The Sanctuary Teaser Update! (+LiveDev Stream Reminder)

(Images, designs, and gameplay elements are not final.)

The Sanctuary is a roguelike game with a turn- and card-based combat system, featuring an emphasis on using card-centric mechanics to evoke a wide variety of fetishes and kinks.

Each card in The Sanctuary has a cost in its top-right corner. The number or symbol inside the pyramid shape, and the design of the shape itself, shows what you require in order to play the card:

A card with this symbol can be played normally with no cost. It goes to the Discard area after being played. (All cards in each character's Discard are shuffled back into their Deck when each turn starts.)

A card with this symbol can be played as long as you have at least one other card in hand. After the card's effect resolves, you must choose one card in your hand and discard it. Both this card and the discarded card go to the Discard area.

A card with this symbol functions similarly to the previous one, but it is "burned" after playing, removing it from the current encounter entirely. It will return to the character's Deck when the encounter ends. The card you discard in order to play this card still goes to the Discard area.

A card with this symbol requires you to have three or more other cards in your hand. After playing it, you must choose three cards in your hand and discard all of them. Then this card is destroyed, permanently removing it from both the current encounter and its owner's Deck.

A card with this symbol is unplayable. The only way to remove it from your hand is by using it to pay the cost of another card, or with another card's effect.

Many (if not most) enemy types add Curse cards to your characters' decks, or transform cards they already have into Curse cards. These must be played around strategically - but some may be actually more useful than they first appear. Most of these Curses only last for the battle in which they're inflicted, but some are more deviously persistent...

A run of The Sanctuary involves going on several expeditions to the various randomly-generated, grid-based tombs and ruins of the Sanctuary itself and retrieving precious Artifacts.

All Artifacts are equippable items that add cards to the equipped character's deck. Every single Artifact is randomly-generated and has several elements that determine the types of cards it grants, how many it grants, and how strong those cards are. Generally speaking, the more powerful the Artifact, the better it sells at the Sanctum Bazaar. But do you sell your Artifacts, or keep them for their cards...?

The dungeon grid holds many more surprises than just enemies and treasure, however. You may find ancient statues to the Sharifa gods and pray to them for blessings. You may find free equipment left behind by more unfortunate explorers. You may find a campsite, which will trigger unique conversations based on the characters in your current party. You may even find the Bad Ended remnants of your own characters that you lost earlier in the run...

The Sanctuary is an artifact itself, in essence, and it has millennia of history that you can discover and piece together fragment by fragment as you explore. Who were the Pharaohs, truly? Who is First Pharaoh Ur, and how did she build the impossible architecture of the Sanctuary? What, really, is the Sanctuary...?

Thanks for reading, and I hope you all are looking forward to the first beta of this game as much as I am! I will be posting here and on the Discord as soon as I have a release date set!

Also, as a reminder, tonight is the first Wednesday of the month, so the LiveDev Stream tonight will be public and open to everyone! Join in tonight at 8:00 PM EST and hang out while I follow patrons' orders- I mean, requests!

Wishing a wonderful day to you all!

-Vhiel ♥