Just tried running the new v1.4 on my Ubuntu-MATE 19.04 system, and unfortunately I don't get much further than with 1.3. The regular and "nwjc" versions both immediately crash on hitting "New Game" (I sent a report already), and the "new" version works fine up until the first combat, where I receive this message:
This is actually a slight improvement over 1.3, because at least I'm now able to navigate the combat menu, even if it does die when I try to actually do anything. But I'll take what little victories I can get at this point.