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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

November 07, 2014

Birthday Bio War Rumble

Rumble in the BioDome!

The time has come...FOR WAR...and cake. Cake? That's right. Today, we're excited to launch a new war region, the Biological Preserve, in addition to Nightwraith's birthday stash of rare loot.

Biological Preserve War Map

The Biological Preserve is the last bastion for all that is green and growing on Delta V, and it is being used as a weapon by those occupying the region. By using Davarril's research on mind-controlling Spores, Exiles have engineered a massive tree to become a spore-launching factory, spreading spores throughout the region. 

Purifier

The Legion, under the watch of Cinderella, are attempting to stop this threat with Purifiers. These devices launch spores to counteract the Corruption Spores launched by the Corrupted Tree.

Purifier Closeup

Exiles will attempt to use this to their advantage by planting Corruption Spore on the Purifiers, infesting them and turning them into Corruption Spore factories.

Corrupted Tree

The only way to stop the spread of the spores is to cleanse the Corrupted Tree. When it is fully cleansed, the Legion will take control of the Biological Preserve. If the Exiles prevail and infest the Purifiers, the region will fall fully under Exile control. 

War in the Forest

Davarril has been moved one screen to the left of the Corrupted Tree. You'll find him next to the Ammunition Depot stocked with war drops. Davarril's mind still isn't right from the Arborgeddon event so he won't be much help to you.

Armor Hazard Husk

This war's prize is a mighty one indeed! Claws and teeth and hardened-bone armor await the conquerers of the Biological Preserve!

Close Up!

We've also added some small changes to the War balancing mechanics, specifically to prevent War Rallies from occuring when both alignments are within 1% of each other. Also, rallies will not happen when the war is nearly over. This should provide clarity to those confused by the outcome of the last war.

Now, go forth my Legion and Exile warriors! Claim the Biological Preserve for glory! But first...

 

Nightwraith's Birthday Bash

Birthday Party Time!

Happy Birthday to me! Well, it's still a bit early, but why not? Everyone loves cake! 

Nightwraith's Birthday Loot

Also, everyone loves new stuff! Remember, you'll need the OneX6 Key to access my stash in the ArmoryBot. You can either claim it from me by completing the OneX6 4 mission or just buy it from me if you're the impatient type. This year, I've stolen NegaWraith's (that IMPOSTER) armor to sell at my own shop. Haha! I can't wait to see the look on his face when he sees my minions clad in his precious power armor!

Nightwraith's Terrifying Visage

Be sure to kick him in the shin if you find him in Fortune City skulking around the Battle Arena.

Also, there are new and returning missions ready to play! The Party Business mission chain has returned with a new mission, and Titan has a new chain Caffeine Crash to complement the Coffee Crusader chain. This chain will allow you to redeem Titan's Mug for a rare Achievement!

 

Titan's Trinket

Titan's Mug

Some have been asking about the Titan's Mug item from the Artix Entertainment 12th anniversary event. Here's what will happen:

  • The Coffee Crusader mission chain will go rare at the end of November.
  • Those with the Titan's Mug item can complete the Coffeine Crash chain to redeem the mug for an achievement!
  • The achievement will be rare because it will not be possible to get the mug if you missed the event, similar to previous anniversary achievements.
  • You may keep the mug if you wish, but you miss out on all those sweet, sweet rating points.

Got it? You've got until the end of November to complete these missions and claim your prize!

 

Have a safe and happy weekend everyone! Duel On!

Tags: Nightwraith RPG Browser MMORPG Flash War Legion exile Battle Duel Strategy Holiday Achievement Titan Missions Rare Collector Rares Armor


Nightwraith

October 25, 2013

Ebil's End

The Battle Continues

Thanks to you and your fellow duelists, Chairman Platinum and his vile sludge factory are all but defeated! When the life bar finally falls, get ready to access Elon Musk's SolarWorld factory, to be contructed on the ruins of Ebilcorp's sluge machine. Within, you'll find many awesome gadgets, including and exciting new power. What power you ask? How about the power of flight!

Weeeeee!

The new Flight Module equips in your vehicle slot just like bikes and hovercraft. The module is activated by typing /fly to takeoff and again to land.

