In the MMORPG Ashes of Creation, the new class Bard was recently presented. It serves the group with buffs and good entertainment.
Why is the Bard being introduced now? Ashes of Creation hosts a livestream about once a month, where the developers explain the progress of game development as well as systems and mechanics.
This time, the developers spent almost two hours discussing the Bard. The new archetype functions as a support class for the group and also provides good entertainment on the side.
The Mage has also been introduced; here is what the class looks like:
Start video
Ashes of Creation presents the mage archetype in 30 minutes
Class Clown or Useful Helper?
What can the Bard do? The Bard in Ashes of Creation serves as a supporter for his group. He is not a classic healer or tank, but a type of buffer who enhances his group and weakens opponents.
For this, he has various abilities at his disposal. In the presentation livestream (via YouTube), the developers first showcased the 5 different auras.
One or two of these will always be active for the Bard. They give the group passive effects such as a buff on healing received, mana regeneration, or increased movement speed; additionally, one aura can increase the damage opponents receive.
For good entertainment and valuable buffs, the Bard provides his dances. In the current version, he has four different dances available. The dances are active abilities where the Bard dances and supports the group.
One dance provides a shield and heals the group for every second the dance is active. Another dance can add damage to opponents. The dances are always very expressive, providing some laughs even for the developers.
The Bard can do more than just buff.
What other abilities does the Bard have? The Bard also has regular healing and damage abilities as well as many abilities that give negative effects to his opponents, stun them, or disarm them.
Additionally, the Bard can swap hit points with one of his teammates. With his abilities, the Bard collects masks. He can use these masks to trigger a combo ability that activates different skills depending on the combination of collected masks.
What role does the Bard take on? The Bard can function as a healer in smaller groups, but he is more intended as a supporter for larger groups. In the developer’s example, the group consisted of a tank, 3 damage dealers, a healer, and a Bard as the group’s supporter.
In battle, the Bard always adapts to what the group needs. If everything is running smoothly, there will be more damage; if time needs to be bridged, there will be a movement speed buff; and if an opponent deals a lot of damage, healing will be provided.
Especially concerning mana, the Bard is very useful for the group. In the developers’ livestream, players could quickly regain mana with the Bard’s buff to use their abilities. During combat, the blue bar otherwise went down quite quickly.
AI is one of the tech adventures of our time, yet the Apple founder spoke of the opportunities – but also the great risks – 40 years ago.
Did Steve Jobs talk about Artificial Intelligence (AI) 40 years ago? Yes, Steve Jobs discussed his thoughts on the development of computers towards independent interaction with humans at the International Design Conference in Aspen, Colorado (USA).
How do we know about the speech? The widow of Steve Jobs regularly publishes documents, videos, or similar items on the stevejobsarchive website that had not been publicly available until then.
Start video
The “Deep Dive” is supposed to immerse us into MMORPGs deeper than ever before – What is it actually?
A 40-Year-Old Speech About Today
What did Steve Jobs say about AIs? He mentioned back then that humans would interact with computers for several hours every day. And what he hopes for from computers is clearly described with a reference to the immortalization of a great philosopher and polymath like the Greek Aristotle.
If we look to the next 50 and 100 years, if we can really create these machines that can capture a mind, a set of principles, or a way of seeing the world, we might [forever] have the next Aristotle.
The potential, if computers could learn to think and advise like humans, is immense according to Steve – however, he also foresaw the potential weakness of these systems:
Maybe, if one of these machines accompanies him for his whole life, one day we might ask it: “What would Aristotle have said?” Maybe we won’t get the right answer, but that is really exciting for me, and that’s one of the reasons why I do what I do.
And in the offices of Apple, AI probably wasn’t just an amusing intellectual distraction during a break, as can be inferred from this quote:
A lot of work is being done in the field of artificial intelligence to understand what self-awareness is and to understand whether a computer can ever be self-aware. […] Many people are dedicating themselves to […] trying to understand the architecture of the brain and how we can better mimic machines. And indeed I believe that by the end of our lives we will know the answer to this question. And that is what motivates many of us.
Steve Jobs passed away on October 5, 2011, in California due to cancer. He thus did not experience the huge boom of AI himself. But some of his colleagues and researchers from that time could make his prediction from over 40 years ago come true in the future.
Some examples of what AI is recently capable of, and the market power it wields in the hands of companies like Nvidia, can be read in the following articles from us:
The 1122nd chapter of the manga about One Piece will be released in just a few days. Thanks to leaks from Japan, we already know what will happen in the next section of the story. Accordingly, we will see Joy Boy for the first time, albeit with a small limitation.
Warning, here follows a spoiler minefield. Avoid it if you want to read chapter 1122 yourself without knowing how Joy Boy is depicted.
Joy Boy lived about 900 years ago in a “technologically advanced” kingdom.
He was the very first pirate to sail the world’s oceans.
His body could stretch like rubber. His fighting style resembled that of the sun god Nika.
Luffy is the incarnation of Joy Boy. After he awakened his Gear-5 powers, the giant elephant Zunesha called him by this name.
Furthermore, Joy Boy contributed at least a part of the One Piece. When Pirate King Gol D. Roger found the legendary treasure, he wished that he had lived at the same time as Joy Boy.
Unfortunately, we do not know if Joy Boy sailed the seas with a cool ship:
Start video
One Piece: These are the 5 coolest ships sailing the oceans
Conclusions about Joy Boy’s appearance refute fan theory
What does Joy Boy look like? In the upcoming chapter, a flashback will be shown between the giant robot Emet and Joy Boy. While the metal creature is fully visible, Joy Boy is only represented vaguely.
It can be seen that he wears a hat and a coat. The hat has a slightly wider brim than Luffy’s straw hat. The coat also seems to have seen better days, as it is worn out at the bottom.
X-user Perera44 shows us what Joy Boy looks like:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Which fan theory is being refuted? When Imu first showed a gigantic straw hat, many fans were convinced that Joy Boy must be a giant (via Reddit). Among giants, the sun god Nika is considered a folk hero.
That’s why many fans thought that the gigantic straw hat must have belonged to a large person who possessed similar powers to Nika and Joy Boy.
But: Compared to the robot, it can be seen that Joy Boy is not a giant. He is roughly the size of Luffy and his friends. This suggests that Joy Boy could have been a human.
Alternatively, it is possible that another fan theory is correct and Joy Boy was a Buccaneer. Oda may have left some leeway in the size comparison because Buccaneers are only slightly larger than humans.
The theory of the Buccaneers is reinforced by the fact that Jewelry Bonney was able to transform into Nika. Bonney is partly a Buccaneer due to her father’s genes, and she has listened to stories about the sun god Nika since she was a child.
The Five Elders have also repeatedly expressed disdain for the Buccaneers, which many attributed to the fact that a “Nika” must always be born among them.
Whether Joy Boy was ultimately a Buccaneer or a human remains to be seen. If Oda adheres to the current size comparison with Emet, it does not seem that the gigantic straw hat that Imu keeps belongs to him.
In the medieval MMO Chivalry 2, players fight against others in first-person view like in a shooter. With longswords, hammers, and battle axes, they slash at their opponents. The inspiration came from large battles from Game of Thrones or Lord of the Rings. The game was released in 2021 for PC, PS4, PS5, and Xbox – now, they look back with satisfaction at 3 years and 11 updates and say, “We are done.”
