Damo

Hi,
just finished my PHP Replay Parser.
Should be easy to include in own projects.
It contains almost anything that can be read out of the replays and some calculated Values (decks, apm, winner, teams, monuments used, cards used, every action done by the players etc. ).

Might be useful for an own replay archive, automatic reports for tourneys or just to spy out what deck the rpve Player used that was 10x faster than you ).

A quick demo script also with all values extracted:
http://torsten-lueders.de/replayapi/ 

Source on Github:
https://github.com/dreaddy/SkylordsReplayParserLibrary

The Usage is quite simple. Just call $replaydataobject = new SkylordsReplayParser("pathandnameofmyreplay.map")->loadData();
The example is in index.php.



 

For Volin's stream sake:
S+ Batariel, who would've expected that. There are pretty much two valid reasons to play this deck. 1. motm competition, 2. a daily timer of 35/45mins.
S-tier contains the top deck options to play when you either want to go fast but not 2fast or you're playing motms and don't have the power for a batarie ldeck because you had to place the shrines (cries in void power).  
Brannoc mainly reaches the A-tier for being the single best option for several t3 speedrun scenarios. All other decks - besides  and  - reach this tier only due to their splashability with  spells (driveby superiority).
Decks below that tier do not really require much of an explanation.

those are good questions, the new nature RPVE seems like an exciting way to earn prestige and honor

Will there be Wheel of Gifts on the enemy's side? 🤔 😂

Thanks for pointing out at my stream I feel very honoured!

Just to mention, I just got a big donation of 380 cards from @THE_BIG_WET to share with newer players (we said we give them out up to Gold 1Star ranks in the first step, preferably to silver and bronze ranks)
New players, make sure to hit the next stream on Thursday. Probably I will even make some extra streams to share this stuff with you. We got great uncommons, rares and even some ultra rares to share with you!

Great read once again 

Greetings Skylords!
Every three weeks, we give an update on the things going on behind the scenes of Skylords Reborn. Welcome to another Community Update!



• Teaser rPvE Nature

As decided (quite overwhelmingly) by vote, Nature will follow up Fire and be the next faction to become available as a new rPvE enemy.
We are still in the early stages of both design and balance, so it will still take quite a while before you can fight your way through a new challenge, but we wanted to give you a little teaser of what to expect. 


• Expectation management

For these community updates, we always carefully decide what to share with the public already. We aim to strike the right balance between giving an insight into what we are working on while not giving false expectations about their expected release. When deciding on what to share, our rule of thumb is that it should be something that is definitely happening, even if it might still take quite a while.
For example, Wasteland Terror and PvP Happy Hours are still happening, although in hindsight we probably revealed them too soon. Another example would be the Tower Deepdive from the last community update. This has lead to multiple questions expecting these changes to hit the server soon, even though we are still in early iterations. In this case, the reason we shared the Deepdive already was to let the community join into the discussion and provide feedback about our intended changes.
In other cases, we are sometimes just excited about what we are working on and want to share them with you already! We hope you are patient while we work on our next patch, even if it will probably not include Nature rPvE already. Rest assured that we are hard at work on other exciting things though! 
 
• New artwork reveal

On the day of our previous community update, SpiritAlpha has joined the team as a 2D artist. Since then, he has been hard at work and we can already show you two pieces of his artwork. The first is our new art for the Banzai Birds, spawned from our new card Banzai Lord. Since the card is quite popular, we felt the birds deserved a proper artwork, instead of a recolor of the old artwork. 
                   
The second artwork is an icon for Stronghold's new ability "Bombardment", as mentioned in our Tower Deepdive. Bombardment will become an active ability with a power cost and a long cooldown. It deals area of effect damage with knockback and has a long range to enable Stronghold to counter siege units on its own.
Icons will be quite small in the game, but we still like the details that went into this one. We plan to add more icons to other missing abilities, like Thug's and Lost Shade's Unity buff, so look forward to those!
 
• New tools for new players

Skylords Reborn is an awesome game, but it can be quite hard to get the grasp of it when you are starting out. Various community members have been trying to help newer players get started or improve, including a recently started tutoring program.
• NEW - Volin's Random Rushhour
Every Thursday, Volin hosts a new stream series focused on helping players improve in rPvE. Every week covers different topics, and of course players are encouraged to ask questions and interact. Follow Volin on Twitch, or keep an eye on the stream-channel on our Discord to be notified when the stream starts. 

