Release 113

RELEASE 113, April 27th, 2023
Greetings Fellow Avatars!

Release 113 goes live April 27th at 10:30 AM CDT.

Welcome! The Catnip Games development team marks this monthly release of Shroud of the Avatar with new content and improvements. For Release 113 (R113), we offer the new scene of Port Harmony and newly-tameable reef spiders.

For those wishing to participate in any community activities, upcoming one-time and recurring community events have been announced! Be sure to also review the Player Guide and Known Issues for additional information on recent changes and upcoming fixes.

New Scene: Port Harmony
A wide shot of Port Harmony, looking inland from the sea

The Ministers of Port Harmony welcome all outlanders to their growing seaside community!

With direct access by galleon from both Novia and Hidden Vale, and acting as a cultural hub for all of Mistrendur, Port Harmony is a thriving New Britannian colony with something for everyone. Shop in our bustling dockside marketplace, stroll past the fountain in the nearby town square, wander into our charming residential neighborhoods, chat with our friendly residents, or just relax on a lazy gondola ride in the canals. Our Virtuous city offers many of the amenities of the largest southern communities, including a hospital, a New You pavilion, and a militia that keeps everyone safe both inside our borders and out in the surrounding territory.

So what are you waiting for? Come to Port Harmony, your home in Mistrendur!

Port Harmony is a new Tier 8 adventure scene, available to Episode 2 players, featuring a large city with merchants, crafting stations, and quests.

2023 Roadmap Update
So far we are pretty much on track to keep the roadmap schedule.

The one item we have a delay on is implementing Unity 2021. We are now in process of migrating servers and applications to new Virtual Machines as well as adding new internal build and Dev/QA environments. This will eliminate the process bottleneck we currently have and allow for the parallel development work on our current Unity 2018 platform and Unity 2021 until it is ready to be deployed into production.

The first phase of our Treasure Map system is currently in development. Devilcult is doing a great job of prototyping the maps and setting up the tech and systems that we will need to move forward with more advanced features.

As detailed farther down in these release notes, we are in the final push to get the in-game scene maps completed. There is still much work to be done to catch up but we have met our commitment to ensure that any new qualifying scene released will have a map on day one. Work on the SotaMap server is still on the schedule as well but is blocked by server and infrastructure updates being done to our website datacenter. This will be an ongoing project and updates will be provided as we reach the next stage.

Episode Two work continues and is progressing beautifully! Sannio (Keith Quinn) has created a unique and bright town in Port Harmony that will greet players as they first arrive on Mistrendur. Sannio has outdone himself again!

Look for more roadmap updates at the end of June!

– Ravalox

Preparation and Announcement of Dev Events
This last Release cycle we hosted our annual Egg Hunt event. Special thanks goes out to Laney, Veepers, Devilcult, and Allium for taking the time to setup and run this year’s hunt! Many of our Developer-run events require time to plan and decorate the scene where the event is to be held. The Egg Hunt is one of the most laborious efforts; this year extra work was done to set up the entire scene with buildings, deco, and (of course) the eggs and other prizes.

A number of players have asked why we did not advertise or otherwise announce the event prior to it occurring. This year, the event was moved from Hometown to Mount Midir because the popularity of the event had drawn excited players to come ‘watch’ the Dev Team prepare which, in the case of an Egg Hunt, rather defeats the purpose. Some of our events are scheduled and advertised and others are what are known as ‘pop-up’ events. By advertising the event, we would have had even more player detectives on our trail while we hopped around the scene setting things up.

We are working on tech that will allow us to close a scene for ‘maintenance’ without a client patch. This will allow us to better prepare our events and surprises while keeping the players informed that something is coming, which in turn will allow us to plan and devise more somewhat-on-the-fly special events. More on that in the coming months!

– Ravalox

The Great New Britannian Mapping Project
Progress with creating the last missing scene maps has been slow as of late. Recently there have been posts in the forums on this topic, and it was (rightfully) pointed out that some of the remaining missing maps are part of the main storyline. Up until now, I have been working on the maps in order of scenes most visited. Starting with this release I have pushed the priority up on map making overall and have changed the approach slightly, whereas I am now weighting the effort by in game region, and if the scene is part of the main story line.

Region one (The Perennial Coast) has been completed with this release. This next Release I will concentrate on Region7 (Longfall) first and then on to Region6 (South Paladis) and beyond.

