The lack of planar shadow bosses is pretty dissapointing

[Baark0]

This has been a topic that's been on my mind ever since Klei announced that the next update would be the end of the shadow rift arc, though calling it an arc is being a bit generous considering no new progression has been added to the shadow side, and the last shadow related quest we've done was deafeting the Ancient Fuelweaver and giving Charlie 5 dreadstone.

The second shadow rifts being forming, every single bit of shadow rift content is available to you. The fumerole biome changes, Ripple spawns in, shadow rifts spawn ink blights, acid rain and boulders will begin falling, ornate chests become ornery chests and can possess items, and the nightmare sharks will become their planar variants. As far as I'm aware, the only thing that changes over time is how many Fused Shadelings can exist near the shadow rift.

From what we've seen in this first beta update, that doesn't seem to be changing, in fact the opposite ended up happening, with a new lunar related boss being added. This all to me is a pretty big let down, as I was really hoping we'd get something cool to fight in the caves with rifts active. Lunar has 4 unique planar bosses, all with their own interesting mechanics, while shadow has a big worm that doesn't even acknowledge your existence.

Now I do understand that this is only the first half of the beta, so the hope for some cool shadow monster to fight is still possible, and I do really hope that happens. This has just been a thought that's been in my head for a while and the new beta adding yet another lunar adjacent boss seemed like a good time to write my thoughts out. I'm still looking forward to the update regardless of what we end up fighting.

[Jakepeng99]

I don’t like the changing over time part, it’s what I don’t like about lunar riffs because it’s just a waiting game.

 

shadow riffs having everything available at all times is much better.

[Milordo]

1 hour ago, Baark0 said:

while shadow has a big worm that doesn't even acknowledge your existence.

???????

Great Depth worm is not Rift related at all. It's like saying "while shadow has a big toad infested with parasitic fungies".

[gamehun20]

36 minutes ago, Milordo said:

???????

Great Depth worm is not Rift related at all. It's like saying "while shadow has a big toad infested with parasitic fungies".

I think they mean the Mega Blight

[Milordo]

7 minutes ago, gamehun20 said:

I think they mean the Mega Blight

Oooooohhh. Sorry.

[Well-met]

I refuse to believe the mega blight / ripple is even finished at all. it's a really weird hackjob that's not even fun to encounter.

[Baark0]

2 hours ago, Well-met said:

I refuse to believe the mega blight / ripple is even finished at all. it's a really weird hackjob that's not even fun to encounter.

Same tbh, it completely lacks hit sounds for when its flipped over. Normally this is fine for shadow creatures, but Ripple is clearly meant to be a more of an ink blight than a shadow creature.

[YouKnowWho142]

It’s not even just the lack of shadow bosses that bother me or the mega blight being lackluster.

Rictus feels really forced and I hate that three of them just randomly replace the actually interesting ink trio. It feels like they couldn’t find any other way to make Rictus spawn naturally. I feel like their existence would be more justified if rictus spawned with 2 new ink blights to create a new trio, instead of just spamming them in place of way more interesting mobs, that or giving them a different method of spawning not linked to the outcrops.

Possessed shadow atriums have always felt super lazy to me too, and absolutely horrible towards new players. No player is ever going to think to drop a shadow atrium (which is from a boss they have already killed and used for a different purpose) in front of the mimic chests and know to bring a rabbit trap into the ruins of all places. I’m pretty sure the possessed shadow atriums don’t even have unique examination quotes, and their design is really lame. Knowing it’s supposed to be the equivalent to spark arks is soul crushing.

[Well-met]

I genuinely forgot Rictus is a thing

[YouKnowWho142]

1 minute ago, Well-met said:

I genuinely forgot Rictus is a thing

Don’t forget the void masques, which steal the revival/possession gimmick that lunar already has but instead of giving mobs unique designs and mechanics it just gives them a mask and a slightly different ai. Awesome!

Shadow as a whole has just felt like a complete afterthought and it’s just so devastating and sad to me.

