Shepherds of the Abyss Hits Steam Early Access
Shepherds of the Abyss is an action-packed, multiplayer tower defense game – one inspired by some of the best tower defense mods for Warcraft 3. Describing the main characters of the game, developers Impulse Games have said:
“The Shepherds are powerful hero units that you unlock and customize. Each has an ability kit containing three regular abilities and an ultimate ability. Shepherds gain experience and level-up during combat, and with each level comes a skill point that can be spent to upgrade one of the Shepherd’s abilities. Skillful use and customization of Shepherd abilities is critical to overcoming your opponents’ defenses and defeating them.”
Shepherds of the Abyss is set to have a number of features, including:
- 3 Shepherds (hero units)
- Items that can be purchased during matches and equipped on Shepherd units, including passive and activatable items
- 12 Attack Towers with different firing mechanics and positional strengths and weaknesses, as well as unique Empowered states
- 1v1 map and mode
- Tutorial missions
- Single Player vs AI (the AI is a work in progress)
- Single Player Wave Survival mode
The game is also set to have a feature called “Mazing,” which Impulse Games have described, saying:
“Mazing is the art of filling a wide-open space in a tower defense game with your towers to build the longest possible path (the maze) that the enemy’s units must travel before reaching your throne. Mazing is a core skill in Shepherds of the Abyss, and it’s put to the test with random obstacles spawned each game to prevent you from memorizing the strongest maze setup.”
When Towers deal damage to units, you gain a resource called Rage. Rage can be spent to cast a spell that Empowers the targeted tower, which causes it to unleash its true potential. Some towers may then gain a snare, shred armor, freeze units in place, or deal significantly more damage. The Empowered state is unique for each tower, and considering each tower’s full potential is critical in deciding where to place them.
You can find Shepherds of the Abyss on Steam Early Access here.