This new flight ability looks great when combined with the new Musk Husk Armor, a mass-production version of Elon Musk's power suit.

Musk Husk

This elegant, yet efficient design is able to adapt to any class or gender. If you don't have the stomach for air travel, you can always try a more grounded method: the Model L hovercar!

Model L

This new vehicle allows the driver to travel in luxury and privacy while preserving the environment!

 

Core Contingency

The SolarWorld factory will also house two new cores for your dueling pleasure!

Piston Punch

Piston Punch

Deliver a solid, solar-powered punch that absorbs your opponent's energy with this new active armor core! The energy absorbtion is based on your armor's Defense and Resistance values.

Critical Heal

Critical Heal

Always have a backup...especially when your life is on the line! This armor core improves the effectiveness of Field Medic when you're in critical condition (less than 20% HP).

 

Rare Harvest

While you're in the Wasteland, you might want to visit Snork in his subterranean home beneath the Minetower to check out some of his awesome returning seasonal rares!

 

Harvest Husk

The Reapening

Don't get it wet!

Also, be sure to check out the Event-based Harvest missions and collect the Hallowarrior achievement! There's more holiday fun to be had next week -- we just need to boot that pesky Chairman off the planet for good!

Tags: Elon Musk Nightwraith Lotus James Bond Car Vehicle SolarCity SpaceX Chairman Platinum EbilCorp Armor Battle Green Energy Rares Solar Cores


Nightwraith

October 11, 2013

Ebil Returns

*There will be no release today as we prepare for a MEGA RELEASE next week. Thank you for your patience!

Ebil Returns

It's been nearly a year since Chairman Platinum last showed his face on Delta V -- the populace quickly gave him a proper EpicDuel beat-down and put an end to his plans for a hostile takeover. If there's one thing the Chairman is good at (aside from robbing grannies and punting kittens) it's holding a grudge. After a year of planning and healing, he's ready to end the fued -- along with all the inhabitants of Delta V.

Rather than bringing an army, the Chairman is taking a more subtle approach -- forcibly extracting all the Varium from Delta V to cause the entire planet to collapse! The Ebilcorp extraction device is protected by a nearly impervious shield and in order to breach it, you'll need to face the Chairman himself!

This time, there will be no deals, no negotiations. The Chairman wants to annihilate those who wronged him and make a tidy profit while doing it. If only there were someone who could help us stop him!

 

Enter Musk

Musk

To defeat this otherworldy threat, Delta V will need an otherworldy benefactor in the form of Elon Musk, engineering mastermind and visionary businessman (basically the closest the real-world has to Tony Stark). While testing his new Ultraloop interstellar transportation device on a routine visit to a Martian colony, Musk overshot his target and landed on Delta V.

Although his ship was not damaged, he'll need some time to adjust his calculations. Since he's always up for a challenge calling for ingenuity, he's prepared to offer the citizens of Delta V his expertise in expelling the Ebilcorp threat and reversing Platinum's damage, offering Delta V a means of generating efficient renewable energy in the process!

This task will not be easy, however, as Musk is lightyears away from his fabrication workshop. You'll need to scour Delta V to find the parts necessary to allow this benevolent genius to invent a permanent solution to your Platinum problem. 

 

Coming Soon

New Missions

As stated above, Musk will need your help securing various items from across Delta V to devise a means for you to defeat Platinum. Also, he's not letting you go it alone -- complete his mission chain and he'll join you in a battle of the business titans as you take on Platinum in an epic 2v1 duel!

New Achievement

Complete the mission chain by defeating Chairman Platinum and you'll receive a new achievement!

New Cores

Chairman's Ebilcorp extractor is bad news, but Musk has plans to reengineer it to be a source of limitless energy! As an added bonus, the power plant will be able to produce advanced cores capable to augmenting basic stats!

New Armor

Musk sees you admiring his armor -- don't worry, he brought extras! Power up with the Musk Husk and send Chairman Platinum packing!

More!

Since next week will be a MEGA release, there are bound to be aspects that we forget to mention here. Stay tuned on Twitter and the Design Notes for the latest and greatest updates!