This is the idea behind Chivalry 2:
Development started in 2017 – the idea was to recreate medieval battles with all their blood and chaos. Players should be able to grab anything that was on the ground to fight each other. We called it the “Battlefield of knight games”
The game was well-received at release and peaked at nearly 17,000 players on Steam, where it was released a year after in June 2022. For a paid title, that’s quite decent.
Start video
Chivalry 2 is the Battlefield among the knight games – Shows in the trailer for the update new map and weapons
Stable player numbers on Steam – resurgence after the May update
How was the development? The development has run correctly for 3 years now. New maps, modes, and all sorts of things have been released. The game has received 11 updates.
Chivalry 2 found a player base on Steam and player numbers have been solid since August 2022, averaging between 1,400 and 2,600 concurrent players.
After the last update in May, the MMO is doing significantly better now than for much of 2023. Currently, the game has 2,400 players on Steam again – and certainly a few more on consoles and other platforms. Still, it’s coming to an end now.
Chivalry 2 ends development – nothing more is coming
This is what the developer says: The creator of the game, Tom Bannen, announces:
There will be no more updates – the game is “Feature Complete” with the 11th update Regice.
The game will be moved to maintenance mode and critical issues will be addressed, but they will focus on new projects.
They know that many players will be disappointed by the news, but will now focus on new projects, also in the Chivalry universe. The next Chivalry will “blow players away.”
No cash shop – no further development
This is what it’s about: We often report on MeinMMO about MMOs that are shut down because they have no players left. Here, a game rides off into the sunset, which has performed well.
The result is ultimately the same, except that you can still play Chivalry now.
The reason is likely that Chivalry 2 has too few opportunities to earn money in ongoing operations and relies on players buying it anew. They have also already gone through the free giveaway via PS Plus. Other MMOs finance themselves through a cash shop.
Herschel “DrDisrespect” Beahm was previously the star of Twitch. His permanent ban was a major mystery for 4 years. The real reason for the ban only came to light a few months before the planned release of his shooter Deadrop.
What kind of shooter is this? Deadrop is the first game from the developer studio Midnight Society, co-founded by the streamer Herschel “DrDisrespect” Beahm. The marketing of the shooter relied heavily on the influencer, who previously worked on CoD and was known on Twitch and YouTube for his strong opinions on shooters and his loud rants.
When the studio was founded in 2021, it was said that they wanted to compete with the big players, challenging CoD Warzone and Apex Legends.
In June, however, the studio distanced itself from its star after allegations that he had apparently received the news live on air – many declared the shooter dead after that.
Now, Robert Bowling and Quinn DelHoyo, co-founders of Midnight Society, spoke in an interview about the decision and its consequences for the shooter.
The ban of DrDisrespect occupied fans for four years.
Start video
DrDisrespect was a celebrity on Twitch – His ban remains a big mystery to this day
Deadrop is set to be released as planned in 2024
How did the studio react? The accusation that DrDisrespect was banned from Twitch due to chats with a minor reached the developers a few months before the planned release of Deadrop. “There was shock and disappointment,” Bowling recalls in the interview.
However, these feelings quickly changed to “How can I ensure that all the incredible work on Deadrop is not lost?”, Bowling continues. Midnight Society employs 55 developers. To finance the shooter, they had raised 24 million US dollars.
According to Bowling, the release will not be affected by the scandal surrounding DrDisrespect. Deadrop is scheduled to launch as a free-to-play title in the fourth quarter of 2024. The shooter will probably be a kind of EFT-like, but with a vertical playing field instead of the usual horizontal environment – and NFTs.
DrDisrespect is said to have helped the studio
What do people say about DrDisrespect? As the founders explain, the content creator was brought on board to leverage his massive reach of 4.5 million YouTube subscribers. “His job as an influencer was to direct attention and the community to us,” Bowling says. At the launch, he was also supposed to play the game in front of his fans.
However, this seems unlikely to happen in the planned form. The decision to part ways was made by the founders in a joint meeting. “We knew it was the right decision after we discussed everything as a group of four.”
Despite this experience, Bowling seems to have a rather positive view of collaborating with influencers: “Having a little initial marketing that we otherwise wouldn’t have had definitely helped,” explains the Creative Director.
However, he insists that it was the good reputation of the developers in the gaming industry that attracted investments to the shooter, not the influence of DrDisrespect.
At release, it will be revealed if Deadrop can stand on its own feet or if shooter fans will be proven right in their fear that the game is doomed to fail without DrDisrespect and his promotional efforts. Alternatively, there are still the 25 best shooters of 2024, which will impress with PvP or PvE gameplay.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Many fans believe that Two and a Half Men became a worse show after Charlie Sheen was fired. Especially the finale has received poor ratings. Chuck Lorre, the creator of Two and a Half Men, wanted to bring Charlie Sheen back for the finale, but he was not particularly enthusiastic about the idea for the finale.
What happens in the finale of Two and a Half Men? In the final scene of season 12, which you can see on YouTube, Berta, Alan, and Walden are lying on the balcony. The three see a helicopter carrying a piano, but they don’t care about it.
After a cut, we see a Charlie double ringing the doorbell. Suddenly, the piano falls on this Charlie. The camera zooms out to Chuck Lorre’s director’s chair, who says Won, only to be killed by a piano shortly after.
Originally, however, Lorre planned to bring the real Charlie Sheen back to mock him. Sheen had a different idea, which is why he was not brought back.
Start video
Two and a Half Men – Trailer for Season 11 with Jon Cryer and Ashton Kutcher
Silly End or Family Reunion
What did Lorre want to do with Sheen in the finale? In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Lorre spoke about the series finale and that he contacted Sheen for an appearance. His plan was not much different from the official ending.
Our idea was that he would go to the front door in the last scene, ring the bell, then turn around, look directly into the camera, and deliver a crazy tirade about the dangers of drug abuse. He would then explain that these dangers only apply to average people.
Additionally, Sheen was to say that he was a ninja from Mars and immortal. After the monologue, the piano was supposed to fall, just like in the actual ending. His monologue is a reference to an interview he gave after he was fired. Here you can read more about it: Charlie Sheen would have returned to “Two and a Half Men” – under an absurd condition
What did Charlie Sheen want as an ending? Lorre recounts in the interview that Sheen wanted a heartwarming scene as a finale that would lead into a new show called The Harpers. Sheen wanted him and Jon Cryer to continue the series with that.
The two did not agree, and the ending was ultimately filmed as Lorre had planned, just without Sheen. We found it funny. He didn’t.
How did fans feel about the ending? Looking at the comments under the YouTube video, fans do not find the ending nearly as funny as Lorre.
@Doctor4007: And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why you should not bring your personal feelings into your work life. Because it ends with a terrible ending and angers a lot of people
@Parasopher: The show ended when Charlie left
@Psyberelogist: That was more than sad and extremely disrespectful to the show’s fans.
NCSoft has introduced a new rune system for the Korean version of Throne and Liberty that revives the old Pay2Win discussions. MeinMMO summarizes the key points of this feature for you.
The new dungeon challenge “Dimensional Challenge” (comparable to Mythic Plus dungeons from WoW, which also offer increasing difficulty) rewards with jewels that can be socketed into gear to enhance attack, defense, or support values.
There are exactly these three types of runes: red attack runes, blue defense runes, and yellow support runes.
Runes that offer the same value can be fused into stronger versions of the runes.
Synergy effects can be activated based on the type of runes used.
By gradually upgrading runes, even less experienced players should have the chance to farm high-level runes by completing the first eleven levels of the “Dimensional Challenge” (which are said to be relatively accessible).
