Territorial conflicts have long been part of WolfQuest, but they've always been limited, even in Anniversary Edition. Players can't start claiming territory until they've found a mate. In spring and summer, packs are pretty busy with their young pups, so they don't have time to really focus on their territory. But this is changing in the upcoming WolfQuest Saga* -- as the pups of the year grow bigger and stronger, the pack leaves the rendezvous site and becomes nomadic, following the elk herds. Now the pack has more time and energy to strengthen and expand their territory. And that means more conflicts between packs.
As we began working to make rival packs more aggressive and expansionist in the fall and winter seasons, we realized that this also created an opportunity to improve the gameplay around territorial conflict. In the game previously, rival packs could weaken your claim on a territory hex just by being in it (for example, if they chased an elk herd into one of your hexes and spent some time in it). In the new system, rival packs must deliberately invade a hex with the intention to claim it from you.
So in the Saga, when a rival pack invades one of your hexes, you'll see an onscreen alert about it. You don't HAVE to respond, though. Maybe you don't care that much about that particular hex, Naybe you've got more critical things to deal with at the moment. It's up to you. But at least you get the info and can make the best decision for yourself and your pack at that moment. (However, if you do not go fight them for the hex, they'll be emboldened and move on to another hex of yours.)
Like anyone, rival packs prefer an easy challenge over a hard one, so they'll be more tempted by weak hexes along your border. And of course, you can look for weak hexes on your neighbors' borders and invade them -- and those packs will evaluate the situation and decide whether or not to defend their hex. They're more likely to respond if you invade a strong hex vs a weak hex. But beware: if you invade a rival pack's hex, whether or not they respond to that takeover attempt, they'll often invade your territory in return. So be careful if you don't want to start a pack war.
Because packs are most expansionist in fall and winter, defending your border -- and perhaps conducting a few invasions of your own -- becomes another thing to keep you busy while you help your pups learn how to hunt elk. As with hunting, your pups will be cautious in fights initially, gradually gaining XP and confidence to participate as time passes.
All this is coming later this year as part of the WolfQuest Saga!
* The upcoming WolfQuest Saga is "the rest of the game." Your pups will continue to grow into the fall and beyond, learning to hunt under your supervision, and then becoming yearlings when next year's pups are born. Time will continue progressing through the years until you die. The Saga is currently in development but we do not have a release date for it.
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The WolfQuest saga will continue! Stay tuned for more news in upcoming devblogs about it and other new features!
We do not announce specific release dates. We will release them when they are ready.