Update of the Avatar #142 – 2015.09.11: Hilt Fortress, Autism Awareness Drive, Jam Sessions, Nightmare “Mount”, Skeleton & Dragon Decos, Monthly Layaway Extension, and More!

Greetings Fellow Avatars!

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

• The Fortress at Hilt in Nightshade Pass
• Autism Awareness Charity Drive
• Musical Jam Session
• Hangout of the Avatar ~ Release 21 Postmortem
• Finn Staber at Unite 2015
• Nightmare “Mount” Telethon Reward
• Ornate Brass Darklamp
• Skeleton Decorations
• Stone Dragon Statue Decorations
• 52 Day Countdown for Fall Reward & Sale Expirations
• Monthly Layaway Payment Plan Extension
• In-game Community Weekend Events
• This Week In the News
• Upcoming Events
• Recommended Games to Back

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The Fortress at Hilt in Nightshade Pass

[A Dev+ Forum Post by Scottie Jones]

Within the Blackblade Mountains, between South Paladis to the west and Midmaer to the east, is the narrow cleft of Nightshade Pass. At its center the winding pass opens up into a bowl-shaped canyon in which rests a shimmering lake fed by icy water flowing down from glaciers hidden higher in the mountains to the north. On the south end of this valley can be seen the tall volcanic mountain of Hilt that gives this region its name.

According to legend, before the Fall of the shards of the shattered moon, there was a great battle between the Gods of Man and the Avatars. It raged all across the face of the world. One of the Avatars saw that they could not win and so, rather than fight the gods, he plunged his blade into the world, desiring to kill that thing which the gods loved most; their creation. The edge of the sword tore through the fertile lands of the world, opening a great and terrible wound which became known as Hellfire Rift. It was here, then, that the gods in their wrath stopped the Avatar and cast him back into the Abyss from which he came. But the damage had been done and the gods, in their wisdom, left the hilt of the blade exposed until such time as some legendary hero from some other legend were to come along and heal the world. That’s what that southernmost peak is supposed to be; the hilt.

It’s on the north end of the canyon, however, that the area’s most interesting feature can be found. Built over two hundred years ago by the Obsidian general Karpasic (during the time depicted in Blade of the Avatar), the fortress at Hilt was created as a conceit for the glory of the Obsidian military power (which didn’t please the Cabal of the Obsidian Sorcerers). Furthermore, according to legend it was where the military discovered, deep below the earth, the wondrous obsidian forges. During its time, however, the excuse of its building was to further fortify and secure Nightshade Pass itself, since enemy armies could not easily travel through the valley pass without using the bridged ford located between the lower walls of the fortress, exposing them to fire from soldiers and mages stationed on the battlements above.

As I began to build this area, I once again carefully referenced Blade of the Avatar, which luckily described this complex fortification in great detail. The images below show my earliest work as I sculpted the base terrain and laid out the many pieces used for the fortress area itself (luckily a mix of existing objects plus all the Obsidian architectural pieces you saw me create during an earlier post). In this first image, you can see me exiting the western side of the pass and gazing eastward into the canyon bowl in dawn’s early light toward the pass leading to Midmaer. On the left (northern) side of the lake you can see the immense statues flanking either side of the fortress’ lower walls. Please note, I haven’t begun to place trees, plants, or boulders which will further indicate scale and detail, so distant scenes like these will seem quite stark for now.

Moving down into the valley’s bowl, this next image shows the view from the base of these statues as one looks up toward the formidable silhouette of the fortress tower itself, rising five tiers above the valley floor. These tiers are reached by a series of switch-back ramps that lead to the courtyard at the very top. The tower bears all the hallmark visual details of other Obsidian architecture, using as its base form the structure used for the Tower of the Shuttered Eye.

While searching for decent screenshots of this area, our new weather system caused it to become overcast and start raining. The images below capture the fortress walls and tower as they are briefly illuminated by flashes of lightning. Eventually you’ll be able to see cascades of water flowing from those huge drain grates to each of the tier levels below them. In the book it describes inner gates that, in the old days, could be raised or lowered to allow each tier to be flooded in an attempt to destroy any enemy forces attempting to assail the fortress.

