When considering initial engagements in OWPvP, where the attacker is now flagged and the attacked is still a non-combatant, would you prioritize feel/flow of gameplay or the flagging/corruption system; in the sense that an engagement may be severely crippled by having no CC effects and limited viable skill kits amongst different classes for those initial engagements?
Regarding crafting, what requirements will players have to make to utilize better artisan & gathering tools. For example: will we have to hit x level in said profession or x player level?
Have the developers considered using AI-driven load balancing to improve performance and scalability in the game? AI has the potential to predict traffic patterns, allocate resources in real-time, and ensure smoother gameplay during peak periods. This seems like it could be a valuable addition. Are there any insights you can share on whether this technology is being explored or integrated into the server infrastructure?
Hello again, glorious Ashes of Creation community! Thank you to everyone who stopped by and shared a question with us for this month’s stream. Q&A submissions are now closed, and we’ll see you at 11AM Pacific on Wednesday for our livestream!
Are there plans to have class type epic weapon/armor quests akin to those done in Everquest? The type where it takes a whole community to solve and will involve raid type events to complete (e.g., getting rare drops)?
Greetings everyone - thank you so much again for sharing your questions with us, and for tuning in for today's livestream! In case you didn't hear us cover your question on the stream, it may be because we've shared an answer previously - check out more on that below!
@Tenguru (question) - We generally try to keep our cards close to our chests when it comes to lore, to avoid spoilers. Players will begin to discover some lore come Alpha Two!
@Fur (question), @SupremePhoenix (question) - The team is always looking at new technology and what makes sense to implement into Ashes of Creation. We're excited to showcase NPC intelligence and behavior in the future, so stay tuned!
@Drizzel (question) - Levels, stats, or skills will not be scaled to allow low-level players to participate in encounters with higher level players or world bosses. The difficulty of PvE content, such as raids and dungeons, will adapt based on the number of participants and their performance against that and previous bosses in that encounter. This applies to both instanced and open-world encounters. You can read all about game difficulty here, on the wiki!
@SweetRizz999 (question) - Becoming a master Crafter or a master Processor or a master Gatherer should be a significant time investment and resource investment; and because of that it should also be something that when you achieve that status it's like people on the server know who you are. You can read more about artisan professions here, on the wiki!
@arkileo (question) - Augments are applied individually to active skills from a character's primary archetype. Augment effects are intended to be templated so they can apply to a range of abilities. A character can have one active augment on an ability at any given time. You can read more about this here, on the wiki!
@Nwolf (question) - Well, both projects are video games. That's a start
@Geens (question) - We haven't shown or shared a creature that will deteriorate gear or give lasting curses at this time
@SonicXplosion (question) - Lower-level characters will have usefulness in mass combat that does not depend on their level, such as manning siege weapons, helping repair fortifications, bringing proximity-based buffs to key positions, using stealth or scaling walls. These types of things are relevant to the tide of battle and do not require the player to be max-level or have high combat stats. This answer and many more can be found here, on the wiki!
@Elkzu (question) - The current policy on multi-boxing (multi-client) is that players are allowed to own multiple accounts, but may not launch multiple game clients from the same computer. Players may not use any software to automate character actions or mimic keystrokes. You can this answer and many more here, on the wiki!
@George_Black (question) - We currently haven't announced any plans to tie jumping to stamina, but this is of course subject to player feedback and testing during Alpha Two!
@ZombieHeart (question) - Story arcs drive one or more storyline quests within the game. Story arcs branch into different stories with multiple possible endings depending on the quest objectives that players complete during each chapter. You can learn more about lore here, on the wiki!
@Voeltz (question) - Internal data like this is very important to the team! We're doing our best to implement means to see game data like this, which could help inform balancing decisions
@akabear (question) - We have not announced any plans for a guild wealth cap.
@Valorinth (question) - We haven't announced any plans to increase active player count per server
@Liniker (question) - We haven't announced any intentions to change the max guild member capacity
@Lineager (question) - The team is hard at work on archetypes, as well as augments and classes. The team is excited to show both augments and classes when they're ready, which will likely come after archetypes.
@-T0Mb- (question) - Currently, archetypes will likely start with predetermined weapons. This, like many other things, is subject to feedback and iteration during Alpha Two
@Miham (question) - It's difficult to quantify how much content you could complete with your friends, but with willpower, some gear, and a dream I'm sure the 3 of you could complete a lot!
@Drunkninja (question) - You will likely spawn on the nearest shore. This is subject to testing and feedback once it is implemented into the game." rel="nofollow"> You can read more about this here, on the wiki!
