SMITE: The patch brings Sol, the hottest goddess into the game!

The next patch of SMITE is currently being tested – and among other things, Sol, the goddess of the sun, is waiting!

Sol – Every guy burns his fins on this…

Because a father named his daughter after the sun, she ultimately had to take on an everlasting task: Sol, the Norse goddess of the sun, is doomed to forever drive her chariot across the sky, to keep the sun always in motion. Together with her brother, Mani, who was named after the moon, they constantly flee from the sons of Fenrir, who relentlessly drive them on.

But Sol is not as calm as her brother – she has chosen one of the wolves and mocks him time and again. Because no matter how fast Skoll hunts her, Sol is always ahead of him.

The recolor is quite hot - even if the color is cooler.
The recolor is quite hot – even if the color is cooler.

In SMITE, Sol is a mage who relies mainly on high speed and fire effects. While she burns her enemies, she can cauterize herself or even become completely untouchable – just to mock her pursuers. Let’s take a look at Sol’s abilities.

  • Her passive ability is Unstable Manifestation: Abilities and automatic attacks generate heat. For every 3% heat, Sol gains 1% magical power and 1% attack speed. At 100% heat, her automatic attacks deal 50% more damage.
  • Radiance increases Sol’s heat by a large amount, heals her over 5 seconds for 25% of her missing hit points, and simultaneously creates a small area effect around her that applies a DoT to enemies when they enter it.
  • Her Stellar Burst is a self-buff: The next automatic attack is amplified and creates an explosion on impact that deals damage again after a short time and slows hit targets.
  • Disapparate completely burns Sol’s body over 3 seconds. She gains an additional 50% movement speed for the duration and leaves a burning trail behind her that damages enemies. After 3 seconds, the trail explodes and stuns hit enemies. Sol, however, becomes incorporeal for an additional 3 seconds, but also cannot attack. The incorporeal state can be ended early.
  • Her Ultimate is the Supernova and summons 8 impact projectiles. They can either all hit the same point or be spread over a longer distance. The first projectile that strikes deals high damage and knocks back enemies. All subsequent hits on the same target deal only 20% of the damage.
Smite Sol Concept

Visually, Sol makes a strong impression. At first glance, she appears very complex in her animations, despite her rather simple physique (after all, she’s “just” a naked woman in flames). Especially when she doesn’t move for a few seconds, she glides and swims through the air or rushes from one corner to another – she already has a place among my 5 favorite gods.

Overall, Sol seems to be a hybrid who relies on both automatic attacks and her abilities. She ranks among exciting mages, like Hel or Scylla. If no major changes are coming, the hottest woman in the world will join the other gods on next Wednesday, at least on PC. It will likely take a few weeks before she appears on Xbox.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. smitegame.com

Combat system in Shroud of the Avatar: TESO, WoW or something completely different?

The community of the “Selective Multiplayer RPG” Shroud of the Avatar is currently heavily discussing the combat system. The developers invite to the discussion round.

Shroud of the Avatar has a tough time. It wants to satisfy MMORPG fans with a sandbox world, PvP, crafting and housing, but also aims to reach friends of single-player experiences. And wants to impress with a traditional offline mode and an epic story.

Bringing both together without upsetting either camp is very difficult.

This conflict makes the choice of a combat system difficult. SotA uses a semi-turn-based combat system, known from MMORPGs like World of WarcraftThis can, however, be optionally modified so that skills appear randomly in the hotbar and also disappear again. In addition, one has to compile a “deck” of skills and thus only has access to the skills from this deck during battles.

The optional “fixed” system, where the skills do not appear randomly, therefore plays similarly to that of WoW. This annoys some in the community. They had hoped for something new, something different, something that is not as “exhausted” as the classic combat system. However, the MMO traditionalists do not want to do without it.

The magic system is also being controversially discussed

Moreover, the magic system is also controversially discussed. For many, it feels like a pure action system. When wizards fight in a PvP duel, it feels more like an online shooter than an RPG. This goes more in the direction of The Elder Scrolls Online.

More on the topic: Shroud of the Avatar Release 19 starts – Free attacks are coming

Shroud of the Avatar PvP 1

People hoped for a magic system where spells must be transferred into a book and learned based on the available reagents. Only the spells learned this way should be usable, some demand. The recently changed skills system, where players now improve their skills through use, is still the system that is most well received. However, there are also suggestions for improvement regarding this.

Interesting: Shroud of the Avatar receives an Ultima Online-like skills system

Players participate in the discussion

Shroud of the Avatar PvP 3
How will battles look in the future?

Due to these discussions, there will be an online chat with the Technical Director of SotA, Chris Spears, on October 4th at 11 PM our time.

All players of Shroud of the Avatar are invited to participate in the chat and contribute their questions and suggestions to the discussion. Questions can also be asked in advance in the corresponding thread of the SotA forum.

