Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar:

Game Development

• The Making of East Vauban Foothills
• The Making of Norgard Fens (cont.)
• Heraldry Items (cont.)
• R53 Livestream Sky Navy Themed Items

News Announcements

• R54 Livestream Results and Videos
• (SPOILER) POT Row Lot Deed Reward for Completing Story (R55)
• NPC Submission Requests: Brittany Alleys
• Portalarium is Hiring: Web Developer
• Weekend Flash Sale: Musical Instruments
• Upcoming Events Calendar

Community Updates

• Royal Gardeners Wanted! New Decoration Contest
• Spotlight: Beran’s Reach
• A Grandmaster Crafting Tutoring Event
• Wild Safari Presents ‘Boogie Nights’
• Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Concert and Birthday Celebration
• AERIE Fund – 24-hour Streamathon, Primal Nature – June 23
• Win a Pair of SOTACON 2018 Tickets!
• Relics by Rild on Meretz: Win Shroud Swag!
• Project to Support: Portrait of Scottie for Shroud of the Avatar
• Resources: Players Helping Players

The Making of East Vauban Foothills

This hilly area is northeast of Vauban pass in the Drachvald region. It was previously a Tier 3 area but is being upgraded to a Tier 5 area for Release 55. The increase in difficulty of this scene is part of a longer term effort where we will be increasing the difficulty of several scenes to better match the surrounding scenes and the character’s progress along the associated story paths that bring you near those scenes. Undead have overrun a village here and Ebon Dawn Cultists are taking advantage of the resulting chaos.

[From a A Dev+ Forum Post by Chris “Sea Wolf” Wolf]

Hey folks! I have a few screenshots to share of my current progress on East Vauban Foothills. In this scene, an Ebon Dawn mage has converted the population of a small village into zombies, and is performing experiments on them to see if their humanity can be restored.

Cavern Scout Camp

Read more…

Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar:

Game Development

• Improving the Ebon Dawn Cultists
• The Making of Norgard Fens
• Double XP for Week 1 & 2 of Release 54!

News Announcements

• R54 Livestream Continued Today From 3-7pm CT (8-12pm GMT)
• NPC Submission Requests: Brittany Alleys
• Portalarium is Hiring: Web Developer
• Weekend Flash Sale: Patterns
• Upcoming Events Calendar

Community Updates

• Royal Gardeners Wanted! New Decoration Contest
• Community Spotlight – Veritas Sanctuary
• BMC 20th Anniversary Event – Friday, June 8 at 8pm CT
• Chicken and Stars Party – Tuesday, June 12 at 8pm CT
• AERIE Fund – 24-hour Streamathon, Primal Nature – June 23
• Win a Pair of SOTACON 2018 Tickets!
• Relics by Rild on Meretz: Win Shroud Swag!
• Project to Support: Crowfall
• Resources: Players Helping Players

Improving the Ebon Dawn Cultists

The Ebon Dawn Cultists are modern Novian worshipers of the historic Obsidian Order. They seek to restore the ancient power of the Obsidians and work with the Obsidian Cabalists and even the Undead. Until now these enemies have been using the same art as bandits. In Release 55 they will be getting their own art based on the Obsidian Order armor we created for the Release 52 Livestream Stretchgoals, albeit these versions are darker in color and more worn in appearance. Additionally in Release 56 you will be able to loot these enemies for this armor and salvage it for patterns.

Ebon Dawn Fighter

Read more…

Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar:

Game Development

• Play Release 54 Now!
• Double XP for Week 1 & 2 of Release 54!

News Announcements

• Release 54 Livestream – June 4
• Release 54 Dance Party Today!
• Release 54 Lot Deed Raffle Winners
• NPC Submission Requests: Brittany Alleys
• Portalarium is Hiring: Web Developer
• Weekend Flash Sale: Obsidians
• Upcoming Events Calendar

Community Updates

• Livestream: The Companions Revisited
• R54 Welcome Quest – Lux Sanctuary – Saturday, June 2 at 12pm CT
• AERIE Fund – Community Cause – Primal Nature – June 2018
• Win a Pair of SOTACON 2018 Tickets!
• Project to Support: Midboss
• Resources: Players Helping Players

Play Release 54 Now!

