Date: February 9, 2026
Series: Dev Blog (Dev-04)
Project: Shattered Bounds: Battlegrounds (Ottawa, Canada)
This weekend was the first time Shattered Bounds: Battlegrounds started to feel like a complete loop instead of separate systems stitched together. The win moment was simple but huge: healing finally works the way it’s supposed to, and both players and enemies are moving consistently on the server. Once movement and recovery feel reliable, everything else becomes easier to tune, test, and trust.
My focus right now is building the core “King of the Hill” experience you can play end-to-end: clear objective pressure, a reliable recovery tool, and enemies that behave consistently enough to shape pacing instead of creating chaos.
This week’s win: Healing works, and server movement is stable
Getting server-authoritative movement to feel consistent is one of those invisible breakthroughs that changes everything. If player movement jitters, or enemies don’t behave predictably, it becomes impossible to judge whether a mechanic is good or just broken.
With movement consistency improving and the healing zone behaving properly in real play, I can finally test the game the way players will experience it: under pressure, with multiple actors, and with real match pacing.
Hill objective: bringing King of the Hill to life
The hill is the heart of the Battlegrounds mode. It’s what turns combat into decisions: push the objective, regroup to recover, or rotate to intercept enemies. The goal is that players always understand three things instantly:
- Are we scoring?
- Is it contested?
- What do we need to do next?
Right now, I’m building the hill system in layers: detection and state logic, then scoring rules, then player feedback so it’s readable mid-fight. A good hill system isn’t just “standing in a circle.” It’s pacing, clarity, and fairness.
Where it’s at today: The hill functions are actively being built and tested, with the next step being consistent scoring behavior and clear contested/ownership feedback that players can understand at a glance.
End Goal: The Hill will have three colors depending on who is in the hill. Players will make it glow Blue, enemies will make it glow Red, and while it is contested or empty it will fade to Grey. Points will increase or decrease based on who is in control.
Healing Zone: complete, predictable, and tuned for match pacing
The healing zone is finally doing what it’s meant to do: give players a reliable way to regroup without turning the match into a stall-fest. This mechanic lives or dies on tuning—small changes to heal speed and rules can completely reshape how the whole session feels.
The intention is straightforward: healing should reward smart retreats and teamwork, not erase mistakes instantly. It should keep players in the action loop while still creating space for recovery and re-entry.
Quick Specs:
- Heal radius: [1.5 meter]
- Time from 1 HP to full: [10 seconds]
- Anti-exploit rules: [The healing stops if you leave, enemies wont approach the healing zone]
Enemy actions and behaviors: consistency first, complexity second
Enemy behavior is where the game becomes “alive.” This week’s focus was getting enemies to behave consistently enough that I can start designing difficulty and pacing with confidence—especially in a server environment, where consistency matters more than flashy logic.
With movement stabilizing, enemies become something I can tune instead of constantly chasing edge cases. That opens the door to building behaviors that feel intentional: readable targeting, fair pressure, and clean state transitions.
What I’m building next inside enemy behavior:
- Target selection / aggro rules that feel fair and predictable
- Attack timing and spacing that reads clearly
- Avoidance rules around recovery areas (so healing stays meaningful)
- Cleanup and edge cases (no stuck enemies, clean despawn/lifecycle)
Player stats and leveling: laying the groundwork for long-term progression
Progression is the long-term glue, but it only matters once the core loop feels solid. Now that healing is stable and server movement is consistent, it makes sense to continue building the foundation for player stats and leveling so future content has something meaningful to connect to.
The direction is that player skill still matters most, while progression adds structure: goals, identity, and long-term motivation. The next step is making progression feel visible and understandable during play—not just a backend system.
Decisions I’m locking in next:
- How fast leveling should feel from session to session
- Which stats matter without turning into grind-only power
- How progression rewards both combat and objective play
- How to keep the system readable for new players
What’s next: finishing the first complete match loop
Next week is about converting these stable foundations into a complete, repeatable match loop: hill scoring rules, clear contested/ownership feedback, and enemy waves that reinforce pacing instead of overwhelming it.
Planned next steps:
- Finalize hill scoring + contested rules end-to-end
- Integrate enemy waves into hill pacing
- Harden enemy edge cases (no stucks, clean lifecycle)
- Surface progression feedback in-session (HUD/results)
Closing thoughts
This week felt like a turning point because the fundamentals are starting to hold under real conditions. When healing feels right and movement is consistent on the server, testing becomes productive instead of frustrating. The hill is next – once it’s fully scoring and readable, SB Battlegrounds will have its first truly complete, repeatable match loop.
If you want to follow along as I build this in Ottawa, Canada, you can support the project or reach out about partnerships.
FAQ
What is Shattered Bounds: Battlegrounds?
Shattered Bounds: Battlegrounds is a real-world augmented reality (AR) fantasy game where players fight enemies and compete over objectives like a hill, using a mix of physical movement and AR gameplay.
What is “the Hill” in Battlegrounds?
The hill is the main objective area in a King of the Hill mode. Controlling it earns your team points and forces strategic decisions: push, defend, rotate, or regroup.
What does the Healing Zone do?
The healing zone is a recovery area designed to help players regroup and return to the fight. It’s tuned to support match pacing without allowing players to stall indefinitely.
Where is Shattered Bounds being built and tested?
Development and early testing are being built around Ottawa, Canada, with the goal of bringing local play experiences to the area as the project progresses.
How can I support or partner with Shattered Bounds?
You can support the project through donations (http://ko-fi.com/liminalrealms) or reach out for partnership opportunities by email (contact@shatteredbounds.com).
