Creating Adventure - January 2023

Words of Wyrom

The Wyrom

My 2022 experience can be summed up with the phrase, "I didn't hear no bell." It was a pretty exhausting stretch that led into long days, some sleepless nights, and times when I wasn't sure what week it was anymore. I led the teams through an organizational restructuring to try to focus on the core pillars for GemStone IV. That came with its own hardships, but I feel confident it will help highlight our strengths versus putting a spotlight on our weaknesses.

Something that has been on my mind a lot is how we conduct ourselves as game staff. All of us working on the game are players of GemStone IV. I think most of us have similar origin stories where we found the game on an ISP such as GEnie, Prodigy, or AOL and continued on over the years. Maybe you're just returning after a long hiatus or you've been with us off and on throughout the years, but the important part is you're here now reading this. And that means GemStone IV is a part of your life, whether you're passionate about the game or you're just here for the GIFTBOX. But sometimes it is hard to communicate with everyone on a daily basis. Discord has really turned the volume up on how much we engage with our players. It's really easy to chat on there and get sucked into a time vortex. It's also really difficult to not take feedback personally. We're all humans (mostly), after all. GameMasters have built a lot of relationships with our players, some of those extending multiple decades, so it can be a tough balance between friendships and professionalism. We had some slip ups recently, and the only thing I can say is, we'll try to be better.

I'm looking forward to 2023 and I think staff as a whole are eager to get working on new projects. One of my team's major goals on Production is to look at giving Premium players more value to that subscription tier. We are very thankful to see Premium continue to grow and we hope to put together a series of deliverables this summer. It's going to be pretty hot this summer, and in the evenings some people might need to find a way to cool down!

The Road Less Traveled

It's not often that we talk about projects that didn't happen or didn't make it on time. Sometimes we need to take a humbled approach. We had a lot of plans for 2022, but we lost some momentum in some areas and had tons of feedback in other areas. I'd like to talk about deadlines and projects that missed the mark and what our plan is. I usually talk about the road ahead, but I feel this year we need to take a different path and talk about what happened in 2022 and how we plan to move forward with those changes.

Divergence

One of the major areas we plan to walk back is Divergence. The immediate plan is to implement some of the less controversial changes that were part of Divergence and remove the rest. We will go back to working on the professional reviews and tweak the areas that we feel would constitute a better gaming experience. Spell concerns that were a hot topic during Divergence will get worked on more and we'll try to balance more of the feedback that was brought up during 2022. There will be a forum post to follow this announcement.

The reasons Divergence came into the picture were to be able to develop new, challenging content with changes to spells and skills that would make the development process be easier to account for certain hurdles in terms of game balance. GemStone has gone through a number of large changes to combat, but most of it has always been layered on top of each other. Divergence was a fresh take so we could remove those layers and finally push forward with the content we wanted to make. But it came with a lot of hardships along the way. We felt that keeping areas of the current game as is would be a great compromise so that if you hated the changes, you could easily continue to play the way you always had. We learned from feedback that we were wrong, and we’re sorry it took so long to recognize it. We have decided it's best to throw Divergence into the Eye of V'tull and start over with a fresh take, with a renewed focus on making sure the gaming experience is the best it can be.

Loot Cap

North Gate

One of the goals for 2022 was to put a lot of effort into draining silver from the game and to give your silver more meaning. Loot cap has been in place for a couple of years now, and while the 2021 numbers helped us identify what we'd need to do going forward, the impacts of it are still a work in progress. An area of growing concern was that most all of our new/powerful items were locked behind the paywall at our events. EVENT BOX was developed with a way to make sure you can still get an opportunity to accrue items/services with just in-game currency. It was decided to take the median spend (~5000 SimuCoins) and make that the target for EVENT BOX. We further refined the offerings of EVENT BOX to make sure it was appealing and achievable, as the upfront cost of over 10 million silver was a bit too much for most people, so we broke it down into smaller offerings multiple times. We coupled this with offering a limited pickaxe Duskruin Dig for silver with all the same prizes from previous Digs, as well as some of the leftover items from Droughtman's Maze Challenge.

