Dungeon Settlers Update v0.4.23: Expedition Size, Balance, and QoL

v0.4.23 landed on September 12, 2026 — the first patch since launch week’s three-in-three-days cadence (v0.4.12 → v0.4.19), and at that point the biggest update Dungeon Settlers had had. One day later, a hotfix post titled “Archer Balance Reverted” walked back the four skill changes players pushed back on hardest.

What changed in v0.4.23?

Per the official notes:

• Maximum expedition size increased — 6 members at Rank 2, 8 members at Rank 3, up from the week-one four-slot cap
• Soulstones purchasable again from dungeon merchants in Regions 1 and 2 (conditions below)
• Active Skill Energy costs reduced by Combat Difficulty — 25% on Normal, 50% on Easy
• Research Work Amount multiplier lowered on higher Management Difficulties — Very Hard 1.33× → 1.15×, Devastation 1.66× → 1.30×
• Enemy vision reveal — when an enemy outside your vision attacks an allied unit, its tile is shown for about 2 seconds (an item from the developer’s “ASAP” feedback list)
• “Lock Consecration Results” split into its own setting, now available on all Management Difficulty levels and toggleable mid-campaign
• Skills that can damage allies now have Auto Use disabled by default
• Stun and Immobilize durations generally increased
• QoL wave: numeric crafting quantities with Shift+Click ×10, batch storage-policy editing across same-type containers, Game Guide remembering its place, a launch news window, Mouse3/Mouse4 hotkeys, separate windowed/fullscreen resolution memory, and units now eating at Dining Room tables

Did v0.4.23 nerf bows and buff melee?

Yes — the patch’s stated goal is that “higher-risk melee weapon types such as Spears and Greatswords are not excessively disadvantaged compared to ranged weapons such as Bows”:

• Bow Physical Attack reduced: Wood 23 → 18, Bloodwood 42 → 34, Bone 30 → 24, Carapace 36 → 29, Akron 57 → 46, Copper 45 → 36
• Greatsword Accuracy penalty halved: −20 → −10 across Wood, Bloodwood, Bone, Carapace, Akron, Copper, and Wrought Iron
• Spear skills buffed across the board: Spear Basic Attack 75% → 90%, Piercing Thrust 150% → 180%, Twin Thrust 50% → 70% per hit, Opening Strike 220% → 250%, Charge Attack 30% → 40% per tile charged, Quick Retreat haste 5s → 8s
• Control and shield skills tuned: Clinging Vines root 3s → 6s (cooldown 8s → 14s), Guardian’s Taunt 4s → 6s, Brace Stance attack-speed stacking doubled (max 30% → 60%), Pommel Strike stun 2s → 1s, Initiative 25% → 35%
• Blue Stone Golem Physical and Magic Resistance dropped from 0 to −50 each

The official notes also adjust Water-summon skills (Summon Bubbling, Embracing Wave, Water Dive), Fire Missile (100% → 130%, Burning 2 → 3), Crimson Recoil (15% → 30% of missing HP), and a tooltip-vs-data fix on Rapid Fire. The spear-skill entries are the first official patch to touch spear numbers — the weapon tier list tracks the spear tree’s live status and why it stays unrated.

What is the September 13 Archer revert?

One day after v0.4.23, CanOpener posted “Archer Balance Reverted”, restoring the four contested archer skills to their pre-v0.4.23 values:

The revert came with a statement that balance adjustments “will remain part of that process” and that the studio “will take greater care when reviewing their overall impact”. The bow attack-power reductions (the weapon numbers, not the skills) were not part of the revert and still stand.

How does Soulstone repurchasing work?

The full conditions from the official notes:

• The corresponding monster must have been defeated at least once during the current campaign
• The Soulstone must not exist in your settlement or dungeon, and no living Expedition Member may carry the corresponding Soul Trait
• Left a Soulstone behind in a previous dungeon, or the member carrying the Soul died? You can still buy it back once the conditions above are met
• Both dungeon merchants sell the same 7 Soulstone types, one of each eligible type; a lost repurchased Soulstone can be purchased again

Which known issues did v0.4.23 fix?

The patch carries a long fix list touching the launch-week pain points tracked on the known issues page — most notably the hauling-family fixes (jobs now check occupied spaces and reserved positions, destinations are checked before pickup, and the pick-up/put-down loop when a destination is blocked is fixed), unreachable work positions no longer being selected, and the Exhausted-posture fix after leaving the Deadly state. Save-recovery work restores Deputy Leader Traits and lost Guild Merchants in existing saves.

Where to read the full notes?

The official patch notes live on the game’s Steam news feed — “[Update] v0.4.23”, September 12, 2026, plus “Archer Balance Reverted”, September 13, 2026. This wiki’s Updates section tracks each patch as it lands; the next major milestone, Update 4, is still announced-only with a Q4 2026 window.

What to read next

• Party Comp Tier List — what the 6/8-member cap does to the four-slot meta
• Weapon Tier List — bow, spear, and greatsword movements after the balance pass
• Known Issues & Fixes — which ASAP items shipped and which are still queued