The time has come to show you the Main Menu of the game, which might not sound super-exciting at first, but with the title screen artwork in its background it's quite a beauty. I'd rather not waste words on the menu points, they speak for themselves.

Another character who plays a very important role in the Prologue, Javek is a young sorcerer who uses telepathic abilities. He is of Tarkian origin and because the Imperial province of Tark is based on early Persian and Turkish cultures from real life, Szonja designed Javek's appearance to match those in clothing and equipment.

Calm and easy-going, Javek's ability to pick up surface thoughts and glean motives can be very useful. He is also skilled at handling animals and beasts of burden. That skill is enhanced by his telepathic ability which works even better on animals. Does that remind you of someone? Hmmm. It makes you wonder, doesn't it? :)

It is finally time to look at the stats and systems related to the vagrus, that is, YOU, the player's character in the game (aka Leader). You can interact with the Leader UI screen (opened by clicking the leader's medallion in the bottom left) in order to manage said stats and improve your character.

It is time for a combat update!

Because you play as a leader of a caravan of sorts, a big part of Vagrus is how you manage your crew. The Crew Management UI aids you in your management tasks and displays information on your crew's stats. Crew management also includes the character sheets of the named 'Hero' characters, where you can check their stats and manage their progression. These characters can also play important roles in the crew, becoming your closest aides, called Deputies.

One of the largest continuous desert areas on a continent of many deserts, the Searing Plains spans several provinces that used to be forested regions and fertile plains before the Calamity, but became scorching hot and arid lands of sand dunes and little else. Some parts of the plains have low mountain ranges, rock gullies, or ravines, but, yellow sand dunes and salt flats remain the most common features. A constant, hot wind blows from the East and North, creating sandstorms regularly.

More character poses! This time for the good old Brigand - the very first character Szonja designed for the game!

The first image (top) is for Hamstring, an ability which immobilizes the target. The second (bottom left) is for Fend Off, an overwatch-type combat skill where the Brigand targets an empty space on the battlefield. It's bad news for an enemy if they move onto it. The third one (bottom right) is the Brigand's block/defense pose. The brigand is a very versatile support/defensive character for the outlaw roster, able to block spaces and defend other combatants, making him quite a pesky enemy.

We're back again with another Map Movement video!

The most important changes from last time:

• Movement Points (MPs) are displayed on the top left UI (March movement points, available as bonus and calculated from normal Movement Points) are displayed in red behind normal MPs. Running out means you have to camp, and thereby end your turn, advancing a day in-game.

• Movement Point costs are displayed either in blue (normal movement MP cost), red (the additional cost of Marching), and grey (which only serves to help you calculate longer journeys, as these nodes are not reachable this turn, not even by Marching).

• Currently, when you move the comitatus, you can first only move to deplete your MPs, then - and only then - you can opt to March further, using the March MPs, but of course risking brutal fatigue and Morale losses.

As you can see, though the base system of movement is pretty much set, we'll continue to tweak how details work.

This week's character artwork and reveal is that of a fairly common enemy: the Bruiser; created by Szonja. These folks are on the 'wasteland outlaws' roster and represent the muscle of the group. Bruiser abilities include a bull rush (that pushes opponents away), a blunt attack (that stuns the target), and a cheap shot (that puts a savage debuff on the target).

Here's a quick look at some of the character poses from combat that Crifta, the mutated archer has. These are (from top left to bottom right): Dodge, Suppressing Shot (skill), Idle, and Downed (when a character is beaten but not yet killed). Szonja put a lot of work into making Crifta look unique and her poses dynamic, and it shows.