As you advance through the game, your units will gain experience and level up. When a unit reaches level 20, they gain access to their Master Classes, which they can ascend to through the use of a Promotion Badge. 

Master Classes have higher stats, which give your units a raw numerical advantage upon promotion, although that is only the beginning! They also gain a variety of special abilities, specific to each Master Class and potentially alter their movement type through mounts or flight.

Choosing when to promote a unit into a Master Class has long-term gameplay effects. Promoting to a Master Class does not reset a unit’s level, but it does slow their experience gain by a small amount. There may be instances where keeping someone in a lower-tier class for extra levels is preferable, or there may be times when you need the immediate and drastic power boost of a Master Class. Keep in mind that you cannot swap a unit to a lower-tier class or a different Master Class once they promote, so choose wisely!

When you do promote a unit to a Master Class, there are a number of factors that affect what Master Class you might choose to promote them into. Each unit has two or three Master Classes available to them, distinguished by starkly differentiated abilities that guide the role the unit will play on the battlefield after their promotion. Therefore, you should feel free to promote a unit according to how you want them to function in combat, and build your roster and strategies around the Master Classes available to you.

Here are two examples of Keri’s possible Master Class promotions:

Assassin

Assassin grants Keri an extra attack per round if not adjacent to an allied unit, as well as increased defenses when fighting bosses. She also gains Execution as a Combat Art, which, like her Assassinate Combat Art, increases the amount of attacks against lower HP targets, but also has the further benefit of allowing her to move and attack if Execution defeats an enemy. This lets her keep the momentum after defeating a target..

The Assassin promotion focuses on increasing Keri’s raw damage, and allows her to travel away from her allies without putting herself in danger by winning more one-on-one engagements.

Moonlighter

Moonlighter grants Keri extra mobility by giving her the ability to move through enemies, as well as move after opening chests or doors, enabling her to gather side objectives while easily avoiding unneeded combat.

In addition, this promotion deepens her attunement to the moon, granting her additional Strength, Magic, and Speed at night. She also gains access to the Lunar Snipe Combat Art, which deals magical damage with a bow at long distance and gains increased Critical Hit Chance at night, though it can also be used during the day with reduced effectiveness.

The Moonlighter promotion acts as a more mobile counterpart to the Assassin’s solo playstyle.

Master Classes are an important part of the growth of your units, as they allow you to adjust your roster’s specializations to better fit your current or future needs, opening up new strategic possibilities and opportunities for experimentation that would not be available otherwise. On repeat playthroughs, the mutually-exclusive nature of Master Classes encourages you to play around with builds on units that you haven’t tried before, and to view the units you’ve grown familiar with from new angles.

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David

In Gales of Nayeli, enemy skills and abilities can give your foes powerful advantages in combat, which you’ll need to be wary of as you plan your turns. But don’t worry: enemy skills often have drawbacks that also create exploitable weaknesses that you can take advantage of to form strategies to take them down! 

Here are some examples of such enemies, and how you might be able to take advantage of their vulnerabilities to achieve victory:

Mercenaries have great Strength and Speed, making them high-priority targets who fight at melee range. However, they also have reduced Avoid when their health is high: take advantage of this by using powerful, riskier attacks right off the bat to obliterate them when their chance to dodge is at its lowest.

Longbowmen have extra accuracy and range with bows, and are thus able to strike your units from a great distance. On the other hand, they are unable to counterattack at melee range and also take more damage from foes adjacent to them. This allows for more mobile units, who tend to have weaker offenses, to take them down with haste.

Spider Eggs are immobile, and pose no threat on their own, but if any of your units approaches, the egg will hatch, unleashing dangerous, venomous Spiderlings that can attack immediately! To take them down safely, either defeat them from outside their activation range, or destroy them in a single blow. Not only will you eliminate the threat of Spiderlings, but the victorious unit will gain more Experience. Burn it with fire before it hatches!

