Editing Announcements - 2005/01 - Assault (section)

== Letter to the Players ==

{{Turbine 2003
 |  Link = <nowiki>http://ac.turbinegames.com/index.php?page_id=336</nowiki>
 | Title = Letter to the Players
 |  Text =
<p align=right><small>''posted on 06-Jan-2005''</small></p>
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Welcome to the January Letter to the Players! A new year is dawning, both in Dereth and in the real world, and we're thrilled to have you with us for it. We hope that you've all had a healthy and happy holidays and that you're ready for 2005! This year will bring the completion of our ongoing migration of billing accounts away from Microsoft as well as the next expansion pack: Throne of Destiny, and we're very excited about both.
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On a more somber note, we would like to pass on our condolences to all those who were affected by the tsunami disaster in the Indian Ocean. We encourage all who can to give to the charitable organization of their choice in order to help with aid to the region.
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Last month in Dereth, a sigh of relief was breathed as the Burun threat came to a halt. The Council was able to continue its work in renovating several towns, focusing on Holtburg, Shoushi and Yaraq. Lugians crafted new forges in these towns to enhance the abilities of crafters and salvagers. As soft snow fell on Dereth, Isparians went ahead with their delayed festival celebrations, crafting new whimsical masks and costumes for amusement.
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Now, let us look ahead to the January event.
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'''Coming Soon'''
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(These are items that we plan to implement in the January event. Many of these items were mentioned in prior articles. These changes are in addition to the new quests, dungeons, and items that we'll be introducing in the January event.)
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'''Higher Wield-Req Weapons'''
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January will see the introduction of melee and missile weapons with higher wield requirements as well as new war casters with wield requirements. For more information on this please see the [[Announcements - 2005/01 - Assault#Higher Wield-Req Weapons|article]] on this topic.
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'''Withered Creatures'''
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For some time now we've been discussing the issue of Life Magic at the highest levels of hunting. Many players of melee or missile characters that do not have Life Magic are disappointed by the ability of their characters to advance in the Valley of Death or Singularity Caul. They feel that without a mage assisting them by Imperiling their targets, their ability to kill creatures and earn XP at an acceptable rate is reduced.
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For January, we are introducing a new option for these characters – Withered Creatures. A small area in the Direlands has been repopulated with creatures that are completely invulnerable to non-projectile magic, but have lower stats than typical VoD and Caul creatures. You can think of them as "pre-Imperiled". Some of their other stats may be "pre-debuffed" as well.
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It is not expected that all players will find this to be a perfect solution to the Life Magic balance issues at high levels. However many players of characters without Life Magic should find this to be a viable alternative to their existing hunting options.
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You'll note that this went straight from In Concept to Coming Soon. We felt that this was a large enough issue that it should be put on a development fast track.
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'''Hookable Portals'''
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In the January event, the number of portal devices that can be hooked on mansions will be increased to 7. We are looking at the possibility of removing the limit altogether in February, although these will still be mansion-only items, although this may not be feasible due to technical restrictions.
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The Carved Mosswart Statue is being moved into a new group of mansion-only items. This group will initially have a limit of two items per mansion. If you currently have a Carved Mosswart Statue hooked on your mansion, it will continue to be counted towards the portal devices group unless you remove it and re-hook it after the January event.
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'''Western Forge Essence Rewards'''
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Due to a bug, Urleg did not provide an appropriate reward to level 126 characters who handed in a Western Forge Essence. We wanted to ensure that these characters did not get completely shut out of this one-time award, so during the January event Arcanum Agents will be providing an appropriate XP award to level 126 characters who hand them a Western Forge Essence. Like Urleg's award, this is one-time only. Characters who already handed in an Essence to Urleg can acquire a new Essence once their 30 day timer expires. Again, this award is only for level 126 characters.
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'''Bug Fixes: Phantom Atlatl and Noble Armor'''
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We've already mentioned these fixes on the official forums, but we wanted to make sure that everyone was aware of these as they have been fairly high-profile bugs.
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Starting in January, any worn Noble Armor that still has the Greater Hieromancer's Ward cast on it will have that enchantment removed upon first login.
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Also in January, the damage mod on the Phantom Atlatl will be reduced from its currently bugged +40% to the intended -60%.
In Development
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(These are the game changes that we are working on for the February event. None of these items are guaranteed to be added for February as scheduling and priorities can change. These changes are in addition to the new quests, dungeons, and items that we'll be introducing in the January event. Your feedback on these topics is particularly valuable.)
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'''Social Centers Buy Caps'''
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As we continue our work to make Holtburg, Shoushi and Yaraq into more inviting towns for characters of all levels, we are increasing the buy caps on the vendors in these towns. All vendors in these three towns will buy items up to 1,000,000 pyreals in value starting in February.
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'''Darktide-Only Dungeons'''
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In recognition of the substantially different play environment of Darktide, in February we will be implementing a set of tiered dungeons focused on providing more exciting PvP combat and quicker advancement. These dungeons will have content in them that can earn a character a great deal of experience – so long as the character isn't killed during the process!
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Discussion regarding this content has been taking place on the Asheron's Call PvP Discussions forum.
In Concept
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(These are the game changes that we are thinking about for March and beyond. We cannot guarantee when – or even if – any of these changes will be added to the game, as scheduling and priorities can change. These changes are in addition to the new quests, dungeons and items that we'll be introducing in each monthly event. Your feedback on these topics is particularly valuable.
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If not mentioned elsewhere in this Letter, topics listed as In Concept in prior articles have not changed status.)
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There are no new In Concept topics this month. To see a list of previous In Concept topics, please visit our Current and Past Development Topics page.
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And there you have it, the Live Team's plans for January and beyond. Again, have a Happy New Year, and thanks for being with us!
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See you in Dereth!
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- Ibn
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