Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon version 1.20 brings in act 3 improvements, console fixes, QOL improvements, and more

Awaken Realms and Questline have launched a significant update for Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon. The update includes numerous adjustments to game balance, fresh content, enhancements to Act 3, and several improvements to make the game experience smoother and more enjoyable.

The update is now available on PC and will be released on consoles as soon as it’s approved. For console players, this patch includes a 40fps mode and resolves the save issues on PlayStation 5. Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon is currently available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam.

Check out the trailer for update 1.2.0, along with new screenshots and complete patch notes, courtesy of Awaken Realms and Questline, at the links below.

Hey everyone!

We’re excited to announce that Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon version 1.20 is now available! This is a major update, and we think skipping to version 1.20 is a good move – you’ll understand why shortly! 😀

Let’s quickly go over what’s new in this update. We’ll share the complete patch notes shortly, but first, here are the key features included in version 1.20:

several balance changes (some of them being optional),

new content & Act 3 improvements,

We’ve made several improvements and bug fixes, including the ability to save progress for each character individually and mark items as favorites for easier access.

a ton of audio improvements,

console improvements (40 FPS support & fixed PlayStation’s saving failed issue)*.

Just a heads-up: it typically takes a few days for console updates to be approved and go live. But it’ll be worth the wait! We’ve just added support for a 40 FPS mode on consoles. If your screen can handle 40 FPS, we suggest turning this mode on with VSync enabled for a smoother gaming experience.

This update involved a lot of careful work to make sure our design and balance changes didn’t negatively impact gameplay. We’re incredibly grateful to our fantastic playtesters on Discord who participated in the open beta and helped us catch any unexpected issues in Avalon! As usual, our amazing community came through for us. Consider yourselves PhDs in balance testing – you’ve earned it!

Before we proceed, let’s watch our update trailer for a quick overview of version 1.20!

Balance update

We’ve noticed, based on your feedback and our own testing, that the game gets noticeably easier as you progress into the second half of Act 2 (Cuanacht) and throughout Act 3 (Forlorn Swords). Players were often becoming overpowered quickly, even without intending to, so we’ve made some changes to address this.

We understand many of you enjoy building incredibly strong characters and quickly defeating enemies, so we’ve made some of the balance adjustments optional – you can still play how you like!

Select items rebalance

We’ve adjusted the power of over 20 items that were slightly too strong, mainly in terms of their critical hit chance. We understand players don’t usually like seeing their items weakened, so don’t worry – you’ll keep the items you already have, and we’ll give you updated versions of the same items. This means you can still enjoy your current powerful setups if you want! 😀

You can find a complete list of everything that’s been rebalanced in the patch notes below. Here are a few examples to give you an idea:

Optional soft cap for stats

This feature means that as you increase your attributes beyond a certain point (called ‘soft caps’), you’ll get less and less benefit from each additional point. For example, let’s look at Strength (STR):

from 1 to 20, each point of STR gives 2% melee damage, 3 max stamina and reduces armor weight by 1%;

from 21 to 40, each point of STR gives 1% melee damage, 2 max stamina and reduces armor weight by 1%;

Starting at level 41, each point invested in Strength (STR) only provides a small benefit: 0.5% increased melee damage, 1 point of maximum stamina, and a 1% reduction in armor weight.

As a player, I’ve found that if you really want to optimize your character, aiming for 20 and 40 in your attributes seems to be the sweet spot. It looks like these are the key levels to hit before you start seeing smaller and smaller benefits from putting points in. The way it works is pretty consistent across all attributes, but you can find all the specifics in the latest patch notes if you’re interested!

This feature is turned on automatically, but you can easily disable it if you prefer. Simply navigate to Settings in the main menu.

Mana Shield changes

The Mana Shield feature reduces incoming damage by first taking it from your mana instead of your health. Previously, players with high mana and fast mana regeneration could become nearly impossible to defeat, as their mana acted like an extra, quickly-replenishing health source. We’ve made changes to address this issue:

When you take damage while Mana Shield is active, your mana regeneration will now be briefly paused before resuming.

the Mana Shield keyword now also reduces mana regeneration in a 1:1 ratio.

Enemy EXP adjustments

To avoid accidentally gaining too much experience, enemies weaker than you will now give you less EXP. As you become more powerful, defeating much weaker opponents will reward you with fewer experience points.

Apart from the case described above, experience points are granted as per usual.

New content & Act 3 improvements

As we mentioned before, version 1.20 of the game is now live with lots of new content and improvements, especially for the Forlorn Swords in Act 3! We hope you enjoy checking it all out.

There are a lot of new features, and you can see the complete list below. But first, let’s highlight a few of the most significant changes.

Forlorn Swords (Act 3)

A new cave has been added near the Forlorn Swords Gate (Etherbloom Love).

New mini-boss – Sleepwalker, was added near: Giants Crossroad, Ulfr Village and Volker Village.

New mini-boss – Cairnguard, was added near: Sveinn Village, Capitol City and Mountain Stronghold.

Improved overall level art and level design. New terrain and paths have been added.

