Avatar’s Update #360: Lot Upgrades and Crown Sales! December Login Reward!

Greetings Fellow Avatars! Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar:

News Announcements

Community Updates

Lot Deed Upgrades & Crown Sale!

Greetings Avatars,

To celebrate the winter holidays Crowns and Lot Deed Upgrades are on sale for 20% off through the end of the year! Also you have one week left to get the first set of this year’s Winter and Yule themed Vault items, including some of the very first Yule themed items we ever created!

  • Lot Deed Type and Size Upgrading with Crowns Sale: Upgrading Lot Deed Type and Size in-game with Crowns is on sale for 20% through the end of the year! Originally patched into Release 62, you can upgrade your deed “type” and size for Crowns in-game via right-click. This means, for example, you can upgrade from a Taxable Player Owned Town Village Lot Deed to a Taxable Player Owned Town Water Village Lot Deed, adding the ability to claim a water lot. You could also upgrade from a Village Lot Deed to a Town Lot Deed. This was previously available in the Game Services store but can now be done directly with Crowns. You can also upgrade from Taxable to Tax-Free deeds, with the exception that other types of deeds cannot be upgraded to Founder deeds. NOTE: you can only upgrade types, not downgrade, so you cannot go from a Tax Free deed to a Taxable deed, for example. Also you cannot upgrade to Tax Free Founder Keep or Castle, or Tax Free Keep or Castle (these were pledge exclusives). You can still upgrade to all other Keep/Castle types, including Tax Free Player Owned Town Keep, for example.
  • The Vault: Current round of Vault items are available until Thursday, December 5 at 10:30 AM Central Time. At that time, the next round of 9 items will be available for two weeks, and then the next, etc2017 Yule Card 5-Pack
    • Ice Wings
    • 2016 Winter Holiday – Wax Cylinders
    • Winter Lynx Pet
    • 2015 Holiday Wreath
    • 2015 Yule Hat
    • 2015 Yule Tree
    • Yule Velvet Bodice Ensemble
    • Viking Stronghold

December Login Reward: Holly Wreath Hat with Sparklers

Sunday will be the first day to login and obtain the December login reward! To celebrate the Winter Holidays, every player who logs in during the month of December will receive a unique Holly Wreath Hat with Sparklers!

To receive the rewards simply login to the game before the end of December and check your rewards tab!

Release 72 Reward Program Exclusive Items: Fall Theme 2!

The Release 71 Autumn themed items were so popular that we decided to make the Rewards Program items for Release 72 fall themed again! Reward Program members will receive these exclusive items immediately upon logging in during Release 72!

  • Autumn Leaf Mask
  • Autumn Leaf Shield
  • Autumn Leaf Trident

NOTE: You must login during the release to receive each release’s exclusive rewards.

The Shroud of the Avatar Rewards Program lets you earn the best rate on purchasing Gold Crowns, AND receive exclusive monthly reward items!

For the low price of $9 USD per month you will receive the following:

  • 900 Gold Crowns of the Obsidians every month
  • Exclusive Monthly Reward Items (~ 3 per month)
  • Exclusive Title every 3 months
    • 3 Months: Keeper of the Faith
    • 6 Months: Keeper of the Word
    • 9 Months: Keeper of the Vow
    • 12 Months: Keeper of the Flame
    • 15 Months: Keeper of the Oath
    • 18 Months: Keeper of the Pledge
  • Pick any Dye 12 Pack every 6 months
  • Pick any three of the 7 Obsidian Potions every month, including:
    • Potion of Capacity: Increases carrying capacity
    • Potion of Conservation: Reduces reagent use chance
    • Potion of Expedience: Swift gathering on all gathering skills
    • Potion of Precision: Increases Meticulous Collection to all gathering skills
    • Potion of Preservation: Reduces armor and weapon damage
    • Potion of Reclamation: Increases Salvage and Repair to all production skills

Lord of the Isle Episode 2 Bundles

As one of the biggest and earliest supporters of Episode 2 you will be granted the largest lot deed in the land (Castle), the title Lord (or Lady) of the Isle, a tour of the Portalarium Offices, and dinner with the game leaders including Lord British himself! Only 24 of these unique bundles will be sold! 

