On Tuesday, April 23rd, we released Point Release 5, which featured changes to our Tax, Death, and Mount Systems.

One major topic of discussion in our community is the Mount System. We realize that, when pushing through big changes like these, it’s important for us to not only explain what will be changing, but also why these things will be changing. Moving forward, we will include our reasoning behind changes in the patch notes whenever we overhaul a major system.

So, to be straight with you, regular horses suck. The plan with ethereal mounts is to give our players regular horses that don’t suck. For starters, always having to dismiss the horse after you get off it? That sucks. Ethereal mounts dismiss automatically after dismounting, turning immediately into a statue you can use for remounting. Another issue that they solve is the one of accidentally attacking your own horse when you dismount. Which also really sucks, and is one of the most common complaints we have received from the community. This is our way of eliminating these issues while addressing some inherent flaws in our mounted combat system. It’s our hope that all mid-to-end game characters will have ethereal mounts. Changes made in today’s patch make Ether easier to come buy with the addition of a new Etherealize potion for Alchemists, allowing anyone to create ethereal mounts.

We want you to know that we’re actively discussing the mount system internally – not only unintended bugs and issues that need to be fixed, but also your overall feedback. We’re watching and listening very closely, and we’ve already made some adjustments based on your feedback. No longer will you dismount when using a Hearthstone or casting Portal, and you’ll no longer dismount when checking your Atlas and activating Escape Scroll. We’ve made a few additional changes as well – you can read all the hotfix patch notes here.

We really believe in this system, and we believe you will as well. So, we ask that you give it a real try. Friday through Sunday you will get 1 ethereal mount per account, per server – up to 3 free ethys – to try out. We look forward to hearing your feedback once you’ve given these majestic beasts a shot.

Changing systems up is an inherent part of the development process for any game and, because Legends of Aria is an Early Access game, our community is experiencing them in real time. There are bound to be passionate opinions, and we want you to know that we’re listening.

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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.
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