Hi everyone! Lead Designer Justin here with another installment of "What's That New Thing?" Hot on the heels of the recently-added
Feats System, today we're talking about the upcoming
Patron System, a brand new form of end-game progression coming to Idle Champions as part of next week's 2nd Anniversary Extravaganza!
What is the patron system?
The Patron System is the basis for a new form of progression within Idle Champions. It allows you to replay previously completed variants and free plays with additional restrictions, and rewards you with patron currency and influence which can be used to purchase unique rewards and unlock unique perks.
How do I use the patron system?
On PC and mobile platforms, click the new patron button on the top-left menu next to the reset button. On consoles, find the patron panel within the normal menu system. Once there, you can see the available patrons listed on the left. Each patron has a unique set of requirements you must meet and costs you must pay before they will accept you as a follower. Pay their price and you can begin to collect patron influence and currency by starting variants and free plays with the given patron active.
What are patron requirements and costs?
Patron requirements and costs are requirements you must meet and costs you must pay before you can begin to adventure on behalf of a given patron. Requirements include things like having a certain number of Champions unlocked, having a certain number of adventures completed, or even having a certain number of loot levels across all of your Champions' equipment. Costs currently include gems, time gate fragments, and silver chests.
What are patron restrictions?
Each patron comes with unique restrictions that apply to every variant or free play adventure you do while that patron is enabled. They apply in addition to the normal restrictions on a given variant, and can make the variant much, much more challenging.
What are the first two patrons and their restrictions?
The initial iteration of the patron system will launch with two patrons: Mirt the Moneylender and Vajra Safahr, the Blackstaff. Mirt requires all Champions take a side in the great battle between good and evil, and will not allow neutral Champions to partake in his adventures. Vajra, on the other hand, requires Champions of great constitution to do her bidding, and therefore does not allow Champions with a CON score of 13 or lower to represent her interests. Vajra's unlock requirements are slightly higher than Mirt's, as are her area requirements in her variants.
How do I use my patron?
Once you've unlocked a patron, you can activate them on the campaign map after you've completed your current adventure. Look on the right-hand side of the screen to see the patron selector. When active, the campaign map will show you all available patron variants and free plays for your chosen patron. You can disable your patron in order to do normal adventures. Once you start an adventure you can not switch or disable your patron without first completing the adventure.
Patrons are not available to use during event campaigns or time gate adventures. Switching to an event campaign or opening the time gate dialog will disable your current patron temporarily.
What are patron variants?
Patron variants are versions of all the normal adventure variants that you can start with an active patron, but include the patron's additional restrictions and have a much higher area requirement. You must complete the base adventure variant before you can do the patron variant. Patron variants award patron influence and currency based on the area requirement of the adventure, along with normal divine favor rewards. You only get the influence and currency if you complete the objective. Going beyond the area requirement does not increase the reward. Like normal variants, patron variants can only be completed once.
What are patron free plays?
Patron free plays are versions of the normal adventure free plays you can start with an active patron. Unlike patron variants, patron free plays do not award patron influence, but do award currency based on the area you reach, along with normal divine favor rewards. There is a maximum of 5,000 patron currency that can be earned from patron free plays each week, and after that, you will only gain normal divine favor rewards for completing patron free plays. Additional patron currency can be earned by completing patron variants or patron challenges.
What is patron influence?
Patron influence is earned by completing patron variants and can be used to purchase patron perks. The amount of influence earned from variants is fixed and can not be increased.
What are patron perks?
Patron perks are similar to blessings, and can be unlocked with patron influence on the patron dialog to increase your party's effectiveness. Some patron perks only apply while adventuring under your patron banner, while others apply globally on any adventure for any patron (or even no patron).
What is patron currency?
Patron currency is earned by completing patron variants, patron free plays, and patron challenges. Patron currency can be used to purchase unique rewards from the patron shop. There is a limit to the amount of patron currency you can earn from patron free plays and challenges each week, but there is no limit to the amount you can earn by completing patron variants (though there are a limited number of variants available).
What can I buy in the patron shop?
The patron shop allows you to purchase unique items using patron currency. The first items available are patron chests, which contain loot items for any of the Champions available to use on the given patron's variants and free plays, including event Champions. Additional items in the patron shop may require that you have a certain amount of patron influence before you can buy them, but include potions, time gate fragments, feats, skins, silver event chests, and familiars. Some items have a weekly limit on the number you can purchase, and others are only one-time purchases.
Note: Some patron shop items, such as skins, familiars, and silver event chests, are not being released with the launch of the system and will be added later.
What are patron challenges?
Patron challenges are another way to earn patron currency each week. They are a set of 10 challenges, similar to The "C" Team challenges we did earlier this year, that you can complete each week. You must be on a patron variant or free play in order to make progress towards that patron's challenges. Patron challenges can award 5,000 additional patron currency for completing them all each week, separate from the free play currency cap.
Note: The patron challenge system is not launching with the initial patron system, but will be added after several weeks.
How often will you be adding new patrons?
We do not yet have a firm cadence for new patron releases, but we hope to release many more patrons in the future and expand the system in other ways as well. We are looking forward to hearing your feedback about the patron system and may make changes in the future based on it.
Does this mean we're going to get less new adventures in the future?
We do not believe the patron system will impact the cadence of our new adventure and variant releases -- in fact, it will lead to more content being available because every time we release new variants they will be available to play with any unlocked patron you have as soon as you have completed the base variant.
When will the patron system be released?
The patron system will be released alongside the Year 2 Anniversary Celebration on August 28th, 2019.
