Datamined Rogue Skills, Realm Consolidation, and Befallen Forge Walkthrough | Ashes of Creation December Development Update Livestream
Phase 2 looks to shake things up, with mixed reactions
With both old and new players excited to jump into the world of Verra on freshly wiped servers, Intrepid Studios have made several changes ahead of Phase 2 that had Guilds and solo-players alike scrambling.
One Realm To Rule Them All - Mostly
With the Intrepid both removing and then un-removing Realms the past couple of days, it looks like they’ve landed on consolidating the NA Region to just 2 Realms: Vyra & Lyneth. The EU Region has been consolidated to one Realm - Lotharia.
While players may have mixed reactions to this, it’s undoubtable that Intrepid Studios will continue to drastically change the testing environment over the course of several years, both to test certain systems, but also to ensure a high-level of player activity. Concerns over player resource scarcity, Realm queues, and mob density have yet to be addressed, but given the primary goal is to test the network infrastructure, these may just have to be issues the community has to deal with.
Phase 2 Launch Details
In more positive news, the start of Phase 2 will also be up 24/7 during the Holidays. More specifically, from Friday December 20th, 2024, to Monday January 6th 2025. While there may be some downtime for maintenance (scheduled and otherwise), this will be the longest Alpha 2 will be online for since the inception (great time to check out some of the best Moments from Alpha 1).
Patch Notes Highlights
Another week, another set of Patch Notes Highlights.
Check out the full patch notes here.
Rogue Skills Went Rogue
With Rogue confirmed to not be on live servers until January at the earliest, many players were saddened they couldn’t start Phase 2 on the stealthy stabber. Fortunately, some intrepid dataminers managed to snag some of the skills from a recent patch. While there seem to be some errors (Feint is very Backstabby), we can see the general direction Intrepid Studios has for the Rogue.
Most of what’s here is expected of a Rogue, but we can see the first look at the unique Rogue Archetype Resource, Advantage. While it is currently unclear how exactly a Rogue would build this resource, we can expect Intrepid Studios to have a livestream dedicated to the archetype in the near future.
December Development Update
The Development Livestream started with a discussion on how Unreal Engine updates will continue to happen all the way until launch, and players can expect that current PC spec requirements should largely remain the same.
Also, Steven & Margaret elaborated on the extended playtime schedule (24/7 uptime until Monday, January 6th) will be manned by a skeleton crew of employees, as Intrepid Studio will be taking time off until January 6th. So expect there to be very minimal changes/balance updates during those times, if at all.
Phase 1 Retrospective
A very quick part of the stream here, with Steven and Margaret reminiscing about some funny bugs including farm animals having weird textures, ducks making bear sounds on death, and some not-so-funny bugs like players being able to kill non-combatants without gaining corruption.
While these and many other bugs were squashed, its good to note that Intrepid has been learning and adapting their debugging capabilties as time goes on.
Phase 2 Preview
As mentioned before, Dünir and Vaelune character races are being added to Phase 2, as well as new nodes in the Sandsquall Desert. Steven also teased a new Raid boss that will be entering the Befallen Forge Dungeon later in Phase 2 that players will be able to tackle.
Freeholds have also been added to Phase 2 in a very placeholder state. Freeholds will be able to be purchased once a player reaches level 20, has 100 gold, and interacts with a well in the Freehold on a first-come-first-serve basis. Players will be able to plant crops, grow trees, and interact with their home initially, but other systems like farming will come online over the course of Phase 2.
A common issue in Phase 1 was players not able to properly trade/list their goods, so Marketplace Vendors have been added to all Nodes. While it is an initial implementation with very basic UI, the intended usecase will still allow players to more easily trade materials that previously sat in their storage without any uses.
Phase 2 in the Future
Steven also mentioned some planned updates and changes that will come online throughout the Phase 2 testing period. This includes:
Guild system updates
Rogue testing
Node experience changes
World layout changes
Befallen Forge Preview
Steven, Margaret, and other members of the development team jumped into the Stress Test Servers to give a runthrough of the Befallen Forge Dungeon, discussing how the Dungeon came into being, the mob design, various hidden treasures, and more!
Check out the full preview on the Ashes of Creation Youtube Channel!
Live Q&A
Here are some of the notable questions and answers that popped up during this final portion of the stream
Chat text font & size changes will come in the New Year
New weapons may come online near the end of January
Dünir will most likely keep the flip when jumping, but may move to Nikua/an optional setting to add
Rogue is anticipated to live up to expectations of what a Rogue Archetype will be
That’s it for this weeks Ashes Moments Community Newsletter! Subscribe below to stay updated throughought the entire Alpha 2 straight to your inbox!
If you missed the latest Ashes Moments video, featuring the communitys best and funniest highlights throughout Phase 1, check it out below, and subscribe for more content. Follow us on Twitter for news as it happens, and see you next week!