September 14, 2023 by Polymorph Games on Update News

The 1.9.6 Desirability Update Is Now Available!

Hello everyone and welcome to Update 1.9.6!

This version brings forth significant changes to the game, including a brand-new Desirability and Beautification experience. We’ve also implemented multiple Quality of Life (QOL) improvements in response to community feedback such as the sub-building flow. Without further ado, let’s get down to the details!

New Desirability System

Desirability represents the overall attractiveness of an area within your village and is at the heart of this update. In the past, the Desirability of an area was quaternary: low, average, high or very high. We’re changing this formula to a more binary approach where you have a better control over housing quality.

Housing Quality

The first thing you’ll notice when clicking on a house are new Housing Quality details, the first one of which is to be located within a Residential Area. Furthermore, in order to upgrade, a house will need the following:

Desirable Neighborhood (away from noisy and dirty environments)
Beautification Area (close to buildings or decorations that provide a Beautification bonus)
Villagers of Commoner status or higher looking for such a house

Village Embellishment

As part of the new Desirability system, you’re now encouraged to beautify your village with the help of decorations. Decorations contribute to the creation of Beautification Areas, which are needed to upgrade houses from low to medium quality.

Each decoration applies its own Beautification radius according to a combination of their visual footprint and quality. Adding multiple decorative elements next to each other will increase the Beautification Area by merging their area of effect.

A new Beautification visibility layer has been added so that affected areas can be easily identified.

*Beautification Areas merging and expanding*

Housing Degradation

Housing Degradation is a new mechanic introduced in Update 1.9.6. Rather than being only able to upgrade, houses can now also degrade in quality. This happens when one of the criteria under Housing Quality is no longer met. Note that this is something you are able to control, when you decide if an area has the requirements for higher house quality or not.

*Example of a housing requirement that is no longer met*

Changes to Needs

Foundation was always meant to remain a calm and pleasant experience where you can play at your own pace, so it was important for us to ease down a bit the pressure of filling the needs of your villagers, especially when you have your first Commoners. As such, we’ve separated the Needs in two main categories:

Essential Needs – must be fulfilled, else they trigger a shortage leading to a Happiness penalty
Additional Needs – will not trigger a shortage unless they’ve been fulfilled once

This will allow you to progress at your own pace, without the pressure of your villagers leaving because of unfilled needs. Note that once filled once, the additional needs will trigger a shortage if they are not met anymore.

In the same vein, we’ve reduced the amount of information displayed in the villager window, to keep the most relevant information.

*Essential and additional needs grouping introduced in 1.9.6*

Other Improvements

Improved Monument and Sub-Building Experience

Following player feedback, we’ve made a number of changes taking aim at monuments and sub-buildings’ navigation.

Resources and Progression Tabs Modifications

The Resources tab (F3) from the Book has been simplified for easier identification of tradeable resources. Icons to purchase and sell resources are now disabled by default and only enabled if players have access to a trade route that either purchases or sells said resource.

You will also notice that the Splendor cost of each Estate unlockable from the Progression tab (F5) is now displayed in their tooltip, even if the requirements have not been reached yet.

If you haven’t already, give our latest Devlog a read if you want to learn more about what’s next for Foundation.

Changelog

New

Houses now have House Quality requirements to upgrade, which are displayed in their building window:
- Desirable Neighborhood
- Beautification Area
- Villager of Commoner (or above) status looking for such a house
Tooltips have been added to the the house window UI
Buildings providing Beautification now have a Beautification Area. The range is based on the decoration’s Beautification value and its visual footprint
Noisy or filthy buildings can create an undesirable area, which affects Neighborhood Desirability. Such is the case for the following:
- Brewery
- Butchery
- Cheesemaker
- Charcoal Hut
- Dairy Farm
- Fisher’s Hut
- Gold Smelter
- Hunter’s Hut
- Iron Smelter
- Quarries
- Sawmill
- Sheep Farm
- Stonecutter Camp
- Stonemason Hut
Upgraded houses can now revert to a prior level if their Desirability requirements are not met. This happens after reaching a deadline and only if players don’t remedy to the situation
Added the following visual filters:
- Beautification
- Undesirable Neighborhood
Needs are now split into two categories:
- Essential Needs (must be fulfilled)
- Additional Needs (facultative)
Contextual help
- Housing Quality
- Beautification
- Prosperity
Help menu:
- Beautification
Important notification : Equipping your soldiers

