Design Notes

December 06, 2018

Gears of Doom & Why Treasure Potions Cannot Be Banked

Gears of Doom & Wheel of Doom

We’re getting a lot of reports on the Gears of Doom and the Wheel of Doom which are not bugs.  The most common two are “not getting gears” and “can’t spin the wheel”.

The most common one is the player banked the first gear and seems to have forgotten it.  Once you place one in your bank, the next one (or two) will go there as well.  Look in your bank.  I’m sorry folks, but there just isn’t time to send each of you an email saying “They’re in your bank”.  

This is also one of the two causes of “can’t spin the Wheel”.  The Gears simply will not work until you take them out of your bank.  So, look in your bank and then remove them to use your spin!

The other cause of being unable to spin the Wheel is you do have to be level 10 for the free spins.  Why?  Because we want to encourage players to play the game!  That is what games are made for, after all.

The next most common result when checking those reports is many people seem to have a misconception on when they will be awarded Gears.  Please look at the following chart.

The week for awarding Gears is personal to you.  It begins the day you pick up your first Gear, and will not reset again until 7 days after that.  You cannot collect more than 3 Gears in your “personal week”.  (See Player A)

If for some reason, you do not manage to log in and collect all 3 Gears in the 7 day period, you will collect the next one the next time you log in, and your restart day will be the day after you use them to spin the Wheel. (See Player B)

We are also investigating options to make this much easier from a player perspective as well!  Keep an eye here on the Design Notes for updates on that!

Why Treasure Potions Cannot Be Banked

Yorumi had to do some new magic and make Treasure Potions unable to be banked to prevent loss of them when players would bank them, and then get more, and try to force the stacks to merge.  While the TPs did not vanish every time you tried this, thanks to some backend magic, if you moved them enough times, eventually one stack would vanish.  

This ONLY happens when it is stacking items which are triggered by player actions and are forced into your inventory, and you have a stack in the bank as well.  So 3 items - Treasure Potions, Daily XP Boost! (1 hr) and Power Gems.  So please don't try to force any other stacks to merge!  They will do it on their own if you just let them.

We explored many ways to stop the Treasure Potions from vanishing, and none of the options which previously existed were fool-proof.  This is when Yorumi got his magic bag out and completely rewrote Treasure Potions so that they could not be banked.  At all.  

This is not a “quick and easy” fix by any means, which is why it was only applied to Treasure Potions, as they have taken on the role of a form of micro currency with the Doom Merge shop, and especially the Platinum Item of Donated Awesomeness.  

For all other items:  There are two types of reactions stacking items have when you already have a stack in your bank.   

For items that you have to pick up manually, it will not allow you to pick it up.   In that case, you may be able to retrieve your stack from your bank and then pick up the item.  

For items that are automatically added to your inventory, it will go into your inventory, and into your bank when you relog if you do not try to force it to stack with the others.  Trying to force it to stack with the others in this case could cause the item to vanish.

In both cases, it is always best to remove your stack from the bank before collecting more items.

We are still looking at better solutions, but we did need to do this to prevent any more loss.  So please, don't try to force any other stacks to merge!  They will do it on their own if you just let them.

July 12, 2014

New Carnival of Fortune Gear

Wheels of Doom and Destiny Leave August 23rd

With the Carnival of Fortune closing its gates on August 23rd, we've added a ton of new gear as Wheel drops this weekend ! The items are also available from the merge shop for you to get with all the Fortune Potions you've saved up!

Prismatic Dragon Morph is color customizable!

If you haven't spun the Wheel yet this month, make sure you /join doom and spin this weekend. Every player who spins the Wheel before Monday will receive 5 free Spin Tickets. Every Legend will receive 25 free Spin Tickets! 

New Gear Showcase

Now available as drops from the Wheels of Doom and Destiny and their merge shops: 6 new armors, 8 new helms, 5 new capes, and 3 new weapons!

• Prismatic Dragon Morph set
• Shadow Dragon Morph set
• Mountain Breaker set
• Chaotic Mountain Breaker set
• Obsidian Assassin armor and helm
• Legion Obsidian Assassin armor and helm
• Cagnazzo Plush mace
• Wings of Ciriatto cape

The Wheels of Doom and Destiny

Not sure what the Carnival of Fortune is? Here's an info breakdown.

• /Join Doom to go to the Wheel of Doom
• Spin the Wheel for a chance to get some cool new gear
• Every time you spin, you get 10000 gold, a Fortune Potion, an XP Boost and a chance for a bonus item
• Get more Spin Tickets for 200 ACs each, or buy a stack of 10 for 1500 ACs
• Save up your Fortune Potions and use them to buy other prizes from the Wheel of Doom merge shop

Want to know more? Here's a FAQ with more details:

Returning Items Arrive Monday

Back in April, we cycled out the 1% drop items to make room for new ones. When we did that, we said the gear leaving would return at some point in the future. With the Wheels and much of their gear going rare*, we need to do that before August 23rd. Those items will return Monday, and all the 1% items will receive a slightly increased drop rate.

* It is possible some of the gear made for and only available from the Wheels will be redistributed to other shops or functionality. The 1% drops will not be included in that list. 

Battleon PVP Release Update

Yorumi is back to work on the "Room Full" issue from last night's release that is still affecting some of you. We will get that taken care of as soon as possible! Coming this week, we will add PVP Combat Trophy drops to /battleonpvp, as well.

July 07, 2014

Carnival of Fortune Leaving

Wheels of Doom and Destiny Leave August 23rd!

