might accessibility.
Problem 3: XP Curve is Far Too Generous¶
The current formula 5 + level×3 + level²×0.4 lets players hit level 30+ by minute 20. Combined with XP gem scaling (1 + t×0.05), late-game players level every 10–15 seconds. Each level is another weapon upgrade or passive, further accelerating the snowball.
Fix: Steeper XP curve (cubic component), remove XP gem time-scaling entirely, cap effective level lower.
Problem 4: Spawn Budget Doesn’t Keep Up¶
92 threat/second at minute 20 with a 300-enemy cap means screens never feel truly dangerous to a geared player. In Vampire Survivors, the final minutes feature thousands of enemies on screen simultaneously. The budget here is too conservative.
Fix: Dramatically increase late-game spawn budgets, raise enemy cap, add “horde surge” mechanics.
Problem 5: Bosses Are Stat Checks, Not Threats¶
The Hollow King has 800 HP. By minute 5, a moderately built player deals 80–120 DPS across their weapons. The King dies in 7–10 seconds. Terminus at 8,000 HP faces a player doing 400–800 DPS with evolved weapons. It dies in 10–20 seconds. Bosses need to be genuine survival encounters.
Fix: Massive boss HP increases, add damage cap mechanics, make boss fights about survival not DPS racing.
2. Weapon Overhaul¶
Global Changes¶
Change |
Old |
New |
Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
Damage per level |
+15% compounding |
+10% compounding |
Lv8 goes from 2.66× → 1.95× base. Significant DPS reduction across all weapons |
Pierce stat (NEW) |
Not a stat |
New stat, base 0 for all players |
Projectiles hit 1 enemy by default. Pierce adds pass-through targets |
Max weapons per run |
6 |
6 |
Unchanged |
Max weapon level |
8 |
8 |
Unchanged |
Level 2/4/6 bonus |
+1 base effect each |
+1 at 2, +1 at 5 only |
Fewer free scaling breakpoints |
Evolution requirement |
Weapon lv8 + passive (any level) |
Weapon lv8 + passive lv3+ |
Demands more investment before payoff |
New damage formula:
weaponDamage = baseDamage × Math.pow(1.10, level - 1) × might
weaponCooldown = baseCooldown × cdr / attackSpeed
Level 8 damage comparison:
Old (1.15^7) |
New (1.10^7) |
|
|---|---|---|
Multiplier |
2.66× |
1.95× |
Broad Sword (base 20) |
53.2 |
39.0 |
Fire Wand (base 30) |
79.8 |
58.5 |
Per-Weapon Changes¶
1. Broad Sword (Melee Sweep)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
20 |
18 |
Slight base reduction |
Cooldown |
1.2s |
1.3s |
Slower swing |
Arc |
120° (implied) |
100° |
Narrower sweep — positional play matters |
Range |
(unspecified) |
90px |
Explicitly short |
Knight’s starting weapon should be reliable but not dominant. The narrower arc forces the player to face threats.
2. Arcane Bolt (Homing Projectile)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
18 |
15 |
Homing is extremely strong — damage must be lower |
Cooldown |
1.0s |
1.2s |
Slower fire rate |
Pierce |
Infinite (implied) |
0 (single target) |
Homing + pierce was the core of the “sit still” problem |
Homing strength |
(unspecified) |
Tracking radius 300px, turn rate 180°/s |
Can miss fast targets |
Homing projectiles that also pierce are the #1 offender for passive play. Single-target homing is strong enough as a “set and forget” weapon.
3. Iron Shortbow (Directional Arrows)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
12 |
10 |
Lower base to compensate for multi-proj |
Cooldown |
0.8s |
0.9s |
Slightly slower |
Pierce |
Infinite (implied) |
1 (hits 2 enemies total) |
Core nerf. Arrows stop after 2 hits |
Projectile Speed |
(unspecified) |
350 px/s |
Explicit for tuning |
Range |
(unspecified) |
400px (despawn distance) |
Arrows don’t fly forever |
Arrows now require Pierce investment from passives (Quiver) or level-ups to become the screen-clearing weapon they were. Early game, they’re single-target with occasional pass-through.
4. Toxic Flask (Lobbed AoE)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
8/tick |
6/tick |
Reduced tick damage |
Cooldown |
3.5s |
4.0s |
Longer between throws |
Pool Duration |
2s |
1.5s |
Shorter persistence |
Pool Radius |
(unspecified) |
60px |
Explicit, moderate |
Tick Rate |
(implied 0.5s) |
0.5s |
Unchanged |
Poison pools are area denial, not screen-wide damage. Shorter duration means the Plague Doctor must keep moving to maintain coverage.
5. War Axe (Circular Cleave)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
28 |
24 |
High base was too forgiving |
Cooldown |
1.8s |
2.0s |
Slower spin |
Arc |
360° |
360° |
Unchanged — this is the weapon’s identity |
Range |
(unspecified) |
80px |
Short. Must be in the thick of it |
Max Targets |
Unlimited |
8 |
NEW: Cleave can only hit 8 enemies per swing |
360° cleave was infinite AoE. The target cap means dense swarms survive partially, forcing the Berserker to keep swinging rather than one-shotting entire waves.
6. Soul Siphon (Beam)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
10/tick |
8/tick |
Reduced DPS |
Range |
100px |
80px |
Shorter — more dangerous positioning |
Tick Rate |
(implied) |
4 ticks/s |
Explicit: 32 base DPS |
Target |
Nearest enemy |
Nearest enemy, single target only |
Cannot chain or splash |
The beam is a reliable single-target damage dealer. Its strength is consistency, not AoE.
7. Temporal Shard (Boomerang)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
15 ×2 |
12 ×2 |
Reduced per-hit damage |
Cooldown |
2.0s |
2.2s |
Slightly slower |
Pierce (outbound) |
Infinite |
3 |
Hits up to 3 enemies on the way out |
Pierce (return) |
Infinite |
3 |
Hits up to 3 enemies on return |
Travel Distance |
(unspecified) |
250px out, then returns |
Explicit range |
Boomerang’s double-hit is still its identity, but it can’t mow through entire columns of enemies anymore.
8. Crimson Whip (Lash)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
22 |
18 |
Reduced |
Cooldown |
1.4s |
1.5s |
Slightly slower |
Range |
150px |
130px |
Shorter reach |
Width |
(unspecified) |
40px |
Explicit — not a wide sweep |
Pierce |
Infinite (implied) |
4 |
Hits up to 4 enemies in the lash line |
Whip is a medium-range line attack. Pierce 4 is generous but not infinite.
9. Holy Water (Ground AoE)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
6/tick |
5/tick |
Slight reduction |
Cooldown |
3.0s |
3.5s |
Slower drop rate |
Pool Radius |
(unspecified) |
70px |
Moderate |
Pool Duration |
(implied) |
2.0s |
Explicit |
Tick Rate |
(implied) |
2 ticks/s |
10 DPS in pool (before might) |
Ground AoE pools are area denial, not damage powerhouses.