We had other large drains in 2022, such as the Premium Auction, a scattering of silver festivals, Weighting/Padding/Sighting (WPS), and prize piles at many events. After all the dust has settled, and not including any game system that drains silvers on a regular basis, we were successful in draining north of 100bil silver from the game. That is a ton of silver. It is nearly double the amount of silver generated in a year. But as you can see, it means we have to keep going strong. We have to keep doing what we're doing and coming up with new ways (that aren't just tedium) to make your silvers, and essentially your game time, more valuable. We have some things in the works here that will appeal to both the silver-rich and poor. One is an enhancive reroller and the other is a system currently called charms. More on both of those when they are ready to hit the game!

While I plant myself firmly in loot cap being good for the game, there are parts of it that don't have a sense of community building. We will be removing the grouping penalties that were occurring with determining treasure. We will continue to keep an eye on how this impacts the game. If we notice a huge uptick in silver generation, we may need to put it back in place or try something new out.

Locker Updates

Like the auction, this lost momentum from losing our lead engineer at Simutronics. The locker updates required a significant update to how much data a character can store. That change didn't happen until roughly Ebon Gate time, and all the time I had planned to work on it was lost. It was an update I couldn't even plan out until the engine updates were made. I've been working on it since November though, and I hope to have it ready soon, before Duskruin, January if I can squeeze it out. We're also still plugging away at the family vaults, which are a whole different system. I'll be adding a January EVENT BOX for locker upgrades to herald in the changes shortly before we go live!

Road Ahead

While we spend some time going over the old, we don't want it to seem like that's all we're working on. We have some major new locales coming out, alongside character-defining storylines!

Development Projects

Some major development projects being worked on are:

• Spell Disabler Review
• Paladin Divine Inspiration System
• New Profession Service for Bards.

We have other projects in the works, but in fear of overpromising specifics, we'll just leave it at that.

More Hunting

We have three new hunting grounds planned, two of which are to expand Zul Logoth, a realm that hasn't experienced much in the way of new areas. Stormpeak will be coming soon, as it gets wrapped up in QC. Stormpeak is a level 79 to 85 hunting ground in the mountains above Zul Logoth. Afterwards, the Hive will be tunneling its way to Zul Logoth, which will be a capped hunting ground. Lastly, we are still working on Criptis on the Isle of Four Winds.

Roleplay in Elanthia

We actually have multiple known Elanthia-sprawling roleplaying events underway. Unfortunately, we can only name one of them right now because giving the name of the other one would tip the discovery scale. The Winter War has begun. We are, however, trying some new avenues of storyline communication, storyline setup, and ways to create smaller events within the larger plot point to target a diversity of people and interests.

Year in Review

We may have missed a few announcements in our Changelog, but check out (most of) our updates in 2022!

New releases will be added at the top, but you can sort the table by date or category.