Of course, not all enemies demand deliberate and careful strategy at every step, and there are times when sheer power can be enough to overwhelm foes through head-on combat. However, knowing and taking advantage of the weaknesses of your foes is always helpful if you’re searching for ways to get the upper hand. It is especially useful in higher difficulties, where enemies are stronger and have better loadouts. Incorporating their vulnerabilities into your strategy can be critical to finding success on the battlefield.

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David

Over the course of your journey through Iuven, players may come across Forge Tokens when they complete bonus map objectives or tasks that are not part of the main chapter progression. Forge Tokens are a special form of currency that can be used to upgrade certain weapons at Blacksmiths, and are one tool that players can use to customize their arsenal and keep their favorite weapons relevant throughout the game. 

Not all weapons can be upgraded, however: most eligible weapons are early-game weapons that have unique and impactful characteristics, such as specific effectiveness against particular types of enemies, but whose bonuses might become less useful later in the game as higher-quality weapons start to outshine them. By using Forge Tokens to specifically bolster these weapons, they can retain their importance throughout the entire game, expanding equipment options and thereby create new opportunities for players to experiment with specific tools that fit their favourite strategies.

Here are some examples of how some weapons can be upgraded with Forge Tokens, represented by receiving a “+” in the weapon description: 

Bearded Axe: Increases Critical by 20% when attacking Lance-Wielding enemies.

Bearded Axe+: Also deals effective damage to Lance-Wielding enemies.

Killer Sword: Has a higher critical hit chance.

Killer Sword+: Now deals x3 damage when landing critical hits instead of the usual x2. 

Aegis (Light Tome): Allies within 2 tiles take -2 damage in combat. 

Aegis+: In addition, after initiating combat, heals adjacent allies by 5HP.

Keep an eye out for Blacksmiths, and make sure you collect Forge Tokens so that you can keep improving your favorite weapons as you progress through the game!

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David

Acquiring powerful equipment is one of the most rewarding parts of any RPG, and while Gales of Nayeli has a long list of weapons and other items that you can loot, purchase, or earn throughout your time in Iuven, some specific and particularly rare ones bear special mention: Hero Relics.

Every single playable character has a Hero Relic associated with them that is specifically tuned to play to their strengths and push them beyond the limits they had prior to obtaining that Relic. To obtain their Relic, you must acquire Heroic Orbs, which are found after completing specific heroic deeds over the course of the story: when you give an acquired Heroic Orb to one of your units, it will transform into their associated Hero Relic. 

Here are a few examples of Hero Relics, and how they affect the playstyle of the units who acquire them.
Torngarsuk (Quidel): Torngarsuk is an equippable weapon, a powerful Brave Axe that gives Quidel three extra Strength and Magic at the start of every player phase, but wears off at the end of combat. These bonuses are gained while Torngarsuk is his inventory, even if he is not wielding it at that moment. Since Quidel deals increased damage when using Brave weapons, as well as when he targets foes with lower Strength than him, Torngarsuk’s nature as a Brave Axe and Strength bonus both synergize well with Quidel’s kit. Furthermore, the Magic bonus allows Quidel to take better advantage of Magical Axes, such as the Bolt Axe, which is also a Brave weapon.

Pandora’s Box (Sophie): Pandora’s Box is an equippable item which acts as an infinite-use short-range teleport, like Smoke Bombs. In addition, it also grants Sophie a freely usable Combat Art, Even-Odd Trickster. The exact effects of Even-Odd Trickster vary depending on whether the turn count is even or odd: on even turns, Sophie’s Critical Hit Chance is increased, and on odd turns, her flat damage is increased. Both versions are powerful and contribute to Sophie’s playstyle as an adaptive unit with a touch of unpredictability.

Nataraja’s Ring (Samira): Extends the range of Samira’s Dance, which usually refreshes the action of any one allied unit, to apply to any number of units on tiles adjacent to her. Nataraja’s Ring grants Samira a significant bonus to an already-powerful ability, greatly increasing its versatility and usability and helping her to serve as a powerful bolstering and support unit on the battlefield who can swing fights in an instant.