Update

Renamed the “Comfort” need to “Housing”
Localization
Help menu
- Desirability
- Housing

Balance

Legacy Desirability (House Placement)

Pre-1.9.6 Desirability (Legacy Desirability) has been specialized into a system that dictates Villagers where to settle
Beautification no longer provides Legacy Desirability
The following buildings provide Legacy Desirability:
- Village Center
- Churches (except Chapel and Abbatial Churches)
- Market Stalls
- Tavern’s Service Counter
- Well

Villagers now follow these rules:
- They settle in Residential Areas
- They settle close to the Village Center
- They aim to settle close to Need providers
- They aim to settle close to their Workplaces
The Desirability Visibility layer has been removed

Decorations’ Costs & Effects

As Beautification Decorations no longer provide Legacy Desirability; costs and Beautification values have been modified:
- Village Tree Beautification value has been increased from 1 to 2
- Village Tree upfront cost has been increased from 7 to 20 coins
- Tall Banner upfront cost has been reduced from 25 to 20 coins
- Fountain upfront cost has been reduced from 330 to 320 coins
- Plant Arch upfront cost has been reduced from 82 to 80 coins
- Knight Statue upfront cost has been reduced to 320 coins
- Sheep Statue upfront cost has been reduced from 325 to 320 coins
- Cypress upfront cost has been reduced from 47 to 45 coins
- Large Wall Banner upfront cost has been reduced from 90 to 80 coins
- Polished Stone Arch upfront cost has been reduced from 50 to 45 coins
- Stone Gateway upfront cost has been reduced from 85 to 80 coins
- Stone Arch upfront cost has been reduced from 25 to 20 coins
- Grand Fountain upfront cost has been reduced from 730 to 720 coins
- Elegant Fountain upfront cost has been reduced from 255 to 245 coins
- Marble Basin upfront cost has been reduced from 415 to 405 coins
- Elegant Stone Arch upfront cost has been reduced from 130 to 125 coins
- Polished Fountain upfront cost has been reduced from 135 to 125 coins
- Elegant Tree Planter upfront cost has been reduced from 82 to 80 coins
- Large Tree Planter upfront cost has been reduced from 127 to 125 coins
- Elegant Post upfront cost has been reduced from 47 to 45 coins
- Polished Basin upfront cost has been reduced from 135 to 125 coins
- Large Font Beautification value has been decreased from 6 to 4
- Large Font upfront cost has been reduced from 190 to 80 coins
- Small Font upfront cost has been reduced from 190 to 180 coins
- Elegant Balustrade upfront cost has been reduced from 47 to 45 coins
- Simple Tree Planter upfront cost has been reduced from 22 to 20 coins
- Polished Planter upfront cost has been reduced from 22 to 20 coins
- Wall Fountain Beautification value has been increased from 2 to 5
- Wall Fountain upfront cost has been increased from 25 to 125 coins
- Quatrefoil Basin upfront cost has been reduced from 50 to 45 coins