After a year of taking chances, daring fate, and risking DOOM... the Carnival of Fortune is closing its gates on August 23rd! This is your last chance to use your Fortune Tickets to get drops from the Wheels of Doom and Destiny. The Doom and Destiny merge shops will remain in-game and available for those who still have Fortune Potions to spend in them. New gear will be available from the Wheels and merge shops starting this Friday.

Some of Friday's new gear!

Why are we closing them now, you ask? Good question. The Wheels were always controversial, but many of you guys enjoyed taking a chance to get exclusive items, and hunting for that elusive Ultimate Item of Donated Awesomeness. We thought that was a pretty cool idea, too!

More new wheel gear arriving Friday!

But due to a number of issues, including exploit abuse and some core communcation issues between Flash and the web browser, we want to shift our focus away from the Wheels to a better system. One that will still give extra bonuses to Legends, but will also give free players a more reliable means of getting in-game rewards...

New Daily Login System

One of the nicest Legend Perks in the Wheels of Doom and Destiny are the free Daily Wheel spins. We want to keep giving our upgraded players an advantage in getting the newest, coolest gear... so we are transferring the "Legend bonus" to our plans for the new Daily Login System. 

If you saw our test of that a few months back, you'll know that all you need to do is log in each day to get more and bigger prizes! When we bring back the system, it will have some changes, including a combination of the Wheel and Treasure Chest system (according to the current plan).

• Every 7 days everyone will get a free Treasure Chest Key to get free swag 
• Legends will get more than one key 
• Legends will also have a chance to win more free ACs every week (with the amount increasing each consecutive week you log in without missing a day) 

We are still plotting out the changes and additions we want to make to the daily login system, but we will make sure it's a step up for Legends, while still making sure all our other players get daily rewards, too!

Free Spin Tickets Coming Monday!

This Monda, if you have spun the Wheel of Doom or Destiny this month, you'll receive 5 free spins. If you are a Legend you'll received 25 spins! (The free daily and monthly spins count for this.)

December 23, 2013

Holiday of Doom and Destiny

Find all-new gear in the Wheels of Doom and Destiny!

No matter whether you ally with Good or Evil, everyone loves awesome gear! For a limited time, the Holiday Paragon Plate and Helm will be available from the Doom and Destiny merge shops when you /join fortuneAND will drop from both of the Wheels.

Holiday Paragon Set!

Dage doesn't DECK the halls during Frostval... he WRECKS them! And THIS is the gear he uses to do it! 

Holiday Paragon Plate and Helm

Three versions of Holiday Paragon set are available:

• Merge Legion Tokens to create the Legion Holiday Paragon set
• Spin the Wheel of Doom or Destiny to get the Fortunate Holiday Paragon set
• Merge Fortune Potions from the Wheels to get the Doom Holiday Paragon set
• These sets will only be available until the Frostval event leaves in mid-January

The One Armor to Destroy Them All: SmogSlayer!

The great beast has awakened... the dragon awaits! But one does not simply SLAY Smog... one must defeat him honorably in combat. Will YOU don the SmogSlayer gear and take down ALL the dragons?

SmogSlayer armor, helm, and blade

Two versions of the SmogSlayer set are available:

• Spin the Wheel of Doom or Destiny to get the SmogSlayer set
• Merge Fortune Potions from the Wheels to get the Prismatic SmogSlayer set
• These sets will only be available until the Frostval event leaves in mid-January

November 21, 2013

Harvest Fest is Back

Celebrate the Harvest with a Bounty of Rewards!

In a Hunger Game, only the most ravenous heroes survive... because they have a taste for VICTORY! Harvest Fest is BACK, and that means it's time for you to beat down the Turdraken and mash the monsters attacking the Cornycopia to earn a feast full of rewards! Then stuff your face AND your inventory with sweet gear to prepare for your battle against the Turdrakolich next Wednesday! 

Are you hungry for victory?!

Sample the tastiest battles AQW has to offer when you /join Feast, and don't miss adventures in:

• Harvest - Help Oishii, the Craziest Chef around!
• Turdraken - Take on the Turdraken for a deadly AND delicious battle!
• Float - Help Scott the Pilgrim save the Harvest Parade!
• FoulFarm - Something's foul in the Farmlands! 

The Sweetest Rewards Come with the Harvest!

Once you're done gathering gear from the Harvest Fest, /join carnival to spin the Wheels of Doom and Destiny for our newest reward: the GIANT Hungry Werewolf! This 0 AC pet is only available until December 2nd!

Hungry like a (were)wolf!

Tomorrow: Get TWO Free Fortune Tickets!

We are thankful for all the heroes who play AQWorlds! That's why tomorrow we are giving ALL players who have logged in within the last 30 days AND are level 10 or higher TWO free tickets to spin the Wheels of Doom or Destiny! 

Thank you for playing AQWorlds!

November 04, 2013

Return to the Mirror Realm

Survive the Chaos of the RedDeath Swamp!

When the world is out of balance, Chaos gains the upper hand! This Friday, return to the Mirror Realm for the 3rd installment of the Xing and Xang Chaos Saga. Mirror Drakath needs your help to restore harmony to his realm and yours, and there's only element out of alignment: Evil Xing and Good Xang, the Chaos Twins!

Lore needs balance between Good with Evil!

Battle through the RedDeath Swamp, the mirror version of Greenguard Forest, to gather the resources necessary to solve the problem of the swapped Chaos Twins once and for all... but be careful! Outside the Mirror Realm, Evil Xing and Evil Xang are racing to build their Chaos Beast, and any failure will reflect VERY badly on them!

