Greetings Fellow Avatars!
Release 134 goes live January 30th at 10:30 AM CST.
Welcome! The Catnip Games development team marks this monthly release of Shroud of the Avatar with new content and improvements. For Release 134 (R134), we offer new leaves and more uses for old ones.
For those wishing to participate in any community activities, upcoming one-time and recurring community events have been announced! Be sure to also review the Player Guide and Known Issues for additional information on recent changes and upcoming fixes.
News Announcements
Community Updates
More Decorative Plants in More Places
![Banana trees, with and without bananas, grow in six different styles of planting pot. More trees are in planting beds behind them.](//d2sx9mrt4zumaq.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SS_New_Crafted_Plants_Bananas_overlay.png)
Our existing decorative plants harvested from agriculture are great for placing on ground, but can’t be placed on active planting beds and pots to make it look like they’re growing in them. Active planting beds and pots, on the other hand, can show an array of mature plants, but can’t display immature plants (for long) and can’t be placed on player-owned town land.
Now you can combine them, at least for a few plants to start.
When this project is complete, you’ll be able to use a planting trowel at a carpentry station to place any decorative plant from agriculture (immature or mature) in any planting pot or bed (including the crown store ones) to make a combined deco version. These will take less time to load than active planters, as there’s no more need to calculate the state of an active plant, and they can be placed on player-owned town land.
This release, all nine planting beds and six pots can accept immature and mature apple and banana trees, and we’ll be adding plants (starting with rose bushes) every month until all the plants are useable, including the four new decorative plants added this release (see below.) The recipes are automatically known by all and planting trowels have been added to crafting merchants with the planting pots and beds.
If you change your mind, take the pot or bed back to the carpentry table and salvage it to get the empty planter back.
Have fun playing in the dirt!
![An open recipe book shows entries for placing decorative plants in pots and three sizes of beds.](//d2sx9mrt4zumaq.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SS_Decorative_Plant_Recipes_overlay.png)
Birch Island: A Mysterious New Adventure Awaits
Work continues on the new dungeon previewed during our anniversary event and, with this update, we’ve added Birch Island to the Novia overworld map! Nestled in the far northeast, near South Hulenholt and Rhun, this island remains inaccessible while we finalize our work.
At the heart of Birch Island lies a formidable eight-level dungeon, designed to grow increasingly challenging the deeper you venture. Future expansions will introduce additional areas to explore on the island but, for now, let’s delve into its mysterious past.
The Legend of Birch Island
For centuries, treasure hunters have scoured the far northeast of Novia in search of an incredible fortune rumored to be hidden on Birch Island. Some claim the island is cursed while others believe the treasure will only be unearthed when the last birch tree has withered away.
The tale began many years ago when two brothers, fishing off the coast, spotted strange lights on the island. Curiosity drove them to row ashore where they found no sign of life, only an old tree with a pulley and a deep depression in the ground.
Intrigued, they dug and unearthed an ancient tablet inscribed with a dire warning of a curse. Dismissing it as a trick to deter treasure-seekers, they pressed on, only to break into a hidden dungeon. What they found remains unknown, for neither brother ever returned.
To this day, adventurers continue to brave the island’s dangers, hoping to unravel its dark secrets. Deep within its dungeon, known ominously as the Eighth Level of Hell, a terrifying presence awaits.
Will you be the one to break the curse and claim the treasure? Or will you, like so many before, succumb to the island’s ancient evil?
![A stone causeway connects a rocky island covered in birch trees to the mainland east of the Hulenholt.](//d2sx9mrt4zumaq.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SS_Birch_Island_overlay.png)
Release 134 Patch Notes
Below are a list of the updates that are live as of Release 134 in the game of Shroud of the Avatar! R134 is a content month. Content, additional improvements, and bug fixes are inbound for R135 next month. We hope you enjoy the changes that are live today as of Release 134!
Read more…