Release 54 successfully launched yesterday, May 31, with thousands of backers downloading, patching, and logging in to check out the changes! There’s lots of new content to explore, including:

• Performance Improvements
• Scene Rebuilds: Westend (town), Shaminian Hills, Upper Tears
• Skeleton Plunderers
• More Side Quests: Companion Gear, Soltown Sewers, Solania Catacombs
• Combat Polish & New Weapons Audio
• More Heraldry Items: Chest, Standing Banner, Gloves, Boots, Basement Hatch
• More Adventure Scene Blessings
• User Interface Polish: Containers in Containers, Containers in Mail
• Companion AI Polish
• New Recipes: Hot Tub, Bathtubs, Elven Lights, Crate, Barrel, Standing Banner
• Increased Decoration Limits
• New Homes & Basements: Shopfront Row Homes, Basement Inns, Basement Hatches
• New Decorations: Globe Container, Large Telescope, Hourglasses, Perennial Coast Paintings
• R52 Livestream Obsidian Order Items
• R54 QA Testing Incentive Winners
• R54 Lot Deed Raffle Winners

…and much more!

Read more…

Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar:

Game Development

• Zombie Children
• Heraldry Items (cont.)

News Announcements

• Release 54 Livestream
• Release 54 on the QA Server
• Release 54 Dance Party
• Portalarium is Hiring: Web Developer
• Weekend Flash Sale: Pets & Fur
• Upcoming Events Calendar

Community Updates

• Spotlight: Rauchbier Platz
• Livestream: Westend & Store Housing
• The 4th Annual Soldier’s Memorial Ball – May 26
• AERIE Fund – Community Cause – Primal Nature – June 2018
• Win a $50 Gift Card to RelicsbyRild.com!
• Project to Support: Sybil
• Resources: Players Helping Players

Zombie Children

When the undead rise the young will rise along with the old. While they might not have the reach of an adult zombie they make up for it in stealthiness and in making you hesitate before you strike, a hesitation that might cost you your life. Zombie Children will begin appearing in select locations in Release 55.

Read more…

Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar:

Game Development

• Female Peasant Wearables
• The Making of Shaminian Hills (cont.)
• Heraldry Items (cont.)

News Announcements

• Release 54 on the QA Server
• NPC Submission Requests: Central Brittany
• Portalarium is Hiring: Web Developer
• Weekend Flash Sale: Statues
• Upcoming Events Calendar

Community Updates

• Livestream: Looking For Group & Heraldry
• Elaina’s Lost Bow Quest
• Rauchbier Platz – Virtue, Chaos and Brewing Quests
• Win a $50 Gift Card to RelicsbyRild.com!
• Project to Support: Wasteland 3
• Resources: Players Helping Players

Female Peasant Wearables

In Release 50 we replaced all the art for our female peasants to upgrade the visuals and in Release 53 we did another iteration on their faces for further improvements. For Release 55 we are making wearable versions of the Female Peasant clothing that will be available in-game as either recipes or patterns. There will be eight dresses, two hats, and three shoes. All of the cloth items will be dye-able.

Plaid Shawl Peasant Dress

Read more…

Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar:

Game Development

• New Creatures: Skeleton Plunderers and Unicorns
• The Making of Shaminian Hills
• The Making of Upper Tears
• The Making of Westend (cont.)
• R52 Livestream Obsidian Order Items (cont.)
• Heraldry Items (cont.)

News Announcements

• R53 Livestream Results, YouTube & Missed Questions
• NPC Submission Requests: Central Brittany
• New Trailers: The Path of Virtue and The Path of Anti-Virtue
• Portalarium is Hiring: Web Developer
• Weekend Flash Sale: Fireworks
• Upcoming Events Calendar

Community Updates

• Event (Dev Led): Charge of the Dragons
• Win a $50 Gift Card to RelicsbyRild.com!
• Project to Support: SOTACON Austin 2018 – VIP Experience Package on sale now!
• Resources: Players Helping Players

New Creatures: Skeleton Plunderers and Unicorns

New creatures will soon be appearing in Novia, some more rare than others!

Skeleton Plunderers are Undead Plunderers who are cursed to wander the land forever seeking treasure. Kevin “UglyFist” Wells built these latest additions to our Undead army by meshing our Plunderers (who Fletcher “Scathana” Kinnear built in R53) with our Skeleton Mages, Warriors, and Archers. Skeleton Plunderers should appear in R54 in areas like Blood Bay and Penmawr Island.

Plunderer Skeleton Warriors: 

Read more…

Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar:

Game Development

• The Making of Westend
• R52 Livestream Obsidian Order Items (cont.)
• Heraldry Items (cont.)