Runes should also be earnable in other ways, such as through world events.
Runes can be destroyed, yielding rune fragments (a level 1 rune gives about one to three fragments). With 100 fragments, one can craft a rune hammer.
A rune hammer is needed to unlock sockets on gear (for weapons, two rune hammers per socket are required). The factor of chance decides which type of rune can be placed in each socket.
By investing additional rune hammers, one can re-roll the type of socket, with costs depending on the number of reset attempts (so you’ll need more rune hammers to reset).
The Guitarist562 shows in a video on YouTube how the system works in practice.
The release date trailer prepares you for the launch of Throne and Liberty:
Start video
Throne and Liberty: New trailer reveals release date, introduces the fantasy world of Solisium
Worried glance to Korea
How does the community react to this system? On Reddit, the community is already extensively discussing the new system. Two areas of the feature are viewed particularly critically:
The potential Pay2Win/Pay2Progress factor: Rune hammers can be purchased through the in-game shop. Those who invest real money are expected to reach their goals much faster.
The randomness factor: Those who want to use the best possible rune combinations and synergies on their gear must obtain numerous rune hammers and even more runes. Those who have bad luck can become frustrated quickly.
Some players of the Korean version have reportedly spent hundreds of dollars on rune hammers in streams, with widely varying results for character progression. Those who don’t spend money on the shop and have bad luck with unlocking sockets will alternatively spend a lot of time in the new “Dimensional Challenge” dungeons.
Group challenges are the core of Throne and Liberty.
How does MeinMMO editor Karsten Scholz evaluate the new feature? If the rune system is implemented in exactly this form in the Western version of Throne and Liberty, criticism from my perspective is absolutely justified. Once the factor of chance affects character strength and also involves real-money investments, developers cross a line.
However, I would like to emphasize that Amazon Games has already adjusted various critical mechanics and systems from the Korean version of the MMORPG for the Western port. In the open beta, the payment model of Throne and Liberty was relatively fair. Therefore, I expect that there will be corresponding adjustments to the rune system for the West as well.
What do I need to know about Throne and Liberty? On September 17, 2024, the new MMORPG from NCSoft, Throne and Liberty, will be released. The launch in the West will be handled – as already indicated – by Amazon Games, who have gained experience with New World and Lost Ark.
Do you want all the rewards from the pre-event of WoW: The War Within? We have tips – and we explain why you don’t need to stress.
Update, 02.08.2024: Blizzard has drastically revised and improved the event Radiant Echoes. You can now complete events without pause and are no longer dependent on special farming methods or tips. You can find all changes to the event here. The tips and tricks below are now obsolete.
Original report: The pre-event of World of Warcraft: The War Within has been running since last Wednesday. In “Radiant Echoes”, you can earn many rewards – but for many, the frustration is great. They are worried that they have to farm long and hard to receive all the rewards.
Therefore, we want to give you a few tips and tricks and also clarify a few things. Because the event is not as terribly exhausting and time-consuming as it seems, even though there is indeed room for improvement.
Start video
WoW: Pre-Patch 11.0 – Trailer for the new pre-event of The War Within
Don’t farm mobs – unless you enjoy it
When the event in the respective area is completed, there are still some memories left that can be farmed endlessly. These yield between 1 and 5 memory remnants per kill.
The simple trick here is: Don’t farm these mobs unless you really enjoy grinding. It is absolutely not necessary to farm anything for a long time in this event. No matter how many kills you accumulate, at the next event start, you will earn multiples of that amount in a fraction of the time.
Unpack twinks, secure bonuses
Each of the 3 events (Duskmarches, Scorched Gorge, Dragon Waste) has a weekly quest that rewards 1,500 memory remnants upon completion. These quests can be completed by any of your characters.
So once you have completed the 3 quests with your “main,” log in with a twink and visit the next event.
This is particularly interesting because with the Warband, you can transfer all memory remnants from one character to another. You can therefore play all three events with multiple characters and receive around 6,000 memory remnants as a nice “bonus” per week and character (4,500 from the quests, +500 for each boss kill).
In the forum or on Reddit, many fans are imagining horror scenarios. Allegedly, one needs to farm 300,000 memory remnants if one really wants all the rewards. Too much, some say.
But the truth is different.
The 300,000 memory remnants is a theoretical value that would apply if you never received loot during the event. But that is simply not the case.
The prices are daunting if you want everything – but you actually need relatively little.
If you participate in the different event steps, you will be rewarded with equipment again and again – sometimes more, sometimes less. This equipment corresponds to what you can also buy from the event vendor. Each time you receive a piece of armor as a drop from the event, the amount you need to farm decreases, by 2,000 to 8,000 memory remnants.
In fact, you only need to “farm” a maximum of 50,000 memory remnants – that’s the cost of the mount (20,000) and the 3 pets (10,000 each).
20,000 memory remnants have already been received by some players on the first day, without farming mobs. Keep in mind that the necessary time will decrease in the coming weeks, so you can achieve this within a few hours.
War mode can be your friend
If your realm has too many players during the event, it lags and performs poorly, it may be worth activating war mode. Usually, there are significantly fewer players active here. This means the whole event takes a few minutes longer, but you can also participate in more mini-events and thus receive multiple rewards.
How peacefully this all plays out depends, of course, on your realm pool. On many worlds, however, a “gentleman’s agreement” applies during such events – Horde and Alliance leave each other alone and peacefully complete the event quests side by side. You should still be careful not to simply jump into the AoE fireworks of the opposing faction.
Wait for Week 3
If you don’t want to spend much time on the event but still want all the rewards, simply wait for Week 3 of the event – which begins on August 14, 2024. Then the events will appear every 30 minutes, allowing you to hop from one event to the next almost without pause. Currently, events only appear every 90 minutes, causing many to feel forced to wait. Just use the time for other things instead of actively waiting.
Are we about to catch giant Pokémon in Pokémon GO? A leak seems to suggest so.
What kind of leak is this? On the Discord server of the leaker group Pokeminers and in the subreddit “TheSilphRoad” about Pokémon GO, players are currently discussing an exciting find. There, new content related to “Dynamax” is showcased.
You can see the post from the subreddit here:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Reddit that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
What can be seen there? It is apparently assets for a new form of raids that will implement the Dynamax system from the main games “Pokémon Sword & Shield”. New graphics and a new raid arena can be seen.
Previously, there were data mine reports surrounding Dynamax, as reported by “Pokémon GO Hub“, and even in the official graphic for the eighth anniversary of the game, which Pokémon GO shared via X.com, a Dynamax Pokémon is featured.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
What should be noted: Earlier, features or content hinted in these graphics had appeared much later or not at all in the game. Nevertheless, in connection with the new data mines, the hope grows that Dynamax will soon land in the game. But what is it actually?
Start video
Heavenly teamwork in Pokémon GO – a new season begins
What could Dynamax and Gigantamax mean for Pokémon GO?
This is Dynamax: This phenomenon was introduced in Pokémon Sword and Shield, turning Pokémon into giant versions of themselves. You could battle these monsters in Dyna-Raids, but also use them in battle. Read more about the feature in Sword and Shield here.
The giant versions could fight in their dynamaximized form for three rounds before reverting back. During this time, they were significantly strengthened.
What is Gigantamax? This is another variation of Dynamax: Some Pokémon came with a special Gigantamax form, making them not only giant but also giving them a unique appearance. They also had a special Gigantamax attack to use.