New Gear in the Treasure Map Shop!

TreasureHunters, assemble in-game this Friday! We've got a treasure map to a shop full of incredible loot hidden somewhere inside AQWorlds, and if you can find it, you get ALL of the gear (and any gear we add in the future) for free! 

Read more details on how the Treasure Map works here!

Talk to Cleric Joy in Battleon or Valencia in BattleonTown to buy the Treasure Map for a one-time cost of 2000 AventureCoins, then use the clue it gives in the item description to find a shop hidden in-game full of 0 AC gear only YOU can access! At this point, we have over 6500 ACs worth of gear in the Treasure Map shop, and all of it is 0ACs for free storage! 

NEW: Shadowpiercer and Shadowslasher armors!

Find the Shadowpiercer Rogue and Shadowslasher Warrior armor and helm from Tyronius... IF you can find the location of the Treasure Map's shop!

You also get the following gear when you find the shop:

• Royal Dragoon Armor 
• Dragoon's Armet Helm 
• Dragoon's Sheathed Blades Cape 
• Nameless Warrior Armor
• Anonymous Drone Helm
• Terror of the Undead Sword
• Slasher of the Undead Mace
• Dragonfire Katana
• Solar Protector Wings
• Solar Protector Beak
• Solar Protector Armor
• Dual Flaming Katanas
• BrightBlade Warrior Armor
• Brightblade Shoulder Cloth Cape
• Brightblade Helm
• Bright Blade
• Dual Bright Blades
• Blood Terror ArmorBlood Terror Helm

Shops Leaving and Items Arriving!

• This month's Ultimate Item of Donated Awesomeness prizes from the Wheel of Doom have started appearing in inventories!
• Arklen's Featured Artist shop leaves tomorrow afternoon!
• Rare-teagged Moglins from the Meme shop in your game menu leave Friday, November 8th!
• TWO new weapons will begin dropping from the Wheels of Doom and Destiny this Friday!
• The Cookie Helm Shop leaves Friday, November 8th!
• The Royal Wedding Rares shop leaves Friday, November 8th!

Currently the only mount armor available to purchase in AQW!

• Blade of Doomination from the Wheels of Doom and Destiny leaves Friday, November 8th!
• Sell your Investment Trinket AFTER midnight server time on Friday, November 8th.
• Nulgath Dragonfiend Rider shop leaves Monday, November 11th.
• 5th Birthday Rares shop, quests to farm for Dragon Shinobi, and Ultra BrutalCorn battle leave Monday, November 18th
• Dage's Dragon Katanas leave the Carnival of Fortune merge shops in /wheel on Friday, November 15th!

September 27, 2013

Spin the Wheels for Gear

New Gear in the Wheel of Doom and Destiny for a Limited Time!

/join wheel to spin the Wheel of Doom or the Wheel of Destiny and get all-new items! The Wheel of Doom has a very high chance to drop the Blade of Doomination, available until the end of October! Use your Fortune Potions in the Doom Merge Shop to create the Dual Blades of Doomination!

The Wheel of Destiny drops the Black Leopard SkinWalker and the White Leopard SkinWalker armors, both at very high drop rates! Use your Fortune Potions in the Destiny Merge Shop to get helms, tails, and weapons that go with the armors!

MORE New Gear in Shops!

Longer Design Notes about our latest Chaos storyline, the Royal Wedding, are coming in just a little bit! Until then, check out the other new gear we've released this week!

• NEW items in our Suggestion Shop! Ideas from players like you are turned into in-game items ALL our heroes can use!

• NEW seasonal shop! Talk to Twilly in Battleon and purchase a Fall Seasonal Token to unlock ALL the Forest Destroyer gear in the Fall Seasonal Shop!

September 18, 2013

Talk Like a Pirate Day Gear

Quibble's Pirate Shop is Almost Here!

Tomorrow night, log in for the 2013 Talk Like a Pirate Day Quibble shop! We've got a LOT in store, so let's get right down to the news you're waiting for: WHAT will the shop include?!

Four Naval Commanders Sets!

Some of the most popular gear in AQW, the Naval Commander armors will let you look your best while beating the worst bosses we can throw at you... perfect for scoring the greatest loot and the best booty in-game!

Galactic Naval Commander

• Galactic Naval Commander Armor
• Galactic Eyepatch Helm
• Galactic Elegant Eyepatch Helm
• Galactic Tricorn
• Galactic Elegant Locks
• Galactic Bandana
• Galactic Starswept Locks
• Pirates Starry Parrot Pet
• Galactic Parrot Cape
• Galactic Cutlass
• Dual Galactic Cutlasses

Chronolord Naval Commander

• Chronolord Naval Commander
• Chronolord Tricorn Helm
• Chronolord Tricorn Locks
• Chrono Goggles and Locks
• Chrono Parrot Pet
• Chrono Parrot Cape

Legion Naval Commander

• Legion Naval Commander 
• Legion Naval Anchor Cape
• Legion Naval Ship Wheel Cape
• Legion Naval Skull
• Legion Naval Tricorn
• Cthulu's Legion Pet

Undead Legion Naval Commander

The Undead Legion Talk Like a Pirate Day gear will ONLY be available to members of the Undead Legion and will cost Legion Tokens.

• Undead Legion Naval Commander
• Undead Legion Skull
• Undead Legion Tricorn
• Undead Legion Naval Ship Wheel Cape
• Undead Legion Cthulu Commander Helm

Gothic Pirate Captain Set!