[Jakepeng99]

3 hours ago, Well-met said:

I refuse to believe the mega blight / ripple is even finished at all. it's a really weird hackjob that's not even fun to encounter.

I don’t really like the way you kill it. Feels way too specific, you just have to hope it walks into a tree then you can do some damage, it’s passive and doesnt have a threat.

3 minutes ago, YouKnowWho142 said:

Don’t forget the void masques, which steal the revival/possession gimmick that lunar already has but instead of giving mobs unique designs and mechanics it just gives them a mask and a slightly different ai. Awesome!

Shadow as a whole has just felt like a complete afterthought and it’s just so devastating and sad to me.

The void Masques are not really forgettable, I see them a lot in the caves, they are pretty good at being grunts rhat up the cave challenge.

15 minutes ago, YouKnowWho142 said:

It’s not even just the lack of shadow bosses that bother me or the mega blight being lackluster.

Rictus feels really forced and I hate that three of them just randomly replace the actually interesting ink trio. It feels like they couldn’t find any other way to make Rictus spawn naturally. I feel like their existence would be more justified if rictus spawned with 2 new ink blights to create a new trio, instead of just spamming them in place of way more interesting mobs, that or giving them a different method of spawning not linked to the outcrops.

Possessed shadow atriums have always felt super lazy to me too, and absolutely horrible towards new players. No player is ever going to think to drop a shadow atrium (which is from a boss they have already killed and used for a different purpose) in front of the mimic chests and know to bring a rabbit trap into the ruins of all places. I’m pretty sure the possessed shadow atriums don’t even have unique examination quotes, and their design is really lame. Knowing it’s supposed to be the equivalent to spark arks is soul crushing.

I’d kinda like rictus more if it was its own area, or they spawned around the shadow riff. Because they can’t be killed with brute force so often the shadow blights are the preferred counter.

But tbh I actually haven’t really encountered them, I just don’t get them so I can’t say

[YouKnowWho142]

14 minutes ago, Jakepeng99 said:

The void Masques are not really forgettable, I see them a lot in the caves, they are pretty good at being grunts rhat up the cave challenge.

The problem isn’t so much that they’re forgettable, the issue is that they’re very bland and boring, especially since they explore a concept that lunar has already done excellently. I would have much less of an issue if we got to see the creatures appear corrupted or receive something new to their designs (no, adding a giant shadow blob over a design or making it just a pure shadow is not an interesting design, sorry shadow splumonkey/merms) or mechanics instead of just slapping a mask on them and giving them pigman ai.

Edited 5 hours ago by YouKnowWho142

[Jakepeng99]

Just now, YouKnowWho142 said:

The problem isn’t so much that they’re forgettable, the issue is that they’re very bland and boring, especially since they explore a concept that lunar has already done excellently. I would have much less of an issue if we got to see the creatures appear corrupted (no, adding a giant shadow blob over a design or making it just a pure shadow is not an interesting design, sorry shadow splumonkey/merms) or receive something new to their designs or mechanics instead of just slapping a mask on them and giving them pigman ai.

Maybe some special attack.

Like the monster hair movie, they could go doctor octopus.

[Jussatoon]

Rictus could've been a creature that spawned any time a shadow rift is open, rather than from dreadstone outcrops, stalking you for awhile, before randomly choosing to attack you. You could see its smile briefly appear from a distance in the darkness every now and again, indicating that you are currently being stalked.

[Well-met]

1 hour ago, YouKnowWho142 said:

The problem isn’t so much that they’re forgettable, the issue is that they’re very bland and boring, especially since they explore a concept that lunar has already done excellently. I would have much less of an issue if we got to see the creatures appear corrupted or receive something new to their designs (no, adding a giant shadow blob over a design or making it just a pure shadow is not an interesting design, sorry shadow splumonkey/merms) or mechanics instead of just slapping a mask on them and giving them pigman ai.

zombies should actively move toward players offscreen at all times