What would this mean for Pokémon GO? Currently, one can only speculate, as it is still completely unclear how exactly the feature will be implemented. What is clear is that if monsters could be dynamaximized in the future, it could shake up the established lists of the best attackers or PvP monsters – depending on which monsters master the Dynamax and what changes occur in battle.
Additionally, there will be a new component for collectors, as the Gigantamax forms are likely to become sought-after monsters in the game. We are definitely excited and will keep you updated here as soon as there is more news about the feature.
However, keep in mind: As of now, there is no official announcement or similar. What do you think of Dynamax and a possible variant in Pokémon GO? Let us know in the comments! And to know what’s happening in the game in the coming weeks: Here you can find all events in August 2024 in Pokémon GO.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The video game developer Bungie announced yesterday, on July 31, that it would lay off 220 employees and transfer 230 to a new studio and to Sony. Instead of 1,300 employees, only 850 will work on Destiny 2 and Marathon in the future. Some employees who were laid off in November 2023, and content creators see problems at the top management of Bungie and demand that CEO Pete Parsons step down.
This was the announcement: In a statement from July 31, Bungie’s CEO, Pete Parsons, announced (via Bungie):
It is said that five years ago they started working on many new projects, resulting in thinning out the existing teams and growing so much that they incurred losses.
Due to poor economic development, a crisis in the video game industry, and the weak Destiny 2: Lightfall, hard decisions are now necessary. They will continue to develop great games with the existing 850 employees.
The current wave of layoffs is viewed critically also because Bungie already fired 8% of its employees in November 2023. At that time, it was due to a “strong decline in popularity” of Destiny 2, following the weak Lightfall:
Start video
Destiny 2: Lightfall – Launch Trailer
CEO writes “Be Brave” – protects himself from criticism on Twitter
This aggravated the problem: If anyone wanted to direct their initial anger about these layoffs at the face of the crisis, Pete Parsons, they found his Twitter account in protected mode. Parsons apparently put his account in this mode because he anticipated the wave of criticism heading his way.
This was criticized as “cowardly” by former Community Manager Sam Bartley.
It was also criticized because his Twitter bio ironically states “Be Brave.” Parsons unlocked his account after the complaints, but has not yet commented on the criticism.
These are the reactions of the laid-off employees:
Liana Ruppert (cover image) was a Community Manager at Bungie from 2021 to 2023. She demands: “Step down, Pete.” He is a liar and much more, which cannot be said publicly. He should resign without a huge “golden parachute” from Sony (via x). Because it is not Sony’s fault, but the fault of management.
The Social Media Lead Griffin Bennett, who was also fired last year, writes: “Pete is a joke.” He demands that management takes responsibility and believes: “Weak leadership has destroyed one of the greatest developers of all time. Retire, Pete.”
The former Community Manager Sam Bartley writes about Parsons: “You did this. You chose this. I am already on the “Do not work with this person” list – I don’t care anymore. You lied to my face. Right to my face. You invited me to admire your new cars, TWO DAYS before you fired me. Two. F***ing. Days. Go away. Now.”
Experts on Destiny see the problem at the management level
Journalists and content creators who have been following Destiny for years also express their criticism:
Paul Tassi from Forbes writes: “If the leadership team has to lay off 350 people in a year, maybe the leadership team is the problem, not the employees.”
My name is Byf writes: “The leadership must be replaced. Their decisions have repeatedly led to disaster for the employees who are actually working on the game we play. They are recklessly handling the studio, the employees, and the franchises. The problem is clear: The leadership needs to be replaced.”
Pete Parsons, the CEO of Bungie.
Are there other voices? Yes, there are many developers who do not directly go after Parsons but write:
That they have achieved a lot and that “The Final Shape” has been so successful – but that they were still fired. They are frustrated that the layoffs have nothing to do with personal performance.
Some share their personal stories: A woman was laid off 3 days before going on maternity leave. Another one was promoted just a month before. A third one was laid off while he was on vacation.
Many seem to be frustrated that they now have to suddenly look for a new job – They are proud of their team and their work at Bungie, which is now coming to such a sudden and unexpected end.
Unusually harsh and sharp response from employees
What’s behind it: It is unusual for employees in the gaming industry to behave so offensively – and so many of them. Normally this doesn’t happen because laid-off employees are looking for new jobs and do not want to appear negatively to potential employers. Usually, developers keep a low profile after layoffs and mainly focus on highlighting their own strengths and recommending themselves for new jobs.
The criticism apparently comes strongly from the community management sector and from those who were laid off last year and who have already managed in a life without Bungie.
Parsons’s statement indicates that wrong decisions were made at the highest level and that Bungie has overextended itself with the plan to develop too many new games at once. The consequences of these wrong decisions must be borne by employees who had nothing to do with it.
Employees are angry that Parsons does not take any personal responsibility for the situation.
In March, a rumor circulated in the Destiny scene, which is now becoming relevant again. At that time, it was said that a content creator had come across an internal email from Sony, where frank discussions about Bungie took place and how the new owners of Sony view their purchase: Sony allegedly considers the purchase of Bungie a failure and is angry about “greedy bosses”
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The ongoing criticism has had an effect. The “Shakes & Fidget” team is backtracking and changing again how the whole game looks.
There are many browser games, but few are as successful over many years as the German “Shakes & Fidget,” which is based on the popular comics about the magician and his warrior friend. The game even appeared on Steam and right now both this and the browser version are quite popular.
A patch for the anniversary caused a lot of frustration. Because the user interface that has been known and loved for 15 years was changed.
We’ve introduced you to MMOs for PvE fans here:
Start video
3 MMORPGs for PvE fans
What had happened? For the 15th anniversary of the game, they had come up with something at Shakes & Fidget. The largest update in the history of the browser game was to be released and brought many changes with it. Above all, there was a fundamental redesign of the menus and user interface, as it had been swollen by ever new mechanics over the years.
The problem: The update was received incredibly poorly. After the fans had gotten used to the menu and design for nearly 15 years, it was completely thrown out. While they had known exactly “where to click” for years, many were now confused – features were in different places and things that were well-known were only hard to find.
The menu as you knew it – with this setting, it returns.
This is what has happened now: After many rounds of “gathering feedback,” the developers have announced that they have taken the criticism to heart. Therefore, they have worked in recent days to reactivate the old menu with the familiar design. You can now set this in the options menu and thus return to the familiar look of the game.
You will find the setting under “Settings,” then “Display,” and at “Menu Layout” there is a drop-down menu where you then select “Classic.” After that, you need to restart or reload the game.
Cortyn says: How poorly the update was received could probably be seen in every larger guild. After the patch, many only logged in once – they couldn’t find their way around anymore and didn’t return afterward. So the developers changing their stance here is at least a good thing. However, this is probably not only due to all the feedback but also because many have used this drastic step to turn their backs on the game. Whether these people will come back remains to be seen.
What is your opinion on the new menu and the option to activate the old design again? A good, sensible decision? Or should the developers have rather “stuck to their guns” after preparing such a large update for a long time?
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The 3-time Formula 1 world champion, Max Verstappen, is on his way to securing his fourth consecutive championship. However, he faces criticism from his bosses when he plays a little longer. But the driver refuses to be forbidden from racing on virtual tracks, regardless of how late he stays up.
What does Verstappen play? Racing driver Verstappen is not only skilled at the real steering wheel. He is a passionate gamer of racing simulations, known as sim racing. He primarily plays the simulation of iRacing.
Together with his Redline team, which is part of Red Bull like his team in Formula 1, he also participates in international races and tournaments. Especially the so-called 24-hour races sometimes require him to be active on the virtual track until 3:00 AM, even when he has to sit in the real cockpit just a few hours later.
