Glorious Alpha Two Testers!
Alpha Two Phase III testing has begun! During this phase, our realms will be open every day, and we'll only have downtime for updates and maintenance. We'll keep everyone up-to-date about downtimes in Discord.
If you have Alpha Two, you can download the game launcher here, and we encourage you to join us on our Official Discord Server for the most up to date testing news.
Alpha Two Phase III testing has begun! During this phase, our realms will be open every day, and we'll only have downtime for updates and maintenance. We'll keep everyone up-to-date about downtimes in Discord.
If you have Alpha Two, you can download the game launcher here, and we encourage you to join us on our Official Discord Server for the most up to date testing news.
Best Of
Re: Balance PVP and PVE for PVX please....
Way more pve forced on pvp players.
*The game* is PvE.
That is where the world is built, that is where the things players fight over in PvP reside.
PvP is there as a catalyst for change. It doesn't build, it breaks.
This game would still technically work (with a few changes) without any PvP at all. Remove PvE and you do not have a game.
PvP'ers are indeed a whiny bunch.
Noaani
1
Outfit Suggestions Autumn 2025
I'll be damned before i never suggest anything while the Internet sometimes show nice Inspirations i stumble upon.
We know Sets like "Steelbloom" and a few others already exist in the Alpha 2 - but there is no harm done in suggesting more Looks for Armor Sets, right ?
What about one or several cool Sets for a Theme and Area where the Citizens of Verra care for the sickly ? An Area where Pest and Plague broke out and have to be contained ? This here might look more fine and noble than practical though, probably.
We know Sets like "Steelbloom" and a few others already exist in the Alpha 2 - but there is no harm done in suggesting more Looks for Armor Sets, right ?
What about one or several cool Sets for a Theme and Area where the Citizens of Verra care for the sickly ? An Area where Pest and Plague broke out and have to be contained ? This here might look more fine and noble than practical though, probably.
Aszkalon
1
Re: Questions to the Developers
onewingedangelo1 wrote: »What are you talking about... You posed a lot of questions.... and they said that's a lot to go through, can you narrow it down for us..... and you didn't do that.
It's pretty simple. You are demanding them to do something and then when they try and meet you half way... you demand to have them meet you all the way. And now wondering why they are unwilling to work with you?!
Why? Because you feel entitled to get answers out of them because you don't pay attention enough when they do give us information? As I've stated a lot of your questions already have answers ... YOU just weren't paying attention when the gave the answers.
If you aren't willing to put forth the effort when they were reaching out to the community, why should they put forth the effort when you are reaching out to them.
That's totally not what's happened in this thread. You're still very new here. Some of these questions have been ongoing for a very long time, and should have had at least some sort of answer by now, even if the answer is simply: "X is the current plan, which is likely to change once we work through Y"
I get that you don't like that people want answers to their questions, but it would be helpful if you'd stop trying to de-rail the thread. What you're doing here isn't helping anybody, us or Intrepid.
*edit*
And, I work in Customer Support for a Software Developer. Having customers asking questions and telling them: Fuck that, we don't want to answer all those. Why not just pick your favourite one and we'll maybe have a think...
That's unacceptable.
Re: The State of PvP "petition" (Or lack of)
Key word "most". AOC is pushing itself in the community as a PVX game. It should reflect this, in its game play. Via rewarding PVP as much as it reward PVE. Really if it just rewarded PVP 1/4 of the amount that a guy pveing would get. I would be happy... 25% to a pvers 100% in a "PVX" . That is not asking for world, and would be a good place to start...
"Additional stats or skill you only get via PVP , would be nice... So people do not have to PVP, they will just not have those stats or skills. Ie improved blocking for tanks, Uninterrupted casting for healers for 5secs on 5 min cool down, ,,,all kinds of good ideas.... See DAOC realm abilities for ideas"
Great Idea!
I think you hit at the heart of one of my big issues with the design so far. What does PvX mean? I think you have different expectations than I. It seems you expect PvX to be 50% PvE and 50% PvP. Which is a fair assumption. But I expect PvX to mean PvP in controlled settings that have an affect on the world and PvE content. So random PvP would hardly be worth the risk, but PvP in a controlled setting like a war, siege, world boss kill, dynamic zone, caravans, open sea, ect or something of that nature would be worth it.
The Wiki states.