Everyone's favorite Gothic Pirate Captain, Voltaire, guest starred in our Friday the 13th: Curse of the Vampirates event last week! In honor of our latest, spookiest, most piratical Friday the 13th yet, we've themed this year's Pirate Captain on Voltaire's NPC!

• Gothic Pirate Captain Armor
• Gothic Pirate's Elegant Locks
• Gothic Pirate's Hat

Wheel of Destiny Arrives Friday!

Fate, fortune, luck, and doom all play a part in every battle in AQWorlds... but sometimes, a hero wants to look on the bright side of a coin toss. That's why Shiny, the Moglin of Desires, has built his own version of the Wheel of Doom! 

Choose which Wheel to spin - Doom OR Destiny - because both your single and stacks of tickets will work for both! Legends get 1 free spin on the Wheel each day, but will need to choose whether to use it on the Wheel of Doom OR the Wheel of Destiny! 

Available in both Wheel merge shop until September 31st!

Each Wheel has the same prizes, merge shop, and drop rates. But if you prefer to hope in bright surroundings rather than dream in a room filled with doom, then /join Destiny this Friday! If you /join doom NOW, you'll find both the "Skull and Bones Blad" and the "Ancient Skull and Bones Blade" in the merge shop until September 30th!

Chika's Sakura Birthday Shop!

If you follow Artix, Cysero, or my Twitter account, you'll see us talking to our friend Tom, who lives in Japan and often sends us mounds of epic goodies! Today, he and his wife, Chika, were at the Lab visiting from overseas! 

We had a special surprise for Chika: not only did we have a birthday shop full of sweet Sakura-themed gear, but we let her roll the release live! (After warning her NOT to push the BIG RED BUTTON that shuts all the servers down without warning)

Chika's Sakura Shop contains:

• Sakura Kimono
• Sakura Fan Staff
• Jeweled Sakura Wand
• Dancing Sakura Shortsword
• Dancing Sakura Daggers
• Brutal Beauty Mace
• Sakura Scythe

Everyone at AE wishes Chika a happy birthday and hopes you'll share in the celebration by checking out her birthday shop! It will be in-game until September 30th!

Friday: You'll be Kraken Like a Boss!

Legends can battle their way to the watery home of the Chaos Kraken in Bonebreak Deep to retrieve the incredibly valuable treasure stolen from Gustav duGrog! Fair warning: this challenge fight is one you'll want to dive into with an entire party!

All players can take on monsters in the Skullpunch map to get resources to create 1 of over 40 Naval-themed tophats! These top hats are available to ALL players, though Legend versions will have an extra bonus to undead monsters!

September 07, 2013

The Wheel of Doom Speaks

Find Out When the Wheel Gives Rewards!

Each time you spin the Wheel of Doom and get a bonus item, you'll get a new message in your chat window telling you exactly what you got! You will not see a message if you get the regular Wheel drops (the 100% 1hr XP Boost and Doom Draught rewards).

And if anyone else on your server has received one of our rare 1% Wheel of Doom drops, you'll also see a message about that! (You will NOT see messages about other hero's rewards unless it is a 1% Treasure drop.)

We will be keeping an eye on the servers this weekend to see how often those messages appear. Can you help us keep count of how many times you saw Heroes get Treasure items from the Wheel?

Doom for Bugs!

Over the course of the past week, Yorumi has been working on fixing display bugs in the Wheel of Doom. You should no longer see pop-ups for Wheel drops you did not really get!

Please let us know if this visual glitch (caused by lag) is still happening! If you have any doubts about what you DID get from the Wheel, just check the message the Wheel says in your chat window. That will always tell you the correct reward you got!

September 07, 2013

Obrigado for Playing

Feliz dia da Independência, Brasil!

Thanks for your battling alongside us as we fight Chaos in AQWorlds, and congratulations on the anniversary of your Brasilian Independence Day! To make sure ALL our players can share the holiday excitement, we've made the Brasilian Independence Day items available to everyone!

Obrigado Brasil!

There are some awesome Brasil-themed items as well as all of the items from last year!

This year the shop has:

• Chaos Warrior Macaw +3 pet (does more damage to Chaos monsters!)*
• Arara Caos Capa pet 
• Dragao de Independencia 2013 armor
• Azul Macaw 2013 pet
• Ouro Macaw 2013 pet
• Verde Macaw 2013 pet
• Amarelo Macaw 2013 pet
• Jubilo Macaw 2013 pet
• Soldados Brasileiros 2013 armor
• Punhais Brasileiros 2013 dagger
• Espada Brasileira 2013 blade
• Capacete Brasileiro 2013 helm
• Defesa Brasileira 2013 helm
• Runas de Ataque 2013 dagger
• Runas de Protecao 2013 cape

* Bold items will go rare.

Our FIRST Donation Hero: Moato!

To continue the thanks-giving theme, we'd just like to say OBRIGADO, MOATO!** Because of you, one of our Ultimate Item of Donated Awesomeness winners from the Wheel of Doom has a shiny-but-slightly-used Dark Caster armor!

Who IS this generous Donation Hero?

Her name is Moato, and she is AWESOME! To let another player experience the fun of battling through Lore as a Dark Caster, she donated her armor to the Wheel of Doom!

 Moato: you are OUR hero!

When her donation email was randomly selected from those who had donated the Dark Caster armor, we contacted her directly to confirm she still wanted to donate the gear. After she replied back, we removed it directly from HER inventory and gave it to another player. That is true generosity!