So, if anyone among you plays SotA and is not completely satisfied with the current mechanics regarding combat, spells, and skills, they should take this opportunity to make their voices heard. Because SotA is still in the pre-alpha phase: changes are possible.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Destiny: Iron Banner and Trials of Osiris return – Dates and changes announced

In the MMO shooter Destiny , Bungie has announced when the PvP events Iron Banner and Trials of Osiris will return and in what form.

A clear Weekly Update this time: Lord Saladin and Brother Vance are making a comeback. The Weekly Update sets the stage for them. The events Trials of Osiris and the Iron Banner are still important, but the vendors are not really relevant anymore: Destiny shifts the rewards to the end of matches.

Both PvP events had paused in recent weeks. It was previously announced that both events will provide new year 2 gear.

Destiny-Iron-Banner

Destiny: Iron Banner in October

The October Iron Banner starts on Tuesday, October 13.

For players who are unfamiliar: The Iron Banner is a monthly week-long PvP event where equipment and level fully count. In the first year, it was the only way to obtain max-level gear without participating in an activity that requires pre-made groups.

Changes, or rather non-changes to the Iron Banner of year 2 are:

  • The Iron Will buff is now automatically applied (which gives a reputation bonus)
  • The Iron Will buff in Destiny increases in strength like in year 1 during the weekend
  • There is still the mechanic where lower-level players gain reputation faster, and the thing with the loser medals remains
  • At the end of a match, there is a chance for weapon and armor rewards. These will be the same rewards that Lord Saladin sells this week (this is also related to the rank level, but this is not clear from the Weekly Update)
  • This is the new idea: Players should get items from the matches themselves, not from Lord Saladin as a vendor
  • Although Saladin continues to sell items, it’s only for Legendary Marks, no longer for Glimmer … Ouch
  • Saladin has new emblems
  • There are new bounties with him: 9 new daily (3 per day) and 3 weekly
  • The recommended light level is 230
  • They will adjust the light damage curve, that is how the light difference between two players affects the damage they inflict on each other
    Trials-of-Osiris-Destiny

Destiny: Trials of Osiris in October

The Trials of Osiris return on Friday, October 16.

For players who are unfamiliar: The Trials of Osiris is a PvP event that runs weekly from Friday evening to Monday morning. There is no level balancing as in the regular Crucible. Pre-made 3-player teams compete on a map that rotates weekly in deathmatches. The goal is to win 9 times in a row, then there are extra rewards.

The changes, or rather non-changes for the Trials of Osiris in year 2 of Destiny are:

  • Brother Vance no longer plays a role in rewards, items are only obtained from matches
  • The more you win, the better the rewards at the end of the match
  • There are still Passage Coins for the losing team – and thus probably the buffs
  • If you complete your Passage without a loss (achieve 9 wins), you still go to the Lighthouse
  • Teams can also continue to play after 9 wins, but there are no better rewards (this means probably: there are no better rewards with 10 wins than with 9 wins)
  • Now they really want to pair teams so that they have about the same number of wins …
  • … but this is not necessarily considered over latency
  • Recommended light level: 290
http://youtu.be/N0z52i4qyDs

Yeah, the PvP fans already have clear dates in mind. We also have a clear date: On Friday, October 2, Xur will arrive at 11:00 AM in the Tower or the Reef. We will greet him.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. bungie

1,000-Dollar ship for Star Citizen introduced

It is known that one can already spend a lot of money on the still non-existent space game Star Citizen. However, with the newly announced ship MISC Endeavor, developer Cloud Imperium seems to be crossing the line.

The MISC Endeavor is a massive spaceship, and anyone who will own one in the game Star Citizen can certainly be proud of it. It is designed as a gigantic research ship, which even accommodates a complete hospital. The developers explain that the MISC Endeavor offers more than some computer games. But does that justify the price? In its highest upgrade level, including all modules, the ship costs a whopping 900 US dollars. Including taxes, it amounts to around 1,000 dollars!

1,000 dollars for a virtual spaceship

Star Citizen The Endeavor
More information about the Endeavor can be found on the official page: robertsspaceindustries.com

This has led to some criticism. Community members even wonder if the developers were on drugs when they set the price. They defend the price by explaining that one would even save 100 dollars if they bought the ship in its highest upgrade level instead of the individual modules. Moreover, everything can also be earned within the game.

George Broussard, creator of the Duke Nukem game series, also voiced his criticisms through his Twitter account (multiple times): “What kind of world do we live in where you can buy a ship for 900 dollars that doesn’t even exist in Star Citizen? Stop this madness!” He also criticizes the game’s budget, stating that no single AAA development studio of 300 people – whether Bioware, Blizzard or Dice – is capable of developing a Star Citizen with 100 million dollars in 4 years.

The discussion naturally raises the question of how the price of a virtual spaceship is determined. After all, there are no material costs. The ship and its modules only need to be developed once. Is 1,000 dollars for a virtual spaceship really legitimate – especially when there isn’t even a game to use it in? What do you think?