In the images below I’ve caught a few views of the area from above, which gives you a better idea of the fortress’ layout. In the second image, gained from walking to the top of the central tower of the upper-most shield wall, we see a view of the distant volcanic peak of Hilt rising above the valley’s southern rim. If one could gaze through that peak (if the map were actually contiguous), the treacherous Hellfire Rift would be seen extending southward toward the Bay of Storms.

Turning back toward the fortress’ main tower you can see the unique entrance of Hilt as described in the novel. Eventually the four statues will have differences between them indicating the fact that they’ve been vandalized over the years, and that they once represented four different Obsidian Lords responsible for the might of their armies.

Here’s another establishing shot seen from the opposite side of the valley. This view can be obtained by climbing up the narrow trail that leads south from the main pass on the east side, as it winds its way up toward the base of the volcano toward the overworld map and the Hellfire Rift zone.

And lastly, another view of the fortress’ entrance, this time from the beginning of the eastern leg of Nightshade Pass. I was lucky enough to capture the shattered moon in the sky, so I just had to share it with you…

I’ll post more as I finish decorating the valley and exterior fortress itself. Enjoy!

Scottie ^_^

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Autism Awareness Charity Drive

Starting this Monday, September 14th, RizeUp Gaming is teaming up with Game4Autism and other stream teams for an Autism Awareness Charity Drive. 24 Hours was not enough last year, so this time they will be going for 8 Days! Yes, you heard right, 8 Days of charity streams to raise donations for autism awareness, acceptance, and support to our autism community. Please tune in and support the stream on Twitch.TV and MLG.TV.

Follow @RizeUpgaming and @Game4Autism on Twitter for more information about giveaways and stream times!!

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Musical Jam Session

Rick “Chaox” Holtrop is even more pumped this week about musical instruments and group playing making it into Release 22. Here’s what he had to say:

Last week we shared an image of the lute “Player Instrument” actively being played. This was the first of our working instruments, and was just one of the many ‘portable’ instruments we will eventually have in the game. This week we have an image of our first ‘stationary instrument’ (the piano), including synchronous group play in action! Here is Chaox on the piano and OneAndOnly on the lute. Both instruments have distinct sounds, so it was very exciting to hear some symphonic music coming from the game!

Just adding something as simple as a piano to the game is a big step forward in evolving custom music and multiplayer orchestrations.  I look forward to jamming together in Release 22!

Rick “Chaox” Holtrop

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Hangout of the Avatar ~ Release 21 Postmortem

We had a great Hangout of the Avatar this week, with Richard, Starr, and Chris chatting about Release 21 and providing a sneak peek at Release 22. FireLotus fielded lots of questions and feedback live in the chat-room and from the original post! Here’s the video in case you missed it live:

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Finn Staber at Unite 2015

Finn Staber, programmer/designer on Shroud of the Avatar, is presenting “AR & VR Development: Sharpening the Tip of the Spear” at Unite 2015 in Boston, September 21:

Successfully adding AR or VR to your studio’s arsenal is expensive, and requires significant R&D burn. Programmers & Designers must act as “early adopters” of this new tech to keep ahead of the curve, and accurately convey emerging feature requirements to clients or other developers. The standard for developing AR/VR experiences is rapidly evolving as developers pioneer new interaction methods & gameplay mechanics. This session will explore best practices for AR & VR as we stride in to the future, and how studios can position their teams ahead of the development curve.

If you’re going to Unite 2015, then be sure and check out Finn’s presentation!

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Nightmare “Mount” Telethon Reward

Last week we announced that we achieved all three of the End of Summer Telethon Funding Stretch Goal Rewards, available to telethon viewers that pledged a minimum of $5 from 10am thru Midnight CST August 31, 2015:

• Achieved!  $10,000 – Gossamer Cloak
• Achieved!  $25,000 – Lord British emote & Darklamp
• Achieved!  $50,000 – Nightmare “Mount” (flaming black coconuts that leave a trail of smoke plus black horse head mask with red flaming eyes)

Last week we previewed the Darklamp reward. Kevin Wells and Finn Staber spent some time this week working on the Nightmare “Mount”. Here’s a work-in-progress shot:

(NOTE: Telethon Funding Stretch Goal Rewards will be available in-game in an upcoming Release)

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Ornate Brass Darklamp

For those that missed out on the Telethon Rewards, we added this Ornate Brass Darklamp to the Add-On Store. The Darklamp sends out a directional beam of light, like a flashlight, versus a torch that sends out light in all directions.

