Design Notes

August 15, 2012

Dage vs Nulgath War

The war is almost over... the rewards almost here!

In the biggest, EVILLEST war AQWorlds has ever seen... we're about to see a WINNER! Nulgath's Abyssal Army has the war meter at 91% while Dage's Undead Legion has reached 54%. The mercenaries fight for BOTH sides... and can switch at any time. Will the current front-runner remain in first place? YOU decide!

And your rewards will be...

Should he win, Nulgath offers the color-custom Legacy of Nulgath set to all those who have fought for him during this clash of Evil Commanders! To claim the entire set you will need: 50 Diamonds of Nulgath and 50,000 gold! The set is non-member, so all of Nulgath's loyal followers can show their allegiance.

Legacy of Nulgath Set

Should Dage win, he offers the legendary Paragon Set! For many years, his warriors have fought to possess this epic gear. What will become of it if he loses?! If you don't want to find out, then /join evilwardage and BATTLE ON! If he is victorious, the Paragon Set will sell for 1,000 Adventure Coins so that his most loyal followers can show their allegiance.

Dage's Paragon Set!

Dark Caster Class Requirements!

If you are one of the lucky few who held on to your Dark Caster armor, then you've got a fun time coming! To unlock the Class this Friday, you'll need to visit Dage and undertake a perilous quest! ONLY those who possess the original Dark Caster armor will be able to go on this VERY difficult adventure, but the reward will be the epic Dark Caster Class!

Face the Dragon of Time this Friday!

You cannot fight the Dragon of Time because his death allowed you - and your world - to live! But you CAN learn what he sacrificed to allow you to be! This week, gain the trust of Vaxt Ahas, the Unending, the universe-snake which inhabits the Time Void. Prove your worth and show that you have what it takes to walk amongst the Ages.

Eternal Dragon of Time

If you have what it takes, then you will see how Galanoth came to slay the Dragon of Time - what took place before the battle and how its death created the AQWorlds you know today! 

Quibble Coinbiter is almost here! 

Don't forget to stop by Quibble Coinbiter's shop in Battleon this Friday! His chest is chock-full of gear taken from your past, present, and future... all contained within our current Chaos zone, The Span! You'll be able to purchase these sweet member-only pets and much more!

Twig wif a Fwish and the Gween Pet!

Artix Cards at Target!

Head to your local Target store, because Artix Gamecards are in stock! Redeem your Artix Gamecard before August 31st, 2012, to unlock the Bullseye Spear bonus item AND Artix Points! They can be used to purchase AQWorlds membership or Adventure Coins!*

Ready... aim... SLAY!

If you don't have a Target store nearby, you can ALSO pick up the Bullseye Spear at Valencia's AC shop in /battleontown for 2,000 ACs! Valencia will only keep the Spear in stock while the promotional item is available at Target!

* Follow the steps listed here to unlock your Bullseye Spear. Just look for the Bullseye achievement in your Book of Lore instead of the Flamestop.

Coming Soon in AQWorlds!

• Gravelyn takes control! With an entire army of Undead and Evil followers, no self-respecting Empress sits around and just... waits. Next Friday, return to Shadowfall to help Gravelyn use Evil to bring Order out of Chaos!
• The Sisterhood of the Dishpan Hands has many secrets! Do YOU know why these helpful clerics are stationed around Lore? What are they waiting... and watching... for? Journey to their Temple to learn more!
• J6's in-game wedding event! (Anyone like cake?)
• Alina and Rolith's in-game wedding event/AQWorlds 4th birthday! (The power of Love!)
• More Chaos! More Chaorruption! More... EVERYTHING!

August 08, 2012

Quibble Coming Soon!

Quibble returns NEXT Friday with new gear

Past, present, and future gear collide in Quibble Coinbiter's backpack! AQWorlds' very own time-traveling sales moglin arrives in Battleon next Friday, August 17th, but he won't be there long, so you'll want to dig through his chest of never-before-seen-slightly-used items and rares while you can!

Dravir Armor, helm, and wings with Technomancer Armor! - Dragonfable

Most of his items will cost AdventureCoins, but as the past few shops have, we will include gear for both members and non-members, as well! All of the equips are modeled on art from our current Chaos zone, The Span. Each of Quibble's newest items were inspired by gear from the original AdventureQuest, DragonFable, and MechQuest!

