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EpicDuel PVP Game Design Notes

Behind the scenes information about EpicDuel's development and releases, a real-time PVP MMO that you can play online in your web browser.
Nightwraith

October 28, 2022

Battlepass Online!

Battlepass Online!

Battlepass Online!

We're commemorating AE's 20th anniversary with the biggest feature we've added to EpicDuel in years: Battlepass! This feature will allow all players to earn new weapons, items, styles, cores, and currency just by completing specific daily and weekly challenges! 

To start, simply make progress towards any of the challenges available. You will being to earn XP automatically as you complete the various tasks. If you're stuck by a challenge or two, you can wait for them to reset or purchase a level worth of XP to advance and claim more prizes. Also, an Enhanced Battlepass is available to unlock even more prizes if you desire.

This season is designed to last until December, enough time for those who complete challenges every day to have a chance to claim up to level 50. Spider designed this system cleverly enough that we have tremendous flexibility to add content and expand challenges as the feature evolves. We hope you enjoy what is the first iteration of a powerful and exciting new feature!

Special thanks to Spider, Acatriel, and our Testers who helped see this feature from inception to final delivery!

 

O.M.G. Mode

As a surprise bonus addition to this release, we've introduced a new battle mode: O.M.G.

According to our programmer Spider, this acronym stands for Offensive Magnitude of Gorgonzola (because you're cheesing your opponent). Don't let the punny name fool you -- this mode is brutal! This mode makes the following adjustments to regular battle:

  • HP multiplier of x1337
  • DMG multiplier of x750
  • Maximum cooldown of 1 for every ability
  • Unlimited energy
  • Flat +25% stun resist
  • Legendary Points disabled

To maintain its novelty, this mode will only be available for a limited time so experiment while you can!

 

20th AE Anniversary

The main meat of this release was the Battlepass, but in recognition of 20 year, we thought the least we could do was offer a rare achievement to claim from the Achievement shop to mark this momentous occasion! If you're a baseball fan, you might also note the Big Show 2022 achievement in the seasonal portion as well.

In addition to all the other anniversary festivities, AQ3D is offering FREE Artix Points if you log in and find the secret code! Sounds like a deal! Read more on how you can redeem the code: https://www.artix.com/posts/how_to_redeem_artix_points/

 

Mysterious Man Returns

In celebration of AE's 20th anniversary, we're bringing back a boss from EpicDuel's recent past: The Mysterious Man! Visit his domain in the Afterlife to vanquish this foe again to receive a new tiered achievement. In recognition of those who already experienced and conquered this adversary, the original achievement will remain rare.

 

Techstalker Tech

In recognition of AE's 20th anniversary, we're delaying removing the Techstalker Promo until November 7th! This should allow everyone who's either been hibernating or saving up enough time to grab these items before they're gone!

Tags: Nightwraith


Nightwraith

October 21, 2022

Sanguine Showcase

Sanguine Showcase Battlepass

EpicDuel's first Battlepass is still under construction, but nearing completion as we enter the final rounds of testing. This set's theme was crafted by Acatriel with a focus on a fusion of Blood Magic and Technology into an unparalleled Sanguine Showcase! When implemented, this collection will offer more content than any other promotion in EpicDuel's history. 

An incomplete list of what the Battlepass will include:

  • 4 new armors!
  • 22 new items!
  • 6 new achievements!
  • 6 new cores!
  • 24 new styles!

We're working hard to make this new feature a success and thank you for your patience. Stay tuned for updates when the feature is finally ready to be released in-game!

 

Power Weekend Returns

Since there will be no update today, we've reactivated Power Hour to last all Weekend long for an excellent opportunity to grind and level up in anticipation of this new feature!

 

Heromart 2023 Preview

Heromart

The 2023 Heromart Calendar is just around the corner, and in anticipation of its arrival we're offering a preview of the items that will be available as in-game bonuses for those who purchase this upcoming piece of merchandise.

Armors

  • Paladin Chronomancer A
  • Paladin Chronomancer B
  • Paladin Chronomancer A CC
  • Paladin Chronomancer B CC

Weapons

  • Paladin Chronomancer Sword P
  • Paladin Chronomancer Sword E
  • Paladin Chronomancer Redeemer P
  • Paladin Chronomancer Redeemer E
  • Paladin Chronomancer Blaster P
  • Paladin Chronomancer Blaster E
  • Paladin Chronomancer Collider P
  • Paladin Chronomancer Collider E

Please note the 2023 Calendar is not currently available for sale. Keep an eye on Heromart.com and its social media accounts for product updates!

 

EpicDuel 2022 Player Survey

Earlier this week we released a survey via Twitter and email to collect player feedback. So far we've received dozens of results, but we're posting it again here just in case you missed those social media and email links or just didn't feel like responding before and forgot. If you have any thoughts on balance, new features, or any other improvements for the game, now is your time to share your feedback! Want more boss? Wish Tactical Mercenaries were more viable? Feel like Dexterity builds should have their time to shine? Want new battle modes and events? Let us know!

To begin the survey follow this link to help us build a better EpicDuel in 2023!

