Greetings Celadorians,

 

We are excited to share some of the awesome progress on the upcoming PR11: Outlands release. The Outlands is shaping up to be a truly unique landmass and we are ready to showcase two new points of interest: the Hangman’s Tree and Necropolis. In our design highlight, Ben will be offering some insight into how players will be able to use the new Necromancy skill to experiment with new playstyles by channeling the power of the undead. 

 

World Building: Necropolis & Hangman’s Tree

Several points of interest can be found in Outlands, but among all of them, the Hangman’s Tree and the Necropolis are the most thematically connected. The Necropolis, a sprawling overworld area, was an old adobe prison hastily converted into a mass grave when the dead began to rise again.

 

 

The Hangman’s Tree can be found along the railway leading to the Necropolis; long ago, prisoners were carted by on their way to prison, and when the dead rose once more, those suspected of necromancy were suspended from its branches—regardless of their guilt.

 

 

These work-in-progress renders and scenes show what assets look like during development, or how they might be assembled in-engine. Once the assets have undergone rounds of feedback and iteration, the next step is to get them integrated in-game.

 

Design: Necromancer Class

The Necromancer class has been highly anticipated by the Legends of Aria player base for quite some time. We are extremely excited to be bringing it to fruition in the Outlands update.  The Necromancer class will be extremely pet oriented with summonable minions, which provides the class with a large portion of its damage but also acting as a manageable resource.

 

Necromancers will start out with the ability to summon a base minion type that will be “upgradeable” through the necromancer infusing their essence into the minion.  By essence, we mean life. Necromancers will not feature a traditional mana/energy pool but will instead use their life force as their primary resource to cast spells and enhance minions. These base minions will have the ability to be enhanced to fill specific roles that the Necromancer may need at the time, such as melee, ranged, and magic damage dealers as well as minions that can actively taunt enemies.  

 

However, don’t get attached to your minions as there are multiple pathways for the Necromancer to dispose of them in exchange for defensive and offensive potency.  Players that want to excel at the necromancy class will have to learn to adeptly juggle the creation and consumption of their minions as well as their own health pools.

 

As mentioned above, the Necromancer’s toolkit relies on their health pool as a means to summon minions and cast incantations but in addition the potency of their abilities is directly tied to how much health the Necromancer has remaining. Though we are still doing internal testing and some aspects of the Necromancer may change release, we feel that the class will allow veteran and novice players to both find it to be an enjoyable challenge.

 

Smooth and Steady Progress

Our team is currently heads down building the best experience possible in Outlands, and we’re excited to continue sharing updates as development progresses. Moving ahead, we’ll continue to build out additional points of interest, including the Undead Quarry, Bone Graveyard, and more. Additionally, our design team will start to focus on pet abilities and the magery revamp after the Necromancer development is finalized. 

 

Stay tuned for future development updates in the weeks ahead, and keep an eye on the Legends of Aria Development Board to stay connected with our progress. 

 

Looking for an MMO with true risk and reward? Play Legends of Aria for free now.

Discover a world forged by players, where your choices write the story. What role will you play?

 

Key Features:

 

    • A Living, Breathing MMORPG: Explore a true open world without limitation. Build, explore and adventure with thousands of players in a living breathing world defined by you.
    • Skill-Based World: Legends of Aria returns to a true skill based system. Build your character your way, be you a crafter, adventurer, merchant or humble fisherman. Hone your skills through use and play your way with a choice of over 32 unique skills.
    • Return to a True Sandbox: Legends of Aria is inspired by the original sandbox MMORPGs. Experience a world that does not hold your hand. A world that is driven by you and shaped by our community. A world of dangers, where friendships, enemies made and your actions written into legend