First about the monster nests that were left out last time. The visual appearance of nests will be built of modules – columns, arches, roof – that could be combined and recolored freely to add more visual variety to the game.
Target priority selection got easier. After shift-clicking, if you keep holding the mouse button, dragging in any of the 8 “main directions” (horizontal-vertical-diagonal) will give the gem the corresponding target priority. The list of priority options had to be tightened to fit the 8 directions, “farthest from orb” and “most hit points” were removed. The old simple shift-click priority throttling still works as well.
Gem bombs have a smaller radius, but they have a larger total damage which they spread evenly among all the targets caught in range. Previously, if you dropped a gem bomb, it damaged only a few monsters, so it looked really disappointing in a larger crowd.
As you prepare to drop your gem bomb, its circle of range is shown to help with aiming.
The minimum dealt damage is universally set to 1, so that if you don’t have the firepower to smash through a target’s armor, you can still deal tiny hits.
And finally, your Orb of Presence* has got some new abilities! You can drop gems on it, or build amplifiers next to it and socket gems in them to empower your orb, making the banishment of monsters cost less mana, and damaging each attacking monster before the banishment takes place.
The “reduce banishment cost” skill was removed (more on skills later), and you no longer have to drop gem bombs on your orb to end an endurance run, you can do it from the options screen.
*Some of you asked why there isn’t a wizard tower or a wizard him-/herself on the screen instead of this orb thing. The story-conform answer is: Unlike in GC1 and GC0, in the lands of GC2 there are no buildings to hide into all along your way, and it would be very dangerous to go out in the wilderness on your own, but, thanks to your vast knowledge of magic, you can cast an orb that acts as your avatar.
Coming up next:
17th of September:
Breakables, drops
1st of October:
Battle modes
