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City of the Shroud

Created by Abyssal Arts

A tactical RPG where all players' choices come together to drive a living story, created by a AAA veteran and a chart-topping author.

Latest Updates from Our Project:

Quick Update + Getting Ready to Build the Machinist, Duelist, and Defender!
almost 8 years ago – Fri, May 13, 2016 at 02:29:17 PM

Hi Everyone,

Has it already been a week?! Time sure flies…

I wanted to give you a quick update: Kickstarter is still processing payments, and there’s another week or so left to sort out any issues that may have popped up!

In the meantime, we have been anything but idle: we’re already getting ready to start building the models for the Duelist, Machinist, and Defender, and begin getting them animated. Exciting times!

I’ll also be getting pre-orders set up next week! If you know anyone who wanted to back but missed the campaign, you can point them to the Kickstarter page, where they will be able to pre-order the game as well as some of the add-ons.

With that, have a great weekend, and I’ll be in-touch next week with more news!

Best,
Keaton & The Abyssal Arts Team

WE DID IT!!
almost 8 years ago – Fri, May 06, 2016 at 10:51:18 AM

Over 300 of you came together and helped bring City of the Shroud to life. We cannot thank you enough for your support, and are so, so excited to share this journey with you.

Almost... got it...
Almost... got it...

So what now? We’ll be letting Kickstarter do it’s thing and process payments. Since we’re going through BackerKit, we’re going to ship off Steam keys after about two weeks to make sure there’s enough time for any issues that pop up to be smoothed out.

Once the payments are all processed, we’ll invite you to our BackerKit setup. There, we’ll work with you through their software to get everything organized. You can also add extra add-ons, if you so desire!

We’ll be keeping you up-to-date on development milestones and build updates as development progresses too. Your Steam key will give you access to the game right away, and as we get new things like the character classes or new maps built, we’ll put them in the builds for you to try (and if you are a $100+ tier backer, you’ll get access to them even sooner!).

We’ll stay in touch with you on Kickstarter, but we also have a few other important ways to get in touch, including the forums mentioned in your backer perks! Here's where to find us:

Thank you again for your support - this means an incredible amount to our little team of dreamers. We’ll be in touch soon!

All The Best,
Keaton & The Abyssal Arts Team

Final 24 Hours!
almost 8 years ago – Thu, May 05, 2016 at 11:53:32 PM

This is it - we’re in the final 24 hours of Kickstarter!

We still have time to unlock New Game+ and Survival Mode, so please help us spread the word! If we can unlock Survival Mode - which could be just 1 fan art, 12 backers, and 23 Facebook page likes away, among several possibilities - every single person gets a story demo key!

If you want to help propel us closer to our stretch goals, or fancy grabbing the last remaining amigurumi, you can still upgrade or grab some add-ons (like the novel!)! Check the main page for options ;)

And just for fun, I’d like to share a neat little preview of some graphical tweaks coming in the near future; let us know what you think in the comments!

THANK YOU to each and every one of your for helping us bring this game to life. We couldn’t do it without you, and can’t wait to share the game and the world with you!

Let’s make these last 24 hours count!!

  • Use this link when sharing: http://bit.ly/cotskick
  • Facebook - like Abyssal Arts on Facebook and tag us in your post!
  • Twitter - tag/follow @abyssalarts so we can retweet you and keep track!
  • Fan Art Submissions: contact [at] abyssalarts [dot] com

Best,
Keaton & The Abyssal Arts Team

Someone give this guy a home!
Someone give this guy a home!

The City of the Shroud Novel: It's A Thing, And You're Going To Influence It (Final 48 Hours Everyone!!)
almost 8 years ago – Wed, May 04, 2016 at 12:53:25 PM

Hi Everyone,

Just 48 hours to go! We just surged through several goals on the path to Survival Mode, too! 3 more unlocks and it’s HAPPENING. Let's try to unlock New Game+ too!

Some of you may have noticed that we have an add-on for a signed copy of the City of the Shroud novel. NOVEL, you say? Why, yes!

Once the story is complete, we will have another tale to tell - one set during the events of the game that YOU will be guiding. That’s right - you’re not just influencing the game’s story when you play, but the entire fictional world.

More on this from Moira:

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As you’ve no doubt guessed by now, Keaton didn’t exactly have to twist my arm to get me to come on board with City of the Shroud. I adored the idea of working within a new story format. I loved the characters. I loved the city, broken as it was. I loved the magic that led to the shroud coming down. I couldn’t wait to see the world come to life with player input, knowing that the players, like the rest of us, would be outsiders in Iskendrun.