These are just a few of the Hero Relics that will be available in the game. We hope that these, and the others that you will be able to find, will provide you with strong motivation to acquire as many Heroic Orbs as you can. Every Hero Relic will greatly expand your repertoire of strategies by providing your units with new synergies, giving you deeper options for building your characters and guiding their growth, so treat them as meaningful upgrades for your strongest units, or as power boosts that can help your struggling units come into their own! However you choose to use them, Hero Relics are certain to help your units shine!

See you tomorrow with more daily updates leading up to the Kickstarter Campaign!
David

Ollie is a customizable playable unit in Gales of Nayeli. Their name and starting class is up to the player.

The four starting classes for Ollie are Adventurer, Strider, Spellcaster and Rogue.

Let’s go over their unique attributes :

Adventurer

The Adventurer is an all around balanced frontline unit with good HP, Strength and Speed. While they do not excel at any one specific task, they provide equal parts offense, defense and support in battle.

Their unique skill is War Cry, which intimidates nearby enemies and lowers their Attack, Avoid and Critical Avoid.

Strider

The Strider is weaker offensively, but possesses multiple supportive benefits in combat. Their Combat Art, Crippling Shot, drastically reduces enemy movement, which can lessen enemy pressure and facilitate completion of time sensitive side objectives.

Spellcaster

The Spellcaster provides great damage, which can be further increased through their unique skill, Focus. They can focus up to three consecutive times to increase their damage dealt for their next spell.

However, focus can be lost when attacked, even when no spell was fired.

Rogue

The Rogue is typically ill-suited for battle, but possesses unparalleled movement among thieving classes. Their unique ability, Hide, allows them to move through enemies and increases their Critical Chance on their next attack, enabling them to fight back in a pinch.

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David

Lore

Quidel has been Nayeli’s closest friend for as long as either of them can remember. The two of them spent many inquisitive afternoons exploring the forests near their home as they played adventurers. Nayeli was astute and adventurous, and always ready to guide and protect the shyer, more sensitive Quidel, whose gentleness was manifested in his love and care for all animal life.

But Quidel’s carefree years ended all too soon, and as adolescence—and expectations—advanced, so too did he change. His growth spurt was such that, by his later teenage years, he had become a bulky titan of a man, a tireless hunter and explorer of forests, shirking no duty so long as it afforded him the opportunity to buttress his physical training. As his responsibilities deepened, Quidel withdrew from the outlook that had once defined him, until he bore little resemblance to the quiet, wildlife-loving boy of his youth, and the bond between him and Nayeli strained beneath…though it did not break. 

Since then, Quidel has sought to scatter that memory of meekness from the stubborn minds of his friends and family, particularly Nayeli, who still carry the recollection of his former sensitivity. No longer shall anyone else feel the need to impart their courage to him, and safeguard him and their community, and the creatures he still loves: Quidel shall do it himself, and be the protector and warrior that he needs to be.

Gameplay

Quidel has excellent Strength and High HP, enabling him to function well as an offensive front-liner who can absorb damage and dish it out in turn. Furthermore, he joins your roster early on, with high base stats, helping Quidel be useful as soon as he is available, while his phenomenal physical damage will ensure he does not lose relevance after the early portions of the game. Accentuating Quidel’s advantage in physical offense is one of his passive skills, Power Move, which increases the damage he deals against targets with less Strength than him. 

Quidel specializes in singular, devastating strikes, especially through Combat Arts such as Overhead Swing, which has increased Hit, or Searing Swing, which trades accuracy for Fire damage and increased Critical Hit Chance. This pushes Quidel to eliminate foes in a single round of combat, before they can retaliate at all, particularly since his below-average Speed makes him unlikely to make follow-up attacks. However, to mitigate this drawback, Quidel also uniquely deals increased damage with Brave Weapons, which encourages him to equip himself with some: after all, if the first blow can’t destroy his enemy, then the second surely will!

