Release 78

RELEASE 78, May 28, 2020
Release 77 of Shroud of the Avatar goes live this Thursday, May 28, at 10:30 AM US Central Time (16:30 UTC).

We want to express a huge amount of gratitude to the players who tested the items listed below on our QA server. They found many bugs and also provided editorial feedback on this post so that it is easy to read and actually matches what is in the game. Keep the input coming, and again — thank you!

Before offering feedback and/or reporting a bug, we kindly ask that you read this whole message and the linked Player Guide and Known Issues to get up to date on the current game state. To keep up to date, please check out the Patch Notes.

By taking a few moments to read through this information, a great deal of our time and effort can be focused on new unanswered questions and addressing critical issues that impact each release. We greatly appreciate you taking the time to review this post and for all the truly valuable feedback you continue to provide.

Remember that while we are providing new content with each release, our community is also working overtime to make new events for you to enjoy. Be sure to check the schedule for player-run events in the Community Events Forums. You can also get the latest official events on the Main Website.

Here is a list of what you can expect to see in RELEASE 78, May 28, 2020.
 * Dynamically Scaled Difficulty! [[Image:SouthMidmaerWay_2b.jpg|1028px]]
 * Adventurers, rejoice! A new concept for Shroud of the Avatar, called Dynamically Scaled Difficulty, brings a variety of user selectable difficulty levels to a single adventure scene. Here is a breakdown of the difficulty levels available in the first iteration of the new tech:
 * Easy (Tier 7)
 * Medium (Tier 10)
 * Hard (Tier 12)
 * Extreme (Tier 18)
 * Dynamically Scaled Difficulty will not only scale the tier level of spawns, but also the experience awarded for each opponent defeated. After further testing occurs, loot will also scale accordingly. Every new scene added to the game will feature scaled difficulty options, but not every scene will be broken down identically.
 * The first scene to feature this new tech is Lachem’s Bazaar, a cloned version of the beautiful Tier 2 location known as South Midmaer Way. Of late, in addition to adding entirely new scenes, the team has routinely revamped old underutilized low tier scenes such as this to feature greater challenges for higher level players. Some of these updates included the revamp of Spectral Peaks, Owls Head Sewers, Ravensmoor, Ruins of Ravensmoor, Mysterious Swamp, Deep Ravenswood and Ulfheim.
 * We learned a valuable lesson when the original version of Ulfheim was removed, because some fans of the old clone longed to see their favorite hunting grounds restored, hence the Ruins of Utheim appeared. So, to head off a similar concern, we’ve decided to leave in South Midmaer Way at its original location and difficulty, and the new scaled version of this scene will be placed in Mistrendur in a patch shortly after the release.
 * Lachem’s Bazaar features revamped spawns and NPC dialogue adjustments and is fully integrated into the new dynamic system. The 3-day reward buff (+30 Agility, -10 Strength) which also resides in South Midmaer Way is still available in Lachems Bazaar, but there are plans to alter that buff to yield entirely unique yet undetermined benefits.
 * Spindelskog, an Episode 2 adventure scene nearing completion, will likely be the next scaled adventure scene coming your way. Dynamically Scaled Difficulty adventure scenes are just some of the exciting features to arrive this year. Read more about what’s on the horizon in the Shroud of the Avatar 2020 Vision!


 * Shadow Creatures Preview!
 * Soon, Mistrendur will be home to frightening shadowy creatures, no doubt brought forth by the Obsidians and their dark magics. Albeit a variety of new creature models will be added throughout the design of Episode 2, some of which using these new shadowy effects, this video portrays the reskinning of 2 existing creatures already in the game (the wolf and the bear). Shadow type creatures will feature unique abilities to thwart adventurers in Mistrendur and will be prone to surprise players in dark scenes due to their cloaked appearance. Look for their eyes in the dark, Avatars! The shadow creatures are coming!


 * June Login Reward: Floppy Hat! [[Image:SS_4Elg_FloppyBeachHat_A.jpg|1028px]]
 * Just in time to hit the beaches, this floppy hat is perfect for abating the sun during shoreline festivities. Simply log in during the month of June, and the hat will become available in the Rewards Window. Time to catch some rays, beachgoers!


