Greetings Fellow Avatars!

Here’s what we have for you in this week’s edition of Update of the Avatar:

• Making of Valhold
• Artifice (A Work In Progress)
• Mountain Player Owned Town Template

Making of Valhold

[From a Dev+ Forum Post by Richard “RrMatey” Matey]

Hey guys, started working on a new scene this week VALHOLD! I won’t get too much into the background, I will let you find out when you play and don’t want to spoil anything.

A couple of the main ideas are.
-A once great kingdom that was ransacked by Kobolds, since then it has not been up kept.
-Overgrowth, a castle that is getting devoured by nature.
-Green color palette, all element should be very cohesive and even tied together with vines / plants.
-Vaguely Norse in architecture.

Inspiration Board:

A Broken Wall:

Main Entrance:

Overgrown Village:

City Street:

“Yellow Will Protect You!”:

Artifice (A Work in Progress)

[From a Dev+ Forum Post by Scott “Scottie” Jones]

Finally you’ve pulled yourself away from the pleasures of youthful vigor, and returned to the Entry Hall to explore more of this enchanting place… Upon approach to the next vestibule, you are greeted with enticing aromas and plates of various delicacies. Casks of ale and wine are piled here, with goblets and steins waiting to be filled. The glowing doorway to the next Hall of Artifice beckons.

Beyond the golden portal you are transported to the Hall of the Feast of Plenty! On either side, tall columns of rough-hewn marble support the vaulted ceiling in this marvelous great-hall that even Dionysus would envy. In the chamber’s center an elaborate table stretches nearly the length of the room, piled high with masterfully prepared viands of every kind, each one more delicious-looking than the next. In the swirling steam rising from platters of tender roasted meats, lanterns gently sway, bathing the heaping delicacies in warm, welcoming light.

The incredible bounty of food at its center seems overwhelming! Even the edges of the great hall are lined with tables heaping with food, each set of offerings showcased in the rays of mote-specked light that filter in from stained glass windows on all sides. So much exquisite fare,…but worry not! This food will never go to waste, since you won’t be the only one enjoying this amazing repast. Elegant guests wander and sit throughout the hall, enjoying delicacies of their own,…encouraging you to do the same. A fire crackles merrily in the great-hearth toward the back of the room, before which sits a single round table. And upon it, apparently, is the same mysterious box seen in the chamber before.

As you turn back to the entrance, the glow of the golden door reminds you that there is at least one more hall to explore before you must consider the comparatively small nuisance of the firmly locked bronze double-doors back in the Entrance Hall leading to who-knows-where… Those thoughts are mere tickling annoyances though, really. With so many like-minded comrades around you, enjoying the finer things in life, why bother worrying about such trivial affairs. The pleasures of the palate await!

Hopefully you’ve found this enticing…

More to come soon!

Scottie ^_^

Mountain Player Owned Town Template 01

Michael “Hutch” Hutchison has been hard at work in this latest Player Owned Town template. This is both an entirely new layout and a new biome representing a high mountain pass with a lake. Players who have selected this template and who have locked their submission form will be automatically switched over in Release 29. Here are a few shots of the work in progress which can be visited as a nested town in Hometown in Release 28.