Blades of Light & Shadow III

We're on the road to Blades III with the Book Team here to spill all the tea! From world-building to character development, challenges to triumphs, read on to get a fun glimpse of the adventure yet to come!

Building on the Legacy: This is the third book in the series. How did you approach expanding the world and deepening the lore while staying true to what fans loved about the first two books?

Emi: It's both a blessing and a curse to have two books worth of world-building and characterization. A curse because there is so much information to try and keep straight (pour one out for QA, I'd be lost without them), and a blessing because there's so much to choose from when it comes to what themes we want to explore. I love how little details can grow across a story like this. The Gods were barely mentioned in Book 1, then you got to learn a little about them in Book 2, and now you'll be meeting them face to face in Book 3.

Erin: QA definitely has copious lore and technical notes across all three books. Like I said last time, though, it's a labor of love. This world and its characters are so rich and complex that it's a joy to get lost in the details.

Jay: In our Book 2 wrap up, we concluded y’all really like pretty and high fantasy outfits, so we tried to bring that through in the designs for Book 3.

Tom: For our love interests’ new looks, we tried to combine bits from their Book 1 and Book 2 outfits. Unfortunately that meant giving them back their sleeves.

Emi: But we got more chest this go around! (*staring at Mal's chest hair*)

Christine: Book 2 was biceps, this one is chest.

Jay: And you can stop complaining about your default outfit, you'll have the opportunity to get a new one.

Tom: We also tried something new with the lore tablets, where part of their designs are inspired by where you collect them.

New Allies and Enemies: What new faces should we expect to see, and will they be friend or foe?

Christine: The new character Flumph is SO adorable. 

Emi: You'll finally be putting faces to some very well-known names, the Queen of the Gods among them. Nifara is as beautiful as she is intimidating, and she has gone all in on her aesthetic.

Jay: This is 100% biased, but I’m a fan of our resident old god himbo, Nithrax.

Tom: Is it because his look is based on you?

Jay: Yes. Though he does have a much better gym routine than I do.

Emi: And I have to give a shout out to the Lovers, Bakshi and Ittar, whose designs might be some of my favorites across all of Choices.

Evolving Heroes: How do the main characters evolve in this book? What new aspects of their personalities and abilities will readers get to see?

Emi: I would say that Book 3 has a pretty strong focus on the people who are important to our main characters, particularly their families.

Jay: Everyone is at maximum angst levels here.

Emi: Imagine that image of Squidward lying on the floor crying while he says "future." That's your party.

Erin: There's a lot of honesty and vulnerability from the main characters. There's something for everyone to relate to in their own life, and I think that bridge between fiction and reality is so powerful for how we understand ourselves and others.

Emi: Some of your friends might also be dabbling with magic for the first time, which you got a sneak peak of in this month's newsletter. 

Team Dynamics: The characters have been through so much together. How does their relationship change or deepen in this book?

Emi: Bickering. So much bickering. But that's what happens when you love each other!

Erin: For me, it's compelling to see how different characters process and cope with the same situations in wildly different ways. I think it leads to some insightful conversations and intriguing party dynamics.

Jay: My favorite scenes are when MC gets to talk to Kade. It was nice to have more interaction with him in this book. He’s always a source of comfort in the storm.

Emi: Imtura and Valax have also formed a really nice friendship. They have a lot in common with mothers and expectations, and they're helping each other work through all that comes with that.

Jay: And I love that Mal’s nickname for Valax is Violet. I smile every time I read it.

Emi: That's when you know someone's really a part of the party, is when Mal gives them a nickname.

Pushing Boundaries: This book seems to push the boundaries of the series. What were some of the biggest creative challenges you faced while writing it?

Emi: With any sequel, especially an epic fantasy, you know that you have to go bigger than the previous books, and that's hard! I mean, we saved Morella, we saved the Realms, what can we do now that's even more impressive? Fight God(s) I guess.

Jay: Pushing boundaries, you say? We break them. Unless they break us, and then I cry.

Tom: Probably the CGs, actually. Giving each character in the composition an equal spotlight, that was tricky. Working in a vertical format is difficult too, not everyone can fly!

Emi: You did so good though, Tom! Once the last one is done, my phone background is changing.

Christine: I am really excited for the [REDACTED] CG. It’s so dynamic and the animators blew our expectations out of the water.

Jay: In our animation meeting I was literally like “We can do that?!”

Character Favorites: Who is your favorite character in Blades III and why?

Emi: How dare you make me choose! I love all my children equally. There is no smudged writing on this hand! But if I had to pick, my overall faves are Nia, Aerin, and Valax, they just stole my heart. My favorites to write are Aerin and Mal because snark is so enjoyable, and my favorite new character is probably Nithrax because he's just so funny.

Jay: Nithrax is your favorite character because he’s modeled after your favorite producer, right?

Emi: Obviously! (Nobody tell them.)

Tom: I just like Mal, he reminds me of all my favorite bros. Han Solo, the guy from Firefly, what’s his name

Emi: His name is also Mal.

Christine: I think the Winged Warrior is pretty cool.

Jay: Robotic and sexy, our specialties.

Emi: Fantasy robotic. Important qualifier. We have not invented electricity in Blades (except the dwarves have but that's cause they're cool).

Teaser Time: If you could give fans one hint about what’s to come, what would it be? (No spoilers, of course!)

Emi: Some people you think you can trust, you actually can't, and some people you think are going to betray you, will have your back through it all.

Jay: You’re gonna cry.

Emi: You'd better cry.

Haha! I'm sure we'll shed some tears. This was so fun - thanks for sharing Blades Team! To our players: If you made it this far, thanks for reading. Better sharpen your swords for battle as Blades III launches this Wednesday!

<3 The Community Team