Release Date	Category	Project	Description
12/30/2022	World	Ravelin Harvest Is Open for Business	A new grocery shop is open in the Ravelin in Ta'Vaalor on Lavandula Terrace
12/30/2022	Development	Troll's Blood (1125)	Troll's Blood (1125) base chance to break a stun has been increased by 10%. This increased bonus applies to the entire Empath's group. In addition, there is a new self-cast Empath bonus of +1% for every 5 spell ranks known. This bonus only applies to the Empath.
12/30/2022	Development	Parting Shot	Parting Shot, an ability to deal damage upon death to the attacker, found on fire mages and granted by boons to boss creatures, will no longer trigger if the creature is stunned, webbed, or immobilized during the killing blow.
12/27/2022	Development	Citizenship Date Update	You can now see the date you acquired citizenship. Please read the details.
12/26/2022	World	The Thirsting Dead: A Treatise on Elanthian Vampires	A treatise on the origins of vampires and vampirism in Elanthia by Hazelnut Honeybrook.
12/26/2022	Event	Adventurer's Guild Enhancive Recharging	The Adventurer's Guilds across Elanthia will be offering enhancive recharging services for silvers from now until January 9th. Please plan accordingly to take advantage of this limited time offer
12/26/2022	Development	Spirit Servant (218) Duration	Spirit Servant (218) now has a cumulative (stacking) duration.
12/24/2022	World	New URCHIN Places	GROCER, DOCKS, and WEDDINGHALLs added to URCHIN places.
12/23/2022	World	Enter the Refugees: New Shop in Sylvarraend	Woodland Market is now open by the millpond in Sylvarraend.
12/22/2022	World	Glowbark Supernode moves to Fraendel Court	Glowbark Supernode moves to Fraendel Court
12/22/2022	World	Supernode Addition to the Ravelin	A supernode has been added to Ravelin Meadow outside Healers' Hall
12/20/2022	World	Enter the Refugees - Kharam Dzu	New shop opened in Kharam Dzu
12/20/2022	World	Enter the Refugees - Wehnimer's Landing	Refugees from Talador open 2 new shops in Wehnimer's Landing as part of the new town bazaar! Patty's Cakes and Relocated Reverence!
12/20/2022	World	Wehnimer's Landing opens Town Bazaar!	4 new shops open in Wehnimer's Landing with the release of their new town bazaar! Quick Prick, Blended Brew, The Blue Orchid, and the Rhimar Rink!
12/19/2022	World	Solhaven Grocer Opens	The new grocer shops open in Solhaven
12/18/2022	World	Enter the Refugees: Cysaegir & Sylvarraend Shops	New shops were opened in Cysaegir and Sylvarraend
12/18/2022	Development	Gold Ring Update	Reduction in amount of silvers taken when "navved" to 10k max.
12/17/2022	World	Enter the Refugees: Kraken's Fall New Shops	New shops were Kraken's Fall
12/16/2022	World	Enter the Refugees: Icemule Trace New Shop	New shop was added to Icemule Trace
12/10/2022	World	Enter the Refugees - RR	Two new shops were opened in River's Rest by refugees from Caligos Isle.
12/09/2022	World	Inventory Update for Aulidie's Pottery in Solhaven	Aulidie's Pottery has been updated in all instances to have a new and improved inventory.
12/03/2022	Development	TITLE update with "USE" option	The TITLE command has a "USE" option for displaying only the titles currently usable.
11/25/2022	World	Grand Banquet	The Grand Banquet is a social event of thanks presented by Clan Leader Rodverg in conjunction with Brother Bixsby and the dwarves of Zul Logoth.
11/21/2022	World	Ta'Vaalor Port Naming	The official name of the Ta’Vaalor port is Mistwatch which was submitted and voted on by players.
11/12/2022	Development	Bank Note Fees Banished	Notes issued from the bank when WITHDRAWing money will no longer incur a .1% fee. Additionally, notes written out to players when selling goods to the gemshop, furrier, and pawnshop will no longer incur a .2% fee.
11/11/2022	World	Darkstone Bay Consortium	The headquarters of the Darkstone Bay Consortium opened along West Ring Road in Wehnimer's Landing, a new gathering for wealthy merchants alike!
11/09/2022	Development	Moonsedge	Moonsedge, a post-cap Ascension hunting ground, is released in Icemule Trace.
11/07/2022	Development	Parasite Armor	Parasite Armor now has increased reserves by 50 per tier. This results in a new maximum health reserve of 550 from 400. The blood infused with TOUCH will now also be increased by a flat bonus of affinity * 2 (Health Drained + (Affinity * 2)).
11/02/2022	World	Wehnimer's Storyline - North by Northwest	The storyline in Wehnimer's Landing, North by Northwest, begins!
11/01/2022	Development	FEAT: WPS & ASSESS	FEAT: WPS (Grit) and warrior ASSESS will now utilize the highest weapon skill training of the warrior instead of the skill associated with the weapon they are working with. This should allow warriors to work on and assess weapons of any type.