News Announcements

• Double XP Final Week for Release 53!
• Store Credits Exchange to Gold Crowns: May 7th
• NPC Submission Requests: Central Brittany
• Portalarium is Hiring: Web Developer
• Weekend Flash Sale: Homes and Lot Deeds
• Upcoming Events Calendar

Community Updates

• Community Livestream: Hospitallers & Ambassadors
• Event (Dev Led): Charge of the Dragons!
• Event (Community Led): PaxLair’s Campfire Stories Vol II
• Did You Know: Shroud of the Avatar Has Greenhouses!
• Recommended Project to Support: Underworld Ascendant
• Resources: Players Helping Players

The Making of Westend

The town of Westend is located in the Verdantis region on the western coast of Novia. The combination of Norgard architecture and wetlands creates a unique visual element to the town not seen anywhere else in Novia. Westend is the port that serves adventurers traveling to Verdantis Shardfall and while the town remains small it has grown prosperous from trade because of the resources brought back by those lucky enough to survive the Shardfall. Of course many say those resources came off the bodies of dead adventures…

[From a Dev+ Forum Post by Esteben “SorcerousSteve” Zaldivar]

Hey guys SorcerousSteve here to give you a sneak peek at the uncloning of Westend!

Westend is located on the western end of Verdantis in close proximity to the Verdantis Shardfall. Alongside this it is in close proximity to Norgard, so for this particular uncloning we decided to bring in our Viking style architecture and improve the theme of the area as a coastal swamp biome.

The NPC center and cluster of shops in the heart of town have now received a major makeover with multi-level platforms that rise above the swamp alongside the addition of bringing in viking themed architecture, furniture and additional propping.

Read more…

Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar:

Game Development

• Play Release 53 Now!
• R52 Livestream Obsidian Items

News Announcements

• Double XP for Week 1 & 2 of Release 53!
• R53 Livestream – May 4, 2018 (Spring Themed!)
• Crown Items Added to Add On Store
• Store Credits Exchange to Gold Crowns: May 7th
• R53 QA Testing Incentive, QA Stress Test and Lot Deed Winners
• NPC Submission Requests: Central Brittany
• Portalarium is Hiring: Web Developer
• Weekend Flash Sale: Armor & Clothing
• Upcoming Events Calendar

Community Updates

• Spotlight: Ordinis Mortis’ Gallery of Fine Art
• Community Livestreams & Calendar
• Event: Bahamut’s Royal Battle
• Did You Know: Shroud of the Avatar Features In-game Radio?
• Recommended Project to Support: Crowfall
• Resources: Players Helping Players

Play Release 53 Now!

Release 53 successfully launched yesterday, April 26, with thousands of backers downloading, patching, and logging in to check out the changes! There’s lots of new content to explore, including:

• Scene Rebuilds: Tenebris Harbor, Penmawr Island, Eastmarch (town)
• Looking for Group
• Loot Improvements: Player Gear, Decorations, Worn Armor, Lot Deeds
• Offline Drop Rates Increased
• Virtue Effects for Gear
• Combat Polish
• More Side Quests
• Heraldry for everyone
• More Adventure Scene Blessings
• User Interface Polish
• New Plunderer NPCs
• New Homes: Haunted Pirate Galleons & Kobold Inn
• New Decorations: Bathtubs, Animal Skin Rugs, Toadstools, Elven Lights, Elf Statues
• R51 Livestream Darkstarr Items
• R53 QA Testing Incentive Winners
• R53 Lot Deed Raffle Winners

…and much more!

Read more…

Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar:

Game Development

• Heraldry Items (cont.)
• Decoration Loot
• The Making of Penmawr Island (cont.)
• The Making of Tenebris Harbor (cont.)

News Announcements

• Release 53 on the QA Server
• Stress Test on QA Server Mon Apr 23 = Double XP if Successful!
• Store Credits Exchange to Gold Crowns: May 7th
• R53 Dance Party Apr 27: Double Feature 2-4 & 6-8 PM CDT
• Stream with Us! New Livestreamer Program & Calendar
• Lot Deed Monthly Raffle Returns
• Portalarium is Hiring: Web Developer
• Free Trial: Choose Any Path
• Weekend Flash Sale: Starry Eyes
• Upcoming Events Calendar

Community Updates

• Screenshot Contest – Winners Announced!
• Spotlight: Aelasar’s Forest – Player Town
• Livestream: The Sounds of Music
• Event: Diamond Fields Bunny Hunt – Weekends Through R52
• Did You Know: Shroud of the Avatar has Tailoring and Carpentry Skills?
• Recommended Project to Support: Denis Loubet Patreon
• Resources: Players Helping Players

Heraldry Items (cont.)

In Release 52 we added Heraldry as a reward for eligible Kickstarter Founder era backers. In Release 53 Heraldry will be open for everyone through the sale of Heraldry Eternal Patterns in the Add-On Store. We are also adding a Cloak to the growing number of items you can use to display your heraldry. Note that these items are visually distinct from the Founder versions we released in Release 52.

This week we added the regular versions of Heraldry Armor, banners, and shield (which is rectangular). We also introduced a heraldry cloak.

Players continue to post pics of their heraldry in the thread they started a few weeks ago and the results are amazing!

Check out this helpful guide for submitting blazon artwork.

Read more…