Updates

Update of the Avatar #124 – 2015.05.08: PaxLair Maze, Birko’s Novia Map, Community Street Names, Steam Achievements, Fez Hat Video, New Fansite Kit, and More!

May 8, 2015

Greetings Fellow Avatars!

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

The Building of the PaxLair Maze
Birko’s Customized Map of Novia
Community Created Street Names
Player Owned Town Submission Form
Steam Achievements
Bob’s Bell Tower
The Mad Hermit’s How To Get The Fez Hat Video
Thou hast been invited to the Release 17 Postmortem
Get the Shroud of the Avatar Fansite Kit
Richard & Starr on the Past, Present, and Future of Game Development
Blade of the Avatar Pledge Reward and Add-Ons Expire May 31
In-game Community Weekend Events
Receiving Pledge Rewards and Add-On Items
Changes to Store Credit Conversions
Steam Access Keys Available for All Backers
How to Cancel Monthly Layaway Payment Plans
Upcoming Events

The Building of the PaxLair Maze

Arianna posted this amazing time lapse video in the R17 Screenshot Gallery of the building of the PaxLair Maze in Release 17. Spanning 3 lots, this is (to our knowledge) the largest 3D maze ever constructed in SotA. It was designed by Net and constructed by Net and Sindariya (“Riya”) in the Player Owned Town of PaxLair:

Riya and Net have four events planned for their maze this Release. The next event is scheduled for this Sunday, May 10, at 1:30 pm CST. See Sindariya’s R17 Events Forum post for more details.

Hangout of the Avatar ~ Release 17 Postmortem

May 7, 2015

Hear Ye, Hear Ye! Thou hast been invited to the Release 17 Postmortem!

Please join us Thursday, May 14th at 3:00 PM Central (20:00 GMT) for our next Hangout of the Avatar! Richard, Starr, and Chris (and some very special guests!) will be chatting about Release 17 and looking ahead to Release 18. And, of course, FireLotus will be taking your questions and feedback live in the chat-room and also in advance right here in the comments section.*

Many thanks to Themo Lock for the screenshot. Did someone say that attendance is clothing optional?

We will be giving some really awesome prizes during the 90 minute extended Hangout, and all you have to do to qualify for one is to come hang out with us in the IRC chatroom during the broadcast. As always, the link to the hangout will be posted here directly before the hangout begins.

*Please keep in mind that questions and feedback related to Release 17 specific topics will be given priority and really verbose questions may be skipped, as they can be a challenge to shorten and summarize live on the air. In brief… please keep your questions… brief.

Update of the Avatar #123 – 2015.05.01: Play R17 Now!, AetherVision R17 twitch HQ, Packed PaxLair Weekend, PvP Grudge Match, New Deco Contest, and More!

May 2, 2015

Greetings Fellow Avatars!

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

Play Release 17 Now!
AetherVision: twitch Headquarters for Streaming R17 and the PaxLair Weekend Events
PVP Grudge Match: 30 Day Tournament
R17-R18 Deco Contest – PUB CRAWL!
In-game Community Weekend Events
Paving the Way: New Pavers and Fences
Receiving Pledge Rewards and Add-On Items
Changes to Store Credit Conversions
Steam Access Keys Available for All Backers
How to Cancel Monthly Layaway Payment Plans
Upcoming Events

Play Release 17 Now!

FireLotus Release 17 Party in the new town of PaxLair. Check out more screenshots in the Release 17 Screenshot Gallery.

Release 17 Instructions

April 29, 2015

[A SotA Public Forum post by Starr Long]

Greetings Avatars,

Thank you to our loyal backers of Shroud of the Avatar. Release 17 access for all backers at First Responder level and above begins this Thursday, April 30 at 10:30 AM Central Time (16:30 UTC).

NOTE: The server will be going down at approximately 6 AM and will stay down until 10:30 AM in order to deploy this release.

Please read this entire message, as well as the linked instructions and known issues.

We are far from launch, and in a constant state of change, and we do not yet have in-game systems to inform players of these changes, or to share ways to help them to explore new content and systems. This means we rely entirely on this message, and the linked instructions and known issues to convey the current game state. We regularly have to answer questions or filter bug reports, because players elect not to read this valuable information. By taking a few moments to read through this information, a great deal of our time and efforts can be redirected to focus on new “unanswered” questions, and addressing critical issues impacting each release. We greatly appreciate you taking the time to review this post, and for all the truly valuable feedback you continue to provide.

As mentioned last release, we are still having to pay some debt incurred by our move to Unity 5. However, even with that factored in, we still managed to deliver quite a bit of new content, including our first Player Owned Town, Crafting Events, Player Titles, and Lot Access Permissions. Unfortunately, the amount of architectural changes in this release required us to do a full wipe of everything except Friends and Guilds. To slightly decrease the pain of this, we implemented an Experience Doubler that will temporarily speed up leveling (see details below).

Also, remember that while we are providing new content with each release, our community is working overtime to make new events for you to enjoy. So, be sure to check out a couple of the Community Events Calendars run by our community members (via in game book or the player run websites Avatars Circle Community Events and Events of the Avatars calendar).