Complete List of Rewards:

  • UPDATED: Lord of the Isle Place Anywhere Castle Lot Deed: Tax Free Forever (when placed in a POT) and Tax Free for 1 Year (when placed outside of a POT). Placeable on water as well as land!
  • Title: Lord of the Isle or Lady of the Isle
  • NEW: Unique Lord of the Isle Home (to be revealed later)
  • UPDATED: PLUS Choice of any 1 House currently available in the store
  • Castle Basement currently available in the store of your choice
  • Castle Wall Set currently available in the store of your choice (with enough for Castle Lot)
  • NEW: Unique Lord of the Isle Dungeon Room (to be revealed later)
  • 1400 Crowns
  • 999 Bank Slots
  • Pick 12 Prosperity Tools
  • 2 Unique in-game items (to be revealed later)
  • Early Access to Episode 2
  • Episode 1 Box and map signed by the team
  • 1 hour one on one with Chris for design discussion (via video-conference)
  • One real silver ring crafted personally by Lord British: Numbered 1 – 8
  • In-game version of the Lord British ring: Numbered 1 – 8 (including a place-able decoration version)
  • Tour of Portalarium Offices
  • Fine dinner and drinks with Lord British, Darkstarr, & Atos at a location TBD in Austin or NYC.

NOTE: Digital items that are currently available will begin delivery as soon as Release 62 (Jan 31). Other items will be delivered at a future date TBD.

NOTE: Travel costs NOT covered by Portalarium for Tour & Dinner.

Release 72 & Various Other Livestreams (YouTube)

The Release 72 livestream was incredibly informative! Here is the livestream from our YouTube channel in case you missed it:

Atos and others also sometimes livestream and you can check those out on our YouTube channel (complete with “Mojito the dog” cam).  Note that if you subscribe to the channel you will be notified when they go live.

Upcoming Events Calendar

Be sure to check out the Forums Recurring Events section for other events!

Dec 12 – Release 73
Dec 20 – Release 73 Livestream
Dec 21 – Release 72 Dance Party
Jan 30 – Release 74
Feb 27 – Release 75
Mar 26 – Release 76
Apr 30 – Release 77
May 28 – Release 78
June 25 – Release 79
July 30 – Release 80
Aug 27 – Release 81

 

Community Event: Hit me with your Best Shot Holiday Giveaway

[Forum Post by Lace]

Greetings Avatars

Rather than our annual stocking stuffer hangover event (where you can steal the prizes someone won before you) we are doing a giveaway of “A few of our Favorite Things” for this Holiday Season.

You can pick up a backpack of goodies from the public cache located on Lace’s Holiday House (Village Lot in Novia Market) and after Thanksgiving weekend at the Crafting Pavilion in Diamond Fields on the East Side.

Here is a map to the Novia Market location and the contents of the swag bags:

*Note that beer and wine selection varies between bags

The Contest
These items should help get you in the holiday mood, and give you a leg up on decoing your house for the season. In addition we are holding a contest where you need to “Hit Me with Your Best Shot” (yeah yeah Lace is excited about the nomination for Pat Benatar for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)

This is where you take a screenshot of one area of something you have decoed (including yourself if you wish) and post it on this forum thread.

ONE SCREENSHOT ONLY! — That is the hard part picking the area, the angle etc. If you post multiple pictures you will be disqualified. WE WANT YOUR BEST SHOT!. You have until midnight server time on Friday December 27th. Along with the screenshot designate where you lot is located so others can go and take a look for the full effect as well.