This doesn’t please everyone. Since there have been some setbacks for Team Red Bull in Formula 1 this season, Verstappen has also had to deal with criticism from within his own ranks. This criticism primarily targets his hobby.
Start video
Elon Musk’s Cybertruck is now in Fortnite, but even the developers are not thrilled
Criticism of Verstappen’s outburst: “because he plays all night long”
Where does the criticism come from? The criticism primarily comes from Verstappen’s top boss, Red Bull’s motorsport chief, Helmut Marko.
The occasion for the criticism was Verstappen’s comments during the Hungarian Grand Prix. Here, the driver expressed his dissatisfaction with the race’s progress and his team’s decisions, clearly voicing his displeasure to his engineers (via sport1).
In the end, only a disappointing fifth place was achieved for the reigning world champion. But the conflict that raged within the team was much worse.
Boss Marko then accused his protégé of being thin-skinned. However, his outburst was not surprising, as he had “played sim racing half the night before the race.” This should not happen again in the future. (via speedweek)
According to Marko, after this incident, an agreement was reached with Verstappen that he would no longer participate in sim racing so late.
Verstappen defies criticism: “I’ve been doing this since 2015”
How does Verstappen respond? Verstappen currently wants nothing to do with a ban on playing until the early morning hours before races. At the press conference before the Grand Prix in Belgium, a week after the outburst in Hungary, he stated:
“I don’t need to tell people what to do with their free time, and vice versa applies to me as well.” He continues: “For me, this (referring to late-night sim racing, even before a Grand Prix, note of the editor) is nothing new. I’ve been doing this since 2015.” (via f1-insider)
As a 3-time world champion, he knows what he can and cannot do before races.
Only success may prove the champion right over the short or long term. A week after his outburst, Verstappen finished in fourth place at the Belgian Grand Prix. Whether he also prepared for the race with a longer sim racing session the night before is unknown. The disputes with his team seem temporarily forgotten. Things are different in the team of a major developer: Destiny 2: Bungie loses 450 employees, including the most experienced – halting all projects except 2
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The event “Radiant Echoes” in World of Warcraft is causing trouble. Many people don’t like it – because they have to just stand around all day.
Only a few weeks left until The War Within finally starts. The pre-patch 11.0 is already live, and since July 30, the pre-event “Radiant Echoes” has also started. However, this is not well received by a large – or at least quite vocal – part of the community. The problem is: You can’t play the event continuously, but have to be active at certain times. This has upset some.
Start video
WoW: Pre-Patch 11.0 – Trailer for the new pre-event of The War Within
What kind of event is this? In the “Radiant Echoes” event, echoes appear at various locations in Azeroth at regular intervals. In a 3-phase event, these echoes must be defeated. First, a large mob, then several events in the style of joint “world quests,” and finally another boss.
Currently, such an event starts every 90 minutes and is active for a few minutes – depending on how quickly players complete the tasks.
In the coming week (starting August 7), the event will start every 60 minutes.
In the following week (starting August 14), the event will start every 30 minutes.
What is the criticism of the event? Several points are being criticized. These can be summarized as follows:
There are too long wait times. An 80-minute “break” is too long to wait. Players’ time is not respected.
Killing mobs grants too little currency.
The event lags due to too few shards, and the individual missions end too quickly.
Twinks can hardly level up through the event.
What does the community say? We certainly don’t want to withhold some comments from the numerous posts in the WoW subreddit. At least there and in the official forums, the atmosphere is heated:
“With every expansion, they promise us that the times will improve, but now we have to wait a whole 3 weeks for a relatively quick pre-event, which just shows that they haven’t learned their lesson.” – CluckingChicken
“So cool that these things rotate every 1:30 hours, but the event lasts at most 10 minutes. That’s more than an hour in which people just sit around and grind mobs for 1-5 currency or hope not to miss the next event.” – kinlopunim
“I felt hyped, logged in, did the quests. So far, so good. Went to the event location, only to see that I had to wait an hour and logged out again.” – Red_coats
How was that with previous events? When looking at it soberly, pre-events were actually criticized before the launch of every expansion and did not go well.
The zombie plague before “Wrath of the Lich King” made many angry, as you were permanently transformed into an undead and the capitals were unusable for days.
With “Battle for Azeroth,” the criticism was that it was basically just a short quest line and had no repeatable content.
In “Shadowlands,” you could farm rare enemies, but only on a fixed schedule of 10 minutes. Here too, most of the event consisted of “standing around” if you wanted to have every mob.
Mostly, the positive memories of them only come years later when you reflect on it and come to the conclusion that it was actually quite okay.
Is the event really that bad? It probably depends a lot on personal feelings. Some were able to secure the most expensive reward on the very first day, namely the mount for 20,000 memory remnants – and that without grinding mobs, but simply through regular participation in the event.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Reddit that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Anyone who has little time during the day and prefers a “permanent grinding opportunity” will be mainly disappointed by the event.
However, many of the criticisms are likely to resolve themselves in the coming weeks as the event takes place every 30 minutes – even if Blizzard adjusts nothing else. It’s still at least questionable why the timer wasn’t set directly to 30 minutes but instead saved for later. This can indeed give the impression that they want to suggest: If you want to get everything done quickly, you should wait until week 3.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
If you look at the midlane in the current e-sport of League of Legends, you often see ADCs in the midlane. Mages are hardly seen at all. The midlaner from Fnatic explains in an interview why that is.
What is the current state of Mages? If you look at the stats of the top leagues on gol.gg, you can see a trend in the midlane. Among the 10 most frequently chosen midlaners, only four are AP champions. The top four are Corki, Tristana, Yone, and Lucian.
Tristana and Lucian are actually classic ADCs that you would expect more in the botlane. AD currently dominates the e-sport matches in the midlane. Why that is, explains the professional player Humanoid, after his bitter defeat against G2, in an interview with Sheep Esports.
In the latest LoL mode, the meta can be ignored:
Start video
Swarm – Trailer for the new LoL PvE mode
It just doesn’t make sense
What does Humanoid say about the current meta? In the interview, the Czech midlaner Humanoid is asked for his opinion regarding the current midlane meta. Currently, he plays professionally for the European team Fnatic. He says that while he is happy with the current meta, it shouldn’t last too long.
I am satisfied with it, but it shouldn’t stay like this for long. They should mix it up a bit. The problem is, that every single ADC has a movement speed of 450 for no reason. When you play a mage with 380 movement speed and try to cast spells on an opposing ADC who also deals more damage than you do, it just doesn’t make sense.
He explains that it is difficult to hit an opponent with attacks when they are inherently faster than you are. It makes no sense to try that. He only mentions Azir as a counterexample because you cannot miss abilities with him.
He calls the difference in movement speed a systematic problem. That ADCs have so much movement speed is baseless.
What about the normal players? If you look at the current stats for the midlane across all ranks on U.GG, you see that of the 10 champions, only three are AD and none are ADCs.
This can be explained with the current patch. The normal LoL is playing on 14.14. Tristana and Corki have already been nerfed. The professional scene was still playing on 14.13, so this will have to be observed in the future to see how it develops. By the way, if you look at the botlane, many mages also dominate there. The loser queue is a big myth in LoL, now a player has tried to prove it scientifically: A player analyzed 178,500 games to find out if the most persistent rumor really is true
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Every year, there are skins for the winners of the Worlds in League of Legends. This year there are once again T1 skins. Their design has already been revealed, and the skins contain many details. The best part: unlike the Faker skin, these don’t cost a fortune.