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. pcgames.de

Destiny: Zhalo Supercell – Guardians rave about this exotic weapon

In the MMO shooter Destiny players have an early favorite for the best exotic weapon: the auto rifle Zhalo Supercell. It is well-suited for the typical “enemy hordes” principle of Destiny.

At the moment, the Guardians are still in the honeymoon phase of “Taken King.” Everything is exciting, the situations are still unclear. Old weapons are mourned, new ones are eyed with suspicion. Opinions are divided on what is actually good and what is not so good.

But when it comes to one weapon, almost everyone agrees: Zhalo Supercell is a dream.

Zhalo-Supercell-Destiny

Where can you find Zhalo Supercell in Destiny? How do you get it?

The exotic auto rifle Zhalo Supercell is not tied to a quest. So you do not have to complete a lengthy and difficult search like for the Malicious Touch, nor are you dependent on a specific configuration, as with the Black Spindle.

Zhalo Supercell is a random drop, it can come from any type of “Taken King” activity. Xur can also sell the lightning launcher. It is probably best to go hunting for exotic engrams with “Three of Coins,” throwing these coins every now and then when you are facing an Ultra or a boss enemy.

Our friend Nexxoss is taking a look at the Supercell in a German review:

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What makes the Zhalo Supercell in Destiny so special?

On one hand, the auto rifle Zhalo Supercell has a elemental damage type. This is rare and desirable among primary weapons. It deals arc damage. Especially good against enemies with corresponding shields or when arc burning is on during the nightfall strike.

Zhalo-Supercell-Stats

The stats of the weapon are rather mixed and can either be expanded for stability or firepower. Many recommend Aggressive Ballistics and Hammer Forged as the perks of choice.

The three most interesting and fixed perks are:

  • Zhalo Supercell – Arc projectiles have a chance to chain lightning if enemies are close together
  • Persistence – This weapon becomes more precise the longer it is fired
  • Out of the blue – Double kills generate some super energy and replenish ammunition in the magazine.

Here you can see what makes the weapon so strong. All three harmonize with each other and create synergy effects.

This is an English review of the Zhalo Supercell:

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For which playstyle is the Zhalo Supercell suitable?

Destiny tends to make PvE encounters difficult by throwing large hordes of enemies at the Guardians. And the weapon shines in these situations. You can simply spray into enemy mobs and fire continuously. Lightning strikes, take out additional enemies, the super regenerates, everything is great.

Therefore, the weapon is excellent for such hordes of enemies. Against boss enemies with few adds, you should rather switch to another weapon. Right now, sniper rifles are in.

There are probably better alternatives than the Supercell in the Crucible as well. But for the “standard PvE play,” where you mow through Destiny-typical hordes of enemies, no weapon can currently match the Zhalo Supercell.

In this rather humorous video, you can see the Supercell in the Crucible:

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By the way: Originally, they wanted to name the Zhalo Supercell after the weapon of a Finnish thunder god. It would have been called Ukonvasara. This corresponds to something like Thor’s hammer Mjölnir… well, what weapon in Destiny does that remind us of.


For more weapons you should work towards in Destiny, go here:

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Guild Wars 2: Guild Missions with PvP Content as Well!

In Guild Wars 2, guild missions are being revamped to be even more accessible with Heart of Thorns and to offer new incentives for group play.

Favor waits now in the battlefield

In the current version of Guild Wars 2, guild missions can only be completed in the PvE area. However, since these tasks are an important part of the guild hall, the developers wanted to give all types of players opportunities to contribute to the guild’s progress. For this reason, there will be new missions with Heart of Thorns that will also involve PvP enthusiasts to reach the guild’s favor cap.

Guild Wars 2 Guild Halls
The guild halls benefit from the guild missions.

The guild defines the playstyle for guild missions in Guild Wars 2

Guild leaders can decide which types of missions they would prefer to complete in the upcoming week; the choices are between PvE, WvWvW, and PvP tasks. While the PvE missions have essentially remained the same (bounties, travels, sprints, challenges, and puzzles), the WvWvW tasks focus on objectives, such as continuously holding a fortress in the borderlands.

For standard battlefields, for example, it is necessary to eliminate enemies near control points with a specific number of guild members – teamwork is still a priority.

No waiting times in PvE

Another innovation is that guild challenges and puzzles now take place in an instanced area. This eliminates waiting lines in front of the relevant locations, and players do not have to try to take rewards from each other. Instead, a portal can now be opened at the collection flag, and all guild players can enter – those who wish can bring along a few non-guild friends to help as well.

New portals reduce waiting times in PvE - no guild has to wait for another!
New portals reduce waiting times in PvE – no guild has to wait for another!

If a guild wants to take on more or new missions, then the limit for available tasks must first be raised to unlock new mission slots. These will be purchased with favor as usual and will give you new things to do in the long term. Nevertheless, there will again be a weekly favor cap, so particularly large guilds cannot unlock everything on the first day while smaller guilds are left out.

