Changelog: Shattered Seals: Sorcerer 2

 

Changelog: Sorcerer 2

• 796 Renders

• Two story days.

• First iteration of the Codex

• Two hidden images

• Grammar, spelling, and other fixes (Thanks to Adry, Shaddy, BryonSmothers3DX)

So, here we go... the first couple of versions won't have "update only" files since there are things I still want to fix and alter so the early files can be altered as well. Now there are some issues that I'm aware of or happy with. Such as the misalignment of the second secrets page, but that's not crucial at the moment. The Android version works. I would recommend keeping the dialogue wheel for now as it has the icons, and they stopped working for some reason for the normal version.

I aim to return to the "usual" release schedule for the 0.3.0 or whatever version I'll end up using then. There are things that might push it it over a day or two but, that's something I worry then. 

Release schedule:

• Patrons: In a few minutes after I gather the links up.

• Public: 16th of February

Progress 30.01.2026

 

Hello all!

What’s up? I’m doing builds. And then what? The release, first, will be the PC and Mac versions. Android? Well, it takes a while to convert the images and test the build, and fix whatever is broken as usual. Note of that: I won’t be testing android 16 as the device I have is Android 14. I will not guarantee that it will work on anything beyond that.

So what then? I’ll write and start rendering the update on Monday. Also of note, all patrons will get the launch version on the same day. After this initial release, we will return to the usual schedule. Like always, 5th VN, same routine.

What features are in? Codex. It works and it can remind you who the characters are. There are some variations in how things work from the main menu and in-game. Not everything is in there intentionally yet though. So it will remain "work in progress" until completion. The empty spots in the codex? Those are characters that will appear, eventually. Some of the "side cast" aren’t there yet. Could have added them, but that would delay the release even longer, and they aren’t important right now. I will add "filters" to narrow down things in future releases.

Hidden images. They are in, similar way as in ToaM, ranging from fan service to... moments elsewhere. The functionality of them is slightly different. Now when you hover over the spot, it will leave a button there to click (a magnifying glass icon). This was done for two reasons: first is to reduce the errors. The ToaM version works, but it was error prone because of having more steps to make the interactive spots. Second reason is that it allows for me to "hide" the spots more easily. Now I can ignore character movement between the images. Previously, I would have made the spots follow character movement or be in a place where they wasn’t movement. Both reducing the spots where I could place them.

The dialogue wheel and its icons, they are back. I like the concept. There is still the toggle for the old ren’py menu for those who like it. The VN isn’t designed for that, but it functions. There will be some tweaks in future updates to it.

And all the preferences in the preferences screen. Well, most of them. This time I’m not using custom fonts outside of the few UI elements. Easier to read, I reckon.

Beyond that? It should function as it should. Some tweaks and changes here and there as to be expected.

Right, a palate cleanser, if you will. It has been a busy month, so something else to refresh my mind. Cade and Xella. Yeah, it’s cyclical. When I do modern-day or fantasy, I think cyberpunk, scifi and so on. When I do scifi I tend to go with fantasy. It helps with creativity and lessens the chances of burning out. Anyway, more stuff to do and see what explodes on Android. Hopefully, good news soon... You all have a great weekend!

Progress 26.01.2026

Hello all!

Final scene is about to be done, or at least I hope so. Way too many re-renders on that one. Slightly behind the schedule I wanted, the previous scene took 48 hours to render, but it was... it wasn’t complicated as is, but it was resource-heavy. But it happens. So once the renders are done, I will do the coding tonight, then tomorrow I’ll do the image fixes and listen to a ton of music, and place a few important sound effects. Then? Well, it’s up for testing.

Writing somewhere. I’ll write once I get the update to testing. Then, how to see how that goes. But as always, not something I’m concerned about.

Drinks all around? I wasn’t really supposed to do a preview today, but plans changed as I hoped I’d be done rendering yesterday. Well, happens. This particular scene can be missed, although I suspect not by that many. Miyuki and Susan weren’t really... friends as is in the first Sorcerer. Susan isn’t the easiest person to deal with. Can’t blame her either. Right, short break to get the annoyance out, then render the last ten or so renders. Update 2 ended up somewhere around 400 renders. Not bad. And I’m still considering adding something, but that’s not here and now. Anyway, break time!

Progress 23.01.2026

Hello all!

What’s up? Two and a half scenes, about left to render. Which isn’t that bad overall. Technically, I’ve rendered the second update for a week now, so it’s good progress overall. At least, I think so. Time gets blurry occasionally.

Writing is progressing; GUI work has eaten a lot of time from it, but it’s in okayish shape.

And speaking of the GUI.

Pretty short list of buttons. Don’t worry, there will be more once I get the GUI elements in place. Not sure if they will be for the release or shortly after. It depends if I can wrestle the code into something I like. There are still some screens that I don’t like, but they work. Most of the options you’ve seen in ToaM are in. No real point changing most of them. So check the preferences as always now and then.

Then quickie from in-game. I’ve shown this on Discord, so some of you are familiar with it. The quick menu is hidden by default. You don’t actually have the option to hide it in the preferences as it is slightly irrelevant. The menu is still there.