Kathool Adept and Chickencow Lord Armors! - DragonFable

Not exactly sure who Quibble Coinbiter is, or how he gets all that gear? Neither are we! But here's what he said last time I asked:

How do I get never-before-seen used items? Well, that's a trade secret. But just between us, I have a deal with a time travel fairy who brings me these things… even though they have not been built yet! They might show up later in the game or might be Rares that are never seen again!

Ubear Armor and Loco Costume - AdventureQuest

Inaddition to all of the armors pictured here, you can ALSO expect Quibble's shop to hold next Friday:

• Twig and Fwish Pet
• Gween Pet
• Chief Duncan's Space Cat Pet
• Sil Katar Daggers
• Ice Katana
• Color Custom Galacta Gun
• Guilt and Innocence Scythes
• And more!

Color-Custom Galactimech and Loki Mech Armors! - MechQuest

What happened the to The Sword of the Legion's shop?

The Sword of the Legion should have unlocked The Stranger's shop. Due to a miscommunication, that shop in the /evilwardage map is open to all players. To fix that error, Dage will create a special shop in Shadowfall just for those loyal Legion soldiers who kept their blades close by!

Chaos gets Beastly in SkyGuard!

That Master... something about him just ain't right. His growing paranoia - and a bit of help from a friend in the last release - make it easy for you to infiltrate his hidden bunker. Once inside, you'll need to find out just WHAT he's planning, but beware!

He hasn't given up his goal to embrace Chaos! Keep an eye on him, give him a hand, and maybe you'll find out just what his plans are! /Hone your blade and your wits, because the Master is a puzzle wrapped in an enigma locked inside a steampunk-prison!

Dage vs Nulgath War Update!

The Nation continues to crush the Legion, but Dage's undead soldiers are just DYING to even up the war meter! The Worshiper Visage of Revontheus and the Key of Revontheus will be added for Nulgath's followers. Dage's warriors will see a new armor and helm coming! Expect those later this week.

We will announce which Legion/Nation items will go rare as soon as Dage is back in the Lab. ALL of the AC items will go rare, but we need to determine which Legion Token/Diamond items will also go rare.*

Battle On, brave heroes! Victory is yours to take!

* Dage has been out of the Lab, sick for most of the week. Once he's battled that bug and back in the Lab, we'll add that new gear!

Dage vs Nulgath Print at HeroMart!

Head to HeroMart.com NOW to get your limited edition, hand-signed Dage vs Nulgath print! This illustration of Dage’s all-out invasion to control the Underworld pulls you straight into the battlefield… and our 11x17 limited-quantity print makes the BEST war-loot!

Both Dage the Evil and Nulgath will sign 500 prints, and once they are sold out, they’ll be real-life rares! Frame your print and then log into AQWorlds to help your favorite Evil Commander send his rival down in flames!

Each print comes with the following in-game items:

Dage The Evil's Rewards:

• Proto-Paragon Armor
• Proto-Paragon Helm
• Soul Kris Blade

Nulgath's Rewards:

• Dreadfiend of Nulgath Armor
• Dreadfiend Face of Nulgath Helm
• Dreadfiend Blade of Nulgath

NOTE: We are still waiting to receive the signed prints back from Nulgath, so there will be a small delay on shipping ONLY signed orders.

Coming the August in AQWorlds!

• Return to The Span to see WHY Galanoth had to slay the Dragon of Time!
• Journey to Shadowfall to aid Empress Gravelyn! The time for inaction is past!
• Uncover the TRUE nature of Lore's Clerics! What IS the secret of the Sisterhood of Dishpan Hands?

July 30, 2012

This Friday: Evil War Finale

Dage vs Nulgath: Final Showdown!

Ultimate showdown of ultimate EVIL! In the third and final installment of this Summer's Dage vs Nulgath War, we will finally see WHO has the greater army, WHO controls the Underworld, and WHO is the greater Commander of Evil! ... And YOU will decide who wins!

This Friday we'll release a new cutscene introducing the final push to annihilate your opponents, a brand-new area of the Underworld (ish) map to battle in, 2 new monsters, 2 new farming quests, and enough epic reward gear to fill an abattoir! (Look for previews of the new war gear in this week's future Design Notes!)