Work together – Collect rewards individually

Participants in the guild missions will not only be rewarded with currency for the whole team but will also unlock new chests that contain personal rewards. There is also a limit here: Only one chest can be earned per mission slot per week; participating multiple times in the same activity does not yield additional chests.


For more about the game and the expansion Heart of Thorns, visit our Guild Wars 2 topic page.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. guildwars2.com/de

Blade & Soul: Weapons Devour Weapons – The Upgrade System

A new blog post from Blade&Soul reveals today what needs to be done to upgrade and further enhance weapons in the game.

A Weapon for Eternity

In an action MMORPG like Blade & Soul, the focus is not only on the characters in the story, but also on their weapons. These are not typically replaced with every second quest like in other MMOs, but remain with the hero for a lifetime. In order for these deadly objects to keep up with their owner, who becomes stronger through leveling up, the weapons must also gain experience. This leads to other weapons being sacrificed to increase the level of one’s own weapons.

Your weapon remains eternally intact - it evolves further.
Your weapon remains eternally intact – it evolves further.

The Breakthrough and New Weapons

Occasionally, enemies in the game leave equipment as loot, which can then be immediately converted into experience points for one’s own weapon. If the XP exceeds a certain value, it is upgraded and henceforth has better statistics, so it can deal more damage. However, in order to advance beyond level 5, rare reagents must be found, which only particularly tough enemies carry; that sounds suspiciously like dungeon visits.

If this leveling “breakthrough” is successful, the weapon can be upgraded 5 more levels until it reaches its full strength – but even then, it’s not over! If one wishes, they can opt for a transformation. This grants the weapon a new name, a different appearance (or it takes on the skin of another weapon) and resets it to level 1 – the game starts all over again, but allows for more individuality in weapon choice.

The
The “breakthrough” is a small milestone in the development of your equipment.

While there should also be a handful of legendary weapons (perhaps through raids?), acquiring them will likely not be easy.


For more about the game, founder packs, and the various classes, check out our Blade&Soul theme page.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

LoL is working on team builder for ranked mode

Riot Games is working on a better team builder for the ranked system in the MOBA League of Legends, but it is still a few months away.

If you’ve ever played League of Legends, you know that there can often be drama during champion selection. Players express which role they want to fill in the match using abbreviations like Mid, Top, or Jungle. This is all clearly defined in LoL. However, when two players are eager to occupy a certain role, it can lead to frustration if neither is willing to back down. The principle of “But I said it first!” usually applies, but it is certainly not the ideal solution.

The frustration from the preparation often carries over into the match. It is a source of unrest, especially in the competitive ranked mode.

LoL-Gankplank

Therefore, Riot is now considering making the “preparation” easier in ranked with a team builder. Players can choose two positions they want to fill (such as Top, Mid, or Jungle), with another option being “Fill” (I don’t care, I’ll play anything). Once the positions are selected, players are assigned to a suitable team. They can still negotiate and swap roles during the champion selection.

The goal of such a ranked team builder is to significantly reduce waiting times. With previous systems, players who wanted to fill popular roles often had to wait a long time.

There is currently already a team builder, but it is rarely used ... which leads to long waiting times.
There is currently already a team builder for the normal mode, but it requires a lot of fine-tuning from the player and is rarely used.

The ranked team builder is likely still a few months away; internal tests are currently underway.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. kotaku

World of Warcraft expands its in-game shop with account services

The in-game shop of World of Warcraft is expanding with several services that were previously only accessible elsewhere.

A Logical Step

Blizzard has expanded the in-game shop of World of Warcraft with several new services that were previously significantly more difficult to access. The account services, which could only be purchased through the Battle.net account management until a few days ago, have now been integrated into the game, making them more understandable and accessible to a broader audience. The four services include:

Neat and clear: The old services now in the shop.
Neat and clear: The old services now in the shop.
  • Character Customization – Adjusts the visual features of your character (as during character creation). Gender, skin color, and even the name can be changed if desired.
  • Faction Change – Transfers a character from Horde to Alliance or vice versa.
  • Name Change – Choose a new name for your character, as long as it is still available.
  • Race Change – Changes your character’s race within their own faction. This also includes a character customization as well as a name change.

The inclusion of account services in the internal shop is a logical step considering that other services, such as the boost to level 90, can already be purchased in-game. This makes everything much clearer and more consistent and will surely save the GMs a lot of inquiries.


For more news about the game, you can find it on our World of Warcraft topic page.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Pantheon: MMORPG back on track after a deep fall

After a rather bumpy start, Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen (old school PvE MMORPG) is back on track thanks to a new investor. With the financial boost, Visionary Realms was able to not only hire new developers but is also currently preparing for the upcoming Alpha.