Tags: Titan EbilCorp Elon Musk Tesla Space Travel Solar Power Energy Pollution Clear Green Chairman Platinum Armor NPC Missions Achievements War


Cinderella

May 01, 2012

Keys, New Gear, and a Welcome to our newest Moderators

Hi there EpicDuelists! It’s your friendly Neighborhood Cinderella here with your weekly dose of design notes!

 

Confounding Keys

As we noted last week, and many of you have noticed, we now have a new system for building your own promo pack, where instead of a set promotional item, you get “keys” with which you can use to unlock weapons, extra credits, and other goodies.

Keys. How do they work?

To clarify some things: all keys must be used at one go, you cannot stock up keys.  You can purchase multiple bonuses to use up your keys if you wish or use them all in one go.  Players who purchased packages prior to this system will not be receiving more keys.  The keys are simply a way to allow you to unlock more bonuses with higher tier Varium packs.  You cannot purchase keys independently from the Varium packages.

If you need some help figuring out how to purchase promos using the new system, Practel has helpfully made this video guide to purchasing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXuVB_TQQZM

 

Infernal Armaments

Our newest addition to the creative team, Disturbed, has been hard at work on some new weapons as a preview to our next war: the Infernal Infiltration War! Again, we are super-excited to have him around, and he’s going to start working on backgrounds and items for this saga.

Disturbing Items

I should have an outline turned in by the end of this week for the first part of the saga. As before, player action will have a profound effect on the outcome of the story and impact on the aftermath.

 

New Mods!

We’re proud to announce the selection of the new members of our moderation team!

In no particular order:

 

Fay Beee

Daimyo

G00NY

ORDER

Elf Priest Jzaanu

Digital X

Basicball

Practel

 

Congrats all! If you see them running around with a green name, be nice to them- they’re new!

I also realize that at least one of our selections comes with quite a bit of controversy. Practel has been a tester and a personal friend of the development team up to and including Artix himself for quite a while. While he is not quite of age, AE has made exception for exceptional teens in the past, and we have confidence in Practel that he will live up to our expectations.

 

Artix & Sepulchure Toys

Cysero of AQW has already done a great job describing the new action figures, so Imma just rip it and post here.  Riiiiiiiiiiiiiip :3

 

They are nearly here!

My sources (at least the reliable ones) tell me that they are on their way to the U.S. Toys R Us locations right now. They should arrive there a week or two before theyn reach us here and become availible on HeroMart.Com.

People often ask us why we can't get them to Toys R Us locations in other countries and that's mostly because there are different branches of the company and our relationship is so far only with the American branch of the company.

If our stuff keeps selling well in the American branch then we might be invited to start up a relationship with various other branches of Toys R Us... but that's really up to you guys.

Toys R Us gets to set their own price and we want the HeroMart price to be competative with the Toys R Us price so we have to wait and see what they set their prices at before we can set ours. If we decided early and went too high with the HJeroMart price, then we would be shooting ourselves in the foot and losing sales to Toys R Us. If we go to low, then we undercut Toys R Us and they might decide to cut ties with us which kills any future deals we might make with ANY branch.

SO... soon they will get theirs, we will find out what the decide for the price and then we will be able to tell you the HeroMart price whicl will be very close to the store price.

For the special Limited Edition BLACK version of the toys, I'm pretty sure that the price will be $50. It comes with the same in-game items as the normal versions but we made a LOT less of these and you will ONLY be able to get them from HeroMart. These are for hardcore collectors ONLY (or maybe people who want to resell them on E-bay for double price when they sell our and go rare).

More news on that as it arrises.

 

LiveStream Event with Dage the Evil

Always have a spotter when using a paper cutter.

As you know, AQW has been inviting their artists to take part in live stream events in the game. The 5th and final artist participating in this particular event is Dage the Evil. I know many of our players are huge fans of Dage, so head on over to AQW around 4 PM EST/Server time.

 

Tents!