Thank you for your participation and support!

Tags: Nightwraith


Nightwraith

October 14, 2022

Boss Bounty Boost

Boss Bounty Boost

Boss Bounty Boost

Last week we added tiered achievements to many bosses throughout EpicDuel, and this week we're making boss farming a bit more worthwhile by adding many PvP drop weapons to specific bosses. Since determining which boss drops what by trial and error would be time consuming, we're including a list of which weapons were added to which bosses. Happy hunting!

  • Edgar Booth - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • King Alaric - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • Dravax - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • The Endless - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • Captain Shoggoth - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • Legendary Captain Shoggoth - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Axes
  • Nightmare Captain Shoggoth - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Axes
  • Legendary Titan - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Staffs
  • Nightmare Titan - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Staffs
  • Dage the Evil - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • Legendary Dage the Evil - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • Legendary Big Tuna - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • Nightmare Kartherax - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • Legendary Nightwraith - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Blades
  • Nightmare Nightwraith - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Blades
  • Legendary Deuce - Infernal Overfiend Weapons
  • Legendary Bido - Overfiend Nemesis Weapons
  • Pumpkin Lord - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • Nightmare Pumpkin Lord - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • Azrael - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • Nightmare Azrael - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords
  • Legendary Caden - Overfiend Nemesis and Infernal Overfiend Swords

To prevent some randomness in boss difficulty, we've removed Nanotech shield from NPCs

 

Star Expansion

With the additional boss achievement tiers, rating points have exploded well beyond the prior limits. To accommodate this accomplishment, we've added 4 new star tiers: Obsidian, Gilded Obsidian, Topaz, and Galactic.

 

Xenomorphic Weapons

New seasonal weapons items crafted by Bido have been added to Cinderella:

  • Xenomorphic Slayer P
  • Xenomorphic Slayer E
  • Xenomorphic Talons P
  • Xenomorphic Talons E
  • Xenomorphic Splitter P
  • Xenomorphic Splitter E
  • Xenomorphic Staff P
  • Xenomorphic Staff E

 

2023 Paladin Chronomancer Hairstyles

This update, as a preview of EpicDuel's 2023 Calendar items, we've included 6 new Paladin Chronomancer hairstyles. The rest of the set will be available with the new Heromart item when it's available. 

Tags: Nightwraith


Nightwraith

October 07, 2022

Boss Bounties and Battlepass

Battlepass

EpicDuel is at its core a PvP game, but we don't want those who crave PvE (and rating points) to go hungry for too long. The following bosses have received an update with tiered achievements. This means the achievements will increase in value the more their attached bosses are defeated. New tiers are achieved at 5, 10, 15, and 20 victories. If your achievement tier is currently "stuck" at lower tier than you qualify for, you may need to defeat the boss once force achievement to update.

  • George Lowe
  • Armor Hazard
  • Davarril
  • Revontheus
  • Administrator 10
  • Exile Leader
  • Black Abyss Spider
  • Capt. Shoggoth
  • Kartherax
  • Void King
  • Legendary Titan
  • M4tr1x
  • Theon
  • Noragh
  • Seth Juron
  • Merged Dragonoid
  • Legendary Merged Dragonoid
  • God of War
  • Legendary God of War
  • Dage the Evil
  • Legendary Slayer
  • Legendary Big Tuna
  • Legendary Capt. Shoggoth
  • Nightmare Kartherax
  • Nightmare Capt. Shoggoth
  • Legendary Nightwraith
  • Nightmare Nightwraith
  • Legendary Endless M4tr1x
  • Legendary Deuce
  • Legendary Bido
  • Legendary Void King
  • Legendary Dage the Evil
  • Legendary Charfade
  • Nightmare Charfade
  • Dragonoid Brain
  • Legendary Dragonoid Brain
  • Nightmare Titan
  • Legendary Caden
  • Nightmare Dage
  • Nightmare Black Abyss Spider
  • Delta Vault Sim.
  • Legendary Delta Vault Sim.
  • Darkon
  • Pumpkin Lord
  • Nightmare Pumpkin Lord
  • Adjudicator
  • Nightmare Adjudicator
  • Azrael
  • Nightmare Azrael
  • Acatriel
  • Legendary Acatriel
  • Nightmare Acatriel
  • Luthiel
  • Nightmare Luthiel

New Boss Achievements:

  • Dravax the Harbinger
  • Administrator 11
  • The Endless
  • Elite Yeti
  • Edgar Boothe
  • King Alaric
  • Saeva Lionhart

 

Skill Changes

  • Astral Projection: 75% MP drain, no hp cost

 

Techstalker Package

The Techstalker promotional package is currently scheduled to leave the game October 28th! The cores/bots may return but the base weapons, armors, and achievement will be permanently rare once the package leaves the game.

 

Battlepass Previews

It seems like we've been talking about this new feature for months (because we have), but it's finally nearing completion! We're excited to share previews and explanations of how this system will function within EpicDuel. Please remember that the prizes shown do not represent the final prize list in the finished Battlepass and the GUI may change between now and the release.