As a reminder, Adventure Dungeons, Player Dungeons and Basements, along with a few other interior scenes will not have maps under our current mapping system. These scenes will have a “map card” with a (sometimes) witty note. Overall, providing a map that allows players to scroll through an entire dungeon provides an unfair advantage, and the various unions and caucuses ranging from the Kobolds against Outlanders to Undead forever (local 42) have lodged their concerns and indicated that if maps were provided that unprecedented events would certainly follow.

Maps for these areas will be reconsidered when a sufficient fog of war system can be implemented. Fog of War is a method where in which only the area of the map that is visible to the player is the current surrounding area or areas that have been discovered by way of progress. At this time, the tech to implement either of these methods is not present and will need to be designed and a test implementation done. We will discuss this internally toward the end of 2023 for consideration for the 2024 roadmap plan.

– Ravalox

New Pets: Reef Spiders
Four reef spiders on a Vikland beach: the smallest aqua, a larger red, a larger orange, and the largest purple

Prepared visitors to the beaches of Vikland can now abscond with the wildlife: the local reef spiders have become used to human presence enough that they can now be tamed. Like their wild counterparts, tamed reef spiders are (currently) visual variants of red spiders and have no unique skills of their own.

Release 113 Patch Notes
Below are a list of the updates that are live as of Release 113 in the game of Shroud of the Avatar! R113 is a content month. Polish, additional improvements, and bug fixes are inbound for R114 next month. We hope you enjoy the changes that are live today as of Release 113!

Crafting, Decoration, Gear, & Inventory Item Changes:

 * Renamed exotic fish and accessories to have (Fish Tank) at the ends of their names so it’s easier to search in inventory and containers.
 * Removed erroneous dye slots from Gothic Chair. SOTA-71261
 * Adjusted upgrade recipe names for Supple Gloves of Riding. SOTA-71277
 * Fixed naming discrepancy with One-Man Band hat/shirt recipes. SOTA-71278
 * When placing a decoration pet, the name will be facing correctly in the deco preview.
 * Pets and conversationalists set to “Stay here” and “Patrol” will stick to what they were last set to when placing it again from inventory. Pets and conversationalists will stop going back to their last location when placed from inventory.
 * Time will now reset correctly when kobold time machine decorations are picked up or the player changes scenes. Improved performance in POTs due to the time machines’ script which was creating a lag spike every 15 seconds. SOTA-69779
 * Fixed LOD warnings when placing a kobold time machine.
 * Small Campfires will now clear weeds underneath them when placed. SOTA-71325
 * Fixed broken UI when dragging LB Chest onto a female paperdoll. Fixed additional chest pieces: Virtue Flame, Copper Clockwork, and Ancient *Xenossian Plate. SOTA-67446
 * Corrected equipment channel for females on Egg Hunt 2023 Cloak. SOTA-71258
 * Fixed NPC/pet placement and deco surfaces of front stoops for the pledge stone row homes. SOTA-71025, SOTA-58996

Combat & Skill Changes:

 * Reduced song duration buff from Wyvern Egg Salad. SOTA-70752
 * The previous removal of the PVP 25% experience bonus in player dungeons missed some dungeons. The rest have now been updated. Reminder: this was removed because players could just lock the dungeon entrances and get extra xp at no risk.
 * Skills from taming tree, healing and frenzy, were previously usable from the utility bar while in combat, which is inconsistent with other skills. They have been made not usable while in combat. The only skills that should be used in combat mode from the utility bar are summons, resurrects, and night vision and light spells.

User Interface, Store Information, Inky, & Lua Changes:

 * Added spider essence to purchase orders. SOTA-71246
 * Added a new function for conversationalist scripts: “listEmotes” will list all the emotes available for that NPC. Conversationalists’ scripted emotes will now work for all humanoids (trolls and dragons don’t count.) Fixed a problem with variables from conversationalists displaying letters and numbers along with the correct names.
 * Inky NPC function to load variable now works correctly with number of type int. Previously variables were saved by account, now it’s by character. SOTA-71231
 * Changed the message when items are sent back to users from a lot, basement, or dungeon to mention to look in the decoration palette for any missing items.
 * Fixed the nameplates of NPCs being missing once back from editing character appearance in New You salons when conversation close-ups are enabled. SOTA-71291
 * Fixed a typo in the store description for Brown Bunny Ears and Slippers. SOTA-71307

World and Quest Changes:

 * The Luminous Atavist and some of his Atavists of Purity in the desert of Grunvald
 * Seasonal Monsters: The Arch Lapin will go dormant and the Luminous Atavist will return on May 16th.
 * Novia and Hidden Vale: The “Mistrendur” listing for the teleporter galleons now says “Mistrendur at Port Harmony.”
 * Encounters: Fixed dragon encounters which were spawning aether dragons before their time. Adjusted how the aether monsters spawn based on the TimedEvent script. SOTA-71239
 * All guild registrars now have proper conversations while in offline mode, although you still can’t create or access guilds.
 * Battle of Solace Bridge: Edvard now mentions the player will get a free row lot deed when Captain Kinsey’s tasks are done. The associated journals are updated with information. SOTA-71304
 * Blood River Outskirts: Vigilante guards Julius and Claude now eventually stop pulling you into their conversations. Fixed typos in their conversations. SOTA-71312
 * Blood River Outskirts: No NPCs in this scene will have Solace Bridge Outskirts Heirlooms in their loot anymore. SOTA-71350
 * The Clink: Updated Warden Tully’s “guard” and “Hamtooth” responses. SOTA-71236
 * Eastmarch: Kobold Landscapers report that the weeds in The Ventaceaster have been eliminated. As part of the service, they checked the other houses in the area as well. SOTA-71324
 * Eastmarch: The mysterious foam islands in the bay have vanished. SOTA-71323
 * Eastreach Gap: Added dangerous “tornado” hazard that appears during the highest-threat, repeatable wave. This tornado flies through parts of the control point area and does high damage to anyone on its path. When the control point is lost, the tornado disappears. SOTA-71253
 * The Fall: Updated the daemon battle with fewer repeating waves before the daemon appears and the second half of those preliminary waves are higher-threat than the starting enemies. None of the enemies should spawn in ambush position and they will now all randomly move around the room.
 * The Fall: Added a few tier 10 ore nodes. SOTA-71235
 * Fishing Expedition: Replaced the rowboat and ladder next to the galleon. The ladder is now a 2-way teleporter. SOTA-71249
 * Jotungrund: Added repeatable quest for killing the frost giant, with a meager reward that includes the “Giant Killer” title on the first turn-in. SOTA-71234
 * Jotungrund: Added Wymond’s Token, with deco ability.
 * Jotungrund: Adjusted the placement of the windwall for one of the Frost Giant platforms to ensure no gap at the bottom.
 * Port Harmony: Updated Peregrine’s responses. SOTA-71290
 * Port Harmony: Added missing responses for many NPCs, mostly related to the ministers. SOTA-71293
 * Port Harmony: Fixed a typo in the graveyard caretaker’s responses. SOTA-71296
 * Port Harmony: Removed flora clipping through the floor of some buildings. Fixed two stuck spots. The tailoring shop no longer has a “real estate” sign. A guard tower now allows Avatars to enter and exit. The adventuring trainer’s sign now reads as such. Most commoners now refuse to give their name instead of stating it’s simply “commoner.” The NPC in the hospital now has a unique conversation. The baker now sells bakery items instead of meat. The produce merchant now sells produce. SOTA-71302, SOTA-71299, SOTA-71300, SOTA-71298, SOTA-71301, SOTA-71297, SOTA-71292, *SOTA-71295, SOTA-71294
 * Port Harmony: Fixed z-fighting in floor of New You pavilion. Updated “pressure relief” assets, including improved dialogue, evidence quest item, and better compass markers. SOTA-71254
 * Port Harmony: You can no longer fish within the canals.
 * Port Harmony: The overworld teleporter boat now sends players to their last known location in Mistrendur. The Merchants Dock is now an unlockable spawning entrance. The hawkers’ newsletters can now be freely taken. Fixed a typo shared by all hawkers. Fixed a path grid issue on a small island. SOTA-71311, SOTA-71309, SOTA-71310
 * Port Harmony: Added unique conversations for visitors and some commoners. Added assets for “Proper Greeting” quest, including QuestData for compass markers and visitor NPCs. SOTA-71313
 * Port Harmony: Fixed several early issues in the “Proper Greeting” quest which blocked its progression. Updated Peregrine, visitor, and Guild Registrar conversations. SOTA-71313
 * Port Harmony: Corrected spelling of “avowal” in all appropriate locations. Fixed a typo in Peregrine’s responses.
 * Port Harmony: Removed overlapping real estate sign from tailor shop. Adjusted creature spawning and ensured all are accessible. Avatars should now remember Hawker Nuntium’s name. Other children no longer claim their name is “Child.” Fixed several typos in journal entries. SOTA-71300, SOTA-71330, SOTA-71332, SOTA-71297, SOTA-71331
 * Port Harmony: Moved floating carts to ground. Updated responses for visitors, Minister of the Hearth, and Guild Registrar. Minister’s “proper greeting” quest now properly progresses past awarding avowal to daily version. SOTA-71313
 * Port Harmony: For the “proper greeting” quest, updated journal entries and responses. SOTA-71335
 * Port Harmony: Changed the scene limit to allow 64 players.
 * Serpent’s Spine Mines: Fixed a stuck spot. SOTA-71237
 * Solace Bridge Outskirts: Captain Kinsey now mentions the player will get a free row lot deed when her tasks are done. The associated journals are updated with information. SOTA-71304
 * The Rise: Added a few tier 10 ore nodes. SOTA-71235
 * Verdantis Mines: Five locked rooms now have special loot chests that restock when keys unlock the entry doors. SOTA-71225
 * Verdantis Shardfall: Removed a line in the water that was showing up near the edge of the scene. SOTA-71250
 * Vikland: Flattened ground that was clipping through a dye tub. SOTA-71238
 * Vikland: Changed the scene limit to allow 64 players.
 * Created map for Port Harmony. SOTA-71063
 * Created map for Hallowed Plains. SOTA-71306
 * Converted Necropolis Barrens map to new system to fix offsets/marker drift. SOTA-71319
 * Converted Restless Woods map to new system to fix offsets/marker drift. SOTA-71318
 * Converted Solace Bridge Outskirts to new map system to fix offsets/marker drift. SOTA-68624
 * Converted Solania map to new system to fix offsets/marker drift. SOTA-71315
 * Converted Soltown map to new system to fix offsets/marker drift. SOTA-71317