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Skeleton Decorations

We have received numerous requests for skeletons that can be used as decorations, so just in time for Halloween we have added this Skeleton 6-Pack to the Add-On Store:

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Stone Dragon Statue Decorations

Want to make a statement and impress your neighbors? Then dress up your property with an epic Stone Dragon Statue, available in the Add-On Store in four lot sizes: Village, Town, City, and Keep! They can also be placed in Dynamic Player Owned Towns.

Here is a closeup image of the Village size Stone Dragon Statue:

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52 Day Countdown for Fall Reward & Sale Expirations

As we approach the last quarter of 2015, and major milestones such as Alpha and Beta are looming ever closer on the horizon, we are announcing the Fall Reward Expiration Event that occurs at Midnight CST, November 2, 2015. This event includes the following reward expirations:

• Future Episodes 2,3,4 & 5 of Shroud of the Avatar
• Additional Character Slots 2 & 3
• Waterfront Homes & Lots (including Cabana, German Cabana, Lighthouse, Houseboat, Galleon, Castle, and Castle with Keeps)

In addition to the pledge reward expirations, the sale will end on November 2nd for the following Add-On Store items and they will revert to their regular prices (as displayed in the item description): Battle Banner, Tower Village Home, Tower Town Home, Druid Town Home, Airship City Home, Row Lot Property Deeds, Village Lot Property Deed (SOLD OUT), Town Lot Property Deeds, and City Lot Property Deeds

[More Fall Reward Expiration details…]

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Monthly Layaway Payment Plans Extended Thru February 2016

We’ve added three (3) additional months to the monthly layaway payment plan, extending it from November 2015 to February 2016.

Auto-Canceling Monthly Layaway Payment Plans

We have finally developed the ability to automatically cancel monthly layaway payment plans, no longer requiring you to cancel them manually. Starting September 7, 2015, any payment plans that reach their desired pledge level will be canceled automatically. You are still able to cancel your plan manually at anytime by going to your Account page.

There are several payment plans that have exceeded their designated pledge level that have not been manually canceled by their account holder. The backers of these payment plans will have until September 30th to contact our customer service department at support@portalarium.com to let us know that they would like for the payment plan to continue, or they will be automatically canceled on September 30, 2015.

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In-game Weekend Community Events

Our amazing community has another great lineup of in-game events planned for this weekend. Special thanks to community member Justyn (Clan of the Wolf) for her help in compiling the latest schedule of player events from the Avatar’s Circle Community Events calendar and the Events of the Avatars community calendar:

Recurring Events

• Release 20 Deco Contest – Shops & Markets
  • This event has been extended! Get your entries in by September 21st, and judging will begin on September 25th. Your entry should be some kind of shop/bazaar/market/black market/trading post/harbor. Having a Vendor isn’t requirement. There will be prizes! Click here to enter the contest.
• The R21 Unreliable Travel Guide
  • The Unreliable Travel Guide, created at the SotA Writing Round Table, is not an event, but a a collection of hilarious short stories published by two drunken layabouts who have nothing better to do than try to derive a dishonest income from newly arrived avatars. (details)
• Avatars Radio (Daily Programming)
  • Welcome New Britannians to Avatars Radio – Radio of the Avatars. Rocking your socks off from the town of Radio City with the Terrestrial and New Britannian bards together under one roof through the power of the Moon Towers.  Check out their daily program of amazing DJs:  http://avatarsradio.info/schedule.php
• NBNN Lunch with Lazarus (Daily, 12pm CST)
  • Join Lazarus every weekday for the daily goings on in SOTA. Calendar updates, relevant issues happening in the days news, chat about upcoming events and general information. Feel free to call in or join us in team speak and tell us WHAT YOU THINK. http://www.twitch.tv/nbnnnews
• Daily War Time PVP Event (Daily, 6pm CST – 11pm CST)
  • Invitation to all guilds, PK hunters, PVP’rs or players interested in PVP training to come to Chaos Crossroads (Located at the crossroads outside of Kingsport on the road to Owl’s Head). PVP Event rules: None! Use whatever spells you want, kill in mobs or solo, group with new allies and defend your territory, lure newbies into the town and wack them! (details)
• Daily Breakfast Club – 12am CST (London UK); 6am CST (Central US); 3pm CST (Sydney Australia)
  • Breakfast Clubs offer a time when people from around different time zones can gather. (Wody’s Pub, Paxlair)
• Gladiator Wars (Mondays, 7pm CST)
  • A call to all fighters PVE and PVP! Would you like to participate in the “Gladiator Wars” PvP Tournaments? Registration starts at 6pm CST. (details)
• “The Tavern Respite” RP Event (Mondays, 8pm CST)
  • The tavern door opens before you, and the scent of pipe and stew waft outwards with a wall of warmth from the hearth. Join in with the patrons of the Bear Tavern as they share tales of their adventures amid endless mugs of ale, legs of mutton, and merriment unbounded (details)!
• Challenge Dungeon Run (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 7pm CST)
  • This is a self-host event, meet at the Braemar Cemetery and organize into groups to take on the infamous Chillblain’s Compendium of Pain & Suffering!
• PaxLair Working Hours – Host Sean Silverfoot (Tuesdays, 2pm)
  • PaxLair town and community “working hours” are for anyone interested in PaxLair. We will be in New Britannia doing things as a town when many people can work together. Sean Silverfoot hosts this working period. / zone Sean Silverfoot
• Novian Academy – New Citizen Help Hours (Tuesdays, 6pm CST)
  • /zone Kazyn Phoenixfyre of Novian Academy in Soltown as they provide guidance to those new to the world of New Britannia.
• Phoenix Republic Weekly Correspondents Dinner (Wednesdayas, 7pm CST)
  • Join the Phoenix Republic and all of our friends and allies in a weekly dinner and working hour (Port Phoenix Capital Building)
• Happy Hour Wednesdays (Wednesdays, 8pm CST)
  • Otherwise known as “Spend Stryker’s Gold” – Stryker will open a bar tab at one of the local Novia taverns for an hour or so for drinks, stories, news, critique of the arts, dancing, and otherwise unplanned mayhem. Zone /Stryker Sparhawk or watch this thread for locations each week!
• Storytime with royalsexy (Thursdays, 7am CST)
  • Join royalsexy in Radio City for stories and chats. /zone royalsexy or hike aaaaalll the way to Radio City to join in. Also live on Avatars Radio http://avatarsradio.info
• Phoenix Republic – Military Drills – Control Points (Thursdays & Fridays, 7pm CST)
  • Join the Phoenix Republic as we send our weekly foray into the control points, dungeons and other of the most dangerous locales. Each week we will depart to a different PVE locale to help train our combatants. Contact Kazyn Phoenixfyre for more info!
• Vengeance Madness (Fridays, 7pm CST)
  • This is an Open PvP event where everyone fights it out in a royal rumble to see who the ultimate death dealer is! (City of Vengeance; /zone Bambino LudoVate)
• Astronomy Event (Fridays, 8pm CST)
  • Interested in New Britannia Astronomy? Just enjoy gazing at the stars? Join us every week as we explore the night sky above New Britannia. (Player Town of Caer Dracwych; details)

Saturday, September 12

• 9:00am CST PaxLair Working Hours
  • PaxLair town and community “working hours” are for anyone interested in PaxLair. (/zone Winfield)
• 11:00am CST Church of the Dark Star – Saturday Service
  • Join Lady Amber Raine, High Priestess of the Church of the Dark Star along with Kazyn Phoenixfyre of the Church of the Sun, as they bring another thought provoking service. (PaxLair; details)
• 12:00pm CST Welcome Quest R21.5
  • The Welcome Quest is a quest for all people to see many towns and establishments. It is created as a way for people to visit many player-ran locations. It involves each town and establishment to give the quest person some information and then instructions to go to the next location (a town or establishment) to do something. We will be visiting Island of Wonders and Dragon’s Fall! (/zone Dara Brae; details)
• 1:00pm CST Dark Tower in Dara Brae (An AD&D style of event)
  • You are invited to a new style of game play that we are testing out. This adventure will be a pseudo-SotA game play and pseudo-AD&D game play mixed into one. A mysterious dark tower suddenly appeared on the mystical island of Duchy of Dara Brae. Where did it come from? How did it get there? Why is it there? Help Duke Greagoir figure out these questions. (Duchy of Dara Brae pavilion or /zone Dara Brae; details)
• 4:00pm CST Avatars Radio Race Challenge
  • Avatars Radio is holding our second Race Challenge event, in the town of Radio City. This track is a little easier than last time, to cater to more avatars.
    PRIZES: 1st Aether Vibration Amplifier Console, 2nd $15 store credit, 3rd $10 store credit. The Turkey Run has been renamed as the Crapper Run. (Radio City, or /zone Woftam; details)
• 7:00pm CST Port Phoenix: Gustball Challenge Matches
  • Come on out to Port Phoenix to join the republic in a series of 1v1 and 2v2 Gustball matches! Each match is played first to four points wins! (Port Phoenix, Firehawk Field, or /zone Kazyn Phoenixfyre)
• 8:00pm CST Vengeance 1v1 Tournament
  • The longest running Player vs Player tournament in Shroud of the Avatar. (City of Vengeance)