The decision all comes down to you and your fellow soldiers - Undead Legion, Nulgath Nation... who will YOU fight for?

Changes to the Legion Entry Requirements!

So many recruits have flooded Dage with requests to join the Legion, he has decided to gain entry into his dark, Undead Legion of warriors! Here are the new requirements:

• Undead Warrior Armor - 1200 ACs from the Suggestion Shop in Yulgar's Inn

Dage the Evil is removing the 200 PvP Combat Trophy requirement! Undead Legion, with this requirement removed, new warriors will flood into the Legion... exactly as Dage planned! (What do you expect from someone whose title is "the Evil"?)

Wednesday: Lorelympics Limited Time Shop!

Competition, striving for a goal, and having their athletic achievements recognized brings out the best in many people. That's why we're opening a Limited Time Shop (LTS) with a Lorelympics theme! Grab your color-custom Track Suit Armor, Gymnastics gear, and a whole host of sports-themed weaponry! We're also introducing the member-only Bronze, Silver, and Gold PvP Medals!

Dark Caster Class in Progress!

Players who currently own the Dark Caster Armor will soon be able to gain access to the Dark Caster Class! Dage is working on new art right now while Cysero and Yorumi design the skills! We will release previews of the art, a skill writeup, and the Class itself as soon as they're ready*!

Note: Players who do not have the Dark Caster Armor will not be able to obtain the Dark Caster Class. Owning the Dark Caster X armor does not count for the Dark Caster Class.

* As soon as it's ready-o'clock! **
** This picture is never not the answer to "When will X come?"

Epic Duel's Infernal Infiltration War is On!

BUGS! Battles! And beating up the robotic insects trying to take you down? Sounds like the perfect thing for any warriors, mage, Legionnaire, or Exiles! In Epic Duel's Infernal Infiltration war, Administrator 7 and his Legion are racing to head off The Lawman's Exiles as both sides race to take possession of the Delta Vault!

In the last leg of the war, bikes will slam into blades, Mages massacre Cyber Hunters, and Bounty Hunters on BOTH sides fight dirtier than they ever have! What's in the Delta Vault? ... No one knows! But if the other side wants it so bad, then so do you!

Epic Duel Mechachillid Armor in Battleon this Friday!

Roggark, one of the MechaChillid warriors, is coming to Battleon this Friday to recruit seeking aid for his Queen's army of robotic insect warriors. He's got a shiny Mechachillid Armor and Helm to offer any who wish to learn more!

What Raggork doesn't know is that AQW heroes HATE bugs! Take his armor, learn the deadly details about the war he has to share, then head to Delta V to take his buggy brethren down!

More Yorumi Fixes!

Yorumi spent the weekend monitoring the fixes he rolled to the servers on Friday. He's found some very elegant fixes to a few pretty large problems, but he's not done just yet! He's got a list of functions to clean up and other miscellaneous bits and bytes of code to create.

* You know what goes great while watching two armies battle for the supremacy of their overlord? Peas. Green peas, black-eyed peas, Black-Eyed Peas (Pump It!)... it's too bad that no matter what kind of veggie we offer, neither Dage nor Nulgath can be ap-peas-ed.

July 27, 2012

Countdown to Chaos!

It’s time for Chaos!

Return to The Span in AQWorlds this weekend to visit a city of half-remembered faces and monsters that seem familiar, but aren’t. The golems there tell stories of a mysterious Master and hint at the dark plans he has for you. But just how dark ARE they?

Adventure through simulations of AdventureQuest, DragonFable, and MechQuest as the clock counts down to the Chaos Lord’s big reveal!

Sage Armor and Sage Eyewrap with Nemesis Mace

More War Rewards!

The war of Evil vs Evil is not yet won! Warriors, rally to your commanders - they have rewards to offer you! Accept, and you will be compelled to battle for them for the rest of eternity!

Legion, this week Dage offers you:

• The Rage of Evil (Rares Shop)
• Brutal Wolf Blade (Legion Shop)
• Brutal Bone Daggers (War Merge Shop)

Archfiend followers, Nulgath has these rewards for you:

• Mortality of Revontheus (AC Shop)
• Neofiend Blades of Revontheus (Diamond Shop)
• Neofiend Helm of Revontheus (War Merge Shop)

Last Weekend to get the FlameStop Blade!

