Design Notes
November 16, 2018
This Friday: SpellSword Scaveger Hunt
Return to DragonRune Hall this weekend!
Calling all melee and magic-loving heroes... DragonRune Hall's premiere SpellSword is recruiting! Talk to Inanitas, in DragonRune Hall, Lore's premiere school of magic and witchcraft, this weekend. He has an all-new scavenger hunt ready to help train new Spellsword Artifact Hunters! Be prepared, though... if you want to join his crew, you'll need brains AND a blade to complete his quests. Decipher clues, battle bosses, and discover rare and valuable artifacts.
What's a SpellSword Artifact Hunter, you ask? Lore is littered with magical artifacts, and my Spellswords hunt them down! Why? For many reasons: to study them, to keep them out of the hands of evil doers, and of course to make ourselves more powerful! Some are just weird, though. The other day, one my Hunters brought back a magic plunger that unclogs toilets 17% faster...
Featured Gear: DragonRune SpellSmith Set
This weekend, find the DragonRune SpellSmith armor set in your Featured Gear Shop. Crafted by Crulon and inspired by Inanitas' Spellswords, this is a gorgeous set perfect for any mage who wants to stun their enemies with style (before beating them with a blade)!
- DragonRune SpellSmith armor
- SpellSword's Hair + Scarf helms
- SpellBlade BackBlade cape
- Shattered SpellBlade weapon
- SpellSword Daggers
- Dark Artifact Hunter's armor
- Artifact Hunter's Crossbow + Daggers
- Artifact Hunter's Scarf
The DragonRune SpellSmith is available for AdventureCoins or for gold if you have a membership. You can also find the gear in Inanitas' shop. Plus, complete his quests to unlock pieces of the SpellSword Artifact Hunter and SpellSword's Apprentice sets.
Wheel of Doom: Free Spins are BACK!
Everyone loves to get prizes... and that's why we're bringing back free spins for the Wheel of Doom!
- Members get one free spin a day while their upgrade is active
- All players get one free spin a week.
- Day 1: Log into AQWorlds. Your first Gear of Doom will be added to your inventory.
- Day 2: Log into AQWorlds again. Your second Gear of Doom will be added to your inventory.
- Day 3: Log into AQWorlds again. Your third Gear of Doom will be added to your inventory.
- Click to spin the Wheel of Doom and claim your free weekly spin.
You can keep track of how many Gears of Doom you have by clicking on the "Free Spin?" button above the Wheel of Doom.
- Log in on 3 different days during the same week to get all 3 gears.
- You do not need to log in 3 days in a row. (Example: if you log in on Monday, Thursday, and Sunday, you can claim your free spin on Sunday.)
- The gear quantity will reset every 7 days or when you turn in the free spin quest. (Example: if you turn in the free daily quest on Monday at 3 PM, you have until next Monday to collect your 3 Gears of Doom.)
- Gears do not roll over from week to week.
Note: A lot of people aren't going to get the first Gear when they log in tonight. This works off the same daily system as our other login rewards, and if you've already logged in today, before the release went live, the game does not consider this a "new day" for you.
The introduction of this new system is the only time we'll be in this position. We apologize for the inconveniece.
Happy Birthday, Inanitas!
Inanitas has been a contributor to the AE Team for many years now, in a number of different ways. From a release tester to a writer for AQWorlds and DF, we're very happy to have him around, and hope you enjoy his event. Wish him a happy early birthday on Twitter!
What about Memet's Birthday?
Due to a medical issue for one of our team members, we were unable to get all of the art done in time for this week's release, so we rearranged the November calendar of releases. Memet's birthday event will move to another week, later on in the year.
November 15, 2018
Black Friday 2018 Spoilers
We're really bad at secrets.
Late last night, a few of my Twitter followers got a sneak peek of one of this year's Black Friday Classes - the Abyssal Angel's Shadow. A lot of happiness and a lot of unhappy questions started flowing in on Twitter, in-game, and Discord. One of the most common was...
Why are you doing a Black Friday variant of a rare class?!
Thousands of new heroes start playing AQWorlds every day. They'll never be able to get most of the exact same cosmetic items that you, reading this now, have, because they are perma-rare. With cosmetic items, that's ok. You don't need those to experience the game fully. When it comes to classes (aka gameplay), though... you do.
In order to keep as many players as possible on as even a playing field as possible, we're releasing a new version of the Abyssal Angel Class. It will have the same skills, but new art, a new name, and new skill names. That way, new players (or older players who missed their chance), will have a way to obtain that same type/power of gameplay.
Though we released rare classes in the past, in hindsight, we should not have -- we've locked a huge percentage of our players away from a lot of really fun game mechanics. We're correcting that mistake in the fairest way possible -- by keeping the art and certain parts of the skills (like names/descriptions) rare.