@EmLe (question) - Innertia in the sense that, say you're running forward with W, and you take your finger off of W, and your character continues to run momentarily? If this is what you're referring to, then this is not currently a feature of movement
@koltovince (question) - We have not announced any plans to add the ability to hire hitmen using the bounty system to put out hits on non-corrupted players
@Swifty00 (question) - The current plan is that vassal nodes must stay at least one stage beneath the parent node. There will be benefits to the vassal node that come from the parent node, but we haven't announced plans for that to be higher-level buildings for the vassal node.
@Dracocanis (question) - We don't want every playstyle and opportunity to be locked to a system. Especially ones that can offer intrigue, subterfuge, or other interesting social elements between guilds that a system could hinder. With that said, we've discussed the idea of adding trade agreements in the game, which could factor in mercenary guilds and nodes. We'll have more information to share regarding this in the future
@Laetitian (question) - Several different types of events can trigger due to certain conditions. The frequency of events will depend on what type of event they are, and at what scale they are to occur at. Some events will be on-off, some will have cooldowns, some will be rare, and many will be impactful.
@oM3n007 (question) - Those who have purchased or acquired Alpha Two access will be able to participate in the Alpha Two testing.
@Shabooey (question) - The answer is that it depends! Here is a snippet of something Steven has said in the past regarding this: "There is going to be a rock-paper-scissors design when it comes to innate advantages that certain archetypes have over each other, and giving or affording the customization options lets you flirt a bit with where your rock-paper-scissor lines live. Perhaps you are a little bit better against the rock, as a scissor would normally be; and that's because you've made certain selections in either your archetype skill tree, your passives, your weapon selection, your gear choices: Those are all pieces of a puzzle that interact with the overarching balance choices between these different rock-paper-scissor designs." - Steven Sharif (full quote here)
@Valanure (question) - Your feedback is still invaluable to the development process, even if you're observing Alpha Two and not playing it!
@Leonerdo (question) - Stats in Ashes of Creation are derived from primary attributes (Constitution, Dexterity, Intelligence, Mentality, Strength, and Wisdom) via a waterfall system. A waterfall stat is a derivative of an attribute. So, if dexterity is your attribute stat and a waterfall from dexterity is critical rate, that would be considered a waterfall stat: the critical rate. You can read more about this here, on the wiki!
@xillin (question) - "We are very well aware that systems if they can be gamed they will be gamed and we're making sure to develop the monster coin system so that there is no potential for gaming there." - Steven Sharif (quote and more information here, on the wiki!)
@Ethanh37 (question) - This has to do with the way content is tied to nodes. Here is a quote from Steven - "Beta testing will require that the node types be definitive, and that's because of how node types are integrated into the relating and corresponding neighboring points of interest and those quest lines. So it's not something we can swap very easily." You can read more about nodes here, on the wiki!
@Futuere (question) - We haven't announced any plans for deployable scout NPCs. Instead, this will likely be up to players
@SnowFlakeZ (question) - Each gathering profession has three gathering tools. Each tool allows gathering of different resource types. Each profession has quests that introduce players to their first toolsets. Gathering tools and artisan gear have stats that affect gathering rates and yields. Gatherers must meet the required artisan certification to utilize tools of that level (or lower). Gathering tools are equipped to a character's artisan tool slot. Progression in the gathering artisan class unlocks higher-level harvesting tools that enable gathering of higher-level resources. You can find this answer and many more here, on the wiki!
I have recently seen that Nodes are to be static(a nodes type) though out the map is this still likely to be the case and why was this decision made?.. having thought on this for quite a while it seems this will lead to there being a best node meta for maps and could lead to stagnation later on in to sever life cycles. with the upcoming news of sever messing it seems that having this tech could maybe allow for dynamic node types?
not going to lie was very disappointed to learn you wouldn't be able to decide the out come a node type would be..
if you randomise node type placement then it throws out certain aspects of mechanics , dungeons , world bosses etc. while the node types are static every event is hand crafted to that area and you will know X raid boss will be in this node if its lvl 5 etc and is the same across all servers. if its random node types then the already planned content wouldnt work properly.
while i understand why you would think this, the fact that dynamic servers allow for a larger data transfers per game world, you can in deed have dynamic dungeons, world bosses, area quests, POI's and although alot of these are hand crafted into the land scape and time lines of nodes that its self this does not mean that they cant be designed for different node types to start different time lines and quests/POI's its just a matter of content. And just to remind you I never said random node types, I said giving the players the agency to choose witch node types will grow where. this would truly expand the choices players have over the game world. as static nodes limit game worlds to a finite amount of content in the land area.