• NEW - Workshops
The recently started community project REBORN hosts special workshops for new players looking for guidance. In these workshops, you get supported by a mentor guiding you through various topics like deck building, spawn mechanics, power management and of course gameplay. You will get helpful feedback from participants and mentors and get advice on your deck and applying the knowledge on the battleground with one of the mentors. The workshops are not a lecture and one-sided, you are highly encouraged to openly engage in discussions with the mentors. The workshops take place every Sunday, if you are interested, be sure to sign-up. 


• PvP - Toggy's Fightclub
Every Wednesday, Toggy hosts a PvP Fightclub, where players can train and get commentary on their matches. Whether you are a veteran PvP player wanting to put on a show or a new player in need of some helpful feedback, Fightclub is where you want to be. Starting around 18:30 CET every Wednesday, you can watch the Fightclub live on Twitch, while joining the games in the sparring lobby. You are encouraged to spectate and join the fun! Follow Toggy on Twitch, or keep an eye on the stream-channel on our Discord to be notified when Fightclub starts. 

Need more help on PvP? Be sure to check out the Tutor and Apprentice Discord, and the PvP guide written by two of the best PvP players; RadicalX and Hirooo. 

• Patreon update

Skylords Reborn is being worked on by a team of volunteers. The game is free to play, and we do not make any profit of it. We have been able to pay for our server through the donation of generous Patrons, and our current savings are high enough to support server upkeep costs for years to come. Since we are currently not allowed to spend money on other areas (like marketing), we decided to put the Patreon donations on pause. Should this situation change, we will open it up again.
Thank you so much for supporting Skylords Reborn over the years!
 
• Skylords Reborn Wallpapers

Now that the Patreon is not available anymore, we have decided to release our previously Patreon exclusive wallpapers to the public. Our former artist ArtRhino has created 38 great wallpapers with a new take on various units, spells, buildings and area's in the game. You might have seen some of them already during our stream or as banners for the Community Update. Now you can look at them in all of their glory and tell that coworker glancing at your screen about our great game! 
You can find all the wallpapers here.

 
• Tournaments / Events

• NEW - Community Map Challenge #4: “Lyr’s Distress Call” - UNTIL 21st February 2022
Dallarian has hosted another winter themed event! The event will be run on a brand new one-player community map, “Aeglos Fortress”. Complete the map with a few restrictions and win some prizes! Be sure to check it out, since there are also prizes for the less experienced players. 

• FINISHED - Official 2p rPvE Contest#2: The Bandit Alliance
We were looking for the fastest time with only one rule: each player could only spawn one single unit with ground presence through the whole run!
You can rewatch the stream and find out the winners on our official twitch channel. 
 
• SOON™ - PvP League
Some exciting news for our PvP players. Toggy is hard at work on creating a PvP league, where players can compete against opponents from the same skill level over the duration of multiple weeks. More info in the coming weeks! 

• Host your own event / tournament
Want to host a tournament or event? Please reach out to our Event Organizers Hiko and/or Metagross to have your event prizes sponsored by us. If you have a cool idea for a PvE event, or want to host a PvP tournament, please don't hesitate to reach out to us, we will gladly assist you. 
 
• Team changes

Our team has seen quite a few changes in the past weeks. 
Pascal has left the team as our Lead Moderator. Dutchy will take over his role and is our new Lead Moderator. 
Our Global Moderators DragonOfTime and Lontzek have also left the moderation team. To fill in these spots, Dallarian and Naturee are our new Global Moderators. 
We would like to thank each of them for their contributions. Moderation has always been a very important part of the Skylords Reborn project, and we wouldn't have the community we have now without their help! 
As mentioned above, SpiritAlpha has joined the team as 2D-artist, working alongside Tweeto to add new artwork into the game. 
Lastly, Killbuster has joined the PvP taskforce. He helped us greatly with the testing process while providing very constructive feedback and suggestions.
 