The Deep Fall of Pantheon

In early 2014, Brad McQuaid, known from Everquest and Vanguard: Saga of Heroes, founded his new studio Visionary Realms and started the development of Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen. This is a fantasy MMORPG, focusing on player interaction, group play, and old school mechanics (e.g. corpse runs, death penalties, item decay).
However, the development of Pantheon has not been under a good star so far.

Pantheon Landscape Screenshot
After many setbacks: The sun is shining again in Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen

Actually, the MMORPG was supposed to be financed through a Kickstarter campaign, but like so many other poorly running MMORPG campaigns on crowdfunding platforms before, the developers of Pantheon could not find enough supporters for the project and failed already halfway. The subsequently launched private crowdfunding action via their own homepage also fell short of expectations.

Pantheon Combat Screenshot

Without the urgently needed financial boost, the money was running out as early as April 2014, which forced the studio to cut back on development work and dissolve the original development team. However, Visionary Realms did not want to give up on the project so quickly, so Brad McQuaid continued to work with a small group of volunteers on the game, hoping to finance Pantheon with the help of players and other investors.

The Rise of the Fallen

This hope seems to have been fulfilled now. According to an official statement on the newly designed homepage, Brad McQuaid announces that Visionary Realms has finally gathered the necessary startup capital for the development of Pantheon and has already taken a big step towards Alpha.

“This changes everything for us. We were now able to fill some key positions and hire new game artists and game designers as well as more programmers. This has enabled us to complete the last elements of our prototype and prepare the game for Alpha. Now is the time where the fun really begins — we have a working game and will soon start showcasing it. We can hardly wait to finally hear the opinions of the players.”

Pantheon Landscape Screenshot 2

With the start of the Alpha, the studio wants to begin as early as the end of this year and if everything goes smoothly, then Pantheon could be released in 2017, or at least that is the plan.

The whole thing was made possible by a “business angel,” which refers to investors with extensive industry knowledge who not only participate financially in a company but also support it simultaneously with know-how and contacts. Some players even suspect that the anonymous benefactor might be John Smedley. He not only has the money and essential contacts but has also been a close friend of Brad McQuaid for years and recently looked for a new opportunity. However, this rumor has not been confirmed.

Pantheon City 2 Screenshot

Mein MMO says: Like so many other big names in the genre, Braid McQuaid is a colorful personality. He is still loved by some for EverQuest (SOE), while other players are bitterly disappointed by Vanguard: Saga of Heroes (SIGIL, later bought by SOE) as the game fell far short of its potential and promises despite many good ideas. Not to mention the bugs and content gaps at the beginning. Nevertheless, it is especially the old Vanguard players who, together with the EverQuest fans, hope that Pantheon will become a successful project. They have been waiting for years in vain for a new old school PvE MMORPG, especially since EverQuest Next with its new ideas and features is taking a completely different path than many fans of the original EverQuest had wished for.

Whether Pantheon has what it takes to become the spiritual successor of EverQuest, hopefully we can judge for ourselves by the end of the year.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Destiny: Rank 5 at Banshee-44 lets Guardians discover new exotic weapon

In the MMO shooter Destiny the first players have reached rank 5 at the gunsmith Banshee-44. They found a new exotic weapon. However, the result was not as hoped.

In Destiny players are searching for the “Sleeper Simulant,” an exotic weapon, which Bungie has already introduced, but no one has found yet. The Sleeper Simulant is said to be a heavy fusion rifle whose projectiles can bounce off hard surfaces. The search for the Sleeper Simulant has been feverish in recent weeks, especially since the Exotic craze was fueled by the sudden appearance of the Black Spindle.

Sleeper-Simulant
Many had hoped for the Sleeper Simulant.

The popular theory about the Sleeper Simulant was that one would receive a more advanced quest for the Sleeper Simulant from Banshee-44, the gunsmith, if one had reached rank 5 there. The first have now ascended to this rank 5. They were able to do this because they were able to complete the weapon tests twice in some weeks.

The First Curse – exotic hand cannon discovered in Destiny

Rang5-Waffenschmied
Der-erste-Fluch-Destiny

The players at rank 5 have also received a quest. However, it is not for the “Sleeper Simulant,” but for another completely undiscovered exotic weapon, for “The First Curse,” a hand cannon. It is already in the database and was one of the 13 exotic weapons that could be viewed right at the beginning.
“The First Curse” is clearly inspired by “The Last Word” and forms a counterpoint to it. While “The Last Word” must be fired from the hip to achieve optimal performance, “The First Curse” is designed to be fired precisely.
The quest for “The First Curse” does not seem to be very complex. As with the class exotic weapons players simply need to achieve some hand cannon kills with activated telemetry. Then, at the next Arms Day, they will receive the weapon, or – which is more likely – the next quest step.

Initial reports suggest that one may still need to go back into the Crucible with a makeshift hand cannon to get kill streaks before getting “The First Curse” – after another week of waiting.

Destiny-Tex-Waffe

Since no one can obtain the weapon at the moment, we will only know for sure how it continues next Wednesday. And then we may have to wait another week to find out how “The First Curse” plays in Destiny.