** Let's all sing now, "obrigado moato, mr. roboto"

We asked Moato over email how she found out about AQWorlds:

A friend of our played a game call Adventure Quest(first time hearing it on fact), and I went to the website and made an account and loved it. Then I saw MechQuest, DragonFable, and soon made accounts of those, and soon upgraded with them. But anyway, I saw WarpForce on the side and tried that out, and also saw this game. Again made an account in 2009 and haven't really stopped playing it(except when I'm playing EpicDuel, or other games). And THEN I saw the Design Notes about the wheel and donating stuff.

What is a Donation Hero?

We've got a LOT of people who want to donate rares to the Wheel of Doom. You guys are CRAZY-generous! To do that, please send an email to [email protected] with your account name and the list of item/s you'd like to donate.

One Hero's Treasure can be another Hero's Treasure... but only in the Wheel of Doom!

We will only contact prospective donators before removing items, so be sure to send the email from an address you check regularly. 

Talk Like a Pirate Day/Friday the 13th Crossover!

This Friday, Voltaire returns with a ship full of booty and a hunger for MORE LOOT in our Friday the 13th/Talk Like a Pirate Day crossover event! Flashback to the 1st Voltaire event from 2009 as we head back onto a pirate ship to explore parts unknown! 

Shiver me timbers... it's Friday the 13th soon!

With creepy undead sailors, a ship that will take you from sunny shores to the depths of the ocean (or despair), and an undead sea-beast that just wants a HUG (that's all, we promise!), you'll want to make sure you've brushed up on your pirate lingo and have your biggest undead-slaying blade on hand!

Quibble's Swordhaven Shop leaves Monday!

Quibble Coinbiter's Swordhaven shop has been around for a while, and if Quib's going to have enough time to gather his Talk Like a Pirate Day gear from his time-travel fairy connection, he's going to need to leave soon! 

This Monday night, September 9th, he'll leave for parts and times unknown, but he WILL be back on Thursday, September 19th, with a shop full of piratey gear to make you /cheer!

September 03, 2013

Monday in Disguise!

It’s Tuesday. Feels like Monday. Excited about Friday!

OH YAY! Thank goodness I found you here. I’ve got a bunch of stuff I want to share with you because this week—and the next few weeks actually—are going to FLY BY sooo fast because…well… just take a look at what’s going on this week aaaaaand I’ll fill you in with more details soon…ish.  

Wheel of Doom

Ladies and Gentleman! Berserkers and Guardians! Step right up and take a spin on the Wheel of Doom. Don’t be shy—every spin wins a prize!

When you /join doom, enter Swaggy’s friendly-looking tent and give the Wheel of Doom a spin. Want to find out more?  Click this link here and Alina will explain everything to you. For wheel =D 

Siege the Day

Despite your best efforts, Swordhaven continues to be consumed by Chaos! We cannot let Chaos win, Hero!

Looks like we need to take a different approach to defeating Chaos… so how about a minigame?! This Friday evening, defend the kingdom of Swordhaven in a ‘Castle-Defense’ style minigame. I just hope you can save the city from the Chaotic Siege!

Happy Birthday Aranx!

Everyone’s favorite Archangel Aranx is ascending into another year older! In order to celebrate, Aranx wishes to share with YOU his glorious Fallen Amadis Armor Set.

On Friday evening, you can become one of Aranx’s Fallen Amadis—who fights for Good or Evil, your choice!—and test your angelic aptitude against the forces of Chaos.

A Pirate’s Sneak Peak

Talk Like a Pirate Day only be a few short weeks away, but Solrac wants t’give all ye landlubbers ‘nd scallywags a sneak-peek at…

Galactic Naval Commander Armor Set!

Avast! This Naval Commander be out of this world, matey. Ye might be able to plunder s’more pirate spoilers on Solrac’s Twitter… if me doesn’t steal them for the Design Notes first!

Yarrharrharr!

xoxo (skulls and crossbones?) Beleen

August 23, 2013

Tonight: Spin for Doom

Swaggy, Moglin of Delight, and the Wheel of Doom!

Login tonight and /join Doom to talk to Swaggy, the Moglin of Delights! Spin his Wheel of Doom to get gold, potions, and a chance for exclusive gear... or a small chance to get the Ultimate Item of Donated Awesomeness! 

The MechaJouster Armor is an exclusive Doom drop!

Pull his level to spin the Wheel of Doom, or turn the Doom Tickets in to quests right inside your game menu!

Wheel of Doom: Vital Information

Visit Swaggy in the /Doom map or look in your Game Menu to buy Doom tickets, then spin the Wheel to get prizes!

How to spin the Wheel of Doom:

• Doom Ticket: 200 AdventureCoins
• Stack of 10 Doom Tickets: 1,500 AdventureCoins (25% discount)
• Legends get 1 FREE spin every day their upgrade is active!*
• ALL players get 1 FREE spin every month!
• Doom Tickets CANNOT be sold back. This prevents losing them accidentally and potential exploits.

* Daily spins do not roll over. You must log in each day to use your free spin for the day.

Each time you spin, you will receive:

• 10,000 gold
• Doom Strength Draught
• 1 hour XP Boost 

Wheel of Doom: Bonus Prize Drops

Every time you spin Swaggy's Wheel of Doom, you get gold, a potion, and an XP Boost. But you also have a chance to get one of the following bonus prizes! 

