Pyrrhic Stars

Phase 2 · More bosses

A co-op action game where every class plays a different genre.

A sci-fi co-op dungeon crawler where the Gunner plays an FPS, the Vanguard plays a Souls-like, and the Blade Dancer chains combos, all in the same fight, against the same boss.

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New devlog every week.

What makes it different

Four pillars.

Six classes, six different genres.

Each class has its own camera, its own controls, and a combat loop that has little to do with the others. They are still all in the same dungeon, on the same boss, at the same time.

  • FPS
  • Souls-like
  • Channeler
  • Deployables
  • Blades
  • Auras

Skill-based combat, no threat tables.

A boss never chips you with damage you had no way to avoid. It winds up, you see it coming, and you move. The Shield Vanguard holds a piece of the arena by standing in it; nothing in the game forces a boss to attack one player over another.

Five-player co-op, no fixed roles.

There are healers and tanks, and they are good at what they do. You just are not required to bring one. With enough skill a group can clear without them.

Built in public.

I try to put out something real on a regular basis: a new system, a bit of footage, whatever actually works that week. No mockups, and no promises about things I have not built yet.

The roster

Six classes. One dungeon.

  • First-Person Shooter

    Gunner

    Lives and dies by your aim and your magazine, always on the move. Assault, marksman, and area denial.

    Playable

  • Souls-like Action Melee

    Vanguard

    Reads the boss and waits for the opening to punish. A swirling blade, a space-holding shield, or a flanking shadow.

    Playable

  • Tactical Channeling

    Arcanotechnicien

    Stops moving to commit to long channels that hit hard. Destroyer nukes, a weaving battlemage, or a healing zone.

    Playable

  • Deployable Management

    Engineer

    Fights through whatever you have put down on the field. Turrets, a piloted drone, or disruption fields.

    Planned

  • Positional Combo Fighter

    Blade Dancer

    Every ability flips your blades into a new shape, so you are always mid-combo. Two blades for burst, more for sustained AoE.

    Playable

  • Aura Positioning

    Tutelaire

    Picks a spot and holds it while the aura does the work. Tanking, retribution, or healing.

    Planned

Where this is going

Roadmap.

Built in phases. Each phase ends with something concrete: a clip, a playable build, a Steam page. Before the next one starts.

  1. Phase 0 Done

    Online alpha

    • Server-authoritative online co-op
    • Four classes, five specs playable
    • Combat systems: damage, cooldowns, abilities
    • First dungeon playable (1 boss live)
  2. Phase 1 Done

    Content and economy

    • Trash packs and full clear loop
    • Combat feel: telegraphs and animations
    • Earn scrip, buy gear from the merchant
    • Difficulty modifiers (Overflux)
  3. Phase 2 Now

    More bosses and depth

    • More bosses for the first dungeon
    • A full multi-boss clear, start to finish
    • Deeper encounter mechanics
  4. Phase 3

    Polish

    • Last two classes (Engineer, Tutelaire)
    • Group finder
    • First open-world zone
    • Adventuring loop
    • Next phases...
Read the full roadmap

Build in public

From the devlog.

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Join the community

Follow along on Discord.

I post progress there as it happens. Come hang out, or tell me what is not working.

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