- Maintenance Patch Live - 26 March 2026
Ave Patronus, we have a new update ready for you!With this patch, we focus on your experience when playing Bloodgrounds. We added several features to improve general quality of life and offer new ways to customize elements of the game to match personal preferences and requirements. Vale, Patronus!Daedalic Entertainment & Exordium GamesDetailed Change LogGameplayNew Feature: Abandon ChallengeChallenges can now be ended early. At every Remedy stage players can choose to abandon the Challenge and send their Gladiators home.Resulting effects depend on the selected game difficulty: InitiateThe team returns to the city as if they had completed the ChallengeAll items earned in the challenge persistNo penaltyWarrior The team returns to the city, but admitting defeat comes at a price: Each alive Gladiator gains one Trauma (random from Demotivated, Dismayed, Horrified, Paranoid or Stressed)All it…
- Second Patch after Launch - 19 March 2026
Ave Patronus, we want to once again thank you for your valuable feedback and ongoing support following the 1.0 release of our game. We are happy to announce that we just released our second post-launch patch, which includes several balancing adjustments to improve the gameplay.You can find the detailed change log below. Vale, Patronus! Exordium Games & Daedalic Entertainment Detailed Change Log Balancing Gladiator Abilities Ability: Taunt (Retiarius Class)Adjusted system logic to improve effectiveness.Affected enemies will now ignore dynamic sources of danger (e.g. Attacks of opportunity) when calculating their path.Audience Entertainment Adjusted Event types:Removed Event types that reward/punish use of Weapon abilities Removed Event types that reward/punish use of Class abilities Random event types that punish/reward Gladiators not taking damage no longer appear in Battles that apply…
- First Hotfix after Launch - 13 March 2026
Ave Patronus, Thanks again for your awesome support throughout our Early Access - and now Bloodgrounds 1.0 Release! Today we bring you a small patch mostly regarding balancing adjustments.. Vale, Patronus! Exordium Games & Daedalic Entertainment Detailed Change Log Balancing Tactical Machines Fixed an issue that could result in the tool tip and upgrade tooltip incorrectly displaying 0 as value for Damage and/or Range Tactical Machine Abilities Ability: Cannon Ball (Tactical Machine Caeli Ruina) Increased activation timer to 10/10/10 turns (from 8/7/6) Adjusted damage to 15%/15%/15% (from 10/15/12) Ability: Focused Shot (Tactical Machine Machina Missilis) Increased activation timer to 8/10/12 turns (from 8/7/6) Adjusted damage to 20%/20%/20% (from 15/15/15) Streamlined description text Ability: Pyroblast (Tactical Machine Igniatix) Adjusted damage to 10%/15%/20% (from 5/10/15) Ability: R…
- Bloodgrounds 1.0 - Out Now! - 12 March 2026
Ave Patronus. Today, we are celebrating the full release of Bloodgrounds with version 1.0. This update, concluding the Early Access phase, adds several new game systems and mechanics, tons of bug fixes and quality of life improvements, as well as numerous balancing adjustments. However, our journey is far from over – after all, a Gladiator’s career only starts when they graduate from the Ludus and advance past the training grounds. These are the highlights of what we prepared for you: 1) Item CraftingOff-the-shelf weapons are not your style? Then this offer is what you have been waiting for! Engineer Lecidia is looking forward to lending her expertise to those who desire bespoke equipment. Visit her in the Tactical Vault to place your order. No matter the coin you can spare – a piece will be tailored to your requirements. However, master craftsmanship comes at a price. This system allow…
- Trials of the Gladiator- Update - 22 January 2026
Ave Patronus, Today, we proudly present you our second major early access update “Trials of the Gladiator”. Aside from tons of fixes, small adjustments and balancing changes, this update consists of two main features: 1) ExpeditionsGladiator life is not all about fighting. Sometimes even warriors want to venture into the world to run errands, acquire new gear through trade, maintain diplomatic relationships or gather information through espionage. Aside from steel and gold, rewards yielded by such adventures can be improved prowess, new proficiencies and even life changing experiences made along the way. This system adds an additional layer of management. Gladiators who are not sent to brawl their way through a challenge can now be sent on expeditions outside the city, earning a wide range of rewards.Additionally it allows players to improve and customize Gladiators beyond what training…
- Early Access Update - "Masters of the Arena" now live! - 18 December 2025
Ave Patronus, Today, we proudly present you our first major early access update “Masters of the Arena”. Aside from tons of fixes, small adjustments and balancing changes, this update consists of three main features: 1) Difficulty ModesSince the early access launch, we received a lot of feedback regarding the game’s difficulty. Players did especially not enjoy what felt like arbitrary punishment.The biggest offenders in that regard were addressed by tuning down the City Events and Trauma Systems in our early updates.Since then, the feedback varies widely - from players that feel overwhelmed to those that are all but bored. To provide players a closer match of the challenge they are looking for, we implemented three difficulty modes: Initiate, Warrior and Champion. When deciding on the factors and variations for each mode, we closely examined the systems that seem to be a point of content…
