Hi Mages,
It is done. The Singleplayer Alpha of The Fallen Mages is complete.
The first chapter of a much larger adventure is now ready. It is a journey that does not begin with fame, power, or a victorious battle. It begins in silence. In pain. And with a young mage who has no idea how they arrived in Grauhain.
When you open your eyes, you are badly injured and have barely escaped death. Your memories are blurred and your strength is gone. Even taking your first steps feels like a battle against your own body.
Watching over you is Argg, the protector of Grauhain. He found you, brought you to safety, and cared for your wounds. But Argg is not the kind of old mage who hides every answer behind a mysterious speech. He is direct, stubborn, and remarkably good at giving you a task when you should probably still be resting.
Under his guidance, you learn how to move again, interact with the world, and make your first decisions. The tutorial is more than an introduction to the controls. It is your careful return to life.
At first, Argg sends you on a few ordinary errands through Grauhain. You visit the marketplace, discover the tavern, and meet the people who have found a new home behind the village walls. For a brief moment, everything seems peaceful.
But that peace does not last.
Once you leave Grauhain, a simple favor turns into a real adventure. The forest beyond the walls is beautiful, but it is no longer safe. Bandits and goblins hide among the trees, while the ground carries traces of events that the people of Grauhain only discuss in quiet voices.
The Alpha does not force you down one straight path. Careful explorers will discover smaller stories away from the main journey. These encounters can easily be missed, and that is exactly what makes them feel so personal.
One of those stories belongs to Olaf.
The dwarf and lumberjack has been captured by bandits and locked inside a cage. To his captors, his suffering is little more than cruel entertainment. To Olaf, it has cost him his freedom, his work, and almost all hope of finding another place to call home.
Rescuing him is not something you are forced to do. You can continue following your main objective. But if you choose to help, his story does not simply end when the cage opens.
Olaf is searching for a new beginning. Perhaps a chance encounter on a dangerous road can eventually become another part of Grauhain.
These are the moments that shape the Singleplayer Alpha. The journey is not only about defeating enemies. It is about the people you meet, the people you trust, and the people who make you leave the safety of the road.
Farther north, your journey comes to a sudden stop.
Two Shield Guards are blocking the road. Their shields form an unbreakable wall, and their orders are clear. Nobody is allowed to pass.
Bandits are spreading throughout the region. Two more royal guards have disappeared, and the northern road will remain closed until their fate is known.
What first appears to be an obstacle soon becomes a story about duty, courage, and loyalty. Somewhere inside the western depths of the Lost Fortress, the missing guards are fighting for survival.
Whether they make it home depends on you.
Only when the guards are reunited can the shields finally be lowered and the road to the north opened again. This path is not unlocked by finding a simple key. It is unlocked by saving lives.
The trail eventually leads you to a ruined farm.
This is where you meet Stuart.
He stands among broken tools, damaged buildings, and the remains of the life he once knew. At first, he wants nothing from you. Too many strangers have arrived with promises. Too few have stayed long enough to keep them.
Then you learn what happened.
Stuart's family has been taken. The kidnappers were not the creatures roaming through the forest. They were humans who saw the chaos as an opportunity. Armed raiders dragged his wife and children toward an ancient fortress.
From that moment, the journey carries a different weight.
You are no longer following only a mysterious trail. Somewhere behind those crumbling walls, a family is waiting for someone to come. Stuart remains at his destroyed home, trapped between hope and the fear that you may never return.
Above all these encounters hangs the greater mystery that Argg has asked you to investigate.
The portal in Grauhain has fallen silent. Its ancient frame remains intact, but its heart is missing. The Power Core has been stolen.
Without it, there is no connection to the other mages and no safe path into the world beyond the village.
At first, the trail appears obvious. Heavy footprints, broken spearheads, and scorched moss lead into the forest. Goblins and orcs must have taken the Core, perhaps to power one of their camps or something far more dangerous.
But the farther you travel, the less the pieces seem to fit.
The missing family, the growing bandit camps, and the reports of the Shield Guards all lead toward the same place.
Even from a distance, the fortress looks like a place that will not surrender its secrets willingly. Its walls are shattered, its halls are dark, and many of its ancient passages have been forgotten.
Behind its gates, enemies and prisoners are waiting. Something else is waiting too. Something connected to a past that may reach far beyond the theft of a single magical artifact.
The fortress offers more than battles and treasure. Ancient mechanisms respond to your presence. Shadows move behind broken walls. Forgotten chambers hide traces of those who came before you.
Some secrets will only reveal themselves to players who stop, observe, and listen.
We will not tell you how to overcome the mysteries inside. The Lost Fortress is not a puzzle you should read about.
It is a place you must enter yourself.
The completed Singleplayer Alpha now forms the first connected chapter of this magical journey.
You begin as an injured stranger in Argg's tower. From there, you explore Grauhain, cross bright forest clearings, face dangerous enemies, and eventually stand before the dark walls of the Lost Fortress.
Along the way, you learn how to fight, explore, and survive. More importantly, you meet people whose problems cannot wait until the entire world has been saved.
Olaf needs a new beginning.
The Shield Guards are waiting for their companions.
Stuart is waiting for his family.
And Argg is waiting for you to return to Grauhain with answers.
The stolen Power Core is only the first great mystery. Beyond it lies a world whose paths are only beginning to open.
If you would like to play the Alpha, please leave a comment on this post.
