The upcoming sequel opens a limited test later this month, giving players an early look at its undead campaign and airborne base management.
Stones Keeper II: Chaos Lord will run its second major public playtest starting on April 15th, continuing through to April 29th.
The team behind SK II, along with their publishers Valkyrie Initiative, is referring to this time period as a Limited Test/Preview window. If the players participating in the Limited Test/Preview window complete certain conditions, they will be rewarded with an Enhanced Axe for their Zombie unit, as well as an Enhanced Healing Potion for their entire release.
Players must have completed several steps prior to completing these objectives. First, they must have wished-listed SK II.
Second, they must have followed the Valkyrie Initiative on Steam. Third, they must earn the Strategist Achievement. This achievement can be earned by completing all of the story-based mission content within the first playthrough without dying on any difficulty level.
In addition to allowing players to explore the first chapter of the Undead campaign, players will now also get to experience Skirmish Mode. Although Skirmish Mode was demonstrated previously via a demo, it has been missing from all previous demos.
There will also be an increased number of playable factions in this version compared to previous versions. Of those 9 factions included in the final version of SK II, the playable factions in this version will be Human, Undead, and Inquisitor.
As mentioned above, Chaos Lord is not simply going to use the same basic structure as the first game. While it still uses a combination of strategy and Role Playing Game elements, it shifts the overall point-of-view, campaign focus, and part of the faction structure.
For example, unlike the first game, which took place primarily from the viewpoint of Princess Elizabeth as she traveled throughout her kingdom searching for answers regarding the death of her father, King Aurélius, SK II takes place from the point-of-view of a group of soldiers fighting against the very same evil forces that Princess Elizabeth fought against in the first game.
In order to understand why this is a significant shift, let’s review how SK1 played out. As stated before, SK1 allowed players to recruit, upgrade, and manage a team of fighters as they journeyed throughout a fantasy world.
They had to search for various items known as Artifacts that aided in their ability to grow stronger. One of the key ways that they grew stronger was by expanding and upgrading their Flying Island Fortress. Not only did the Fortress act as a safe haven for their warriors, but it also acted as a strategic tool on the World Map.
Another way that players developed their strength was through Tactical Battles that utilized Environmental Objects as Cover & Movement Tools.
The Campaign itself lasted longer than 15 hours with more than 45 Missions & more than 55 units available to recruit & upgrade. As for Skirmish Mode; it had four playable sides & was designed specifically for competitive multiplayer.
SKII builds upon many of those same concepts and ideas that made SK1 successful. However, instead of viewing the conflict from one side of the War, SKII flips things upside-down and places players in Command of a group of soldiers from the Circle of Unquenchable Thirst. Once again, Army Management is tied directly into a Flying Fortress that players can expand & upgrade as needed.
Story-wise, SKII occurs immediately after King Aurélius’ death, and follows Archbishop Marius as he attempts to negotiate a deal with the Elder Undead Lords in exchange for an artifact capable of giving the Inquisition unlimited Power. In return, he agrees to help them find the Temple of Water, which ultimately leads to the birth of the Chaos Lord.
We can expect a Single Player Campaign with over 30 missions and greater than 20 hours of gameplay with improved Graphics & Skeletal Animations, More Than 50 Unit Types Available Through Nine Races & Factions, Six Levels Of Development Per Unit, Fifteen Talents Per Unit And New Tactics Such As Zone Of Control And Backstab. There’s no release date yet. Here you can find the Steam Page and below the Playtest Trailer.
