So we've reached the moment when version 2.0 has come to life. It wasn't all that obvious, as version 1.0 was released in mid-2022. Quite a bit of time has passed, hasn't it?
The new version, of course, brings a new artifact, a new demon, new spells, and so on, but I won't spoil the surprises — here I'll focus solely on the significant changes in the systems you already know.


Scheme Adjustments

First, something unrelated to magic. However, the schemes are useful for witches (and their opponents) at nearly every stage of the game, so I've made some changes here.

1. Kidnapping is made much more difficult if the target has extremely high prowess. I don't think I need to explain that catching a demon alive is no easy matter ;)
   
2. Equipped personal artifacts are more difficult to steal. Keep in mind that this works both ways — it's harder for you to steal an item, but it's also harder for it to be stolen from you. I hope that this change makes acquiring items through wars, duels, and mage duels a bit more appealing. This change, as well as the one from the previous point, can be disabled in Game Rules.
   
3. If a hostile scheme against you is exposed, you have access to the 'Fight the Schemes' decision. It costs gold and does not guarantee success (unless you are a mind reader), but it provides an additional method to, well, fight against hostile (exposed) schemes. The AI can also use this decision.

No More Magic Protection

Magic protection has been removed from the mod. Instead, we have two new protective mechanics:

• Counter-spells (active protection) - Mage Tower perk has been replaced by the Counter-spells perk (the tower can still be built from the event). When you are the target of a hostile spell, you have the ability to counter it, that is, to stop its negative effects. You can do this through a learning check or by spending power saturation. This protection also extends to your courtiers when they are the targets of spells, as well as to your liege and his courtiers if you are his court mage. Note that the protection does not extend to your councillors and family unless they are members of your court.
  Almost all harmful spells can be countered (a singularity shot can only be partially countered because it is very powerful).
  
• Immunity (passive protection) - Immunity (usually) protects against one specific type of spell. For example, if you have immunity to the domination spell, you cannot be targeted by that spell (it functions somewhat like old magical protection but is less flexible). The main source of immunity comes from witch amulets — every experienced witch has such amulet. At first, such an amulet may not seem like a very useful item, but when you possess two or more amulets, you can merge them through a special self-interaction, making them more powerful.
  Immunity always applies to one character (this protection does not extend to others) and cannot be removed/penetrated (though you will lose immunity if you lose/remove the amulet that provides it). This type of protection is not very versatile as it mainly concerns basic spells — you won't find immunity to such powerful spells as, for example, Firestorm.

Hunter Behaviour

I've rewritten the algorithm for the main witch hunter and his lackeys. Firstly, the hunters no longer favor AI mages (previously, they usually ignored them). Now, every witch can fairly become their victim. Their attention is drawn to other factors, such as your personality, whether you are an open witch, possessing magical items, or frequently using black magic. This makes it so that, when playing as a good wizard, hunters will attack you slightly less often than before. However, the strongest and most dangerous mages will find themselves at the center of their focus.
The hunters' strategy also had to change, as most of them lack magical protection (their leader usually possesses a captured amulet). Now the hunters try to operate in secrecy, meaning they don't always have to possess the witch hunter trait — they can have the hunter secret instead. So potentially anyone in your surroundings could secretly be a hunter, planning your demise...


Make the Demons Great Again

Let's now take a closer look at the evolution of demons and linked traits.

1. Demonic Heritage (not-yet-demon) - no change here, characters with this trait are likely to become minor demons in the future.
   
2. Minor Demons - they are susceptible to the Banishment spell, and even without it, a mage with high power saturation can handle them with ease. However, they can scheming and cause harm to your realm and pose a danger to your subjects. At first, they are not much stronger than an average human, but over time their powers may slowly develop and at some point they may even become Greater Demons. At that stage, the problem also becomes greater.
   
3. Greater Demons - They are immune to the Banishment spell. It is also difficult to estimate their strength, as Greater Demons can vary greatly. Some can be defeated by an average mage, while others would eat him for breakfast — and still have an appetite for more. Some of them may also be mages, which makes them very powerful.
   Every Greater Demon is extremely dangerous, either indirectly or directly.

Other stuff

• Forget what you know about mage duels. This system has been completely overhauled, you can find more info here.
  
• Court mages are more valued by rulers (except for the most devout ones). Being a court mage can be profitable, just as having your own mage can be, especially if you are not a sorcerer yourself (and if the court mage is indeed a mage). Kings and Emperors make greater efforts to have their own mages and use them against their opponents or simply for protection.
  
• If for some reason you don't receive an invitation to the Mage Summit (because you were engaged in an activity or traveling), you can manually join the Summit through the interaction with the host.
  
• Be careful who you invite to the Ultimate Spell ritual. Your spellweavers may want to take over the spell for themselves.
  
• Casting some of the more spectacular spells (like power strike) can reveal your witch secret.
  
• Domination spell always requires physical contact (but masters of psionics have received a new spell as a compensation).
  
• Crisis with Bael has been revamped (you no longer lose magical artifacts due to the script).

Future Plans

This mod surpassed my expectations a few versions ago, and today I think we can call it 'complete'. It will likely receive a few fixes, and I'll maintain it for some time, but I hope to retire from modding (though history shows that I sometimes change my mind, so no one knows the future).
Let me know if you find any bugs; I'm also open to suggestions regarding balance (some parameters will probably change in the near future).
And thank you all for your support, inspiration and ideas :]

Have fun and see you at the Mage Summit ;)