Important Points
- Goal: to be as fair to as many people as possible -- both the ones who have the original art/skill combo and ALL the many players who came after them.*
- Rare classes will never return in exactly the same way (armor art + skills combination).
- People who have the original Abyssal Angel class will get this version for free. (That way, our class collectors do not feel like they are being charged twice for the same set of skills.)
- The Black Friday version of the Abyssal Angel class will have the different armor art and different skill names, but will still have the same power, skills, animations, and gameplay mechanics.
- The Abyssal Angel's Shadow Class will be seasonal, and will return every Black Friday, to give future heroes a chance to get the class.
Ok, but... What ELSE are you releasing?
Good question! The final list of Black Friday and Cyber Monday gear has not been decided. It won't be until I get to the Lab Saturday morning, coffee in hand, and lock down the final list. But if you want a sneak-peek of what will definitely be released on Black Friday...
- Yo Lae's HollowBorn Evoker collection **
- Bido's Darkest Ninja set
- Dark Void Paladin Katanas
- Shadow Imp Tail
- Obsidian OmniKnight Blade
- Obsidian No Class ***
- Obsidian Pirate Mage
- Half-Off and Cyber Unarmed****
- Plus all of the seasonal Black Friday
And for Cyber Monday we'll have...
- Nakana Rei's all-new Mecha Set
- CyberCaster armor
- and more!
But what will I FIGHT?!
Next Wedneday, November 21st, all our seasonal Thanksgiving events will return, along with an all-new war, written and designed by AQW Tester and Quest Designer, Asuka! Oishii's brought the food, and the members of the Good and Evil alliance will bring the FEUD!
* If you used your Epic Item of Donated Awesomeness or Platinum Item of Donated Awesomeness to get the Abyssal Angel Class, you can write in to Player Support and choose a new item.
** This is a 5k seasonal Collection Chest, and will come with 26 items this year. Next year, we'll add even more to the chest, so if you get gear this year, you'll get next year's chest update for free. All of the items in the Hollowborn Evoker collection will also be available to buy individually.
*** You can be a stylish peasant dressed in all black and still have No Class.
**** Members, here's your chance to add to your collection of invisible Unarmed weapons.
November 14, 2018
AQWorlds Patch Notes
Check the list of bug fixes to see what the team has addressed
Reens, Cemaros and the AQW Bug Hunter team are busy squashing the bugs you submit each week to the Bug Tracker at www.Artix.com/bugs.
Please do not send non-release bugs on Twitter. They will get lost. Make sure you send bug report forms!
Check back weekly to see if the bug you reported has been addressed. Please remember that not all bugs are "easy fixes" so some reported and confirmed bugs from each week may not be on the fixed list as they will require more time or a different person to fix them.
If you would like to know how the reports go from you to fixed, check this page:
http://www.aq.com/lore/guides/BugReportFAQ
Bug Fixes:
- The KS Twig pet got his forever name now (Twig Moglin Plush Pet), and that has convinced him he is loved and he no longer loses his head.
Art Fixes:
- Enchanted Naval Commander has been dusted for stray pixel removal.
- Arachnid Naval Commander female shoulder fixed again.
November 13, 2018
Tuesday News Updates
Spins, Bug Fixes, and More
Hello all! It's good to be back after a very fine trip to Chicago* to surprise a family member for their birthday. I've got my bug-boxing gloves on and am ready to hit the DNs with some updates, so let's get to it.
Treasure Potion Bug Fix
Yesterday, Yorumi and the Crew of Doom confirmed and fixed an issue with Treasure Potions dropping more frequently than they were supposed to (where x6 potions were dropping when only x1 was intended).
Here's the what and why of that bug, and its fix.
The Problem: Each time you spin the Wheel of Doom, you are guaranteed to get the following rewards: x1 Treasure Potion, 10,000 gold, and 1 XP boost... plus a chance for a bonus item. Even if you do not get a bonus item, you always get the Treasure Potion, gold, and XP boost. The problem was, every time you spun and did not get a bonus item, you were getting x5 Treasure Potions instead of x1.
That might not sound like a problem, but it threw off the balance of the Doom Merge Shop prices. If we increased the amount of Treasure Potions that each spin gives, we would also need to increase prices in the merge shop.
The Cause: The Wheel of Doom is built sort of like the Treasure Chest, where you never get an item you already have. On the rare off-chance that the Wheel of Doom tried to give you a duplicate item, we built in a failsafe to give you x5 extra Treasure Potions instead.** Instead, it was dropping the x5 failsafe potions every time you spun and did not get a bonus item.
