Jack T. Lamplighter

We made significant efforts to let all our backers know that all homes were expiring on July 27th. On January 28, 2016 we published the Final Wipe and Lot Selection post that announced the expiration of all homes from the pledges that would occur on July 27, 2016 [Original post stated August 1, 2016 as the expiration of all homes. That date was edited on May 13, 2016 to state that home expirations would occur on July 27, 2016].... Expired Homes Thumbnail Image Issue View the full article

Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar: Port Graff Revisited Summer Telethon of the Avatar Part 2 Land Rush Update Password Change Request Static Player Owned Town Policy Statement 15% Bonus and 10 Day Countdown to Summer 2016 Expiration Event, Part 2 Upcoming Events Dawn of New Britannia Community Trailer Contest Grand Opening of Vyrin & Womby’s Bookstores Community Resources – Players Helping Players World Builder/Level Designer Job Opening Recommended Projects to Back Port Graff Revisited Port Graff is a cloned scene based on Kingsport. It is getting rebuilt this release and will go live with Release 33. Note that when we un-clone these scenes we do NOT change lot placements. We only make cosmetic changes of building styles, terrain, and foliage. In the case of Port Graff, it is getting a plot specific additions related to the gem trade between the Graff Gem Mines and Graff Island along with a host of other visual changes. [From a Dev+ Forum Post by Esteben “SorcerousSteve” Zaldivar] Hey guys, Sorcerous Steve here to give you a sneak peak at the uncloning process for Port Graff! Port Graff started out as a Kingsport Clone and has undergone major renovations for its R33 release. Port Graff is located on the western coast of Drachvald and serves as a docking point for the valuable gems coming from the Graff Gem Mines. The gems make their way to Port Graff via cart and are placed on boats for their transport to Graff Island where they are sculpted and added to weaponry and jewelry. Carts filled with gems enter the Port Graff checkpoint. Port Graff is a mining port town heavy on trade with an abundance of guards protecting valuable shipments of gems. Port Graff waterfront. Gems are loaded onto boats and shipped to Graff Island, which can be spotted off in the distance. Player homes line the boarded mud streets Dawn sets in on the mining port town of Port Graff. Small streams flow through the town of Port Graff. Stay tuned for the next update on Port Graff! Esteben Zaldivar Level Designer Summer Telethon of the Avatar Part 2 Avatars! Are you ready to continue celebrating with us the biggest event to hit New Britannia since the great cataclysm? At Midnight CDT (5:00 UTC) on August 22, 2016, we are expiring ALL remaining pledges, including: Adventurer, Founder, Royal Artisan, Explorer, Ancestor, Edelmann, Knight Marshal, Lord Marshal, Duke, and Lord of the Manor 2. To commemorate the final expiration of all remaining pledges, we are holding the 12-hour Summer Telethon Part 2, starting at 12:00 pm CDT (17:00 UTC) and running right up to the Final Pledge Expirations at Midnight CDT (5:00 UTC). You can pre-post your questions in the article’s comments section, or post questions during the telethon in Discord chat.* What exciting events can you expect throughout the day? An array of fun activities and engaging content, many of which you can directly participate in with us in-game! We will also be giving away a ton of fabulous prizes*, and if the following stretch goals are met, we will be adding amazing new content into the game. Did you see what was unlocked during last month’s telethon? Let’s make it happen again in Part 2! Help us to achieve the following goals during the telethon! As a special bonus, we are offering Telethon Funding Stretch Goal Rewards to any backer that pledges a minimum of $5 from the start of the telethon, until Midnight (Spending Store Credit to make $5 minimum purchase does not apply). The Summer Telethon of the Avatar Funding Stretch Goal Rewards are: $10,000: /airplane emote $25,000: ? and ! Hats $35,000: Aeronaut Outfit $50,000: Accordion musical instrument $65,000: Mini Automaton Pet $80,000: Baby Clockwork Dragon Pet + More if we go beyond! Cheer on the Devs! For every $2,500 donated, all developers on camera have to either dance, sing, or drink a shot of alcohol. Additionally, we will be spinning the Wheel of Fortune & Doom! (we borrowed this idea from our friends over at Crowfall). The wheel will have 14 items at any given time, but dozens of total prizes ultimately will be given away! This includes developers that, if selected, have to either dance, sing, or drink a shot of alcohol. As the wheel is spun, what is selected will be replaced by something in the list below. Items already selected will be removed for a time (some may not come back onto the wheel for the rest of the telethon. Keep in mind that some of these may never come up, so cross your fingers for your preferred item! Wheel of Doom Items: (NOTE: not a complete list and list subject to change) Blood Reliquaries 10% off for 1 hour All Lot Deeds 25% off for 30 min Viking Houses 20% off for 1 hour Juggles 20% for 1 hour Elven Elder Armor 10% off for 1 hour Pets 20% off for 1 hour Hot Air Balloon & Airship 25% off for 1 hour Stone Statues (incl Dragons!) 15% off for 30 min Obsidian Homes 20% off for 30 min Pipes 30% off for 1 hour Wearable Bundles 20% off for 1 hour Prosperity Tools 10% off for 1 hour Wings 20% for 1 hour /breathefires 20% for 1 hour Kobold City 5% off for 30 min Viking City 5% off for 30 min Kobold Town 10% for 1 hour Viking Town 10% for 1 hour Viking Village Keep 10% for 1 hour Kobold Village Keep 10% for 1 hour Viking Village 10% for 1 hour Kobold Village 10% for 1 hour Kobold Row 10% for 1 hour Viking Row 10% for 1 hour We also have these exciting prizes to give away throughout the telethon!* Store Credits Town Lot Property Deeds Obsidian Tower Village Home Star Citizen Aeronaut Helmet Starter Bundle Cloaks, Juggle, Musical Instruments, Pets, Prosperity Tool, Kobold, and other bundles Rare Lord British relics Special Challenge Coins Shroud of the Avatar t-shirts Sword of Midras audiobook AND hardcover copies! More Razer Gear Here is a peek at what to watch out for as the telethon progress: Schedule (All times and content subject to change) Noon: Welcome to the Summer Telethon! 12:30 PM: Community Trailer Contest winners announced! 1:00 PM: R32 Postmortem Q&A continues 2:00 PM: Studio Tour – Dev Rampage! 3:00 PM: Community Hour 1 – Getting Involved 4:00 PM: Story & NPCs Deep Dive 5:00 PM: Spite and Port Graff: Uncloning Process 6:00 PM: Player Housing Deep Dive 7:00 PM: Community Hour 2 – Contributors 8:00 PM: Crafting Deep Dive 9:00 PM: Combat Deep Dive 10:00 PM: Items & Scene Design 11:00 PM: Adventure Tour and AMA Watch The Telethon on YouTube! New Twitch Channel Now Live! You will also be able to watch the telethon on Twitch.tv/Shroudoftheavatar! If you wish to win prizes during the Telethon event, be sure to still be in Discord chat! Watch live video from shroudoftheavatar on www.twitch.tv Warning: Telethon is Rated PG-13 for Alcoholic Content (might get upgraded to Rated-R depending on rate of pledges) See you on the livestream chat at Noon this coming August 22nd! * There will be some really awesome prizes awarded during the telethon, but you have to be present in the Discord chatroom to qualify for each drawing. Please keep in mind that questions and feedback related to each segment will be given priority and really verbose questions may be skipped, as they can be a challenge to shorten and summarize live on the air. In brief… please keep your questions… brief. Only 3 Questions per person! Land Rush Update We’ve passed the half-way point of lot selection groups and are now in the home stretch! As of this update, we have well over 1,000 lots that have been claimed with thousands more yet to be claimed as the upcoming tiers open up this weekend. Brittany Alleys overtakes Brittany Central in the number of lots claimed at 162. Ardoris is second in demand at 157 lots claimed. There is still plenty of lots left in Aerie, Desolis, Etceter, Kingsport, all throughout the rest of Brittany, and many other towns across New Brittania! The rest of the Edelmann (Groups 46-54) and Citizen (Groups 55-63) pledge holders are now able to claim starting today and through this weekend! Here is the lot selection schedule for these groups: EDELMANN: Groups 46-54: Benefactor – Group 52: August 12 at 01:00 CDT (06:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 53: August 12 at 06:00 CDT (11:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 54: August 12 at 11:00 CDT (16:00 UTC) CITIZEN: Groups 55-63: Royal Founder – Group 55: August 13 at 11:00 CDT (16:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 56: August 13 at 16:00 CDT (21:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 57: August 13 at 21:00 CDT (August 14 at 02:00 UTC) Founder – Group 58: August 14 at 02:00 CDT (07:00 UTC) Founder – Group 59: August 14 at 07:00 CDT (12:00 UTC) Founder – Group 60: August 14 at 12:00 CDT (17:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 61: August 14 at 17:00 CDT (22:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 62: August 14 at 22:00 CDT (August 15 at 03:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 63: August 15 at 03:00 CDT (08:00 UTC) All other group times are listed in the Lot Selection announcement on the main website. The last group will be Group 91 on August 24 at 03:00 CDT (08:00 UTC). After all group times have passed, anyone will have a chance