Post by Emiliana on Jan 19, 2021 20:13:49 GMT 1
The Southern Invasion Event is over!
We recently concluded our first faction race event where the two factions both faced a brand new and dangerous enemy, forcing them to organize to combat invading forces, investigate clues on who they were dealing with, and plan and supply a counter-attack force to stop the invaders for good, testing their fighters, crafters, and logistic organization. Players were busy and playing hard for six to seven days and it was great to see! The rewards were a week of fun and memories, new items, and big piles of treasure unmatched by anything so far to split between all of your friends and allies.
Event Recap
To avoid spoilers we had to keep the specifics of what the event would entail a secret, and even its start time! This meant our introduction post for the event was rather thin, so for posterity sake, I'll give a brief recap on the steps taken by the factions.
Stage I
-Gather 80 Map Pieces and all information about the invaders
During Stage I, factions scrambled to gather their forces and attack the scouts of the invaders, who were mapping the island as they moved along Agonia's southern regions. The more they fought, the more waves of reinforcements the invaders sent, forcing a stressful and widespread bloody encounter lasting two days all along the shore. Using the partial map pieces and drawings from fallen invaders, the factions eventually pieced together a complete map, good enough to see where they were coming from, two docks on the southern shore. The leaders of the invasion also fondly carried pages of worn journal documenting their trip across the sea to Agonia.
Stage II
-Destroy the Fortification Bastion, Barricade, and Palisade, and Secure the Dock from the remaining forces.
Upon seeing how hostile the Agonian factions were, the invaders had constructed two sizable forts to protect their docks, aiming to keep a foothold on Agonia. For Stage II, the factions lay siege to these forts, a day long battle ensued as both sides threw everything at each other, but eventually the factions toppled the walls and destroyed the enemies that remained inside, securing the dock and cutting the invaders off from the mainland.
Stage III
-Build a vessel at the dock to cross the waters to assault the island.
-Gather 12000 Planks
-Gather 3600 Dimensional Stones
-Gather 80 Dozen Iron Nails
-Gather 2000 Hide
With the mainland docks secured by the factions, they wanted to travel to the southern island to finish off the rest of the invaders, but for that, they needed a vessel. During Stage III, the factions used what was left of the fort, along with planks and dimensional stones they harvested from nearby forests and hills to construct a boat to travel south along the channel. Many plans were made and many carts were assembled, axe chops and falling trees echoed through the air, each faction working in harmony towards a common goal, and hunting down the remaining invaders on the mainland.
Stage IV
-Deduce the correct sorcery totem, and craft it to calm the seas, allowing passage.
-Gather materials for the sorcery totem (1 diamond, 3 sapphires, 9 rubies, multiple spirits) and place it on the ship at the dock.
When the invaders noticed the factions finishing their make-shift boats, they put their final line of defense in play. The Vumpa used their strong connection with sorcery and nature to make the channel of water between the mainland and the island unsailable, so the factions had to fight fire with fire. Using clues hidden in the different pages of a journal found during Stage I, the factions needed to emulate the totems and spellcasting of the Vumpa to reverse the chaos of the sea. The high cost of an individual totem forced the factions to ponder carefully and look at all available information for the answer to the riddle. (see more below)
Stage V
-Sail over and wipe out the forces occupying the island, and plunder war spoils from their main encampment.
The event added a new neutral territory island, meant to be home for the free folk that wished to stay out of the way and serve as a neutral marketplace. The winners of the Stage I through IV race were the first allowed on the island, exploring a new land while defeating the remaining forces of the invaders, and gathering their loot while trying catch a few more invading spirits, and spending their free time chasing legends. Once 48 hours are up, the other faction gets their turn to close their invasion storyline, assaulting the island with just a little bit less of a reward from the invader encampment.
Comparative Timeline
Note 1: With knowledge of the Forsaken finishing Stage IV first, the race was over and the Order were in no hurry to finish so this time is inflated.
Note 2: Stage V is a set duration phase, where the factions take turns fighting the invaders on the island to conclude the event, Stage IV winners went first.
Leadership Rewards for Valor
One of the rewards for the event is leadership skill EXP based on how many of the invading tribes you killed, along with bonuses for killing enemy leaders and landing the final blow on the fortifications. I will apply the leadership bonuses sometime in the near future! These are just the top 20 and the final blow mentions, but anyone who killed at least one invading enemy will be getting leadership EXP from the event.
