Design Notes

November 02, 2011

Letter to Bloodtusk Front

Status Report Required Immediately!

General Tibias,

I expected a report on your progress in the Bloodtusk Matter yesterday, and do not have it yet. This displeases me. When I sent you, in league with Commander Cynari from the Swordhaven Army, I specifically stated regular reports were required.

My scouts in your camp report that your efforts to subdue the Horcs and Trolls have failed. They are re-arming themselves as we speak! Are you aware of the strength the Horcs are able to draw on from that mountain Ore of theirs? Do you understand the power the living Arashtite Ore lends Troll magic?

And speaking of... have you been able to recover the missing Ore? The Accord of the Dark Sun is meaningless if the Trolls and Horcs do not have access to it! With that, they could turn on us; if we do not get it back before them, they certainly WILL. And, from all the reports I've gotten in this last day - and none of them from YOU - that is exactly what is about to happen.

Do not forget, Tibias. We KNOW that Chaos is in Bloodtusk Ravine. We have seen the signs, heard the whispers. It is so obvious that in these very inner halls I hear news of Chaotic goings-on in the Ravine. Even now, I am sure, the taint of Chaorruption has thoroughly soaked into the Horc and Troll communities.

It is up to YOU to settle the feud between them so that we may RIP OUT the core of Chaos that festers there.

Do not fail me. Or else.

September 23, 2011

Bloodtusk Under Siege!

Good and Evil Take Over the Ravine!

Fear of Chaos is tearing apart both the Horcs and Trolls! King Alteon and Empress Gravelyn, worried over whispers escaping from the Ravine, have sent their diplomats to take over, instituting martial law.

With the Alliance's Army controlling the Ravine - the Horcs and Trolls are afraid they will be unable to protect themselves from the Chaos Lord, whoever they may be!

Kagg and Sokrakiis call on YOU, Hero, to help them save their homes, their families, and a mysterious Ore that is sacred to them all. Will you defy your long-time allies to help your newest friends? And Drakath's minions... what chaotic Twin-terference have THEY been up to?

This week has some AWESOME rewards AND a member-only area of the map to battle high-exp and gold monsters! (This area also has increased drop rates for quest items and item rewards!)

Troll Rep Shop:

• Troll Warrior Armor
• Trollinator Cape
• Trollinator Helms

Horc Rep Shop:

• Horc Peacekeeper Armor
• Horcinating Cape
• Peacekeeper Hat

Troll Defiance Shop:

• Pride and Glory
• Troll's Last Stand

Horc Defiance Shop:

• Granite Rippers
• Mauling Stick

And even more rewards from Khasaanda and Zot in the /join ravinetemple map!

New Treasure Chest Rewards!

Treasure Chests just keep dropping! And THIS week there's NEW items in them! We're going to keep adding new items to the Treasure Chest reward drop pool until we have hundreds! And this week we bring you the Onikage Armor and Helm!

Noteworthy News!

Quibble Coinbiter's Talk Like a Pirate Day Shop is staying for another week! Grab your doubloons and loot his shop or he'll make you walk the plank. Yarrrr!
The Bloodtusk AC War Rare shops are GONE! Those epic items are gone for good! We also removed all of the Chaorrupted Troll Boss drops except the pets.

3rd Upholder is Coming!

October is AQWorlds' anniversary month! And THAT means that anyone who upgrades will become a 3rd Upholder! That'll get you a sweet character page achievement and the EPIC Platinum Star Sword! (The Star Sword will not be released until November 4th.)

What comes next for Bloodtusk?

If you're really going to help the Trolls and Horcs, it looks like you're going to need to take on the Alliance! But the Twins -and Drakath - aren't going to make that easy. Nor are they going to stop fomenting Chaos between the Horcs and Trolls! And what of the mysterious Chaos Lord? You'll find out! Join us next week for more of the ravages of fear, loathing, and Chaos in Bloodtusk Ravine!

