Design Notes

January 23, 2013

DragonPlane Portal Moved

Changes to Battleon are Underway!

In the spirit of Artix's Rapid-Fire Wednesday Design Note at Artix.com, we've got a fast blast of info for you! Log into Battleon tonight and you'll find something missing... but nothing has been lost! The construction moglins just finished relocating the DragonPlane Portal* to its final home right outside the Etherstorm Wastes!

Desoloth the Final is Waiting!

Play through the DragonPlane and the Etherstorm Wastes Saga by joining /firestorm, and see what Hs'Sakar the High Priest of Fire has in store for you! Help save the dragons of EtherStorm Wastes from Desoloth's Elemental Chaos!

* Which many of you might remember from the 11-11-11 event featuring Desoloth the Final!

Wait... What is Happening?!

We are working on a complete redesign of AQWorlds' starting town, Battleon, and the surrounding areas!

Rumors include a museum, weapon shop, library, TONS of new quests and more. We'll be releasing these changes with the help of the construction moglins in pieces over the next several months. Keep an eye out for what happens next!

February 03, 2012

Etherstorm's Earth Realm!

The Last Element is NOT the Last Chapter!

Finally, even though it has cost Galanoth dearly, the Proto-Prime Elemental Dragons are growing in power and you are returning balance to the elements. Or so you think...

Desoloth, the Final, finds this amusing.You've even brought a new toy for him to play with... The Proto-Prime of Earth, Arradia!

This week you journey into the twisted Earth Realm where you will learn much more than you bargined for about the power of Elemental Earth Magic as well as the resonating frequencies of some crystals. Have you ever heard crystals sing? (If you've played through Mythsong valley then the answer is YES)

This week you will not just hear them sing, you will need to focus, and burn their song into your mind and replay it! There is also a brand new Etherstorm Earth Rep Shop with new reputation items for you to enjoy!

Etherstorm is drawing to a close, but it might not be the ending you would like.

Quibble Is Back!

This time he's returned with some elemental, natural and markedly UN-natural goodies for you including Solrac's Woodland set...

And the highly anticipated transforming armor from Dage... the Exosuit Binoku which transforms (for you, not those around you) when you click on it. There are SEVERAL parts to the set and each one has more than one transformation depending on where and how many times you click it. Will you be the first to find every transformation?!

This is all the same armor and helm. Seperate weapons.

PUNT RETURNS!

Ready for the SUPERBOWL?! This Sunday is the biggest American Football game of the year... the showdown between the New York Giants and the New England patriots. To celebrate, during the Superbowl's Half-Time Show we will be opening up the PUNT map so you can see how far YOU can kick Twilly. Reach the full 100 Yards and get an ACHIEVEMENT BADGE! We are also opening the Half-Time shop during the Superbowl's Half-Time where you can show support for YOUR favorite team, the Mammoths or the Loyalists!

See you at Half-time!

January 17, 2012

Etherstorm Air Realm

Bert Boomtower mumbles:

Well, hello Heroes! I haven't seen you since, since that DoomWood fiasco! I hope you've been well, I sure do! But I never did think to myself that this here Etherstorm Wastes had a... a beyond! No sirree, I didn't! But it DOES!

An' it turns out that ol' Bert's been asked to raise a sign to point all you Heroes to it, yes he has! I mean me. I have. I'm ol' Bert. Bert Boomtower! *grumble* But  wouldn't ya guess it that I can't as do m'job because o' that ol' wall o' FOG! Who knew fog was SOLID?! A body cain't work but their honest labor gets in'errupted.

So, I'ma gon' wait here in this Air Realm with that fidgety, nervous-lookin' Air Dravix fellow, an' the wind all a-blowin' MIGHTY hard! Why don'cha go talk to him, eh? He looks like he could use a mite o' your Heroing, Hero. Seems somethin's on his mind. What would make a great, pow'ful Priest like it git worried? Could be the DragonSlayer you're travelin' with, mebbe?

Dravix and DragonSlayer, an uneasy peace.

Nah, ol' Galanoth, he's a straight upright ol' stick. Good wood, he is. Ever'one knows THAT. But you, you go an' talk to him, Hero. 's your job, an a body's gotta do what they gotta DO, y'know? For me, I'll just sit tight with this sign a-pointin' the way to the Ruins of Tiba- Tibat- eh, som'thin' or other. Some strange tongue, it do be!

Alina continues:

Thanks for the warning, Bert! The Heroes will get right on that... this Friday! Good luck with your sign-posting!

Shadows Over Akiba!

IN Akiba, to be precise! MEMBERS should be on the lookout tomorrow night for the next member-only mid-week expansion! This time you'll be journeying to the mystical land of Akiba, home to royalty, shrines, and Yokai!