Masterpiece Beautification

Masterpiece parts now yield Beautification in addition to Splendor at no extra cost
Automated Fountain
- Automaton Tower, Columns yields 1 point
- Marble Basin yields 1 point
- Marble Steps yields 1 point
- Automation Tower, Spire yields 1 point
- Automaton Tower, Fountain yields 1 point
- Bird Automaton yields 1 points
- Jacquemart yields 2 points
Fountain Sculpture
- Fountain Pedestal, Quatrefoil yields 1 point, plus 1 point per tiling
- Fountain Pedestal, Hexagonal yields 1 point, plus 1 point per tiling
- Axe Lady, Gold yields 3 points
- Laborer, Gold yields 3 points
- Shoveler, Gold yields 3 points
- Pickman, Gold yields 3 points
- Axe Lady, Marble yields 2 points
- Laborer, Marble yields 2 points
- Laborer, Gold yields 2 points
- Shoveler, Gold yields 2 points
- Quatrefoil Basin yields 2 points
- Octogonal Basin yields 2 points
Gem Encrusted Cross
- Large Pedestal, Hexagonal yields 1 point, plus 1 point per tiling
- Small Pedestal, Hexagonal yields 1 point, plus 1 point per tiling
- Small Pedestal, Square yields 1 point, plus 1 point per tiling
- Large Pedestal, Square yields 1 point, plus 1 point per tiling
- Cross of the Faith yields 10 points
- Stepped Base, Hexagonal yields 2 points
- Stepped Base, Square yields 2 points
Knight Statue
- Octogonal Plinth yields 2 points
- Octogonal Pedestal yields 1 point
- Small Octogonal Pedestal yields 1 point
- Alcoved Pedestal yields 1 point
- Square Plinth yields 2 points
- Large Pedestal, Square yields 1 point per tiling
- Blue Banner, Swallowtail yields 1 point
- The Vainquisher, Gold yields 5 points
- The Peacekeeper, Marble yields 3 points
- Small Bowmen, Marble yields 2 points
- Small Knight, Marble yields 2 points
- Blue Banner, Round yields 1 point
Lush Garden
- Stone Pillar yields 1 point per tiling
- Stone Basin yields 1 point per tiling
- Bush Pergola yields 1 point
- Royal Balm Bush yields 1 point
- Stone Planter, Quatrefoil yields 1 point
- Pear Tree yields 1 point
- Plum Tree yields 1 point
- Almond Tree yields 1 point
- Stone Planter, Diamond yields 1 point
- Almond Espalier yields 1 point
- Plum Bush yields 1 point
- Stone Fountain yields 1 point
- Ogive Bush yields 1 point
- Oval Bush yields 1 point
- Roses Pergola yields 1 point
- Round Bush yields 1 point
- Stone Planter, Round yields 1 point
- Stone Bench yields 1 point
Officinal Garden
- Sunvines Planter yields 1 point
- Tailor’s Tongue Planter yields 1 point
- Treillis Fence yields 1 point
- Royal Balm yields 1 point
- Cleansing Fountain yields 1 point
- Sunvines Pergola yields 1 point
- Crossmint and Pennybane Planter yields 1 point
- Cattlegold Planter yields 1 point
- Rainmilk and Tailor’s Tongue Planter yields 1 point
- Knightworth Planter yields 1 point
- Seeling Planter yields 1 point
- Royal Balm Planter yields 1 point
- Crossmint Planter yields 1 point
- Rainmilk Planter yields 1 point
Shrine
- Stone Alcove, Wide yields 1 point
- Stone Alcove, Narrow yields 1 point
- Marble Altar, Wide yields 1 point
- Marble Alter, Narrow yields 1 point
- Votive Candle yields 1 point
- Votive Candles yields 1 point
- Indigo Spire Flower yields 1 point
- Fragrant Bouquet yields 1 point
- Pleasant Bouquet yields 1 point
- Cardinal’s Robe Flower yields 1 point
- Sunvines Cluster yields 1 point
- The Mother of Peace, Marble and Gold yields 10 points
- Stone Steps yields 1 point
- Stone Bench yields 1 point
- Votive Stone yields 1 point
Majestic Stained Glass
- King and Monk, Stained Glass yields 15 points
- Mother and Child, Stained Glass yields 15 points
Giant Gate
- Buttress yields 1 point
- Fortified Gatehouse yields 5 points, plus 1 point per tiling
- Round Turret yields 1 point
- Great Tower, Rounded yields 3 points
- Great Tower, Squared yields 3 points
- Watchtower yields 1 point
- Wooden Brattice yields 1 point
- Stone Brattice yields 1 point
- Wooden Hoarding yields 1 point
- Stone Gate yields 1 point
- Small Window, Closed yields 1 point
- Small Window yields 1 point
- Small Window, Fortified yields 1 point
- Wall Banner, Blue yields 1 point
- Wall Flag, Blue yields 1 point
- Wall Heraldic, Blue yields 1 point
- Wall Heraldic, Spliced yields 1 point
- Wall Heraldic, Splits yields 1 point
- Wall Heraldic, Striped yields 1 point
- Lancet Window yields 1 point
- Porticullis yields 1 point
Stone Bridge
- Beautification values have been removed from the Stone Bridge structure (its decorations still yield Beautification)