Visit your local GameStop store by July 31st, 2012 and purchase an Artix Upgrade card to unlock the exclusive FlameStop Blade! For a detailed walkthrough of how to obtain your FlameStop Blade, take a look at this post!

Yorumi's on a Roll - More PTR Fixes!

This Friday, Yorumi is rolling out more fixes! They should address the issue of some of the random disconnects as well as a potentially significant portion of the lag in general. /cheer Yorumi on as he monitors the servers this weekend to track how efficacious* his patches are!

Coming Soon!

• The finale of the Dage vs Nulgath war!
• Olympics 2012 Celebration Shop!
• The Span release, Part III: Dragon of Time!
• SkyGuard release: The Beast?!

July 24, 2012

More Chaos, Servers, Fixes

This is the week of MORE in AQWorlds!

It's only Tuesday and we already know this is going to be a VERY full week! A lot of work is going into a lot of projects - fixing the lag, getting two new servers for AQW, more chaos, more war items, and more work on future releases!

More Fixes: Attacking the Lag on PTR!

Yorumi has been pushing all weekend, yesterday, and today as we work on getting the servers in shape. We're going to punch lag in its code! Over the past few days, he has worked on inventory load times, login lag (if you see all of the characters in Battleon drawing quickly, that is the reduction of login lag), fixing the friends list, and logging, tracking, and tracing the causes of AQW's lag.

He's spent so much time staring at a wall of scrolling code, we are pretty sure he's devloped the ability to look into the mAEtrix. /Cheer him on!

More Chaos: A new update in The Span!

The Span: A town full of people you don't know, but almost remember. Monsters you are fighting for the first time, but whose attacks seem so familiar. Streets you've never walked in a town that feels like a place you once called home.

This is but one hall in the Library of Time. You will not see them all.

Return to The Span this week to begin the storyline which will teach you much about Time, Drakath... and your Destiny! Meet a stranger you already know. He will send you on the journey of a lifetime - many lifetimes. His lessons begins this week inside the Library of Time, but what you learn will help you prevent the end of Lore!

More War Items: The battle continues!

Dage, Nulgath, and their minions are hard at work crafting gear to drive you towards their goals! This week, we will update each of their war shops with a new item. The rewards keep coming as war rages on in the Underworld!

More AQW Servers: Yorumi and Zazul!

While we're rebuilding our server code to be better, stronger, and faster... we thought we'd add in two more! With more servers, you'll have more room to adventure with your /party and find new /friends!

This week we're working on getting those added to the game. It takes a lot to add a new server. We need the server itself, an IP for it, software licensing, a good deal of new code, and then there's attaching it to the game itself. We are trying to get them to launch this week, but won't release them until they are ready.

More Better Things in the Future: Looking Ahead!

Every week we push on that weekend's release, but there is SO much going on in the background. From making new ads to producing rewards for HeroMart, creating new website graphics (like login screens and homepage banners) to going back and cleaning up old bugs/areas of the game... there is ALWAYS more to do!

Like Cysero's current project: completely re-doing the tutorial area for AQWorlds. We're going to clean it up and make it a LOT easier for new players to learn how the game is played. All of the original intro content will be available, and the intro cutscene isn't changing, but future AQW players will have a much brighter, much cleaner first adventure through Lore!

July 09, 2012

Friday the 13th, Part III

Never Say Never(world)!

Friday the 13th swiftly approaches, bringing with it bad luck, a badly-planned invasion, and REALLY badly-crafted creatures! That can only mean one thing... the Beast Maker returns! If you've played through the last Friday the 13th event (in April), then you're familiar with Sleezter Bunny and its master, the Beast Maker.*

Monster concept art #1 by Dage

This weekend he launches an all-out offensive against Lore; the goal - total domination and complete control over ALL the monsters! A Beast Maker's got to have beastly resources, right? Otherwise he'd be like an artist without paint.