In the Land of Yokai, shadows dance in the light of carved-stone lamps.

Those ghastly ghosts of legend roam the lands, and you'll need to deal with them as you help a shadow-y figure deal with, what else? The shadows! Let your light shine as you helpl this poor stranger; if you don't, he'll remain forever a shadow of himself!

With awesomely-shaded rewards that'll lighten your mood and weigh down your backpack, this is one mid-week release members won't want to miss! And speaking of Akiba...

Year of the Dragon - Chinese New Year!

Celebrate! Celebrate! /Dance to the music of the drums and the flutes as the dragons dance through the streets, it's Chinese New Year! (Or will be on Monday!) You'll need to quest through Akiba to help PanLong, the legendary lake dragon. He's risen from his watery home to welcome in the near year as the old one flows into the past.

PanLong, the Legendary Lake Dragon

But we can't wait that long to begin the festivities, so we're kicking off our celebration THIS Friday with rewards that'll have you roaring louder than DRAGONS! And speaking of dragons... you'll get access to rewards (like 4 colors of the armor below, dragon morph heads and dragon helms!)that will have you flying high or terrorizing towns! (Depending on your alignment, of course!)

Year of the Dragon 2012!

Friday the 13th, the bad luck continues!

If you were around last week, you might have seen that most of us caught the Lab Plague at some point. GOOD NEWS: people are slowly but surely recovering! BAD NEWS: Some of us had our LUK stats nerfed last week. Faith, Wrayth, and I are all dealing with either bandages, braces, or both this week after mishaps while in action put us all in traction!

Here's to a speedy recovery! (From where I sit, I can see a black cat, a ladder, and an unbroken mirror. Not tempting Fate much at all, nope.)

January 06, 2012

Anarchy in Etherstorm

Dragons and Elements in Revolt!

Fire and Air spawn flaming tornados.  Rivers of burning lava-water flow freely. The Etherstorm volcano, long inactive – merely a symbol of the Fire Dragon’s element – has erupted to life. The very stones of the earth are burning. All this you must contend with when you go to save Etherstorm Wastes from the fury of Desoloth the Final - a mighty dragon possessing the power of the four Prime Elements!

The four new Prime Dragons MUST be raised!

Can you help the Dravix Priests stop Desoloth and raise four new Prime Dragons to ascend to their places on the DragonPlane? Galanoth and Warlic will come to your aid, but YOU must be the one to execute the plan to take Desoloth down, and there's a LOT of work to do before that happens!

The Etherstorm Rep shop (located by Hs'Sakar in /firestorm) will contain some hot, hot items! But you'll also find some epic drops on the fiery monsters this week!

• Red Dragon Armor
• 3 Red Dragon Helms
• 3 Fire Dragon Swords
• PyroPriest Armor
• 2 PyroPriest Capes
• Firestorm Dragon Wings
• Firestorm Baby Dragon Pet
• Bucket of Lava Mace
• Suit of Living Flames
• And more!

Suggestion Shop Update!

It's been a while since our last shop update, and you guys have been very vocal in your requests to introduce more suggestions into the game. And that's what we've done! Solrac has taken some epic art and re-worked it into AQW's style.

Legend Armor, Chaorrupted Skeleton Sword
and  Bladed Cannon and Shield!

Stratos goes through the Suggestion threads once or twice a month and sends on likely art for the AQW artists to check out. If your art hasn't made it in yet, keep on showing it off, because we're always looking for more!

Holidays End Monday!

Frostval is always a cheerful time of year, but we've got to get back into battle-mode, because the Year of Chaos has begun! That means on Monday, the following things will leave for another year:

Beleen's NPC and the non-rare pinkified items WILL be staying, but she'll be moving to a new, random place in Lore. You'll have to find her if you want to buy what she's got to sell!

Lolosia needs Yarrrrrr!

Members got another mid-week update this past Wednesday! Head to Lolosia to find a boatload of undead trouble! That Captain 00000beard really means business! If you think you can handle it without being made to walk the plank, you'll be rewarded with doubloons aplenty!

Friday the 13th is coming in ONE week!

If you haven't seen Voltaire riding a flaming black unicorn down an erupting volcano, you haven't REALLY experienced the catastrophe Friday the 13th creates! But the first unlucky event of three in 2012 will not be what you're expecting! We're breaking the mold, grinding some gears and busting some heads - and it all starts one week from today!

Voltaire returns, things get REALLY hot, unicorns unicorns unicorns (!!!), and so much more! Check back on Monday for more details and concept art!

Have a great weekend, guys! Rest up, relax, get your chill on. You're going to need your energy, because we've got a CRAZY list of events and releases planned for 2012, and it's all starting NOW!