10. Throwing Daggers (Multi-Projectile)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
8 |
6 |
Low per-dagger — compensated by volume |
Cooldown |
0.6s |
0.7s |
Slightly slower |
Pierce |
Infinite (implied) |
0 (no pierce) |
Daggers hit one enemy and disappear |
Spread |
Random |
Random within 45° of facing direction |
More directional, less “auto-clear” |
Projectile Count |
(implied 1 base) |
2 base |
Starts with 2 daggers per throw |
Range |
(unspecified) |
300px despawn |
Short range |
Daggers are a “spray” weapon. High fire rate, low per-hit damage, zero pierce. They excel at clearing small clusters in front of the player, not screen-wiping.
11. Lightning Ring (Auto-Strike)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
25 |
20 |
Reduced |
Cooldown |
2.5s |
3.0s |
Slower strikes |
Targeting |
Random nearby |
Random enemy within 250px |
Explicit range limit |
Chain |
None (base) |
None |
Chaining is evolution-only |
Lightning is a reliable single-target “cleanup” weapon. No AoE at base level.
12. Garlic (Passive Aura)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
5/tick |
3/tick |
Major nerf. Garlic was a free AoE screen-clear |
Tick Rate |
0.5s |
0.75s |
Slower ticks. Base DPS: 4 (down from 10) |
Radius |
80px |
60px |
Smaller aura |
Knockback |
(implied) |
15px per tick |
Small push — keeps enemies at bay but doesn’t repel them entirely |
Garlic was one of the most broken weapons in VS-likes historically. It should be a “breathing room” tool, not a damage dealer. The knockback makes it defensive, the low DPS means you need real weapons to kill.
13. Runic Orbs (Orbital)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
14 |
10 |
Reduced |
Orb Count (base) |
(implied 1) |
2 |
Starts with 2 orbiting projectiles |
Orbit Radius |
(unspecified) |
80px |
Close orbit |
Orbit Speed |
(unspecified) |
360°/2.5s (144°/s) |
Full rotation every 2.5 seconds |
Hit Cooldown per enemy |
None (implied) |
0.5s per enemy |
Same enemy can’t be hit by the same orb twice within 0.5s |
The hit cooldown prevents orbitals from shredding bosses/large enemies by hitting them multiple times per rotation. Orbs are for clearing trash that walks into you, not sustained single-target DPS.
14. Fire Wand (Direct Shot)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Base Damage |
30 |
25 |
Reduced — was highest base damage |
Cooldown |
1.6s |
1.8s |
Slower fire |
Direction |
Random |
Nearest enemy within 400px |
Directional targeting, not random (random was frustrating, not balanced) |
Pierce |
(implied none) |
0 |
Single target. Fireball hits one enemy and explodes (small visual, no AoE damage at base) |
Explosion radius |
None at base |
None at base |
AoE is evolution-only |
Fire Wand is a slow, high-damage single-target sniper. Reliable but not overwhelming.
3. Evolved Weapon Nerfs¶
Evolutions should feel like significant upgrades but not instant win conditions. The current evolutions turn weapons into screen-clearing death machines with no counterplay.
Global Evolution Changes¶
Evolution now requires the passive at level 3 or higher (was: any level)
Evolved weapons inherit the base weapon’s current level scaling, they don’t get a separate damage bonus on top
All evolved weapons that had “infinite pierce” or “hits all enemies” now have explicit target caps
Per-Evolution Changes¶
# |
Evolved Weapon |
Old Behavior |
New Behavior |
|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Radiant Claymore |
180° arc, +50% damage, holy shockwave every 3rd swing |
140° arc, +30% damage. Shockwave every 4th swing: 120px radius, deals 50% of swing damage. Max 10 targets per shockwave |
2 |
Arcane Barrage |
3 bolts, each explodes for 80px AoE |
2 bolts (not 3), each explodes for 60px AoE. Explosion hits max 5 enemies. Bolts still single-target homing |
3 |
Storm Bow |
Double arrows, pierce all, lightning trails |
+50% arrow count (not double). Pierce increased to 4 (not infinite). Lightning trails deal 3 damage/tick for 1s in a 20px-wide path (not a screen-clear) |
4 |
Plague Bomb |
Pool radius 2×, enemies leaving carry poison 4s |
Pool radius +50% (not 2×). Carry-poison duration: 2.5s (not 4s). Carry-poison damage: 4/tick every 0.5s |
5 |
Cataclysm Axe |
Pull enemies 50px, +80% damage, fire trail |
Pull 30px. +40% damage (not 80%). Fire trail: 30px wide, 1.5s duration, 5 dmg/tick. Max targets still 8 (inherited from base) |
6 |
Death Ray |
250px range, chain to 3 enemies, 15% lifesteal |
Range: 180px (not 250). Chains to 2 enemies (not 3), chain damage reduced by 40% per bounce. Lifesteal: 8% (not 15%) |
7 |
Eternity Loop |
3 shards orbit continuously, freeze 0.5s |
2 shards orbit continuously (not 3). Freeze: 0.3s (not 0.5s). Freeze has 2s internal cooldown per enemy. Pierce per shard: 5 |
8 |
Sanguine Scourge |
Hits all directions, kills explode for 60% max HP |
Hits in 4 cardinal directions (not “all”). Kill explosion: 30% of enemy max HP (not 60%), 80px radius, max 6 enemies per explosion |
9 |
Divine Deluge |
4 pools on clusters, heal 2HP/tick standing in them |
3 pools (not 4). Heal: 1 HP/tick (not 2). Pool duration: 2.5s. Pools target random positions within 200px of player (not guaranteed on enemy clusters) |
10 |
Knife Storm |
360° burst every 0.4s, bounce once |
360° burst every 0.6s (not 0.4). 8 knives per burst (explicit cap). Bounce: once, but bounced knife deals 50% damage. No pierce (each knife hits 1 enemy, then bounces to 1 more) |
11 |
Thunderstorm |
3 bolts, chain to 2, 0.5s stun |
2 bolts (not 3). Chain to 1 (not 2). Chain damage: −50%. Stun: 0.3s (not 0.5s). Stun has 3s internal cooldown per enemy |
12 |
Soul Eater |
200px aura, 1% lifesteal, −20% enemy damage |
120px aura (not 200). Lifesteal: 0.5% of aura damage. Enemy damage reduction: −10% (not 20%). Base tick damage: 5/tick at 0.75s |
13 |
Celestial Guard |
5 orbs, 2× speed, light beams outward |
4 orbs (not 5). 1.5× orbit speed (not 2×). Light beams: 100px range, 6 damage each, fire once per orbit cycle. Per-enemy hit cooldown: 0.5s |
14 |
Inferno Staff |
Explodes into 6 embers, each leaves fire pool |
Explodes into 4 embers (not 6). Fire pools: 30px radius, 1.5s duration, 4 dmg/tick. Ember travel distance: 80px from impact. Main fireball still single-target |
4. Passive Item Rebalance¶
Passives gave too much free scaling. Reducing per-level bonuses across the board.
