After a successful Open Beta we are happy to announce that update 1.7 is now available on Steam and will be available as a patch for our GOG users within the next 24 hours. As well as a number of bug fixes and balance tweaks, the update makes modding tools available to our users so they can start shaping the game into what they want it to be! There are already many interesting the Age of Wonders users to check out.

Modding tools allow users to:

Modify existing units, as well as create entirely new ones with new art.

Change spells, skills, specializations .

Create new recruitable heroes

Create entire new races and classes

Change the overal gameplay rules

Use Mods in combination with new Campaigns and Multiplayer.

Create entire new worlds, basically create a new game 🙂

Early Mods to Check Out:

Over the period that the mod has been in Beta, a number of Mods have already been made available via the Steam workshop. Some are complete, while some are still work in progress, but all of them improve the game for the better:

Extra Support Units – http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=519448872 – Tibbles the Cat and myself have created this mod which adds a new tier 3 unit to each race. Each unit has a unique look, and a new ability, such as the Draconian Ascendent Elder, who can transform into an enormous Fire Drake in combat.

– http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=519448872 – Tibbles the Cat and myself have created this mod which adds a new tier 3 unit to each race. Each unit has a unique look, and a new ability, such as the Draconian Ascendent Elder, who can transform into an enormous Fire Drake in combat. Racial Reinforcements – http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=517485312 – Axios has been busy adding new racial units to the game, he’s added 8 so far, and shows no signs of stopping!

– http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=517485312 – Axios has been busy adding new racial units to the game, he’s added 8 so far, and shows no signs of stopping! The Dragon Mod – http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=516377842 – Chrysophylax Páuperem has been fiddling with the Dragon Dwelling to add a host of new upgrades so that your Dragons can become even more powerful than before.

– http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=516377842 – Chrysophylax Páuperem has been fiddling with the Dragon Dwelling to add a host of new upgrades so that your Dragons can become even more powerful than before. Triumphant Heroes – http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=519469975 – Tibbles the Cat and myself have put together this mod that adds another 35 new, recruitable heroes to the game. See if you can find the mythical “Spoekie”, greatest kitty cat Tigran the world has ever seen.

– http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=519469975 – Tibbles the Cat and myself have put together this mod that adds another 35 new, recruitable heroes to the game. See if you can find the mythical “Spoekie”, greatest Tigran the world has ever seen. Variants Arsenal – http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=516172401 – Garresh has been adding new class units, such as the new Conjurer, a variant of the Apprentice who can summon lightning sprites in battle.

– http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=516172401 – Garresh has been adding new class units, such as the new Conjurer, a variant of the Apprentice who can summon lightning sprites in battle. Racial Class Unit Reskin – http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=519678240 – Tibbles The Cat has been hard at work adding a unique looks to some of the class units. So far the Bard, Shaman and Hunter have been modified, and more are to come!

– http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=519678240 – Tibbles The Cat has been hard at work adding a unique looks to some of the class units. So far the Bard, Shaman and Hunter have been modified, and more are to come! Age Of Wonders 1 Orcs – http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=518172972 – Gloweye is part of a concerted effort to bring the original Age Of Wonders 1 into the new engine, this mod adds old favorites such as the Orc Warlord and even allows Orcs to build Gluttons.

– http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=518172972 – Gloweye is part of a concerted effort to bring the original Age Of Wonders 1 into the new engine, this mod adds old favorites such as the Orc Warlord and even allows Orcs to build Gluttons. High Elf Warbreed Replacement – http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=516429297 – Gamling has replaced High Elf Warbreeds with Wardancers, tier 3 dual wielding martial artists!

– http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=516429297 – Gamling has replaced High Elf Warbreeds with Wardancers, tier 3 dual wielding martial artists! Dark Elf / New Race Template – http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=519749977 – Adding a new race to the game is pretty complex, so Arnout has made this template to help players see all the different things that need to be done. An editable version of the mod is available from our Website!

There are still more to see! Head over to the Workshop to check them out:

http://steamcommunity.com/workshop/browse/?appid=226840&browsesort=mostrecent§ion=readytouseitems

Creating your own Mods

For information on how you can make your own mods, see this thread on our forums. The tools seem complex at first, but a lot of people should be able to understand the basics. No programming knowledge is required.

http://aow.triumph.net/forums/topic/getting-started-with-modding/

It contains a link to our official modding guide, as well as some example mods to help you get started.

Due to technical constraints, the modding tools are only available to Windows users, however our Mac and Linux users will still be able to download and use mods made by other users.

The 1.7 Features

Finally, Update 1.7 comes with a number of balance and stability fixes. A complete list of patch notes is below: