Update of the Avatar #160 – 2016.01.22: The Making of Paladis Shardfall & Dysborg Ruins, Expired Reward Changes, Offline Content Poll, and More!

Greetings Fellow Avatars!

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

• The Making of Paladis Shardfall
• The Making of Dysborg Ruins
• Changes to Expired Patron, Navigator, and Developer Pledges
• POLL: All Content Available in Offline Mode?
• R25 End Of The World Party (Doc’s Cotton Pickin’ Party)
• Fastest Decorator in the West
• Bear Tavern Brawl R25
• Fireworks 45-Piece Assortment 2
• In-game Community Events
• Upcoming Events
• Recommended Projects to Back

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The Making of Paladis Shardfall – Part 2

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

Hey guys, its SorcerousSteve once again, here to give you an update on the Paladis Shardfall!

At the center of the crater lay the ominous Obsidian shards now surrounded by alien life.

The confluence of the Fortus River and the Sanctus River, which come together and fall to the crater as one! Fortus (red) flowing from the West meets the Sanctus (blue) flowing from the East.

Located beneath this waterfall is the doorway to the Pool of Destiny. More about this upcoming scene and the adventures the Avatar will face there later…

The Shardfall Crater comes to life at night vibrant with emissive alien plants and glowbugs.

That’s it for now!
See you next time with a new map and a new adventure.

Esteben Zaldivar
Level Designer

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The Making of Dysborg Ruins

[From a Dev+ Forum post by Richard Matey]

Hi guys, wanted to give you an early look at one of the new PVP zones, Dysborg Ruins. This map is an old historic Obsidian City that has been abandoned for hundreds of years and has fallen into disarray. The Obsidian shards have been warping the land slowly over time, bringing in unusual plant life and helping with the breakdown of the architecture.

Here is where Dysborg is located on the world map:

Gathering reference, I knew this was based on a rolling hills area, that had a coast line, one main road, Obsidian shard, ruined architecture, etc.

From there, I drew a small draft of what I envisioned for the land mass and the key focal points I needed to hit on.

Which, over time, turned into this:

I wish I had more progress shots to show you how this shaped up over time, but here are the nearly final images of the map for now.

Coast line:

Church-like building:

The east entrance road:

Obsidian shard courtyard:

Destroyed home:

Shards / vegetation:

Old docks:

Richard Matey
Level Designer

[NOTE: Keith Quinn pulled a late night last night and managed to get Dysborg Ruins spawned, ahead of expected schedule. That means we’ll be including Dysborg Ruins in Release 26. Yay!]

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Changes to Expired Patron, Navigator, and Developer Pledges

During the Summer Expiration Event on August 31, 2015, we expired the Patron, Navigator, and Developer Pledges. Our intention when we expired them was that you would only get the rewards for that expired pledge (and below) if you were at that pledge level on August 31, and you would not get the rewards of any higher expired pledges as you upgraded. For example, if you were at Patron on August 31, then later upgraded to Citizen, you would not receive the Navigator and Developer rewards.

Unfortunately, the way we worded those expirations did not make this clear. In fact, several backers that read our description interpreted it to mean that if they were at least at Patron level by August 31 they would be eligible to receive the Navigator and Developer rewards if they upgraded to Citizen or higher.

We agree that our wording of those expirations can be interpreted differently than our intended meaning, so we are changing the delivery of those expired pledge rewards to match the interpretation of those that were affected by it. Therefore, any backer that pledged to at least Patron level by August 31, 2015 will also receive the expired Navigator and Developer rewards when they upgrade to Citizen or above.

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POLL: All Content Available in Offline Mode?

Back in December, Executive Producer Starr Long (aka Darkstarr), posted a survey in the SotA Dev+ Forums about making all Add-On Store items and Pledge Rewards available to be earned or crafted in-game in Single Player Offline Mode. We believe this will greatly increase the quality and value of the basic game experience in single player offline mode.

There are currently 91% “Yes” votes out of the 635 responses from the Dev+ poll. Based on feedback in that thread, we felt it was important to poll our entire backer community, so we posted the same poll in the Public Forums earlier this week, which is currently running 96% “Yes” votes:

Please follow this link to the Public Forum Survey post and cast your vote.

Below is the full content of Starr’s public forum survey post:

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POLL: All Content Available in Offline Mode?

Back in February 2015 I posted about some unique items related to Single Player Offline. Item #4 of that post stated the following:

• Content: There are a few items that we are not going to sell in game in Online mode including the Castle and Keep sized lots. However we do plan to make those available in Offline mode along with a handful of other items yet to be finalized.

After reading about how negatively many backers (and external folks as well) view our Pledge structure and Add On Store we thought a powerful gesture would be to make ALL content available in Offline mode including ALL add on store items and pledge rewards. Players would still have to earn enough gold to purchase them or gather enough resources to make them in game, unless they purchased them which in that case they would start the game with them just like they do now.

Our only concern is that backers who did pay for the content might feel upset that content they believed exclusive was available to any player (even if only in offline mode).

Last month I started a poll in Dev+ to get some initial reaction from the group with the “most to lose”. That poll is currently standing at over 90% positive, so at the request of several Dev+ backers we have decided to expand the poll to ALL our backers (here). Thank you in advance for participating.

Notes:

• Earned/Crafted: As mentioned above all these item will have to be crafted or purchased with gold. The bigger items like LotM house will only be affordable after many, many hours of play. You will NOT just get them all at the start, unless you purchased them. That is the purchase value in offline: you start with items everyone else has to earn.
• Offline Firewalled: Offline mode has ZERO connectivity to online modes. Nothing can move between the two modes.
• Online only items: Some items have functionality that is only useful in online mode (ex. Fyndoro’s Tablet, Noble Discourse Orb, etc.). In most cases these items will be reduced to non-functional decorations but in a few cases we will try to make an offline function.
• Hacking: In Offline mode hackers will create mods that unlock all the content anyway

[VOTE HERE]

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[From a Release 25 Events Forum post by Apollox Evanheart]

R25 End Of The World Party (Doc’s Cotton Pickin’ Party)

AVATAR’S RADIO PRESENTS
A Sandillox Ent & Memento Mori Event:
*~*r25 End Of The World Party*~*
*~Phoenix Fields~*
(Doc’s Cotton Pickin Party)
Friday, Jan 22nd 10pm NBT
Lets Leave r25 With A Bang!

*~*~*Lets Dance, Drink, and have some fun winning up to $150.00 in Add-On Store Credits*~*~*

Music provided by DJ Apollox Evanheart via stream through In-game radios
or directly from Avatars Radio

For A Good Time Zone To:
/zone Roper Docholiday
/zone Night Fury
/zone Majoria

Cotton Field Elevated Dance Floor
Four Hot Tubs
COTTON!
Bar
GoGo Platform
Avatars Radio!!!

You must pre-register to the event to participate
To register, all you have to do is post on this thread with the reply of…
“Sign me up for the contest”

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Fastest Decorator in the West

[From a Release 25 Events Forum post by Lace]

Location: Diamond Fields (/zone Lace)
Time: 1:00 pm CST Saturday, January 23
Prizes: 1st Place, 100k gold – 2nd Place, 50k gold – 3rd Place, 25k gold

Diamond Fields is happy to announce our second event. We are located a wagon’s ride from Port Phoenix on the Elysium Isles. This is a role play event where our top realm decorators go head to head with limited time, space and materials. We can accept only up to 10 contestants for this contest as we only have 10 similar sized rooms to be decorated. We will be using the City size adobe house for this competition. We will only be using the following areas for our contestants:

• 5 square rooms on the bottom floor, not the elongated rectangular rooms, stairways, or hallways
• 5 square rooms on the second floor, not the elongated rectangular rooms, stairways, or hallways

Judging Categories:

• Use of color 1-20
• Overall Appeal 1-20
• Functionality 1-20
• Attention to Detail 1-20 (is stuff crooked when it sholdn’t be)

[Click here for more details…]

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[From a Release 25 Events Forum Post by Archaon]

Saturday January 23rd 2016 3:00pm NBT

Yes it’s back by popular demand!!!

All combatants (especially if you are new) are welcome to show up at 2:30pm NBT
as we will give a run down of the tournament proceedings

Located at Victory Arena district of Beran’s Reach
/zone Archaon Avenguard or Balec deCani at the requested time.

Battle Master(s):
Archaon Avenguard
Balec deCani

Max Participants
32

[Click here for more details…]

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Congratulations to the winners of last months Bear Tavern Brawl R24!

1. Mimner
2. Cunning Stranger
3. Athanil (who is also the architect of the amazing Battle Arena)

If you missed last month’s exciting Brawl then check out this video provided by Balec deCani:

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Fireworks 45-Piece Assortment 2

Celebrate the Lunar New Year with a bang with this 45-piece fireworks assortment, available now in the Add-On Store! Assortment includes:

• 15 green rockets
• 15 packs of 60-count red ground missiles
• 15 packs of 60-count yellow ground missiles

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In-game Community Events

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

Recurring Events

• Vanguard Decoration Contest – R24 / R25
  • Vanguard is hosting a decoration contest. To enter you must place a lot in Vanguard and decorate it as best as you can. If you don’t have a lot / house then you can borrow one for the duration of the contest. If you already have a lot / house then feel free to drop by and take an empty lot. This contest lasts for the whole duration of R24 and R25. 1st Place wins $30 Store Credit! (details)
• RPOTA Monthly $170 Writing Contest – January Janus Creation Contest features Cataclysm or Survival Themes!
  • Here ye! Here ye! Biographers, Historians, Diplomats, Journalists, Story Writers, Quest Designers and Videographers! RPOTA is in dire need of your amazing talents! Role-Players of the Avatar is hosting a monthly contest to award those most famous with their quill or camera! (details)
• The Unreliable Travel Guide
  • The Unreliable Travel Guide, created at the SotA Writing Round Table, is not an event, but 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 Laz & Jack (Weekdays, 12pm CST)
  • Join NBNN every weekday for Lunch With Laz & Jack. They will be covering the daily goings on in SOTA. Calendar updates, Relevant issues happening in the days news. Come chat with us about upcoming events and general information. http://nbnn.info
• Daily War Time PVP Event (Daily, 8pm CST – 9pm 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)
• EVL Hat Master Weekly Grand Tour Quest (Mondays, 7pm CST)
  • Have you ever wanted that cool looking release hat you’ve seen around town? Well now is your chance! It is with great pleasure that Every Virtue is Lasting < EVL> would like to announce a new weekly event aimed at anyone who wishes to grab the current release hat but needs a little help and direction to do so. (Soltown Tavern, /zone Gnick Gnack)
• “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 (The Bear Tavern; /zone Elgarion De’Khali; details)!
• Challenge Dungeon Run (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 10am & 7pm CST)
  • This is a self-host event that meets at the Braemar Cemetery. Join whoever can make it for a dungeon run, adventure or something along those lines. Come prepared for combat. Learn how to set up your combat system if you need help.
• PaxLair Town Manager Hour (Tuesdays, 2:00pm CST)
  • Join PaxLair’s Town Manager, Sean Silverfoot, to ask questions about PaxLair, being a Citizen, holding a lot and any other questions concerning PaxLair or any of it’s boroughs (Dragons Watch, Tenakill, Lockbrier, Island of Wonders, Knowhere, Sea Nymph Grotto & Serentiy Isle)
• Novian Academy – New Citizen Outreach (Tuesdays, 6pm CST)
  • /zone Kazyn Phoenixfyre of Novian Academy in Soltown as they provide guidance to those new to the world of New Britannia.
• EVL Dungeon Crawl
  • Every Virtue is Lasting will be holding a dungeon crawl every Tuesday to provide fun and experience for our members and guests. All are welcome! The meeting point is in Owls Head at the center of town near the trainer.
• Wednesday Knights (Wednesdays, 6pm CST)
  • This will be mainly an impromptu event but on occasion I may plan on doing something ‘knightly’. All will be welcome. Some possibilities include RP, boss hunts, gathering materials & crafting, hat quests, hanging out or whatever people feel up for. (Caer Dracwych; /zone Bowen Bloodgood; details)
• EVL Pip Squeak PvP Tournament (Wednesdays, 7pm CST)
  • Looking to break into the PVP scene but don’t want to be placed against established god-like players? We have you covered with two divisions, one for the newer, less experienced player, and one for the cream of the crop who have something to prove! (The Underworld, /zone Jar Laxle or Jade; details)
• Stryker Sparhawk’s 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!
• Gladiator Wars (Thursdays, 8pm 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. (Finchfield; /zone Pestilence; details)
• Phoenix Republic PVE Nights (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 or Malakas for more info!
• Novian Academy – Role Play Courses (Fridays, 4pm CST)
  • Luka Melehan is hosting RP classes and practice sessions. (/zone Luka Melehan)
• Shardfall Madness (Fridays, 6pm CST)
  • A PvP event. Contact Wind Silvermoon for details.
• 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)
• EVL Capture the Flag (Fridays, 7:00pm CST)
  • It is with great pleasure that Every Virtue is Lasting would like to invite everyone to our weekly capture the flag event. This is a two team PvP event where each team competes for control over three bases; the team who captures all three bases wins. (The Underworld, /zone Jar Laxle)
• Astronomy Event (Fridays, 7:30pm 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, /zone Bowen Bloodgood; details)