Which champions are getting the skins? For winning the Worlds 2023, the members of T1 were allowed to choose champions to honor with skins. It has long been confirmed that they are Bard, Jinx, Orianna, Jayce, and Lee Sin. Each champion was played at least once in the tournament.
The five players were involved in the design of the new skins. The skins look really good and this time they also don’t cost 430 €, but the well-known skin price of 1350 RP, which is about 10 €. The team’s supporter Keria also managed to include Lux, even though she is not getting a skin.
The current mode is the promo for the new Anima Squad skins:
Start video
Swarm – Trailer for the new LoL PvE mode
Skins with personal stories
As the reddit user KIRUx summarizes from a Korean article, there are several aspects that were incorporated into the skins. The skins are meant to represent Faker’s legacy, T1’s status, and the return of the king.
By winning in South Korea, the team wanted to incorporate elements of the country into the designs. Additionally, each player had ideas for their respective skin. The skin team met with the pros for this. You can find the first look at the skins here:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
What do the skins mean? Jayce’s skin is meant to represent the victories of Zeus, who continued his path despite defeats. In the normal skin, he holds the Worlds trophy in the backport, while in the prestige skin, he holds the MVP trophy.
The Lee Sin skin is meant to show Oner’s martial arts background. Many ideas are based on a tiger. In the backport, another skin of Lee Sin appears, namely the T1 skin from 2013 for player Bengi.
For the Orianna skin, everything revolves around the number 4, based on T1’s four Worlds victories. With the skin itself, Faker wanted to tell the story of an AI that becomes human.
The Jinx skin is based on Gumayusi’s dog. Again, reddish and bluish colors are used and in the backport, Jinx poses with Gumayusi.
Keria chose the champion Bard, who looks like a rabbit here. Bard’s concept is based on a Korean story about a rabbit and the moon. At the same time, the rabbit symbolizes the K-Pop band New Jeans. In the backport, there is still a Lux skin, which was Keria’s original wish.
These Worlds skins seem to contain a lot of personal history, which is always linked to the legacy and legendary status of T1. What do you think of these skins? Will you get them, or do you not like them at all? Let us know in the comments. If you’re also interested in the lore of League of Legends, you should check this out: LoL: The 10 strongest champions in the world of Runeterra in the power ranking
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Akira Toriyama was the manga artist of Dragon Ball. From his original work, the further mangas and animes Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, and Dragon Ball Super have emerged. But did you know that the creator himself has some cameos in the series?
Which character is Akira Toriyama? In the series, there is occasionally a robot seen wearing a cap. This is “Tori-Bot.” This character is based on Akira Toriyama and is meant to represent the manga artist himself.
This is what Akira Toriyama looks like in Dragon Ball.
Before he appeared as a robot in the manga, he initially came up with an avatar named “Tori.” It was a bird wearing glasses, as “Tori” translates from Japanese to “bird.”
It is suggested that Tori-Bot may be the ultimate ruler. For example, he has the ability to delete characters from the story or to resurrect characters. This is because he is, in fact, the manga artist. He can write and do whatever he wants – after all, Dragon Ball is his work.
Did you also know what the Z in Dragon Ball Z stands for?
Start video
Dragon Ball: This is what the Z in the title stands for
Tori-Bot has several appearances in Dragon Ball and Dr. Slump
When can he be seen? Tori-Bot appeared in chapters 1 and 42 of the Dragon Ball manga. He additionally appears in the third episode of the anime, when he climbs a tree. There, he mutters that this place is not Penguin Village, the setting from Dr. Slump.
Later, he also appears on a wanted poster, but his bounty has already been collected. In Dragon Ball Z, Tori-Bot appeared in the crowd in episode 215 when Son-Goku and Pikkon meet.
Even in Dragon Ball GT, he still shows up. In episode 27, he is depicted on a shaving set of Vegeta’s. In Dragon Ball Super, he has at least made it onto banknotes.
Some of the appearances have been summarized by user X-IndominusReptil:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Tori-Bot was also used when Toriyama left a note to the readers in the V-Jump magazine. Either he was involved in the content visible on that page or at least directly supervised it.
In Dr. Slump, Tori-Bot even has a few larger appearances. Additionally, he can be seen in the role-playing game Blue Dragon as Toripo. Toriyama must have included him, as he was the designer of the RPG. He also appears in Dragon Ball Online and Dragon Ball Heroes.
In Elden Ring, there are many weapons, but not all are worth it in a build. Therefore, we show you 5 of the best weapons from the DLC Shadow of the Erdtree and from the base game, so you can defend yourself as best as possible.
How is the list structured? In our list, you will find five weapons from Shadow of the Erdtree as well as five weapons from the base game that are undoubtedly among the best weapons in Elden Ring. We will list where you can obtain them and what makes them so special. With our directory, you can jump to the respective weapons.
Elden Ring: All weapons and spells from the echoes of the DLC bosses
The 5 Best Weapons from Shadow of the Erdtree
Arm of a Bloodhound
Arm of a Bloodhound
Weapon type: Gigantic weapon
War Ash possible? Yes.
Location: Farm the Bloodhounds that carry this weapon.
Required Attributes:
Strength: 28
Dexterity: 11
Arcane: 16
The Arm of a Bloodhound is considered one of the strongest weapons when focusing on “Strength” and “Arcane.” Paired with a bloody War Ash, it can quickly cause bleed damage. A perfect weapon if you enjoy crushing your enemies with two hands.
Backhand Blade
Backhand Blade
Weapon type: Backhand Blade
War Ash possible? Yes.
Location: You can find the Backhand Blade near the Site of Grace “Three-Path Crossing.” Move east until you see the stone monuments from a distance. You will find the swords at the grave.
Required Attributes:
Strength: 10
Dexterity: 13
The Backhand Blade is a solid weapon for builds focusing on dexterity. When wielded with two hands, you can take a blade in each hand.
The interesting thing about the weapon is that you can still carry a shield on your back, which enhances your stamina regeneration or regenerates your health points. Moreover, the weapon can be equipped with a War Ash and even buffed with grease.
Euphoria is considered one of the best weapons from the DLC after patch 1.13. The weapon can deal a lot of damage in a Dex/Faith build when you have charged it. Use the unique ability “Euphoria Spiral” and unleash a holy beam upon your enemies that can melt their health bars.
Greatsword of the Fire Knights
Greatsword of the Fire Knights
Weapon type: Giant Sword
War Ash possible? Yes.
Location: Must be farmed from the Fire Knights in the castle “Shadow Keep”.
Required Attributes:
Strength: 22
Dexterity: 18
Faith: 12
The Greatsword of the Fire Knights is a giant sword but has a light moveset with wide attacks. You can enhance the weapon’s damage by applying fire to it. Due to its large range and outstanding scaling in “Faith,” especially Faith builds can get the most out of the weapon.
Claws of the Night
Claws of the Night
Weapon type: Claw
War Ash possible? No.
Location: Defeat Anna, Swordhand of the Night, underneath the Cathedral of Manus Metyr.
Required Attributes:
Strength: 8
Dexterity: 20
The Claws of the Night are excellent weapons for both melee and ranged combat. With their talent “Scattershot Throw,” many blades are thrown in the direction you aim. This can be advantageous and offers you a lot of room in combat. Additionally, the weapon causes bleed damage, which can make your fight against bosses easier.