A defining principle of Ashes of Creation as a PvX game is that PvE builds the world, and PvP changes the world.[8]
https://ashesofcreation.wiki/PvX
I'd like to know more about how PvE builds the world. I know Settlements leveling up will upgrade the area. But what else in PvE is building the world? Or do they mean that PvE is how they (the devs) are building the world? Also how does PvP shape the world? Are the wars shaping the world? So settlements rising and falling 'shaping' the world? It's as clear as mud to me. Shaping and building are very similar verbs.
I don't think the lack of PvP rewards is the cause of the lack of PvP right now. I think it's the punishment and the lack of reason to PvP. Rewards like materials, loot, skill points, or whatever are the cherry on the cake. The real reason to PvP is something generated in the story and lore that drives people to do it. It could be a mechanic driven event by the code or by the player base, even better if both. Then when the players actually engage in PvP the reward is victory and the spoils are are the bonus. There's no bigger joy for me than mindless PvP. I'm not going to fight over a hunting spot when there's 20 other, I'm not going to drag mobs on groups for the fun of it. I will drag mobs on a group of players if they're are part of settlement B when settlement B has been attacking my settlements caravans though. Oops here I am again talking about factions...
Volgaris
1
Re: The State of PvP "petition" (Or lack of)
The Wiki states:
I don't think the lack of PvP rewards is the cause of the lack of PvP right now. I think it's the punishment and the lack of reason to PvP. Rewards like materials, loot, skill points, or whatever are the cherry on the cake. The real reason to PvP is something generated in the story and lore that drives people to do it. It could be a mechanic driven event by the code or by the player base, even better if both.
For someone (me) who pretty much all it did was mass pvp for years, be it fighting players and taking/defending objectives; i kinda disagree with that... rewards are very much incentives to keep on doing pvp and thats the issue of such lack of pvp, there is not much of incentives at all. Rewards is part of the reason you keep on doing pvp, not only but never the less part of it. Story and lore? yeaaaah never heard a pvper saying he enjoyed doing pvp because of the story or lore... Now events, driven pvp/x events now we talking; still we need incentives for/keep on doing them so, which usually is getting rewarded by doing it not just by thin air.
Kallysha
1
Re: The State of PvP "petition" (Or lack of)
Key word "most". AOC is pushing itself in the community as a PVX game. It should reflect this, in its game play. Via rewarding PVP as much as it reward PVE. Really if it just rewarded PVP 1/4 of the amount that a guy pveing would get. I would be happy... 25% to a pvers 100% in a "PVX" . That is not asking for world, and would be a good place to start...
"Additional stats or skill you only get via PVP , would be nice... So people do not have to PVP, they will just not have those stats or skills. Ie improved blocking for tanks, Uninterrupted casting for healers for 5secs on 5 min cool down, ,,,all kinds of good ideas.... See DAOC realm abilities for ideas"
Great Idea!
I think you hit at the heart of one of my big issues with the design so far. What does PvX mean? I think you have different expectations than I. It seems you expect PvX to be 50% PvE and 50% PvP. Which is a fair assumption. But I expect PvX to mean PvP in controlled settings that have an affect on the world and PvE content. So random PvP would hardly be worth the risk, but PvP in a controlled setting like a war, siege, world boss kill, dynamic zone, caravans, open sea, ect or something of that nature would be worth it.
The Wiki states.
A defining principle of Ashes of Creation as a PvX game is that PvE builds the world, and PvP changes the world.[8]
https://ashesofcreation.wiki/PvX
I'd like to know more about how PvE builds the world. I know Settlements leveling up will upgrade the area. But what else in PvE is building the world? Or do they mean that PvE is how they (the devs) are building the world? Also how does PvP shape the world? Are the wars shaping the world? So settlements rising and falling 'shaping' the world? It's as clear as mud to me. Shaping and building are very similar verbs.
I don't think the lack of PvP rewards is the cause of the lack of PvP right now. I think it's the punishment and the lack of reason to PvP. Rewards like materials, loot, skill points, or whatever are the cherry on the cake. The real reason to PvP is something generated in the story and lore that drives people to do it. It could be a mechanic driven event by the code or by the player base, even better if both. Then when the players actually engage in PvP the reward is victory and the spoils are are the bonus. There's no bigger joy for me than mindless PvP. I'm not going to fight over a hunting spot when there's 20 other, I'm not going to drag mobs on groups for the fun of it. I will drag mobs on a group of players if they're are part of settlement B when settlement B has been attacking my settlements caravans though. Oops here I am again talking about factions...