But it wasn’t long before I found myself scribbling little vignettes in the margins of my day planner, or getting sidetracked for whole mornings, watching my world come to life through the eyes of the characters for whom Iskendrun was not a distant city, but truly everything. These characters would not have left even if the shroud had not come down. They were in the thick of the fight for the city because the city was their home. It was all they knew, and despite its imperfections, they loved it.

I wanted to write that as a novel.

Keaton was enthusiastic, but we still weren’t quite sure where the story would center. Would it highlight one of the faction leaders? If so, which one? One character who stood out to me was a noble, bringing a face to the group who had so devastated the city. I considered writing the playing character as well. But when should I set this story? What part of the world should I highlight?

Oddly, for months, it didn’t occur to either me or Keaton to do the one thing that made the most sense: write someone stuck in the thick of the story the players were creating. As soon as the idea came to me, however, it resonated in the way all promising story ideas do. This right here, it seemed to shout at me. Do this!

So if you want to know spoilers about the novel…I literally can’t tell you. I’m not sure yet who will make the most sense as the narrator of the city’s troubles – it will depend on the plot twists the players create! What I do know is that the character will be watching. Seeing the Traveler fight. Watching the fallout in the city. They will be in the thick of things. They will be a part of the city that fights back against everything: the faction wars, the Shroud, the threats of war and starvation.

Be careful, Traveler. You are being watched.

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If you’d like to get in on the novel action, you can get a physical, signed copy as a $30 add-on. We’ll be handling add-ons and everything through BackerKit, so it should be fairly straightforward.

If you want the book, add $30 to your current pledge level (no need to change your pledge!) and another $10 if you need it shipped outside the USA. When we send out backer surveys after the campaign, you’ll be able to select the book as an add-on, and then you can get to work influencing the kind of world it ultimately takes place in!

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We’re 70% of the way to Survival Mode! Get out there and tell folks about the game - there are only 48 hours left!!

Here are your social stretch goal tools!

  • Use this link when sharing: http://bit.ly/cotskick
  • Facebook - like Abyssal Arts on Facebook and tag us in your post!
  • Twitter - tag/follow @abyssalarts so we can retweet you and keep track!
  • Fan Art Submissions: contact [at] abyssalarts [dot] com

Introducing The Duelist - 72 Hours Left!!
almost 8 years ago – Tue, May 03, 2016 at 09:30:17 PM

Hi Everyone,

We’ve entered the final 72 hours! Nows our last chance to get the word out and hit the New Game+ stretch goal!

We also got our first fan-art, courtesy of @bungles6! Thanks to him, we’re now a full 10% closer to Survival Mode AND we’re giving away story demo keys to 5 lucky backers! You'll get a message if you win ;)

There are only 24 hours left to sign up for our Thunderclap - if we hit 100 people, we can announce the final 48 hours of the campaign with a bang! Please sign up here!

We’re also only 10 Twitter followers and 8 Facebook shares/mentions from another boost, so those are the quickest ways to boost another 10 or 20%! If we can unlock Survival Mode, then everyone gets a story demo key!

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Since we’re so close to the end, the time has come to introduce the final class coming to City of the Shroud (and my personal favorite) - the Duelist.

The Duelist 

The Duelist is a hybrid strength/dexterity class, and also a hybrid melee/ranged class. Armed with pistols and martial arts, she has abilities to dash in and out of melee, as well as moves that function differently if your target is within melee range or far away. This makes the Duelist a very flexible class, capable of setting the terms of the fight. However, as the name suggests, the Duelist does best when fighting a single target, so you can defeat enemy Duelists by sticking together and ganging up on them. 

When you manage to isolate your target, the Duelist is without question the deadliest class in the game. The core philosophy of the Duelist is that the best defense is a good offense, and if you can get an enemy in a one on one situation you will be able to use your mobility and disruptive offense to defeat them quickly. 

When building a Duelist, you will have to choose between mobility, disruption, or pure offensive power. Whether you want to focus on staying safe and faking out your opponent while you whittle them down or simply diving in and going for the throat, the Duelist is going to be adept at picking off fragile enemies.

How cool does that sound? And we’re now able to build them, thanks to your support!

With your help in the final push, we can get in even more! Please join us in spreading the word!

Best,
Keaton & The Abyssal Arts Team

Only 24 hours left to sign up!!
Only 24 hours left to sign up!!

Here are your tools!

  • Use this link when sharing: http://bit.ly/cotskick  
  • Thunderclap
  • Facebook - like Abyssal Arts on Facebook and tag us in your post!  
  • Twitter - tag/follow @abyssalarts so we can retweet you and keep track!  
  • Fan Art Submissions: contact [at] abyssalarts [dot] com