10/10/2022	Development	OSA Deeding and Trading	OSA Update: Hello everyone! There are some new additions to the OSA system. First, the ship salesmen will now allow you TRADE your ship in. This will give you 80% of the base value. This value can be used to purchase a larger ship. Think of it like a running credit balance on an account. Trading your ship in will not remove your bird. Second, the ship salesmen will now allow you to DEED your ship. To DEED your ship it will cost you 20% of the base value in silver. The deed will carry over all mechanical and cosmetic upgrades. The deed will NOT include your birds. Please keep in mind both of these features will remove titles earned by owning a certain number of ships.
10/01/2022	Event	Denizens of Naidem - a Document on those that live in the Realm of Naidem	Document describing the various denizens of Naidem and Evermore Hollow
10/01/2022	Event	New Ebon Gate Grounds - Welcome to Evermore Hollow	The Realm of Naidem is where the Unliving reside, those waiting to go beyond, and within that realm is a the town of Evermore Hollow...
09/18/2022	World	Path to Palestra	Prime saw a round of Palestra trials and accepted 8 new Palestra
09/11/2022	Development	OSA EN/TV	OSA - Ta'Vaalor's port is now open! You can now use the charter system to travel to Ta'Vaalor from any other portmaster. The voyage will cost 35k. You can now also transfer your ship to Ta'Vaalor using any handler.
09/07/2022	Development	Bird Task Timers for OSA.	OSA - Birds on ships (Tasks) will no longer have an increased time when used during different weather types. Prior, they would have 30-50 seconds in heavy storms, 20-40 seconds in light weather, and 15-30 seconds in calm weather. All weather types will now have 15-30 seconds.
09/07/2022	Development	Net-Launchers for OSA	OSA - Now equipped to every vessel is a net-launcher. These will come with the customization of your cannons and be placed on the main deck where the gangplank rests. The net-launcher can be used to pick up salvage or supply crates you generate. You simply FIRE the net launcher and PULL it up. These have a small cooldown. Cannoneers and Swashbucklers have a higher chance to hit the crates and also have less roundtime when using it.
09/07/2022	Development	MAP ability	OSA Sailors can now try to recall the map after viewing it recently with the MAP verb. People who are master navigators (active or not) can recall it for up to 60 seconds. If you are actively a navigator you get an extra 30 seconds. If you are neither, you can recall it for 10 seconds.
09/05/2022	World	History of Chopsticks	A new lore document about chopsticks in Elanthia
08/12/2022	Event	Life Aquatic	Devices were introduced at Duskruin that allowed small sea creatures to be captured and used to design paper, gemstone crafts, and/or chocolate treats
08/12/2022	Event	Duskruin Arena	Duskruin Arena Opened!
08/12/2022	World	Chapel Wedding Verbs	A new set of 40 bonded Chapel wedding verbs have been released. Marriage licenses purchased during Duskruin will result in the married couple having access to these Chapel verbs.
08/05/2022	World	Pup Tent Updates	Pup Tents now have dynamic room descriptions.
08/04/2022	World	Wehnimer's Storyline: Born of Bourth	A new storyline begins in Wehnimer's Landing, titled Born of Bourth!
07/28/2022	Development	Item Summaries Extended	The additions, changes, and bug fixes applied to recall and player shops has been extended to also include other shops, such as festival shops and pawnshops.
07/27/2022	Development	FEAT WPS RT Reduction	Roundtime reduced to 3s for both ASSESS and APPLY.
07/26/2022	World	Wehnimer's Landing Town Council Elections!	New elections are held for new player town council of Wehnimer's Landing! Winners are Kayse, Pookia, Vaemyr and Kiyna!
07/20/2022	Development	Updates to Weakened Armament and Dislodge	Improvements to Weakened Armament status and self-ammo weapon compatibility with CMAN Dislodge.
07/20/2022	Development	Watching and Ambient Messaging	When you are watching a room (whether by familiar or gallery or other assorted shenanigans), you will now see ambient messaging in that room in your Familiar window provided that you are capable of seeing ambient messages.
07/18/2022	World	Casu's Cafe in Ta'Vaalor	Casu's Cafe in Ta'Vaalor has stocked all of the tea and coffee flavors from the contest.
07/12/2022	World	Spike Alteration Rule Adjustment	Spiked armaments are no longer required to reference the spikes in the description (base or show).
07/10/2022	World	Stock Tattoo and Dreamfire Panel Lists Update	The stock tattoo and stock [Dreamfire Panel Bracelet
07/08/2022	Event	Glade Festival/2022 Premium Festival: Iyo Glade	Brand New Festival Grounds! Open from 07/08/2022 to 07/15/2022
07/07/2022	Development	INVENTORY update	INVENTORY now has an ENHANCIVE LIST option for listing all worn enhancive items, including tattoos.
07/04/2022	World	Spirit Beasts Updates	Some long weekend updates to the Spirit Beasts system. Now with more Hinterwilds Spirit Beasts!
07/04/2022	World	The Three Fires: Kindling the Flames of Erithi Storytelling	Lore document on erithi storytelling
07/02/2022	World	Wehnimer's Landing/Humans OOC Meeting	The annual OOC meeting held in-game to discuss current events and future projects for Wehnimer's Landing and Humans.