- New Early Access Patch now live - 27 November 2025
Ave Patronus! A new patch is now live! As promised last time, this patch will fix a lot of localization issues while also addressing some interface bugs. In addition, based on your ongoing feedback, we added some new features which we hope will improve your gameplay.Here are all patch notes for this update:FeaturesEnemy Tactics Enemies will no longer destroy the Bonfire object on purposeAdjusted Enemy Ability Enemy Gladiators no longer have abilities that summon Spirits ("Spirit of the Forest", "Spirit of the River", "Spirit of the Wind") to avoid enemy Spirits on the battlefieldArena Grid tile effects (Blight, Ember, Smoke Shroud, Frozen Ground, Electrified) can no longer appear in the two left most columns before the battle commences, to prevent them from restricting Gladiator placement during Tactics Phase.Ability: Epicenter A tile occupied by the Metal Spikes obstacle is now a valid…
- Steam Awards Nomination - 26 November 2025
Ave Patronus! The time has come once again to fulfill your task - The Steam Award Nominations are open! As we know - and love - that finding the sweet spot between "too easy" and "nervewreckingly difficult" seems to be one of your favorite free time activites, we do think that we would be a perfect fit for "Best Game we suck at". If you think alike - or see us in a different category - please consider giving us a vote! Vale, Patronus! Daedalic Entertainment & Exordium Games
- Second Patch after Early Access Release - 13 November 2025
Ave Patronus! It's time for another Patch! This time we again have a lot of fixes and balance adjustments - especially concerning the city event being too negative too often. After today's patch we will get back to a normal routine and more polished Updates compared to hotfixes and quick changes. So even if the frequency might change, please be reassured that this only means that we are hard at work.... ...and as always, if you want to support us, feel free to leave an honest review! But without futher ado - here are the patch notes: DISCLAIMER: Due to the localization pipeline all text additions and adjustments made with today's patch are in English only. We will add the localizations with the next update. Features Building Infirmary (all levels) Buttons to rest (heal) and cure _all_ Gladiators were added Fixes Fixed an issue that produced duplicate items, resulting in a black screen w…
- First Patch after EA Release - 7 November 2025
Ave Patronus! It has been a glorious day, thanks to you and your wonderful feedback and warm welcome. But Early Access means for us, that we don't stop here. We have big plans, as you can see on the road map on the store page - First there are some smaller steps to take and bugs to squash, though. For that we need you to keep using the F11-Key (Bug Report Hotkey) when you are encountering bugs or issues, it is very helpful in our endeavor to make Bloodgrounds the best version of itself - But without further ado, here is our first patch after hearing your first feedback and bug reports: Changelog: Features Added an option to disable parallax scrolling in the Main Menu, City View, Map View and Building View End Turn confirmation popup can now be confirmed by pressing the assigned End Turn key (Space) again. Balancing Audience Quest Field Medic 1 and 2 are now calculated based on all heali…
- Bloodgrounds' Early Access starts now! - 5 November 2025
Ave, Patronus! Good old Galvasius the Shopkeeper has something in store for you! The Game! It is here! After you tried out the demo and apparently liked it very much, (thanks for an amazing demo-review score as a warm welcome, btw), you can now explore the whole Holy Empire of Provantia and finally put an end to Emperor Dammas II's reign by conquering Cathedra, the grandiose arena in the capital of Regalis. There will be many obstacles on your path, but you can surpass a couple of them by continuing where you left off in the demo. Here is what you can expect from the Early Access until we launch into Bloodgrounds 1.0: Roadmap May fate be merciful and kind to you! Vale, Patronus! Exordium Games & Daedalic Entertainment
- Early Access Preparations - 4 November 2025
Ave Patronus, Tomorrow is the glorious day we finally can jump right into the arena - but don't underestimate your opponents. They will come prepared - so should you! We just freshly opened up 2 more platforms, next to our discord, where you can ask questions, get answers or just share your experience on the bloodgrounds: You prefer Reddit over Discord? We got you - Feel free to discuss and share to your hearts content: Bloodgrounds - Reddit You prefer playing with ALL the knowledge you can get? Check out our new Wiki page (some areas are still a work in progress): Bloodgrounds - Wiki See you tomorrow! Vale, Patronus!
