Game updates:January 2006

January 2006 updates

• Thursday 26^th of January (talk)
• Monday 23^rd of January (talk)
• Friday 20^th of January (talk)
• Thursday 19^th of January (talk)
• Friday 13^th of January (talk)
• Friday 6^th of January (talk)

Update - Thursday January 26, 2006

• Modified the Sacred Temples and Unholy Temples tournament maps so that players cannot pass relics across barriers.
• Added Japanese translations in preparation for today's Japanese launch of Guild Wars.
• Changed the morale boost in Isle of the Nameless from 2% to 10%.
• In the "Iron Mines of Moladune" mission, henchmen now become infused when your team gives the Spectral Essence to the Seer.
• Modified Skill Bar tool tips so that they don't overlap the Health and Energy bars.
• Fixed minor bugs in the following quests: "The Nameless Masters" and "The Hero's Challenge."
• Fixed minor bugs in the following missions: "Iron Mines of Moladune" and "Sanctum Cay."
• Fixed a bug that incorrectly eliminated the recharge time from the following Ranger skills: Distracting Shot, Savage Shot, Concussion Shot, and Punishing Shot.

Update - Monday January 23, 2006

• Fixed a bug that was making it impossible to complete the Iron Mines of Moladune mission.
• Repaired teleporters in the Nomad's Isle Guild Battle map.
• Removed challenges that were incorrectly added to some players' quest logs.
• Fixed several crash bugs.

Update - Friday January 20, 2006

• Improved the visual appearance of the Battle Isles world map.
• Provided Free-For-All Weekend demo users with the ability to use prebuilt PvP characters without skill restrictions, and also with the ability to unlock skills from the original campaign.
• Fixed a bug that was preventing players from earning Faction by killing NPCs and players in Guild Battles.
• Fixed map travel issues that could temporarily redirect players into the wrong districts.
• Fixed a problem with the skill "Flesh of My Flesh" ignoring "Frozen Soil."
• Fixed a crash bug with the Assassin skill "Recall," and miscellaneous other crash bugs.

Update 2 - Thursday January 19, 2006

• Restored access to The Underworld and Fissure of Woe.
• Restored item unlocks that had been inadvertently removed from some accounts.
• Fixed the text description of the "Verata's Sacrifice" skill.

Update - Thursday January 19, 2006

Note From Kuro

Attention citizens,

The Tomb of the Primeval Kings has been overrun by the enemies of Balthazar. The Zaishen Order recognizes that many of you may wish to help conquer this foe. While this is admirable, only those truly devoted to the teachings of Balthazar should attempt to enter the Tombs.

Those wishing to become as great as we, the Zaishen, should take heart. Members of our order await your arrival at the Great Temple of Balthazar. We will train you in the ways of war, so you may continue the personal squabbles that seem to consume so much of your daily routine.

If you truly wish to better yourself, take the ship to the Great Temple, and hone your skills with the Zaishen.

May the blessings of Balthazar follow you on your journey.

-Commander Kuro of the Zaishen Order

Guild Wars Factions Free-For-All PvP Weekend

With this update, we roll out the first parts of Guild Wars Factions, including the new login and character selection/creation screens, boat travel between continents, and a weekend sneak preview of the two new professions. (The weekend event lasts from Friday January 20 8:00 am GMT to Monday January 23 7:59 am GMT.)

All high-level PvP has been moved to the Battle Isles, which can be reached using the ship off the coast of Lion's Arch. On the Battle Isles, you'll find a new explorable area with Training Arenas, NPCs who can help you test all aspects of your character's build, updates to existing PvP Arenas, and all-new Zaishen Challenges, where you and your friends can practice against teams of computer AI opponents. All of this content is now organized into a natural progression, so that players can experience the basics of PvP before moving on to advanced challenges.

New Computer AI Challenges

• Training Arenas: a series of four maps designed to teach the basics of PvP and Arena Combat. Beat all four maps to unlock the Zaishen Challenge on your account.
• Zaishen Challenge: an Arena where you can play the computer AI team of your choice on the map of your choice. Beat five different computer AI teams to unlock the Zaishen Elite Challenge.
• Zaishen Elite Challenge: the ultimate AI challenge. See how far you can get in a series of random Arena matches against increasingly difficult AI teams.

New Unlocking of Existing PvP Types

• Win five-in-a-row in the Random Arenas to unlock the Team Arenas on your account. (Existing accounts have the Team Arenas unlocked already.)
• Win five total games in the Team Arenas to unlock the Tournament (Heroes' Ascent) on your account. (Existing accounts have the Tournament unlocked already.)

Changes to Guild Combat Mechanics

• Five minutes after Victory or Death starts, both teams' Guild Lords will now rush out of their base to engage in combat.
• In the Burning Isle guild hall, NPCs now take the high path to avoid lava when Victory or Death occurs, and Flame Cursed Sentinels no longer drop loot.
• The Guild Lord's Amulet of Protection now interacts correctly with Deep Wound. (See Fansite Friday #62 for more information about the Guild Lord's Amulet of Protection.)

Miscellaneous Improvements

• When a party leader uses Map Travel in a town or outpost, his entire party travels with him to the new map.
• During PvP matches, the Party window now displays your team color.
• Skill icons for Enchantment and Hex spells are now displayed with a small marker in their upper-right corner.
• Text descriptions and icons of various magic item upgrades have been improved.
• The location and visibility of hint popup windows can now be modified using the Customize Layout interface.

Miscellaneous Fixes

• Ghosts in The Underworld are no longer considered fleshy and will not leave exploitable corpses.

Update - Friday January 13, 2006

Please do not be alarmed.

Though the strange occurrences you are witnessing outside the Tomb of the Primeval Kings have not, as of yet, been fully explained, we, the Zaishen Order, are here to provide for your safety.

Be advised: Those who dare approach the entrance to the Tombs in the coming days risk great peril. You would do well to leave this matter to the trained Zaishen experts who are already hard at work. We will not interfere with your comings and goings if you do not interfere with ours.

As a service of Balthazar you have been notified.

-Commander Kuro of the Zaishen Order.

Update - Friday January 06, 2006

Another Wintersday has come to a close,
And the sun shines anew.
The Grentchies have been banished again,
And Dwayna has smiled upon you.

Happy New Year!!!