# |
Passive |
Old Per Level |
New Per Level |
Old Max |
New Max |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Gauntlet |
+1 Armor |
+1 Armor |
+5 |
+5 (unchanged) |
2 |
Tome |
+8% Area |
+6% Area |
+40% |
+30% |
3 |
Quiver |
+1 Proj Count |
+1 Proj Count at lv 2, 4 only (others: +1 Pierce) |
+5 Proj |
+2 Proj, +3 Pierce |
4 |
Vial |
+10% Duration |
+8% Duration |
+50% |
+40% |
5 |
War Paint |
+5% Might |
+4% Might |
+25% |
+20% |
6 |
Skull Pendant |
+5% CDR |
+4% CDR |
+25% |
+20% |
7 |
Hourglass |
+4% CDR, +4% Dur |
+3% CDR, +3% Dur |
+20/+20% |
+15/+15% |
8 |
Blood Ruby |
+5% Might, +0.1 Regen |
+3% Might, +0.1 Regen |
+25% M, +0.5 R |
+15% M, +0.5 R |
9 |
Sacred Charm |
+8% Dur, +3 HP |
+6% Dur, +3 HP |
+40% D, +15 HP |
+30% D, +15 HP |
10 |
Sharpening Stone |
+10% Proj Speed |
+8% Proj Speed |
+50% |
+40% |
11 |
Conductor Coil |
+8% Area, +3% Might |
+5% Area, +2% Might |
+40/+15% |
+25/+10% |
12 |
Laurel |
+8% Max HP |
+6% Max HP |
+40% |
+30% |
13 |
Star Map |
+1 Proj at lv 3,5 |
+1 Proj at lv 4 only; lv 2,5: +1 Pierce |
+2 Proj |
+1 Proj, +2 Pierce |
14 |
Ember Ring |
+10% PSpd, +3% Might |
+6% PSpd, +2% Might |
+50/+15% |
+30/+10% |
15 |
Swift Boots |
+6% Move Speed |
+5% Move Speed |
+30% |
+25% |
16 |
Magnetic Amulet |
+20px Range |
+15px Range |
+100px |
+75px |
17 |
Clover |
+8% Luck |
+6% Luck |
+40% |
+30% |
18 |
XP Tome |
+8% Growth |
+6% Growth |
+40% |
+30% |
New Passive: Piercing Lens¶
Since Pierce is now a stat, there needs to be a dedicated passive for it:
# |
Passive |
Per Level |
Max (Lv 5) |
Evolves |
|---|---|---|---|---|
19 |
Piercing Lens |
+1 Pierce |
+5 Pierce |
None |
This is a utility passive (no evolution). It’s the primary way to make projectile weapons feel like late-game screen clearers — but it costs one of your 6 passive slots.
Quiver change rationale: Quiver now gives a mix of Projectile Count and Pierce instead of pure Proj Count. This splits the power budget and makes Quiver + Piercing Lens a meaningful two-slot investment for a full projectile build.
5. Class Rebalance¶
Classes were generally fine conceptually but some stat lines were too generous. The main changes target starting Might (too high on Arcanist/Hemomancer), CDR (too high on Chronomancer/Necromancer), and ability power levels.
Knight (unchanged — baseline reference)¶
No changes. Knight is the balance anchor.
Arcanist¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Might |
1.2 |
1.10 |
1.2× Might at game start was too much free damage |
Area |
1.15 |
1.10 |
Slight reduction |
CDR |
0.9 |
0.92 |
Less free CDR |
Mana Surge — Ability 1 rework:
Old: Next 3 attacks deal 2× damage with +50% Area
New: Next 2 attacks deal 1.6× damage with +30% Area. Duration window: 5 seconds (if you don’t attack twice in 5s, it expires).
Arcane Nova — Ability 2:
Old: 80 damage, 400px, 30% slow 3s
New: 60 damage, 300px (affected by Area), 25% slow 2s
Ranger¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Proj Count |
+1 |
0 |
Free +1 proj on the highest fire-rate class was broken |
Pickup Range |
75 |
65 |
Slight reduction |
Ranger’s identity is speed and evasion, not free extra projectiles from the start.
Hunter’s Mark — Ability 2:
Old: +40% damage from all sources (+20% on bosses), 3× XP
New: +25% damage from all sources (+10% on bosses), 2× XP (not 3×). Duration: 6 seconds (not 8).
Plague Doctor¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Duration |
1.3 |
1.20 |
1.3× was extremely powerful for a DoT class |
Area |
1.1 |
1.05 |
Slight reduction |
Miasma Trail — Ability 1:
Old: 5 damage/tick, 30px wide, 2s persist, stacks slow to 30%
New: 4 damage/tick, 25px wide, 1.5s persist, stacks slow to 20% (max 2 stacks, not 3)
Pandemic — Ability 2:
Old: 40% remaining poison as instant AoE, chains 3 times
New: 30% remaining poison as instant AoE in 80px radius (was 100), chains 2 times (not 3)
Berserker¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Max HP |
150 |
140 |
Slight reduction — 150 was very forgiving for a “risk” class |
HP Regen |
0.5 |
0.3 |
Less free sustain — the risk should feel risky |
Blood Rage — Ability 1:
Old:
bonus = 0.8 × (1 - currentHp/maxHp), +20% ASPD below 30%New:
bonus = 0.6 × (1 - currentHp/maxHp), +15% ASPD below 25%
HP % |
Old Bonus Might |
New Bonus Might |
|---|---|---|
100% |
+0.00 |
+0.00 |
50% |
+0.40 |
+0.30 |
25% |
+0.60 |
+0.45 |
10% |
+0.72 |
+0.54 |
Still rewarding but no longer gives nearly +0.8× Might for free just by being low.
Savage Slam — Ability 2:
Old: 120 damage, 180px radius, 100px knockback, 1s stun inner 60px
New: 90 damage, 150px radius, 80px knockback, 0.7s stun inner 50px
Necromancer¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
CDR |
0.85 |
0.90 |
Less free CDR |
Duration |
1.2 |
1.15 |
Skeleton duration was too long |
Raise Dead — Ability 1:
Old: 25% chance, 30 HP skeletons, 15 dmg/hit, 12s duration, max 8/10/12
New: 18% chance, 25 HP skeletons, 10 dmg/hit, 10s duration, max 6/8/10 (at levels 1/15/25)
Skeletons are still the class identity but they’re weaker individually. The Necromancer is about quantity, not having an army of mini-bosses.
Army of Darkness — Ability 2:
Old: 12 pillars, 50 HP each, +50% skeleton damage/ASPD inside
New: 8 pillars, 40 HP each, +30% skeleton damage/ASPD inside. Duration: 5s (not 6)
Chronomancer¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
CDR |
0.8 |
0.88 |
0.8× CDR was the strongest class stat in the game |
Duration |
1.15 |
1.10 |
Slight reduction |
Time Dilation Field — Ability 1:
Old: 150px aura, enemies at 70% speed
New: 120px aura, enemies at 75% speed
The always-on slow aura is still powerful but its radius is smaller (player must be closer to enemies for it to matter) and the slow is less punishing.
