Solasta 2 Early Access Preview

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Solasta 2 will be available in Early Access starting March 12th. We at TopMob recently got a sneak peek, and while the game has a lot of potential, it’s currently facing several design and technical challenges, suggesting it could benefit from further development.

Solasta: Crown of the Magister was a role-playing game built on the popular Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition ruleset, with a few added character classes and spells, all set in an original world. While the game’s story and background weren’t its strongest points, it provided a great experience for fans of D&D and tabletop adventures, particularly those who enjoyed tactical combat and exploring environments.

I got to try out Solasta 2 way back over a year ago, and it was just a small taste – one town and a single dungeon. This Early Access version is a huge step up, letting you create your character and hinting at a much larger story. But honestly, while there’s a lot more to play, there are also a ton of bugs and technical problems that are really hard to ignore.

Solasta 2 Has a Way Better Story & Setting Than Its Predecessor

I can’t quite recall the plot of Solasta: Crown of the Magister; it felt like a weak reason to just go through dungeons and get more powerful. Solasta 2 is different, though. It grabbed my attention right away with a really compelling story – I was much more interested in the first hour of the new game than I ever was in the whole first game.

Players begin by creating four adopted siblings from the Colwall family. The reason they can be different fantasy races is because they were all adopted into the same clan. The game opens with a funeral, where the siblings return home to mourn their mother and meet her biological children, Rickard (voiced by Ben Starr) and Deorcas (voiced by Devora Wilda).

At the funeral, Deorcas tries to raise her mother from the dead using dark magic, which unexpectedly summons bizarre, lizard-like creatures. The service quickly turns chaotic, and everyone is suddenly transported across the world to Neokos—a completely unknown continent ruled by different groups and a powerful elite.

A typical funeral takes a bizarre turn when the attendees are suddenly transported to Neokos, a mysterious and previously unknown continent governed by different groups and a distinct social hierarchy.

Okay, so things got really complicated. A goddess just showed up and basically strong-armed us into finishing something our mom started – this thing called the “Covenant.” She didn’t get to finish it herself, and now it’s on us. To make things weirder, we each got this glowing tattoo – a “Mark of Oblivion” – as a constant reminder. It feels like a mix of the branding from Final Fantasy XIII and the whole Blood Oath deal from The Order of the Stick – seriously, it’s a quest we have to do, and it’s kinda freaking us out.

The game really gets going when the group finds themselves stranded in a mysterious land, with Rickard injured. They begin following clues about Deorcas and uncover the real reason for their journey. This immediately hooked me, especially after the first preview hinted at an ancient evil returning to Neokos. I’m frustrated knowing it will likely be years before I get to play the whole story.

Solasta 2 is Using the New D&D 5e Rules for Its Characters


Image Via Tactical Adventures

If you’re familiar with games like Baldur’s Gate 3 or Solasta: Crown of the Magister, creating a party in Solasta 2 will feel comfortable, as it still uses the Dungeons & Dragons 5e ruleset. However, it’s not exactly the same. Wizards of the Coast updated those rules in 2024, and Solasta 2 incorporates those changes.

Okay, so backgrounds are a bigger deal than I thought! They don’t just flavor your character; they actually let you boost your stats a little. Plus, you get an ‘Origin Feat’ – basically a small perk that can make you tougher right from level one, or even give you a few extra spells to play around with. It’s cool to have a little something extra right at the start!

I’m really excited about this new Weapon Mastery system! It’s for classes like Warriors and Rogues, and basically, you pick a few when you level up or rest. Then, if you actually use those weapons in a fight, they get a special bonus. Like, longbows can now slow enemies down, which is awesome! It feels like it’s going to totally change how we choose weapons, and it’ll definitely make battles more strategic, especially for Fighters who have a lot of options now.

If you’re familiar with games like Baldur’s Gate 3 or Solasta: Crown of the Magister, you’ll quickly understand how to build your team in Solasta 2, since it also uses the rules from Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition.

Solasta 2 features significant updates to all character classes. Sorcerers now have more abilities to boost their power for short periods and a unique, new spell. Rogues can gain an advantage on attacks by staying still, thanks to the new Dead Aim ability. Clerics can now use their Channel Divinity for single, powerful attacks or healing. Overall, the game introduces a wealth of new abilities across all classes.

Even though the early version of Solasta 2 includes only six classes – Cleric, Fighter, Paladin, Rogue, Sorcerer, and Wizard – and four ancestries – Human, Dwarf, Halfling, and Elf – players can still create a wide variety of characters and parties. We’re eager to see what’s possible when the complete game launches.