I was in the field a couple weeks ago and I had the opportunity to get up-close and personal with a web full of Eastern Tent caterpillars (Malacosoma americanum)- probably first instar. The tent was at eye level so I could see the caterpillars clearly. This species forms nests in woody roses including cherry, apple, and black cherry. The caterpillars are capable of consuming the cyanide compounds in these plants, but instead of sequestering the compounds in the hemolymph or fat, or metabolizing them, they keep the cyanide in the gut and vomit on would-be predators.

Of lepidopteran social behaviors, those of the Eastern Tent Caterpillars are among the most complex. Eggs are laid by the adults in spring or early summer, and the clutch contains 200-300 eggs. Upon hatching, the caterpillars construct a silk tent where they live communally, venturing outside the tend only to feed. They use vibratory and chemical signals to communicate with their siblings, and thrash as a group when the tent is attacked by a predator. 

They emerge as cute little fuzzy pink or brown moths.

 

Infernal Infiltration Preview Continued

This is another excerpt from the backstory for the upcoming war. Interstellar Marshalls John St. Alban and Silas Auer are investigating suspicious happenings on Delta V during their war for sovereignty. The two are separated, with Silas being guided by a Shadow Guard Commander, and Alydriah’s right-hand woman, Valestra Hitchens. Known throughout the galaxy as the “Angel of Death”, Valestra is an expert at hand-to-hand and ranged combat, a skilled sniper, and an accomplished poisoner.

 

They ventured into Fortune City's tenth district. A center for research and innovation, the district was marked by a large hospital, which Valestra explained is where she had learned pharmacology.

"There's someone I want you to meet. He isn't the administrator, but I think you'll like him."

Valestra led Silas to a back office in the basement where a lanky man wearing navy blue was working with his back turned.

"Ulysses!" 

The man turned. He was a man of about 30; tall and long all over, with a visage that seemed to be stuck in a perpetual wonder. His face was thin and wide gray eyes hid behind tinted goggles. A shock of unkempt dishwater blond hair perched awkwardly upon his head.

“Valestra! And is this a boyfriend?”

Valestra laughed. “Aww, Ulysses. You know I’m waiting for you.” She turned to Silas. “Ulysses is a Master Craftsman, brilliant engineer...”

“And a lover of beauty.” Ulysses extended a gloved hand to Valestra, took her hand, and kissed it. “If you’re not Val’s boyfriend...”

“He’s one of the Marshalls. Making sure we’re playing nice.”

“Oh! Well, Marshall, let me show you my latest project... I’m sorry what did you say your name was?”

“I didn’t. It’s Auer. Silas Auer.”

“Auer. Like gold. Splendid!” He picked up a golden object. It was oblong and was carved with strange markings. “Do you know what this is?”

“No. What is it?”

“I have no idea!” He smiled broadly.

“Your project...” Valestra interjected.

“Yes, of course. Pygmalion. That’s the name I gave my creation. It’s a method for extracting the central nervous system of a sick or dying creature and placing it in this ingenious metal suit! So far I’ve only tried it on rabbits and squidlings, but it could revolutionize medicine as we know it!”

As he said this, Ulysses produced a cage containing a little robotic bunny. The cyborg rabbit sadly chewed upon a corncob, and looked despondent and confused. 

“He looks sad.” Silas blurted.

“The alternative was dying from his injuries. This little guy was run over by a ground vehicle,” he said defensively, replacing the rabbit cage. “Lovely to see you, Valestra, but I’m sure I don’t want to waste any more of the Marshall’s time.” Valestra and Silas turned to leave when Silas heard his communicator beep. He read the text message- “Do not trust Alydriah. There’s more than she’s telling you. Find the Delta Vault.”

“What was that?” asked Valestra.

“Spam.  Apparently, there are Fortune City singles who wish to speak with me.” He closed the communicator and smiled rakishly at Valestra, "Intriguing."

She laughed. “Your wife must be jealous.”

“You looked at my background. You know I’m unmarried.”

Valestra smiled to herself. “Come on, there’s more to see, cowboy.”

Tags: Cinderella Infernal Infiltration Delta Knight Keys Varium promotions Moderators Armor Weapons War Toys


Cinderella

December 19, 2011

Frysteland War Continued

First of all, I want to congratulate each and every one of our players who have participated in the Frysteland War so far. The war is still going on, so be prepared for even more goodies and ways to defend your side. This conflict is far from over!