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David

Lore

A performer by trade, Sophie excels in combining the showiness of stage magic with the majesty and danger of real sorcery, mixing one with the other to dazzle audiences and confuse would-be skeptics. Mystery and the esoteric are her crafts, and contortionism, sleight-of-hand, and illusion are her tools. She’s traveled the world—and, according to her own coy exaggerations, well beyond it—as part of one circus troupe or another, dabbling with a wide range of magician’s unions and acrobat guilds. She’s got stories aplenty, and any who ask for one will be regaled with three more tales than they wished to hear, but the energy and joy she injects into every narrative ensures that her listeners never mind.

She’s done quite well for herself over the years, having settled down and opened her very own gambling and performance hall somewhere in the unaffiliated, little-regulated waters between Lumica and Norica. If one has the coin, it might be in their best interest to drop by.

Gameplay

Sophie has very high Speed and Luck as well as great Skill, which leaves her well-prepared to dodge attacks fluidly and strike foes precisely, but in all other respects she is a very unorthodox character. She primarily uses Lances and Dark spells and, while she’s not mounted and only has below-average Strength and Magic, Sophie’s Freebie passive gives her an extra attack when using weapons or spells that attack multiple times per round. This means that any Brave or Thunder Element weapon will strike her targets three times instead of two before they get a chance to counter. This gives her some extra punch and helps make up for her otherwise-lower offensive stats.

Sophie’s always happy to play around with chance, and so, as an active ability, she has the opportunity to roll a magical dice for a chance to grant positive perks to herself and her allies. For example, one result might grant guaranteed Critical Hits on the next attack that she and her allies connect with, while another will bless the entire party with bonus HP regeneration for a number of turns. Sophie can move and act after rolling her dice, encouraging her to test the dice as early in a turn as possible. But be warned: if Sophie rolls a one, she will be doubly hampered by reduced Avoid and an inability to act for the rest of the turn. 

This means that Sophie must be proactive with the use of her dice, and always be willing to take a risk for the chance to reap powerful benefits.

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David

While a preset list of chapters must be completed to advance through the game, not all combat encounters that you find will be mandatory. In addition to the main story scenarios, optional maps and battle encounters are available for you to complete in between main story chapters.

Some optional battles are immediately available within a specific chapter, and remain accessible until you advance onwards to the next chapter and leave the area where they would take place. Others are only accessible, or even revealed at all, if specific conditions on main story maps elsewhere in the chapter—or even in earlier chapters—are met. Such conditions may include accomplishing specific side objectives, successfully completing time-sensitive goals, or meeting alternative victory conditions. There are also optional maps that are locked behind specific character or progression requirements which emphasize the use of particular units, and completing them will give you the opportunity to acquire character-specific rewards and uncover more details about a character’s backstory. 

Having a variety of optional maps gives us greater freedom to experiment with unusual layouts or objectives. Our main story chapter maps are intended to have tighter pacing, which helps accommodate players from a wider range of backgrounds and familiarity levels. 

Players can therefore curate their experience by completing or avoiding as many optional missions as they like, whether they seek out extra challenges, rewards or narrative developments.

See you tomorrow with more daily updates leading up to the Kickstarter Campaign!
David

Lore

Flynn is a mercenary born and raised in Cherringham, a village to the west of Solance Kingdom, to parents of no great wealth or status who, despite the difficulties of their circumstances, did their utmost to provide for him and his younger sister, Ciara. Unfortunately, when a famine resulting from an extended drought and dry season tore through his hometown during his adolescence, his parents were among its first victims, forcing him to put aside any other ambitions and take up the sword for mercenary work in order to provide for his still-young sibling. 

He spent the better part of the next decade selling his sword skills in service of nearly anyone who was willing to pay to have a young man of above-average skill in their employ. Though Flynn endeavored to work as close to Cherringham as he could, when work was scarce, he’d be forced to sign contracts that took him further out into countryside, leaving Ciara on her own with whatever skills he’d been able to impart to her to keep herself safe and fed, and allow her to follow her own interests.