Saturday, January 23

• 6:00am CST Wake Up New, Britannia!!! With Woftam and Selene
  • Woftam and Selene Noctua broadcast on AvatarsRadio from the Wake Up New Britannia Studio in Owlshead (right behind the crafting pavillion). Includes Interviews with the Community, Contests for in-game Gold, What’s new for the week in New Britannia, and your Best Bets for SotA weekend events! (details)
• 9:00am CST PaxLair Meeting
  • Come to PaxLair and see what’s happening! For two hours (more or less) we work together on projects, create ideas and have fun together. It’s sort of a weekly time to gather and do things together. Everyone in Novia is welcome! (PaxLair, /zone Winfield or Sean Silverfoot)
• 11:00am CST Church of the Dark Star – Saturday Service
  • High Priestess of Chaos, Amber Raine, and the Dean of the Novian Academy, Kazyn Phoenixfyre, welcome you to the Church of the Dark Star. A shared project, built upon equality, where all are welcome. Services range from what is Chaos and Order to how they affect different aspects of our life. The path you choose is yours. (Alternate weekends at PaxLair and Port Phoenix; details)
• 12:00pm CST Beran League Construction – Harvest & Craft
  • A weekly craft & harvest event for the purpose of supporting all towns, guilds and player run establishments within the Beran League! All harvested materials, crafted items and decorative items purchased will be collected and sorted in a specially designated warehouse. Town owners, guild leaders and proprietors of the Beran League (and those designated by them) will have access. (Meet at the Bear Tavern in High Rock or /zone Bowen Bloodgood; details)
• 1:00pm CST Fastest Decorator in the West Contest
  • Diamond Fields is happy to announce our second event. We are located a wagon’s ride from Port Phoenix on the Elysium Isles. This is a role play event where our top realm decorators go head to head with limited time, space and materials. Limited to 10 contestants (Diamond Fields, /zone Lace; details)
• 3:00pm CST Bear Tavern Brawl R25
  • Yes it’s back by popular demand!!! A free to enter PvP tournament hosted by The Bear Tavern, including 1v1 and 3v3 Double Elimination. Prizes! (Victory Arena district of Beran’s Reach, /zone Archaon Avenguard or Balec deCani; details)
• 5:00pm CST EVL POT Owner Meeting
  • POT owners will meet to discuss important matters. (Team Speak)
• 6:00pm CST Port Phoenix: Social Nights
  • Come out and join the republic in one of many potential events (chosen new each week). Each week we get together for everything from fishing, to music, to gustball to PVE duneoneering and adventuring. (Contact Kazyn Phoenixfyre for details)

Sunday, January 24

• 5:30am CST Explore Novia! with royalsexy
  • Starting at the entrance to Owl’s Head, come explore the wide world of Novia – for people on our side of the clock!
• 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; teamSpeak: 43.245.163.15:10099)
• 2:30pm CST Gustball Training
  • Want to learn how to play Gustball? Need some tips on how to improve your deck or hone your skills on the field! Join Coach Sheamus McGuinness of EVLs for a 30 minute Gustball lesson and practice session just before the big game at 3pm (/zone Sheamus McGuinness)
• 3:00pm CST Gustball
  • The game of Gustball is a great community event, not dissimilar from soccer or football, where Avatars of all levels & skill can compete in a fun, friendly game that uses the Gust skill (1st level Air Magic spell) to blow a Gustball into your opponents goal. (/whisper or /zone Sand, Sheamus McGuinness, or 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 Cove 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 Cove 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
  • 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; details)

Be sure and check out the Release 25 Events thread in the SotA forums for additional events that may not be included here.

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Upcoming Events

2016.01.28 – Release 26
2016.02.25 – Release 27
2016.03.16 – GDC 2016
2016.03.17 – SXSW Gaming
2016.03.31 – Release 28
2016.04.22 – PAX East
2016.04.28 – Release 29
2016.05.26 – Release 30

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Recommended Projects to Back

Torment: Tides of Numenera

We were excited to learn that our friends over at inXile have announced that Torment: Tides of Numenera is launching on Steam Early Access next Tuesday, January 26! One of the most successful Kickstarter campaigns of all time, it is the thematic successor of Planescape: Torment.

A single-player, isometric role-playing game, set in Monte Cook’s Numenera, and with original team members like Chris Avellone, Colin McComb and Mark Morgan involved, inXile is looking to deliver a deep story-driven experience reminiscent of the original Torment. If you haven’t already backed the game, then head on over to the inXile website to get an early start on the Early Access!

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Descent: Underground

Eric “Wingman” Peterson and team are bringing back six-degrees-of-freedom combat by blasting 90’s action game favorite, Descent, into the 21st Century with current-generation gaming technology. Descent: Underground is more than a graphics upgrade. Get ready for multiple types of customizable ships! Prepare for upgradable weapons and sensors with richly-detailed tech trees. Brace yourself for destructible voxel maps with new power-ups and mod tools to make your own maps and more!