Hey Folks,
It’s been a minute since we introduced our Autumn Roadmap, so we wanted to take a moment to check in and talk to you all about what you can expect to see in this week’s patch, Update 0.50. There are two headline features being introduced with Update 0.50, both of which should provide significant additional variety to Realm vs. Realm combat across all three factions.
What’s Coming This Update
First, players will get to play the new Scout archetype! Mobile, stealth-focused, and excellent at gathering information, Scouts thrive when positioning themselves to outmaneuver their enemies. The Scout archetype covers three classes, each with their own bespoke abilities and mechanics.
The Spectre – Arthurians
Above: The line between living and dead is a blade’s edge, and one that Spectres wield.
The Spectres of Camelot walk the line between living and dead, their very essence split between this world and the afterlife. The weight of this sacrifice is clear in their haunting visage, but allows them to excel at infiltration, information gathering, and finding their target. Stalking their foes as a wraith, they are exceptionally gifted at locating enemy threats.
The Wisp – Tuatha Dé Danann
Above: Wisps dance in the dark, ephemeral and impossible to corner.
Touched by the will of the Fae, Wisps emerge from the dark before returning to its embrace in the blink of an eye. With bows in hand they harass the enemies of their people, haranguing and plaguing would-be invaders with ambushes and slipping away before any harm can come to them. The Wisp knows when to fight and when to flee, a persistent thorn in the side of those foolish enough to cross them.
The Arisen – Vikings
Above: The Arisen walk beyond death, and bring it to their foes.
Raised from Hel to bring retribution upon the enemies of the Vikings, the Arisen bring terror to the battlefield as undead killers, hunting with ruthless determination. They excel at focusing on a single target and trapping them in place, and can even resist the call of the grave for a limited time should a fight prove fatal.
The Beginnings of Siege Warfare
In addition to the new Scout archetype, Update 0.50 will include the first look at CU’s new Siege mechanics! In this early iteration of Siege, players will be able to craft and utilize trebuchets to rain hell upon their enemies from afar. Trebuchets can be placed anywhere with even terrain, enabling you to seize the high ground in a pitched battle or defend your walls during a siege.
Above: Trebuchets, coming to Update 0.50 this Friday!
Currently, trebuchets are capable of targeting and damaging both players/NPCs as well as the gates on Keeps and Points of Interest. They can be deployed from the player’s inventory by selecting them, then left-clicking to confirm placement once both the inner and outer rectangle are displayed as green instead of red.
What’s Coming in the Future
We are already working on producing both faction-specific varieties of the trebuchets coming with this update, and brand new siege weapons to add more variety to your arsenal. It is also our intent to introduce mechanics to encourage cooperation and interplay between Realm members, such as having multiple players operating a siege ram to batter down a gate.
Above: Concept art of the Viking trebuchet.
Above: Concept art of the Tuathan trebuchet.
Above: A Tuathan trebuchet in action, coming soon to a Keep near you!
Additionally, we are working towards introducing more destructible components like walls with various stages of damage. We look forward to expanding on the Siege system in the coming months with more engines and destruction, but the team is already excited with what we’ve put together to provide more options for players in battle.
Above: Concept showcasing wall damage at various stages alongside early models.
Above: Concept and model for the Tuathan scorpion.
In Conclusion…
While Update 0.50 primarily focuses on the introduction of Scouts and Siege, we’ll also be introducing a bevy of balance tweaks to experience gain and player classes, changes to how defenders respawn in their local Keep, and a myriad of bug fixes. You can expect a full accounting of all of the changes we’ve made in our patch notes this Friday, but we hope this sneak peek helps show some of what the team has been working on behind the curtain.
Additionally, we remain focused on taking in player feedback and working on the other key items laid out in our Autumn Roadmap. The introduction of more incentives for RvR combat is a high priority internally, as is introducing more comprehensive social features and Quality of Life improvements for our players. We look forward to seeing you all this upcoming Early Access weekend, beginning on Friday, October 2nd at 1PM EDT.
– The UCE Team