Battlepass will be a way for all players to earn new cores, weapons, home items, cosmetics, and currency just by playing the game! You won't need to do anything to participate. Simply logging in an interacting with the game should be enough to earn you a participation achievement and start collecting points towards the Battlepass' prizes.

Battlepass Main Button

You can earn more experience towards the prizes by completing various challenges. Some are as simple as winning a PvP match or changing your hairstyle, while others are a bit more complex. As you can see below, there will be daily and weekly challenges. There are currently hundreds of combinations possible so there should be plenty of variety to keep duels spicy each day!

Battlepass Challenges

If you're stumped by challenges or simply don't have the time to complete them, you have the option to skip ahead a level of progression by purchasing an XP boost from the Battlepass interface.

BattlepassUI

There will be two types of passes available: A Basic pass for everyone, and an Enhanced pass for those who want a more rewarding experience for their efforts. The Enhanced pass will include exclusive content, but efforts will be made to make sure the free pass is a rewarding experience on it's own and not fall into a "Pay-to-Win" trap common in so many other games that employ this feature.

Each Battlepass will be considered a "season" and will last about a month. We're still balancing the time/XP/ curves to make sure the grind isn't unreasonable to acquire all the content within a season. Currently, we're expecting Battlepass content to go rare after a season ends so there will be a decent incentive to play while it lasts.

Thank you for your patience as we continue to build this feature. We know the content has been lighter than usual, but much of that time has been devoted to creating the content that you will be able to unlock in the Battlepass. This has been a massive feature that should add much more variety and excitement for day-to-day play and allow new players an easier way to acquire the tools they need to compete against others in PvP. This feature should be ready very soon, and we hope it will be worth the wait!

Tags: Nightwraith


Nightwraith

October 03, 2022

Techstalker Terminator

Techstalker Terminator

Celebrating 20 year of Artix Entertainment, we just launched the Techstalker Terminator Package! 20 years for $20 (4,000 AP)!*
*Please note this package does not include extra Varium. The regular 2,500 Varium package (4,000) is still available from the Varium shop.

  • Armors:
    • Techstalker Exosuit A
    • Techstalker Exosuit B
    • Techstalker Exosuit C
    • Techstalker Exosuit A CC
    • Techstalker Exosuit B CC
    • Techstalker Exosuit C CC

These new armors come pre-equipped with new cores!

  • Resonant Armor (Armor Core - Passive): Lower attacker's energy by 15% ranged damage.
  • Astral Projection (Armor Core): Summon a cosmic avatar, dealing 75% damage to Energy.
  • Primary Weapons:
    • Techstalker Sword P
    • Techstalker Sword E
    • Techstalker Terminator P
    • Techstalker Terminator E

These primary weapons are pre-equipped with a new active core!

  • Energy Harvest (Primary Core): Deal 85% damage, stealing 20% HP and Energy, disabling melee attacks for 2 turns.
  • Sidearms:
    • Techstalker Repeater P
    • Techstalker Repeater E

These sidearm weapons are pre-equipped with a new active core!

  • Core Corruption (Sidearm Core): Increases target's Rage while lowering Dexterity/Technology 40 points.
  • Auxilaries:
    • Techstalker Railgun P
    • Techstalker Railgun E

These auxiliary weapons are pre-equipped with a new active core!

  • Skull Smasher (Auxiliary Core): Use your auxiliary as a melee weapon to deal 125% damage.
  • Bots:
    • Techstalker Bot P
      • Techstalker Beam P: Fire physical beam with a 20% crit chance.
      • Techstalker Tremor P: Reduce Crit, Block, and Deflection chance for 4 turns, 15% stun chance.
    • Techstalker Bot E
      • Techstalker Beam E: Fire an energy beam with a 20% crit chance.
      • Techstalker Tremor E: Reduce Crit, Block, and Deflection chance for 4 turns, 15% stun chance.
  • Vehicles:
    • Techstalker Bike
    • Techstalker Bike CC

Those who purchase the new Techstalker package will receive the Techstalker's Crest achievement to commemorate their support for the game. This package will not be available long so get it before it goes rare!

 

Acatriel's Battlebots

2 new robots are available from Acatriel in-game as limited rares!

  • Battlebot P
    • Battlebot Buzzsaw P: Activate a lethal buzzsaw, ignoring 20% defense.
    • Battlebot Barrage P: Fire a chaingun for 85% damage against 2 targets; 20% Rage reduction.
  • Battlebot E
    • Battlebot Buzzsaw E: Activate a lethal buzzsaw, ignoring 20% defense.
    • Battlebot Barrage E: Fire a chaingun for 85% damage against 2 targets; 30% Rage reduction.; 20% Rage reduction.

 

Other Changes and Fixes:

  • Darkeater's Insanity: Increases target's Rage while lowering Strength/Support 40 points.
  • Whiteout: 1 turn duration
  • Fixed: Bug that caused the search bar to freeze the Arcade
  • Fixed: Bug that caused bosses to freeze the game at the end of battle.

Tags: Nightwraith

 

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