• You will only be able to get each equippable item one time, no repeats!
• Treasure Gear will be available in the Wheel of Doom for a few months, then will be rotated in and out to make room for other items. 
• More items WILL be permanently added to the Wheel over time... so tell us what non-rare items you'd like to see in it!
• Occasionally, new items exclusively created for the Wheel will be added for a limited time. (Drop rate of 20% or more.)

Ultimate Gear - .1% chance to drop

Swaggy says: "This... is... /DOOM!"

Generous heroes can donate their Rare items** to a pool of gear kept in Swaggy's Hidden Chest of Wonders. If you receive the Ultimate Item of Donated Awesomeness drop from the Wheel of Doom, you'll find an email address to contact us. 

Once a month, we'll take all of the Ultimate Item winners and let them choose one of the rare items from the Chest of Wonders! The SUATMR donation prizes Cysero put together are the beginning of the list, but many heroes want to add items to it! Stay tuned for an updated list soon.

Want to donate one of your rare items? Email your username and the list of items you'd like to donate to: [email protected]! Once a month, we'll count how many players got the Ultimate Item of Donated Awesomeness drop... and let them pick what they want from the list of donated items!

• Ultimate Item of Donated Awesomeness
• 1 million gold***

** This is the ONLY way Rare items will EVER return to the game.
*** The gold cap is ALSO being raised when the release goes live! 

Treasure Gear - 1% chance to drop

Swaggy says: "There's always room for DOOM!"

This gear will be almost impossible to get... unless you're very lucky! This gear will be available for a few months at a time, then will be rotated out to make room for other items. Each batch of items will return at a later date... but when that will be, only Swaggy knows!

Y'arrrr! Pirates love doom-filled loot!

• 500,000 gold
• Doom Blade of Awe
• Doom Star Slasher
• Doom Soul Ripper
• Doom Iced Foule-Bordeau
• Doom Iced Jester
• Doom Souleater Warrior
• Doom ExoKatana Binsoku
• Doom Celestial Sandknight Armor
• Doom Celestial Sandknight Helm
• Doom Celestial Sandsword
• Doom Celestial Sandwings
• Pirate Captain's Elegant Hat
• Doom Toga
• Doom Red Star Sword
• Doom Pirate Captain
• Doom Pirate Captain's Hat
• Doom Pirate Captain's Elegant Hat
• Doom Shiden Bardiche
• Doom Rotting Naval Commander
• Doom Rotting Captain's Hat
• Doom Rotting Elegant Captain's Hat
• Doom Chaos Symbiote
• Doom Naval Commander
• Doom Vampire Transformation
• Doom Lycan Transformation
• Doom Prismatic Composer

Epic Item Drops - Low chance to drop

Swaggy says: "May the odds AND the evens be ever in your favor!"

Some of these awesome items CAN be found elsewhere in-game, but are CRAZY-HARD to get as monster drops. Now your chances of getting them are doubled (or tripled!)! Other items, like the MechaJouster, are going to be low drop rates, but will be VERY worth it if you can get your hands on them!

The Phoenix Blade rises from ashes of DOOM!

• 250,000 gold
• MechaJouster Armor****
• Phoenix Blade
• Runes Found!

**** Class to come soon in the Wheel of Doom! If you have the MechaJouster armor, you can quest to get the Class for free!

Tier 1 - Better chance to drop

Swaggy says: "Cheaters never prosper, and a winner never quits!"

Gear:

• Zealith Doom Reaver
• Zealith Doom Reavers
• Blood Cloak
• Black Rook Great Helm
• Black Rook Helm
• Trislayer Blade of Doom +5
• Desoloth's Bane
• Titan's Doom Crusher
• Doom Phoenix Blade +5
• Doom Wyrm Wings +5
• MechaJouster Helm

Doom has WAY too many sharp edges!

Potions:

• Potent Life Potion
• Potent Vigor Potion
• Potent Heart Potion
• Potent Soul Potion
• Potent Resolve Potion
• Potent Essence Potion
• Potent Malice Potion
• Potent Barrier Potion
• Potent Shield Potion
• Potent Protection Potion
• Potent Guard Potion
• Potent Destruction Potion

Gold:

• 100,000 gold

Tier 2 - Good chance to drop

Swaggy says: "Good luck, Hero!"

Gear:

• Twilly Bank Pet
• Zorbak Bank Pet
• Courage Moglin
• Spider Legs
• Shadowscythe Mecha Suit
• Horned Trislayer Helm
• Trislayer Armor
• Doom Tibicenas Face
• Doom Tibicenas
• Doom Wolfwing Mask
• Doom Wolfwing Wings
• Doom Wolfwing Armor
• Escherion's Doom Helm
• Escherion's Doom Robe
• Phoenix Plate
• Doom Wings of the Abyss
• Tentacles of the Doom Overlord

Swaggy knows you'll make bank!

Boosts:

• 1 hour Rep Boost
• 1 hour Gold Boost
• 1 hour Class Points Boost

Potions:

• Life Potion
• Vigor Potion
• Heart Potion
• Soul Potion
• Resolve Potion
• Essence Potion
• Malice Potion
• Honor Potion
• Barrier Potion
• Shield Potion
• Guard Potion

Gold:

• 50,000 gold

Tier 3- Excellent chance to drop

Swaggy says: "This is gonna be EASY!"

Gear:

• Realm Guardian Helm
• Realm Guardian Armor
• Karma Army
• Ninja Warrior Armor
• Doom Rocket Pack
• Doom Wings of Ishtar

Who said Doom couldn't glitter?