January 03, 2012

I CAN HAS WINNAR!

The Next Winner Of The I CAN HAS MOD Contest Has Been Chosen!

Things went a little smoother this time. The winner happened to be online when we chose them so it was very easy to get in touch with them.

We spoke for a while and I explained what he was won and he seemed a little overwhelmed by the idea of the wish. He asked for a little extra time, so we'll be hanging out for a few hours this Sunday and he will make his wish then, while wearing his temporary gold name.

His wish will probably be granted the following Monday.

Since the winner was easily contacted and we didn't have to go to a second choice, there will only be ONE winner this time. Honestly there was only supposed to be one winner LAST time but the first winner got back to us after we'd given up on him e-mailed the second one. Deep down we're big softies so we let both of them win. But this time... just one winner.

He has asked that we do not reveal his name until his wish is granted which I think is a great idea. It shows a lot of forethought on his part. Imagine how many people would be trying to log into that account, asking him for favors, trying to friend him and so on. That means that he's a smart cookie and I can't wait to see what he wishes for!

I CAN tell you this... He is a NON-MEMBER from New Zealand and had several HUNDRED entries under his belt, all of which were AEXtras. He made sure that the odds were in his favor, but remember that even someone with just 1 entry could have won.

97,902 people entered this time and that means that 97,902 people have Cysero's Golden Cheezburger and like last time this item WILL turn into something (probably next Monday) so make sure to hold onto it.

We will probably (maybe) be starting the next contest late this week and THIS time the winner will get to pick who they want to hang out with!

Great, So What's Coming This Week?!

The AQW team is back in the AE Secret Underground Lab and rested up after traveling all over creation to spend the holidays with our famalies, kicking through the snow, and taking red-eye flights in order to get back here on time. That may not seem restful to you but to us that's like a holiday in paradise.

The first release of 2012 will be the Member Only Mid-Week mini-release which takes us back to Lolosia for a brand new pirate adventure.

On Friday we will continue the Desoloth storyline (The first part of which can be found in the 11-11-11 Portal) in the Etherstorm Wastes! Since most of the content in the DragonPlane is Member Only, you will NOT need to complete it to begin your adventure in Etherstorm Wastes but it will add to your enjoyment of the story if you know the backstory of what happened when Desoloth the elemental dragon was set free.

We're also working a number of other projects like next week's Friday the 13th Event with Special Guest (you GUEST it) Voltaire! We'll let you know more about THAT stuff as we make our way further and further into this shiny new year!

353 days until Just Another Day.

January 03, 2012

A Smoking Scroll Arrives

EtherStorm Wastes Under Attack!

Charred flecks of yellowed parchment flake off as you hold the scroll in your hands. The courier has disappeared, but a sulfurous aroma lingers in the still air outside your dwelling. Sighing, you shake your head as you crack open the scroll. It reads:

Hero,

Time is short. You MUST journey to EtherStorm Wastes! My Master fears that you are the only one who can save us - and the world. Without your assistance, the great Desoloth - who even now directs his mighty powers at our home - will annihilate our land, causing the elements which make it up to consume us entirely!

And once he has subdued our home, he will move on to yours. Then... all of Lore! His power over the elements is massive; there is no knowing the strength he possesses. I fear for my Master. He is left shaken after the death of Zellare, the Prime Fire Dragon, but knows he must burn brightly as he calls to you, and to our as-yet-unknown new Prime Fire Dragon.

Time is short, and the fires burn hotter and higher as I write.

Please, make haste to EtherStorm Wastes! You are greatly needed!

May the Flame of Courage burn ever bright within you, I am your servant,

S'Kis
Acolyte to the High Priest of Fire

EtherStorm Wastes Begins Friday!

Things are going to heat up FAST! If you're a member, be sure to /join dragonplane to see Desoloth's escape from the DragonPlane. For everyone else, you'll be able to pick up the story fresh this week.

When the elements rebel at the command of a rogue Great Dragon, the Priests who worship the Elemental Dragons in the Elemental Wastes will need you to save them... and Lore! Two of your favorite classic AE NPCs will appear in this zone to lend their wisdom and aid, as well!

December 21, 2011

AQW: Frostval and Beyond!

2011 Cookie Contest Song

The Cookie Hork returns to show off delicious cookie contest entries! Congratulations to everyone who participated. You guys are AMAZING! Winners to be announced Friday just before the new release!

Song of the Frozen Heart Finale!

This Friday, you'll see all of your friends entirely consumed by the ice venom coursing through their veins! Dead Morice's plan has come to its chilling conclusion... almost! With all the humans on Lore (except you?!) frozen into cold-hearted ice golems, Dead Morice has turned his attention to the last pocket of resistance to this frosty finish - the moglins of Frostvale!