- Release Date Announcement + New Demo Update - 6 October 2025
Ave, Patronus! First of all, thank you for the very strong anticipation and feedback after our initial demo release - it meant a lot to us personally - especially meeting some of you directly at Gamescom in August. But without further ado - the time is almost here to let you decide your... our... - well, our all combined fate. Bloodgrounds is releasing into Early Access November 5th on Steam! Additionally as per the audience's request, we are releasing more Bloodgrounds content in a new demo already today, hoping to earn your favour. After you battle through the desert arena of Zaharr, travel to the heart of the lush jungle Livia, where the Lys have established Inardia, a brutal arena born from an ancient temple and a shrine to Panacea, the goddess of life and good health. A place so mesmerizing that only the brutality and the perils of the arena can rival its beauty. The new demo conta…
- Developer Gameplay Overview - 26 September 2025
Welcome, Gladiator! Training is key to surviving the bloody fights in the arena. Therefore, we prepared a little guide for you – don’t miss the developer overview video for BLOODGROUNDS!Play the demo and wishlist on Steam:
- Come win the crowd in Bloodgrounds, a gladiator tactics RPG with Darkest Dungeon-style town management - 5 August 2025
I'd love to say that Bloodgrounds plunged me into a crimson mist, but in practice, this arena tactics RPG with town-building feels as cosy as a pair of soft leather socci on a frosty Saturnalia . The setup: you are a gladiator from a Roman-themed fantasy world, who has recently won his freedom in the arena. How is he celebrating his freedom? By becoming a gladiator manager himself, as he continues his quest for vengeance upon the Emperor who slaughtered his father. Read more
- First Demo Update is here! - 25 July 2025
Ave, Patronus!The sands of the arena run red once again, and with your valuable feedback, we've tinkered with our demo quite a bit. Today’s update brings a plethora of new features, balance changes, UX improvements, and crucial bug fixes to help you experience full on gladiator mayhem……Let’s dive into the full update: Balancing UpdatesAudience QuestsBalanced 14 Audience Quests by reducing complexity and simplifying objectives to make them more achievable. Improved quest design based on player feedback to ensure smoother progression. Status EffectsBurn and Frost statuses no longer persist between battles, reducing long-term punishment and improving flow. New Features & AdditionsCity ManagementLevel-Up Stat Rerolling: You can now reroll stat choices during level-ups using gold. Manage your training more strategically! Battle PickupsFavor of Cleansing: New pickup item that removes all stac…
- Demo is out now! - 6 June 2025
Ave, Patronus! Today marks a glorious day, as you finally can get your hands on our demo for Bloodgrounds! We tinkered together an experience that should give you the best idea what we have in store for you in our full version. Obviously we dont want to spoil everything in the beginning, so - as you probably already thought for yourself - some parts of the individualization are reduced. Here you can find a summary of what the differences are: Access the entire first AgeMaster the first arena and get an initial peek of what awaits you in the second Age6 out of 9 gladiator classes are availableUnlock up to 4 out of 7 abilities per class7 out of 17 weapon types and 3 out of 11 armor sets are availableMax. level of the gladiators: 5 out of 15 in the full game7 out of 13 base buildings and their first out of 4 upgradesCollect a varity of common, rare and epic items (legendary items will be a…
