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9/21/2021 at 2:31
Ictinus, the Architect
Everyone
October Itinerary

Hi folks!

October is just around the corner and that means Aetolia is turning 20 years old!

We have a busy month planned for you, including a slew of games, various contests, celebrations, and one or two surprises.

So that you all have some notice and an idea of what to expect, the main itinerary for the month is posted below. This is not an exhaustive list, and you can expect a slew of impromptu game events like egg hunts, freeze tag, and such all through the month.

All of this will also be posted on EVENTS at the start of the month. The credits will rain!

Friday 1st:
A themed artisanal and bardic contest will be announced.
An Iron Lottery will go live with tickets available in game and as a bonus for promotional purchases.
This will be drawn on November 1st.
A daily quest will go live for the whole month with a very special reward for multiple completions.
A special shop will open with numerous wares themed around Aetolian history and events.

Monday 4th:
Days of the week promotions begin! Playing Aetolia on one of these days in October will confer the following benefits:

- Mondays: Denizens will respawn twice as fast after being slain.
- Tuesdays: Double milestone.
- Wednesdays: Increased critical hits.
- Thursdays: Double XP.
- Fridays: Favours for everyone!

Thursday 7th:
This is officially Aetolia's 20th birthday!
The CELEBRATE command will go live for the rest of the month, giving you a one-off 20 bound credits!
00:01 GMT: Starfall #1.

Saturday 9th:
00:01 GMT: 48 hour Great Hunt!

Monday 11th:
A Kingslayer tournament will open for a week, details to follow!

Wednesday 13th:
23:00 GMT: A quiz on Aetolian history with credit prizes!

Saturday 16th:
00:01 GMT: The Brawl.
19:00 GMT: Iron Epicurean.

Sunday October 17th:
20:00 GMT: The Duel.

Monday 18th:
The Kingslayer tournament will close.

Sunday 24th:
Something spooky this way comes!

Saturday 30th:
23:00 GMT: Capture the Flag!

Sunday 31st:
Deadline for artisanal and bardic entries.
17:00 GMT: Starfall #2.
21:00 GMT: Themed survivor!



Penned by my hand on Gosday, the 14th of Slyphian, in the year 497 MA.

9/18/2021 at 17:05
Anonymous
Everyone
Persona Gnome Grata

As the month of Niuran wound on and the election campaigns proceeded in earnest, it soon became clear that the tranquil exterior of Gorshire was but a facade for a far more cutthroat style of politics.

The candidates - now four - began to solicit endorsements from the outsiders using any and all means necessary. Scandal and plot seethed throughout the Lodi Valley with each passing day, vicious rumours and talk of bribery filling the air of Fountain Square as Gilbert, Inge, Sigrid, and Philbert pressed their campaigns hard.

Rhyot and Ayukazi toiled on behalf of Gilbert. Elene and Tina whipped votes for Sigrid. Even Inge found lively support in Merek and Feirenz among others.

Yet while Gilbert focused on his experience and expertise, Sigrid regaled all visitors with reports of her unrivalled productivity, and Inge spread tales of lust and depravity to anyone within earshot, one candidate had other ideas. Discontented with the isolationist and rigid policies of Gorshire, Philbert had bigger aspirations.

Accompanied by a horde of loyal fans shepherded by a mysterious woman wielding a clipboard, the young Gnome bravely stepped beyond the borders of Lodi and visited some of the major cities to rally support.

The Philbert for Foreman Foundation, or "PFFF" movement rapidly gained ground; scarcely could one walk the streets of Gorshire without seeing a toothy-grinned poster or a garishly designed button.

But scandal had not yet finished with Gorshire. Both Lim and Alela spilled blood on the flagstones of Fountain Square, resulting in hastily-issued edicts from Chief Constable Beck against intruders entering the village.

For one long and painful day did the forces of Spirit marshal their forces and hold the line. Among them stood Sryaen and Caitria, Iesid, Kalena, Jhura, Eaku, Finid, and Aisling, backed up by Illidan, Dato, Valeria, and Sekeres. Implacably they patrolled the precipice as the election finally drew to a close and Philbert, the champion of youth and progress, was declared the winner.

With the new foreman inaugurated, the Gnomes set off into the Vashnar Mountains and the Dakhota Hills to expand their operation. Barely had their excavations begun when the earth rumbled its response: amid tremors and quakes, swarms of direants issued forth from the newly opened tunnels and laid waste to each and every Gnome that had a pick in their hand and countless adventurers alongside.

Felling over three hundred of the irate creatures including two of their bulbous, oversized queens, the adventurers fell back to the Syndicate headquarters where Constable Beck and Mayor Gorbert engaged in a heated argument. Left to manage Gorshire's security without aid from the government, Beck had finally reached the end of his tether.