The Invasion event is in what we consider the "Leadership event" spot for this year, similar to Skeleton War last year. Last year, the Skeleton War kill leaders got upwards of 7500 leadership and 3000 main weapon exp, and more relics, but since the Invaders have a lot more juicy loot this will be a good bit lower this year. Leadership rewards will start at 5000 exp and ramp down as your distance from the Rank 1 Invader Slayer increases, and no main weapon exp.
Top 20 (Enemy Units Killed) Top 10 will receive 1 Ancient Relic
1) Mutuwa
2) Razortooth
3) Tiana
4) Grahf
5) Long
6) Tiu
7) Dollar
8) Kelaro
9) Legolas
10) Azathoth
Grazzt
Balin
Noseclipper
Smashedolbasher
Horgull
Groinky
Reigar
Xavan
Greenjollygiant
Khazar
Final Blows (Invader Leaders - 500XP Leadership)
Askytos, Balin, Grahf, Horgull, Mazus, Mutuwa, Osin, Razortooth
Final Blows (Fortifications - 250XP Leadership)
Dollar, Greyhawk, Greenjollygiant, Groinky, Kurbads, Legolas
Material Rewards for the Factions
The fortifications and the main invader encampment on the island both had treasure piles stored in them, vast amounts of gold coins to keep the faction coffers full for months, and enough shiny trinkets and rare loot to reward all of their fighters plentifully. The enemy forces also were stuffed with goodies! Ancient relics, gold coins, acid glands, and new resistance amulets to protect against elemental damage as long as you socket the runes. In total, about 13 Sapphire Resistance Amulets, and 46 Ruby Resistance Amulets were found, but there will be more soon enough.
Number of players defeated
In total, 285 players were killed! Good job invaders! 10% of all player deaths to monsters from launch until now happened during this week! In the past, the Xarnak battles killed 271 players, and the Skeleton War killed 270 players.
Vumpa Warlocks killed 147 players (51% of kills during this event, and over 5% of all kills ever!! This is now the unit with the most kills in the game.)
Vumpa Oracles killed 37 players (13%)
Accruali Swarmers killed 16 players (5%)
Accruali Soldiers killed 14 players
War Jackals killed 12 players
Sandborn Warriors killed 10 players
Accruali Bugbears killed 10 players
Maanhaar Infantry killed 8 players
Maanhaar Rangers killed 8 players
Vumpa Occultists killed 7 players
Sandborn Hunters killed 4 players
Accruali Monarchs killed 4 players
Gargantuan Basilisks killed 3 players
Maanhaar Captains killed 2 players
Sandborn Bandits killed 2 players
Vumpa Chieftain killed 1 player
The Riddle of the Journal, and Backstory
The four invading tribes, the Vumpa, the Accruali, the Maanhaar, and the Sandborn Kerala, are not native to the small island off the coast of Agonia, they hail from a land far south across the sea. Their voyage to Agonia was the result of a groundbreaking peace treaty initiative, a cooperative exploratory voyage to celebrate and test their newfound peace and alliance. The Vumpa, Maanhaar, and Accruali had been at war with each other for centuries, ravaging their homeland, until a Vumpa Chieftain had a prophetic vision of a far off land steeped with hidden power and resources, and their focus was drawn solely to that new goal. To cross the Koralian Sea is no easy feat, so the Vumpa needed a plan, and help.
Using their unrivaled power with sorcery and lifeforces, the Vumpa created a spell that allowed them to control vast bodies of water, calming or enraging the seas at a glance, but strong spells need much lifeforce and reagents. So the Vumpa catered the spell to be cast using the lifeforce of the plentiful Maanhaar and Accruali tribes, as well as their own, and sought out an alliance with promises of endless treasure and power. The in-game pages from the journal of Jonas document this alliance and voyage from an outsiders perspective, leaving breadcrumbs of information to piece together, as even Jonas did not know what was unfolding around him.