Volgaris
1
Re: Questions to the Developers
The question was in relation to what the progression speed is SUPPOSED to be.onewingedangelo1 wrote: »Questions for the developers.
1. What is the games progression pace supposed to be?
2. What is the planned leveling time to max level?
3. For artisan is it intended to need materials to the Nth degree?
4. Is artisan processing costs intended as a gold sink?
5. With no official BOE or BOP, how does Ashes intend to avoid gear oversaturation?
6. Is corruption working as intended right now? Is it having the effects you designed?
7. How do you deter players from the same settlement attacting each others (packs/caravans/ect)?
8. Loot, how much is too little, how much is too much?
9. Beginner zone crafting.
10. Storage and bags.
11. Why have common materials purchasable from processing? Oils, seeds, ect.
12. Is farming a placeholder?
13. Hunting is holding back leather artisans, why hasn't this been addressed yet?
14. Will crafting (not processing), become more interactive, or will it stay a UI button exercise?
15. How close are the classes to the end vision, scale 1 to 10, 1 = not at all, 10 = is at final draft
16. How many skills will each class have? Will they have the number of options?
17. Travel. Many players have complained about the travel time, and the time it currently takes to make meaningful progression.
18. What is the focus in the game? Is my character my main focus or is the settlement/guild/religion/gear?
19. Stats. Are player stats close to a final state?
1. ) The game doesn't even have the core leveling method, or it's max level yet. There is no way for the company to actually know this at this state of the gam
If no one at Intrepid knows what the target progression speed is, then this whole game is fucked.
Same can be applied to the rest of your non-answers.
And yes, my reply that they should answer all of them was intended as a slap in the face. It is one that Intrepid absolutely deserve, and would do well to heed the meaning behind.
Noaani
1
Re: Questions to the Developers
@onewingedangelo1
I appreciate your response and answers, but please link any answers with the source. There is a lot of bad and old info going around. If you can't find the source then it's rumor still as you are not an official source.
I stand by my list of questions and by my response. They are welcome to answers all of them, none of them, or somewhere in between. My questions are not out of malice or anger, maybe a hint of frustration at most. By far it's mostly curiosity.
The questions are pretty clear. If they answer them awesome. If not people will continue to think IS doesn't care, or doesn't have a planned, doesn't think it's a problem, or any number of things. And sentiment will continue to drop, that's just nature. And even if sentiment drops to zero, if they release a great game it'll be successful. So the devs can feel free to ignore me and keep working too.
I appreciate your response and answers, but please link any answers with the source. There is a lot of bad and old info going around. If you can't find the source then it's rumor still as you are not an official source.
I stand by my list of questions and by my response. They are welcome to answers all of them, none of them, or somewhere in between. My questions are not out of malice or anger, maybe a hint of frustration at most. By far it's mostly curiosity.
The questions are pretty clear. If they answer them awesome. If not people will continue to think IS doesn't care, or doesn't have a planned, doesn't think it's a problem, or any number of things. And sentiment will continue to drop, that's just nature. And even if sentiment drops to zero, if they release a great game it'll be successful. So the devs can feel free to ignore me and keep working too.
Volgaris
1
I want to like this game....
But you’ve made that hard to do.
1) Combat (Melee)
Melee combat just doesn’t feel good—no matter how many people say otherwise. There are still too many clunky interactions between spells, combos, and targeting. Slow weapon targeting makes it frustrating and unresponsive.
To give examples of what good melee combat looks like in other MMOs:
Elder Scrolls Online – Smooth animation canceling, quick weapon swap responsiveness, and clear hit registration make melee feel weighty yet fluid.
Guild Wars 2 – Ground-targeted abilities, dodge canceling, and tight camera feedback make positioning and melee combos feel precise and rewarding.
Black Desert Online – Responsive action combat with seamless transitions between attacks and movement, giving players full control of timing and targeting.
Final Fantasy XIV – While global cooldown-based, it still delivers clear visual feedback, hit confirmation, and satisfying flow between skill combos.
Each of these games provides one or more of the following: instant weapon responsiveness, clear attack feedback, reliable hit detection, and smooth animation flow. You don't need to copy "mechanics" of these games. However, right now, your melee combat lacks that sense of control and impact—it feels ANNNOYINGLY delayed, inconsistent, and disconnected from player input.