Player-Owned Town Changes:

 * Mistrendur: Moved several POTs that were slightly pushed into the terrain to ground level. SOTA-71051
 * POT Template Swamp 01 and Swamp 01a: Added extra waterfall effects. SOTA-71251
 * Avanish Hope: Changed biome to Swamp 01a.
 * Solaris: Upgraded to Town.

Player-Owned Dungeon and Basement Changes:

 * Keep Stone Arena Basement: Aligned cell doors and switches on the far side of the arena. SOTA-71327

May Day Sale
Celebrate Spring, the time of flowers and renewal! May Day marks the (approximate) mid-point of the season so, as we prepare for the Summer to come, why not celebrate with your friends in the spirit of the Romans’ Floralia festival and cast a confetti egg in their direction! While enjoying their reactions, you can take advantage of these sales starting at noon on April 27th through May 1st.


 * Crown Store sales will be 30% off.
 * Crowns of the Obsidians will be 20% off.

Release 113 Subscriber Login Rewards
Everything’s gone green; time to eat outside. The Rewards Program login items for Release 113 are a pair of Elven Jewelry Boxes and a Rustic Wood *Table with a pair of Rustic Wood Benches!
 * Two different green jewelry boxes on a coffee table in an outdoor sitting area.
 * A rustic wood table with a pair of benches in front of an active barbecue pit.

Subscribers to the Rewards Program must log in during Release 113 to receive these special login items.

May Login Reward
Even rustic pieces can use a bit of decoration: each account that logs in during the month of May will receive a one-time gift of a Small Rustic Wood Table! Several small tables set up as a buffet at an outdoor barbecue area.

Crown Store Updates
New in the crown store for May 1st: Several small tables set up as a buffet at an outdoor barbecue area. …and for May 12th: A rustic wood table with a pair of benches in front of an active barbecue pit. Two different green jewelry boxes on a coffee table in an outdoor sitting area. Although there are not currently enough items to make a whole new category for them, a few St. Patrick’s Day items (some of which were previously hidden in the vault) can be currently found in other categories (Wearables and Outdoor Decorations) until Monday May 1st:
 * Small Rustic Wood Table
 * Rustic Wood Table Set
 * Fancy Geometric Wood Inlaid Elven Jewelry Box 2-Pack

List of St. Patrick’s Day items:
The Spring Equinox store items will be available until Friday May 5th:

List of Spring Equinox items:
To celebrate his birthday, the Darkstarr Rares store items will be available until Monday May 29th:

List of Darkstarr items:

Upcoming Release Dates
Be sure to check out the Upcoming Events page for spotlighted events plus links to various areas to post or find events on our forums. The upcoming 2023 Release Schedule is as follows:

This Release 113 – April 27 (Content)
 * Release 114 – May 25 (Polish)
 * Release 115 – June 29 (Polish)
 * Release 116 – July 27 (Content)
 * Release 117 – August 31 (Polish)

Additional Information

 * Player Guide
 * Known Issues
 * Quick Reference Card