 * Release 78 Reward Program Login Reward Items: Beach Theme! [[Image:SS4elg_RewardTowels_A.jpg|1028px]]
 * Avatars! Rewards Program login reward items for Release 78 are beach themed! Reward Program members will receive these items immediately upon logging in during Release 78! Surf’s up, Avatars!
 * Beach Towels (4-Pack, Dyeable)
 * Male Swimsuit (1-Piece, Uses Chest & Legs Slots, Dyeable, Also fits females)
 * Female Swimsuit (2-Piece, Dyeable, Also fits males)
 * [[Image:SS_4Elg_MaleSwimsuit_A.jpg|1028px]] [[Image:SS4elg_SwimsuitFemale_A.jpg|1028px]]
 * NOTE: You must login during the release to receive each release’s rewards.


 * The Shroud of the Avatar Rewards Program lets you earn the best rate on purchasing Crowns, AND receive monthly reward items!
 * For the low price of $9 USD per month you will receive the following:


 * 900 Crowns of the Obsidians every month
 * Monthly Login 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


 * Packaging Items for Trade Available! [[Image:featurePaytoTradeResults.jpg|1028px]]
 * Just arriving on the Live Server is a very useful new feature which allows players to trade formerly no-trade Heritage items by packaging them for trade. Simply right-click the no-trade Heritage item in your inventory, then select “Package Item for Trade” which will spawn an option window requesting a Crowns payment for the packaging.
 * The Crowns fee will vary depending upon the value of the item. Once packaged, the item can be freely traded to another player. The recipient can then unpackage it for use simply by double-clicking upon the packaged item in their inventory.
 * Allowing for the trade of formerly no-trade Heritage items is just one of many useful new features to arrive this year. Read more about what’s on the horizon in the Shroud of the Avatar 2020 Vision!


 * Latest Store Items: Male & Female Shopkeeper Outfits, Electric Katanas & More! [[Image:SS_4Elg_MaleShopKeeper_A.jpg|1028px]]
 * Merchants of New Britannia! Make room in your wardrobes for the Male and Female Shopkeeper Outfits! These splendid wearable items are a perfect fit for any up-and-coming or veteran merchant players. Chest and leg pieces of both sets can be dyed. The female version features TWO chest pieces, one with a choker and one with a necklace.
 * Other exciting new additions which arrived lately were the Electric Katanas coming in three colors (Pink, Red, and Green). These “electrifying” new 2-handed swords, if salvaged, will yield eternal patterns which can be applied to player-crafted 2-handed swords. The katanas are fantastic accessories for the new Dark Shogun Armor Set which boldly strode into the store recently! This armor set will yield plate armor Eternal Patterns if salvaged, which can be applied to other plate armor to apply the style.
 * Male Shopkeeper Outfit
 * Female Shopkeeper Outfit
 * Dark Shogun Armor Set
 * Pink Electric Katana (Breast Cancer Awareness Charity Item)
 * Red Electric Katana
 * Green Electric Katana
 * [[Image:itemFemale_Shopkeeper_Outfit_F.jpg|1028px]] [[Image:4Elg_DarkShogunArmor_A.jpg|1028px]] [[Image:SS_4Elg_Katana_Pink_A.jpg|1028px]]


 * Obsidian & Island Vault Round! [[Image:itemObsidianTowerTownHome.jpg|1028px]]
 * The current round of Vault items are available until Thursday, June 4th at 10:30 AM CST. At that time, the next round of 9 items will be available for two weeks, and then the next, etc.
 * Obsidian Tower (Town Home)
 * Obsidian Sarcophagus
 * Obsidian Order Throne
 * Obsidian Order Plate Armor Set
 * Island Dress
 * Island Flower Crown
 * Island Spear
 * Large Tiki Statue
 * Hula Emote
 * [[Image:SotA_Ornate_Obsidian_Sarcophagus.jpg|1028px]] [[Image:SS_4Starr_Vault_9_26_ObsidianThrone_A.jpg|1028px]] [[Image:SS_Stretchgoal_Island_FlowerCrown_A.jpg|1028px]]