to place a lot. To get daily lot selection updates, follow the game on Twitter at www.twitter.com/shroudofavatar, or keep the above Lot Selection announcement bookmarked for easy access! Password Change Request Earlier this year, a few well-known games and sites were compromised and lists of usernames and passwords became widely available. Yesterday, it was revealed that DOTA2 was the latest victim. We continue to be fortunate enough to not be one of the victims of these attacks. However, we have experienced a hacking attack that attempted to use these leaked username/password combinations to try and login to Shroud and have succeeded several times thus far. As a precaution, we temporarily disabled login to the official website until 6:00 PM CDT (11:00 PM UTC) on August 11, 2016. However, if you have played one of the games that has been compromised, you may be one of the victims we identified. You must make sure your username, or at least your password is unique on our site. We insist that you change your password if you have any doubt. FYI, this is good security behavior in general. If you wish to change your password, click on “Account” to go to your Account Page, click “Edit Profile” link beneath your profile image, and enter a new password on your Profile Settings page. Static Player Owned Town Policy Statement [From a forum post by Starr “Darkstarr” Long] Greetings Player-Owned Town Owners (and other interested parties), We are still working on a few remaining Player-Owned Town (POT) Templates (like the Swamp Island), but as soon as we have what we consider adequate coverage across biomes, we can begin Static POT construction. We hope to start as soon as Q4. As part of this, we wanted to update everyone on our policies regarding Static POTs. Order: Construction order will be based on size and purchase date (i.e. the oldest and biggest will be built first). Contact: When we are ready to begin construction, we will contact the owner with any questions we have about customization requests. Templates: All construction will be done off of the base templates. Requests for other maps (ex. Kingsport) as base templates can be submitted, but it is very unlikely they are suitable for POT construction due to size and/or space limitations. This is because all POTs have to be built with the maximum size in mind of a Metropolis. Customization: We will make every attempt to get as close as we can to your customization requests as constrained by Item 3. Permanence: Once you choose Static and we begin construction of your POT, you can never convert that Custom Static town to Dynamic. It will be permanently Static. Lots work completely differently in static scenes versus Dynamic scenes and now that we are persistent we cannot change existing static lots into dynamic lots. Change Requests: If you want to make changes to your town after it is in the game, you will need to either upgrade to a larger town size or pay for those changes (charges will be determined based on scale of the change requests). Some requests cannot be made at all because of persistence (example: changing or deleting existing lots). Courtesy Unlock: If you wish to switch to Dynamic after reviewing these policies, we will provide you one courtesy unlock of your Player-Owned Towns Submission Form to convert to Dynamic. Thank you for your support and we look forward to working with those of you who choose Static as your option. 15% Summer Bonus and 10 Day Countdown to Expiration Event, Part 2 As we march toward the conclusion of the Great Land Rush, we are preparing for Part 2 of our Summer 2016 Expiration Event and the end of the 15% Summer Bonus Promotion! Summer 2016 Expiration Event, Part 2 At Midnight CDT (5:00 UTC) on August 22, 2016, we are expiring ALL remaining pledges, including: Adventurer, Founder, Royal Artisan, Explorer, Ancestor, Edelmann, Knight Marshal, Lord Marshal, Duke, and Lord of the Manor 2. To commemorate the final expiration of all remaining pledges, we are holding a 12-hour Summer Telethon Part 2, starting at 12:00 pm CDT (17:00 UTC) and running right up to the Final Pledge Expirations at Midnight CDT (5:00 UTC). Get Your 15% Summer Bonus! If you were thinking of purchasing (or upgrading) a pledge or Player Owned Town before they expire, then now’s a great time to do it! For all new purchases (including pledges, pledge upgrades, add-on items, player owned towns and upgrades, Make a Difference items, and service vouchers) between 12:00 am CDT June 24, 2016 and Midnight CDT (5:00 UTC) August 22, 2016, we’ll add an additional 15% bonus to your Store Credit! [Read more…] Upcoming Events 2016.08.16 – GDC Europe 2016.08.22 – Summer Telethon Part 2 + Final Pledge Expirations Episode 1 (Pledge Expirations at Midnight) 2016.08.25 – Release 33 2016.09.02 – DragonCon 2016 2016.09.21 – Austin Games Conference 2016.09.29 – Release 34 2016.11.04 – SotACon Community Activities Visit the official Community Calendar to see the great lineup of activities our amazing community has planned for this weekend! And be sure to check out the Release 32 Events thread in the SotA forums for additional events. Event of the Week – 4Beasts – Grand Opening! On August 13th will the door of your favourite pet shop open again. We want to celebrate the Grand Opening with you, my dear customers. Therefor, we will make a quiz about your knowledge regarding pets and taming. Bring pen and paper with you. The 3 winners can either choose between non-combat pledge reward pets (clockwork or normal) or private taming lesson under GM Tamer (me [Sindariya]) with starter set (5 collars + whistle). You will find 4Beasts on Islands of Wonders. Just before the gates of the town. Dawn of New Britannia Community Trailer Contest Get those eye popping trailer ideas ready, Avatars! This is your chance to show that Shroud of the Avatar is the game, and community, new players will want to experience next! The ‘Dawn of New Britannia Community Trailer Contest’ is underway! You have from August 4, 2016 (Now) to August 21, 2016 (11:59 PM CDT) to design a video trailer for all of New Britannians to see and admire. Glamorous city districts, creative player-owned towns, luxurious housing, intense combat, majestic outdoor areas, and so much more is available to proudly show off. There’s a nearly infinite potential in creating a trailer that makes even the most hardy New Britannia cry out in joy, and to want to share the video with others. Grand Prize: $1,000 Store Credit, SotA signed t-shirt, Sword of Midras book, SotA COTOs coin, and a specially signed congratulations letter from Richard Garriott. 2nd Place: $500 Store Credit, SotA signed t-shirt, Sword of Midras book, SotA COTOs coin 3rd Place: $250 Store Credit, SotA signed t-shirt, Sword of Midras book, SotA COTOs coin [Read more…] Grand Opening of Vyrin & Womby’s Bookstores Starting in Release 11, Womby and Viryn have operated bookstores in the land of Novia. Their grand opening since the final wipe is now in two locations! Visit their charming setup in Brittany Central, as well as in the city of Aerie: The R32 Unreliable Travel Guide is on sale now! Limited edition of 100 copies only! Community Resources – Players Helping Players The official SotA New Player Welcome Forum and the Player Created Resources Forum have the best player created resources for Shroud of the Avatar, whether it’s a Player Written Guide, a Video Walk-through, or a Wiki-type Website. Crafting Resources of the Week SotACrafter.com: This is an amazing site that simply gets RIGHT to the point. Need a recipe? Simply use the drop-down menu and voila! Instant recipes to peruse. SotACraft.com: This is a one-stop-shop for crafting recipes and instructions. Beautifully laid out with images for each recipe, sorted by category! Visit the official Community Resources page for a complete listing of all things community. World Builder/Level Designer Job Opening We currently have an opening for a junior-level to senior-level World Builder/Level Designer for Shroud of the Avatar. Qualifications for the “ideal candidate” are: Minimum 2 years industry experience for junior-level (preferably on a shipped game) Unity3D proficiency Scripting ability Experience building, texturing, and decorating natural, terrain based exterior environments An artistic eye for detail, with strong scene compositional skills If you’d like to join the Portalarium Tribe working on the ground-breaking Shroud of the Avatar, please submit your resume to jobs@portalarium.com. Provide links to your work (if possible), including actual game play, videos footage, and document form (images, maps, and event descriptions). Recommended Projects to Back Descent: Underground Eric “Wingman” Peterson and team are bringing back six-degrees-of-freedom combat by blasting 90’s action game favorite, Descent, into the 21st Century with current-generation gaming technology. Descent: Underground is more than a graphics upgrade. Get ready for multiple types of customizable ships! Prepare for upgradable weapons and sensors with richly-detailed tech trees. Brace yourself for destructible voxel maps with new power-ups and mod tools to make your own maps and more! Backer Shipping Addresses In preparation for shipping backers’ physical pledge rewards later this year, we have added Shipping Address fields to your Account Profile page. To enter your shipping address, log in to the SotA website, select “Account” in top right corner, then select “Edit Profile” located in top left corner, beneath your Avatar image. A reminder to be sure that support@portalarium.com is unblocked from your e-mail account! Save View the full article

