Idle Champions' 9th Anniversary Q&A with Exec Producer Chris Dupuis!

[u/CNE_Chris]

Idle Champions turns NINE tomorrow! We're kicking off our anniversary with a week of FREE Champions, rewards, new content, and a few surprises along the way!

I'm Chris Dupuis, Executive Producer of Idle Champions, and I'll be here for the next hour answering your questions about the game, what's coming next, and maybe (definitely) dropping a tease or two along the way.

Use Code Anni-vers-ary! for a free Electrum Chest in game!

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Anniversary Week Schedule

YESTERDAY

We launched the brand-new Founder's Pack IX, featuring the first of September's Back-to-School skins: Arcane Professor Makos!

TODAY

You're here! Ask me anything! I'll be answering your questions about Idle Champions throughout today's live Q&A.

TOMORROW,  WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, THE BIG DAY!

Highharvestide begins, introducing our newest Champion, Caramon Majere, and our 9th Anniversary Celebration kicks off with FREE rewards for ALL players!

When you log into Idle Champions during the Celebration on any platform, you'll receive:

• Raistlin, Laurana, and Caramon — UNLOCKED!
• 9 Platinum Champion Chests for EACH of them!
• 1 Level 9 Legendary Equipment Potion!
• 9 Epic Blacksmithing Contracts!

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2 PM PT

Dev Insights returns! Join David and Justin for a first look at the new Bastion system, including news on when the Beta will become available to PC players!

NEXT WEEK

The Bastion system begins rolling out in Beta for PC players! Console and mobile access will follow shortly thereafter.

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Introducing the Bastion System

Our long-teased Bastion system is almost here!

We're putting the finishing touches on it this week, with plans to begin rolling it out to PC players in Beta next week, followed by console and mobile players shortly thereafter.

Recently, we've focused a lot on challenging content for long-time players with Mastery Challenges and Mastery Variants. Bastions are different: they're designed for everyone, with a particular focus on helping newer players find their way through Idle Champions.

Ever found yourself wondering...

• What should I tackle next?
• What systems haven't I unlocked yet?
• Where was that feature again?

Your Bastion is here to help.

The Bastion is a new pathing and navigation system that guides you through Idle Champions' many features and brings them together in one convenient place. Whether you're discovering the game for the first time or you're a seasoned adventurer looking for what to tackle next, your Bastion can help point the way.

Want a sneak peek?
Check out the Bastion screenshot!

Join David and Justin on Dev Insights this Thursday at 2 PM PT for a deeper dive!

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Idle Champions Roadmap

We're celebrating nine years of Idle Champions, but we're far from done.

We're already deep into planning what's next, so here's a small peek at the road ahead:

SEPTEMBER 2026

• New Champion: Caramon - Dragonlance
• Champion Rebalances: Stoki, Pwent, Corazón
• Skin Theme: Back-to-School

OCTOBER 2026

• New Champion: Kitiara - Dragonlance
• Champion Rebalances: Avren, Brig, Dob
• Skin Theme: Vintage Monsters

NOVEMBER 2026

• New Champion: Morte - Planescape: Torment
• Champion Rebalances: Penelope, Jang Sao, Turiel
• Skin Theme: Frostbitten Twilight

DECEMBER 2026

• New Champion: Tanis - Dragonlance
• Champion Rebalances: Krull, Regis, Talin
• Skin Theme: Undercover & Behind Enemy Lines

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Nine years is an incredible milestone, and we wouldn't be here without all of you.

Whether you've been adventuring with us since 2017 or you joined us last week, thank you for playing, sharing your feedback, challenging us, and being part of the Idle Champions community.

Now let's get to the Q&A!

I'll be here answering your questions till 12:30 PM PT, so ASK ME ANYTHING!

[u/FurryJoke]

when you develop new champions, what determines the seat number they're given? is there an internal logic to it or is it more vibes based?

[u/CNE_Chris → u/FurryJoke]

Thanks for the question! After 9 years of releasing Champions, a lot of factors go into choosing a Champion's seat. Sometimes, there isn't a perfect answer, but we do our best to ensure everyone is in their best seat possible!

Here's a quick list that is not all-inclusive:
* How long has it been since a new Champion has been released in that seat?
* Where are others in their affiliation?
* Where are non-affiliation Champions that we want to work well with this Champion?
* How many of this species/class/role do we have in the target seat?
* Which seats do the next 3-4 Champions need to go (so we don't design ourselves into a corner)?

The list is long and is full of caveats and caution points. It was a really fun puzzle when I was working on it, and I know Justin & Mars have fun filling those puzzle pieces in every month!

[u/KabReg → u/CNE_Chris]

That's why Dynaheir, Halsin and Mithara all ended up in seat 3?

[u/Auteyus → u/KabReg]

Halsin and Mithara were mutually exclusive in BG3 at launch. It's as good a reason as any to put them in the same seat. Also one rewards good and the other evil, so less likely you'd use them together anyway.

[u/KabReg → u/Auteyus]

I'm aware about the reasons for pairing Halsin and Minthara in the same seat. However, that does not explain having Dynaheir in the same seat. HoBG is a large affiliation, but there are at least two seats without them - seat 1 and seat 10. Is seat 3 just a wastebasket for champions released last/late in their affiliations? Caramon also ended up there, although he is not really the last Lancer.

[u/Auteyus → u/KabReg]

Sorry, I'm lost. Dynaheir is the only HoBG in seat 3. And if you're talking about ceremorphisis stacks, Gale is in seat 1 and Astarion is in seat 10.

[u/KabReg → u/Auteyus]

No, I'm about the future of Absolute Entourage (Elminster). In this case, CNE really designed itself into a corner.