"This plan of theirs is insanity, and no one outside of the Vumpa and our King's table even knows why it's imperative for we and the Accruali to even be a part of it... Some big damned secret." - The Journal, Page 21
"Three, or four, days at sea by now, and I have never in my life seen the ocean this calm, the wind this behaved and peaceful, and hardly a cloud in the sky. If ever you could consider a trip blessed, this would be it. Good tidings." - The Journal, Page 31
"He traced his fingers through the air multiple times, along the same eight stars, over and over, in a fond loving manner, I swear he could do that with his eyes closed. He was entranced, and I recall the name he whispered multiple times... Serpens." - The Journal, Page 31
"One of our captains caught them watching some animals fight in a corner of one of the lower decks, apparently some of them smuggled almost a dozen scorpions on board and take turns betting and cheering them on as they pinch and sting each other. The Accruali seem especially fond of those creatures, and hey, at least one of the tribes was smart enough to bring some entertainment for the ride." - The Journal, Page 36
"Take good care of your jackals and aardwolves people, they are part of us." - The Journal, Page 43
"We aren't animals afterall, we are civilized." - The Journal, Page 56
These snippets from the in-game pages point to the outline of the riddle, but alone they don't do the journal itself justice, as the character of Jonas and the Maanhaar's perspective is built up over all of the pages. The spirit animals and lifeforce of these tribes cause them to have very identifiable traits and behaviors even to an unaware observer. With their magics, the Vumpa used the lifeforce of all of those aboard to calm the sea while they were crossing, taking a harmless amount from each person.
While trying to answer the riddle, players were tasked with picking which spirits were needed for the totem, amongst almost a dozen choices. The answer of course was in the form of the totem that included all three Serpens, Canis, and Scorpius related spirits, the spirit animals of the Vumpa, Maanhaar, and Accruali.
---
After sailing for nearly 40 days, the four tribes landed on an island off the coast of Agonia, and prepared their forces to cross to the mainland while watching the Forsaken and Order fight each other for all of December. Then, on January 11th, they struck without warning, spreading throughout the south and killing everyone in their way! Sorry Free Folk! At least you get a new island from it.
If you're interested in the journal, don't worry, it's not going anywhere. Stay tuned...
In closing:
We hope you all had fun and enjoyed the event even if you found it stressful! Belouch and I had a lot of fun designing it and stress running it as well don't worry. We want you to look forward to Agonia in 2021 because we sure are!
And no you can't reroll to Vumpa.
We recently concluded our first faction race event where the two factions both faced a brand new and dangerous enemy, forcing them to organize to combat invading forces, investigate clues on who they were dealing with, and plan and supply a counter-attack force to stop the invaders for good, testing their fighters, crafters, and logistic organization. Players were busy and playing hard for six to seven days and it was great to see! The rewards were a week of fun and memories, new items, and big piles of treasure unmatched by anything so far to split between all of your friends and allies.
Event Recap
To avoid spoilers we had to keep the specifics of what the event would entail a secret, and even its start time! This meant our introduction post for the event was rather thin, so for posterity sake, I'll give a brief recap on the steps taken by the factions.
Stage I
-Gather 80 Map Pieces and all information about the invaders
During Stage I, factions scrambled to gather their forces and attack the scouts of the invaders, who were mapping the island as they moved along Agonia's southern regions. The more they fought, the more waves of reinforcements the invaders sent, forcing a stressful and widespread bloody encounter lasting two days all along the shore. Using the partial map pieces and drawings from fallen invaders, the factions eventually pieced together a complete map, good enough to see where they were coming from, two docks on the southern shore. The leaders of the invasion also fondly carried pages of worn journal documenting their trip across the sea to Agonia.
Stage II
-Destroy the Fortification Bastion, Barricade, and Palisade, and Secure the Dock from the remaining forces.
Upon seeing how hostile the Agonian factions were, the invaders had constructed two sizable forts to protect their docks, aiming to keep a foothold on Agonia. For Stage II, the factions lay siege to these forts, a day long battle ensued as both sides threw everything at each other, but eventually the factions toppled the walls and destroyed the enemies that remained inside, securing the dock and cutting the invaders off from the mainland.
Stage III
-Build a vessel at the dock to cross the waters to assault the island.
-Gather 12000 Planks
-Gather 3600 Dimensional Stones
-Gather 80 Dozen Iron Nails
-Gather 2000 Hide
With the mainland docks secured by the factions, they wanted to travel to the southern island to finish off the rest of the invaders, but for that, they needed a vessel. During Stage III, the factions used what was left of the fort, along with planks and dimensional stones they harvested from nearby forests and hills to construct a boat to travel south along the channel. Many plans were made and many carts were assembled, axe chops and falling trees echoed through the air, each faction working in harmony towards a common goal, and hunting down the remaining invaders on the mainland.