 * World & UI Changes [[Image:SS_4Elg_Ep2SS_B.jpg|1028px]]
 * These miscellaneous updates affecting the game world or aspects of the user interface (UI) patched in during R77, will go live with R78, or will go live shortly after R78:
 * The Forgeries: (spoilers) The first in a new series of daily repeatable quests has been added to Ardoris at the Caravaggios Wolf painting shop near the market square. Caravaggios Wolf is the alter-ego of Stephen Daniele, the lead concept artist during Shroud of the Avatar’s early development. If players speak with Caravaggios, a quest to locate 5 paintings can be obtained. If players speak with Stephanie Broadmeadow, an alternate quest to locate 5 paintings (with alternate effects upon your virtue) can be obtained. Expect additional dailies to be added in the future, each featuring a wide variety of experience rewards depending upon the difficulty of obtaining the items required or reaching the NPC turn-in location.
 * Arch Lapin: This vicious bunny has had his fill of Avatars this year and will not return until spring of 2021.
 * Atavists of Purity: The narrow minded Atavists have returned to New Britannia in force. The Atavists roam the desert region of Grunvald, and if challenged, players will face a wave battle ending with the appearance of the infamous Luminous Atavist.
 * Two-Tailed Comet & Aether Creatures: The comet has returned to the skies of New Britannia; therefore, a large variety of Aether Creatures roam the lands once again. Beware, Avatars!
 * Ulfheim: Players can now utilize teleporters in Ulfheim which greatly assists late to arrive party members to catch up with others in their party. Also, the breakable portions of the bridge have been removed. Additionally, the teleporters require a new Ulfheim Runestone quest item to activate, which reset 5 minutes after activation. This item drops from barbarians in the scene. Kaiser the collector will buy one each day.
 * Quests EXP Revamp (1st Pass): Experience received from questing has received a “first pass” revamp scaling the rewards to be more inline with the difficulty or scene tier of the quest. More EXP adjustments will occur in the future as this work continues.
 * Eastreach Gap: Exploited perching spots were removed or shortened near the control point pad. Invisible barriers were also placed in some areas around the control point.
 * Troll Roaming Encounter: The mountain pass roaming encounter in the Quel region required for the “Twin Troll Toenails” questline now spawns more frequently.


 * Crafting, Items & Economy Changes [[Image:concept-SotA_sigils_Crafting_02.jpg|1028px]]
 * These changes to the player economy, in-game items, or crafting patched in during R77, will go live with R78, or will go live shortly after R78:
 * Supply Bundles: Ore has been added to supply bundle loot, and EXP Items which drop in bundles are now tradeable.
 * Agriculture Skills: Harvest Plants and Water Plants abilities can now be added into a deck.
 * Conversationalists: The NPC’s with customizable dialogue now feature a max of 10K characters (doubled) for conversation character limits.
 * Pax Rings: Only one Pax Ring can be equipped at a time.
 * Decorative Vases: Objects, such as umbrellas, can now be placed inside the new decorative vases.
 * Gathering Changes: Experience awarded for gathering T4, T5, and T6 nodes has dramatically increased. Nodes now also award Adventure EXP as well as Production EXP.
 * Meticulous Collection: Meticulous collection successes while gathering now yield experience equivalent to the base node times the number of meticulous successes achieved. For instance, if you mine a T5 node with a meticulous X3, the player would receive 7500 experience.
 * “Batch of 12” Teleport Scroll Recipes: The “Batch of 12” scrolls now yield EXP equivalent to crafting 10 single scrolls.
 * Repair Kits: Locked repair kits can now be used to repair equipment, and locked items can now be repaired.
 * White Birch Trees: These tree decorations are now stackable in a player’s inventory.
 * PvP Tourney Trophies: Unique glowing shard styled PvP trophies have been created for use in upcoming developer run PvP events.
 * Water Wells: These decoration items now also function when placed as POT decoration.


