Developer Update - Welcome Aboard Cursed Captain
An introduction to the scallywag - the Cursed Captain.
CURSED CAPTAIN LORE
Anchored in a state between life and death, the Cursed Captain remains true to its adventurous spirit. As an experienced captain of cursed and piracy skills, this corporeal spectre can summon a ghostly crew of swashbucklers, and use the tools of the trade to tackle combatants. Watch yer doubloons, the capt’n’s on deck!
The world of Novastraia is haunted by all manner of cursed ghosts, shades and haunts. Some are anchored by their avarice to treasure they could not take beyond the grave. Others are shackled by regret, lingering on battlefields of long-forgotten wars. The Cursed Captain hails from the days of the wild privateers, before the Empire sank or imprisoned the cutthroats and marauders that ruled the seas. Some say the Captain was a debonair lover, driven to sea by the spurning of a distant princess. Others claim the Captain was a ruthless pirate who lost the map to his buried treasure and cut his way through the pirate ranks in search of it. Yet others describe the Captain as a noble admiral who made an infernal pact with an unknowable sea beast. All that live to tell the tale of an encounter with the Captain speak of his motley crew and prowess in battle. With a smirk and a blast of his cursed cannon, the Captain is a formidable adventurer.
CURSED CAPTAIN DEVELOPMENT ORIGINS
While the Cursed Captain is the newest class to hit Torchlight III, its initial conception goes back more than a year.
In March 2020, the team created several character concepts that fit with an ‘Oceanic/Beach’ theme, as at the time, we were considering development of another act within that environmental theme. The act itself did not end up having its sea legs, and went overboard during 2020, but the Captain was proving too fun to let go.
Very early concepts for the Cursed Captain.
“From the start, we knew the two character archetypes that were in the running - a melee-focused class, or a summon-focused class. In the end, the summoner won the day, because of how much it oozes with theme and style. The Cursed Captain feels like it belongs in the Torchlight universe.”
Early showcase of Cursed Captain skill designs using work-in-progress visuals.
The initial inspiration for the cursed captain came from the idea of merging a necromancer and a pirate. Torchlight's lore is full of ghosts and spirits so the idea of a cursed sea captain who summons a ghastly crew felt right at home. In order to emphasize its ghostly nature we opted to remove the helm slot for the Cursed Captain to show off the unearthly customization options players will have. This also gave us the opportunity to play up the spectral glow that surrounds the character. Early designs played with a more martial flavor which helped set the gear apart from the other heroes in the cast. Capes and epaulettes helped give it a nautical theme as well as a unique gear slot. The canon as a unique class only weapon blended perfectly with the visual motifs we were striving for and also gave the character a unique silhouette when wielding them. The Cursed Captain was a blast to create and we hope you will enjoy playing it as much as we had making it.
CURSED CAPTAIN GAMEPLAY
The Cursed Captain uses Doubloons to cast its Piracy and Cursed skills. Cursed skills call upon the spirits of the captain’s devoted crewmates for support while commanding predominately ranged spectral attacks while Piracy skills are themed around weaponry with predominantly mid-ranged or AoE attacks.
CURSED CAPTAIN SKILLS
Here are a few skills that you can chase as the Cursed Captain.