• We need your help

Unfortunately, we currently do not have enough volunteers to continue implementing any further voice lines and sound effects into the game.
Now that we are able to implement voice lines and audio into the game (thanks to some great voice actors helping us out!), we are looking for someone to help us with audio post-production and quality control.
• Open Position: Audio Editor
We would love to continue adding voice lines for more cards and narration for new maps. As an Audio Editor, you will be responsible for selecting and extracting the best takes, doing post-production and making sure the overall quality is high enough to be implemented into the game. If you have more skills, you will also be able to design new sounds for the game as Audio Producer. Click here to read more and apply.
 
We are also still looking for a new Community Manager, who can help us with these Community Updates. If you are interested or have any questions, please reach out to us. 
• Open Position - Community Manager
As a community manager, you are responsible with aiding the communication to and from the community. You will work closely with the Project Coordinator (previously Community Manager) to communicate staff and project decisions to the community through, for example, The Community Updates and self-written announcements. Furthermore, you will act as a contact person for the community to share project feedback and suggestions and are expected to keep the staff informed and be up-to-date with the state of the community. Click here to read more and apply.

• In Conclusion

And that's it for this Community Update, thanks for reading! 
As is tradition, this community update comes with a scratch code. 
The code will reward you with a mini-booster: COMM-UNIT-YNEW-S19B
The code is valid till March 12th, when we will bring you another Community Update. 
As always, we are open to feedback, so please let us know if you have any questions, suggestions or comments! 

Archive
• Skylords Reborn Documents (Deepdives, Behind the Scenes, PvP Guide)  
• Overview Community Updates
• Community Update #18

Hello,
I occasionally play lvl 10 with players who have no experience at this level.
I notice that most of the cases where we lose the game, it's not a question of difficulty but rather of time.
21 min.. That doesn't leave us a lot of time. I wonder if we could increase the time allotted by 2-3 minutes.
Thx

Single player 9 all time

Two player 9 all time

 
 

"Adorable Battleships need to eat a lot of snowflakes to survive and feed it's little babies, so they can grow up to become majestic whales.
And here we can see a school of Battleships in their natural habitat, imitating the shape of a much bigger ship to intimidate potential predators.

Inciddentally, they also do this to reduce the air drag factor. Tired Battleships will fall back from the front to the rear of the formation, allowing fully rested Battles to take the lead and provide the drag reduction.
If we look closely, we can see a few families of Icefang Raptors hiding underaneath the Battleships. Raptors and Battleships have a mutualistic relationship. The Battleships protect the Raptors, and in exchange the Raptors secure Monuments that contain Frost Orbs needed to grow snowflakes clouds and feed Battleship population. [1]" - read by Krystyna Czubówna

Nature is so beautiful.
And I absolutely love the new Forge. Below zero job!

[1]. Source:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Stellaris/comments/s5b35l/and_here_we_can_see_a_school_of_battleships_in/
 

That's not the worst idea I've heard today...or read in this thread.

You could also enlighten one or two shrines of war, even resource boosters maybe

There is a longstanding bug in the calculation of AOE (area of effect) damage, affecting spells, unit abilities and unit attacks which have a max damage per target and max overall damage. Examples of affected spells are Eruption or Fire Sphere, abilities like Rifle Cultists' Dark Grenade or AOE attacks of units like Construct, Frost Mage or Deepcoil Worm.
TL;DR at the bottom!
 
How the bug works:
If an AOE damage effect kills a unit, only 50% of the overkill damage is transferred back to the pool of available damage which is to be distributed to other targets.
Let's take Fire Sphere (u3) as an example. The spell has a maximum single target damage of 6000 and a maximum total damage of 8000. As it stands, the spell will only ever do its full damage if its primary target (closest to the area of effect center) has at least 6000, and its second target has at least 2000 health.
If you use Fire Sphere on a group of weaker enemies, it's effectiveness will vastly diminish. Let's take for example a group of 8 Sunderers (u3), which have exactly 1000 HP each, for a total of 8000 HP. Fire Sphere will kill 3 of them, and damage a fourth Sunderer for 375 damage, leaving him with 625 HP. Total damage dealt: 3375. It would get even worse for lower health targets.