Stage IV
-Deduce the correct sorcery totem, and craft it to calm the seas, allowing passage.
-Gather materials for the sorcery totem (1 diamond, 3 sapphires, 9 rubies, multiple spirits) and place it on the ship at the dock.
When the invaders noticed the factions finishing their make-shift boats, they put their final line of defense in play. The Vumpa used their strong connection with sorcery and nature to make the channel of water between the mainland and the island unsailable, so the factions had to fight fire with fire. Using clues hidden in the different pages of a journal found during Stage I, the factions needed to emulate the totems and spellcasting of the Vumpa to reverse the chaos of the sea. The high cost of an individual totem forced the factions to ponder carefully and look at all available information for the answer to the riddle. (see more below)
Stage V
-Sail over and wipe out the forces occupying the island, and plunder war spoils from their main encampment.
The event added a new neutral territory island, meant to be home for the free folk that wished to stay out of the way and serve as a neutral marketplace. The winners of the Stage I through IV race were the first allowed on the island, exploring a new land while defeating the remaining forces of the invaders, and gathering their loot while trying catch a few more invading spirits, and spending their free time chasing legends. Once 48 hours are up, the other faction gets their turn to close their invasion storyline, assaulting the island with just a little bit less of a reward from the invader encampment.
Comparative Timeline
| Order Time | Forsaken Time | Cumulative Difference | |
| Stage I | 49h 20m | 47h 45m | -1h 35m (Forsaken) |
| Stage II | 30h 45m | 27h 30m | -4h 50m (Forsaken) |
| Stage III | 41h 00m | 35h 30m | -10h 20m (Forsaken) |
| Stage IV | 25h 00m | 3h 15m | Note 1 |
| Stage V | 48h | 48h | Note 2 |
Note 1: With knowledge of the Forsaken finishing Stage IV first, the race was over and the Order were in no hurry to finish so this time is inflated.
Note 2: Stage V is a set duration phase, where the factions take turns fighting the invaders on the island to conclude the event, Stage IV winners went first.
Leadership Rewards for Valor
One of the rewards for the event is leadership skill EXP based on how many of the invading tribes you killed, along with bonuses for killing enemy leaders and landing the final blow on the fortifications. I will apply the leadership bonuses sometime in the near future! These are just the top 20 and the final blow mentions, but anyone who killed at least one invading enemy will be getting leadership EXP from the event.
The Invasion event is in what we consider the "Leadership event" spot for this year, similar to Skeleton War last year. Last year, the Skeleton War kill leaders got upwards of 7500 leadership and 3000 main weapon exp, and more relics, but since the Invaders have a lot more juicy loot this will be a good bit lower this year. Leadership rewards will start at 5000 exp and ramp down as your distance from the Rank 1 Invader Slayer increases, and no main weapon exp.
Top 20 (Enemy Units Killed) Top 10 will receive 1 Ancient Relic
1) Mutuwa
2) Razortooth
3) Tiana
4) Grahf
5) Long
6) Tiu
7) Dollar
8) Kelaro
9) Legolas
10) Azathoth
Grazzt
Balin
Noseclipper
Smashedolbasher
Horgull
Groinky
Reigar
Xavan
Greenjollygiant
Khazar
Final Blows (Invader Leaders - 500XP Leadership)
Askytos, Balin, Grahf, Horgull, Mazus, Mutuwa, Osin, Razortooth
Final Blows (Fortifications - 250XP Leadership)
Dollar, Greyhawk, Greenjollygiant, Groinky, Kurbads, Legolas
Material Rewards for the Factions
The fortifications and the main invader encampment on the island both had treasure piles stored in them, vast amounts of gold coins to keep the faction coffers full for months, and enough shiny trinkets and rare loot to reward all of their fighters plentifully. The enemy forces also were stuffed with goodies! Ancient relics, gold coins, acid glands, and new resistance amulets to protect against elemental damage as long as you socket the runes. In total, about 13 Sapphire Resistance Amulets, and 46 Ruby Resistance Amulets were found, but there will be more soon enough.
Number of players defeated
In total, 285 players were killed! Good job invaders! 10% of all player deaths to monsters from launch until now happened during this week! In the past, the Xarnak battles killed 271 players, and the Skeleton War killed 270 players.
Vumpa Warlocks killed 147 players (51% of kills during this event, and over 5% of all kills ever!! This is now the unit with the most kills in the game.)
