Hello Exiles!
I wanted to catch everyone up on what the team has been working on since the Isle ofSiptahEarly Access launch and give a preview of what is coming to Conan Exiles in early 2021.
First thing first, let’s chat Isle ofSiptah. We released in Early Access on September 15th,and since thenwe have been releasing small updates to fix bugs, adjustbalance, and addresssome of the feedback we havereceived.We have also been reading the reviews players have posted on Steam, our forums, andsocial media.
When we released Isle ofSiptahwe knew that we were making some risky decisions and tweaking some of the core aspects of Conan Exiles that people have come to love and embrace over the past 4 years. Some of the features withIsle ofSiptahhave been well–received,andsomeof them have not. Belowyou willsee two charts that attempt to categorize the most common comments we have seen on reviews:
Conan Exiles is a sandbox game where the players can decide how they want to play. We also have different server types which allow very different communities to play and experience the game in the way they like the most.On top of this we allow mods which can take the game in amazing new directions that we never expected. The result is that we end up having a lot of different core user types that expect and want different things. We expect any change to potentially upset some users in the various groups, but it is obvious that we have missed the mark with too many of our customers with Isle ofSiptah. Thisis something we plan to address.
One of the main purposes of having an Early Access period is precisely so we can receive feedback from the community and tweak and improve our game as we move towards full launch.
Improvements to the Isle ofSiptah
Some of the negative feedback we received during Early Access was that the Isle ofSiptahseemedemptierthan the Exiled Lands (lacking NPC camps for example), that there were too few good places to build, that the storm was too dominating, that the map itself seemed a bit too small, that there was not enoughPvEcontent, that you couldn’t transfer characters between mapsand that it was too cumbersome to capture thralls.
Going forward we will improve the Isle ofSiptahexpansion significantly in all these aspects by:
- Introducing many new NPC camps around the map
- Populate the camps with humans who can be captured as thralls
- Expand the island map to the south with new content anddesirablebuilding locations
- Tone down the intensity of the storm and make it possible to build within the storm area
- Break the links between the vaults, the storm, and the surge
- Introduce purges with enemies from the island
- Introduce new activities and newPvEmechanics
- Make new and uniqueplaceablesfor the Isle ofSiptah
- Introduce a new religion and new avatar
- Open achamber in theTower ofSiptah,withgreat rewardsto be found inside
- Allow character transfersbetween the Exiled Lands and the Isle ofSiptah
All new NPC camps
NPC camps,full of life and activity,greatly increase the richness of the world of Conan Exiles. We will introduce many such camps to the Isle ofSiptah. These camps will havea host of differenthumanNPCswhich can be captured as thrallsjustlike in the Exiled Lands.
The camps will vary in size and come from three different factions. Stygian mercenaries have settled on the Isle ofSiptah. They are eager to restore the colony their ancestors left behind on the island and view it of great strategic importance as a stop off for traders between Argos,Stygiaand the Black Kingdoms.
Black Corsair pirates have also landed here. Their nefarious purposes are shrouded in mystery,andthey do not seem particularly fond of strangers. If you venture too close to their newly formed camps, you will see many bodies impaled on spikes, serving as a warning to trespassers.
Near the black tower in the middle of the island, a new and especially large camp has formed.Canthose who dwell therebe survivors of the devilish sorcery of the surges?The terrifying experience of being taken from their homes and dragged though the outer dark to end up on the Isle ofSiptahmust surelyhave driven them mad,as they now work side-by-side with the horrific creatures of the storm.
Vaults, storm and surge changed
The Isle ofSiptahexpansionoffered a new game loop consisting of three components: the vaults, the storm, and the surge. The intent was for you to complete vaults to gain sigils andeldarium, use the sigils to kill monsters in the storm to harvest their essence, then finally use theeldariumand essences to summon a surge for a chance to capture thralls.
We realize that many people find this process too cumbersome and we are responding to your feedback by breaking the features’ dependence on each other.
Vaults will all be rebalanced to be level 60 dungeons, each with their own unique rewards. Vaults will still be the source ofeldariumon the isle, andeldariumwill still be used to delve and craft new recipes.
The storm will become less pervasive, allowing you to build within its area of effect without drawing the attention of the creatures of the storm. You may now hunt these horrors of the outer void for new and unique rewards, and they won’t be the only source of the essences needed to power the surge.
The surge will largely remain the same as it is now, but the rewards will be changed. Completing a surge may reward you with a Fragment of Power. These fragments can be used insideachamberin theTower ofSiptahfor new and great rewards!The surge willno longerbe the only source of thralls on the island with the introduction of the many NPC camps.
New lands, purges, new religion and much more
We are expanding the size of the Isle ofSiptahto the south, and with these new lands the overland map size of the island will be over 90% that of the Exiled Lands. This area will be divided into three different biomes, with theAshlands, theFloodlands,and the Savannah.
There will be manydesirablebase building locations in these lands plus new NPC cities from two new races. Several mysterious black pools can be found inone ofthesecities, and they will be linked to an all newPvEmechanic allowing you to test your mettle in brutal fights against monstrous opponents. We are also planning several new activities which encourage exploration of the Isle ofSiptahandthe opportunitytofree human NPCs from camps, making them your followers.
A new religion with its own unique weapons,tool,priest outfit, avatar and altars is coming. Its avatar is a horrific monster like no other, sure to give those with a faint heart or a certain phobia nightmares.
In addition, purges (like those you can find in the Exiled Lands, where large groups of enemies attack your base) are coming to the Isle ofSiptah. The area you build in will determine the types of purges you can get, some of which come from the hideous creatures from the vaults, the storm monsters,or humans from the new NPC camps.A new mechanic will be introduced to these purges, allowing you to use resources to either prevent or provoke apurge.
And finally, we know that many of you have been asking for a way to transfer your characters between the Exiled Lands and the Isle ofSiptah, and we are happy to say that we are working on letting you do so. A character transfer system will be introduced during Isle ofSiptahEarly Access to allow you to use your favorite character on the map you choose to play on.
We would like to thank everyone for their continued support and for all theirEarly Access feedback,helping us improve the Isle ofSiptahexpansion.We wish everyone who celebrate happy holidays and a happy new year!