If you can't do quests for this week:

Then you'll need to follow these steps:

If you can't do Kagg's quests in the ravinetemple map, then here's what you need to do:

Head back to the Crossroads zone, and talk to Rawg (all the way to the right and up):

1) Accept the Oracle quest from Rawg.
2) Answer the Oracle's questions in the middle of the ravine.
*** Then follow the rest of the steps below.

If you've already done the Oracle's quest (answered her questions) for the Horcs, do this:

3) Go and watch the Eclipse cutscene at the end of the Crossroads zone.
4) Watch The River Runs Red in /bloodtuskwar
5) Kill the War Boss again.
6) Watch the cutscene, "Chaos Rages."
7) Go to /ravinetemple and do the quests!

If you can't do Sokrakiis' quests in the ravinetemple map, then here's what you need to do:

Head back to the Crossroads zone, and talk to Druuz (all the way to the right and up):

1) Accept the Oracle quest from Druuz.
2) Answer the Oracle's questions in the middle of the ravine.
*** Then follow the rest of the steps below.

If you've already done the Oracle's quest (answered her questions) for the Trolls, do this:

3) Go and watch the Eclipse cutscene at the end of the Crossroads zone.
4) Watch The River Runs Red in /bloodtuskwar
5) Kill the War Boss again.
6) Watch the cutscene, "Chaos Scars."
7) Go to /ravinetemple and do the quests!

September 17, 2011

Chaos has Only Just Begun!

The Trolls won the war...

But it looks like each side still blames the other for what happened! The Trolls are SURE that a Horc Chaos Lord is responsible for this tragedy, and the Horcs - many of them - KNOW that the best defense is a pre-emptive offense.

Are you ready for the War Boss?!*

After defeating the Chaorrupted Troll War Boss (this is NOT the Chaos Beast. We are not even close to the end of Bloodtusk Ravine! Muahaha!), you'll be taken to a screen where you can choose to view the Troll OR the Horc war end cutscene.

Trolls will see "Chaos Scars" while the Horcs can watch "Chaos Rage"! Both will give you an insight into the characters and what they are planning for the future of their enemies. Log in next weekend to see the VERY unexpected (in that no one's guessed it. Yet...) outcome of the Bloodtusk Ravine war!

SECRET: We said the winning side would influence the war boss, and it did! Had the Horcs won, the war boss would have been a Chaorrupted Horc. Zot's little sister. /sadface!

The Chaorrupted Troll Boss drops:

• Potent Chaorruption Scythe (member only)
• Chaorrupted Cape (member only)
• Chaorrupted Nightmare Blade (non-member)
• Tigriff and Chaotic Tigriff Cub Pets (member only)

It's 3AM and it's time for all good - and exhausted - game developers to head to bed! See you on Monday, Heroes!

* Thanks to Tweaked, Zereldo, XXJukkaXX, dark warrior overlord, Omnilordzant, and Kroulo for an EPIC half hour of battling while we raised the war meter that last little bit!

September 14, 2011

We See You Trollin', You're Horcin'...

You guys aren't fightin' dirty...

Because true heroes like you are commanding the Bloodtusk battlefield! Fighting the Chaos monsters wherever they are found. Paired up in parties of Trolls, Horcs, or just soloing as extraordinary, everyday heroes, you're hack-and-slashing away at each of the war meters! And if you keep pushing as hard as you are, you'll soon find yourselves face-to-tusks with a Chaorrupted war boss that NO one will expect!

Trolls take the field!

Trolls should be hitting 50% sometime tonight (they are at 48% now); the war is half-won, but the battling is NOT done! Fighting on the Troll side is ferocious, with artists putting down their paintbrushes and musicians laying aside their lutes to pick up anything with a point to really put it to those twisted jungle terrors! They will not let the Horc Chaos Lord destroy their home!

Trolls have turned from ballet postions to battle-stances!

NEWS FLASH: Horc Report!