Monster concept art #2 by Dage

With Sleezter's help (NOT the best choice...), the Beast Maker is going to plunder and pillage his way through Lore and its monsters - from frogdrake to frost elemental - are the loot! You'll need to find a way to stop him, and that means plunging headfirst down the rabbit hole...

Monster concept art #3 by Dage

into the Shadow Realm, slashing and stabbing your way to the heart of the Neverworld!

This is the third and LAST Friday the 13th event of 2012! As always there will be the epic event shops, the new Voltaire Top Hat helm, the Vorutanian Key Blade, and...

We are introducing a zone (shaped like Voltaire's Top Hat, of course) which will let you re-play all of the past Voltaire events! The plan right now is to have the zone open to members all year round and to free players during the 2 weeks of future Friday the 13th events!

• Journey to the Neverworld to battle mutant creatures
• Epically dark new gear! (Including a NEW Voltaire Top Hat!)
• Event Rare shops
• A high-level, member-only area
• A NEW hub map will let you unlock all of the previous Friday the 13th events

* Hint: He was guy with the glowing red eyes at the end of Part II's final cutscene.

Dage vs Nulgath War Fixes!

There were some problems with last week's war, but we've addressed those issues.

• Dage's farming quests require you to complete the "Hail to the King" quest from Shadowfall.
• Nulgath's farming quests require you to have the Unidentified 13 item in your inventory.
• Both Nulgath and Dage farming quests have had the turn-in requirements increased.
• Both Nulgath and Dage quests now have a 1% chance to drop an item upon completion.
• Each side is now fighting the CORRECT miniboss.

Remember: winning a battle does not mean you've won the war. The #NulgathNation has every chance to wrest the war win away from #DagesLegion... IF the Legion falters. But that won't happen... will it?

Both Dage and Nulgath's war shops will get NEW items this Friday, as well!

July 02, 2012

Dage vs Nulgath War

The Ultimate in Evil vs Evil Conflict Begins Friday!

Evil and Good have clashed for eons, one side rising while the other falls. But when Evil turns against itself - when two immensely powerful scions of the Darkness face off - the Underworld becomes a battlefield and the prize will be... ALL the souls!

This Friday we begin Part 1 of the Dage vs Nulgath war! Declare your allegiance and join your fellow heroes to fight for the most diabolical commander Lore has ever seen... whoever that might be!

WHO am I fighting for? And why?

If you have been unfortunate to wander Nulgath's malevolent realm and quested for his powerful rewards, then you know exactly what he is. If you have journeyed to Shadowfall and navigated the halls of Gravelyn's fortress to join the Undead Legion, you've met Dage the Evil.

But that does not tell you who they ARE. Read on to learn more about the diabolical leaders you've bound yourselves to... and if you haven't yet, then now is the perfect time to decide which has your loyalty!

As the shadows fall, the Undead rise!

Dage the Evil
Dark Lord of the Undead Legion

Once a power-mad necromancer, Dage signed Nulgath's contracts and rode the fast lane to even more strength. Eventually the time came for Dage, like so many others before him, to fulfill his contract and pay Nulgath for his power, but he had used his new knowledge to bind a portion of his soul to an armor of his own construction.

This remnant lives on and retains all the knowledge and strength of his previous life. Now Dage the Evil rivals Nulgath himself in evil power.

The prize: power. The price: eternal obedience.

Nulgath
Abyss General
Through the ages, Nulgath has taken many forms and been known by many names. Recently however, it was revealed that each of his previous forms were merely larval stages of the diabolic evolution into his current, malevolent form.

Now Nulgath serves no master, only his own ceaseless lust for power and hunger for the souls he captures through his contracts. Since Dage the Evil's rise to power, it remains to be seen which of these creatures is truly the greatest evil.

What are you fighting for?

You've got a right to be angry... because someone is trying to overthrow your commander! Dage and Nulgath are in a battle to take over the Underworld and take down each other! While Gravelyn is busy consolidating her forces to move against Chaos, now is the only time Dage and Nulgath can face off without drawing her notice... and distracting the Evil heroes who would be working for her.

In the fight to control the Legions of heroes who choose to fight for Evil, the battle will be won through strength, through dedication, and through numbers. Join with your friends to support the Evil you know is strongest!

The Legion is fierce and full of horrors!