Potions:

• Health Potion
• Mana Potion
• Potion of Speed
• Potion of Evasion
• Potion of Inscrutable Mutation
• Undead Potion of Hate
• Basic Barrier Potion
• Unstable Barrier Potion
• Unstable Shield Potion
• Unstable Protection Potion
• Unstable Guard Potion

Gold:

• 25,000 gold

August 21, 2013

Donate Your Unused Items

Ultimate Item of Donated Awesomeness!

There is a .1% chance to get the Ultimate Item of Donated Awesomeness! If THAT drops from the Wheel of Doom for you, follow the instructions in the item description on how to contact us. If you receive the Ultimate Item of Donated Awesomenessdrop from the Wheel of Doom, you'll find an email address to contact us. 

Generous heroes can donate their Rare items to a pool of gear kept in Swaggy's Hidden Chest of Wonders. This is the ONLY way rare items will EVER return to the game. 1 donated item 1 1 Ultimate Item winner.

Once a month, we'll take all of the Ultimate Item winners and let them choose one of the rare items from the Chest of Wonders! The SUATMR donation prizes Cysero put together are the beginning of the list, but many heroes want to add items to it! Stay tuned for an updated list soon.

Want to donate one of your rare items? Email your username and the list of items you'd like to donate to: [email protected]! 

Once we hear from you and verify that you have the item, we'll select a donated item from the pool of gear donated by your fellow heroes.

You asked for changes, and we're making them!

We love all our players, and listen to your feedback every day in-game, on Twitter, Facebook, and the forum... then change our plans based on what YOU say!

After last night's post about the new Wheel of Doom, we got a lot of comments... and a LOT of questions! Read on for the answers.

We are NOT bringing back Rare items!

Each item released in AQWorlds has a rarity tag. Different tags have different meanings. See the chart below to learn the different between a "rare" item, an "unknown" item, and more.

ONLY past Quibble items  with an "Unknown" rarity are returning. Items marked "RARE" are perma-rare and no more of them will ever be added to the game. 

(We didn't plan for ANY of Quibble's items to go rare... EVER... but many of you love your rare items, so we will ONLY return "Unknown/Unassigned" Quibble items to the Wheel of Doom.)

Example of a Rare Item that will not return

You can find out what kind of rarity an item has by clicking on it in your inventory, then looking at the item's details.

This is a "Rare" item will NEVER become available again.

Raising the Gold Cap!

Because you'll be able to get gold from the Wheel of Doom, we're going to increase the gold cap. We're also investigating how to make gold received from the Wheel of Doom quest ignore the gold cap so you can keep all the gold you get no matter what!

Gold rewards from the Wheel of Doom have been adjusted. The new reward amounts are listed in the Wheel of Doom Design Notes post!

Cycling Quibble's "Unknown" rarity items in and out!

Every few months, the "Unknown rarity" items will change out to keep their quantity in-game low. Check the Wheel regularly to see which items are currently on the reward list!

All items in Quibble's current shop are rare!

Yup! If you purchased an item from Quibble's current shop, it will automatically turn rare by the end of the day. Quibble and his shop are still here, though! Next Friday, he'll get the DragonKhan Rider, the Legion Raptor Dragonrider, and MAYBE the Archfiend Dragon Rider armors!

Free Spins for the Wheel of Doom!

Everyone loves to get prizes... and that's why we're giving Legends a free spin EVERY DAY that their upgrade is active! ALL players will get a free spin once a month!

August 20, 2013

Spin the Wheel of Doom

Test your luck to get DOOM-filled rewards!

Deep in the forests near Doomwood, there sits a VERY ominous Wheel and an undead moglin in a top hat. This Friday, you'll find Swaggy, Moglin of Delight, and his Wheel of Doom standing in the shadows when you /join doom!

How do I spin?

Talk to Swaggy to buy a Doom Ticket for 200 AdventureCoins or a Stack of 10 Doom Tickets for 1500 AdventureCoins to spin the wheel. If you're a Legend, you can access the Legendary Wheel of Doom quest, which gives you one FREE spin every day your account upgrade is active! You can earn free AdventureCoins by watching ads from Ballyhoo or completing AExtras offers, too.

Wheel of Doom prize tiers

EVERY time you spin, you get at least THREE prizes - 20,000 gold, a 1 hour XP Boost, and a Doom Strength Potion - plus a chance for VERY special EXTRA prizes!

100% chance to get:

• 10,000 gold
• 1 hour XP Boost
• Doom Strength Potion

10-90% chance to get:

• Armors
• Helms
• Weapons
• Accessories
• Pets
• Gear available for limited time

1% chance to get:

• Class (give us suggestions of what classes you'd like the wheel to have!)
• Past Quibble items ("Unknown" rarity only. Items marked "RARE" are perma rare and no more of them can ever be added to the game.)

.1% chance to get:

• Ultimate Donation Item of EPICNESS!

From time to time, new gear made JUST for Swaggy will be added to the Wheel of DOOM that you can ONLY get when you spin. Gear like that will have a 20-50% chance to drop.

Wait!!! Quibble gear is returning?!!?

Yes... but only SOME of Quibble's gear will be added to the Wheel of Doom, and not in the exact same way:

• No Quibble items tagged as Rare will EVER be added to the Wheel of Doom unless donated by another player. 
• Any item from a Quibble shop will have "Doom" added onto its name. We know our rare-hunters value their exclusive gear, and this will let you prove that YOU got the gear from the original shop!
• There is only a 1% chance to get each Quibble item from spinning the Wheel of Doom.