Without further ado, here are the R17 deliverables.

Update of the Avatar #122 – 2015.04.24: PaxLair, New Beginnings Comic, Phoenix, R17 Dev+ QA is Live, Fences Galore, Red Fez, and More!

April 24, 2015

Greetings Fellow Avatars!

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

PaxLair: SotA’s First Player Owned Town
Shroud of the Avatar: New Beginnings Comic
Summon Phoenix Skill
Abe’s Solace Bridge Upgrades
Release 17 Dev+ QA Server is Live
More Fences Galore
In-game Community Weekend Events
AmbushedGamer Live twitch Interview with Lord British
Community In-Game Images and Videos
Get Your Red Fez Hat!
Send Gift Function Added to Account Page
Receiving Pledge Rewards and Add-On Items
Changes to Store Credit Conversions
Steam Access Keys Available for All Backers
How to Cancel Monthly Layaway Payment Plans
Upcoming Events

PaxLair: SotA’s First Player Owned Town

Shroud of the Avatar: New Beginnings

April 21, 2015

We are excited to announce the availability of the first officially licensed SotA comic from Tortoise & Hare Creations, Shroud of the Avatar: New Beginnings!

Created by W.O. Billman II (plot, script, and editing) and Indi Martin (pencils, inks, colors, and lettering), New Beginnings tells the story of a corrupt land, where a young farmer and his wife find themselves embroiled in a lethal powerplay with local constables, and seek a fabled escape to a legendary world.

Update of the Avatar #121 – 2015.04.17: 25% Steam Sale, Vertas Pass Upgrades, Fences, TableTop with Wil Wheaton, Easter Video, and More!

April 17, 2015

Greetings Fellow Avatars!

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

Steam Special Promotion: 25% Off Thru April 21
Abe’s Vertas Pass Upgrades
Judging a Book by its Cover
Fences Galore
TableTop with Wil Wheaton & Richard Garriott
The Mad Hermit’s Video of Lord & Lady British’s Easter Celebration
In-game Community Weekend Events
Community In-Game Images and Videos
Receiving Pledge Rewards and Add-On Items
Changes to Store Credit Conversions
Steam Access Keys Available for All Backers
How to Cancel Monthly Layaway Payment Plans
Upcoming Events

Steam Special Promotion: 25% Off Thru April 21

If you’ve been thinking about pledging to Shroud of the Avatar at the starting $45 Adventurer pledge tier (or buying one as a gift for someone), now’s a good time to do it over on Steam Early Access. Steam is running a 25% discount on the basic $45 package thru April 21st.

Update of the Avatar #120 – 2015.04.10: VIP Roundtable, Lady British Easter Event, Street Names, Elven House, R16 Postmortem, Community Videos, and More!

April 10, 2015

Greetings Fellow Avatars!

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

Duke & LotM VIP Design Roundtable and Lady British’s Easter Event
Hangout of the Avatar ~ Release 16 Postmortem
Street Names in Release 17
In-game Community Weekend Events
Community In-Game Videos
Elven House in a Hill Stretch Goal Item
New Hat Variations
Descent: Underground Kickstarter Successfully Funded!
Receiving Pledge Rewards and Add-On Items
Changes to Store Credit Conversions
Steam Access Keys Available for All Backers
How to Cancel Monthly Layaway Payment Plans
This Week In The News
Upcoming Events

Duke & LotM VIP Design Roundtable and Lady British’s Easter Event

Update of the Avatar #119 – 2015.04.03: Happy Easter, SotA Companion App, Book Covers, Fez Hat, R15 Deco Winners, and More!

April 3, 2015

Greetings Fellow Avatars!

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

SotA Companion App
More Spectral Mines Entrance
Judging a Book by its Cover
Release 17 Grand Tour Quest Reward: Fez Hat
R15 Decoration Contest Winners
Hangout of the Avatar ~ Release 16 Postmortem
Black Gate Games GDC Interview: Meeting the Ultima Team
In-game Community Weekend Events
Descent Kickstarter in Final Week
Receiving Pledge Rewards and Add-On Items
Changes to Store Credit Conversions
Steam Access Keys Available for All Backers
How to Cancel Monthly Layaway Payment Plans
This Week In The News
Upcoming Events

Happy Easter!

Hangout of the Avatar ~ Release 16 Postmortem

April 2, 2015

Hear Ye, Hear Ye! Thou hast been invited to the Release 16 Postmortem!

Please join us Tuesday, April 7th at 3:00 PM Central (20:00 GMT) for our next Hangout of the Avatar! Richard, Starr, and Chris will be chatting about Release 16, recounting their favorite moments while also looking ahead to Release 17. And, of course, Fire Lotus will be taking your questions and feedback live in the chat-room and also in advance right here in the comments section.*

*Please keep in mind that questions and feedback related to Release 16 specific topics will be given priority and really verbose questions may be skipped, as they can be a challenge to shorten and summarize live on the air. In brief… please keep your questions… brief.