Temporal Rewind — Ability 2:
Old: 50s CD, rewind 4s, invulnerable 0.3s, 200px freeze for 2.5s
New: 55s CD, rewind 3s (not 4), invulnerable 0.3s, 150px freeze for 2.0s
Hemomancer¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Might |
1.1 |
1.05 |
Less free damage |
Luck |
1.1 |
1.0 |
No free Luck — was unnecessary power budget |
HP Regen |
−0.5 |
−0.8 |
More aggressive drain. The tension between drain and lifesteal is the class identity — make it hurt more |
Sanguine Feast — Ability 1:
Old: 5% lifesteal (8% below 50%), capped at 8 HP/s
New: 4% lifesteal (6% below 50%), capped at 6 HP/s
With the increased drain (−0.8 vs −0.5), the Hemomancer needs to deal at least 0.8 / 0.04 = 20 DPS just to break even on HP, and more to actually sustain. This is a real constraint in the early game.
Blood Nova — Ability 2:
Old: Sacrifice 15% current HP, 3× HP sacrificed + 60 base, enemies killed heal 5 HP each (uncapped)
New: Sacrifice 12% current HP, 2.5× HP sacrificed + 40 base. Enemies killed heal 3 HP each, capped at 30 HP per Nova
6. XP & Leveling Curve Rework¶
This is one of the most impactful changes. Players currently reach level 32–35 by minute 20. The target is level 22–26 with good play.
New XP Formula¶
Old: xp_required(level) = 5 + level × 3 + level² × 0.4
New: xp_required(level) = 8 + level × 4 + level² × 0.6 + level³ × 0.008
The cubic term makes late-game leveling dramatically slower.
Level |
Old XP Required |
New XP Required |
Change |
|---|---|---|---|
1→2 |
9 |
13 |
+44% |
2→3 |
16 |
19 |
+19% |
5→6 |
40 |
49 |
+23% |
10→11 |
95 |
117 |
+23% |
15→16 |
170 |
217 |
+28% |
20→21 |
245 |
357 |
+46% |
25→26 |
340 |
545 |
+60% |
30→31 |
455 |
789 |
+73% |
Remove XP Gem Time-Scaling¶
Delete the XP scaling formula entirely. Old: xp_value(t) = base_xp × (1 + t_minutes × 0.05). New: XP gems always give their flat value (1 / 5 / 25). No time-based increase.
This was a hidden accelerant that made late-game leveling too fast. Removing it means the player’s XP income is purely based on kill rate and pickup efficiency, not a free time-based multiplier.
Growth Stat Nerf¶
Growth now has diminishing returns above 1.5×:
effective_growth = growth <= 1.5 ? growth : 1.5 + (growth - 1.5) × 0.4
Invested Growth |
Old Effective |
New Effective |
|---|---|---|
1.0× |
1.0× |
1.0× |
1.3× |
1.3× |
1.3× |
1.5× |
1.5× |
1.5× |
2.0× |
2.0× |
1.7× |
2.5× |
2.5× |
1.9× |
Expected Level by Time (New Curve)¶
Time |
Old Expected Level |
New Expected Level |
|---|---|---|
5:00 |
~10 |
~8 |
10:00 |
~18 |
~14 |
15:00 |
~25 |
~19 |
20:00 |
~32–35 |
~23–26 |
The player now has ~8 fewer levels to work with at endgame. That’s 8 fewer weapon upgrades or passives — a massive reduction in total power.
7. Enemy Stat Overhaul¶
Enemies were far too fragile, especially in later tiers. The fundamental problem: even “tanky” enemies at Tier 5–6 had base HP that became trivial against evolved weapons.
Base HP Increases¶
Enemy |
Old HP |
New HP |
Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
Shambler |
8 |
10 |
Slight bump — should survive 1 hit from weak weapons |
Bat |
5 |
6 |
Unchanged feel |
Skeleton Warrior |
20 |
28 |
Should take 2+ hits to kill |
Ghost |
12 |
18 |
Phasing + more HP = genuinely annoying |
Werewolf |
55 |
75 |
Pouncing threat should survive some punishment |
Cultist |
25 |
35 |
Ranged enemies that die instantly aren’t threats |
Swarm Rat |
3 |
4 |
Marginal — they’re about volume |
Witch |
35 |
50 |
Support enemies must live to cast |
Bone Golem |
120 |
180 |
Mini-boss tier should be durable |
Shadow |
30 |
40 |
Survivable for the ambush to matter |
Vampire Noble |
80 |
120 |
Elite enemy should demand attention |
Arcane Construct |
60 |
85 |
Ranged + laser needs to survive to get casts off |
Plague Bearer |
45 |
65 |
Must live to leave meaningful poison zones |
Death Knight |
150 |
220 |
Endgame elite — a genuine wall of HP |
Banshee |
40 |
55 |
Must survive to get the scream off |
Lich |
100 |
160 |
Should take sustained focus to kill. Phylactery: 30→45 HP |
Base Damage Increases (Select)¶
Some enemies weren’t punishing enough on contact. The player should feel every hit.
Enemy |
Old Damage |
New Damage |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Shambler |
10 |
12 |
|
Bat |
8 |
10 |
Fast + higher damage = respect the bat |
Skeleton Warrior |
15 |
18 |
Lunge should sting |
Ghost |
12 |
14 |
|
Werewolf |
18 |
22 |
Pounce should be scary |
Cultist |
12 |
14 (projectile) |
|
Witch (Empower) |
+20% dmg buff |
+30% dmg buff |
Witches make everything scarier |
Bone Golem |
20 (contact) / 30 (slam) |
25 / 35 |
|
Shadow |
15 |
18 |
Ambush should chunk |
Vampire Noble |
22 (claw) |
25 (claw) |
3-hit combo: 75 total if all connect |
Arcane Construct |
25 (laser) |
28 (laser) |
|
Plague Bearer |
8 + DoT |
10 + DoT (4/s for 4s) |
Longer DoT: 4 seconds not 3 |
Death Knight |
35 (swing) / 20 (shockwave) |
40 / 25 |
Endgame hits hard |
Banshee |
10 |
12 |
|
Lich |
20 (per proj) |
22 (per proj) |
Enemy Speed Increases (Select)¶
Enemy |
Old Speed |
New Speed |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Shambler |
80 |
85 |
Barely faster — but across hundreds, it matters |
Bat |
160 |
170 |
|
Werewolf (pounce) |
350 |
380 |
Harder to sidestep |
Shadow |
140 |
155 |
Ambush is quicker |
Vampire Noble |
130 |
140 |
|
Banshee |
150 |
160 |
Must be hard to catch/kill before scream |
Death Knight |
110 |
120 |
Endgame can’t be kited trivially |
8. Difficulty Scaling Rework¶
The scaling formulas are the most critical change. Enemy HP must outpace player DPS growth in the final 5 minutes to create genuine danger.