Hello everyone, this is Asclepius, with a wonderful story from Zader. It is entitled The Void’s Edge Background music by Smartsound As he slipped out of the inn room, Minxx and Luna were still intertwined and fast asleep. Making his way out onto the docks, the cool morning breeze was welcome on his face, as was the comforting smell of salt in the air. The sound of gulls and a light breeze were broken by the creak of aged wood. “Ah, the old familiar sound”, Zared mused as he stepped aboard. Maylin was a Large Dragon Ship; she had seen her fair share of time at sea but was a worthy vessel none the less. Zared had made this trip a hundred times, but fortune favors the prepared…so her hold was fully stocked for the 3 day journey from Moonglow. “Tillerman, we have a schedule to keep!” Zared barked, momentarily dwelling on the importance of his upcoming meeting. Sails were set and Maylin made her way West. A lifetime of exploration and adventure on the high seas accustomed Zared to the role of Ship’s Captain, but it wasn’t always glamorous. Today was like many uneventful days at sea; calm and quiet with the sound of the occasionally dispatched Water Elemental. Two sea serpents provided much needed entertainment. As night closed in around him, Zared masterfully checked his sextant. “We’re still on track”, he whispered to himself as the lights of Nujel’m appeared in the distance. As dawn broke, Nujel’m transitioned from a speck on the horizon, into nothingness. As if on cue, Zared noticed a twinkling light in the water ahead; as the moments went on, the strobing light increased in size and intensity. Curiosity drove him further forward until the light explosively expanded into a giant dark orb with the sound of a thousand moongates opening in unison. The massive void, as dark as night, now stood directly in their path. Realizing the danger, Zared shouts “Hard to Port!” and braces himself against the mast as the ship lurches in response to the tillerman’s violent course change. In a heartbeat, Maylin is skimming along the surface of the void, her crew fighting to steer as they slip into the edge. Darkness. Then light as they slip back out of the void and away. In a matter of seconds, the void dissipates as if it were never there. As Zared regains his composure, it becomes apparent that powerful magics are at work. Looking around in awe, he blinks multiple times to be sure what he’s seeing. Once antiquated woven wool sails were now silken black and iridescently billowing as if stuck between this world and another. The creaky oaken woodwork now resembled a marriage of the darkest Yew and Bloodwood. Old metalwork now gleamed with shadow instead of light, putting to shame the highest quality Shadow Iron. As Zared made his way to the stern of the ship, his eyes were met with a ghastly horror. Where his tillerman once stood, a wraith had taken his place. It was clear; Maylin was no more. This new ship was born in the Void’s Edge, and as such, she would be forever known. Zared thought to himself, “We still have a schedule to keep” and with a glance over his shoulder and an evil grin, Zared commanded, “Tortured Helmswraith, set a course for Britain!” The post The Void’s Edge – by Zader – narrated by Asclepius appeared first on Echoes from the Caverns. View the full article

Earlier this year a few well-known games and sites were compromised, and lists of usernames and passwords became widely available. Yesterday, it was revealed that DOTA2 was the latest victim. We continue to be fortunate enough to not be one of the victims of these attacks. However we are under a hacking attack that is using these leaked username/password combinations to try and login to Shroud and has succeeded several times so far. If you have played one of these games that has been... Password Change Request Due to Other Sites Being Compromised View the full article

We have changed the way we deliver homes to Player Owned Town owners. The following process will be implemented this coming Monday, August 15th: The change applies to owners who have not claimed any home rewards in the past, if they were due homes as part of the town. (Player Owned Town homes expired in January 2016). This applies to owners regardless of the “locked” state of their town – even if the design form for the town has never been locked, the owner will receive these rewards.... Delivery of homes to POT owners View the full article

Earlier this year a few well-known games and sites were compromised, and lists of usernames and passwords became widely available. Yesterday, it was revealed that DOTA2 was the latest victim. We continue to be fortunate enough to not be one of the victims of these attacks. However we are under a hacking attack that is using these leaked username/password combinations to try and login to Shroud and has succeeded several times so far. If you have played one of these games that has been compromised you may be one of the victims we identified today. You must make sure your username, or at least your password is unique on our site. We insist that you change your password if you have any doubt. FYI, this is good security behavior in general. For now we have temporarily disabled login to the website until 6:00 CDT. When we bring it back up please do the above suggested password change immediately. View the full article

Avatars! Are you ready to continue celebrating with us the biggest event to hit New Britannia since the great cataclysm? At Midnight CDT (5:00 UTC) on August 22, 2016, we are expiring ALL remaining pledges, including: Adventurer, Founder, Royal Artisan, Explorer, Ancestor, Edelmann, Knight Marshal, Lord Marshal, Duke, and Lord of the Manor 2. To commemorate the final expiration of all remaining pledges, we are holding a 12-hour Summer Telethon Part 2, starting at 12:00 pm CDT (17:00 UTC) and running right up to the Final Pledge Expirations at Midnight CDT (5:00 UTC). As always, we will also be answering your questions during the telethon. You can pre-post your questions right here in the comments section or post them live in Discord during the Telethon.* What exciting events can you expect throughout the day? An array of fun activities and engaging content, many of which you can directly participate in with us in-game! We will also be giving away a ton of fabulous prizes*, and if the following stretch goals are met, we will be adding amazing new content into the game. Did you see what was unlocked during last month’s telethon? Let’s make it happen again in Part 2! Help us to achieve the following goals during the telethon! As a special bonus, we are offering Telethon Funding Stretch Goal Rewards to any backer that pledges a minimum of $5 from the start of the telethon, until Midnight (Spending Store Credit to make $5 minimum purchase does not apply). The Summer Telethon of the Avatar Funding Stretch Goal Rewards are: $10,000: /airplane emote $25,000: ? and ! Hats $35,000: Aeronaut Outfit $50,000: Accordion musical instrument $65,000: Mini Automaton Pet $80,000: Baby Clockwork Dragon Pet + More if we go beyond! Cheer on the Devs! For every $2,500 donated, all developers on camera have to either dance, sing, or drink a shot of alcohol. Additionally, we will be spinning the Wheel of Fortune & Doom! (we borrowed this idea from our friends over at Crowfall). The wheel will have 14 items at any given time, but dozens of total prizes ultimately will be given away! This includes developers that, if selected, have to either dance, sing, or drink a shot of alcohol. As the wheel is spun, what is selected will be replaced by something in the list below. Items already selected will be removed for a time (some may not come back onto the wheel for the rest of the telethon. Keep in mind that some of these may never come up, so cross your fingers for your preferred item! Wheel of Doom Items: (NOTE: not a complete list and list subject to change) Blood Reliquaries 10% off for 1 hour All Lot Deeds 25% off for 30 min Viking Houses 20% off for 1 hour Juggles 20% for 1 hour Elven Elder Armor 10% off for 1 hour Pets 20% off for 1 hour Hot Air Balloon & Airship 25% off for 1 hour Stone Statues (incl Dragons!) 15% off for 30 min Obsidian Homes 20% off for 30 min Pipes 30% off for 1 hour Wearable Bundles 20% off for 1 hour Prosperity Tools 10% off for 1 hour Wings 20% for 1 hour /breathefires 20% for 1 hour Kobold City 5% off for 30 min Viking City 5% off for 30 min Kobold Town 10% for 1 hour Viking Town 10% for 1 hour Viking Village Keep 10% for 1 hour Kobold Village Keep 10% for 1 hour Viking Village 10% for 1 hour Kobold Village 10% for 1 hour Kobold Row 10% for 1 hour Viking Row 10% for 1 hour We also have these exciting prizes to give away throughout the telethon!* Store Credits Town Lot Property Deeds Obsidian Tower Village Home Star Citizen Aeronaut Helmet Starter Bundle Cloaks, Juggle, Musical Instruments, Pets, Prosperity Tool, Kobold, and other bundles Rare Lord British relics Special Challenge Coins Shroud of the Avatar t-shirts Sword of Midras audiobook AND hardcover copies! More Razer Gear Here is a peek at what to watch out for as the telethon progress: Schedule (All times and content subject to change) Noon: Welcome to the Summer Telethon! 12:30 PM: Community Trailer Contest winners announced! 1:00 PM: R32 Postmortem Q&A continues 2:00 PM: Studio Tour – Dev Rampage! 3:00 PM: Community Hour 1 – Getting Involved 4:00 PM: Story & NPCs Deep Dive 5:00 PM: Spite and Port Graff: Uncloning Process 6:00 PM: Player Housing Deep Dive 7:00 PM: Community Hour 2 – Contributors 8:00 PM: Crafting Deep Dive 9:00 PM: Combat Deep Dive 10:00 PM: Items & Scene Design 11:00 PM: Adventure Tour and AMA Watch The Telethon on YouTube! New Twitch Channel Now Live! You will also be able to watch the telethon on Twitch.tv/Shroudoftheavatar! If you wish to win prizes during the Telethon event, be sure to still be in Discord chat! Watch live video from shroudoftheavatar on www.twitch.tv Warning: Telethon is Rated PG-13 for Alcoholic Content (might get upgraded to Rated-R depending on rate of pledges) See you on the livestream chat at Noon this coming August 22nd! * There will be some really awesome prizes awarded during the telethon, but you have to be present in the Discord chatroom to qualify for each drawing. Please keep in mind that questions and feedback related to each segment will be given priority and really verbose questions may be skipped, as they can be a challenge to shorten and summarize live on the air. In brief… please keep your questions… brief. Only 3 Questions per person! Save View the full article

