With the closed alpha being right around the corner, we're eager to share some insight into the modpack we've been creating for you all. We're excited about the progress we've made so far and we're not planning on slowing down anytime soon!

Over the course of the past few weeks, we've gathered your collective questions in our Discord server. We'd like to take the opportunity to thank everyone who submitted a question. In this post, we're answering some of those questions to give an early look into the design and development of Shardborne.

Dungeons are the gateway to progress in Shardborne. Through collecting resources in dungeons, you are able to continue to forge better equipment to help you progress faster and further through dungeons. The rich main story of Shardborne that develops as you conquer dungeons provides you with a set path to follow and a clear goal to accomplish.

Dungeons are accessed through a portal found in the Nexus Realm. Interacting with the Dungeoneering Table allows you to select an available theme, which in turn ignites the portal. You are able to run dungeons at any point in your playthrough.

Loot within dungeons is found by breaking crates. The majority of that loot are new ingredients and materials that can be used within the Nexus Realm, with the exception of some useful and rare items found in the base game. All items can be stored in the custom-built storage system within the Nexus Realm.

We've introduced a unique take on the existing combat system. We have replaced the existing system of critical hits with charged attacks. These are powerful strikes that happen after a number of succesful attacks. These are shown through a visual indicator in the player's HUD. While the core of combat in Minecraft stays in place, this new system offers more depth and strategy. In the future, this will allow players to create custom loadouts that are more closely tailored to their playstyle.

We've discussed a number of features we'd love to see in the game, including pets and how they would affect the player. Our aim at the moment is to focus on the essential parts of the gameplay, and branch out to more unique features, like pets, further into the development.

Minecraft is still a key pillar of Shardborne. The style we have decided to follow in our art assets, build assets and development leans into the style that Minecraft offers. We want to incorporate the Overworld and its mechanics where we can, while ensuring that Shardborne is a unique and innovative experience. The modpack needs to remain intuitive to understand and play so that anyone who plays Minecraft can pick it up with ease.

Multiplayer adds significant fun and potential to Shardborne. The multiplayer experience in Shardborne is rich: work with your friends to complete the story, conquer dungeons, develop the Nexus Realm and create combat builds that work together with interesting interactions. Dungeons scale in difficulty for every player involved in the challenge. Balancing the experience will be continually worked on to ensure the singleplayer and multiplayer experience are equally enjoyable in their own rights.

Firstly, we will be hosting the closed alpha, during which we will be monitoring the initial experience of the modpack. After this, we will be updating the modpack to integrate more progression and content, adding further to the experience. Once Shardborne is in a more complete state, we will be performing another playtest to a wider audience before officially releasing.

Thank you to everyone for believing in Shardborne. We're looking forward to sharing this game with the rest of the world!