> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.cambria.gg/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.cambria.gg/dungeons/supplementary/patch-notes/patch-v0.2.3.md).

# Patch v0.2.3

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Welcome to Patch 0.2.2.

Tl;DR - reworked reward-variance/heat system, a magic overhaul, a combat balance pass, a rebuilt Cursed Pact reward, and other minor new player experience + polish changes.

{% hint style="info" %}
ICYMI: We also made some updates earlier  to the[ Cores & Islands holdings management ](/dungeons/supplementary/patch-notes/patch-v0.2.2a.md)in the Lobby&#x20;
{% endhint %}

***

### ⚡ Reward Variance & Heat

*The dungeon now runs hot or cold - it heats up as you play well, T5's / relic chests / side rooms can spike you out of a cold spell, and hot and cold streaks compound.  Run "feel" now hinges on HEAT, MOMENTUM, and BONUS SPIKES.*&#x20;

***

### :red\_circle: Rifts & Domination

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During your run, you may encounter RIFTS in the dungeon.  These spawn hordes of high-reward mobs - the faster you kill them, the more rewards you will get as they continue to pour out - extend to the limit to power clear this for a max win.

Additionally, you may encounter DOMINATION events - on particularly cold runs, the floor's boss will directly ambush you, forcing an encounter to the death.  If you succeed, your heat spikes way up, and you get the entire additional loot from this boss in addition to the regular boss.

***

### 🔮 Magic Overhaul

Magic gets a full mastery pass — new tools, restored ceiling, and frost finally clears packs.

**New & re-enabled picks:**

* **Mana Siphon** - magic kills heal a % of your max HP. **Elites/uniques heal 0.5×, bosses heal 0×**, and damage-over-time / cascade kills (Detonate, Heralds) don't heal.
* **Combustion** *(new passive)* - your magic deals bonus damage to **burning** targets. Works on bosses, so it's a real boss-damage lever.
* **Arcane Momentum** *(new passive)* - activatable defence buff that scales based on magic damage you do - scales hard *late game*: near-nothing on a weak run, very strong on a stacked god run.
* **Overload** *(new passive)* — spell **crits chain** to up to 6 nearby enemies (within 2 tiles, non-boss).

**Frost rework (all four frost spells):**

* Cast range fixed - now **8 → 10** tiles
* New **splash AoE** - hits up to 5 enemies within 2 tiles for \~30% of the primary hit + a 1.5s slow.&#x20;
* **Frost Nova:** current-HP damage **5% → 10%**, and its base damage coefficient **20 → 30**.

**Magic ceiling restored:**

* The quirk-stacking damage ceiling is back up: **+35% → +40%** at full quirk stacks. God-run magic hits noticeably harder; low-/no-quirk magic stays deliberately weak (its base scalar is unchanged), keeping magic a high-variance archetype.

***

### 🗡️ Affixes - "Exposed" vulnerability

Two weapon affixes now tear open enemy defences, and a ranged ability reads the same debuff.

* **Of Crush** - stun proc chance **25% → 30%**; stunned targets now take **+25% increased damage from ALL sources** for the stun (previously only fed one ability).
* **Of Pierce** - accuracy per stack **5% → 8%**; every hit now also applies **Exposed: +12% damage taken** for the stack's duration.
* **Gravity Snare (Ability)** - snared targets are now **Exposed** too (all damage sources benefit).

***

### ⚔️ Combat Balance Pass

**Changes:**

**Clear-fantasy quirks** (buffed):

* **Powder Keg** - blast damage **25% → 30%** of the trigger (+20% bigger explosions).
* **Bloodrush** - per-stack damage **3% → 4%** (up to **+40%** at 10 stacks), and the stacking window **3s → 4s** so the snowball is easier to sustain.

**Melee Buff:**

* **Life Steal** - **3 / 4 / 5% → 4 / 6 / 8%** per rank (caps around 10% at full stacks).
* **Relentless Strikes** - **2 / 4% → 3 / 6%** per rank (pure single-target damage).
* Melee **base attack speed** increased by 15%

**Ranged Nerf:**

* **Ranged AoE** - bounce-projectile damage falloff steepened **3% → 5% per bounce** (plus a small bounce-continuation trim) to pull back deep-pack crossbow farming, while leaving ranged single-target/boss damage intact.

**Other:**

* **Herald of Ash** - now self-penetrates **half** of an elite/unique's AoE resistance, so it actually lands on them (and still does a quarter to bosses).
* **Ballista Turret** - temporarily **disabled** pending a deploy/UX rework (returns later).

***

### 😈 Cursed Pact changes

The Pact is now a simpler **danger-vs-greed** lever.&#x20;

* **All Pact reward now lives on the curse-artifact track (more artifacts from Curse mobs)**, and it's **back-loaded** - pushing your pact deeper pays *outsized*, rewarding the greed/risk.
* **Curse reward caps roughly doubled** to carry that reward and absorb the removed density bump:
  * Median curse artifact bump at max pact: **+9% → +16%** of the floor's baseline.
  * Hard ceiling (best-case roll): **+15% → +26%**.
* Overall max Pact, death-adjusted edge is around 11% (may fluctuate based on other factors)

Net effect: high-pact runs are a genuine high-risk / high-reward greed play, and the climax stays readable (it reflects your WILDS, not a hidden pact multiplier).

***

*Balance numbers above are live tuning values and may be adjusted on Thu based on telemetry.*