Dage the Evil's BladeMaster is a furiously fast fighter. Do not face him without max potions - HP, dodge, strength, every little drop will help when this Evil brute starts hacking and slashing at your face!

Do not taunt the Evil BladeMaster!

Later this week we'll preview one or more of the monsters Nulgath has created, so keep an eye on the Design Notes!

Forum Question: Who has bought YOUR loyalty?

Do you answer to Dage the Evil? Or do you serve Nulgath the ArchFiend? In the coming weeks, you'll have many opportunities to make that choice VERY obvious. You'll be battling the creatures of the Undead Legion, Nulgath's horrid creations, and gaining incredible rewards!

For those who plan on staying neutral, or those who choose to fight only for themselves, then this war will be an opportunity to take home a huge haul - if you are strong enough to take it from those who have sworn allegiance!

Freedom Day and Full Moon Shops on Tuesday!

This weekend, our Canadian players celebrated their independence day and on Wednesday, it's the US's turn! In celebration, we're opening the Freedom Day shop full of maple-y gear and striped accessories! The fireworks start tomorrow!

Howl much do you want this gear? Let the world know!

Embrace the dark, don't miss the Full Moon shop! Filled with moon- and werewolf-themed gear, this shop will call to any densizens of the night who might be roaming!

Dual Chainsaws of Doomstruction!

Doomwood Art Contest winners! You've already gotten your Artix Points, and tomorrow you'll get your Dual-wield Chainsaws of Doomstruction!

Artix Upgrade Cards at GameStop!

Check out this step-by-step walkthrough on how to get your very own fiery FlameStop Blade during July by purchasing an upgrade card from GameStop!

June 04, 2012

Summer of EPICness

Wall of AWESOME text ahead!

We fit A LOT into the first five months of the year... but we're not done yet! We've got some major, game-changing releases coming in AQWorlds this Summer. /Equip your Reading Glasses of Belief +5 and get ready for an eye-opening list of awesomeness!

This week I: Xan's Apprentice revealed!

Are you ready to get fired up? Xan is Lore's most powerful - and insane - Pyromancer... and he's ready to take on an apprentice. The only question is... which townsperson will it be?! Are YOU the unlucky one? If you aren't up to date on this story, /join volcano because this Friday's release looks like it will be Far(enheit) and away the most explosive Xan Saga release yet!

This week II: Alchemy Tradeskill!

Dumoose (with the help of Yorumi, J6, Samba, and Solrac) have been pushing to get the Alchemy tradeskill ready for release, and that time has come! This Friday you'll be able to train your Alchemy skill, which will let you create consumable potions by gathering and combining reagents!

Different reagents will be required to make different potions, and as you train your skill, you'll be able to unlock new ones. (Unless, of course, your attempt fizzles. You'll just have to see what happens then!) The reagents - like Chaoroot, Rhison Blood, and Dragon Scale) started dropping last week from monsters through out the game.

Potions that can be created include:

• Unstable Courage Tonic: Increase endurance by 16%, but reduce luck by 10% for 7 minutes 
• Honor Potion: Increase all damage by 50% but increase all mana costs by 15% for 25 seconds
  
• Pure Chaos Potion: This viscous fluid hardly seems safe to consume. Your eyes water fiercely just from the fumes escaping this bottle. Drink at your own risk.

Next week: Releasin' like a J6!

A Bounty-Hunter's got to hunt... and J6's search for... something... is far from over! One thing's for sure: prepare for an EPIC journey through space, farther than you've ever been and WAY more dangerous than you dream.

Next week II: BLoD/Sepulchure chains update!

Beleen crafted CRAZY-hard quest chains for the Blinding Light of Destiny and Sepulchure's Armor... but they're not done yet! We know there was a lot of confusion over the weekend about these quest chains, so we'd like to clear the misconceptions up.

Blinding Light of Destiny/Artix's quests

Go on the quests from Artix to create the Blinding [X] of Destiny weapon series. These weapons are the FIRST tier of weapons in this chain. They will be required if you want to merge up to the second and third tiers of weapons. The art for each tier will evolve into a more awesome form...  and the quest chain's ULTIMATE reward will be: the Blinding Light of Destiny axe that Artix wields!

