The Brave [Ongoing] - Version: P1 2025-11-17

What's New in The Brave Version - P1 2025-11-17?

(Wtf is going? How has this post got over 200 views!?)

Let’s go! New update!

This will be the only big update for Part 1, as I’ll be focusing on a conclusion for the game, and other things around it. If there are any other updates for Part 1, they’ll be smaller, like icons and small fixes. However, working on this update has helped shape the game overall, and has made it feel more full.

AND PLEASE! ANY PROBLEMS OR BUGS, LET ME KNOW! I LIKE TO HEAR ABOUT THEM! YOU WON’T BE BOTHERING ME AT ALL!
I don’t know what the attitude is like with other devs but I WANT to hear about any bugs you come across. It’s fine, I’ll fix it!
I have tried my best to do multiple play tests but I’m human, I’ll no doubt miss a thing or two… or three!

!!Important info for saved games!!

TO GET THE NEW ACHIEVEMENTS, YOU WILL HAVE TO RESET THEM.
I’ve had to rewire numerous Achievements, including Slayer Chivos, due to a very annoying bug to do with variables.
Down below is a quick guide if you need to re-unlock an achievement .
(Don’t worry if you get something for a second time. Just think of it as a little treat.)

HOW TO RESET
Find an Encyclopidian, and after saying no the first choice, they will ask if you want to reset your achievements. 

HOW TO RE-EARN
For Slayer achivos, simply re-enter the area of the respective creature.
(Even if you’ve loaded there. Just go in and out of the map.)
Talk to officer Klien and The Great Ent to re-earn the Great Act achivos.
There’s a Juji recipe on the 1st Floor in the manor within Crawley Woods.

(I wanted it to be the chivo reward but… nope, not to be, apparently.)
Speaking of which, you can now re-enter the  Great Act Manor if you please.
There was another frustrating, phantom bug tied to that.
SO I just said screw it, leave it open after.
New entries not appearing? Simply enter another map and it should fix it.

NEW RECIPE – CHICKEN SALAD
This recipe will be available from the start of a new game, but for a save game, there’s a book near the food stall at Traveller’s Rest.

Enough tech talk, let’s dive in!

New Great Act Drunken Minotaurs–

Towards the left of the Western Thickets, you can find a new area, Sesero. Here, the elder has lost control of the village to a company of drunken minotaur mercenaries. Sesero is also famous for a drink that it brews, called Magic-Whacker. 

This great act is designed to challenge you, so make sure you’re ready for it! During playtesting, I found Cynthia’s Sadist loop and Cryo Blast to be a brilliant combo. Oh, and if you’ve completed their individual quests, Tulle & Cynthia will now be available as party members.

New Braveries –

There’s 3 new Braveries to choose at the end of the new Great Act. Eventually, ALL Braveries will be available after a Great Act in the future. This should lead to some interesting results! But that won’t be until later in the game’s development.

Tulle & Cynthia’s Joint Quest –
After reaching 3/4 Relations points with Tulle, talk to Cynthia in her study.
You can also ask her about… you know what, if it’s happened.

After, you can join her and Tulle to find out what’s going on BELOW the mansion! This quest can end in 4 different ways, and each choice will impact the story later in the game’s development.

However you conclude it, will leave things at a stand still, for now. This is to setup Expeditions for part 2, where the women will be sending requests to help them with various things.

2 New Scenes to find
Towards the back of Traveller’s Rest, there is a new character to meet! She has a magical ability, able to judge the weight of anything…

Talk to her, and find out what she’s all about. Also, there’s a ladder up against her house around the back… just saying…

I wish I could credit the original author of the model, she’s fantastic. I’ve had her for a few years but have never found a good use for her, until now. If you’re out there, thank you!

Redone Encyclopedia with new Gallery entries-
I noticed the borders were different for each Lore entry. It triggered my OCD. So I changed them all.
And after defeating Belle, Bon and Lucianna, you should unlock a new gallery entry.

You’ll have to check out the update to see what it is!
I’ve redone the elve entry, too. One of the models was… not as good as I thought she was after some testing. The face was just… off at different angles.

I also wanted to change Cynthia’s 2nd entry. I think the image no longer suits the vibe of the game. And when you’re breaking into porn, you go with what you think people will like based on what you see. But I think something more general suits better.
Check it out!

I’m planning on redoing some others in the future (along with that damn Ria entry I still haven’t done!)
This will probably come along with an entry about the below subject

Element Changes –
Combat is certainly a strong focus of the game, and it’s one I’m trying to make interesting in different ways.
One of the biggest parts of Fantasy combat is usually Elements. So here’s how they are for The Brave.
I’ve settled on 6 elements that counter each other, and do specific things.
Flame is the only school of magic that can Crit. Weak to Aqua and Geo.
Storm magic now has a chance to stun (Changed from Paralyze, which will become it’s own thing in the future). Weak to Aqua & Geo.
Geo (Earth renamed) instead of stunning, now has a chance to confuse the target. Weak to Flora & Cyro.
Cyro has a chance to apply Freezing, which drains the targets AP and disallows certain buffs. Weak to Flame & Storm
Flora doesn’t have a specific casting spell but boasts a wide variety of support spells. Also weak to Flame & Storm.
Aqua is still being theorized (It’s a very guarded school of magic in Artenia) but it will be weak to Flora & Cryo.
It should make a wheel like this…

A Legion of smaller changes –
I’ve been back and forth on this update, and have been changing things slightly in different places of the game.
So many, I’ve lost track, and keep discovering little things I did previously myself!
Maybe you’ll come across one, too.
For instance, Maxi’s ‘Deadeye!’ ability wasn’t working. Now it is!
Lyra is unavailable at night now, but that’s to setup a relations quest with her in the future.
I found that Vivi’s gallery entry doesn’t unlock if you have fun with her and it’s not your first time.
To resolve this for saves, I’ve added in a work around that should hopefully unlock it automatically.
There’s new icons for magic armors as well, along with icons for the women’s passives.
The use of items for abilities is still janky. It was looked at but there’s still no clear reason why it isn’t working.
The ability won’t use any of the item needed for it. Yet, it displays how many the ability costs, and won’t let you use them if you don’t have the correct amount.
Baffling. But I’ll keep digging and hope to fix it soon.
It’s supposed to be a small management aspect of the game, keeping on top of what your party needs.
But if it’s not working, then never mind! I’ll decide soon.

Use of AI
I’ve been using a generative AI to help me make icons. This includes weapons, armor and items and maybe a skill or two.
Skills and passives are all done by myself.
I think there’s been a big uproar about using AI in content lately. Personally, I think it can be helpful to use in small ways.
Especially if you’re an independent developer working on a hobby, that is.
Especially not If you’re a multi-billion dollar company, then it’s just a bit cheeky. (Black Ops 7 lol)
Generating icons has been a MASSIVE help, and is the good side to how an independent developer can use generative AI.

Anyway, I did wonder if this update was worth doing and yea, it was! BIG TIME!

The update was well worth the effort. It’s genuinely helped me with the scaling of combat and even includes numerous small changes and a legion of fixes. So many, I can’t remember all of them! I keep finding things I did about a month ago.
It’s safe to say, I’ve fallen back in love with this game. Let’s look forward to the future!

Thank you for reading this far down. Enjoy!