The current code prevents duplicates:
- It won't pick a reward that has already been rewarded by the wheel
- When an item is picked, if you already have it, you get 6 potions.
- If wheel picks nothing, due to there only being super "rare" items left, you get 1 potion.
- If you have all of the prizes on the Wheel, you get 1 potion.
The only way anyone will currently get the 6 potions is if they happen to already have an item that is a reward on the wheel, and they'll get it just once per item like that.
The Solution: We fixed the code giving x5 Treasure Potions for every spin you didn't get an item. It now rewards x1 Treasure Potion, as intended and listed in the Design Notes and Guides.
After a flood of community feedback and sending Captain Rhubarb back in time to dig through some old code, we've arrived at the best compromise, so you can make the most out of your spins while maintaining the reward cost balance.
Changes incoming to the Wheel of Doom:
- Spin the Wheel, get normal rewards + bonus prize
- No bonus prize drops? Get 2 Treasure Potions instead of 1.
- Wheel tries to give a duplicate item? Get 3 Treasure Potions instead of 1.
- Already have ALL the Wheel drops? Get 6 Treasure Potions instead of 1.
If you got a ton of Treasure Potions legitmately from this bug, you lucked out! You will get to keep all of those Treasure Potions as our way of apologizing for the issue and any inconvenience.
Free Weekly Spin Update
The free Weekly Spin for ALL players is still in testing. We will know for sure by tomorrow (once the full week has passed) whether everything is working as intended, and if it can release this Friday.
Planned Release Change
Due to a medical issue for one of our team members, we have rearranged the November calendar of releases. Instead of Memet's Birthday update, this Friday, we'll launch the SpellSword Scavenger Hunt for Inanitas'*** birthday, and Featured Gear Shop update.
Next week, all our seasonal Thanksgiving events return, along with this year's new update and Black Friday gear.
* It will always be sweet home Chicago for me.
** That also helped avoid the possibility that you wouldn't get anything on that spin.
*** Inanitas is a member of the AQW and DF dev teams, as a guest writer.
November 09, 2018
Sepulchure's Saga: Into the Plane of Light
This Weekend, Sepulchure's Saga continues!
Love. Loss. And a Darkness that will change the fate of the world… This is Sepulchure the DoomKnight’s story.
This weekend, log in and battle as Lynaria, Queen of Swordhaven. Your mission: to save your best friend from the DOOM that consumes him. Journey through the Plane of Light to gather magical reagents, grow stronger than you've ever been, and cast the spell that could save your friend from eternal Darkness.
Queen Lynaria has vowed to save Sepulchure -- the man who was once Swordhaven's most loyal knight -- but neither situations, stories, or people are simply black and white. This weekend, events transpire that will change both their lives forever... for Good AND Evil.
Rewards of Doom and Light
Battle through this weekend's release to unlock pieces of the Worshipper of Doom armor set. These weapons, once handcrafted with care, have been corrupted by the darkness that surrounds the Blade of Doom.
The pieces of this set were crafted by AQW Community Artist, Reki Roland (also one of Lore's largest ShadowScythe devotees).
Complete this weekend's release to find Amie the Celestial StarMage in the Plane of Light. She's traveled from the Celestial Realm to gather starlight and, along the way, decided to spend time studying the nature of light itself. Find to earn the pieces of her bright armor set, crafted by AQW Community Artist, Ferozakh.
November 07, 2018
AQWorlds Patch Notes
Check the list of bug fixes to see what the team has addressed
Reens, Cemaros and the AQW Bug Hunter team are busy squashing the bugs you submit each week to the Bug Tracker at www.Artix.com/bugs.
Please do not send non-release bugs on Twitter. They will get lost. Make sure you send bug report forms!
Check back weekly to see if the bug you reported has been addressed. Please remember that not all bugs are "easy fixes" so some reported and confirmed bugs from each week may not be on the fixed list as they will require more time or a different person to fix them.
If you would like to know how the reports go from you to fixed, check this page:
http://www.aq.com/lore/guides/BugReportFAQ
Bug Fixes:
- Undead Boomstick’s description updated.
- Lightguardwar map set so to story progession now. You do still have to turn either war quest in to begin the story.
Art Fixes:
- Deathknight Helm now covers entire face.
- Male Brightoak Avenger armor - a few more fixes to the colours.
- Eternal Dragon Warrior armor hands CC fixed.
- Battle Commander Leist got his picture back.
- Bongo Cat helms - Twilly's paws stay red. All of them have stopped sitting on their paws.
Check out this Design Notes post for why we were so delayed this week:
This Weekend: Double DOOM
AQ3D
BattleGems
BioBeasts
Dragons
Undead Assault