servers are going to be massively different from one another as more time progresses, yes alot of the nodes at launch will lvl at same rate but then any node deviation will split that server off and provide a different experience compared to other servers
plus it will be a very very very very long time before node metas are found and while the node meta may suit all servers its a lot of work to destroy / relevel the exact perfect meta nodes + no one will want to give up their land / control just to get meta nodes
I don't believe it will take player's long before they will have a list of ever node type mapped, months at most and then the node meta's will come very fast indeed(node Deviation is player driven so if they know the meta for the best/cloest nodes there wont be a choice) as large guilds have only one way to play and that drives the need for meta's...
anyway the point was if you are not hampered by data rate in MMO's then yes dynamic content will be king.
witch is why i would of loved the question asked to the development teams.... to see if they thought along those lines as well.
Comments
twitch.tv/ashesofcreation
Also in a MMO being able to see ur position relative to your environment, and being able to see more arround you is a massive advantage
@Hevel (question), @DarkestLink (question), @Vissox (question), @Velkin (question), @Eona (question 1, 2), @Flippy (question), @The_Tankologist (question), @Mimyakko (question), @Gankez (question), @Tattrsail (question), @Sevariel (question), @Gargimili (question), @Dolyem (question), @Tenma (question) - Please only post one question next time as requested, and if you only posted one question, please try to make it more clear and direct if possible - that way it's more likely to be picked!
@FatalSyndicate (question), @LordFishingtonIII (question), @Feelius (question), @Imnotkio (question), @Hutchy1989 (question), @Dabido (question), @Arunteli (question), @Frosthide (question) - Margaret addressed Alpha Two related questions such as these during a past livestream
@Tenguru (question) - We generally try to keep our cards close to our chests when it comes to lore, to avoid spoilers. Players will begin to discover some lore come Alpha Two!
@Fur (question), @SupremePhoenix (question) - The team is always looking at new technology and what makes sense to implement into Ashes of Creation. We're excited to showcase NPC intelligence and behavior in the future, so stay tuned!
@Drizzel (question) - Levels, stats, or skills will not be scaled to allow low-level players to participate in encounters with higher level players or world bosses. The difficulty of PvE content, such as raids and dungeons, will adapt based on the number of participants and their performance against that and previous bosses in that encounter. This applies to both instanced and open-world encounters. You can read all about game difficulty here, on the wiki!
@SweetRizz999 (question) - Becoming a master Crafter or a master Processor or a master Gatherer should be a significant time investment and resource investment; and because of that it should also be something that when you achieve that status it's like people on the server know who you are. You can read more about artisan professions here, on the wiki!
@Renritar (question) - You may be pleased to know that this is something we currently already do! Stay tuned to the forums, Discord, and our social platforms, such as X, to see polls when they're posted
@ExiledByrd (question) - Certain quest lines and hunting grounds are devoted towards solo players. You can read more about solo play here, on the wiki!
@arkileo (question) - Augments are applied individually to active skills from a character's primary archetype. Augment effects are intended to be templated so they can apply to a range of abilities. A character can have one active augment on an ability at any given time. You can read more about this here, on the wiki!
@Nwolf (question) - Well, both projects are video games. That's a start
@Glizzzii (question) - We intend to carefully manage server populations via the use of character creation throttles to avoid the need to merge servers. You can read all about server merges here, on the wiki!
@Kalancha (question) - The minimum goal is for 250x250 players to be on a single battlefield. It is hoped that this can be increased to 500x500 over time. This would be achieved through optimization. You can hear Steven discuss that here, and you can read more about it here!
@Geens (question) - We haven't shown or shared a creature that will deteriorate gear or give lasting curses at this time
@SonicXplosion (question) - Lower-level characters will have usefulness in mass combat that does not depend on their level, such as manning siege weapons, helping repair fortifications, bringing proximity-based buffs to key positions, using stealth or scaling walls. These types of things are relevant to the tide of battle and do not require the player to be max-level or have high combat stats. This answer and many more can be found here, on the wiki!
@Kuldjux (question) - Players can use bulletin boards to create jobs for other players! You can read more about this here, on the wiki!