Different style, and to open it you just need to hover the mouse over the central bottom region and it pops up. There are tooltips in place to say what icon does what although they should be self-explanatory. That’s about it, really. The dialogue wheel is making its comeback. The hint icons are more accurate since now I know what I want with them, mostly. Although, I think I need to change the blue to something else.

Are there elements I don’t like currently? Yes. But then again, I do have at least two years to wrestle them into place somehow.

And then a preview, final before the release, I think... And yes, one of the bigger questions has been answered now. No, they don’t live in a warehouse anymore. Not sure if you will see the place from the outside, but there is an option for that. Anyway, short break for me, and then I’ll do more coding and rendering. You all have a great weekend!

Progress 19.01.2026

Hello all!

Ehh... Monday. It wasn’t the most productive weekend, some rerendering, coding and other things but still more or less where I should be. Rendering otherwise is going okay. Doing the scene renders and doing some codex stuff on the side. A lot to do, luckily the renders for Codex are simple. And I need to remember to do the portrait for Ryder and someone else as well.

Writing went nicely over the weekend, about where I should be. Update 6 has some... let’s say branching. Nothing too drastic, just variations of the relationship and how people interact with Alexander due to it. Maybe different locations for them as well.

Ryder, Kai, and Alexander... I said it ages ago somewhere that while we aren’t going to focus on the "normal life" too much, it is there at the start of the VN so some plots can be opened, and some people can be introduced. The focus will shift towards the "magical side" of things relatively quickly, and the "mortal side" will be more in the minority scene-wise. Not that it exactly matters since there is a lot of overlap with things. Usually, the "mortal side" scenes are triggers for something, or for gaining some insights into some other things. Anyway, break time, and then more renders.

Progress 16.01.2026

Hello all!

I started rendering the 0.2.0, so we are one step closer to the release. It is a relatively simple update, and I have the characters ready. But you never know. I just rendered again a few things from the 0.1.0 that I wasn’t happy with. Couple of things I’m still not happy about, but I’ll have to live with it for now.

Most of the basic coding is done, as well as some of the additional features I want to include. I’m uncertain I can get the codex up and running for 0.2.0 since that depends mostly on getting the various auxiliary renders done. There are about 48 or 49 entries so far... And most of them are returning cast.

Writing is going okay, so hopefully I’ll get more done this weekend. But overall, it is looking good.

And then... I think I’ve found my main menu. Now I just need to figure the banner and things. Anyway, quick break and more rendering, writing and coding. You all have a great weekend!

Public Release: Tribulations of a Mage 1.0.3

 

 

Tested and played through it a few times, and all the saves worked. But that doesn't mean things didn't slip by. So, as always, if there are any issues, please report them on Discord if possible. That way, I notice them quicker.

https://discord.gg/GJK5kfKypg

Tribulations of a Mage 1.0.3

 Android is older version. Hypothetically it can be patched to 1.0.3 by dropping the scripts.rpa into \Documents\RenPy_Saves\com.talothral.toam\game. Except WT version.

1. Patch 1.0.3: https://mega.nz/file/Tz5FRAIS#yVShBb_OQoAIuxzOfEVQtktSHpq0Mf0GXgV0uk9JyBA PC https://mega.nz/file/Lmh2CK4R#0MMWZMrMI4EcqShSfIv-scy6gBseWqCvNK_Ytu2u0Go
   PC Compressed https://mega.nz/file/avBBwbAI#e6Eol0m28IpgxLORTvBdDscUOyQlUWGqYwP6zhJIfH0
   MAC https://mega.nz/file/OixRQYQA#bmVc1tpMRKUz3YNc485SmTLjRcMrxkSVkUv17QTgLv0 MAC Compressed https://mega.nz/file/Lr5WyIjA#4VzsM-ATO_sO-EjZ_ZCqkfUpycfQml3p3gqNwLC_wnU Android https://mega.nz/file/b2ABBbTa#wXaeI_emk1Ws8btwnE8dYTqG5MM-BBd5SkzLygKl1No Android WT https://mega.nz/file/rjRlzYCJ#koQpgmFK4IwCpK3uAKBhqrKwOSutQr6R_hg3NCMnPR4
2. 
   
   
   

Progress 12.01.2026

Hello all!

0.1.0 is rendered, so for the next two days I’ll be focusing on coding various things in, and doing as many "auxiliary" renders I can, such as trying to figure out the main menu image. Then hopefully by Wednesday it is in a condition where it can be tested. Then I’ll continue rendering the 0.2.0, which is the release build.

Writing is going, so I keep writing between tasks so I can get something done on that front.

And well, last of the non spoilery things, sort of. Yes, Alexander can teleport at will. But at times the question is, is it smart? If you teleport around in North America or Europe, no one is likely to look at someone like Alexander twice. But else where? And what do you do when you don’t have suitable papers on you? Great Houses have a way around it. I think it is even mentioned in one of the updates even. At least I think I wrote it. Anyway. So at times it might be better to use slower transportation methods, that and depends what they are carrying. And it is a nice place to end the update, for a change...