With the Sleeper Simulant, some now believe in another hidden trigger. Perhaps the acquisition of the weapon is only possible in the hard mode of the raids or if one reaches an even higher rank with Banshee.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

H1Z1: After much „Hunger Games“, now back to „The Walking Dead“

After the zombie MMO H1Z1 hosted an elaborate tournament for Twitch, new gameplay content for the survival mode is now promised.

The mood around H1Z1 is currently not very good. The game was announced and planned as a “survival MMO”, a kind of “The Walking Dead meets Minecraft.” Players can craft weapons, build a shelter, run from zombies, and survive against all odds.

http://youtu.be/_Ko5AXctkIE

The arena mode has recently received a lot of attention from the H1Z1 developers

However, an arena mode, the battle royale, has received the most attention from the developers recently. Players compete against each other while toxic gas slowly seeps out from the corners of the map. The gas forces players into the center of the map and therefore into conflict. There are no zombies.

The mode has a clear ending, is more esports-oriented, and chains highlight after highlight, suitable for Twitch. Instead of “The Walking Dead”, it is more like “The Hunger Games.”

H1Z1-Twitch
The jackpot grew to 170,000 US dollars by the end.

To attract a broader customer base, the team has primarily worked on the arena part over the past few months, leading up to a big tournament at the Twitchcon at the end of September.

Now the tournament on Twitch is over and the developers promise: “It’s time to move forward with survival mode, to intensify our efforts.”

In this concept video, you can see what the artistic department of H1Z1 has been working on in September:

http://youtu.be/JN3JeGft3KI

Is it now time for H1Z1 to move forward

They promise:

  • Female zombies
  • The hospital complex is to come
  • Make changes to weapons and armor
  • A new crate with unique items
  • In the distant future, revamp base building and group mechanics 

Additionally, a “Halloween” event is in the works.

H1Z1-Blutiges-Krankenhaus
Part of the hospital complex that is finally set to come.

This is nothing spectacular; all of this had already been announced before it had to be delayed again. The most important thing is probably the commitment: Now we are really making survival again.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. reddit

Hearthstone: Check out these legendary ideas!

Hearthstone still has potential for many legendary cards. A player has now designed some himself and even animated them completely!

The Fascination with Legendary Cards

Legendaries are definitely among the most exciting cards of Hearthstone. This is not surprising, as they usually have unique effects that can turn the tide of battle by 180°. As usual with card games, players eventually develop their own ideas and ultimately their own cards to introduce them to the player community.

The YouTuber Fullas Games takes it a step further: He not only develops several versions of beloved characters but also animates them with impressive effects to demonstrate how the cards would impact a game. Here we have a small selection of his best creations:

Archimonde, the Defiler

The first implementation is Archimonde, one of the leading Eredar commanders of the Burning Legion. For 9 mana, he offers solid stats of 8/8, but forces the player to discard their hand. In exchange, 3 random “Fel cards” are granted, which are particularly strong, such as the “Felguard Marauder”, a 5/7 taunt demon for just 4 mana.

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Aegwynn of the Council of Six

Aegwynn was a guardian of Tirisfal, the mother of Medivh, making her a wonderful choice as a mage card. Fullas’ implementation envisions a 4/7 minion for 6 mana. As long as Aegwynn is on the board, she replaces the mage’s hero power with “Unstable Portal“, which can quickly lead to a significant advantage – unless you continuously draw Imps.

Her second variant is also interesting; here she grants the player at the end of their turn a random secret – including those from Hunter and Paladin.

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Maiev Shadowsong – Unyielding Guardian

The last chosen example is Maiev Shadowsong. Here it has been particularly well done to transfer the lore into the card game. She is not only a strong protector but also an unyielding hunter who prefers to operate from the shadows. In the first version (5/4 for 5 mana), she has a Battlecry that marks all enemy minions. Her Deathrattle then causes all marked enemies to die.

The second idea is a Rogue card (4/3 for 4 mana) with the Battlecry: Return all friendly allies to hand. They cost 2 mana less. If Maiev is played in a combo, they cost a total of 4 mana less!

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On his YouTube channel, there are many more ideas, now over 30 of them. What do you think of the cards and their graphical implementations? Good ideas with great effects or absolutely exaggerated? Oh, and before I forget: Thanks for the tip, Wolferl!

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

The new Neverwinter module Underdark offers quests by author R.A. Salvatore

Fantasy fans should be familiar with the name R.A. Salvatore. The author created the hero Drizzt Do’Urden and the Drow elves. For Underdark, the next module of the F2P MMO Neverwinter, R.A. Salvatore contributes a quest line.

Something is brewing in the Forgotten Realms. Deep in the Underdark, the home of the dark Drow elves, demons have emerged from portals, seeking to conquer the entire land. The hero Drizzt Do’Urden, an exiled Drow, must return to his former home to find the root of the evil. You will accompany him in the upcoming Underdark module of the MMORPG Neverwinter!