Prizes
1st Place 3000 Cotos
1000 Cotos to 4 runners up

Bonus Category
1500 Cotos Crafted Only Display (please designate in your post, so the items pictured can be verified)

And as a personal favor to Lace, if you have the time give Pat Benatar some love in the fan vote for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, please head to the link below to see the current standings, then follow the link to vote. You can vote once a day until January 10th. (which happens to coincide with her birthday)–Note they ask for an email but don’t make you confirm or anything, but maybe use a unattended one in case they spam you lol)

https://vote.rockhall.com/results/

Community Event: What happened at River’s Cross in Jade Valley?

[Forum Post by Lily Byrd]

Have you found this temple? Do you know what it’s for? What’s in the basement that no one wants to talk about? And where have all the residents gone?

Come on down to the Dragon’s Breath Inn in the hamlet of River’s Cross near Town Boundary 2 (or 3) in the Player Owned Town of Jade Valley.

Project to Support – Crowfall

Be part of shaping the next great MMO by becoming a Crowfall Backer! Crowfall is the first and only online Throne War game. You can win. Join intense PvP battles that demand strategy, survival and a fierce competitive spirit. Reap the spoils of war as an Eternal Champion!

Claim virtual territory on behalf of your guild or faction. Capture mines, mills, and quarries to secure resources, build castles, and besiege your neighbors. Scavenge artifacts and relics from the Dying Worlds and install them in your temples to grant blessings to your vassals. Capture lost spirits to do your bidding — or bind them into your weapons to infuse them with sorcerous power!

Project to Support – Pantheon Rise of the Fallen

Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen takes place on the high-fantasy world of Terminus, a wildly diverse land formed from fragments of many different realms and times, bringing with them their unique civilizations and deities. Explore long lost realms, as their people and cultures vie for power and form alliances, struggling to gain a foothold in an unfamiliar world. Uncover civilizations and awe-inspiring locales that offer incredible adventures for you and your friends to experience. Enter a world where the environment itself tells the story and where content is always king!

UPDATE: We were stunned to learn of the untimely passing of Brad McQuaid this week. He was one of the true pioneers and visionaries of our industry who brought Everquest to us. We have few words that can express how much we respect him; so we choose to honor him with a flaming sword tomb in Brittany Graveyard that reads: “Aradune: For the Brightest Flame Burns the Least Long”.

Project to Support – Avatar Express

[Forum post by Vladamir Begemot]

The Avatar Express is a Shroud of the Avatar fan news site!

I’m pleased to report that The Avatar Express is clacking away furiously. News is being delivered and we have established systems to deliver it directly to your brain.

You can use one of those systems by following us on Twitter at @avatar_express.

Even more reliable due to its fully automated nature is joining us on the Discord server. News items are posted there via RSS.

Or you can subscribe to RSS directly on the site.

—–

If you run an event, quests, etc, please consider helping out by self reporting. The Shroud community is big, and many things are happening that are never seen by others. With 10k monthly users, we would need a full time staff to track down everything that is happening.

You can fill out the contributor form, message @that_shawn_guy here or post in the Discord server that you would like to help. There is no committment once signed up, you can post as much or little as you like.

Writing up your own events has several benefits beyond the immidiate exposure. It serves as a record for others to see the history of New Britannia as we create it, in an attractive format. Publishing in the Express also has a higher chance than the forums of being seen by search engines and random readers, thus bringing more eyeballs and new players to the game.

It will even make posting in the forums easier! You can upload images to your news item, and then link to those images in your forum post. No more need for 3rd party image hosts!

So if you have something going on in your guild or town, or want to be a Reporter, Cartographer or Historian, please join us!

Resources – Players Helping Players

SotA_NewPlayerWelcome_Forum

The official SotA New Player Welcome Forum and the Player Created Resources Forum have the best player created resources for Shroud of the Avatar, whether it’s a Player Written Guide, a Video Walk-through, or a Wiki-type Website.

Visit the official Community Resources page for a complete listing of all things community.