Why does it happen? Because of faulty calculation in the damage formula, which returns only 50% of overkill damage to the pool of remaining damage.
So what's the maths behind it?
Before: max single target damage = 6000, damage in pool = 8000
Target 1: health = 1000, damage dealt = 6000, overkill damage = 5000, damage returned to pool = 2500, remaining damage in pool = 4500
Target 2: health = 1000, damage dealt = 4500, overkill damage = 3500, damage returned to pool = 1750, remaining damage in pool = 1750
Target 3: health = 1000, damage dealt = 1750, overkill damage = 750, damage returned to pool = 375, remaining damage in pool = 375
Target 4: health = 1000, damage dealt = 375, health remaining = 625
 
Is it a bug, or is it a feature?
That's a non-trivial question. But so far, there is every indication that this is in fact a bug.
1. There is no indication whatsoever in the spell descriptions, especially the big AOE spells like Fire Sphere, that they massively lose effectiveness against groups of enemies, or that they deal only half damage to further targets.
2. Against a heterogenous group of enemies, the total damage dealt varies greatly, depending on which target was closest to the spell center, thus in which orders the targets are affected.
3. Logic dictates, that there is no reason for an explosion to lose effectiveness (as in: deal less overall damage) the more viable targets are affected.
4. Increasing "maximum single target damage" reduces the overall damage dealt by the spells, if they are used against groups of enemies, to a point where Lava Field sometimes deals more overall damage than Fire Sphere. How does that make sense?
 
What's the proposed bugfix/change?
To enable full overkill damage overflow. As in, if the single target damage is 6000, and the target has only 1000 health, let 5000 damage return to the remaining damage pool.
 
Using the example above again, that's 8 dead Sunderers for a total of 8000 damage and a happy, fulfilled Fire Sphere.

 
Can it be implemented easily?
We've been hard at work and testing with Kubik (who's effort and insight are massively appreciated!), and the relevant code already exists, ready to be implemented. It also is easily adjustable, should it turn out that another value, like a 75%, or 80% damage carryover on overkillis the sweet spot.
 
What will change if the bugfix is implemented?
Every AOE spell, ability and attack, which has a listed damage per target and maximum damage will be affected by this change. However, the degree to which it will have an impact, varies greatly from one case to another. For most cards, especially with low damage numbers, the increase will be negligible (not JUST because these are low numbers, but primarily because those spells/attacks have a low chance to kill a target with any given shot).
Generally, the bugfix is a direct buff to many cards and abilities. However, damage is only actually increased if 1. at least one of the targets is killed, 2. there are more viable targets in range than (total_damage / max_singletarget_damage) rounded up. Also, to be clear, damage is NEVER going to be increased for the primary target
Spells which are affected the most, are spells which have high enough numbers, that they are expected to reliably kill some, or most of their targets. The greater the single target maximum damage of the AOE damage source, and the greater single target maximum damage in relation to total maximum damage, the more any given spell/attack/ability is affected. Also, spells/attacks/abilities which have a larger AOE and the above characteristics, tend to be affected more (because more targets fit into the AOE).
 
My predictions concerning the impact on specific cards:
High impact: Fire Sphere, Rifle Cultists* (ability: Dark Grenade), Boom Brothers* (ability: Boom), Necro Fury* (ability: Bone Shards), Altar of Chaos (against really large groups), Worldbreaker Gun (attack and ability: Heavy Snowball, though the latter only against really large groups), Shatter Ice, Comet Catcher (against really large groups).
* - Unholy Hero increases the impact
Moderate impact: Construct (attack), Giant Wyrm (attack), Ironclad (attack), Wasteland Terror (attack), Abomination (ability: Blessed/Tainted Fury), Skycatcher (attack), Gemeye (attack), Volcano (attack), Artillery (attack), Hatecaster (attack), Deepgorge (attack), Thornbark (rooted attack), Treefiend (rooted attack), Lost Horror (attack), Soulshatter (>3 targets), Backlash (depending on void power, may be low impact), Corpse Explosion (>3 targets), Morklay Trap, Shadow Phoenix (>4 targets), Lost dancer (ability: Necro explosion, only with lots of targets in range), Nasty Surprise (>3 targets), Necroblaster (attack, and shadow affinity ability: Tainted Voodoo).
Low impact: Magma Hurler (attack), Sun Reaver (ability: Metal Spikes), Deepcoil Worm (attack), Twilight Bombard (attack), Lost Disruptor (attack, moderate impact against grouped very low health fliers), Shadow Mage, Eruption (>3 targets).
 