@SleepyKee (question) - You can learn more about what has been said regarding roleplaying here, on the wiki! You can also check out a recent Dev Discussion we did discussing roleplaying features for Ashes of Creation here: https://forums.ashesofcreation.com/discussion/55762/dev-discussion-53-roleplaying/p1
@InsertDisc (question) - There are many topics and systems the team would like to showcase. We may do a future livestream on the artisanship system, but we did do one not long ago, which can be seen here:
@Elkzu (question) - The current policy on multi-boxing (multi-client) is that players are allowed to own multiple accounts, but may not launch multiple game clients from the same computer. Players may not use any software to automate character actions or mimic keystrokes. You can this answer and many more here, on the wiki!
@George_Black (question) - We currently haven't announced any plans to tie jumping to stamina, but this is of course subject to player feedback and testing during Alpha Two!
@ZombieHeart (question) - Story arcs drive one or more storyline quests within the game. Story arcs branch into different stories with multiple possible endings depending on the quest objectives that players complete during each chapter. You can learn more about lore here, on the wiki!
@Voeltz (question) - Internal data like this is very important to the team! We're doing our best to implement means to see game data like this, which could help inform balancing decisions
@akabear (question) - We have not announced any plans for a guild wealth cap.
@Valorinth (question) - We haven't announced any plans to increase active player count per server
@Liniker (question) - We haven't announced any intentions to change the max guild member capacity
@Lineager (question) - The team is hard at work on archetypes, as well as augments and classes. The team is excited to show both augments and classes when they're ready, which will likely come after archetypes.
@Mois (question) - You can read about zergs here, on the wiki!
@Tyrol (question) - Different tier mounts have different abilities. Players may want to use tier 1 mounts over tier 2 mounts for certain abilities they may have. You can find this answer and many more here, on the wiki!
@Spittfyre (question) - Looks like you asked this question last month! Be sure to check out the response you received here
@GenoHarradan (question) - We have plans to assist with the new player experience. You can learn about those here, on the wiki!
@-T0Mb- (question) - Currently, archetypes will likely start with predetermined weapons. This, like many other things, is subject to feedback and iteration during Alpha Two
@Miham (question) - It's difficult to quantify how much content you could complete with your friends, but with willpower, some gear, and a dream I'm sure the 3 of you could complete a lot!
@Drunkninja (question) - You will likely spawn on the nearest shore. This is subject to testing and feedback once it is implemented into the game." rel="nofollow"> You can read more about this here, on the wiki!
@Ryve (question) - We have not announced any plans to change this design choice. You can read more about PKs and player corruption here, on the wiki!
@Texaslizard (question) - "The cool thing about this character creator is that it's not just intended for your character. It has an application with NPCs that you might hire" - Steven Sharif (You can find this answer and many more here, on the wiki!)
@EmLe (question) - Innertia in the sense that, say you're running forward with W, and you take your finger off of W, and your character continues to run momentarily? If this is what you're referring to, then this is not currently a feature of movement
@koltovince (question) - We have not announced any plans to add the ability to hire hitmen using the bounty system to put out hits on non-corrupted players
@Swifty00 (question) - The current plan is that vassal nodes must stay at least one stage beneath the parent node. There will be benefits to the vassal node that come from the parent node, but we haven't announced plans for that to be higher-level buildings for the vassal node.
@Sengarden (question) - When building a ship, players will be able to build their ship with these things in mind: Movement, Durability, Speed, Turn rate, Hitpoints, Defensive and Damage abilities. Wind will also be an important factor to ship navigation.
@Dracocanis (question) - We don't want every playstyle and opportunity to be locked to a system. Especially ones that can offer intrigue, subterfuge, or other interesting social elements between guilds that a system could hinder. With that said, we've discussed the idea of adding trade agreements in the game, which could factor in mercenary guilds and nodes. We'll have more information to share regarding this in the future
@SherNan (question) - You can read all about server merges and many other topics on Ashes of Creation here, on the wiki!
@Apok (question) - The goal of the team is to offer robust customization and modification of player characters so that each one can feel unique.
@Killergermel (question) - Farming for Freeholds, node public spaces, and static housing will not be instanced. Farming in apartments will be instanced. You can find this answer and many more here, on the wiki!
@Laetitian (question) - Several different types of events can trigger due to certain conditions. The frequency of events will depend on what type of event they are, and at what scale they are to occur at. Some events will be on-off, some will have cooldowns, some will be rare, and many will be impactful.
@oM3n007 (question) - Those who have purchased or acquired Alpha Two access will be able to participate in the Alpha Two testing.
@The_Hippo (question) - All stats relate to a player's combat effectiveness in PvX. You can read all about our intentions with balancing here, on the wiki!