2) Movement & Animation
Movement, stride, and character animations—along with lingering bugs like standing up from a sitting position—should have been fixed long before adding new systems. After eight years, it’s surprising that core movement still feels this rough.
Right now, player movement and interactions actively hurt immersion more than in almost any other MMO. Mob pathing is also among the worst I’ve seen: enemies spawn on top of tombs, pillars, and roofs where they can’t be reached, ruining grind spots when 30–50% of spawns end up glitched.
3) Drops & Materials
Drop rates and material yields feel extremely low. If you don’t want vendors selling armor (even with low stats), then drop quality and quantity need to be rebalanced to create a viable player market. As it stands, hardly anyone gets usable materials to craft or sell. The quality caps at levels 10 and 20 feel meaningless with such a stagnant market and no vendor alternatives for weapons or armor.
I genuinely want to test and provide useful feedback, but it feels like the developers are either slow to implement changes, focused on the wrong priorities, or—hopefully not—unaware of what the current industry standards are in these areas.
Balancing materials and vendor systems can be subjective, sure—but issues with combat and movement are not. Please, stop prioritizing new “Harbinger-style” content and focus on fixing the core gameplay experience first.
1) Combat (Melee)
Melee combat just doesn’t feel good—no matter how many people say otherwise. There are still too many clunky interactions between spells, combos, and targeting. Slow weapon targeting makes it frustrating and unresponsive.
To give examples of what good melee combat looks like in other MMOs:
Elder Scrolls Online – Smooth animation canceling, quick weapon swap responsiveness, and clear hit registration make melee feel weighty yet fluid.
Guild Wars 2 – Ground-targeted abilities, dodge canceling, and tight camera feedback make positioning and melee combos feel precise and rewarding.
Black Desert Online – Responsive action combat with seamless transitions between attacks and movement, giving players full control of timing and targeting.
Final Fantasy XIV – While global cooldown-based, it still delivers clear visual feedback, hit confirmation, and satisfying flow between skill combos.
Each of these games provides one or more of the following: instant weapon responsiveness, clear attack feedback, reliable hit detection, and smooth animation flow. You don't need to copy "mechanics" of these games. However, right now, your melee combat lacks that sense of control and impact—it feels ANNNOYINGLY delayed, inconsistent, and disconnected from player input.
2) Movement & Animation
Movement, stride, and character animations—along with lingering bugs like standing up from a sitting position—should have been fixed long before adding new systems. After eight years, it’s surprising that core movement still feels this rough.
Right now, player movement and interactions actively hurt immersion more than in almost any other MMO. Mob pathing is also among the worst I’ve seen: enemies spawn on top of tombs, pillars, and roofs where they can’t be reached, ruining grind spots when 30–50% of spawns end up glitched.
3) Drops & Materials
Drop rates and material yields feel extremely low. If you don’t want vendors selling armor (even with low stats), then drop quality and quantity need to be rebalanced to create a viable player market. As it stands, hardly anyone gets usable materials to craft or sell. The quality caps at levels 10 and 20 feel meaningless with such a stagnant market and no vendor alternatives for weapons or armor.
I genuinely want to test and provide useful feedback, but it feels like the developers are either slow to implement changes, focused on the wrong priorities, or—hopefully not—unaware of what the current industry standards are in these areas.
Balancing materials and vendor systems can be subjective, sure—but issues with combat and movement are not. Please, stop prioritizing new “Harbinger-style” content and focus on fixing the core gameplay experience first.
Foossa
3
Re: Questions to the Developers
onewingedangelo1 wrote: »No you gave an answer. But it was like having a multiple choice question and you wrote in your answer.
Answering questions with a question isn't really fair. I don't feel a single answer to one question does the other questions justice. ( I did edit my reply and added in a single one, to see if we can get anything though. ). Should I have opened a thread for each question? That'd be dumb.
@onewingedangelo1 What I'd rather this thread be is everyone post up your questions, then @Vaknar could collect them all and do a poll, then he could ask the @StevenSharif and post a reply to that poll with the answer, then the wiki could be updated. No rumor, no outdate data, straight answers from the devs on the forums top question. And repeat week by week, a running Q and A if you will. They could do the same from reddit and discord. Then it's not just 20 questions all at once but the ones we voted on. That's serves us all a lot better than trying to gatekeep what type of questions we should be asking and how we should respond.
Volgaris
2