Remember, your actions WILL determine the fate of the Yetis and the Krampus people permanently. There are consequences to your actions, so fight well, EpicDuelists!

We've got a lot to do this week and not much time to do it! We plan on releasing Thursday, but depending on progress, we could release as early as Wednesday. I apologize in advance if anything in these DNs don't make it for this release, but we're aiming high and we're willing to stock up on enough caffeine to make it happen!

 

There Will Be Bugs

As with most new features, bugs are inevitable. We’ll be fixing a few things for this next update- the War schedule will be synchronized with the daily events from here on out, and many people were finding it more difficult to defeat the Yetis than the Krampus, so we’ll be balancing out the War NPCs. The Cryostaff and Kringlebot will both be returning to Hank, and Frostbane is being set to Permanent Rare.

 

New Threads

This week, we’ll also be introducing two new armors for purchase, the Frost Reaper armor for Legion players and the Beast Rider armor for Exile players. Equipping this armor increases the amount of War Points you earn for your cause by 20%. They will also offer an 11% chance to deliver a defense variant of FrostBite, which can apply to the attacker if they hit you with a normal strike while you have the armor equipped!

Moar War!

We’re adding THREE new War Ranks to bridge the large gaps between ranks, which should make ranking up a little bit easier for all players. Some of you may notice that you have a different rank that you had before, but that will be a good thing since some ranks are easier to obtain than before.  We have also readjusted the rating points that the higher-end achievements award.

We’ll also be implementing missions that will award points toward the war- remember, missions take forever to test, so if it’s a late night release don’t be too disappointed. Hope I don’t disappoint!

 

NPC Improvements

Since many were having trouble getting those Krampuses and Yetis to cough up War Bombs, we are increasing the drop rate for all NPCs, with the stronger NPCs offering a significantly higher chance to drop. We’re also implementing an Ice Gem drop that can be exchanged for credits, with more valuable Gems being dropped by higher level War NPCs.

We might be implementing a drop armor from War NPCs, but that depends on how much art Nightwraith and Charfade get done- you may have noticed that the areas are pretty art-heavy and Nightwraith and Charfade can only do so much with the hours in a day!

Also, the NPCs are pretty strong and silent right now, but we will be adding in the battle text soon! Maybe I’ll even take some time this week to write even more conversation into their text!

 

The Night Before Juloffenblotten

 

On Juloffenblotten Eve, the Citizens were busy

with shopping and gifting, all in a tizzy

Buying weapons and gift wrap and fruitcake- Half Price!

All the children were proving that they could be nice!

For on Juloffenblotten Eve, the old folks all tell,

comes Titanfraggr, ringing his shiny glass bell.

“You must leave out your shoes” say the grandmums and dads

“And make sure that you try to be good and not bad.

For if you are not rowdy and do as you’re told,

and keep your word as precious as gold

the man from the mountain will come down at night

with yummy lute berries to fill up your shoes tight

Also, copper wire! Such valuable stuff!

Titanfraggr knows all, and will give you enough.

But if you are wicked, deceitful and bad,

you will lose those shoes that you once had.

He’ll take your shoes, all the shoes, one by one

and give them away to a child who has none.

Instead of shoes, bad children will find

rusted old nails, and bitter orange rind.”

Children all try to earn Titanfraggr’s grace

so leave bacon and coffee to stuff in his face!

So tonight Titanfraggr on his toboggan will ride

With his robot termites by his side

And over the ground his steeds they run

By name he calls them, one by one

You can’t really hear him, so it comes out quite jumbled

so this part of the poem is usually mumbled.

But whatever their names, they pull this man

for they are the most magical landsalmon.

His eyes how they glow! His skin, abiotic!

His copper gauntlets he keeps cationic.

He is lanky and lean, with his beard so impressive

He counts all the shoes in a manner obsessive

And as the sun rises, Titanfraggr disappears

for he won’t return, ‘least not ‘til next year.

Tags: Cinderella Juloffenblotten Frysteland War drops NPCs Armor Yeti Krampus Titanfraggr

 

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