And something of a bonus. I’m not a graphic designer, nor a UI designer. I’m still certain that the ToaM’s menu screen was a once in a lifetime occurrence. I can make a decent render. I can code most things. But trying to make UI elements is just... something that happens to other people. This? This was just me tossing things at the wall and seeing what would work as the main menu background. Yeah... probably not this one. But it gave me some ideas, just now I need to find the parts for it. Anyway, a shortish break and more coding and wondering why things work...

Progress 09.01.2026

Hello all!

So what’s up? I have three scenes left to render of the first half (aka 0.1.0). So I’m... more or less happy with how that is going. After it’s done, not even going to guess when, I’ll code a few days and send the first half to be tested so it doesn’t take that long when the second half is done.

Writing is going on update 6. There’s not much to say about it. As long as it is done before I render the 0.3.0, it’s fine. Generally speaking, writing is harder to measure outside of pages and what "day" is being written.

And a mystery location. Writing things overall is slightly annoying since you are dealing with a lot of returning cast and at this stage of the plot there aren’t that many choices to be made. You’ve made your choices regarding them in Sorcerer if I nitpick, even though you either go with canon or custom like in TRS2. Well, it is going to be an interesting journey. Anyway, short break, then more rendering, and maybe some coding. Not sure yet.

Progress 05.01.2026

 

Hello all!

I always forget how much work starting a new project is. All those little, seemingly insignificant things eat the time. And then your brain decides that "Nope! I don’t like the thing that was finalized eight months ago! Redo!" Ah well, anyway.

Rendering? It’s going, just need to get back in the rhythm, partially why I dislike taking more than a day off as it throws the rhythm I work off. Although that being said, I was supposed to start rendering today, so technically I’m a couple of days ahead of the original plan.

Writing? I’ll start update 6 on Wednesday, need to give the nogging a bit of a break since there are a lot of those little things to do. But it’s all good. I know what to write. I just need to write it down.

And the end of our little jungle excursion. It wasn’t in a jungle originally, but I couldn’t get the required environment to work for the original, so I had to change it. Slightly more work, but nothing too drastic. Part of the reason why I buy a lot of environments. Some that I might even need for a few years. Easier to have them than hunt them down when you need them. Anyway, short break, and more rendering.

Changelog: Tribulations of a Mage 1.0.0

• 2664 renders

• Implemented the epilogue

• Grammar, spelling, and other fixes (Thanks to Adry, Shaddy, BryonSmothers3DX, Bread, Horny Toad, Bernie64GER, OBE, DocWhoJ, Oaiki, Digitalzig, Jaike)

Note, there is a patch incoming with the public release to fix something that was reported. Or around there.

Public release is on 14th of January 2026

SHA256:

• 8C3E1FE3D37C80A08A7F929AEC46A564F802ADF1F7B7A3DC105DD0A17D55E0C
  ToaM-1.0.0-mac-C.zip

• 7F6C1E5823F7F2F9CF36E859F5815F9BE6405B215BDFFCA3712DE599B84B0593
  ToaM-1.0.0-mac.zip

• 890C61D1412C8C407268E542AAB6CA0D3B3393F3D690D44AAB21086EFC4C9FBB
  ToaM-1.0.0-pc-C.zip

• 063FF033A51B849001F2E67703475657A0735228AA19D1B96571E2B6F426E268
  ToaM-1.0.0-pc.zip

• 613BD8FF6087E7932DEC960AD7A20A58CD8E50C4AAD60424D68484EFB105C538
  ToaM-1.0.0-Update-C.zip

• 4EF31213752511C1F5C1CD5C668B5587BE55F8BA19EB686150CB292478DD02B6
  ToaM-1.0.0-Update.zip

• 7CD12BB4D83B9AE148EC1D41CB424C5D1F62B9FBF6468A07A87B35F1E300C317
  com.talothral.toam-release.apk

• 73B6EF6C5C0CCF380BF4F19584B3ED9E56948C089ADF11E8E8757121ACA21DDC
  com.talothral.toam-release.apk (WT)

Progress 02.01.2026

Hello all!

Happy New Year to all of you. So, Friday, just off the release, so what’s up? Well, Sorcerer 2, that’s what. The first production renders are being made. Well, some are done, and the first lines of code are underway. It will take me a day or two to settle back into the usual rhythm, but that’s a nonissue. The UI work will be a pain in the backside, but I’m not a UI (or graphics) designer. Have to see what I’ll do this time.

I’ll resume writing now that I’m rendering the actual VN, not that I had that many pages left of the update 5. So I’ll do the usual one hour before I go to bed, just to relax myself.

Hmm... a preview. Just Susan and a sniper rifle. Hmm... interesting. Some of the renders are more, let’s say, complex. There are a few images that I need to render twice and compose in post. Although just looking at that render, I might be better off building a custom grass set as the ground texture is... it works, but it isn’t the greatest for close up such as this. Ah well, a short break, then build a grass set. It is good that I noticed it now and not after 50 renders. You all have a great weekend!

P.S. Public release of 1.0.0 will be on the 14th. I’ll post the SHA’s on Monday’s progress post along with changelog. Although need to do a patch to fix a couple of irritations. As usual... ah well.