Masterpieces’ Costs, Splendor & Ordering

Golden Cross
- Large Pedestal, Hexagonal base Splendor yield has been reduced to 2 Splendor
- Large Pedestal, Hexagonal base Tools cost has been reduced to 5 Tools
- Large Pedestal, Hexagonal base Upkeep value has been reduced to 2 Coins
- Small Pedestal, Hexagonal base Marble cost has been reduced to 10 Marble
- Small Pedestal, Hexagonal base Tools cost has been reduced to 5 Tools
- Small Pedestal, Hexagonal tiling Tools cost has been reduced to 5 Tools
- Small Pedestal, Square base Marble cost has been reduced to 10 Marble
- Small Pedestal, Square base Tools cost has been reduced to 5 Tools
- Small Pedestal, Square tiling Tools cost has been reduced to 5 Tools
- Large Pedestal, Square base Splendor yield has been reduced to 2 Splendor
- Large Pedestal, Square base Tools cost has been reduced to 5 Tools
- Large Pedestal, Square base Upkeep value has been reduced to 2 Coins
- Stepped Base, Hexagonal base Marble cost has been reduced to 40 Marble
- Stepped Base, Square base Marble cost has been reduced to 40 Marble
- Stepped Base, Hexagonal and Stepped Base, Square have been reordered before the other bases.
Knight Statue
- Octagonal Plinth base Splendor is set to 2 Kingdom Splendor
- Octagonal Plinth base Upkeep is set to 2 coins
- Octagonal Plinth base Marble cost has been reduced to 30 Marble
- Octagonal Plinth base Tools cost has been reduced to 5 Tools
- Octagonal Pedestal base Splendor is set to 1 Kingdom Splendor
- Octagonal Pedestal base Upkeep is set to 2 coins
- Octagonal Pedestal base Marble cost has been reduced to 10 Marble
- Octagonal Pedestal base Tools cost has been reduced to 5 Tools
- Small Octagonal Pedestal base Splendor is set to 1 Kingdom Splendor
- Small Octagonal Pedestal base Upkeep is set to 2 coins
- Small Octagonal Pedestal base Marble cost has been reduced to 10 Marble
- Small Octagonal Pedestal base Tools cost has been reduced to 5 Tools
- Alcoved Pillar base Marble cost has been reduced to 20 Marble
- Square Plinth base Splendor is set to 2 Kingdom Splendor
- Square Plinth base Upkeep is set to 2 coins
- Square Plinth base Marble cost has been reduced to 30 Marble
- Square Plinth base Tools cost has been reduced to 5 Tools
- Removed Costs and Yields from Large Square Pedestal as it is stored in the Tiling part
Fountain Sculpture
- Fountain Pedestal, Quatrefoil base Splendor has been reduced to 2 Kingdom Splendor
- Fountain Pedestal, Quatrefoil base Upkeep has been reduced to 2 coins
- Fountain Pedestal, Quatrefoil tiling Marble cost has been reduced to 5 Marble
- Fountain Pedestal, Hexagonal base Splendor has been reduced to 2 Kingdom Splendor
- Fountain Pedestal, Hexagonal base Upkeep has been reduced to 2 coins

Food Grace Period Delay

Increased Villager Food first consumption Grace Period delay to 180 days
Increased Monastics Food first consumption Grace Period delay to 180 days

Improvements

Monuments

Monuments now have their own category filter in the Build menu
Monuments’ building windows have been cleaned in a bid to enhance the player experience:.
- Down to two tabs: Monument Overview and Sub-Buildings
- Upkeep and effects have been moved below the monument’s description
- The Edit Building option now shows all Sub-Buildings with their respective Upkeeps and Effects
- Players can change the functions of existing Sub-Buildings
- Players can add more Sub-Buildings
- The list of parts in Preview mode has been simplified to only show the size and the action buttons
- The Sub-Building back button has been simplified to only show the Parent Monument’s name
- Free Build is now found at the end of all available Sub-Building functions

Book

Resources tab (F3): label icons used for the Buy from them and Sell to them sections have been modified to up and down arrows in an effort to convey trading feedback more efficiently
Progression tab (F5): Influence cost information for Estate unlockable elements is now displayed in the tooltips