Added new items to find across the Forlorn Swords.

Added a small altar + loot near the Forlorn Swords border.

Changed the layout of the bandit camp in the mountains near the Forlorn Swords Gate.

Changed the enemies in Forlorn Swords Stronghold.

Changed enemy placement.

Quests-related stuff

Hey everyone, check this out! There’s a new quest called ‘The Empty House’. Basically, you stumble upon this really tragic Theud mystic – seriously, they’re in rough shape – and they’re asking for your help to, well, get themselves put back together. You can start the quest by heading south of the Forlorn Main Gate and checking out those abandoned houses. It’s a bit creepy, but definitely worth checking out!

Your beloved Alisa’s Seacoast Manor is now a customizable home.

Added a new reward for the “Left Behind” and “The Shattered Pride” quests.

A new NPC can now be found in Remors’ Cave.

Various fixes and quality-of-life improvements
(aka the full patch notes)

We’ve made a ton of new additions, bug fixes, and improvements! If you like detailed release notes, you’ll be happy. Before you dive in, here’s a highlight of a feature many of you requested to make things easier.

System changes

We’ve combined all save files into a single file, making it simpler to download your progress from the cloud if you ever need to. This also streamlines several game systems. Plus, you can now rename your save files however you like – just don’t change the file extension, or the game won’t recognize them.

This update addresses a problem where the game wouldn’t save if you’d explored most of the areas. It should now fix the ‘saving failed’ error.

We’ve added support for a 40FPS mode on consoles. If your screen displays at 40 frames per second, we suggest turning this mode on with VSync enabled for a smoother gaming experience.

On PC, we’ve added a loading indicator to let you know when the game is syncing with the cloud. Before, the game would freeze during this process.

Quests-related stuff

Okay, so they’ve tweaked some items for balance. The good news is, if they did nerf something you love, don’t worry! I’ll get a new, balanced version, and I can still keep using the old one if I want. Basically, I get to choose!

The Drevan Bow increases your chance to land a critical hit with ranged attacks. It provides a 25% critical hit chance normally, and a 40% critical hit chance when your stamina is below 20%. To use this bow, you need 6 Strength, 10 Dexterity, and 4 Endurance.

Corpsebinder Gauntlets – Ranged Critical Chance 20%>Critical Damage 20%

Corpsebinder Helmet – Ranged Critical Chance 15%>10%, Ranged Damage Multiplier 15%>20%

Stonewarden Talisman – Critical Chance 10%>5%, added Critical Damage 5%

The Undertow Bloom Vest no longer improves how often sneak damage turns into critical damage as you upgrade the item. It will always convert damage at a rate of 2 to 1.

Titanium Tonic’s ability to boost Physical Damage and reduce Physical Damage taken has been adjusted. It now has a maximum effect, increasing or decreasing damage by a maximum of 10%.

The Perilous Orb Ring now boosts both your Critical Damage and Critical Chance. However, it no longer provides increased Critical Chance based on the item’s level.

Worker Bee‘s Robe – Critical Chance 15%>10%

Fungal Envoy‘s Mycelium – Critical Chance 15%>10%

Crow’s Boots – Critical Chance 20%>15%

Duel Knight Trousers: Boosts your chance to land a critical hit with melee attacks by 50% when your Stamina is low (below 50%). It also provides a 30% boost under the same condition.

Duel Knight Cape – Critical Chance 10%>5%

Volker Berserker‘s Totem – Critical Chance 20%>15%

Winged Cavalier Backplate – Critical Chance 25%>15%

Farsight Hood – Ranged Critical Chance 20%>10%

Marksman‘s Treasure – Ranged Critical Chance 25%> 10%

Duelist’s Blade – Melee Critical Chance 25%>15%

Parade Blade – Blocking and Parrying increases Critical Hit chance by 25% for 4s>20%

Farsight Hood – Critical Damage gain 5%>1%

Winter’s Crone’s Wrath, Merlin’s Thorn, Vinelash – Reduced Crit Chance

We’ve added a new, optional soft cap system that’s turned on by default. If you prefer the original gameplay, you can easily switch back in the game’s settings.

Mana shield changes

Mana regeneration now has a delay after taking a hit with Mana Shield active.

Mana Shield keyword now reduces mana regeneration in a 1:1 ratio while in combat.

World

Forlorn Swords

A new cave has been added near the Forlorn Swords Gate (Etherbloom Love)

New enemy – Sleepwalker, was added near: Giants Crossroad, Ulfr Village and Volker Village

New enemy – Cairnguard, was added near: Sveinn Village, Capitol City and Mountain Stronghold

Improved overall level art

New items to find in Forlorn Swords

Changed the layout of the bandit camp in the mountains near the Forlorn Swords Gate

Added a small altar + loot near the Forlorn Swords border

Changed the enemies in Forlorn Swords Stronghold

Added Wyrd Repelling Lanterns to several areas in the Horns of the South.

Marrowghasts now drop Marrowghast Shells. Curlghasts continue to drop them as well, maintaining consistency with the game’s story.