Horcs can hit 45% tonight (they are at 41% now) if they continue ripping through the Chaorruption with as much will and stamina as they have shown so far! Battle On, Horcs! Do not let the Troll Chaos Lord take over your land and ravage your people! Your hearts are not made of easily-shattered crystal, no! Embrace the stone-strength that courses through your veins and emerge from the jungle victorious!

Using strength and a courage as solid as any stone from their mountain, the Horcs push forward!

The identity of the War Boss depends on YOU, so get your fellow Horcs (or Trolls) into the jungle and confront those Chaos monsters head-on! Samba has made some crazy-cool chaos pets as war boss drops, too! (No matter which side wins, these will drop.)

Talk Like a Pirate Day this Friday!

Yo ho, yo ho, a Pirate's gear for me! Quibble is coming back to BattleOn this Friday and he's got bountiful amounts of bad-axe booty and piratical equips for you this weekend!

His sea-worthy swag will sell for both AdventureCoins and gold doubloons, so now's a good time to loot your couch cushions and commandeer your piggy bank! His piratical backpack will hold everything from Pirated Media:

I thought Bounty Hunters went after people who pirated media...

To the Platinum Naval Commander:

Platinum Naval Commander with optional Platinum Helm

And introducing the newest Talk Like a Pirate Day armor - Shadow Pirate!

Totally NOT a ninja!

Other armors featured in this year's Talk Like a Pirate Day shop are the Legion Jolly Roger and the Jester of Torture-You-Ga! Pictures of those on Friday!

So shine your peglegs, make sure you're gear's clear (because no matter how much you love your parrot, your shoulder's NOT the poop-deck!) and polish your eyepatches, because you're going to want to look ship-shape when you set sail this Talk Like a Pirate Day! (Or else the other pirates in your party will make you walk the plank!)

Reminder!

AEXtras is still a great way to get FREE ADVENTURECOINS and even FREE BATTLEON POINTS, and with new Inventory, Bank slots and Premiere Event rares to buy there's never been a better time!

 Just CLICK HERE to get started!

September 09, 2011

Bloodtusk is at WAR!

The river runs red for both Trolls and Horcs!

Chaos and paranoia have infected the residents of Bloodtusk! There is no chance of peace now; not when the Trolls fear a Horc Chaos Lord is attacking them and the Horcs fear a Troll Chaos Lord is determined to crush them!

Each side wants YOU to battle alongside them to save their home and keep their people free! Grab your sword, equip your stoutest armor, and bring a BIG backpack because there's a LOT of loot to grab!

The boss battle will be determined by the intensity of the fighting. There is no telling what vile creation this mysterious Chaos Lord is planning for the end of the war, but you can bet he is waiting and watching... he will choose whatever hurts you the most!

TWO AC Rare shops and TWO war merge shops!

Both AC Rare shops will disappear once this epically divisive war event is over, so get your gear while you still can! The merge shops (and the merge shop drops) will continue to be available once the war is over. The war itself is permanent content.

Troll AC rares shop:

• Battle Priest Helm
• Razor Blade
• Trollish Quickblade
• Troll Marksman Armor

Troll war merge shop:

• Broken Sword and Shield
• Essence of Mana Blade and Shield
• Mystique Blades

Horc AC rares shop:

• Horc be Trollin' Helm
• Gorillaphant Tusk Bow
• Horc Battleblade
• Horc Slicer

Horc war merge shop:

• Horcish Furred Cape
• Tusked Battle Helm
• Horcish Slicer Daggers
• The Pain Blade

Cysero says: Members get your Keys!

If you haven't heard about the new Treasure Chests, here is how they work: As you adventure you might find a Treasure Chest that can only be unlocked by Twilly in BattleOn by using the Magic Treasure Chest Keys that he sells. Each chest contains a random EPIC item! As a AQWorlds Member, Twilly will give you TWO FREE KEYS every month for the duration of your membership!

Except last month when a small bug caused most Members to get a LOT of free keys.

Anyway...