My predictions concerning the impact on PVP balance:
(I am not an active PVP player currently. I did play a decent amount in times of Battleforge, but I am in no way up to date, so take these predictions with a grain of salt).
Shadow will slightly gain in power, as the explosions have actually high enough damage numbers to reliably kill at least some of their targets, but except for Shadow Mage, it only ever becomes relevant when there are >3 targets in range of the spell/ability. The slight buff to Eruption shouldn't have an impact. Otherwise I expect nothing much to change. The vast majority of significantly affected cards are T4.
 
My predictions concerning the impact on PVE:
Enemies: Long range AOE attackers, like Bandit walkers and high tier defensive towers (e.g. artillery) will be more proficient at murdering grouped units.
Players: Stronger tools of destruction at player disposal. It should only really affect T4, and shadow at lower tiers (Shadow Phoenix in particular should be noticeably more effective against large groups, Necroblaster will get stronger, Corpse explosion and Soulshatter will also be noticeably more effective).
 
Final thoughts:
I was for a long time under the impression, that large AOE damage sources are somehow underperforming, without really understanding why. Fire Sphere! Enormous explosion! Which... kills 3-4 units out of a cluster of 15 units. Now that I found out why those spells underperform, I've taken the effort to try and fix it. That's the result. I consider it a bugfix, even though it is also a moderately impactful balance change. That's how Skylords Reborn, and earlier Battleforge, handled AOE damage. A bug that had largely become a feature. I propose we change it in a logical way. Maximum 8000 damage in the area? If the targets in range have as much overall health, the damage will be dealt in full.
 
Special thanks:
Kubik, for his unending patience and making the unreadable mess of code actually parsable for the human mind.
 
TL;DR:
High tier AOE spells and abilities promise big numbers. Against lots of small targets, numbers are much smaller, because overkill damage is halved (multiple times). The proposed change fixes stuff, so that big spells deal the promised damage. Fire Sphere -> big boom -> big damage -> lots of dead bandits. Vote big damage. Vote dead bandits!

Why me? I just provided real time data for how the damage works. Implemented formulas @wibryz write and did some small testing. He is the one who did trough all these numbers to figure out what is wrong and how to fix it. (And I would say it was less than 4 days for the actual analysis and fix 🙂 )
How much HP does "usual" targets of Shadow Phoenix have?

Hey all,
I'm already in a team with one of my usual mates to compete for the top ranks hopefully, but I feel I would have the time and energy to participate in another team.
I would rather look for a newcomer or experienced player that is usually not among the top10 then to make another top team with well know speedrunners.
I would not want to share the tactic I use in my other team, nor I want to give out a whole new strategy, but of course I would like to give advice and share my knowledge if wanted so. For myself I had a few ideas for some strats that could be fun and would like to test them. If someone already has a complete strategy idea I would even be glad to follow your lead completely! You see. I am open to many approaches!
If you are interested reach out to me via Forums PM,via Discord (Volin#8101) or just ingame if you see me (Volin).
This post will be edited when a team is built - so as long as you can read this, don't hesitate.
One last thing: Using voice chat is a must for me in a contest, even if we would only more compete for a medium rank, using discord for fast communication is essential and makes things a lot easier and faster. We can speak in English or German, no matter what, this is not negotiable for me 🙂
 
See you in the forge
 
 

Should i donate a Harvester... I can.

Hello Skylords, Skyladies and other Skybeings.
Welcome to the second official rPvE event!
We hope you will have a lot of fun with this event!



What kind of event will it be?
rPvE/Battlegrounds 2player - Map of the Month - Difficulty 9
For this challenge, we want to see your adaptability in unique situations.
We are looking at the fastest time with only one rule: each player may only spawn one single unit with ground presence* through the whole run.

So gather a team, polish your strategy and go for the fastest time!
Special thanks to THE_BIG_WET for assisting us in this event.


When will it start? Event finished!
We will be accepting entries starting 08.01.2022 00:00 CET.
The event will run until the end of the month, to be specific: 31.01.2021 23:59 CET.
You can send your replays through DM to me on Discord (Minashigo Hiko#1126) or through a PM to me on the forum (@Minashigo Hiko).