New HP Scaling (Steeper Quadratic + Cubic)¶
Old: 1 + t × 0.12 + t² × 0.008
New: 1 + t × 0.15 + t² × 0.014 + t³ × 0.0004
Time |
Old Multiplier |
New Multiplier |
Enemy HP Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
0:00 |
1.00× |
1.00× |
— |
3:00 |
1.43× |
1.60× |
+12% |
5:00 |
1.80× |
2.15× |
+19% |
8:00 |
2.47× |
3.46× |
+40% |
10:00 |
3.00× |
4.50× |
+50% |
12:00 |
3.59× |
5.82× |
+62% |
15:00 |
4.60× |
8.35× |
+82% |
18:00 |
5.73× |
11.67× |
+104% |
20:00 |
6.60× |
14.56× |
+121% |
A Shambler (new base 10 HP) at minute 20 now has 10 × 14.56 = 146 HP. A level 8 Broad Sword at 1.5× Might does 18 × 1.95 × 1.5 = 52.7 damage per swing. That’s 3 hits to kill a Shambler at minute 20. This is correct — trash mobs should still die quickly but not in a single hit from a mid-tier weapon.
A Death Knight (new base 220 HP) at minute 18 has 220 × 11.67 = 2,567 HP. This is a serious enemy that requires sustained focus.
New Damage Scaling (Slightly Steeper)¶
Old: 1 + t × 0.06
New: 1 + t × 0.08 + t² × 0.001
Time |
Old |
New |
|---|---|---|
0:00 |
1.00× |
1.00× |
5:00 |
1.30× |
1.43× |
10:00 |
1.60× |
1.90× |
15:00 |
1.90× |
2.43× |
20:00 |
2.20× |
3.00× |
A Shambler at minute 20 deals 12 × 3.0 = 36 damage per contact. With 100 base HP, that’s significant. Players will need Armor, HP upgrades, and careful positioning.
New Speed Scaling (Slightly More Aggressive)¶
Old: 1 + t × 0.015
New: 1 + t × 0.02 + t² × 0.0005
Time |
Old |
New |
|---|---|---|
0:00 |
1.00× |
1.00× |
10:00 |
1.15× |
1.25× |
15:00 |
1.23× |
1.41× |
20:00 |
1.30× |
1.60× |
At minute 20, enemies are 60% faster. A Shambler at 85 base speed moves at 136 px/s. A Bat at 170 base moves at 272 px/s. The player (200 base speed) can still outrun most enemies, but the margin is slimmer, and with swarms + Witch slows, it gets dicey.
XP Scaling: REMOVED¶
See §6. XP gems give flat values. No time multiplier.
9. Wave Timeline Rework¶
The old timeline was too gentle. Tier introductions happened too slowly and the pre-boss ramps were mild. The new timeline is more aggressive with earlier elite introductions and higher sustained pressure.
New Spawn Budget Formula¶
Old: 2 + t × 1.5 + t² × 0.15
New: 3 + t × 2.0 + t² × 0.25 + t³ × 0.005
Time |
Old Budget/s |
New Budget/s |
Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
0:00 |
2.0 |
3.0 |
+50% |
2:00 |
5.6 |
8.1 |
+45% |
5:00 |
13.3 |
19.9 |
+50% |
8:00 |
23.6 |
35.8 |
+52% |
10:00 |
32.0 |
48.5 |
+52% |
12:00 |
42.0 |
65.6 |
+56% |
15:00 |
58.3 |
100.9 |
+73% |
18:00 |
78.0 |
145.0 |
+86% |
20:00 |
92.0 |
178.0 |
+93% |
Increase Max Enemy Cap¶
Old |
New |
|
|---|---|---|
Solo |
300 |
450 |
2P |
400 |
550 |
3P |
475 |
650 |
4P |
550 |
750 |
More enemies on screen = more pressure. Performance should be tested, but modern hardware handles this fine for 2D games.
New Wave Timeline¶
Time |
Event |
Key Changes from Old |
|---|---|---|
0:00–0:45 |
Shamblers only, low density |
Shorter grace period (was 1:00) |
0:45–1:30 |
Shamblers + Bats. First bat packs of 4–6 |
Bats 15 seconds earlier |
1:30–2:30 |
+ Skeleton Warriors (1 per 6s) |
30 seconds earlier than before |
2:30–3:30 |
+ Ghosts (1 per 8s). Skeleton rate increases |
|
3:30–4:00 |
Swarm Rat debut (pack every 12s) |
Moved from 6:00 to 3:30. Early AoE check |
4:00–5:00 |
Pre-boss ramp: 1.5× budget for 60s. First Cultist spawns (1 per 15s) |
Cultists moved from 6:00 to 4:00 |
5:00 |
BOSS: The Hollow King |
|
5:00–5:20 |
Post-boss recovery: 0.4× budget for 20s (was 30s at 0.5×) |
Shorter recovery |
5:20–6:30 |
+ Werewolves (1 per 10s). All Tier 1–3 active |
|
6:30–7:30 |
Witch debut (1 per 18s). Shadows debut (1 per 12s) |
Tier 4 comes 30s–1min earlier |
7:30–8:30 |
+ Bone Golems (1 per 20s). Cultist pairs start |
|
8:30–10:00 |
Pre-boss ramp: 1.5× budget. Witch+Werewolf combos. Double Bone Golems |
|
10:00 |
BOSS: The Crimson Countess |
|
10:00–10:15 |
Post-boss recovery: 0.3× budget for 15s |
Very short recovery |
10:15–11:30 |
All Tier 1–4 active. Multiple Witches at once. Shadow packs of 2–3 |
|
11:00 |
Vampire Noble debut (1 per 25s) |
Moved from 12:00 to 11:00 |
11:30–12:30 |
+ Arcane Constructs (1 per 18s) |
|
12:30–13:30 |
+ Plague Bearers (1 per 12s). Poison zones everywhere |
|
13:30–15:00 |
Pre-boss ramp: 1.6× budget. Triple Cultist formations. Vampire Noble pairs |
Steeper ramp |
15:00 |
BOSS: Elder Lich Malachar |
|
15:00–15:10 |
Post-boss recovery: 0.2× budget for 10s |
Barely any breathing room |
15:10–16:00 |
Death Knight debut (1 per 20s). Banshee debut (1 per 25s) |
Both debut faster |
16:00–17:00 |
+ Liches (1 per 35s). All enemy types active. Multiple Banshees possible |
Lich at 16:00, not 17:00 |
17:00–18:00 |
Maximum variety. Lich spawn rate increases (1 per 25s). Death Knight pairs |
|
18:00–19:00 |
Overwhelming pressure. Budget at near max. Constant Tier 5–6 spawns alongside massive Tier 1 swarms |
|
19:00–19:30 |
“The Flood”: Continuous wave of 40+ Shamblers/Bats every 5s, mixed with 5–8 Tier 4–6 enemies every 8s |
Much more extreme than old crescendo |
19:30–19:50 |
“Elite Gauntlet”: Flood stops. Instead, rapid back-to-back spawns of exclusively Tier 5–6 enemies. 3 Death Knights, 2 Liches, 2 Banshees, 4 Vampire Nobles every 10s |
NEW: Quality over quantity pressure |
19:50–20:00 |
Calm. Enemies freeze 2s. Screen darkens. |
Unchanged |
20:00 |
BOSS: Terminus, The Undying |
New Mechanic: Horde Surges¶
Starting at minute 8, a Horde Surge triggers every 90 seconds (offset from bosses). A Horde Surge instantly spawns 50–80 Tier 1 enemies (Shamblers + Bats) in a ring around the player at 500–700px distance. They converge simultaneously. This tests AoE capability and movement under pressure. The surge ignores the regular spawn budget (additive).