There's SNOW where to run, little Moglin!

Now the fate of the Frostvale moglins as well as all of your friends rests on your armor-plated shoulders! Head deep into Dead Morice's iced-over volcano fortress and start heating things up! Now that you have the Flame of Frostval (thanks, Gravelyn!), you'll need to rescue your friends (who are visibly trapped inside a really cool-looking ice golem exterior) AND save the moglins... before they get put on ice. Permanently!

What's even worse is that you can still see Frosty the Moglin blinking.

With another cameo appearance by Empress Gravelyn, moglin expressions that will tug at your heartstrings, and a stonecold boss battle, this is one Frostval Finale we just couldn't keep under wraps! (Note: finish wrapping Frostval presents...)

Quibble Coinbiter's Holiday Haul - Part 2! 

Check out Cysero's Design Notes from Monday to see previews of what's coming in the Quibble Coinbiter shop update! Look for more armors, more helms, more weapons, and the Frostval Quibble Bank Pet!

Bank to Basics with Moglin Pets

The Zorbak and Twilly Bank Pets will be available in Valencia's AC shop and Aria's pet shop! And speaking of Aria's pet shop...

December Pet 'o the Month - Reinderp!

We are in love with this cheery little guy, and hope you'll find a place in your backpacks and in your hearts for him this Christmas! Meet Reinderp!

Derp, derp, derping all the way!

He is the happiest Reinderp in the herd! (Even if all the other reindeer DO call him names.) This member-only pet will be in Aria's pet shop for the rest of December, and will be sold for 1234 gold! And that means that the Harvest Dragon and Yergen pets are on their way out... so get them while you can!

Frostval Character Page!

Members have been asking for more character page backgrounds, and Frostval is the perfect time to add one! Now you can proudly pose in the middle of Frostvale... all year long!

Stop! New Year's Time!

NEXT Friday we will be releasing our New Year's celebration with an all-new story and truly temporal rares to usher in the Year of Chaos with a heart - and time - stopping BANG! When a Chaorrupted ChronoMancer decides to prevent the arrival of the New Year altogether, you and Lim will have to work together before time runs out!

Frostval Gifts open after next week!

If you haven't looted that conspicuously full bag of gifts in Battleon, then you're missing out on one of the best parts of AQW's Frostval - the PRESENTS! Everyone will be back in the Lab on January 3rd, so the gifts will open sometime that week! And ALSO happening that week...

A VERY special announcement!

Throughout 2011, you guys have been asking us to focus on introducing new forms of gameplay.* In the first few months of 2012, we're going to take steps to do just that! We'll be releasing the first part of an exciting addition to AQW... but we're going to need your help to do it!

Once we release the first part of this, we'll need your feedback to see what direction you'd like us to take it in. This addition is pretty common in other MMOs, but we're going to put an AQW-twist on it! Look for more details after the New Year's!**

* And we're not talking new stories or items, as some of you have worried.
** This new gameplay addition is NOT guilds. We also hope to release THOSE in 2012, too. Cross your fingers!

Etherstorm Wastes is coming in January!

Earth. Fire. Water. Air. You'll need a brave Heart to enter Etherstorm Wastes this January, because the elements have gone INSANE! Fire should burn, Water should flow, Air should move, and the Earth stay steady. But when that balance goes out of whack thanks to Desoloth, lately of the Dragon Plane, the elements you know - and the Great Dragons that control them - may never be the same! (And where there are dragons... there's Galanoth!)

More Mid-week Member-only Updates!

As promised, we'll be continuing to roll out mid-week member-only updates in 2012! These updates are smaller than Friday releases; the team making them is only 2-3 people: Cysero, Yorumi, and sometimes an extra artist. The rest of the time, and the team, is devoted to preparing the Friday releases. But continuing to produce more and better content for our members is high on our priority list, so make sure to let Cysero know what older zones you'd like to see expanded!

And so much more in 2012!

With THREE Friday the 13ths, MORE Chaos and Chaos Lords, a Summer Blockbuster event, the conclusion of the DoomWood storyline, the continuation of the SkyGuard storyline, the member-only SkyGuard class, the Alina/Rolith AQW/DF crossover wedding event, and SO MUCH MORE... we don't even have time to worry about the end of the world coming next December!

It really WILL be the Year of Chaos, and we are all SO excited about what's coming! We hope you all are, too!

Everyone else has left to begin their holiday celebrations, so I'm going to head home and finish wrapping Frostval presents for friends and family. We'll see you all this Friday as we release all that awesome stuff I typed a few paragraphs up!