Some of these will appear in R33 (hopefully most): Min Level to Summon: There will be a minimum level in Summoning required to summon a creature based on that creature's level Taming Skills affect Creature Power: Your taming skills will affect the power/level of your creature effectively leveling that creature as your skills increase. Note that this works both ways so that if someone with a lower level summons a higher level creature that creature will be weaker.... Taming Changes IncomingView the full article

Lot Selection is underway! This is your group-by-group weekly update on which pledge tiers have already claimed lots, and which groups are about to be able to secure a lot yet this week. Check out the list below to see if your group is coming up! Interesting in upgrading your peldge to claim sooner? You can! Just go to your Account settings and click on the Pledges menu tab. NEW GROUPS SELECTING LOTS THIS WEEK Knight and Knight Marshal: Groups 37-45: Royal Founder – Group 37: August 8 at 03:00 CDT (08:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 38: August 8 at 08:00 CDT (13:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 39: August 8 at 13:00 CDT (18:00 UTC) Founder – Group 40: August 8 at 18:00 CDT (23:00 UTC) Founder – Group 41: August 8 at 23:00 CDT (August 9 at 04:00 UTC) Founder – Group 42: August 9 at 04:00 CDT (09:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 43: August 9 at 09:00 CDT (14:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 44: August 9 at 14:00 CDT (19:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 45: August 9 at 19:00 CDT (August 10 at 00:00 UTC) EDELMANN: Groups 46-54: Royal Founder – Group 46: August 10 at 19:00 CDT (August 11 at 00:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 47: August 11 at 00:00 CDT (05:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 48: August 11 at 05:00 CDT (10:00 UTC) Founder – Group 49: August 11 at 10:00 CDT (15:00 UTC) Founder – Group 50: August 11 at 15:00 CDT (20:00 UTC) Founder – Group 51: August 11 at 20:00 CDT (August 12 at 01:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 52: August 12 at 01:00 CDT (06:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 53: August 12 at 06:00 CDT (11:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 54: August 12 at 11:00 CDT (16:00 UTC) CITIZEN: Groups 55-63: Royal Founder – Group 55: August 13 at 11:00 CDT (16:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 56: August 13 at 16:00 CDT (21:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 57: August 13 at 21:00 CDT (August 14 at 02:00 UTC) Founder – Group 58: August 14 at 02:00 CDT (07:00 UTC) Founder – Group 59: August 14 at 07:00 CDT (12:00 UTC) Founder – Group 60: August 14 at 12:00 CDT (17:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 61: August 14 at 17:00 CDT (22:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 62: August 14 at 22:00 CDT (August 15 at 03:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 63: August 15 at 03:00 CDT (08:00 UTC) More group times are listed in the Lot Selection announcement on the main website. The last group will be Group 91 on August 24 at 03:00 CDT (08:00 UTC). After all group times have passed, anyone will have a chance to place a lot. To get daily lot selection updates, follow the game on Twitter at www.twitter.com/shroudofavatar, or keep the above Lot Selection announcement bookmarked for easy access! View the full article

Hello everyone! Here is the news of the week! Estgard Remake Juggling Bottles Land Rush Update Dawn of New Britannia Community Trailer Contest Star Citizen Cross Promotion Alienware Indie Contest Add On Store Updates 15% Bonus and 17 Day Countdown to Summer 2016 Expiration Event, Part 2 The Sword of Midras SotA Novel for Hardcover, Kindle, Nook and Audiobook Upcoming Events Community Resources – Players Helping Players ONBE Shipments and Backer Shipping Addresses World Builder/Level Designer Job Opening Recommended Projects to Back The post Echoes From the Caverns 08-05-16 appeared first on Echoes from the Caverns. View the full article

Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar: Estgard Remake Juggling Bottles Land Rush Update Dawn of New Britannia Community Trailer Contest Star Citizen Cross Promotion Alienware Indie Contest Add On Store Updates 15% Bonus and 17 Day Countdown to Summer 2016 Expiration Event, Part 2 Upcoming Events Community Resources – Players Helping Players ONBE Shipments and Backer Shipping Addresses World Builder/Level Designer Job Opening Recommended Projects to Back Estgard Remake Estgard is another cloned scene using one of our PRT / POT templates based off of the Forest 01 base template (aka PaxLair). It is getting rebuilt this release and will go live with Release 33. Note that when we un-clone these scenes we do NOT change lot placements. We only make cosmetic changes of building styles, terrain, and foliage. In the case of Estgard, it is getting a plot specific perimeter wall added along with a host of other visual changes. Estgard is on the island of Norgard and is part of the Path of Courage. [From a Dev+ Forum Post by Richard “RrMatey” Matey] With Estgard, my goal was to tie it closer to the aesthetics of Valhold. Take a gander Juggling Bottles [From a Forum Post by Scott “Lum” Jennings] We managed to sneak in a cool token of appreciation to all of you who are busy having fun and making Release 32 a success – as of today’s patch, if you ask Peladjar (the innkeeper in Sequanna Square’s busiest tavern) about his job, he’ll explain how difficult it is to keep so many customers happy. And thus you’ll learn something as well… mainly the /jugglebottles emote! Just a small thank you for helping us keep all our bottles in the air. Land Rush Update The lot selection process has kicked off and the land rush is heating up! As of this update, we have over 300 lots that have been claimed with thousands more yet to be claimed as the upcoming backer tiers open up this weekend. Here are the estimated number of lots currently available of each type (they are going fast, so don’t delay in securing your lot!): Row: 1,304 Village: 1,237 Village Water: 225 Town: 391 Town Water: 67 City: 198 City Water: 34 Keep: 36 Keep Water: 12 Castle: 13 Castle Water: 11 Brittany Central currently takes the lead in the number of lots claimed at 54. Owl’s Head is second in demand at 48 lots claimed. There is still plenty of lots left in Estgard, Etceter, Resolute, Spite, Yew, and many other towns! The Lord and Lord Marshal Groups (28-36) are claiming today and through this weekend! Here is the lot selection schedule for these groups: Royal Founder – Group 28: August 5 at 11:00 CDT (16:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 29: August 5 at 16:00 CDT (21:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 30: August 5 at 21:00 CDT (August 6 at 02:00 UTC) Founder – Group 31: August 6 at 02:00 CDT (07:00 UTC) Founder – Group 32: August 6 at 07:00 CDT (12:00 UTC) Founder – Group 33: August 6 at 12:00 CDT (17:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 34: August 6 at 17:00 CDT (22:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 35: August 6 at 22:00 CDT (August 7 at 03:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 36: August 7 at 03:00 CDT (08:00 UTC) All other group times are listed in the Lot Selection announcement on the main website. The last group will be Group 91 on August 24 at 03:00 CDT (08:00 UTC). After all group times have passed, anyone will have a chance to place a lot. To get daily lot selection updates, follow the game on Twitter at www.twitter.com/shroudofavatar, or keep the above Lot Selection announcement bookmarked for easy access! Dawn of New Britannia Community Trailer Contest Get those eye popping trailer ideas ready, Avatars! This is your chance to show that Shroud of the Avatar is the game, and community, new players will want to experience next! The ‘Dawn of New Britannia Community Trailer Contest’ is underway! You have from August 4, 2016 (Now) to August 21, 2016 (11:59 PM CDT) to design a video trailer for all of New Britannians to see and admire. Glamorous city districts, creative player-owned towns, luxurious housing, intense combat, majestic outdoor areas, and so much more is available to proudly show off. There’s a nearly infinite potential in creating a trailer that makes even the most hardy New Britannia cry out in joy, and to want to share the video with others. Grand Prize: $1,000 Store Credit, SotA signed t-shirt, Sword of Midras book, SotA COTOs coin, and a specially signed congratulations letter from Richard Garriott. 2nd Place: $500 Store Credit, SotA signed t-shirt, Sword of Midras book, SotA COTOs coin 3rd Place: $250 Store Credit, SotA signed t-shirt, Sword of Midras book, SotA COTOs coin [Read more…] Star Citizen Cross Promotion In Celebration of reaching Final Wipe last week, Cloud Imperium Games and Portalarium are proud to announce an exciting opportunity to purchase two limited edition items in Shroud of the Avatar that also grant access to items in CiG’s Star Citizen! Star Citizen Aeronaut Helmet Starter Bundle (Limited Edition of 250): The Cloud Imperium Sky Navy equips its daring Aeronauts with these helmets that include the latest in Kobold Aether Vibration technology allowing the user to tune into radio stations. Purchase of this Starter Package grants Early Game Access to Shroud of the Avatar, 50 Bank Slots AND the Star Citizen Mustang Alpha starter pack (Coupon Code redeemable on Star Citizen website). Star Citizen Mustang Alpha Starship Star Citizen Airship Home (Limited Edition of 150): The Cloud Imperium Sky Navy has recently decommissioned 150 of their armor clad airships and lucky Outlanders can purchase them to use as homes on their City Lots. These float above a city lot, providing ample living area while preserving almost 100% of yard space! You will need a City or larger Property to place this home in-game. Purchase of this home ALSO includes the Star Citizen Cutlass Black Starship from Drake Interplanetary (Coupon Code redeemable on Star Citizen website). Star Citizen Cutlass Black Starship Alienware Indie Contest – Vote for Shroud of the Avatar! Two dozen indie games are being presented in ‪Alienware Arena‬’s ‘Indie Game Showcase Challenge’ event, and Shroud of the Avatar is proud to be one! Help us to secure further exciting partnerships for the community with Alienware by voting today! [Read more…] Add On Store Updates There have been many new additions to the Add-On Store during the past week, including Wings, Emotes, Homes, Hats, and Value-Packs! Wings! Juggle Emotes! Ornate Pipe Pack Breathe Fire Emote Ornate Black Leather Aeronaut Helmet New Viking and Kobold Homes 15% Summer Bonus and 17 Day Countdown to Expiration Event, Part 2 As we march toward the conclusion of the Great Land Rush, we are preparing for Part 2 of our Summer 2016 Expiration Event and the end of the 15% Summer Bonus Promotion! Summer 2016 Expiration Event, Part 2 At Midnight CDT (5:00 UTC) on August 22, 2016, we are expiring ALL remaining pledges, including: Adventurer, Founder, Royal Artisan, Explorer, Ancestor, Edelmann, Knight Marshal, Lord Marshal, Duke, and Lord of the Manor 2. To commemorate the final expiration of all remaining pledges, we are holding a 12-hour Summer Telethon Part 2, starting at 12:00 pm CDT (17:00 UTC) and running right up to the Final Pledge Expirations at Midnight CDT (5:00 UTC). Get Your 15% Summer Bonus! If you were thinking of purchasing (or upgrading) a pledge or Player Owned Town before they expire, then now’s a great time to do it! For all new purchases (including pledges, pledge upgrades, add-on items, player owned towns and upgrades, Make a Difference items, and service vouchers) between 12:00 am CDT June 24, 2016 and Midnight CDT (5:00 UTC) August 22, 2016, we’ll add an additional 15% bonus to your Store Credit! [Read more…] Upcoming Events 2016.08.16 – GDC Europe 2016.08.22 – Summer Telethon Part 2 + Final Pledge Expirations Episode 1 (Pledge Expirations at Midnight) 2016.08.25 – Release 33 2016.09.02 – DragonCon 2016 2016.09.21 – Austin Games Conference 2016.09.29 – Release 34 2016.11.04 – SotACon Community Activities Visit the official Community Calendar to see the great lineup of activities our amazing community has planned for this weekend! And be sure to check out the Release 32 Events thread in the SotA forums for additional events. Event of the Week – EVL /emote Swap Do you crave emotes? Has your boyfriend not learned to /kiss yet? Does your pledge come without /headstand so said how are you going to make it through the day when you can see the world from that perspective? This will occur at 4 PM NBT (Central-Server-Time) by the Owl’s Head) lower bank. Community Resources – Players Helping Players The official SotA New Player Welcome Forum and the Player Created Resources Forum have the best player created resources for Shroud of the Avatar, whether it’s a Player Written Guide, a Video Walk-through, or a Wiki-type Website. Resource of the Week SOTAWiki.net – All Things Shroud of the Avatar SotAWiki is a 100% community-driven and updated resource about all manner of items, quests, and in-game organizations! This site is also accessible by using the /sotawiki command from within the game! Visit the official Community Resources page for a complete listing of all things community. Status of ONBE Shipments The Order of the New Britannia Empire (ONBE) awards are now shipping to our amazing community recipients! There are still several recipients that have not updated mailing address information on their accounts. If you are expecting an ONBE, please do this now! We are also sending out e-mails to ensure we have the correct address. Please check that support@portalarium.com is unblocked from your e-mail account to receive these e-mails! Visit SotA Wiki for a current list of those who have received or are expecting ONBEs. Backer Shipping Addresses In preparation for shipping backers’ physical pledge rewards later this year, we have added Shipping Address fields to your Account Profile page. To enter your shipping address, log in to the SotA website, select “Account” in top right corner, then select “Edit Profile” located in top left corner, beneath your Avatar image. For country and regional tax assessment purposes, our tax accountants have requested that we start collecting a buyer’s physical/shipping address for all purchases, whether digital or physical. We’ve tried to streamline that process as much as possible, such that once you’ve entered a physical address we will pre-populate the address fields with your default address. A reminder to be sure that support@portalarium.com is unblocked from your e-mail account! World Builder/Level Designer Job Opening We currently have an opening for a junior-level to senior-level World Builder/Level Designer for Shroud of the Avatar. Qualifications for the “ideal candidate” are: Minimum 2 years industry experience for junior-level (preferably on a shipped game) Unity3D proficiency Scripting ability Experience building, texturing, and decorating natural, terrain based exterior environments An artistic eye for detail, with strong scene compositional skills If you’d like to join the Portalarium Tribe working on the ground-breaking Shroud of the Avatar, please submit your resume to jobs@portalarium.com. Provide links to your work (if possible), including actual game play, videos footage, and document form (images, maps, and event descriptions). Recommended Projects to Back Star Citizen “I don’t want to build a game. I want to build a universe.” From the mind of Chris Roberts, acclaimed creator of Wing Commander and Freelancer, comes STAR CITIZEN, a living, breathing science fiction universe with unparalleled immersion… and you’re invited to follow every step of development! More than a space combat sim, more than a first person shooter and more than an MMO: Star Citizen is the First Person Universe that will allow for unlimited gameplay. BrightLocker BrightLocker is the first crowd publishing platform for games. BrightLocker was launched by fellow ex-Originites Mark Rizzo and Ruben Cortez, members of the original Ultima Online Network Ops team from back in the day. Portalarium’s Starr Long is also an advisor. BrightLocker will be counting down the last hour of the Finals voting round LIVE tonight! Producer Erin Geiger and co-host Charlie Porter will be discussing the game ideas competing for a coveted spot in the GreenZone, checking in with thier live audience via Twitch chat, and will have play-by-play commentary as the Finals near their dramatic conclusion. Our very own Shroud community member enderandrew is also a Brightlocker community member and his game idea Meifumado: The Dark Road To Hell is one of the finalists! On top of all that, they will have a special raffle during the show giving a lucky winner 2,500 votes! This is a historic moment as YOU help choose the first game to go into production that is created and selected by the public. Tune in LIVE tonight at 8PM-9PM Central time here. Save View the full article