Surge scaling:
Time |
Surge Size |
Composition |
|---|---|---|
8:00 |
50 |
40 Shamblers, 10 Bats |
9:30 |
55 |
35 Shamblers, 15 Bats, 5 Skeleton Warriors |
11:00 |
65 |
40 Shamblers, 15 Bats, 10 Skeleton Warriors |
12:30 |
70 |
35 Shamblers, 15 Bats, 10 Skeletons, 10 Swarm Rats |
14:00 |
75 |
30 Shamblers, 15 Bats, 10 Skeletons, 12 Swarm Rats, 8 Ghosts |
15:30 |
80 |
Same + 4 Werewolves mixed in |
17:00 |
80 |
Same + 2 Shadows mixed in |
18:30 |
80 |
Same + 2 Witches mixed in |
10. Boss Overhaul¶
Bosses need to be genuine survival encounters lasting 45–90 seconds minimum, not 10-second DPS checks.
Global Boss Changes¶
Massive HP increases across the board.
Damage cap per second (NEW): Bosses have a maximum amount of damage they can receive per second. This prevents hyper-optimized builds from deleting bosses instantly while ensuring all builds can eventually win. The cap scales with time (later bosses have higher caps because the player is expected to be stronger).
Boss HP regeneration: Bosses passively regenerate a small amount of HP to punish low-DPS builds and create a “DPS check” floor.
Enrage timers: If a boss is alive for too long, it enrages (increased speed, damage, new attacks). This creates urgency without making the fight impossible.
Boss 1 — The Hollow King (5:00)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
|---|---|---|
HP |
800 |
2,200 |
Speed |
85 |
90 |
Armor |
2 |
3 |
Damage Cap/s |
— |
120 per second |
HP Regen |
— |
5 HP/s |
At 120 DPS cap, the King takes a minimum of ~18 seconds to kill (2200 HP / 120 DPS). Realistically with player DPS at minute 5 being ~60–90 DPS, the fight lasts 30–45 seconds. The regen (5/s) drains ~150–225 HP over the fight, adding ~10% effective HP for mid-tier builds.
Phase 1 unchanged in mechanics, tuned numbers:
Cleave: 35 damage (was 30)
Bone Spikes: 25 damage (was 20), 7 spikes (was 5), telegraph reduced to 0.5s (was 0.6)
Summon: 10 Shamblers (was 8)
Phase 2 (50% HP) tuned:
Death March speed: 280 px/s (was 250). Telegraph: 1.0s (was 1.2)
Cleave: 270° arc, 45 damage (was 40)
NEW: Bone Prison (20s CD): Creates a ring of bone spikes (radius 250px) around the player. The ring has 4 gaps (exit points). Spikes deal 20 damage on contact and persist for 4 seconds. Forces the player to navigate out through a gap while the King charges.
Enrage (if alive at 6:30 — 90s after spawn): +50% speed, Cleave every 2s, Bone Spikes every 4s (was 8s).
Boss 2 — The Crimson Countess (10:00)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
|---|---|---|
HP |
2,000 |
5,500 |
Speed |
100 |
105 |
Armor |
3 |
4 |
Damage Cap/s |
— |
200 per second |
HP Regen |
— |
10 HP/s |
Minimum kill time: 5500/200 = ~28 seconds. Realistic: 45–70 seconds.
Phase 1 — tuned:
Blood Lance: 30 damage (was 25), 300 px/s (was 280)
Bat Cloud: 16 bats (was 12), 4 HP each
Shield: 150 HP (was 100), regens 15 HP/s after 2s delay (was 10/s after 3s)
Phase 2 (60% HP) — tuned:
Blood Rain: 20 droplets (was 15), 12 damage (was 10), 250px radius
Lance Fan: 3 lances unchanged
Shield regen: 25 HP/s after 2s delay
Phase 3 (25% HP) — tuned:
Crimson Fury swoop: 25 damage (was 20), every 2.5s (was 3s)
NEW: Blood Fountain — At phase 3 start, 4 blood fountains spawn at 200px in cardinal directions. Each fountain heals the Countess 3 HP/s and fires a slow blood projectile at the player every 3s (15 damage). Fountains have 80 HP and can be destroyed. While any fountain stands, the Countess regenerates. Destroying all 4 removes boss HP regen entirely for the rest of the fight.
Enrage (alive at 12:00 — 120s after spawn): Swoops every 1.5s, Blood Rain is constant and covers the entire screen at low density.
Boss 3 — Elder Lich Malachar (15:00)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
|---|---|---|
HP |
4,500 |
12,000 |
Speed |
70 |
75 |
Armor |
5 |
6 |
Damage Cap/s |
— |
350 per second |
HP Regen |
— |
15 HP/s (while any phylactery lives) |
Phylactery HP |
200 each |
400 each |
Minimum kill time: 12000/350 ≈ 34 seconds. Realistic with phylactery destruction and regen: 60–90 seconds.
Phylactery changes:
Phylacteries now also have a damage cap of 80/s each. Players can’t instant-burst them.
Inner Orb: Beam DPS increased to 40 DPS (was 32). Enables Mass Resurrection.
Middle Orb: Gravity well pull increased to 80 px/s (was 60). Also slows player by 20% while in the well.
Outer Orb: Fires 12 projectiles (was 8), 15 damage each (was 12).
NEW: Phylacteries orbit direction reverses every 8 seconds, making their positions less predictable.
Soul Barrage: 4 orbs (was 3), 10 HP each to destroy (was 5).
Mass Resurrection: Up to 20 enemies at 50% HP (was 15 at 30%).
Enrage (alive at 17:30 — 150s after spawn): Teleports every 2s. All phylacteries resurrect at full HP. Soul Barrage fires 8 orbs.
Boss 4 — Terminus, The Undying (20:00)¶
Stat |
Old |
New |
|---|---|---|
HP |
8,000 |
22,000 |
Speed |
50 |
55 |
Armor |
8 |
10 |
Damage Cap/s |
— |
500 per second |
HP Regen |
— |
0 (but see below) |
Minimum kill time: 22000/500 = 44 seconds. Realistic: 60–120 seconds. Terminus is the ultimate test.
Phase 1 — The Maw (100%–70%):
Consume pull: 150 px/s (was 120), duration 2.5s (was 2)
Contact damage: 50 (was 40)
Amalgamation spawn: every 6s (was 8)
NEW: Devour — If the player is pulled into contact during Consume, Terminus deals 80 damage and heals 5% of its max HP (1,100 HP). This is the primary punishment for failing to escape Consume.
Phase 2 — The Storm (70%–35%):
Void Zones: 4 per slam (was 3), 120px radius (was 100), 20 DPS (was 15), max 12 active
Tendril Sweep: 5 tendrils (was 4), 350px length (was 300), 30 damage (was 25)
Adaptive Resistance: resets every 8s (was 10), resistance increased to 60% (was 50%)
NEW: Corruption Pulse (15s CD) — Terminus emits a pulse in a 500px radius. All player projectiles currently in flight are destroyed. All lingering ground effects (poison pools, fire trails, holy water) are consumed, healing Terminus for 2 HP per tick of remaining duration consumed. This directly punishes DoT/AoE spam and forces the player to time their attacks.