 * Combat Balance & Changes [[Image:screenshot-SS_Grannus_01.jpg|1028px]]
 * These changes to combat skills or concepts patched in during R77, will go live with R78, or will go live shortly after R78:
 * Mesmerizing Melody: This skill is now available at the Bard skill trainer in Ruins of Utheim
 * Savage Sonata: This skill now works like other bard skills and does not require a pet in order to be cast.
 * Bard Specialization: Bard skills are now adjusted to scale with specialization level.
 * Bard Skills: Skill descriptions for many bard skills were updated. Bard skills are also now interruptible.


 * Updated Player Owned Towns [[Image:R78_Map_of_Novia_POT.jpg|1028px]]
 * These updates affected Player Owned Towns which patched in during R77, will go live with R78, or will go live shortly after R78:
 * A’doe Trunalor: Upgraded to Megalopolis and moved to Mistrendur.
 * Aelasar’s Forest: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Argent Aspis: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * Arlia: Added new Holdfast, nested in Central Brittany.
 * Ashiya Hama: Upgraded to Hamlet and added interconnections.
 * Blackstone Gate: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Braeside Farm: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * Chao Insula: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Crematorium: Corrected spelling of name.
 * Fenrir: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Ironholde: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Isla de Muerta: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Islet of Long: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Jade Mountains: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Justice Hold: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Knightmare Falls: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Lys Market: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * Meridian: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * Moonvale: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * New Britannia Swap Meet: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * Noshima Island: Updated interconnection boats.
 * Novia Market: Upgraded to City.
 * Ogygia: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Ophelia: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * Ravenna: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * Rock Ridge: Added new Village to Mistrendur.
 * Sea Bear’s Black Market: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Siren Song Bayou: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Skalabrekka: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * Solace: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * Sparrowhawk Run: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * The Caverns Under Neath: Moved to Mistrendur.
 * The Clockworks: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * Thunderclap: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * Tower of Xee: Added new Holdfast to Mistrendur.
 * Weirafurt: Added new Crossroads Village to Mistrendur.
 * [[Image:R78_Map_of_Mistrendur_POT.jpg|1028px]]


 * Bug Fixes [[Image:concept-Oracle-Watchers.jpg|1028px]]
 * Albeit many bug fixes patched in during R77, will go live with R78, or will go live shortly after R78. Here are some of the highlights!
 * Dark Shogun Cape draping into armor has been improved.
 * Dark Shogun Armor patterns now properly apply.
 * Far Hinterlands “Noble Stag” wave battle now resets properly, and the entire questline received a variety of other fixes.
 * Bunker C received a variety of bug fixes.
 * New Books of Learning now properly display the amounts of EXP granted.
 * Spider companions for the elves in the Plains Encounter are no longer mislabeled as trained wolves.
 * Tartarus maze mobs can now more effectively pursue players up the tower stairwell.
 * Additional decoration surfaces were added in the Lord of the Isle mansion.
 * Etceter Crag Mines Bandit Chief quest functionality has been improved.
 * Isabelline Stone 2-Tier Outdoor Fountains now function properly.

As you can see, there are so many more exciting features and improvements coming to players of Shroud of the Avatar this year, and R78 is just the beginning! The Shroud 2020 Vision Post by Chris Spears outlines a wondrous schedule of features coming our way. If you’d like to follow a day-by-day play-by-play posting of Chris’ activities, check out the Official Catnip Games Twitter Feed to get the most up-to-date information! And just because something didn’t make it into the 2020 Vision Post, no worries! There’ll be many new features that sneak in throughout the year as each release unfolds.

Episode 2 features are in-bound which includes new story, new lands, a revamp of the Quest and Journal system, a Theater System, Treasure Hunting with treasure maps that show up as loot, Item Affinity, Taming system expansions, Customizable NPCs, and expanded permissions for containers and doors!

As a reminder, here are links to Player Instructions and Known Issues. Also, a list of helpful links is available on our New Player Welcome Forum pinned right at the top! Thank you again for your continued support. This is truly the most amazing community we have ever worked with, and we are proud to be on this journey with you.

Sincerely, Shroud of the Avatar Development Team

Additional Information

 * Release 78 Instructions
 * Release 78 Known Issues
 * Quick Reference Card