May 27 (Thu) Update Details

Greetings, this is Shadow Arena.
Here are the updates made to Shadow Arena during the maintenance on May 27 (Thu).

* Patch Size: Approx. 270.93 307.79 MB (Modified)

Check out the details below, and we will see you in the Arena!



[h3]■ Preseason [/h3]

- The Preseason has begun.
> Preseason Period: May 27, 2021 (Thu) after maintenance - June 3, 2021 (Thu) before maintenance
> Your performance during the pre-season will not be reflected on the previous season's records once the new season begins.

[Dev Note]
The dye system that we mentioned in a previous Dev Note was going to be implemented sometime during May with the Preseason, but due to errors found during the development stage, our current goal is to implement it on June 3rd. We apologize for the delay, especially to the players who’ve been eagerly waiting for the dye system. We will do our best to present this feature in a stable and finished state.

On the other hand, we’re very excited to present the “Mastery System” that we’ve previously announced for this Preseason. Thank you for your patience!

Shadow Arena is a game that focuses on “Hero Action” gameplay, meaning that we’ve released many heroes so far and plan to continue to release new ones. Since players have different preferences regarding hero concepts, there’s a kind of enjoyment found in the choosing a right hero as the number of heroes increases. But this enjoyment doesn't simply go up with the number of playable heroes, but with concept of ‘if players can actually play the hero in the way they wanted.” As such, the purpose of the Mastery system lies in heightening the fun and depth of player experiences for specific heroes, rather than just offering many heroes.

Now players will be able to experience different playstyles for each round with the hero that they love. For example, you can select “Ancient Dragon’s Breath” as the skill mastery of Herawen—who was mainly used as a support type hero—and use the hero as a damage dealer. In certain matches, you can select “Hawk Eye” as a Sub-mastery skill to quickly defeat monsters from the beginning as your winning strategy. Then in the next round, you might select “Light Movement,” to survive until the Ascension stage, and avoid enemy attacks and Meteorites as the strategy at the later stage of the game.

As we welcome the new season, this patch brings with it the new system, “Mastery” and changes the balance between heroes. Instead of just adding new content, we will pay close attention to fixing issues and improving the balance so that players can have a better game experience. We want to thank everyone who waited for the mastery system, and we will do our best to consistently improve upon it.


[h3]■ Mastery System [/h3]

- The Mastery System has been added.
- Added a Mastery selection button that will appear on the Hero selection screen.



▲ “Mastery” button is at the right-side of the Hero selection screen



▲ Click the “Mastery” button to select your Combat and Sub Masteries


| Combat Mastery Skills
- You can select Combat Mastery skills from the Mastery menu at the Hero selection screen.
- You can only choose one of two combat mastery skills for each type.
> For example, if you select Shield of Heidel for Jordine’s RMB skills, you cannot use Spear of Serendia. On the contrary, if you select Spear of Serendia, you cannot use Shield of Heidel.
> For now, you can only select from inherent skills. Other skills (Q, E, R) will be coming in future updates.
- Once you have selected your Mastery skill, click save to save them.
- Combat Mastery skills for each Hero are as follows:


| Sub-Mastery Skills
- You can select Sub-Mastery skills from the Mastery menu at the Hero selection screen.
- The number of points needed to activate each Sub-Mastery skill differs, and you can only use up to 2 points.
> Example 1) “Decisive Strike (1 Point)” and “Black Spirit’s Protection (2 Point 2)” add up to be three points in total, so only one of those two can be activated.
> Example 2) If you activate “Decisive Strike (1 Point)” and “Steel Skin (1 pPoint)”, you cannot activate additional Sub-Mastery skills.
- If you have not selected a Sub-Mastery skill, “Decisive Strike” and “Precision Strike” will be selected by default.
- Click a selected Sub-Mastery skill again to deactivate it.
- Once you have selected your Sub-Mastery skill, click save to save them.


[h3]■ Major Bug Fixes [/h3]

- Fixed an issue where only 70% of the damage is dealt to an enemy hero when they are attacked while using skill.
- Fixed an issue where certain boss gear that were obtained would not appear on the survivor status screen.
- Fixed an issue where the kill buff would overlap with the HP gauge bar.
- Fixed an issue where heroes who defeated the monsters below by dealing the final hit on them occasionally did not obtain kill buffs.
> Shadow Lord, Stoneback Crab, Shadow Troll, Shadow Knight Captain, Shadow Shaman, Ruins Golem
- Fixed the typo in the text that appears when you invite a player who is already a member of a clan to a clan.