Phase 3 — The End (35%–0%):
All regular enemy spawning stops. Map goes dark. (Unchanged.)
Death Spiral orbit: closes from 200px to 80px (was 100) over 15 seconds (was 20). More aggressive.
Soul Storm: 16 projectiles (was 12), rotating at 210°/s (was 180), 20 damage each (was 15).
Contact damage: 60 (was 50).
Final Consume at 10% HP: Pull force 250 px/s (was 200), 4 seconds (was 3). If survived, Terminus staggers 4s (was 5) taking 1.75× damage (was 2×).
NEW: If Final Consume fails to kill the player, Terminus enters “Desperation” — all attack speeds ×1.5, Armor reduced to 0, but gains +100% speed. A glass cannon final phase that races the player.
No enrage timer for Terminus. The fight itself is the enrage. If the player can survive Phase 3 long enough, they win. If they can’t, they die. That’s the design.
11. Economy Adjustments¶
With the game being harder, payouts should slightly increase to avoid frustrating meta-progression grind. Players who die earlier should still feel progress.
Source |
Old |
New |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Survival bonus |
1 per 15s |
1 per 12s |
Slightly more generous |
Full clear bonus |
100 |
150 |
Reward for the increased difficulty |
Kill milestone 500 |
10 |
15 |
|
Kill milestone 1500 |
25 |
35 |
|
Kill milestone 3000 |
50 |
60 |
|
Kill milestone 5000 |
100 |
120 |
|
Boss: Hollow King |
25 + chest |
35 + chest |
|
Boss: Crimson Countess |
50 + chest |
65 + chest |
|
Boss: Elder Lich Malachar |
75 + chest |
90 + chest |
|
Boss: Terminus |
100 + chests |
125 + chests |
|
First clear per class |
200 |
300 |
Harder to achieve = bigger reward |
Chest coin range |
10 + (minutes × 2) |
Unchanged |
12. Meta Shop Rebalance¶
With the harder game, some meta upgrades need to be more impactful to serve as meaningful progression, while others (Might, Growth) should remain modest to prevent outscaling the difficulty curve.
# |
Upgrade |
Old Effect/Level |
New Effect/Level |
Old Total Cost |
New Total Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Max HP Up |
+10% |
+10% |
1,200 |
1,200 (unchanged) |
2 |
HP Regen |
+0.2/s |
+0.3/s |
1,475 |
1,475 (unchanged) |
3 |
Might Up |
+5% |
+4% |
1,900 |
1,900 (unchanged) |
4 |
Move Speed Up |
+5% |
+5% |
950 |
950 (unchanged) |
5 |
Pickup Range Up |
+20px |
+20px |
525 |
525 (unchanged) |
6 |
Growth Up |
+8% |
+6% |
1,900 |
1,900 (unchanged) |
7 |
Greed |
+10% |
+10% |
2,700 |
2,700 (unchanged) |
8 |
Luck Up |
+10% |
+10% |
1,900 |
1,900 (unchanged) |
9 |
Armor Up |
+1 |
+1 |
1,300 |
1,300 (unchanged) |
10 |
Revival |
+1 Revival |
+1 Revival |
1,000 |
1,000 (unchanged) |
11 |
Reroll |
+1 Reroll |
+1 Reroll |
850 |
850 (unchanged) |
12 |
Banish |
+1 Banish |
+1 Banish |
850 |
850 (unchanged) |
13 |
Extra Choice |
+1 Choice |
+1 Choice |
2,000 |
2,000 (unchanged) |
Key changes are only to Might (+5% → +4% per level, max +20%) and Growth (+8% → +6% per level, max +30%). These are the two stats that most accelerate the snowball. Everything else stays the same — the difficulty increase comes from game mechanics, not from nerfing the meta shop.
13. New Mechanics¶
13.1 Pierce as a Player Stat¶
Pierce is a new stat that determines how many enemies a projectile passes through.
Stat |
Base Value |
Soft Cap |
Hard Cap |
|---|---|---|---|
Pierce |
0 |
5 |
10 |
Sources of Pierce:
Piercing Lens passive: +1 per level (max +5)
Quiver passive: +1 at levels 1, 3, 5 (max +3)
Star Map passive: +1 at levels 2, 5 (max +2)
Specific weapon evolutions grant bonus pierce to their own projectiles (not global)
Pierce only applies to projectile-type weapons: Arcane Bolt, Iron Shortbow, Throwing Daggers, Fire Wand, Temporal Shard, Crimson Whip, Cultist projectiles (enemy). It does not apply to auras, beams, ground AoE, or orbitals (those have their own target caps).
Weapon-specific pierce bonus (evolution only):
Evolved Weapon |
Inherent Pierce Bonus |
|---|---|
Storm Bow |
+4 (on top of global pierce) |
Knife Storm |
+0 (bounces instead) |
Arcane Barrage |
+0 (AoE explosion instead) |
Inferno Staff |
+0 (explosion instead) |
13.2 Boss Damage Caps¶
As detailed in §10, bosses have a maximum damage they can receive per second from all sources combined. Damage above the cap in any given second is simply discarded. This is invisible to the player (no UI indicator) and prevents boss fights from being trivialized by any build.
Implementation: track total damage to boss per game-tick. If cumulative damage in the last 1.0 seconds exceeds the cap, ignore additional damage until the next 1-second window.
13.3 Horde Surges¶
As detailed in §9. Periodic mass-spawns starting at minute 8, every 90 seconds. Tests the player’s AoE and movement.
13.4 Enemy Armor (NEW)¶
Select late-game enemies now have innate Armor (flat damage reduction per hit), just like bosses have always had:
Enemy |
New Armor Value |
|---|---|
Bone Golem |
2 |
Death Knight |
3 |
Vampire Noble |
1 |
Lich |
2 |
This specifically nerfs rapid-fire low-damage weapons (Throwing Daggers, Garlic) against these enemies while leaving slower high-damage weapons effective. It encourages weapon diversity.
13.5 Diminishing Returns on AoE (NEW)¶
When an AoE effect (weapon or ability) hits more than 12 enemies simultaneously, damage to enemies beyond the 12th is reduced:
effective_damage(n) = n <= 12 ? full_damage : full_damage × (12 / n)
Enemies Hit |
Damage per Enemy |
|---|---|
1–12 |
100% |
15 |
80% |
20 |
60% |
30 |
40% |
50 |
24% |
This prevents any single weapon from efficiently clearing 50+ enemies simultaneously. The player needs multiple weapons covering different areas, not one mega-AoE.
14. Multiplayer Scaling Adjustments¶
With the base game now harder, multiplayer scaling needs adjustment to remain proportional.
Enemy HP Scaling (Multiplayer)¶
Old: 1 + (n-1) × 0.65
New: 1 + (n-1) × 0.55
Players |
Old |
New |
|---|---|---|
1 |
1.00× |
1.00× |
2 |
1.65× |
1.55× |
3 |
2.30× |
2.10× |
4 |
2.95× |
2.65× |
Slightly reduced because the base game is now much harder. 4-player was already brutal at the old scaling with these new base values.
