The Workbench

The forge behind the world

The Workbench is our own tool for building Isara. One half shapes the land; the other decides what happens in it.

Why Build Our Own

A small team needs sharp tools

Off-the-shelf editors are built for every game. The Workbench is built for exactly one: a 3D isometric online world where the camera turns and every quest is wired into the map.

Made for our view

We edit the world from the same isometric angles players see, with the same rotating camera — so what we build is what you get.

Content without code

Designers build quests, events and encounters by connecting blocks, not by waiting for a programmer.

Faster to fun

Press play from inside the editor and walk straight into the scene you just made. Less waiting, more testing.

Part One

Map Editor

Where the land of Isara is raised: zones, terrain, dungeons and every torch on every wall, laid out in 3D.

Map Editor — zone overview
Map Editor — zone overviewScreenshot coming soon

Terrain sculpting

Raise, lower, smooth and paint terrain with brushes, and blend several ground materials in one stroke.

Modular dungeons

Snap rooms, corridors and gates together on a grid, then break the grid when a room needs to feel handmade.

Prop placement

Scatter rocks, crates and ruins by hand or with brushes that follow the slope of the land.

Live lighting

Place torches and braziers and see their light and shadows update as you work, by day and by night.

Map Editor — terrain sculpting
Map Editor — terrain sculptingScreenshot coming soon
Map Editor — placing dungeon props
Map Editor — placing dungeon propsScreenshot coming soon
Part Two

Sequence & Trigger Manager

When something happens in the world, what follows? Events, quest steps, cutscenes and scripted encounters are wired together here.

Sequence & Trigger Manager — a quest chain
Sequence & Trigger Manager — a quest chainScreenshot coming soon

How an encounter is wired

WHENPlayer enters Crypt Gate THENClose gate · Play warning THENSpawn wave · Hollow Guard ×6 ONAll enemies defeated THENOpen gate · Advance quest step

Visual event graphs

Connect "when", "then" and "on" blocks to describe what happens, in the order it happens.

Quest steps on the map

Every trigger is linked to a place in the Map Editor, so designers see where each step of a quest happens.

Cutscene timeline

Line up camera moves, dialogue and effects on a timeline for short in-engine scenes.

Play from here

Jump into the game at any step of a sequence to test an encounter without replaying the whole quest.

Sequence & Trigger Manager — a scripted encounter
Sequence & Trigger Manager — a scripted encounterScreenshot coming soon

Light your torch

Isara Online is being built in the open. Join the Discord to talk with the team, and sign up for news and playtest invitations.