Notable Support

RA_Salvatore
“R.A. Salvatore” Source: “Pinguino, Flickr

R.A. Salvatore will personally take care of a part of the story in the module, as he is designing a quest line for the game. Salvatore mentions that he feels like a game master crafting a story with quests for a tabletop group. However, writing a story for a game is completely different than for a book. The players should be the main characters, not the protagonists he has created. It has also changed entirely how to write about fantasy. While Tolkien had to describe his creatures like dragons or the Balrog in detail because no one knew how they would look at that time, now the focus can be on giving the characters more personality. After all, everyone knows how a dragon looks by now.

The author does not want to reveal too much about his work on Neverwinter yet, but he explains that he has a lot of fun developing his characters like Drizzt, the dwarf Bruenor, or the halfling Regis and incorporating them into the story. He also states that it is a challenge to distribute the overall story across the entire “Rage of Demons” campaign, which will take place not only in the game Neverwinter but also in novels, the D&D tabletop RPG, and the upcoming computer game Sword Coast Legends. Additionally, many things will be interconnected, which will especially interest fans of the Forgotten Realms setting.

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Underdark is set to be released this fall for the PC version of the MMORPG Neverwinter. The version for Xbox One will follow next year.

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Star Trek Online promotes players from Captain to Admiral

In Star Trek Online, players will soon be able to command other starships like a fleet admiral. The admiralty system is expected to arrive this fall.

In Star Trek Online, players have long risen to the rank of admirals but could only command one ship at a time. The rest remained in the space garage. That is not befitting.

For the season 11 of Star Trek Online New Dawn, which is set to be released later this fall, Star Trek Online has come up with something new that strongly resembles the ship missions from World of Warcraft. That’s only fair: Blizzard has essentially borrowed the followers from Star Trek Online as well.

Players will send their “replacement” ships on missions with season 11. Each ship of a new class they command will unlock a ship type that players can command as admirals. Mission durations vary between 15 minutes and 20 hours – up to 3 ships can be sent on a mission. The ships differ by stats and special abilities.

STO-Missionen

Starting at level 52, players will have access to the system. In a dev blog on the official Star Trek Online homepage, the details are discussed. The missions are supposed to follow a campaign that will gradually be expanded.

For those who can’t wait until the launch of the new season: The admiralty system will soon be tested on the Tribble test server by Cryptic.

This is the trailer for New Dawn, the next big thing in the Star Trek Online universe:

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Heroes of the Storm: The Medivac of Lt. Morales in Action

The latest patch of Heroes of the Storm is currently available for testing and people are experimenting a lot with Lt. Morales’s Medivac.

Once Ganking and Back! Is there a group ticket?

Currently, on the test server, the next hero of Heroes of the Storm can be tested. While many suspected in advance how much the Medivac, the heroic ability of Lt. Morales could impact the game, we now see concrete evidence of it. But just to remind:

Lt. Morales can summon a Medivac that appears at her location. All group members can board within 4 seconds and are taken to a previously determined location – simultaneously and almost instantly.

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This not only allows for incredibly humorous ganking maneuvers, where a five-person team descends upon an unsuspecting victim, but also daring actions, such as a spontaneous attack on the enemy Nexus.

Even if not all moves work as the respective Lt. Morales might have imagined (such as when only she boards and zooms in on the enemies), this new ability promises to create considerable chaos on the battlefields once the StarCraft healer (most likely next week) celebrates her release.


More about the game, future characters, and the current patch notes can be found on our Heroes of the Storm topic page.

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Source(s):
  1. kotaku.com

Final Fantasy XIV: Finally! EU servers are coming to Europe – Date for the move is known

In Final Fantasy XIV the nominal EU servers will now also move to Europe. The dates are known.

It was a difficult birth. Over a year ago, Square Enix announced that the servers intended for Europe, the data center Chaos, would soon be moving to Europe. Now it is finally happening.

The affected servers are

  • Cerberus,
  • Lich,
  • Moogle,
  • Odin,
  • Phoenix,
  • Ragnarok,
  • Shiva,
  • Zordiark.

The move of the servers will result in a longer downtime. The affected servers will be unavailable from October 19 at 2:00 AM until October 20 at 12:00 PM. That’s 34 hours. This means, if everything goes well, it will be significantly under the 72-120 hours that were once estimated.

The server relocation is expected to provide a much more pleasant gaming experience for European players. Until now, the EU servers have been located in North America.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. Lodestone
  2. Lodestone

Hearthstone: Card Chaos from 30.9. is Duel of the Junk Piles

The latest card chaos in Hearthstone brings the most terrible technical achievements from Azeroth into battle in the week of September 30th: The Boom Bot against the Nerv-O-Tron!

Hello! Hello! Hello!