[Dev Note]

For quite some time, there was an issue where only some of the damage was dealt to you when you were attacked while using a skill because of a damage reduction effect that was applied. This interfered with the playstyle of targeting an opponent when they were vulnerable by using a skill, and it also made it more difficult to make strategic plays. We apologize for not being able to timely acknowledge such an unreasonable system. This issue has now been fixed and will no longer apply.

Additionally, we’ve provided counter damage buff effect “Precision Strike” with the Sub-Mastery system introduced above. It should now be more advantageous for playstyles that target opponents while they are using skills. On the other hand, players who use skills first must be more cautious with their decisions. Plus, now that the damage reduction effect which was widely used in many situations is gone, we expect combat in general to be more fast-paced and exciting than before.


[h3]■ Hero [/h3]


| Black Spirit Skills
- Changed the first animation for using a Matchlock to be loading the gunpowder.
- Decreased the preparation animation before the Matchlock is fired when you click LMB while on standby by 0.45 seconds.


| All
- Increased the cooldown for Roll from 3 sec to 3.5 seconds.
- Improved Rolling to now display a visual effect indicating motion.
- Added a new debuff effect, “Bleeding.”
> Bleeding Effect: Recovery reduction –40% for 5 sec, HP –100 for 1 sec
[Dev Note]
If a support’s recovery ability is low, they becomes less useful. However, if it is too high, then matches become too drawn out. Thus, we decided to introduce a shared debuff called Bleeding that lowers HP recovery to certain skills rather than just nerf the recovery ability of supports. Now, damage dealers can more effectively reduce the amount of HP recovery and overpower their opponents, while supports will need to more pay more attention when recovering teammates to avoid healing while the bleeding debuff is active.



| Shadow Explosion (E)
- Increased the skill’s damage by 31%.

| Sun of Destruction (R)
- Sun of Destruction now allows you to charge the orb while moving.
- Increased the amount of stamina consumed for charging the orb by 50%.




| Light of Sylvia (RMB)
- Increased the skill’s cooldown by 1 sec.

| Seed of Ice (Q)
- Increased the skill’s damage by 8%.

| Thunder Viper (E)
- Increased the skill’s damage by 34%.
- Increased the amount of stamina consumed when you continue using the skill by 40%.

| Kamasylve Tree (R)
- The Tree will now be summoned at a closer distance from Herawen (distance reduced from 7m to 5m).
- Increased the duration of the Tree to 15 sec.
- Changed the recovery pattern of the Tree as follows:
> (Before) Recover +800 HP every 1 sec → (Now) Recover +800 HP every 1.5 sec
- Changed the HP of the Tree to longer be affected by the HP/DP of Herawen, and instead be fixed as follows:
> HP 10000, DP 100

[Dev Note]

As we mentioned above, you were too likely to survive if you bought defensive items (HP, DP, Auto HP recovery, etc.) and received heals from supporters. Thus, we slightly lowered the HP recovery abilities of all supports and introduced a recovery reduction debuff effect called “Bleeding” to some skills. At the same time, we greatly increased certain skill damage so that even supporter could damage dealers in certain situations.

As for Thunder Viper, it didn’t consume a lot of stamina, but also dealt a low amount of damage, so it was an awkward skill to use since the player casting it didn’t really feel its effects, while the opposing player just found it annoying. Therefore, we greatly increased the skill’s damage and stamina consumption so that it could be used more aggressively as long as the player paid attention to AP and stamina buffs.

In the case of Kamasylve Tree, it was changed in a previous patch to be affected by Herawen’s HP and DP, but we concluded that this was the turning point that caused Herawen to only grow defensively. So, we changed the Tree to have some degree of HP and DP on its own. Furthermore, we gave more strategic points to the Tree by making its duration and HP recovery cycle longer, so that opponents could negate its recovery buff by destroying it quickly.



| Thunderbolt Arrow (RMB)
- Applied a color to highlight the damage values for each level of charge in the skill description.

| Arrow Storm (E)
- Improved the description regarding number of hits in the skill description.
- Fixed an issue where the amount of max damage stated in the skill description was lower than the actual value.

| Shower of Arrows (R)
- Fixed an issue where you could not use the skill while sprinting.
Note: If you use the skill, you will stop sprinting.