Little-known fact: when we first introduced Quibble Coinbiter's items a few years ago, they were all supposed to return at a later date, in future zones. But so many of you loved your rares that you BEGGED Artix to keep them from returning. So we didn't add any of those items into the zones Quibble preceded.

We have always said that SOME of Quibble's gear could return in the future... so a select list of the gear with "unknown" or "unassigned" rarity tags will be added to the Wheel of Doom.

Quibble's Gear Available from the Wheel of Doom:

• Doom Chaos Symbiote Armor
• Doom Naval Commander set
• Doom Prismatic Composer Armor
• Doom Celestial Sandknight
• Doom Rotting Naval Commander set
• Doom Shiden Bardiche
• Doom Pirate Captain set
• Doom Red Star Sword
• Doom Toga
• Doom Pirate Captain's Elegant Hat
• Doom Open Celestia Sandwings
• Doom Celestial Sandsword
• Doom ExoKatana Binsoku
• Doom Souleater Warrior
• Doom Iced Jester
• Doom Iced Foule-Bordeau Helm
• Doom Soul Ripper
• Doom Star Slasher
• Doom Lycan Transformation
• Doom Vampire Transformation
• Doom Celestial Sandknight Helm

Donating rare items to the Wheel of Doom

In the near future, we'll make it so that YOU can donate some of your RARE gear (like Alpha Pirate) to the Wheel of Doom!* When we began the Shut Up and Take My Rares contest, we had an INCREDIBLE amount of people offering to donate their rare gear.

So once we add this feature, instead of giving people prizes from Cysero's inventory, once a month we'll take a rare item one of your fellow heroes gives us, remove it from THEIR inventory, and add it to the Wheel of Doom. When that happens, we'll announce who the generous donor is and write a short history of their time in AQWorlds in our Design Notes... then add their name to a plaque in the Hall of Heroes!

Of course, this does mean the end of the SHUT UP AND TAKE MY RARES monthly contest but don't worry, all the gear will be in the Wheel of Doom meaning that you don't have to wait a month to play and there will be a LOT more than one winner per month! 

Let us know what you think!

We always want to make as many of you as happy as we can, so let us know what you think about the Wheel of Doom!** Tell me on Twitter, the forum, and Facebook! 

* Heromart items cannot be donated, as people can just re-buy their gear from the shop.
** Or if we accidentally included any rare gear in the list.

Changes incoming!

Look for a detailed post later today for new information and more explanations about the Wheel of Doom system. Remember:

• NOTHING tagged as rare will ever be re-created in the game.
• We'll define what the different item rarities mean ("rare" vs "unassigned")
• Tell you how to find rarities for your items
• Gold cap being increased
• Cycling Doom Quibble gear in and out of the Wheel of Doom's rewards

August 19, 2013

Monday Syllabus

Back to Schooling Monsters!

Happy Monday! Some of our fellow heroes have returned to School today (buff those INTELLECT and WISDOM stats, smarty pants!)… but AdventureQuest Worlds has a bunch of monsters that need schooling, too! We have lots to cover in today’s Design Notes… so let’s begin =D

GameStop and Go!

Do you live in the United States and have a GameStop nearby? Do you want to unlock epic features like all the other Legends in AQWorlds? AND you want an exclusive item set to show off your Legendary status and make the noobs jealous? GREAT—and here’s how!

Due to an overwhelming demand, we have extended the exclusive GameStop offer until Sunday, August 25. So when you’re out shopping for back-to-school items, swing by a GameStop and:

• Purchase an Artix Entertainment Game Card
• Return back home with your glorious plastic artifact
• Become a Legend by following these instructions
• Unlock the Combo Breaker Armor Set
• Become the (AQ)World’s greatest Combo Breaker
• Show off your C-c-c-combo Breaking Screen Shots on my Twitter and the AQWorlds Facebook Page!

Get up and go to the GameStop nearest you and become the greatest hero—or villain!—you were destined to become!

Wheel of Doom Coming Soon

Whispers amongst Yulgar’s Inn hint at something called the Wheel of Doom… which is said to award heroes and villains with super-hard-to-obtain items… including some that are no longer available. O____O

Wheely important information about the Wheel of Doom will roll out later today. Stay tuned for more info AND the release date!

Friday’s Release

Swordhaven is a safe haven to heroes of all levels… but has recently acquired Chaos! This Friday evening, it’s up to YOU and your friends to defend Swordhaven from the Chaorruption seeping in.

Gear up in your favorite Quibble Armor Set, sharpen your Empowered Magus Greatsword, and prepare for the impending Chaos arriving Friday night. And… if my ears haven’t been Chaorrupted… I heard news of Dragon Khan, Legion Raptor, and MAYBE Archfiend DragonRider armors coming to Quibble next week. *crosses fingers*

No Featured Artist Shop on Tuesday

Say WHAAAT? No Featured Artist Shop tomorrow? Yup. It’s true. 

All good things must come to an end… but not forever, I assure you! With all of our new exciting developments in the works—Battle Gems, Guilds, Wheel of Doom, DragonCon, and the next Lord of Chaos—you favorite AQW artists are hard at work creating new items for your new adventures.

Tuesday’s Featured Artist Shops will resume in late September, which is only a few weeks away! Who do you think the next Featured Artist will be? Let’s see if you can guess correctly on my Twitter!

Until next time, Battle On hero!

xoxo Beleen