Unity changed how default monitors work so that now it will go to whatever you have defined as your “Main” monitor in windows. If this monitor cannot support the resolution you are playing the game in then the game will crash. To fix this you will need to redefine your “Main” monitor to the monitor you want to play the game on. View the full article

Get those eye popping trailer ideas ready, Avatars! This is your chance to show that Shroud of the Avatar is both the game, and community, that new players will want to experience next! The ‘Dawn of New Britannia Community Trailer Contest’ kicks off today! You have from August 4, 2016 (Now) to August 21, 2016 (11:59 PM CDT) to design a video trailer for all New Britannians to see and admire. Glamorous city districts, creative player-owned towns, luxurious housing, intense combat, majestic outdoor areas, and so much more is available to proudly show off. There’s a nearly infinite potential in creating a trailer that makes even the most hardy New Britannia cry in joy, and to want to share the video with others. Below are the details of this contest, including what you can win when creating an amazing video! WINNERS & PRIZES Trailers will be judged by a team at Portalarium on the following merits: Keeping to the Shroud of the Avatar world (Only SotA footage and audio) Overall originality and artistic flair (Don’t overdo it! Simplicity can work wonders) Diversity of in-game areas presented (Outside scenes, inside homes, dungeons, etc.!) Overall flow from opening scenes, buildup of in-game footage, and end scene Seamless transitions, consistency, and smooth gameplay throughout Will it make a fan shed a tear in joy? Brownie points here! Check out these great prizes for designing a great trailer! Grand Prize: $1,000 Store Credit, SotA signed t-shirt, Sword of Midras book, SotA COTOs coin, and a specially signed congratulations letter from Richard Garriott. 2nd Place: $500 Store Credit, SotA signed t-shirt, Sword of Midras book, SotA COTOs coin 3rd Place: $250 Store Credit, SotA signed t-shirt, Sword of Midras book, SotA COTOs coin All Other Submissions: Everyone else that submits an eligible and feature complete trailer will have theirs included in a contest playlist on the official Portalarium YouTube channel for proudly submitting their work. Final entries and winners will be mentioned and possibly shown in the upcoming summer telethon on August 22nd! Keep watch on the main website for details on the telethon. SUBMITTING A VIDEO Requirements: Resolution: 1920×1080, or 3840×2160 if everything looks smooth Runtime: 1-3 Minutes Assets: May only use SotA graphics, music, or your own customized assets Quality: For optimal game recording quality, set all game settings to their max Scale back game settings if framerate drops consistently below 30fps Audio: Must have at least some music, sound effects only at the intro and exit scenes as needed, and voiceovers are not necessary. Also consider how game sound effect levels are with the main music. You can also turn them off if you feel they are not needed. Contains a “Created by:” message somewhere at the end scene, as well as a Shroud of the Avatar logo either in this same scene or elsewhere. Your video must be shareable on YouTube. Submit your trailer in the forum Trailer Submission Thread with a title, description, why you created it, and a YouTube link to the trailer. If you have questions or general comments about the contest, please post them in the Trailer Announcement Thread. VIDEO RESOURCES There are plenty of tools out there to use to put together a gameplay trailer! Some online web suggestions would be Animoto.com, Flixtime, and Stupeflix. Production tools include Adobe Premiere, Cyberlink Director, and Sony Vegas. As long as the trailer adheres to the requirements listed in this contest announcement, you can use any software at your disposal. Example videos: SotA Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3zXNn6YP-8 SotA Trailer v2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uc869m8Cnc0 Animoto: https://youtu.be/AL4SUG-UKPs Community: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xMcnNzDi10 There are many ways to create great trailers! We recommend you start by considering if you want any graphics at the beginning of the trailer to introduce it, as well as exit slides (including the necessary “Created by:” message in the end scene). One of the examples we provided above is a super duper fancy Animoto.com version, so don’t feel obligated to abide by that structure. You can download our Media Kit that includes additional logos and items for your video. While you are not required to save raw footage, we would appreciate you doing so in case we would like to reuse the footage in future videos. Please do not send raw footage until we ask. THE RULES Since this is a skill based contest, a committee of judges will be formed at Portalarium, and any tie breakers will be resolved by the committee. Any concerns and disputes on who won must be sent to community@portalarium.com. Do not post in the submission thread or other public areas any disputes or challenges about the winners. Inappropriate/Vulgar submissions are prohibited and will result in disqualification. Submissions containing any of the following are considered inappropriate: Any disparagement of a race/gender/group of people or ideals Drug/alcohol abuse, sexual connotations, and other derogatory or disturbing imagery Graphical bugs, or otherwise depicting the state of the game in a negative manner Anything that would be a violation of the common Community Rules & Guidelines NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. MUST BE AGE 13 OR OLDER. ONE ENTRY PER PERSON OR HOUSEHOLD. THIS IS A SKILL-BASED CONTEST. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. VIDEO FOOTAGE CAN BE FROM ANY SOURCE AVAILABLE TO YOU, INCLUDING YOUR OWN GAME ACCOUNT AND THIRD PARTY SOURCES. ASK FOR PERMISSION WHERE APPROPRIATE. AFFIDAVIT OF ELIGIBILITY / RELEASE OF LIABILITY / PRIZE ACCEPTANCE AGREEMENT MAY BE REQUIRED. ALL SUBMITTED VIDEOS ARE ABLE TO BE USED AND COPIED BY PORTALARIUM FOR PROMOTING SHROUD OF THE AVATAR AS PORTALARIUM AND ITS PARTNERS SEES FIT. View the full article

ONLY POST TRAILER SUBMISSIONS AND TRAILER COMMENTS HERE PLEASE! For details of the contest, general discussion, and to ask questions, visit the Trailer Contest Announcement Thread. This is your chance to show that Shroud of the Avatar is both the game, and community, that new players will want to experience next! The ‘Dawn of New... 'Dawn of New Britannia' Trailer Submission ThreadView the full article

Get those eye popping trailer ideas ready, Avatars! This is your chance to show that Shroud of the Avatar is both the game, and community, that new players will want to experience next! The ‘Dawn of New Britannia' Community Trailer Contest kicks off today! You have from August 4, 2016 (Now) to August 21, 2016 (11:59 PM CDT) to design a video trailer for all New Britannians to see... 'Dawn of New Britannia' Community Trailer Contest!View the full article

As a friendly reminder, during your excitement of placing lots and meeting with others for the first time since post-wipe in-game, please know that you are not the only person in the world looking to make a mark. Extremely disruptive actions are not conducive to a healthy in-game community, not matter what type of player you might be. As we've already warned those who are exploiting... In-game Abuse Policy Reminder View the full article