06/27/2022	Development	PSM: Bug Fixes & Divergence	Diverged PSM changes have gone live with some bug fixes and formula adjustments
06/27/2022	World	Festival of Lumnea	The Festival of Lumnea is a biennial celebration of Lumnis held in the month of Lumnea (June) by the elves of the shining city, Ta'Illistim.
06/24/2022	Development	SPELL MESSAGING update	SPELL now has a MESSAGING option for displaying special spell messaging settings.
06/21/2022	Development	TARGET updates	TARGET will now target the creature who created a hazard (like a gas cloud) when targeting the hazard.
06/15/2022	Development	Less Ambient Sorcerer Animates	Animates learned a new command (tell animate to act [silent/lazy/calm/normal]) which can result in no ambient messaging, 80% less ambients, 50% less ambients, or normal rate of ambient. Doesn't remove combat related messaging (such as spell preps).
06/11/2022	Development	Fletching Updates	Mundane woods persist while fletching.
06/11/2022	World	Creatures of Eh'lah and Sharath	Official document detailing the creatures around the Dhe'nar cities of Eh'lah and Sharath
06/10/2022	World	The Art of Origami	An official lore document on the art of origami across Elanthia.
06/10/2022	Event	Document: Insects Changed by the Magical Landscape of Elanthia	Document released detailing information on Insects of Elanthia that have been changed by magic.
06/10/2022	Event	Bugs on Parade	Devices were introduced at Rumor Woods that allowed insects to be captured and used to design paper, gemstone crafts, and/or chocolate treats
06/10/2022	Event	Rumor Woods	Open from 6/10/2022 to 6/26/2022
06/10/2022	Development	Boss LTE Cap	The amount of long term experience earned by killing boss creatures is now capped at 1,000 per day. There is still bonus fame and treasure for killing such creatures even once the cap is reached. The boss creatures from necrotic jewelry do not count against the cap.
06/9/2022	Development	POLICY 18 and 19 Updates	Updates to POLICY 18 and POLICY 19.
06/9/2022	World	Clothing of the Firstborn	Official document detailing Dhe'nar cultural clothing and materials found in Eh'lah and sharath
06/09/2022	World	PACE Verb Updates	Targets and roleplaying option expansion.
06/09/2022	World	Knitting Updates	Additional patterns, designs, colors, and materials.
06/03/2022	World	Weavables Updates	Backend updates, ANALYZE updates, flower expansion, and BUNDLE.
06/2/2022	World	The Settlement of Eh'lah	Official document detailing the Dhe'nar settlement of Eh'lah
05/22/2022	World	The Forgotten Vineyard	A hunting ground with higher level Shan opened in Solhaven.
05/10/2022	Development	Item Summary Updates	A number of additions, changes, and bug fixes were applied to the item summary system used by RECALL and player shops.
05/08/2022	World	The Atoll opening outside of Kraken's Fall	A hunting ground outside of Kraken's Fall.
05/02/2022 - 05/07/2022	World	Elven Nations Hinterwild Opening	A mini event to open the Elven Nation's side of the Hinterwilds
05/02/2022 - 05/06/2022	World	Flight of the Griffins	Annual Ta'Illistim event where players can be picked up by griffins and tossed into a nest for the grifflets to eat.
05/06/2022	World	Gambeson and Legging Conversion	The mist-filled conversion bowls have been updated to convert certain items to the gambeson or legging inventory slots.
05/05/2022	World	Elanthia Glassworking	Lore document on glassworking across Elanthia
05/04/2022	World	Food Plates	Plates are now a little easier to eat off of.
04/27/2022	Development	QSTRIKE UPDATED	ASCENSION, WEAPON, and FEAT are now supported.
04/25/2022	Development	Targeting and Attack QoL	Standardizing AIM, targets, and verb parsing for attack verbs
04/15/20221	Event	Rings of Lumnis	Open 04/15/2022 through 04/30/2022
04/15/20221	Event	Agora Promenade	Silver-based shopping area at the Isle of Ornath during Rings of Lumnis
04/15/20221	Event	Weddings	Automated Wedding System
04/13/2022	World	Verb Settings and Styles	Verbs that have options that can be SET (racial, cultural, citizenship, wedding, etc.) can now be used as styles.
04/12/2022	Development	CMAN LIST WINDOW (and other PSM verbs)	Player System Manager verbs can list skills in a popup window outside of the Story Window.
04/05/2022	Development	Eblade Bundle Dispel Bugfix	Fixed an issue where dispelling an ebladed bundle of ammo would render it unable to receive a new eblade.
04/05/2022	Development	Multi-target Bugfix	An issue causing Empathic Link (1117) to return "Nothing happens." even when targets are found has been fixed. The underlying issue also affected some other multi-target spells and abilities but 1117 failed the most loudly. All affected spells/abilities should now be working properly.
04/03/2022	World	Ithzir: Genesis	A new document release reveals the origins of some of the Ithzir race and a deeper look into their history!