Members, the time has come for you to claim this month's keys for yourself!

All you need to do is visit Twilly in Battleon and click on his Treasure Chest button like you would if you wanted to buy more Magic keys or open a

Then you will see the Back button, the Open Chest button, the Magic Keys button to buy more keys and the new FREE Magic Keys button...

Simply follow that button, Complete the quest given to you and just like that... 2 more Magic Keys! This only the lastest in and increasing list of AQW Member Benefits!

This Free Keys quest resets on the 1^st of every month but you can complete it for your free keys at ANY TIME during the month for as long as your membership lasts. Just don't forget to visit Twilly at least once a month. If you skip a month, you miss out on your two free keys!

I don't think that remembering will be a problem considering that we have been and will continue to add new items all the time including TODAY! Remember that they are all set to a cost of 0 AdventureCoins so you can store them for free in your bank (like all AC items) and the keys are only 200 Acs so you can easily complete an AExtras offer for another key!

Happy adventuring and if you find a Treasure Chest... good luck!

Talk Like a Pirate Day is Coming!

Yarrrrrr! It be almost Talk Like a Pirate Day in these here parts! On September 19th, all you landlubbers will have to find your sealegs, because we're going dubloon-or-nothing with this year's TLaPD rares! Mennace has made a whole hull's worth of the saltiest loot in the land! And Dage's Platinum Naval Commander will have all you lily-livered scalawags full-blooded pirates before the day is done!

Obrigado Brasil!

The Brasilian Independence Day shop will remain until Monday! Get your gear while it's still here!

August 08, 2011

LQS and Bloodtusk Ravine!

This LQS will make you say OMG!

"Blood for GOLD!" That is the cry of the Omega Mercenary Group, a posse dedicated to filling their purses while pursuing their prey across Lore and the Galaxy! And now YOU can join their crew when you access this Saturday at 3AM EST! Make sure you check your time zone and set your alarm (or more than one, to be safe!), because you won't want to miss this gear designed exclusively by Mennace.

If you're a soldier of fortune, or just enjoy dressing as one, you too could own these cutthroat equips! IF you've got the ACs. Prices will come as soon as we sit down and figure them out. Most likely tomorrow during the day.

Male versions of the Assault Gear, Death Dealer, and Infiltrator Armors!

Female versions of the Mecha Defender, Omega Alchemist, and Omega Hunter!

Covet these crazy-awesome Omega equips!

Bloodtusk Ravine: Two races a world apart

Bloodtusk Ravine is an unforgiving plateau surrounded on all sides by jungle. Lending its name to the area, a narrow ravine splits the plateau in half... and separates two races which have raged at each other for generations! You've already met (or battled) members of both species, but this week you'll get to know them much, much better:

The Horcs: Primal, savage, the ultimate warriors defending their home and their people from a threat others would dismiss out of hand. Tribal and untamed, wilderness lives inside each Horc, a fact which threatens their unwilling neighbors.

Possessing strength and endurance beyond any race in their lands, 200 years ago the Horcs were used by the Trolls for manual labor, treated by them as second class citizens, until they rose up and claimed the other side of the ravine.

The Trolls: Brilliant thinkers and philosophers, patrons of the arts in all their many forms, and strategists beyond compare. Using their superior knowledge and cunning, the trolls managed to dominate the fiercer Horcs for centuries.

They revel in pleasure now, focusing on the glory of Art and Culture, but a movement among them longs to return to the days when they had conquered the whole of the plateau through the might of their intellect.

The uneasy peace between the two camps is about to come to an end. Something - or someone- is setting fires of discontent and fear among both the Horcs and the Trolls, and is eager to dance in the flames as Chaos consumes their country! The next Lord of Chaos is rising.

Reminder!

AEXtras is still a great way to get FREE ADVENTURECOINS and even FREE BATTLEON POINTS, and with new Inventory, Bank slots and Preimere Event rares to buy there's never been a better time!

 Just CLICK HERE to get started!