Main menu

Players can now sort mods using a Date Updated filter

Other Fixes and Tweaks

Advanced Onboarding Starting Conditions

In addition to previous conditions, the Commoner Promotion Advanced Onboarding now checks for either:
- You have at least 30 population
- You have a job that requires a Commoner
- You have a Serf is ready to be promoted
Decorative Advanced Onboarding now checks for either:
- You have unlocked the first Decorative unlockable
- You have a Commoner
The quest for the Decorative Advanced Onboarding now requires you to unlock the first Decorative unlockable.
In addition to previous conditions, the Monastery Promotion now checks for either:
- You have 10 Manuscripts
- You have a job that requires a Monk/Nun
- You have reached the Tier 3 Clergy
Fixed incorrect notifications in the the Monastery Promotion Advanced Onboarding
In addition to previous conditions, the Second Food Advanced Onboarding now checks for either:
- You have at least 30 villagers
- You have a job that requires a Commoner
- You have reached the Tier 3 Common Path

Bug Fixes

Churches could only have one masterpiece part
Rare crash with a monk visiting a Hospitium
The ‘Near Riverside’ masterpiece condition wasn’t updated when removing or adding an individual part
Workers didn’t fetch additional resources if they were missing some during a work cycle

Modding-specific

Exposed the scissors prefab for Tailors
Vehicles can now be unassigned from agents

December 15, 2022 by Polymorph Games on Update News

The 1.9.1. Update is now available!

Greetings Lords & Ladies!

Update 1.9.1 has just been released on Steam & GOG. Here’s what you need to know:

The Map Generator is Now Public!

First and foremost, the experimental map generator is now part of Foundation’s public build. Everyone can now discover the joys of building a village on a procedurally generated map. Choose from one of the three available topographies (Hills, Coastal, Fluvial), roll the dice and jump into an infinite number of maps, each with their own unique landscapes.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the players who helped us with the map generator’s initial release in the beta branch about three weeks ago. Also, quite a few things you asked for are already planned down the line! One such case relates to overly hilly maps, something we plan to mitigate with flattened “plains” clusters.

Resources Tooltip: Now With More Details!

As part of our continued efforts to improve your medieval city-building experience, we added a detailed breakdown of each resource’s physical location in the resources tooltip. For instance, hovering over the wood icon will show you how much of that resource is currently available in storage, in production, in stalls or in transit. In a similar vein, if you have wood which is already in use, the tooltip will clue you in: it may be in production, in construction or in transit.

Delivery quest changes

The delivery quest window now clearly shows how much of the required resources are accumulated in your warehouses. Furthermore, reserved resources from your warehouses are now included in the calculation of the delivery quests. We also made it so reserved resources from your warehouses will now be cancelled in order to complete delivery quests.

Loading Screen Tips

You may have noticed new loading screen art, which has been added as part of the 1.9 update. From now on, this loading screen will be enhanced with easy to understand tips about some of Foundation’s best kept secrets. Our first batch includes 5 of them, with more to come.

Update Notes

New: the map generator is now available for everyone! Three topographies are included in this beta version: hills, fluvial and coastal
New: resources tooltip details
New: loading screen tips
Balance: Monastery parts
Balance: traded resources
Fix: mineral deposits were sometimes unreachable
Fix: mineral deposits were sometimes falling into the ground
Fix: crane storage was sometimes displaying wrong values
Fix: the bonus effect of a Masterpiece only affected the sub-building it was built in. If it was built in the root of the parent building, none would benefit from the effect
Fix: when any privilege that modifies an upkeep cost was applied, the modifier only applied to the parent building’s parts and not the sub-buildings’
Fix: Lord Manor (Stone Office) had negative Desirability
QOL: delivery quest changes
QOL: added a yellow highlight when hovering another sub-building from the EDIT tab in the builder window
QOL: Bell Tower sound improvement (some large bell towers had the small bell tower sound effect)
Modding: couldn’t override TRADE_SETTINGS
QOL: updated localizations
Modding: expose PARTICLE_SYSTEM_CHIMNEY_SMOKE

That’s it for today. Stay tuned for further update news coming up in 2023.