Bloody Streams is the cult weapon from Elden Ring. The katana has a short range, but when you use its talent “Bloody Butcher,” your attack pattern will gain range. Additionally, attacks cause bleed damage – combine that with an Arcane/Dex build, and you will be nearly unbeatable.
Mohgwyn’s Sacred Spear
Mohgwyn’s Sacred Spear
Weapon type: Great Spear
War Ash possible? No.
Location: Can be acquired from the Finger Reader Enia in the Roundtable Hold when you exchange the Echo of Mohgwyn.
Required Attributes:
Strength: 24
Dexterity: 14
Arcane: 27
The Great Spear of Mohgwyn can shred large areas of enemies in a proper build. With its talent “Bleeding Ritual,” all enemies in your vicinity keep losing health until they bleed out from the inside. A strong weapon, but its moveset is slow. So make sure when to initiate your attack.
Blasphemous Blade
Blasphemous Blade
Weapon type: Greatsword
War Ash possible? No.
Location: Can be acquired from the Finger Reader Enia in the Roundtable Hold when you exchange the Echo of Rykard.
Required Attributes:
Strength: 22
Dexterity: 15
Faith: 21
The Blasphemous Blade is the perfect weapon for all players who have trouble surviving. With each enemy you defeat, you regenerate health points. Additionally, the talent “Vampiric Flames” ensures that every hit regenerates your health points. Bosses like Malenia can also be contained with the Blasphemous Blade and then easily defeated.
Giant Breaker
Giant Breaker
Weapon type: Gigantic weapon
War Ash possible? Yes.
Location: In a chest on a cart near the outer wall – Phantom Tree in Altus Plateau.
Required Attributes:
Strength: 60
The Giant Breaker is the ultimate weapon for Strength builds. With this device, you can break bosses’ stance with just a few hits and crush them. A perfect weapon for all warriors among you who prefer simplicity.
Glaive of the Dark Cavalry
Glaive of the Dark Cavalry
Weapon type: Halberd
War Ash possible? Yes.
Location: Fight the Dark Cavalry on the eastern side of the Lucaria gates.
Required Attributes:
Strength: 26
Dexterity: 10
The Glaive of the Dark Cavalry is a strong weapon for breaking stances and quickly defeating bosses. Many players use the Glaive along with blood grease, to annihilate bosses like Mohgwyn in seconds. A strong weapon that must first be mastered.
Which weapons are still worth it? For sorcerers, the catalysts are worth it:
Carian Royal Scepter (Normal Sorcery)
Lusat’s Glintstone Staff (In boss fights)
For the Sacred Seals, it depends on which summons you want to conjure. However, if you want the seal with the best summon scaling, you should go for the Seal of the Earth Tree. You can’t go wrong with this.
That was our list of the best weapons from the base game of Elden Ring and its DLC Shadow of the Erdtree. Which weapons are your favorites? Let us know in the comments! You can find more about Elden Ring here: Elden Ring: All Weapons from the DLC in the list with locations
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
A player of The First Descendant has created a build for the descendant “Ajax” that allows him to hop up and down like a frog while eliminating tons of enemies – perfect for farming gold and XP.
The descendant Ajax is primarily known as a tank in The First Descendant. After all, he has a forward-facing barrier that blocks enemy projectiles; a dome shield that protects you from damage from all directions and has very high defensive stats (DEF and HP).
However, there are also builds for Ajax that allow the tank to deal strong damage. A player has now demonstrated on Reddit what an Ajax build can look like in practice when the focus is on farming.
To do this, Ajax repeatedly jumps up with the skill “Void Jump” and destroys enemies upon landing, charges his Void energy, and activates the skill “Throw Out.” With his green armor, the hopping Ajax on Reddit looks like a frog:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Reddit that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
How does the build work? The Reddit user provides no detailed insights into the build but explains that he uses the module “Void Charge” to reduce the cooldown of the skills “Void Jump” and “Throw Out.”
With the transcendent module “Void Charge,” the damage from the skills Void Jump and Throw Out increases proportionally with Ajax’s defense (DEF). Additionally, Void Charge resets the cooldown of a skill when it is used as an enhanced skill.
Void Jump – When enhanced, the max shield strength increases for a certain duration. Throw Out – When enhanced, the knockback and base range are increased.
Start video
The First Descendant: Encrypted Safes – What is it and how do you find them?
How do you use the build for farming? When farming gold, experience points, or Kuiper shards, you want to deal as much area damage (AoE damage) as possible. This works very well with Ajax’s Void Jump and Throw Out.
Unlike with Bunny or Valby, you won’t be running around in circles like the Road Runner at lightning speed, but instead, you should stand as centrally as possible at your farming spot and repeatedly use your skills. You want to eliminate as many enemies as possible with a single strike.
If you perform a normal jump before the Void Jump, you will also jump significantly higher. This way, you can also cover a few meters to reach the next group of enemies.
To use the build as effectively as possible when farming, the Reddit user repeats a specific gameplay loop:
3x Void Jump
Throw Out (enhanced)
3x Void Jump
Throw Out
After the third Void Jump in a cycle, the Void energy is fully charged, enhancing Ajax’s skills. He then uses the (enhanced) skill “Throw Out.” Next, he performs another 3x Void Jump while the enhancement is active. The cycle then begins again with the use of “Throw Out” from the start.
In Diablo 4 the new season is coming with numerous changes to the items. The uniques are all getting an update, including the coveted Uber Uniques. And the Harlequin’s Crown is now even stronger than before.
The Harlequin’s Crown is a headgear that is referred to by many players as “Shako”. It is an Uber Unique, one of the rarest items in Diablo 4. It has fixed properties and is considered the best headgear for almost any build in Diablo 4. All five classes can equip the headgear.
Learn more about Season 5 and the new endgame activity in the video:
Start video
Diablo 4: Developers offer insight into the Season of the Infernal Hordes
Enables “ridiculously high” cooldown reduction
What changes are coming to the Harlequin’s Crown? In a blog post, Blizzard explains that they are updating all uniques in Diablo 4 with Season 5. In this context, they present a screenshot showing the Uber Unique “Harlequin’s Crown”.
The “new” headgear has the following stats:
+maximum life
+resource maximum
+armor
+cooldown reduction
In addition, the headgear gives you a bonus to damage reduction and a full 4 ranks to all your skills. Below you can see the old headgear on the left and the “new” one on the right in the images:
The Harlequin’s Crown in Season 4 of Diablo 4.The Harlequin’s Crown after the update in Season 5. Source: Blizzard
How is the community reacting to the changes? Diablo expert wudijo calls the updated Harlequin’s Crown an “absolute beast” in his YouTube video. He says that if you improve the headgear with the crafting system “Completion” and have cooldown reduction as a “Greater Affix” (i.e., 1.5x as strong), you could increase its value to 54% – and that is “wild”.
The changes to the Harlequin’s Crown are being discussed in a post on Reddit. “DreadfuryDK” writes in the comment: “50% cooldown reduction [that could be achieved] is ridiculously high […], but an item like this should be completely crazy. Of course, it was already crazy before, but now it’s just… extra crazy.” Also, “Mephistito” finds: “This thing is totally crazy now.”
And “CruyffsLegacy” says: “This is a pretty significant upgrade. […] I would also argue that the new affixes are significantly stronger. […] the armor increase means that you are only one armor affix away from the cap on another piece of equipment.”
The Harlequin’s Crown gives you a bonus of 2,500 armor without improvement – in addition to the 1,156 armor that the headgear generally has. The armor cap in Diablo 4 is at 9,230.