@Shabooey (question) - The answer is that it depends! Here is a snippet of something Steven has said in the past regarding this: "There is going to be a rock-paper-scissors design when it comes to innate advantages that certain archetypes have over each other, and giving or affording the customization options lets you flirt a bit with where your rock-paper-scissor lines live. Perhaps you are a little bit better against the rock, as a scissor would normally be; and that's because you've made certain selections in either your archetype skill tree, your passives, your weapon selection, your gear choices: Those are all pieces of a puzzle that interact with the overarching balance choices between these different rock-paper-scissor designs." - Steven Sharif (full quote here)
@Valanure (question) - Your feedback is still invaluable to the development process, even if you're observing Alpha Two and not playing it!
@Animeaddict (question) You can read all about the character creator here and the tattoo system here, on the wiki!
@TerriblePlaz (question) - We'll have more details to share regarding specific mount rewards in the future. For now, you can read about event rewards here, on the wiki!
@Leonerdo (question) - Stats in Ashes of Creation are derived from primary attributes (Constitution, Dexterity, Intelligence, Mentality, Strength, and Wisdom) via a waterfall system. A waterfall stat is a derivative of an attribute. So, if dexterity is your attribute stat and a waterfall from dexterity is critical rate, that would be considered a waterfall stat: the critical rate. You can read more about this here, on the wiki!
@MainQuestt (question) - You can read all about our intentions when it comes to[url=" https://ashesofcreation.wiki/Leveling"]leveling here, on the wiki![/url]
@xillin (question) - "We are very well aware that systems if they can be gamed they will be gamed and we're making sure to develop the monster coin system so that there is no potential for gaming there." - Steven Sharif (quote and more information here, on the wiki!)
@Yikan (question) - You can read about our intentions with combat pets here, on the wiki!
@Ethanh37 (question) - This has to do with the way content is tied to nodes. Here is a quote from Steven - "Beta testing will require that the node types be definitive, and that's because of how node types are integrated into the relating and corresponding neighboring points of interest and those quest lines. So it's not something we can swap very easily." You can read more about nodes here, on the wiki!
@Futuere (question) - We haven't announced any plans for deployable scout NPCs. Instead, this will likely be up to players
@SnowFlakeZ (question) - Each gathering profession has three gathering tools. Each tool allows gathering of different resource types. Each profession has quests that introduce players to their first toolsets. Gathering tools and artisan gear have stats that affect gathering rates and yields. Gatherers must meet the required artisan certification to utilize tools of that level (or lower). Gathering tools are equipped to a character's artisan tool slot. Progression in the gathering artisan class unlocks higher-level harvesting tools that enable gathering of higher-level resources. You can find this answer and many more here, on the wiki!
@wakkytabbaky (question), @khayos (question), @Veil Mistwarden (question), @Hutchy1989 (question), @Neurotoxin (question), @Gooznamak (question), @SkylarckTheBotanist (question), @Azhrei (question), @Ace1234 (question), @PlasticLemons (question), @NiKr (question) - Your questions were ones we hoped to have gotten to on stream but didn't quite have the time. We'd love it if you come by next month for the next development update livestream to ask them again!
@Fantmx (question), @Otr (question), @Cadac (question), @Kronix (question), @TopWombat (question), @Xilfarth (question), @SnowElf (question), @Tyranthraxus (question), @RowniSciponi (question), @Lashing (question) - Congratulations! Your questions were answered by Steven and Margaret on the livestream! Be sure to check out the VoD on YouTube in case you missed it live!
while i understand why you would think this, the fact that dynamic servers allow for a larger data transfers per game world, you can in deed have dynamic dungeons, world bosses, area quests, POI's and although alot of these are hand crafted into the land scape and time lines of nodes that its self this does not mean that they cant be designed for different node types to start different time lines and quests/POI's its just a matter of content. And just to remind you I never said random node types, I said giving the players the agency to choose witch node types will grow where. this would truly expand the choices players have over the game world. as static nodes limit game worlds to a finite amount of content in the land area.
I don't believe it will take player's long before they will have a list of ever node type mapped, months at most and then the node meta's will come very fast indeed(node Deviation is player driven so if they know the meta for the best/cloest nodes there wont be a choice) as large guilds have only one way to play and that drives the need for meta's...
anyway the point was if you are not hampered by data rate in MMO's then yes dynamic content will be king.
witch is why i would of loved the question asked to the development teams.... to see if they thought along those lines as well.
🧠 Learn about some of the server meshing technology our team uses in this development update!
[Edited OP as well[