September 19, 2022 by Polymorph Games on Update News

Foundation’s Update 1.9 Public Playtest Is Now Available!

It’s been a while since we’ve posted on the blog, but today marks an important milestone in the development of Foundation and we couldn’t pass up such an opportunity. From now on and for a limited time, all players can participate in the public playtest of our upcoming 1.9 update!

Over the past few months, we’ve worked tirelessly to redesign some of the game’s core features and improve the overall experience.

We encourage you to playtest the Clergy progression path, which has been reworked the most. In a few words, what this means is that we’ve focused on this Estate in terms of unlockables and narrative for the time being. The Monastery—crown jewel of this Estate—has undergone several changes. You can now build new parts such as the Hospitium (to host visitors) and the Scriptorium (to produce manuscripts with copyists). You can also build Nun Dorms and yes, even concede female villagers to your monasteries!

A crucial element of the 1.9 update is all about progression. Some buildings are now part of what we call a common progression path, i.e. without any investment towards a particular Estate. Others are linked to one of the three available Estates—Labor, Clergy or Kingdom—and require you to reach specific Splendor thresholds to be unlocked by spending Influence.

*A preview of the Clergy progression path*

The dynamics between Estates are very important in update 1.9. The more you invest in a particular Estate, the harder it becomes to progress with others’. This is our way of adding weight to your decisions, but it doesn’t mean you’ll be handcuffed to the Clergy should you choose this progression path, for example.

Update 1.9 introduces sweeping changes to Foundation, including to its economy, which is now largely tax-based—something that was attributed to markets in the past. You can now tax your villagers and send a tax collector to collect the precious coins that will soon fill your coffers. Trade remains another viable avenue for accumulating wealth; the introduction of upgradable trade routes makes all the difference! Oh, and military missions are still a surefire way to get valuable resources, as always.

Edicts and privileges change the rules of the game in your favor. Once unlocked, these options can, among other things, mitigate a penalty or improve your trade with a neighboring village. Be careful though: if you change your mind about a specific edict or privilege, you will need the help of a Bailiff.

Players looking for an extra challenge will be pleased to know that we’ve added Village Aspirations. These are long-term goals that you can try to achieve, with some of them being pretty hard! Eventually, we’d like to tie these goals to GOG/Steam achievements and give them a bit more fanfare. At this point though, their integration is not final, but gives a good idea of our intentions with this system.

*A work-in-progress view of Village Aspirations*

You will notice that narration plays a bigger role in Foundation than ever. Indeed, our Narrative Designer has been pretty busy and added a large number of interesting events and opportunities, ranging from hosting fairs to improving trades with neighbors and much, much more. In that same regard, players will feel they have more of a say as Lord/Lady thanks to the addition of more extensive narrative choices.

In order to better guide you through Foundation’s many interconnected systems, we’ve thought of a series of one-off (and entirely optional!) advice to guide you through your first steps as Lord or Lady—what we call Onboarding. This helps smoothes the learning curve and makes you feel more in control of your village’s development.

The 1.9 update includes lots of other new features and changes, but we want to leave you the pleasure of discovering them on your own terms. This post just skims over the scope of the changes to give you an updated look at Foundation.

You’ll soon notice that the game remains true to itself, but that its form has matured to a degree we’re very proud of. Expect a more detailed breakdown of the many new and improved features once the update is officially released to all Steam and GOG players around the world!

How can I participate in Foundation’s Update 1.9 Public Playtest on Steam?

Open the Steam client
Right-click on Foundation
Click on Properties
Click on BETAS
Under Select the beta you would like to opt into, choose preview
Launch the game

How can I participate in Foundation’s Update 1.9 Public Playtest on GOG?

Open the GOG client
Navigate to your owned games, then right-click on Foundation
Click Manage installation – Configure
Under Beta channels, choose Preview
Launch the game

Where can I talk about Foundation’s 1.9 Public Playtest?

General discussions take place on our official Discord server, in the dedicated #public-playtest-1-9 channel. You can report bugs or technical problems in the #bug-report-public-playtest-1-9 channel. If you would rather write us, please do so using the following email: support@polymorph.games. It’s always a pleasure to read about what you have to say!

A New Era of Organic City-Building Simulation!

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