He tossed his badge at the mayor and resolved to venture forth from Gorshire and join one of the major cities, becoming the first Gnomish adventurer.

He would not be the last.

Penned by my hand on Falsday, the 24th of Niuran, in the year 497 MA.

9/17/2021 at 23:00
Anonymous
Everyone
Remembering the Forgotten

Broiled in a contest of cloaks and daggers, the realm was set on a knife's edge as guards were found mysteriously slain in the streets. From stalwart Zealots to fearsome Carnifex, no sentries were left unscathed by those random acts of violence. Driven to find retribution for the loss of their kinsmen, the guilds launched their own investigations across the continent to find those responsible for the murders. Lead after lead and with their eyes turned inward, paranoia reared its grisly head and gnawed at the edge of order and reason. Rumors circulated of cloaked figures moving through the shadows and dissonant whispers calling out from simple children's toys.

Were the killings a precursor to something big? Another resurgence of the elusive Kult of K? Were the trinkets found near the scenes of the crimes truly artifacts or even related to anything at all? Who exactly were these faceless murderers dancing out of reach? With no clear answers in sight and undeterred by the sovereignty of the cities, the Carnifex carved and intimidated their way from one lead onto the next until they had their alleged culprit: a young Mhun girl named Yvel who matched the description wrangled out of a terrified butchera boy several weeks prior.

Imprisoned within the Shadow Keep and her cries for help unanswered, the pressure mounted as the Carnifex plied their callous trade until the girl finally began to break. Soon, the first of the assassins emerged in a failed attempt on taking the Carnifex Commander Mjoll "Foehammer" Seirath's life. Details spread across the continent of a ragtag crew of misfits and vigilantes responsible for the murders taking up the mantle of the Forgotten. Passing themselves off as saviors of the common people and representatives of those who felt crushed beneath the oppressive whims and ambitions of the four Great Capitals of Sapience, the Forgotten delved among the villages to recruit and strike viciously into the hearts of the capital cities. Blood. Tears. Ruin. Though the lands of Sapience are no strangers to turmoil, being soaked and nourished by the often deadly whims of heroes and villains alike, the carnage came more feverishly as the Kult of K named the Forgotten pretenders and gruesomely clashed with the vigilantes.

In an effort to curtail the growing threat forming among the villages, the Great Capitals responded with reactivating a coalition of the four powers dedicated to stamping out universal threats to the established order - the Gray Accords. With the stakes getting higher, growing in tandem with the assassinations plaguing the realm, Enorian, Bloodloch and Spinesreach found mysterious humming discs tucked away within their libraries. Cautious of what they might be, some cities elected to destroy the discs while others opted to study them. Intercepting a traveler trying to leave the city, Enorian found another disc rumored to be meant for Duiran.

Each Capital, following their own clues and drawing upon their strengths, narrowed in on the Forgotten's operations. Talks of rituals and deals being forged circulated but before any true answers could surface, squads of empowered assassins emerged alongside corrupted Lieutenants of the Forgotten and began striking at leadership of the three cities and Duiran. The Tyrant of Bloodloch, Tina Cardinalis, was the first to be taken. In a whirlwind of shadow and ash, roaming squads of assassins and Lieutenants relentlessly searched and attempted to imprison more. Guildmasters, Secretaries, Ministers, and more were hounded - some repelled the attacks, but others weren't quite as fortunate.

As Ilario, leader of the Forgotten, taunted the four Capitals, the guilds of Sapience utilized their gifts and made clever ploys to find the stronghold of the elusive leader hidden beneath Rebel's Ridge. There the final confrontation was made. Despite his traps and carefully laid plans, it was the supremacy of the four cities that emerged from the depths of the Warrens of the Forgotten victorious and Ilario dead.

Though he lived no more, Ilario had ensured that despite his moniker, he would never be truly 'Forgotten' as the city states found themselves with more questions than answers, wondering what it all could mean.

Penned by my hand on Kinsday, the 20th of Niuran, in the year 497 MA.

9/18/2021 at 1:10
Ictinus, the Architect
Everyone
A Better Gnomorrow!

Under pressure from the people of Gorshire following the mining calamities of 497, Mayor Gorbert has agreed to allow young Gnomes the chance at a life beyond the sheltered valley as adventurers in their own right.

Gnomes are now a playable race!

* You can either create a new character with the Gnome race, or reincarnate into it.

* Endgame race players may switch their heritage to Gnome for the next two weeks if they wish!

* Pavalmort in the Gorshire University offers lessons in the Gnomish language; HELP LINGUISTICS is updated to reflect this.