Vumpa Oracles killed 37 players (13%)
Accruali Swarmers killed 16 players (5%)
Accruali Soldiers killed 14 players
War Jackals killed 12 players
Sandborn Warriors killed 10 players
Accruali Bugbears killed 10 players
Maanhaar Infantry killed 8 players
Maanhaar Rangers killed 8 players
Vumpa Occultists killed 7 players
Sandborn Hunters killed 4 players
Accruali Monarchs killed 4 players
Gargantuan Basilisks killed 3 players
Maanhaar Captains killed 2 players
Sandborn Bandits killed 2 players
Vumpa Chieftain killed 1 player
The Riddle of the Journal, and Backstory
The four invading tribes, the Vumpa, the Accruali, the Maanhaar, and the Sandborn Kerala, are not native to the small island off the coast of Agonia, they hail from a land far south across the sea. Their voyage to Agonia was the result of a groundbreaking peace treaty initiative, a cooperative exploratory voyage to celebrate and test their newfound peace and alliance. The Vumpa, Maanhaar, and Accruali had been at war with each other for centuries, ravaging their homeland, until a Vumpa Chieftain had a prophetic vision of a far off land steeped with hidden power and resources, and their focus was drawn solely to that new goal. To cross the Koralian Sea is no easy feat, so the Vumpa needed a plan, and help.
Using their unrivaled power with sorcery and lifeforces, the Vumpa created a spell that allowed them to control vast bodies of water, calming or enraging the seas at a glance, but strong spells need much lifeforce and reagents. So the Vumpa catered the spell to be cast using the lifeforce of the plentiful Maanhaar and Accruali tribes, as well as their own, and sought out an alliance with promises of endless treasure and power. The in-game pages from the journal of Jonas document this alliance and voyage from an outsiders perspective, leaving breadcrumbs of information to piece together, as even Jonas did not know what was unfolding around him.
"This plan of theirs is insanity, and no one outside of the Vumpa and our King's table even knows why it's imperative for we and the Accruali to even be a part of it... Some big damned secret." - The Journal, Page 21
"Three, or four, days at sea by now, and I have never in my life seen the ocean this calm, the wind this behaved and peaceful, and hardly a cloud in the sky. If ever you could consider a trip blessed, this would be it. Good tidings." - The Journal, Page 31
"He traced his fingers through the air multiple times, along the same eight stars, over and over, in a fond loving manner, I swear he could do that with his eyes closed. He was entranced, and I recall the name he whispered multiple times... Serpens." - The Journal, Page 31
"One of our captains caught them watching some animals fight in a corner of one of the lower decks, apparently some of them smuggled almost a dozen scorpions on board and take turns betting and cheering them on as they pinch and sting each other. The Accruali seem especially fond of those creatures, and hey, at least one of the tribes was smart enough to bring some entertainment for the ride." - The Journal, Page 36
"Take good care of your jackals and aardwolves people, they are part of us." - The Journal, Page 43
"We aren't animals afterall, we are civilized." - The Journal, Page 56
These snippets from the in-game pages point to the outline of the riddle, but alone they don't do the journal itself justice, as the character of Jonas and the Maanhaar's perspective is built up over all of the pages. The spirit animals and lifeforce of these tribes cause them to have very identifiable traits and behaviors even to an unaware observer. With their magics, the Vumpa used the lifeforce of all of those aboard to calm the sea while they were crossing, taking a harmless amount from each person.
While trying to answer the riddle, players were tasked with picking which spirits were needed for the totem, amongst almost a dozen choices. The answer of course was in the form of the totem that included all three Serpens, Canis, and Scorpius related spirits, the spirit animals of the Vumpa, Maanhaar, and Accruali.
---
After sailing for nearly 40 days, the four tribes landed on an island off the coast of Agonia, and prepared their forces to cross to the mainland while watching the Forsaken and Order fight each other for all of December. Then, on January 11th, they struck without warning, spreading throughout the south and killing everyone in their way! Sorry Free Folk! At least you get a new island from it.
If you're interested in the journal, don't worry, it's not going anywhere. Stay tuned...
In closing:
We hope you all had fun and enjoyed the event even if you found it stressful! Belouch and I had a lot of fun designing it and stress running it as well don't worry. We want you to look forward to Agonia in 2021 because we sure are!
And no you can't reroll to Vumpa.