Wyrdspawns and Wyrdstalkers now visually show how strong they are with different colors. Previously, their strength increased as the player leveled up, but their appearance stayed the same.

Quests (new)

New quest: The Empty House.

Alisa’s Seacoast Manor is now a customizable home.

A new Etherbloom mini-dungeon is now available, containing an interesting weapon.

A new note about Kamelot’s presence in Forlorn Swords has been added by Sarras’ northern gates.

We’ve added a new reward for finishing the “Left Behind” quest! If you’ve already completed the quest, you’ll find the reward in your inventory the next time you play on the Forlorn Swords map.

Added a reward for “The Shattered Pride” quest.

A new NPC can now be found in Remors’ Cave.

Deirdre will now correctly reward the player with a ring in the Unholy Matrimony quest.

Okay, so after you finish ‘The Man of the Night’ quest, something cool happens! After a few days in the game, you’ll notice Corvyn starts acting differently. It’s not something that will change if you’ve already finished the quest and some time has passed, though – it only affects things going forward. I was surprised when it happened, and it adds a lot to the story!

Added additional dialogue for Stranger Cindrill at the Chapter House.

Quests (fixes)

Luth should now have voice over before the fight.

Sìne now requires 10 Wolf Pelts, in accordance with the notice on the board in Cuanacht.

We’ve resolved an issue with how the Talbott family interacts in Cuanacht. A new chest has been added, and Eadbert will now give players the key as intended. Please note that this fix won’t apply to saves made before this update.

Fixed an issue where the My Fair Lady quest would not fail after Alisa moved away.

Improved objective descriptions in the Broken Hourglass quest.

Fixed looping dialogue with Qurban.

Fixed a dialogue blocker with Taranis while completing the Over My Dead Bodies quest.

We fixed a problem in the Happily Ever After quest where characters Thistle and Rhian would still appear as options even after you’d completed their stories.

Improved objective progression in the Over My Dead Bodies quest.

We fixed a bug where defeating Charles the Crogmaw would reveal the player’s position to the Kamelotian guards.

Fixed incorrect logic in the Claw Me, Claw Thee quest.

Fixed incorrect logic paths involving Morana in the Crow Left of a Murder quest.

Removed incorrect loot from killing Ludger.

Improved quest marker logic in “The Baneful Choir” quest.

Improved quest marker logic in “The Long Defeat” quest.

Fixed an issue where Sigvord could aggro nearby enemies, resulting in a quest soft-lock.

Fixed inconsistencies between location names and their labels on the map.

Hra’fn’s quests have received minor improvements aimed at enhancing the overall UI/UX.

A specific variant of the Lightning Golem will now properly display its name.

We fixed an issue in The Price of Healing quest where Bonxie wouldn’t let players buy her items again after a first purchase.

Improved dialogue flow with Barlaam about Yorath.

Improved dialogue flow with Silvius.

Some dialogue and logic fixes around the Hollow Blessings quest.

We fixed a bug in the conversation with Eogan where you could choose dialogue options even if you hadn’t found the pumpkin seeds yet.

If the player chooses not to kill the Viridian Wailcap Swarm, Nautilume will attempt to persuade them to reconsider.

After you finish the ‘Sunken Treasures’ and ‘Voice From The Rift’ quests, you can find The Song in Morgens’ Den, as long as she’s still alive.

The Farewell, Lady Alisa quest will now correctly fail if Alisa leaves.

“Omen in Flesh” quest should now progress properly if Eyvor is killed without talking to him.

Stranger in the Chapter House should now be impossible to kill until the end of her quest.

Fixed issues with Maggots’ interactions during the sequence

We fixed an issue in the game’s endings where players could repeatedly give items, which sometimes caused multiple endings to show up at once. Now, this won’t happen.

Audio

Player footstep sounds reworked.

Player armor / foley movement sounds added.

Ghost sounds added in the Gunnvaldr Stronghold.

Fixed duplicated Luth VO (line playing twice).

NPC Fae grunts fixed.

Strawfather sounds fixed.

UI

Added a DLC carousel to the Title Screen, allowing multiple available DLCs to rotate automatically.

You can now mark items as Favorites to protect them from being sold or dropped by mistake.

We’ve added a scrollbar to the Upgrades screen so you can easily see all available options, like Transmogrification.

Optimized the appearance and disappearance of the player’s HUD.

Added distinct map marker visuals for unlocked Sarras Shrines.

Hidden redundant skill points for players who have fully unlocked skill trees.

Miscalleanous

Added filtering your save files by every character you created.

The Baneful Choir quest got a new icon.

Added a new entry to the lore journal about the Knights of the Round Table.

Yngvi now has a Journal entry, unlocked after completing Sleep That Never Comes.

French: Egill received the missing translations for some of his dialogues.

Congrats! You made it to the end of today’s update!

We’re still working on the free downloadable content we promised for late March, so keep an eye out for updates! We think you’ll really enjoy it. 😉

And we have more coming after that, too!

Cheers!