Happy Halloween, citizens of Rubi-Ka! I hope you all have had a nice October...it's hard to believe how quickly this year is coming to an end.
The Pumpkin man cometh
As I post this, you can expect to see the skies darkening and the devious Pumpkin-Heads crawling out of their pumpkin patches, looking to cause some mischief. This year, all the familiar flavors of Pumpkin-Heads will be returning, with a new one joining the ranks: the Ganking Uncle Pumpkin-Head. He has developed a strong taste for notum and is most commonly found in SBC-Xpm Site Alpha-Romeo 29. The Griefing and Ganking Uncle Pumpkin-Heads have also started carrying some extra special treasures, as there is no more room in their loot vaults. Late last year, Uncle Pumpkin-Head gave you a taste of his new treasures, which he'll be carrying around the entire duration of Hallowen.
The Entvined will be assaulting the Enigma Grove yet again as well. Confident in their victory, the Entvined Commanders are guarding remnants of a shipment of Miy armor (not only cloaks this time). Attempt to defeat the seemingly endless hordes of Entvined and you may find yourself walking away with some exceptionally rare loot, including high quality Miy armor of all types, including cloaks...and a sweet t-shirt!
Free Loot!
As customarily done around the holidays, there are free items to be claimed! Anyone logging in during Halloween can claim a Pumpkin Helmet, a perfect costume for someone on a budget. Subscribers can additionally claim the new items: "Signal Beacon: Big Red" and a "Nano Crystal (Kizzermole Gumbaba)." Dazzle your friends with an effect that can be seen on Rubi-Ka from your Sunrise apartment, while winning their hearts with your adorably grotesque, pint-sized horror that will love you until its dying grunt.
For the duration of Halloween, we have also brought back several vehicles from years past, such as the Phasefront Death Rider, Skull Box, Nosferatu, and Ndenjese - Grab them while you can!
New to the item shop, we have:
* Nano versions of some classic Yalmahas. These function the same way as Phasefront vehicles, except with the elegant Yalmaha design. This first round has the classic Yalmaha, the Adaga, and Stiletto models.
* Duelist Record Purge - When consumed, will reset your Win/Loss record of solo duels. Do note, there is a long lockout time between using these items.
* Freelancers Inc. Recall Beacon - Using this will return you to your faction's Freelancer's Inc headquarters.
18.6.15 Patch hits Live
Last week the Live server was patched with 18.6.15. This patch brought some QoL improvements and bug fixes that we've wanted to bring in for a while, and we were happy to get to them. To allow for further testings/bug fixes, the Inferno Missions that were slated for this version have been moved to 18.6.16, which I'll talk about next. Patch notes for this can be found Here.
Inferno Missions Reach Testlive
Last week also brought a new patch to Testlive. While the scope of the patch was seemingly small, it required us to bring Testlive backwards from 18.7 to 18.6, which posed some interesting challenges and obstacles. For people who have been on Testlive previously, you will need to redupe your Live client. If you have never been on Testlive, now is as good of a time as any! You can pick up the client duper Here. I will write a more detailed explanation of this encounter once it has been patched Live.
To begin one of these missions, speak with The Retainer of Ergo, located near Inferno's Ergo. Best of luck!
On the Road to 18.7
Once the Inferno Missions have been patched to Live, the majority of focus will shift back to 18.7, which includes, but is not limited to, the NPE and profession rebalance. I do not plan to patch Testlive with a new version of 18.7 until it's a little further along, but I'll be sure to list what has been going on in update letters like these. There should be more to report next month as we start reaching goals and milestones.
Semi-related to the rebalance efforts, a number of Professional (re)votes are in the process of going on, so head on over to your Profession's forum and see what's going on there. Similarly, there is still the 18.7 Forum and other similar forums to voice feedback and suggestions. While I cannot guarantee everything that is listed will be put in-game, every suggestion will be read and considered; as always, thank you for taking the time to provide your feedback.
Thank you everyone and I will see you next month! Stay away from any real-life Weird Looking Candy.