Lot Selection is underway! This is your group-by-group weekly update on which pledge tiers have already claimed lots, and which groups are about to be able to secure a lot yet this week. Check out the list below to see if your group is coming up! GROUPS ABLE TO CLAIM AS OF AUGUST 1 Lords of the Manor, Groups 1-9 Duke, Groups 10-18 GROUPS COMING UP THIS WEEK Baron: Groups 19-27: Royal Founder – Group 19: August 2 at 19:00 CDT (August 3 at 00:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 20: August 3 at 00:00 CDT (05:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 21: August 3 at 05:00 CDT (10:00 UTC) Founder – Group 22: August 3 at 10:00 CDT (15:00 UTC) Founder – Group 23: August 3 at 15:00 CDT (20:00 UTC) Founder – Group 24: August 3 at 20:00 CDT (August 4 at 01:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 25: August 4 at 01:00 CDT (06:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 26: August 4 at 06:00 CDT (11:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 27: August 4 at 11:00 CDT (16:00 UTC) Lord and Lord Marshal: Groups 28-36: Royal Founder – Group 28: August 5 at 11:00 CDT (16:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 29: August 5 at 16:00 CDT (21:00 UTC) Royal Founder – Group 30: August 5 at 21:00 CDT (August 6 at 02:00 UTC) Founder – Group 31: August 6 at 02:00 CDT (07:00 UTC) Founder – Group 32: August 6 at 07:00 CDT (12:00 UTC) Founder – Group 33: August 6 at 12:00 CDT (17:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 34: August 6 at 17:00 CDT (22:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 35: August 6 at 22:00 CDT (August 7 at 03:00 UTC) Benefactor – Group 36: August 7 at 03:00 CDT (08:00 UTC) More group times are listed in the Lot Selection announcement on the main website. The last group will be Group 91 on August 24 at 03:00 CDT (08:00 UTC). After all group times have passed, anyone will have a chance to place a lot. To get daily lot selection updates, follow the game on Twitter at www.twitter.com/shroudofavatar, or keep the above Lot Selection announcement bookmarked for easy access! View the full article

We managed to sneak in a cool token of appreciation to all of you who are busily having fun and making Release 32 a success - as of today's patch, if you travel to Ardoris and ask Peladjar, the innkeeper in Sequanna Square's busiest tavern, about his job, he'll explain how difficult it is to keep so many customers happy. And thus you'll learn something as well... mainly the /jugglebottles emote! Just a small thank you for helping us keep all our... How Many Can You Juggle? View the full article

