The Color of Madness

"With five feeble senses we pretend to comprehend the boundlessly complex cosmos…"

- HP Lovecraft

The Color of Madness is the third DLC for Darkest Dungeon. It was released for PC on June 19 2018. Console release will be later in 2018.

Some hateful shard of alien origin has streaked through the night sky, crashing into the old Miller’s farm on the outskirts of the Hamlet! Those unfortunate enough to witness the Comet’s arrival have been blinded by what they can only describe as a shifting, ephemeral hue of damnably abrasive intensity. There has been no word from the farm in a fortnight, save for the unearthly groaning that echoes from the ruin of the mill…

Features
The current list of features announced include:
 * Wave-Based Survival in a New Environment: The Farmstead. A new survival mode will be added which includes endless waves of creatures "in an effort to reach the comet's crash site." Some waves will include other creatures from the base game(rarely the Darkest Dungeon). You will also be able to track your highest kill count and compare them with friends.
 * Three new repeatable quests: a novice introduction, a veteran boss-kill, and an endless darkest-level wave-based combat experience.
 * Resupply. In between waves, heroes will have a chance to use new and exotic curios to restore their vigor.
 * An All-New Enemy Faction. The influence of the corrupting comet has turned the miller and his farmhands into slavering monstrosities. Now they are merely lifeless shells intent only on spreading the comet's influence...
 * 3 New Bosses. The Miller has become an overlord of the crystalline corpses that infest the countryside, and must be put down. The Comet's virulent energy still pulses throughout the region, and it must be dealt with. But be wary, as terrifying new creature, a Thing From the Stars, stalks the farm lands...
 * Twisted New Trinkets. The Nomad Wagon will have a new section available known as the Jeweler. Your gold is no good here; only Comet Shards may purchase the twisted new treasure that await.
 * New Districts With the new resources found within the farmstead, the Hamlet is able to build new districts to help the heroes ward off this new crystalline menace.
 * New Quirks
 * New Tunes. The Color of Madness will have new music, which according to RedHook is "the longest, most involved combat score to date!"

RedHook has stated that more features will be present, but have not revealed them yet.

Battle strategies

 * In the endless mode, stress is a bigger threat than HP damage. Therefore, it is advised to use heroes with - stress% quirks, equip - stress% trinkets, or kill your enemies fast.
 * Highwayman's Crimson Court trinkets effect can turn stress damage into your advantage if his virtue can proc. (basic 25% + 45% from trinkets = 70%)
 * Vestal's Divine Comfort is a great counter to Miller's Reaping.
 * One viable party composition for AOE damage is Plague Doctor / Vestal / Shieldbreaker / Shieldbreaker. Equip Plague Doctor with Prophet's Eye and Blasphemous Vial, Vestal with 1 +healing skills trinket such as Salacious Diary from Crimson Court and 1 - stress% trinket such as Aria Box from Madman, both Shieldbreakers with both offensive trinkets (spectral speartip is a great choice). Using impale, stuns, emboldening vapours and camping skill snake eyes X2, you will make short work against the endless waves and even the bosses there. Moreover, Shieldbreaker's Serpent Sway can be used when there is no enemy or to swap positions. Bear in mind that you will NOT last past wave 4 with this build, as it has no Jester.
 * Another viable party composition for farming shards is Plague Doctor / Vestal / Highwayman / Antiquarian. Equip Antiquarian (+15% basic) with Crystal Pendant (+15%) and Cluster Pendant (+25%), you will gain +55% shards in total but the Antiquarian will probably die of heart attack. Antiquarian's Protect me! and Highwayman's riposte plus DMG buff: emboldening vapours, tracking shot and unparalleled finesse work great together. Bear in mind that you will NOT last past wave 3 with this build, it's purely for farming.
 * The best party composition for long-term fighting should be Vestal / Jester / Shieldbreaker / Shieldbreaker. Equip Vestal with Prophet's Eye and Salacious Diary from Crimson Court, Jester with Bright Tambourine and Dirge For The Devoured. With Jester spamming Battle Ballad, occasional Inspiring Tune and bleeding attacks when needed plus camping skill Every Rose Has Its Thorn. Stress and health will not be a problem until you run out of supplies after about wave 10. This party is confirmed to have 562 kills in Stygian Farmstead.

Gallery
Promotional art for The Color of Madness

Trivia

 * The Color of Madness is likely based on "The Color out of Space" by H. P. Lovecraft, a short story about a meteorite which crashes on a farm and causes strange things to happen.
 * The PC release for The Color of Madness is set for June 19th 2018, while the The Crimson Court was released a year earlier on June 19th, 2017.