Sepulchure's Armor/Vayle's quests

Battle through Vayle's quests to create darker versions of the Destiny weapon series. Just like with the Destiny weapons, they are the FIRST tier of weapons in a chain, and will also be required if you want to merge up to the second and third tiers. The quest chain's ULTIMATE reward will be: a new version of Sepulchure's Armor! 

There was some confusion late last week about whether this was still true, but we clarified with Beleen and Artix today and it WILL be release at the end of the chain. It will be similar to the DoomKnight armor, but will be a slightly different color (based on the more intimidating shade we used in the Sepulchure action figure).

New art for the Blade of Destiny/Blade of Shade

The current art for the Blade of Shade and Blade of Destiny is NOT permanent. Dage is creating new, more awesome art tomorrow that will be used instead of the current placeholder art. (Made by my very handy Emergency Build-a-Blade file.) We will showcase the re-designed art in tomorrow's Design Notes!

We were NOT planning on releasing that, but it slipped in accidentally. We push hard every week to produce the most epic releases possible, but sometimes mistakes do make it in-game. For those of you who saw the art for they had on Friday, you got a sneak peek of the Necrotic Light of Destiny!

Coming this Summer I: Dage vs Nulgath War!

Evil vs Evil, a world-shaking clash of titanic villains! Later this Summer, Dage the Evil's Undead Legion will take on Nulgath the Archfiend's mass of followers in an all-out, no-holds-barred battle for control of the Underworld! Expect EPIC gear, never-before-explored areas of the Underworld, and an all-new cinematic cutscene animated by Nulgath!

Coming this Summer II: The next Chaos Lord!

Many of you might have met a Chaorrupted Chronomancer in your travels... but you should never trust a stranger. Especially when THEY are trying to get a feel for who YOU are. This Summer you'll be (re)introduced to the next Chaos Lord, and he has MANY plans for you!

A Hero is a Hero, no matter what time or dimension they are battling in, and the same holds true for you. Learn how AQWorlds came to be created when Galanoth slew the Dragon of Time, and how the merging of AdventureQuest, DragonFable, and MechQuest created who you are NOW... and what it means for your future!

Coming this Summer III: Guilds!

Guilds ARE coming this Summer and we are PLANNING to do a lot with them*! The initial launch will happen at the end of June while Phase II will take place in late July on a member-only PTR server. (Public Test Realm server, where members can test... and BREAK... the new gameplay features we want to release!)

June:

Phase I will let you create and join guilds. We have yet to work out a LOT of the details (we are meeting later this week to finalize numbers/sizes/etc), but here is what Yorumi has working so far:

• Joining a guild
• Viewing a list of fellow guild members
• Guild-only chat
• Guild name displayed under your name

July:

Phase II, Yorumi says, SHOULD let your guild create a customizable guild town in which you can position the buildings you purchase. This involves re-working the way AQW's housing system works, but Yorumi has been making good progress.

He also wants to set up some system of GvG and GvE wars: Guild vs Guild and Guild vs Environment wars. Those may have to come later on, but it is something he REALLY wants to make happen. No promises, though.*

Again, there are still a LOT of details to work out, like member perks, the rules for guild leaders/members, etc. We will do a bigger Design Notes post once we have decided on these things,but those details might not come for a while.

We are REALLY excited about getting Guilds in-game finally! We hope you all are looking forward to them, as well. Yorumi would like to hear what YOU would like to see happen with guilds, so if someone could create a separate brainstorming thread on the forum, he says "thanks!"

* A plan is NOT a promise. Sometimes we talk about things to see what you think of them. Until we say "this is finished and is releasing," plans are subject to change. We are always excited about everything we plan on releasing, and sometimes we are just as disappointed- if not more - thank you guys are when things don't work out. 

Mod Search still underway!

Reens and Stratos have received SO MANY email applications to become an in-game moderator for AQWorlds! It will take them time to go through all the applications, but they WILL email the people they are interested in; unfortunately, they cannot reply to everyone. We will announce when those emails go out, so please hang tight.

Thank you to everyone who wants to help make this game as safe and awesome as possible, we really appreciate your desire to help!

Man, that was a LONG Design Notes with a LOT of information! We've got SO MUCH to do this Summer! We hope you guys are excited, because we are SO READY to heat this Summer up with epic releases!