Hello everyone - Happy Thanksgiving to our US players, and happy weekend to everyone else! I hope you have all had a great November.
Pre-Christmas Patch
Before we begin this year's holiday festivities, we plan to deploy a patch to Live. This update will set the stage for the return of Santaleet, his chaotic workshop, a wandering Father Time, and other holiday high jinks. In addition to holiday preparations, a number of updates and improvements are queued up to persist after the holidays have concluded.
Some time after this update, also expect to see a new subscription offer and some new account-wide items for sale! We will also be offering some Christmas-themed gifts for you to keep or share with your friends.
The Xan Reliquary
This past month we released some new Inferno missions - Thank you everyone who gave them an try and provided feedback! The intention with this encounter was to offer a new leveling option with fewer barriers to entry, also improving on a few shortcomings of the existing missions, while not fully eclipsing the other sources of XP; overall, I feel this was a success.
To improve the overall experience, this coming update will bring some adjustments to these missions. Within some specific waves of monsters, the amount of monsters needed to reach the boss will be reduced. Rewards for some of the bosses will also be improved, occasionally offering a symbiant or other gear useful for twinking/leveling up.
18.7 Patch
With the new Inferno Missions Live, work has resumed towards preparing 18.7. Focus has been primarily on the larger, non-profession specific issues, though attention will be directed towards the rebalance changes soon. Overall, many great changes were previously made, it's just a matter of massaging some aspects of what has been done, while enacting some additional changes. I look forward to providing more specific updates in the coming weeks.
- 000 Weapons
A few years ago, a selection of weapons introduced at the game's launch were remade with more contemporary attributes, while being hidden behind high requirements and elusive upgrade items. The requirements of these weapons have been lowered with damage ranges adjusted. Andre Bottle has also been given a few new items to sell.
These updated weapons can be found in Basic/Advanced/Superior shops in Omni-Tek and Clans General Stores; these terminals can be accessed by Neutrals as well.
Illegally Modified Ofab Weapons
Deep within the Abandoned Subway, a rash of modified Ofab weapons have begun surfacing. Just as many of the creatures living within the Subway have received (or fallen victim to) illegal and dangerous modifications, these weapons also have been altered in unnatural and unintended ways.
In addition to the new "- 000" weapons in the shops, I hope these new weapons will help new characters as they progress.
Updated Foul Creatures
In Eastern Foul Plains, some new, higher level Medusa have begun appearing. Despite sharing a physical appearance with other nearby Medusa, these foes are not to be taken too lightly, and should be approached with caution.
Further south, within the Mercenaries' camp, an often overlooked and avoided resident can be found standing near one of the several bonfires. Often seen in a tacky, green cloak, this individual has been given a few new tricks, in addition to some new rewards to those who best him in combat.
Additional Updates
This upcoming patch will include a number of other changes. For example, upon Tarasque's death, a rather irate assistant of Administrator De'Valos will make his way into the halls of the castle to inform players of how long until the dragon has been repaired. Quest targets of the various Inferno questlines will appear in slightly greater number, and respawn more frequently. Some pieces of Carbonum armor will appear within General store armor shops. Some more changes are coming, and will all be included on the Testlive/Live patch notes, when they reach those stages.
Thank you everyone and I hope you have a great December!