What else is changing with the uniques? The other uniques and Uber Uniques are also getting an update. Uber Uniques will become Mythic Uniques and will then be purple. The developers write in their blog post that they want to make uniques special again in the Season of the Infernal Hordes. They should be the best for the skills they support in the respective builds.
In Elden Ring, you can start the Millicent quest to get talismans and bypass the worst ending of the story. We will show you all the rewards and every step of the quest.
Update, August 1, 2024: The article has been reviewed, updated with new links, and refreshed.
Where can I find Millicent? You will find this NPC in the Church of Plague in Caelid. She is lying helplessly on the ground and needs your help. To start her quest, you need to find Gowry, a sorcerer not far from Millicent.
We will show you how to follow the quest and explain step by step what you need to do. With our index, you can quickly jump to the individual quest steps.
[toc]
Start video
Elden Ring introduces the boss enemies of the DLC
Find Gowry and Start the Quest
You need to go to the NPC Wise Gowry. He is located in the dangerous region of Caelid. You can find Gowry’s hut by following the main path from Limgrave to Caelid around a rotting lake.
Through a large gate, you will find the hut, guarded by an oversized dog that you should definitely kill.
Gowry’s hut on the mapGowry’s hut with fierce guard dog
Talk to Gowry to find out how you can save Millicent. He will ask you to defeat a boss in the area to obtain the gold needle.
Find and Defeat Commander O’Neill
Now you need to defeat the boss Commander O’Neill. You can find him in the heart of the Aeonia swamp, directly west of Gowry’s hut.
O’Neill is a strong boss who uses Scarlet Rot. You should defeat him quickly. In combat, a strength or blood build is particularly effective, as it allows you to stagger O’Neill or cause bleed. This shortens the time in combat and helps you avoid being poisoned by Scarlet Rot. Once you defeat him, you will receive the gold needle.
Hand over the Gold Needle to Gowry and Wait
Give Gowry the gold needle you obtained from the boss. He tells you that he needs time to repair it. Reload the world (see gray box) and talk to him again. He will give you a complete gold needle back.
To reload the world, you can either exit the game and log back in or quickly teleport from one location to another. This is the only way to trigger new events to continue with quests.
Present the Gold Needle to Millicent
Gowry now asks you to find Millicent. She is located in the Church of Plague. You can reach this by activating the lights in 3 towers in the ghost town of Sellia to the north. Then a gate will open in the north of the city that will lead you on the path to the Church of Plague.
You can reach the Church of Plague via SelliaYou need to activate 3 of these towers in Sellia
Hand the needle to Millicent in the Church of Plague after the dialogue. Rest at the Site of Grace and talk to her again. You will now receive your first talisman of the quest – Heir of the Prosthesis Carrier.
Go back to Gowry’s hut; Millicent should be there. If she is not there, reload the world. Speak with her in the hut and reload the world again. Millicent should now be gone, and Gowry will be back instead.
Find Millicent in the Altus Plateau
You will now find Millicent in the Altus Plateau, slightly north of the viewpoint at the Erdtree. The latter is located north of the Dectus Lift. Talk to Millicent, and she will ask you to find a prosthesis for her lost arm.
Millicent is now at the viewpoint of the ErdtreeLooking in this direction, you should find Millicent
Find the Golden Prosthesis in the Shadow Castle
This prosthesis is located in the Shadow Castle, at the northernmost point of the Altus Plateau. In the northwestern corner of the dangerous castle, a lone soldier from Malenia’s army awaits you. In the room behind him is a chest containing the arm prosthesis.
Here in the Shadow Castle, you will find the arm prosthesisIn the room behind this enemy is the sought-after chest
Hand over the Golden Prosthesis to Millicent
Return to Millicent at the viewpoint of the Erdtree and give her her prosthesis. After you are done talking with her, this step is complete.
Defeat the Apostle of the God-Scalpel and Meet Millicent
Go to the Windmill Hill, located northeast of the Lower Erdtree in the Altus Plateau. Defeat the boss there and reward yourself with the God-Scalpel, one of the best dual-wield weapons in our weapon tier list.
If you rest at the Site of Grace now, Millicent should appear nearby. If not, reload the world and try again. Talk to her until she has nothing new to say.
The Windmill Hill is the next location where you will find Millicent.
Important: If you only want the talisman “Millicent’s Prosthesis”, you can defeat Millicent now and grab the item. However, if you are after more rewards, you will need to follow the quest further.
Find Millicent at the Giant’s Summit
The next location of Millicent is at the Site of Grace at the ruins of the Original Snow Valley, on the Giant’s Summit. Talk to her there until there is nothing new to report.
Important: This step should ideally happen before you activate the Giant’s Forge after the Fire Giant. Some users report that Millicent cannot travel to the next location otherwise.
Millicent is now waiting for you near this Site of Grace.
Find Haligbaum and Speak to Millicent
Millicent is waiting for you in the late-game region Elphael, Root of the Haligbaum. To reach it, you need the 2 halves of the Haligbaum medallion. Gideon Ofnir at the Roundtable will help you locate these.
Here are the locations of the medallion halves:
Right half: You will find it in the village of the Albinaurics, south of Liurnia, at the hidden NPC Albus.
Left half: On the roof of Fort Sol, north of the Giant’s Summit.
When you are in this region, you will find Millicent at the Site of Grace “Praying Room.” Talk to her again until the conversation repeats.
In the Praying Room, Millicent is now waiting patiently for you.
Search the Sewage Canal in the Haligbaum
Deeper in Elphael, you will find the Site of Grace “Sewage Canal.” If you turn around from this place and climb back up the ladder, you can reach a small lake full of Scarlet Rot via a tree trunk. A mini-boss is hidden in it that you need to kill. After that, you must reload the world.
Here on the map is the small “swamp lake,” where the last steps of the quest take place.
Help Millicent or Challenge Her
Millicent is no longer at the Praying Room; instead, you will find 2 symbols at the lake, one red and one gold. With the gold symbol, you help Millicent in her battle against her 4 sisters, while with the red you fight against Millicent instead.
Both endings of the quest yield different rewards. If you want all the rewards, you will have to play the quest again in New Game+ and make the other choice. The following decisions give you these rewards:
Help Millicent: If you help Millicent, you must reload the world afterwards. You will find her at the lake and need to talk to her until she definitely has nothing left to say. You will be rewarded with 2 items: the Talisman Decaying Winged Sword Insignia and the Gold Needle.
The talisman increases your damage on quick attacks by up to 22% and is part of our strong blood build. You can use the Gold Needle after the fight against Malenia to obtain Miquella’s Needle. With this, you can reverse the ending “Lord of the Frenzied Flame.”
Defeat Millicent: If you fight Millicent, you will be rewarded with the Talisman “Millicent’s Prosthesis.” This gives you an extra 5 points in Dexterity and increases your damage on quick attacks by up to 14%.
After helping her, you will find Millicent here for the last time.
Complete the Quest and Talk to Gowry
Regardless of how you decided: You can return to Gowry in his hut and hear his thoughts on this outcome. Alternatively, you can now also kill him for a talisman that improves your summons by 7.5%.
These are all the steps you need to follow for Millicent’s quest. Would you have managed all this without a guide? How far did you get without a guide? And what do you think about the story that this quest tells? Feel free to let us know in the comments! By the way, we have summarized all the quest lines in the game for you in our guide: Elden Ring: List of all NPC quests, where to find them and how to complete them
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