Boss HP Scaling (Multiplayer)¶
Old: 1 + (n-1) × 0.80
New: 1 + (n-1) × 0.70
Players |
Old |
New |
Terminus HP (New) |
|---|---|---|---|
1 |
1.00× |
1.00× |
22,000 |
2 |
1.80× |
1.70× |
37,400 |
3 |
2.60× |
2.40× |
52,800 |
4 |
3.40× |
3.10× |
68,200 |
Boss Damage Cap Scaling (Multiplayer)¶
Damage caps scale with player count:
boss_dps_cap(n) = base_cap × (1 + (n-1) × 0.60)
Players |
Hollow King Cap |
Countess Cap |
Malachar Cap |
Terminus Cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
120 |
200 |
350 |
500 |
2 |
192 |
320 |
560 |
800 |
3 |
264 |
440 |
770 |
1,100 |
4 |
336 |
560 |
980 |
1,400 |
15. Target Benchmarks¶
These are the design targets for a player with moderate meta upgrades (roughly 50% of shop completed). An experienced player with full upgrades should do better. A new player with zero upgrades should do worse.
Solo (50% Meta)¶
Metric |
Target |
|---|---|
Average run survival time |
12–15 minutes |
Clear rate (survive 20:00) |
15–25% of runs |
Full clear with boss kill rate |
10–15% of runs |
Average level at death (12 min) |
~14–16 |
Average level at 20:00 (if survived) |
~23–26 |
Kills at 20:00 |
~4,000–6,000 |
Average coins per run (all outcomes) |
120–250 |
Coins per full clear |
500–750 |
Solo (0% Meta, First Runs)¶
Metric |
Target |
|---|---|
Average survival |
6–9 minutes |
Clear rate |
<1% |
Expected coins |
30–80 |
Solo (100% Meta, Experienced)¶
Metric |
Target |
|---|---|
Average survival |
16–18 minutes |
Clear rate |
40–55% |
Coins per full clear |
650–1,000 |
Difficulty Feel by Minute¶
Minute |
Player Should Feel |
|---|---|
0–3 |
Comfortable, learning the map and movement |
3–5 |
Engaged, first real threats, thinking about builds |
5–8 |
Powerful but tested. Boss fight is a real encounter |
8–12 |
Building momentum but enemies are genuinely dangerous. Witches/Golems create real problems |
12–15 |
Tense. Deaths happen here for most builds. One mistake with a Vampire Noble or Banshee = spiral |
15–18 |
Controlled chaos. Player is strong but the world is stronger. Boss Malachar is a genuine test |
18–20 |
Survival mode. Screen is overwhelming. Every second counts |
20+ |
Terminus is the final exam. Not guaranteed even with a great build |
16. Complete Revised Reference Tables¶
Revised Weapon Stats (Quick Reference)¶
# |
Weapon |
Damage |
CD |
Pierce |
Special |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Broad Sword |
18 |
1.3s |
N/A (melee) |
100° arc, 90px range |
2 |
Arcane Bolt |
15 |
1.2s |
0 |
Homing, single target, 300px track |
3 |
Iron Shortbow |
10 |
0.9s |
1 |
Directional, 400px range |
4 |
Toxic Flask |
6/tick |
4.0s |
N/A (AoE) |
60px pool, 1.5s, 0.5s ticks |
5 |
War Axe |
24 |
2.0s |
N/A (melee) |
360°, 80px, max 8 targets |
6 |
Soul Siphon |
8/tick |
Continuous |
N/A (beam) |
80px range, 4 ticks/s, single target |
7 |
Temporal Shard |
12 ×2 |
2.2s |
3 (each way) |
Boomerang, 250px range |
8 |
Crimson Whip |
18 |
1.5s |
4 |
130px range, 40px width |
9 |
Holy Water |
5/tick |
3.5s |
N/A (AoE) |
70px pool, 2.0s, 2 ticks/s |
10 |
Throwing Daggers |
6 |
0.7s |
0 |
2 base proj, 45° spread, 300px range |
11 |
Lightning Ring |
20 |
3.0s |
N/A (auto) |
250px range, single target |
12 |
Garlic |
3/tick |
0.75s |
N/A (aura) |
60px radius, 15px knockback |
13 |
Runic Orbs |
10 |
Continuous |
N/A (orbital) |
2 orbs, 80px orbit, 0.5s enemy hit CD |
14 |
Fire Wand |
25 |
1.8s |
0 |
Targets nearest, 400px range |
Revised Enemy Stats (Quick Reference)¶
Enemy |
Tier |
HP |
Dmg |
Speed |
XP |
Threat |
Armor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Shambler |
1 |
10 |
12 |
85 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
Bat |
1 |
6 |
10 |
170 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
Skeleton Warrior |
2 |
28 |
18 |
100 |
3 |
2 |
0 |
Ghost |
2 |
18 |
14 |
120 |
3 |
2 |
0 |
Werewolf |
3 |
75 |
22 |
90 |
10 |
4 |
0 |
Cultist |
3 |
35 |
14 |
70 |
8 |
3 |
0 |
Swarm Rat |
3 |
4 |
2 |
200 |
1 |
0.5 |
0 |
Witch |
4 |
50 |
0 |
90 |
12 |
4 |
0 |
Bone Golem |
4 |
180 |
25/35 |
60 |
20 |
6 |
2 |
Shadow |
4 |
40 |
18 |
155 |
8 |
3 |
0 |
Vampire Noble |
5 |
120 |
25 |
140 |
25 |
7 |
1 |
Arcane Construct |
5 |
85 |
28 |
100 |
15 |
5 |
0 |
Plague Bearer |
5 |
65 |
10+DoT |
70 |
10 |
4 |
0 |
Death Knight |
6 |
220 |
40/25 |
120 |
25 |
8 |
3 |
Banshee |
6 |
55 |
12 |
160 |
12 |
6 |
0 |
Lich |
6 |
160 |
22 |
60 |
30 |
10 |
2 |
Revised Boss Stats (Quick Reference)¶
Boss |
Time |
HP |
Armor |
DPS Cap |
Regen |
Enrage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Hollow King |
5:00 |
2,200 |
3 |
120/s |
5/s |
6:30 (90s) |
Crimson Countess |
10:00 |
5,500 |
4 |
200/s |
10/s |
12:00 (120s) |
Elder Lich Malachar |
15:00 |
12,000 |
6 |
350/s |
15/s (w/ phylactery) |
17:30 (150s) |
Terminus |
20:00 |
22,000 |
10 |
500/s |
0 (Devour heals) |
N/A (Phase 3 is enrage) |
Revised Scaling Formulas (Quick Reference)¶
Scaling |
Formula |
|---|---|
Enemy HP |
|
Enemy Damage |
|
Enemy Speed |
|
Spawn Budget |
|
Player XP Required |
|
Weapon Damage/Level |
|
XP Gem Scaling |
None (flat values) |
AoE Diminishing |
|
End of Balance Overhaul v1.1 — Altair