Whether you choose to play a Gnome loyal to Gorshire, one that is taking the newfound opportunity for freedom, or one that has dwelt outside of Lodi all their life, the newly created HELP GNOMES is the place to start!

Default statpack: Intelligent

Racial Skills:
Level 1: Lightweight
Level 25: Satiation
Level 50: Willpower Regen
Level 75: Improved Arcana

You can use RACIAL HELP to learn more about these abilities.

Enjoy!

Penned by my hand on Kinsday, the 20th of Niuran, in the year 497 MA.

9/18/2021 at 1:19
Ictinus, the Architect
Everyone
Heigh-ho! Mining is here!

Hi everyone!

It is my great pleasure to announce that Mining is now available!

Before I get into the specifics, I would like to give a massive shout out to Razmael for the enormous amount of work he's put into this system, and to the many people on the team (some of whom are sadly no longer with us) that have had a big hand in bringing this project to completion.

Onward!

WHAT IS MINING?
===============

Mining joins Farming as the second of our Agriculture skills, centred around setting up and staffing your own mining operation in order to extract metal ores from the earth.

Like Farming, it is a fully realised skillset with a full slew of abilities from hiring Gnome workers, building offices, and actually mining ores to the laying of track networks for carts and the use of controlled bomb detonations.

AB MINING has extensive details on how everything works, and HELP MINING exists as an overview of the system.

WHERE CAN I LEARN THE SKILL AND OBTAIN EQUIPMENT?
=================================================

The Mining skill can be obtained from Philbert at a cost of 10,000 gold with LEARN ABILITY OF MINING FROM PHILBERT. Enemies of Gorshire will find the cost is significantly higher.

Those who supported Philbert in the recent Gorshire elections will be able to pick it up at no gold cost. Once obtained, the skill is learned like any other.

Philbert will also supply a variety of basic equipment from both the Syndicate headquarters in Lodi and at the various outposts across the world.

AGRICULTURE SKILLS
==================

Our plan for Agriculture skills is for everyone to be able to hold two of the three that will become available when the system is complete. With that in mind:

* Agriculture skills now work on a slot based system. Everyone begins with one slot, and the second slot can be obtained for a cost of 150,000 gold. Use AGRICULTURE EXPAND CAPACITY to do this.

* If you already possess Farming and wish to convert it to Mining, you may do so for no cost using AGRICULTURE SWITCH. THIS WILL DELETE ALL OF YOUR FARMS AND YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO RETRIEVE THEM. CHOOSE WISELY.

This option will remain available until the end of September.

HOW TO GET STARTED
==================

Once you've obtained the skill and picked up your equipment, you'll want to head to your city's outpost. These operate on the overhead wilderness map similarly to Farming, though fair warning: the mining maps are MUCH bigger.

Bloodloch | The Mhojave Desert | v53195
Duiran | The Western Ithmia | v68504
Enorian | The Shamtota Hills | v68550
Spinesreach | The Telfinne Caverns | v68946

Once there, you simply ENTER OUTPOST and you can begin searching for a desirable mine.

PROSPECT per room to discern the ores available and in what approximate volumes. PROSPECT AREA to scan the whole map at once and see an at a glance view of what ore is most common on which tile. The ore presence on each tile is set until the next Howling, at which point it will be rerolled.

When you're happy with a spot, you can then MINING DELVE to enter the mine and explore it.

If you decide that you wish to keep the mine you've just opened, return to the surface and CLAIM MINE WITH DEED.

NOTE: As with Farming on its release, you can only have one Mining deed for now. As the system settles into place, we will consider opening up multiple deeds.

With that, you are ready to build an office and get started. I strongly recommend reading through all of AB MINING, as the volume of information is too much to write here.

DEPOSITS AND VEINS
==================
You will find ores in two different states within mines: deposits, and veins. Deposits appear in the room like a normal item and can be mined with your pickaxe. Whereas veins are tiles on the map that must be mined by your Gnome workers. Refer to AB MINING PICKAXE and AB MINING VEINS for more details.

GRAPHICAL MAP
=============

At this time, there's no graphical map for Mining like Farming has. A graphical map for Mining holds significantly more challenges than Farming did, and we did not want to hold up the entire system for it. We'll still look at doing it in the future, but it will depend on whether we can overcome the difficulties posed by it.

USEFUL FILES
=============

- AB MINING
- HELP MINING
- HELP AGRICULTURE
- HELP PRODUCTION
- HELP DEVELOPMENT PRODUCTION

As this is such a big release, we'll be monitoring it over the coming days and making adjustments as necessary. Please report any bugs or typos you encounter, and feel free to ask if anything in the ABs or HELPs is not clear.

Enjoy!

Penned by my hand on Kinsday, the 20th of Niuran, in the year 497 MA.