Hello everyone, this is Asclepius, with a wonderful piece from Baron Drocis Fondorlatos, entitled The Baron’s Story Background music by Smartsound Rift I, Sir Jeffrey of Resolute, being of sound mind and able body bequeath all my worldly possessions including lands, titles, and all that which is customary to Drocis the Devious. That is how the letter began. I was given a fortune in fictional medieval nonsense by a mentally ill Don Quixote-like stranger that I’d once played Dungeons and Dragons with over twenty years ago. I had apparently made an impression, or at least my character had. I’d developed a persona of an evil mage known as Drocis the Devious. A villain who earned his name after making several strategic and indirect manipulations of the other player characters to achieve his own goals. He was a fun character to play because even though the other players knew never to trust him, he still always came out ahead in the end. A fact that infuriated most everyone that came into contact with him. The letter listed out hundreds of items, many of them were very mundane sounding (artisan fishing pole) while others sounded cryptic and weird. I was now the proud owner of a tax free keep deed, over 900 bank slots, and 90 obsidian crowns? Oh, and something called a noble’s magical discourse orb. I expected there might be a 1970’s era disco ball arriving in a follow-up package to complete the joke sometime in the near future. Then I noticed at the bottom of the envelope was a small dagger that looked like a letter opener. I removed the dagger and realized that the hilt could be detached to reveal a USB stick. Ok I thought, now we’re getting somewhere. It must be a new game. A Malwarebytes scan said it was clean, so I popped it in to my computer to find out what was on it. It wasn’t a game; it was a bunch of PDF files. Random items that didn’t seem to have anything to do with one another. How to prepare Regicide Stovie? Sumerian Astrology? The Lost Manuscripts of the Obsidian Eye? More nonsense, this guy really lost it. There was no contact information or instructions, just a folder full of this junk. I continued to open the files to see if I could find a clue. I can’t really explain what happened next. Observation As I acclimated myself to a new world, I noticed the changes incrementally. The lack of necessities that I once took for granted but could never forget, eating and sleeping were no longer required and almost seemed impractical. The effects of weather no longer caused me to seek shelter and I had lost the ability to feel physical pain. My strength and reflexes had increased along with my overall health. Gone were the aches and soreness associated with aging. I had become something other than human. I had become an Avatar. I was sustained by the world, free to explore where I wished or reflect on my thoughts for as long as I needed. It was so relaxing I quickly lost all desire to return to the world in which I had lived for the last 41 years. Time moved much faster than I was accustomed to, as day became night and night returned to day with suspicious regularly. Sometimes I would catch myself waiting for the cycle to reset as if someone were manually pulling up the sun and lowering the moon using a series of complicated ropes and pulleys. I was alone but for a few other inhabitants that either shared my perspective or appeared incapable of sharing it. There were the others, Avatars much like me. Travelers from different worlds, though I had not met anyone that had not come from Earth. There were also the locals, native to New Britannia, static husks compared to Avatars. They spoke, they walked, sometimes they even fought, but they were not like us. They moved and reacted slowly or often not at all. Calling them zombies would be too kind, they were not that sophisticated. The Novian Peoples Collectives, or NPC’s as I would later call them, were born of the same mind. They travelled a path devoid of free will, and they were unaware if not incapable of seeing it. This was the land I found myself in, New Britannia, home to medieval looking villages, towns, and cities. With a seemingly endless background of myth, legend, and adventure. I had been transported to the central isle of New Britannia called Novia, and it was here that I learned of magic, as well as the three principles of truth, love, and courage. But most importantly, I learned that Avatars are immortal. Persistence I watched in horror as the pack of wolves devoured my lifeless flesh. I had been caught up in my own hubris and paid the price for thinking I could beat them all. Incorporeal form and hovering above the feast, I wondered what would happen next? I had never before stopped to consider what Avatar death would entail. Perhaps it was similar to death on Earth for which I had no experience. One of the wolves howled in delight as another ripped one of my arms from its socket, a sobering reminder that not feeling the pain was not complete protection from the byproducts. My Avatar superiority was lacking in that department. Still hovering out of body, I began to look beyond the gruesome scene in front of me and towards a shining light. In the distance I could see what appeared to be an ankh at the top of a small hill. As I wished to move towards it I was surprised to see that I was also beginning to move in that direction. Around trees and over rocks I eventually came face to face with this mysterious structure and then suddenly I was back. Beyond the veil of death and inside my old body as if nothing had happened. I tested my arm, the one I saw the wolf pull off in a frenzy. It showed no signs of abuse and felt as natural as before. I was alive and standing on the same hill where I’d seen the ankh, but it was now replaced by air and in the distance I could hear the wolves growl as if they were hunting once more. Closer and closer the sound grew and without confidence I imagined the same fate befalling me as before. I ran and did not look back until I could no longer hear the sounds of the pack. In the coming days and months, I would speak with other Avatars and learn that they too had similar experiences. One even told me that he had died over 1000 times, and in fact during that conversation took it upon himself to perform a jump out of a 4th story window, only to reappear moments later. He was quite proud of himself and insisted on showing me the remains of his corpse in the form of a transparent image of a skeleton on the ground below. Despite seeing this, it was still unnerving to assume that death was so meaningless here. After all it was the fear of death that motivated humans to perform basic tasks leading to their day to day survival. Without that fear, what were we? What was left to be cautious of? I did not have an answer. On Earth I would sometimes take comfort in looking up at the sky and seeing a star that might have also been viewed by Plato, Socrates or Aristotle. A connection through time with the first men and each generation after that who pondered the same questions. Like the ancient philosophers of Earth, I began to ask: Why are we here? What purpose does this serve? What is the meaning of our existence? However, the New Britannian stars were not those of Earth and I felt unattached from my humanity. I was immortal, and I had nothing to fear from death, which was as inhuman as one could become. With this knowledge, I began to consider what it meant to be an Avatar. Judgement It was clear from the moment I stepped on to the Isle of Storms that I was being tested. It was my destiny, Arabella said. Now answer these questions so that you can begin your predestined path. Edvard was next, and seemed to delight in pointing me towards the path of truth. All the while the watchers observed my choices as the NPCs appeared on cue, recited their lines, and positioned themselves on the Novian stage. Again I would speak to other Avatars and learn that they too had similar experiences. That we were all destined on the same path, and we were all the chosen one foretold by the Dirae Prophecy: It shall come to pass in the long days after the fall. There shall come one from beyond the circles of the sundered moon who shall bind the world together. From its shattered stone and bone seas. They shall bind together all that fly above the land. Burrow beneath it. And walk with purposed tread upon its surface. In that day shall all be brought to bow. Before the power of the one. The world shall be swept clean of its folly. And cleansed of its impurity. Before the chosen one. And the triumph of the hope. In the darkness shall be complete. It is this prophecy that becomes the narrative of all Avatars that commune with the Oracle. My first meeting was in Aerie. And it was here that I learned why the watchers watch, and who they watch for. A machine, a calculator, a box of wires and cables preprogramed to deliver a verdict that has only one outcome – the creation of subservient sheep. I would follow this path of truth, and then on to the path of love and courage. The Oracle’s lies leading the way, herding me to an outcome that prejudged the results. The Dirae in Roman mythology were demon goddesses of vengeance, also called furies, and a haphazard translation of the Dirae prophecy might lead one to believe that the chosen one was actually being guided by the Oracle to release the three furies of Cowardice, Hatred, and Falsehood on the Air and Earth of New Britannia. At least that is how I interpreted the riddle after being skeptical of a machine giving me self-help advice. I would not allow myself to be judged in this way. If there was a fate to be made, I would make it myself. If there were lies to be told, I would tell them myself. I was not in need of the Oracles services to achieve these ends. Indirect I had not chased after my inheritance when first arriving in New Britannia. I was too distracted and had initially forgotten about the letter entirely. But as I began to devise a plan to break free from the Oracle, I quickly remembered the assets bestowed by my strange benefactor from Resolute. It turns out that Sir Jeffrey had a great deal of lands, titles, and all that which is customary. It was as if I had won the nerd-boy lottery. There were all kinds of weapons and armor. A crystal sword, a crossbow, a variety of tight fitting leather armor that looked more like track suits than protective gear. I tried on a few but nothing seemed to fit right so I made a mental note to find a tailor. Sir Jeffrey was also apparently very fond of hats. I took the title of Baron not knowing or caring what it actually meant. It seemed to convey nobility without requiring leadership or responsibility, while also acting as an indication of great wealth. Could there be a more perfect title? If there was, Sir Jeffery didn’t have claim to it. With my title selected, I had to decide on a name. Baron Drocis the Devious seemed a little too direct. Similar, I suspect if one were to call their evil plot to conquer the world something like the Goddess of Vengeance Prophecy, or the Furies of Hell Prophecy. As an alternative I chose the last name, Fondorlatos which was the Hungarian word for devious. Thus, Baron Drocis Fondorlatos was born in New Britannia. Make no mistake, this was still me. It was just a me that reacted to his new environment and immortal abilities. Was it wrong to take a life in a world where no one dies or suffers long term loss? Would the virtues of truth, love, and courage map back to the matching constructs of Earth? I found it difficult to believe that they would. There was also the matter of attending a memorial service for the old Knight in Brittany cemetery. It was attended only by myself as a condition of the will. Though I did feel a sense of obligation to pay respect to the old fool, after all he had made me rich, powerful, and undying. I had asked the banker in Resolute for information on how Sir Jeffrey died. Seeing that both the NPC’s and the Avatars were immortal, I couldn’t figure it out. The banker had no more of an answer to my questions than any other NPC I had talked to. It was later explained to me by another Avatar that Brittany cemetery was home to those who died in the “old world”. Presumably that meant prior to the cataclysm which occurred after the two moons collided. Unfortunately, there are not many records or reliable histories of that time. Still I suppose that was a step towards defining when the ability to avoid death first began. I would use this fact as my primary lead towards researching the origins of Avatar power, and eventually this led me to seek out the ancient history of the Obsidians, a fallen empire built on dark sorcery. Partition I call it the veil of the dead. A fog that removes the natural fear of death from Avatars as it clouds their minds and corrupts their hearts. It is known by others as the Protection of the Oracle, which prevents Avatars from attacking one another. The need for this protection is unknown since we are immortal, but many avatars seem to prefer the ability to hide behind the Oracle’s gift as opposed to being subjected to the inconvenience of justice and accountability. Or maybe they just prefer being told what to do and where to do it. Regardless, we are divided between this world and our own, distributed across New Britannia on the Oracle’s network of deceit. To counter this, I searched Novia for areas where the Oracle had no presence. I found many places that had remained unconnected and removed from her mainline. There were a number of ruins but most interesting to me were the Shardfalls. The Shardfalls were the remains of a catastrophic event that left three massive craters in Novia some 400 years ago. To the far west sat Verdantis Shardfall, a swampy island filled with the corruption and power of obsidian shards. It was on to the east of the Shardfall that I would found a new city that would be known as Rats Nest. Here the Oracle would have no power, and its protection would be refused. We that lived there would pay no tribute to her and she would have no influence on us. We would be free, separated from the oppressed fools that followed her advice and adopted her counsel. Exempt from the Dirae Prophecy we would live to answer our own questions and to create our own meaning. This should not be confused with the religion of Chaos. An incoherent practice in always being right even when you’re rarely within shouting distance of correct thinking. Chaos is by definition disorder and confusion. To be free to choose does not mean you have not made a choice. It simply means that your choice was your own. To be unethical is a choice. To be immoral is a choice. To be evil is a choice that all Avatars make or do not make. To be self-reliant, like all these choices, is not anymore chaotic than it is orderly. The purpose of Rats Nest is not to be chaotic or even to celebrate free will, the purpose is to maintain freedom of choice without being judged for the choices that are made. Construction The guard towers were built first. With the protection of the Oracle revoked, there would be an immediate need for self-sustaining security. I’d used my inheritance from the good Sir Jeffrey to contract out a full platoon of NPC guards. They were relatively cheap at the time considering there were so few places in Novia that Avatars could openly attack one another. I remember the guard captain telling me that he’d never been paid so well. I’m not sure if he’d ever been paid at all. The city was so large however, the guards were unable to patrol it in full. To remedy this, a single path between the main entrance to the bank was designated as “Vendors Row”. The guards were instructed to focus on this area as a way to promote trade and provide minimum stability to the city’s residents. Next came the walls, which were important to the long term success of the town. Most people didn’t understand that, it wasn’t so much that the walls kept people out, although they certainly did a good job of that too. It was that the walls needed to keep people from out flanking the buildings of the town which provided a maze like effect. I had decided that Rats Nest needed to become a place where a single Avatar could escape through the streets, or hide around corners to avoid larger groups that would almost certainly form into gangs or guilds or whatever they wanted to call themselves. The world had a history of people joining up with one another for safety, but it also seemed to promote behavior that encouraged Avatars to attack or harass anything that wasn’t in their group. I didn’t want that; I didn’t want individual Avatars to break away from the Oracle only to have a new tyrant to swear fealty to in Rats Nest. In an attempt to avoid that I created a maze of buildings that combined with the natural fog of the region, helped prevent ranged weapons from being as effective, and allowed the true residents of the town to have a noticeable advantage over anyone foolish enough to enter the briar patch. I decreed but two laws. The first was that I was never to be attacked by an Avatar that lived in Rats Nest. This was to provide me with the ability to manage the town without unneeded distraction. The second law was that all residents would pay me a modest tax for the privilege of living in the town. In return, I would offer residents a reasonably safe place to buy and sell goods (vendors row), and a viable life away from the judgement of the Oracle. The remaining actions taken by the residents of Rats Nest did not concern me. Lastly I commissioned a tower for myself to be constructed in the old architecture of the Obsidians. From this vantage point I could monitor the town, and see Avatars as they approached my property. With the town fully constructed, and the Oracle in stalemate, my intent was to study the history and the art of magic in New Britannia, unobstructed and in relative peace. So that someday I might answer the questions, why are we here? What is the meaning of our existence? Now when I look out into the sky I ponder if I will bring comfort to some future philosopher that feels connected to the first men of Rats Nest. The post The Baron’s Story – by Baron Drocis Fondorlatos – narrated by Asclepius appeared first on Echoes from the Caverns. View the full article