Right at 5 PM, the latest card chaos mode of Hearthstone was made available again today. This time, you are not playing any known heroes, but two of the most annoying metal piles ever produced by goblins and gnomes: The Nerv-O-Tron faces off against the Boom Bot! Randomly, it will be decided which of the two heroes you will play.

The respective decks are pre-built and synergize with the new hero abilities: The Nerv-O-Tron grants a random ally Divine Shield and Taunt, the Boom Bot deals two damage – split among random enemies. Currently, the Nerv-O-Tron seems to be a bit overpowered, as no player can withstand the annoying “Hello! Hello! Hello!” of its emotes for long without leaving a match in a fit of rage.

The decks are colorful and quite funny.
The decks are colorful and quite funny.

Remember that there is also a classic card pack to snag this time if you achieve at least one victory in the latest card chaos. Excess cards can be disenchanted as usual to craft other cards from the gained Arcane Dust.

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Destiny: Update comes on September 30th – Patch notes are here

In the MMO shooter Destiny, a patch is coming tonight, September 30th. The servers might also be down.

Last week there was already a patch, a hotfix, which we initially thought would lower the attack value of the Black Spindle, as announced. But it didn’t. Right now, you can still replicate the exotic sniper rifle Black Spindle from the weapon designs in high quality and infuse special weapons up to 300. This is set to change.

Black Spindle - Destiny

In the update that is supposed to come tonight at 7:00 PM, issues with the strike Cerberus Vae III could also be addressed. Currently, Valus Tra’urc (also known as Rockets McDickface) drops no loot.

We don’t know exactly at the moment.

If the servers go down tonight, as if Destiny is undergoing maintenance, and if so, when one can play Destiny again on September 30th, we don’t know at the moment. Right now it doesn’t look like there will be a server downtime; otherwise, there would normally be a warning tweeted about activities being canceled.

Irony of fate: Today the daily is active again, where you can obtain the Black Spindle.


Solar Titan

This is what Patch 2.0.0.5 does on September 30th.

The patch notes are here: The Black Spindle will once again not be touched.

Instead, they are fixing the problem with Valus Tra’urc in the strike Cerberus Vae III. He should now drop loot again.

They also fixed a bug that caused greedy chests to sometimes deprive players of their rightful loot.

And above all, they are fixing a severe exploit with the Sunbreaker, the new form of the Titan. Players were able to run amok by activating the Super and spamming the shoulder buttons, throwing the Hammer of Sol like crazy. This is no longer possible.

http://youtu.be/bLxk1QMeuCg

Now we just need to figure out what went wrong here…

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Source(s):
  1. Bungie

Chronicles of Elyria: After Aging and PermaDeath – Player Contracts

The upcoming MMORPG Chronicles of Elyria promises to do things differently. An interesting system is represented by player contracts.

The developers explain player contracts based on how interaction between players often occurs in current MMOs. In principle, there would be little interaction, everyone does their own thing. For example, one player wants to craft a special weapon and must mine ore for that. Of course, they do this alone to increase their skill, or they buy the raw materials at the auction house without needing to interact with another player.

Alternatively, they spam the trade chat. Once they have gathered all the necessary resources to craft the particularly powerful sword, they find that their crafting skill is insufficient. So they take the materials to another player who is supposed to craft the sword for them. But what prevents that player from simply keeping the raw materials for themselves? This is where player contracts come into play. There is a distinction between explicit and implicit contracts.

Contracts are important!

Chronicles of Elyria trade contract

An explicit contract is a contract as you know it. Both parties sign a document and must adhere to the terms specified therein. It is also possible to enter into a contract with many other players. They then provide you with the aforementioned raw materials and automatically receive their payment in return.

Based on so-called character events, which consist of player activities such as trading, fighting, conversing, or exploring areas, the game’s engine knows what the players are doing and can consider the player contract as fulfilled or not fulfilled. Players always receive a prompt about what they need to do once they have agreed to a contract. This could be compared to the quest system from other MMOs.

Contracts can be very complex

Chronicles of Elyria negotiation

A skill called contract writing determines how detailed and complex you can create a contract. The better your skill, the more intricate a contract can be, including trade agreements, guild charters, marriage contracts, or even laws!
If a contract is broken, you decide whether consequences follow and what those are. However, you must also adhere to the laws of the respective region. In some, it may be allowed to take items from a player for breach of contract, while in another region you may only be able to demand money. You can appoint a sheriff to collect the debts for you. If a player manages to steal the contract from you, there may be no evidence that an agreement ever existed.

Implicit agreements must also be adhered to!

Implicit contracts also fall under the realm of law. One must adhere to the laws of the respective region without needing to sign a contract. Nevertheless, these laws apply, and those who violate them can expect consequences. Additionally, there are artifacts through which the player enters an implicit contract with a party. For example, one who wears the king’s ring must carry out the king’s will.

Interesting: Aging and dying – What the MMORPG Chronicles of Elyria does differently

The MMORPG Chronicles of Elyria seeks to take a step further in player interaction than current MMOs do. That sounds very interesting.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.