- Fixed a typo in values for when your HP is not consumed in the skill description.
- Applied a color to highlight to the HP values in the skill description.

| Corpse Cut (Q)
- Fixed a word spacing error in the skill description.

| Grave Digger (E)
- Improved the skill’s hitbox so that when the skill hits successfully, additional hits can be made.
- Fixed a word spacing error in the skill description.

| Blood Flurry (R)
- Added a description on the guard break effect that had been omitted from skill description.




- Increased the damage of her basic attack by 12%.
- Decreased the animation of the last hit of her basic attack by 0.13 sec.

| Courage Stance - Blades of Retribution (E)
- Changed so that you will make two hits without having to hold LMB or E key.
> Increased damage by 20%.
- Increased the duration of the stun effect from the first hit from 0.3 sec to 0.5 sec.

| Patience Stance – Breath of Elion (E)
- Changed the amount of HP recovery from +1800 for 10 sec to +1500 for 10 sec.
- Changed the color of the display of HP recovery value from red to yellow.
[Dev Note]
During fast-paced combat, it was not practical to use Blades of Retribution for up to 3 strikes, since it was impossible to land all hits in the hitbox.
We decided that the 3rd strike was more of an unnecessary option than a useful extra to the 2 strikes for certain situations, so we improved the skill’s ease of use by changing it to always deal 2 strikes and increased the advantage for when the hit was successfully landed.



| Scale Ripper (RMB)
- Improved the effect of a successful strike from DP debuff of –5% for 5 sec > DP debuff of –10% for 5 sec.

| Skull Crusher
- Improved so that hitting with this skill will apply a bleeding effect.



| Crimson Nether Flower (E)
- Crimson Nether Flower’s last hit will now apply a bleeding effect when it is successful.



- Applied a color to highlight the time in the skill description.


- Decreased the hero’s default DP by –50.
> (Before) 210 -> (Now) 160
| Shield of Revenge(RMB)
- Reduced the delays before the skill by 25% and after the skill by 30%, respectively.
- Increased her movement speed after using the skill by approximately 50%.
[Dev Note]
Igrid is a hero who excels in 1v1 battle thanks to her skill set and high attack and damage stats. Because of that, this created a situation where players found it incredibly difficult to defeat Igrid in a 1v1 battle. As a result, we decreased her defense stats, but increased the usability of Shield of Revenge in combat.


- Increased the damage of his basic attack by 16%.



| Heilang (RMB)
- Increased cooldown by 2 sec.

| Monkey: Reach! (Q)
- Reduced the preparing motion by 0.15 sec.
- Increased the skill’s damage by 20.48%.

| Crow: Shoo! (E)
- Reduced the preparing motion by 0.17 sec.
- Increased the skill’s damage by 12%.



| Older Brother! (RMB)
- Fixed the issue where the Hungry Black Spirit would occasionally not attack nearby enemies.
- Applied a highlight color to the time in skill description.

| Hide & Seek! (Q)
- Increased the damage by 23%.
- Applied a highlight color to the time in skill description.

| Found You! (E)
- Reduced cooldown from 12 sec to 10 sec.
- Increased the damage by 19%.
- Applied a highlight color to the time in skill description.


| Laytenn! (R)
- Decreased the amount of HP recovery from the laser beam after you have transformed into a Laytenn from 2500 to 2000.
- Added a description on the guard break effect that had been omitted from skill description.
- Impoved skill description and applied a highlight color to the time in skill description.



- Increased the hero’s default DP by +50.
> (Before) 0 → (Now) 50

| Reload (RMB)
- Fixed the issue where, when you used the skill while sitting, your stamina recovery got slow.
- Applied a highlight color to the number of bullet in skill description.


| Charged Shot (Q)
- Reduced the distance you move backward as the recoil from the skill by 25%.
- Changed the awkward description of cannon(포탄) to bullet(탄환) in skill description.



- Improved the unnatural sliding motion that she takes when making a sprint dash attack.
- Increased the speed of her sprint dash attack by 18%.

| Thorns of Corruption (RMB)
- Improved so that hitting with this skill will apply a bleeding effect.
> Bleeding : Reduce HP Recovery by 40% for 5 sec, HP debuff –100 every 1 sec

| Garden of Roses (R)
- Reduced the preparing motion to summon roses by 0.4 sec.



- Increased the amount of stamina consumed when making basic attacks while sprinting by 38%.

| Fire-rang (RMB)
- Increased the skill’s damage by 12%.


| Burning Hula Hoop (R)
- The area inside the Burning Hula Hoop where damage is inflicted is reduced.