How can I participate?
You just have to send in your fastest replay, including the player names and your reached time [Note: Your entry has to be a victory]
For example: "Hiko_Majora_Time_00h20m30s"

You can send in your replays until the 31.01.2022. 
You can find your replays here: Documents=>Battleforge=>replays

Please note: 
You are allowed to send in different replays, but only the fastest one will count. Meaning that if you compete with multiple teams, the team that has the best time will also be your personal best time. 


What are the rules?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The team with the fastest time wins. Each player may only spawn one single unit with ground presence throughout your whole run*. Only Map of the month Only Difficulty 9 Have fun! *FAQ / Questions you might have
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Sounds fun! What's the prize pool?
The following prize pool will be adjusted according to the amount of participants.
The prices are per person. If you compete with multiple teams, only your highest place will be rewarded :
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st place                        10 general Booster packs
2nd place                       9 general Booster packs
3rd place                        8 general Booster packs
4th-8th place                 5 general Booster packs
9th-20th place               2 general Booster packs

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                                                                    
In conclusion
This event focuses on your speed, teamwork and flexibility on this month rPvE 2p map.

To summarize the event in simple steps:
Look for a team. You can either do this below this topic, on Discord or Ingame. Come up with a strategy for your run. Follow the rules while being as fast as possible. Satisfied? Send the replay to me! (Minashigo Hiko#1126 on Discord) or PM your best replay to me (@Minashigo Hiko).
When will we stream ?
We will announce the winners on stream.
Date: 12th, of February, 2022 13:00 UTC+1
We have streamed!




Future events
If you are interested in helping with these kind of events for the community, or want to host one yourself, don't be afraid and simply reach out!
Send me or @Metagross31 a PM on the forum, or direct message via Discord (Metagross31#1103, Minashigo Hiko#1126).
We are happy to assist you with upcoming events and with sponsoring your prize pool!
We hope you have a lot of fun with this event. We are looking forward to seeing all your replays!
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.
Best regards,
Skylords Reborn Team

The game NEEDS a way to get rid of excess cards. There is no way around it. People were sitting on hundreds, in some cases thousands, of Cs and UCs. This was also becoming an issue for the server. It was dead-weight too because their overbearing supply made their economical value so low that they weren't even worth selling. Meanwhile BFP were and still are constantly pouring into the game endlessly. This lead to inflation. A fixed price on boosters merely slowed it down. But it did not stop it at all, as people originally hoped it would. Most cards became worthless while the majority of the value was focused on a few top tiers. When opening boosters you basically always bled BFP unless you hit a jackpot worth multiple boosters. The top tiers became the magnet for the inflating BFP. We had a very low floor and a very high ceiling with less and less inbetween.
Card reforging tackles all of these issues at once. It serves as a card drain and also as an indirect BFP drain, since cards are merely different manifestation of BFP. They are generated from boosters after all, which are generated from spending BFP.
The "hard work" isn't going anywhere, it's getting readjusted. Ideally we will eventually see a state where every card has inherent value as reforging material, raising the floor. This also means that whenever a card drops too low in value, it immediately becomes an attractive purchase if only to reforge. The flipside is also true. When Rs and URs start increasing in price too much, it will eventually become worthwhile to purchase preceding rarities to forge into them. This ties all cards together, creating a completely new, interwoven economy.
But the impact of reforging is greatly exaggerated right now. People went on a reforging frenzy after the patch. All the Cs and UCs that were gathering dust were getting funneled into Rs and URs. People also rushed to participate in the economy more. This lead to a drastic increase in supply but not enough demand to soak it up (yet). It will take some time for the market to adjust and reach a new equilibrium.
And a second point, that isn't being considered, is the fact that we have a 100 BFP price reduction on boosters for one month. This will also drive market prices down across the board. Consequently they will increase again in mid-January, when the discount gets removed. We already know this from release.
The biggest hurdle for the market settling in again is, aside from the current discount, the player numbers. A smaller amount of player simply means the process will take longer.

If you think balancing cards is easier solution, why not apply for "[Open] Balance Developer" position, to try out for yourself?

Thank you for this event Kapo.