03/27/2022	Development	Blinded	The blinded status effect penalty to performing SMR attacks has been reduced from 50 to 25. However, it now also penalizes attempts to defend against a SMR by the same amount if the target is blinded..
03/24/2022	Development	Blind (311)	Blind (311) will now work on creatures that immune to stuns, instead of outright failure. Such creatures will avoid the stun, but still be subject to the new blinded status effect.
03/19/2022	Development	REGISTER autoMARKing	REGISTER will now implicitly MARK an item if it could otherwise be sold. The MARK can be removed as usual: MARK {item} REMOVE.
03/18/2022	Development	BOOST INFO	BOOST INFO will no longer display F2P options if you're not F2P.
03/24/2022	World	MHO Wiki	Moved the Official MHO Guide from an offsite website to the wiki. Updated MHO wiki pages.
03/08/2022	Development	Soothing Word	Soothing Word (1201) will now remove the Horrify effect from the target.
03/08/2022	World	Copper Potts’ Pies and Sundries	Copper Potts’ Pies and Sundries is now open in the Kraken's Fall Logging Village
03/05/2022	World	Supdernode in Rusty Cutlass!	The second Supernode in Hearthstone Manor moves to the Grub Hall of the Rusty Cutlass!
03/01/2022	World	Wehnimer's Landing Special Election for Town Council!	The voting begins for a special election for one new player town council member of Wehnimer's Landing!
03/01/2022	Development	ASSIST and REFERRAL updates	Clarification of POSITION and routing response to Announcements window
02/28/2022	Development	UCS Flare Info	RECALL & PlayerShops should now display UCS equipment flare info.
02/24/2022	World	Wehnimer's Post Office released!	The post office finally opens within Wehnimer's Landing! You've Got Mail!
02/21/2022	Development	INVENTORY USAGE	he INVENTORY verb has been given a USAGE option, which lists a count of functional and total items present in each worn location.
02/16/2022	Development	Locksmith Toolkits	Toolkits may now hold 100 vials.
02/13/2022	Development	Sheer Fear updates	The Sheer Fear mechanics have been updated with different penalties for afflicted players.
02/11/2022	Event	Duskruin Arena	Open 2/11/2022 through 2/28/2022
02/08/2022	Development	TITLE update	Added new title groups for Duskruin and Rumor Woods, and events should have their own groups moving forward.
02/08/2022	Development	Lockpicking QoL Improvements	Reduced roundtimes for wedge creation and caliper calibration
02/08/2022	Development	Player Song Debuff Duration Fix	Holding Song (1001), Lullabye (1005), and Song of Depression (1015) have been updated to now have a maximum duration of 30 seconds versus player targets.
02/08/2022	Development	Resist Nature (620) Revision Released	Resist Nature (620) has been updated as a new group buff and permanent service spell.
02/07/2022	Development	Table CLEANing	Registered items will no longer be cleared when CLEANing tables.
02/07/2022	Development	Undead Cold Resistance	Cold immunity has been removed from a number of undead creatures.
02/05/2022	World	Speech & Tone Additions	Addition of a plethora of new SPEECH VERBIAGE and TONE options.
02/02/2022	Development	Empaths learn a new trick!	Empaths can now cure Overexertion (POP'd Muscles)
02/02/2022	Development	INFO update	Splits stats by normal, ascension, and enhancive
01/31/2022	World	Ta'Illistim Warrior Guild More Friendly	The Ta'Illistim Warrior Guild no longer requires Dark Elves to enter the guild through unsavory means. The front door is open to all members.
01/25/2022	Development	Sweep, Bull Rush, and Shield Trample	Improved Stagger result.
01/25/2022	Development	Vault Kick	Reduced roundtime and stamina costs.
01/18/2022	Development	TRANSFER Update	Empaths may now gain experience points when healing dead empaths.
01/18/2022	Development	Major Bleed Bugfix	Healing the underlying wound also heals a major bleed effect. Empaths now TRANSFER major bleed effects when healing the underlying wound.
01/13/2022	World	Rusty Cutlass Released!	The Rusty Cutlass tavern opens at the north docks of Wehnimer's Landing!
01/12/2022	Development	Graveyard Gate Update	Graveyard Gate is considerably easier to PUSH open and roundtime penalties removed. (Prime/Shattered) (Plat update occurred on 2/1/22)
01/11/2022	Development	PSM AoE scaling changes	Area of Effect skills now scale using 3 base targets, with an additional target every 50 Multi-Opponent Combat skill.
01/09/2022	World	Aradhul Road Skill Checks	The overall roundtime has been lowered on Aradhul Road. The sting of failure should not hurt as much. The lethal crits are still possible on huge failures, but are less frequent than before.
01/07/2022	World	Wehnimer's Storyline: Ashes to Ashes	The storyline Ashes to Ashes begins in Wehnimer's Landing!
01/04/2022	Development	Old Ta'Faendryl & Teleport Spells	Teleport spells have been updated in Old Ta'Faendryl to return the caster (and their group, when applicable) closer to the entrance portal [Ta'Faendryl Approach]. This includes Spirit Guide (130), Symbol of Return, Sigil of Escape, and Sign of Darkness.