The game quickly establishes a unique system based on family dynamics between the characters. Early on, players define the childhood relationships within the group – things like who was the golden child or the class clown. This isn’t just backstory; it shapes how the characters interact and the choices you have in conversations, giving them much more personality than simple numbers would.

There’s a Huge World Just Waiting to Be Explored

When the adventurers arrive in Neokos, they’re immediately arrested and discover the continent is torn apart by conflict. Neokos is a dangerous place, with rebels fighting against a harsh government, and dangerous creatures and cults also causing trouble. To protect themselves – and their injured sibling – the party is forced to work for the government, but they have the option to secretly aid other groups as well.

Solasta 2 features a faction system that works like the one in Fallout games. By completing quests and building good relationships with faction members, you can earn special rewards, like unique items for sale. However, helping one group might make another group hostile. The early version of the game only showed a small part of this system, but it hinted at a potentially branching storyline, which I found intriguing.

Solasta 2 features a faction system, much like the one in Fallout. By completing quests and building good relationships with different groups, you can earn rewards like unique items. However, helping one faction might make another hostile towards you.

Once you leave the starting city, you’ll find a map divided into hexagons, most of which are initially unexplored. You reveal the world by venturing into each area, and I really enjoy this feature – I’m a big fan of similar systems from Tomb of Annihilation and the exploration aspects of the Pathfinder video games.

The group can travel a limited distance before needing to stop and rest, and they have a limited supply of food, although they can search for more along the way. Traveling involves random events, which are usually resolved with a skill test. The random encounters in the current version weren’t very interesting – mostly just battles with groups of enemies – but I think this system has a lot of potential if it’s expanded upon.

The game’s world map is a big step up from the original, and I’m really looking forward to exploring the mysteries of Neokos when it’s fully released. Right now, the level cap is only 4, so it won’t take long to reach, but I’m eager to see what comes next with higher levels.

Solasta 2 Isn’t Even Ready for Early Access


Image Via Tactical Adventures

Solasta 2’s Early Access version has some significant problems. While it’s much larger than previous previews, it feels less refined and is plagued by issues. The biggest problem I encountered was a consistent bug that caused the game to crash every time I tried to move to a new area, making it impossible to complete the Early Access build. I tried various workarounds, but the crashes kept happening.

Aside from one major technical problem, the initial version of the game has a lot of bugs. For example, enemies sometimes just stand still or attack the scenery instead of the player. There were also many visual glitches, but these aren’t as serious since they don’t impact how the game actually plays.

As a big fan playing the Early Access version of Solasta 2, I kept running into a really frustrating bug. Every time I tried to move from one area to another, the game would just crash completely, sending me back to my desktop. It made it impossible to actually finish a playthrough with the current build, which was a bummer!

The game also has a few design issues that need fixing, starting with how it handles character death. In Solasta 2, characters don’t permanently die after battles. Aether Pearls can revive them, but if you use all of your Pearls, the game ends.

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The current system is frustrating and should be changed. Either remove it completely, or add an option to turn it off in the normal difficulty setting. It’s discouraging to lose progress in a long fight because of a string of critical hits and not having enough resources to revive the party. A better approach would be to have the ‘Mark of Oblivion’ automatically save characters from near-death, and only trigger a game over if the entire party is defeated in a single battle.

Another problem is how slowly enemies move. Solasta 2 battles often feature many opponents, and waiting for each of their turns can be painfully slow. I frequently found myself checking other things – like other browser tabs or my phone – while enemies took their turns one after another. The game really needs a way to speed up enemy turns, like a fast-forward button or a feature to handle groups of enemies at once.

A small but frequent issue is that the game doesn’t always clearly show when ranged attacks are blocked by terrain or enemy positioning. It’s unclear if an attack will miss because the target is at a different elevation or if something is physically obstructing the path. This seems like a simple problem to resolve, and players hope to see it fixed in a future update.

Solasta 2 sometimes sticks a little too closely to the Dungeons & Dragons rules. For example, spells require specific items – an Arcane Focus, Divine Focus, or Druidic Focus – which can be annoying. Players who choose a perk that unlocks basic spells (Cantrips) find they can’t even use those spells without taking up equipment slots. This requirement should really be a player choice.

I’m really looking forward to the full release of Solasta 2! It’s a big improvement over the first game, with a more compelling story and interesting gameplay features alongside the standard Dungeons & Dragons experience. However, it’s not quite ready for early access yet. There are still some technical problems that need fixing, so it might be best to wait for a few more updates before playing. I anticipate the complete version won’t be available for quite a while.

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2026-03-11 19:12