It worked out well enough, until the day he returned with his childhood friend and neighbor, Sharif, from a multi-month contract. His pockets had been bulging with the funds Ciara would need, and yet when he arrived at their home, she had not run out to greet him as she normally did. Their house had been ransacked, marked with signs of obvious struggle, and most of their goods were gone.

Though neighbors have argued that slavers or brigands had to be the cause of such a kidnapping, Flynn is not so sure, and Sharif shares his concern. Cherringham is not a large city, but nor is it completely isolated: how, then, might such wrongdoers have broken into his house and stolen away his sibling without being spotted or stopped? And as he is consumed with the search for his sister, is it possible that he might find common cause with Nayeli’s own goals?

Gameplay

Flynn is a speedy swordsman who prefers to operate in the thick of combat, relying on his high Speed, above-average Skill and Strength, and solid physical defense to deal damage at melee range. His damage and physical durability increase when he is not at full health, ensuring that he can maintain his position at the front and stay in the flow of the fight without needing to fall back if things get dangerous. 

He also possesses multiple Combat Arts that target foes in particular classes or with specific specializations, giving him adaptable answers to a wide variety of foes. One of these Combat Arts is Wind Blade, which deals magic damage and is effective against fliers, a class of enemies that sword-users tend to struggle against.

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David

Combat Arts are an important element of combat in Gales of Nayeli, and are one of the factors that help differentiate units from each other to allow them to form distinct gameplay identities. In exchange for using more weapon durability in battle, Combat Arts carry a wide variety of additional effects that vary drastically.

When recruited, each unit will start with a list of Combat Arts unique to them, and will learn more as you progress through the game. Some are learned by achieving specific relationship milestones between particular units or through unique story events, but most are learned by advancing a unit along a class promotion path. 

Here are a few of the Combat Arts available to specific units, as well as some ideas as to how such Combat Arts might mesh well with that unit’s role in combat:

Opportune Shot (Curtis): Opportune Shot deals extra damage to targets who are adjacent to allied units. Since Curtis also deals additional damage when he is at a distance from allies, Opportune Shot incentivizes positioning Curtis away from the chaos of battle so that he can more easily eliminate foes who are flanked by allies.

Retreating Pike (Nayeli): Retreating Pike is a Combat Art that, allows Nayeli to use her leftover movement to reposition after combat. Since Nayeli passively boosts the stats of adjacent allies, this Combat Art’s extra mobility helps her reposition herself to where she will be able to bolster the most allies at once after dealing damage. Alternatively, Retreating Pike can allow Nayeli to continue to aggressively advance after striking or defeating a foe, or retreat to safety if the situation demands greater caution.

Assassinate (Keri): Assassinate attacks three more times when targeting foes below specific health thresholds. This creates opportunities for Keri to dispatch weakened targets. Furthermore, since Keri naturally can use her leftover Movement after attacking, Assassinate helps her contribute to the party’s damage without stalling her momentum, allowing her to rapidly transition from slaying enemies to accomplishing map objectives.

Honorable Charge (Gallant): Honorable Charge deals high base damage, but reduces Gallant’s effective Avoid until combat ends. This means that, should a foe survive the initial overpowering blow, Gallant is much more likely to be struck in return: while Gallant has good magical defense and is less likely to suffer serious damage from non-physical attacks, use of this Combat Art still entails a degree of risk. Fortunately, Gallant’s high Strength works well in coordination with Honorable Charge’s powerful base damage to make him more likely to eliminate foes before they can retaliate. 

This is only a quick glimpse at the repertoire of Combat Arts available to you in Gales of Nayeli. We look forward to seeing how you experiment with the wide variety of Combat Arts that your roster has access to in the full release, and are excited to see how you use them in unique, inventive ways to overcome the challenges set before you!

See you tomorrow with more daily updates leading up to the Kickstarter Campaign!
David