Spotlight on Staff

GameMaster Galene Rank SGM Team Production Guru Prime

GameMaster Galene

This time around I met up with Galene! She is currently on the Production team, overseeing Prime.

Wyrom: So tell me a little bit of background about yourself.

Galene: I'm 39, and a St. Louis, Missouri native. I'm married with 2 kids that are 10 and 6, and we are all bossed around by our rescue cat and new Chihuahua mix puppy.

Wyrom: Now that we know a little bit about you, how long have you been on staff?

Galene: I was hired in October 2007. So, I've been doing this for a little over 15 years.

Wyrom: After you were hired, what team did you start on?

Galene: I believe I started on Events, and I could not have been more stoked to get to work on weddings!

Wyrom: Before getting to the senior side of GameMastering, what would you say was your biggest accomplishment for GemStone IV?

Galene: For storylines, I was most satisfied with running the Prisma Relics storyline. I love seeing the folks that still use their Relic Hunter titles. For area building, I was so excited to make the grounds for Briarmoon Cove since the scenery was so specific to the location, and everything we made was brand new, not just adding on to existing event areas.

Wyrom: Favorite area in Elanthia?

Galene: East Tower in the Landing. Rogue 4 Lyfe.

Wyrom: Favorite thing you designed?

Galene: My favorite area that I've created is the Imaera's Grove and Temple in Solhaven. The sylvan lapidary boxes are definitely my favorite item I've made.

Wyrom: Best memory of GemStone IV?

Galene: I met my husband through GMing for the game, so I think meeting and getting to know him are some of my best memories.

Wyrom: Do you actually like Aelotoi?

Galene: When additional race options were released, I rolled up an aelotoi character immediately and some GMs roleplayed a small quest to walk down to Cysaegir to essentially investigate the new area that aelotoi were getting as their refuge. It was so exciting and fun to be involved in that storyline on the player side and to be part of their original establishment in GS. So, YES, I do!!

Wyrom: If you could snap your fingers and change one thing about Elanthia, permanently, what would it be?

Galene: Ha, unless I get a trial run of some sort, I'm not doing anything permanently!

Wyrom: Who would win in a fight, Imaera or Oleani?

Galene: No contest, Imaera would win. Never second guess a Mother Nature figure.

Wyrom: What do you like to do outside of GemStone IV?

Galene: I'm into indoor and outdoor gardening, reading, making art, and watching documentaries. I have a vintage resale shop, and I sometimes source items at antique or thrift stores, too.

Wyrom: Do you have a favorite book or series?

Galene: My favorite fantasy series is The Inheritance Trilogy by N.K. Jemisin. She's my favorite living author.

Wyrom: What about movies, what's in your top picks?

Galene: The Princess Bride, Labyrinth, The Birdcage, 10 Things I Hate About You, and nearly every true crime documentary ever made.

Wyrom: Do you have a favorite quote or something you like to live by?

Galene: "Prepare yourself so you can be a rainbow in somebody else's cloud." - Dr. Maya Angelou

Wyrom: If you had to pick a fantasy world to live in, which one are you moving to?

Galene: I would pick Wonderland and move in with the Cheshire Cat.

Wyrom: Now you and I played the game together and went to at least two of the same runs of the WaveDancer. Outside our Narnia rap and my voluminous hair, what would you say was an iconic moment during that whole era of GS?

Galene: All I'll say is that I'm sending a shout out to the members of the Ecru Cru. They know who they are.

Wyrom: Any parting words before we go?

Galene: Excelsior!