Sunday, September 13

• 6:30am CST Explore Novia with royalsexy (PaxLair Moon Tower, /zone royalsexy)
• 8:30am CST PaxLair Meeting
  • Come see what PaxLair is up to in Novia and other town areas! Many people also attend from towns and guilds for a bit of a weekly wrap-up and what’s happening. Good discussions! (PaxLair, /zone Winfield)
• 11:00am CST Phoenix Republic Town Hall/Working Hours
  • A Gathering of members of the Phoenix Republic to cover important topic areas of the month. (Republic Town Hall, Port Phoenix, /zone Kazyn Phoenixfyre or Jack Knyfe)
• 3:00pm CST Gustball
  • Two teams are pitted against each other in a sporting event not dissimilar from soccer, football, and basketball. The object of the game is to Gust a Gustball around the field and into your opponent’s goal (/zone Bambino Ludovate, details)
• 5:00pm CST BMC Grid Iron Feast and Registration
  • Register to compete in the BMC Gridiron and mingle with other participants and spectators before the big fight! (Blackrock Point on Novia near Etceter Crag Mines, details)
• 5:30pm CST BMC Gladiator’s Grid-Iron
  • The BMC is proud to present the nastiest, the foulest, the most feared arena in all of New Britannia! The Grid-Iron is equipped with a pit-style arena, locker rooms, a VIP round-table, betting & vendor booths, and all the blood-sport you can handle. (Blackrock Point on Novia near Etceter Crag Mines, details)
• 7:00pm CST PaxLair Meeting
  • Come see what PaxLair is up to in Novia and other town areas! Many people also attend from towns and guilds for a bit of a weekly wrap-up and what’s happening. Good discussions!  (PaxLair, /zone Winfield)
• 8:00pm CST Fishing with Winfield (in Avenguard)
  • Come sit with Winfield on a log or rock to hear some fish tales or tell your own. Chat about anything from the moons to the earth worms. Spend a relaxing day in nature near a stream or lake — bring insect repellent or a sword.  (some fishing spot or pond, /zone Winfield)

Be sure and check out the Release 21 Events thread in the SotA forums for additional events that may not be included here.

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Avatars Radio’s Second Race Challenge

[A Release 21 Events Forum post by Woftam]

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This Week In the News

August 25 – MMORPG: Column – Release 21 – Victa Ultima!

September 5 – Ten Ton Hammer: Shroud of the Avatar: MMO Community Updates Done Right

September 11 – Feel the Burn – The Many Ways Shroud of the Avatar Conserves Cash

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Upcoming Events

2015.09.21 – Unite 2015
2015.09.24 – Release 22
2015.10.29 – Release 23
2015.11.19 – Release 24
2015.12.17 – Release 25
2016.01.28 – Release 26
2016.02.25 – Release 27
2016.03.17 – SXSW Gaming

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Recommended Games to Back

Battle Chaser: Nightwar

Battle Chasers: Nightwar is an RPG inspired by the classic console greats, featuring deep dungeon diving, turn-based combat presented in a classic JRPG format, and tons of secrets, story and randomly-generated replay goodness.

Nightwar is currently planned for release on PC and Mac, both on Steam and DRM-free on GoG, as well as Xbox One and PS4. The game is being created by ex-Vigil Games veterans, including two of Vigil’s co-founders, Joe Madureira and Ryan Stefanelli.