Hooded Horse and Eremite Games are rolling out the Commons Update (1.8) for Against the Storm on July 31st, right alongside the launch of the Nightwatchers DLC.
The big-ticket feature in Update 1.8 is The Commons—a shared space at the Hearth where villagers can fulfill service needs like Leisure, Luxury, and Religion. Unlike dedicated service buildings, bonuses here are smaller, but the flexibility is a trade-off. Unlocking the Commons costs 8 Planks and requires the Monastery of the Vigilant Flame Level 6 upgrade in the Smoldering City (60 Food Stockpiles and 12 Machinery).
If you’re mid-run, take note: settlements in progress must be completed before the update hits, or you’ll be forced to shut them down.
For players chasing pain at high Prestige levels, two small quality-of-life changes are dropping with big impact:
- At Prestige 12 and up, players can buy an extra blueprint slot in the Reputation Rewards panel using Ancient Tablets.
- At Prestige 13 and up, an extra cornerstone slot is purchasable during the yearly selection, using Wildfire Essence.
Also new: reward prioritization in Glade Events. Shift + Left Click moves rewards left, Ctrl + Left Click moves them right—so your Scouts don’t grab the junk first.
Visually, things are evolving too. With the arrival of the Bat species in the Nightwatchers DLC, several buildings now reflect Bat architecture. Updated structures include: Grill, Smelter, Smithy, Toolshop, Tinkerer, and the renamed Academy (formerly Explorer’s Lodge).
One more player-requested tweak: the scaffolding for buildings will now stay within the building’s footprint. This reverses the less-popular change from Update 1.7, aligning visuals with player expectations.
Expect full patch notes when the update and DLC go live on July 31. For now, consider your settlements on a timer. Check it out on Steam.