> If you are near the Durgeff Durkhan who casted the skill, you will not be affected by the Burning Hula Hoop.
[Dev Note]
Due to her high number of hits, Durgeff was a hero who was hard to avoid for her opponents. When she used her basic attacks while chasing, it was very hard to escape and would cause a great deal of stress. Therefore, we increased the amount of stamina consumed for when she uses basic attacks while sprinting, and we adjusted the attack range of Burning Hula Hoop. We expect that escaping from her will be easier and that Durgeff’s weakness against close-ranged opponents will stand out more.


[h3]■ Contents [/h3]

- Decreased the area affected by Light of Ascension by 15%.
- Changed the explosion effect of Blackstar Meteorites to make it less intense.
- Improved so that the Red Dragon will be summoned closer to the player when using Red Dragon’s Offering.
> After using the item, the time that it takes until Red Dragon fires its breath is changed from approximately 20 sec to 15 sec.
> Added the phrase “Red Dragon fires its breath 15 seconds after using the item” to the item description.

[Dev Note]
Because the red circle inside the Light of Ascension was too wide, the situation where each team took up a certain area and fought from safety happened too frequently. Therefore, we reduced the size of the occupiable area so that players will have to be in the opponents’ attack range in order to block them or seize the red area ahead of them as a way to increase the danger within the Ascension area.


| AI Player
- Fixed an issue where players could not evade AI Orwen’s basic attack.
> Added a motion that an AI Orwen takes before making a basic attack.
- Fixed the issue where an AI Orwen could use Thunderbolt Arrow (RMB) continuously regardless of the cooldown.
- Fixed an issue where AI Orwen's Thunderbolt Arrow (RMB) did not knockdown players upon hit.
[Dev Note]
The Orwen AI’s Twin Fairy Arrow and basic attacks were fired with a precise aim every time making them feel unfair. We’ve added a motion before the AI fires an arrow, unlike actual player controlled Orwens. This issue was brought to our attention previously, but we took time trying to figure out the best way to deal with it. We apologize for the long standing inconvenience.


| Shop

- Some shop items’ effects and purchase prices are changed as below.





| Shadow Lord

- The effects of boss defense gears that can be obtained by defeating Saigord are changed as follows.
[Dev Note]
Previously, the effects of boss defense gear were too gravitated towards increasing survival ability. Therefore, we changed the effects of boss defense gear that can be obtained at the mid to later stage of the game to be about increasing attack power. Unlike defensive items, those that increase offensive ability will offer greater power, combined with the boss defense gear above. Furthermore, we expect the games to be more fast-paced, since some players will exponentially grow to their destructive capabilities.

- Changed the appearance of dropped boss defense gears to a treasure chest to make it more visible to players.

- Decreased the size of the damage range of Shadow Flame summoned by Saigord by 22.2%.

- Improved the timing of Varigord’s roar attack to match the visual effect of the attack.
[Dev Note]
We are aware that too many players are dying because of Saigord’s Shadow Flame. If we just reduced the damage, it might create a meaningless pattern where players could attack and fight while in place, so we’ve reduced Shadow Flame’s attack range. Now players will need to move around a bit to fight, but still not have to just run away from the Shadow Flame. We hope this encourages players to try and defeat Saigord.




| Stoneback Crab
- Fixed an issue where Stoneback Crabs would sometimes not respond to attacks.
– Improved so that Stoneback Crabs would occasionally change their targets during combats.
- Changed Stoneback Crabs to stay in place if it is more than 30m away from its target.
- Improved so that the AP range of Stoneback Crabs’ special attacks would be displayed.
- Made improvements for an issue where the timing of Stoneback Crabs’ special attacks would not match that of the visual effect.
- Changed Stoneback Crabs to use special attacks more frequently.
- Increased the DP of Stoneback Crab from 0 to 100.
- Decreased the HP of Stoneback Crabs by 16.7%.

- Increased the damage of Mountain Stoneback Crabs by 20%.
- Increased the overall attack speed of Mountain Stoneback crabs by approximately 15%.
- Changed the effect of Mountain Stoneback crabs’ special attacks as below.
> (Before) Knockdown for 2.5 sec
→ (Now) Knockdown for 1.5 sec, DP debuff of -50% for 5 sec

- Added “Bleeding” effect to Steppe Stoneback crabs’ special attacks.
> Bleeding effect: HP debuff of -100 every 1 sec for 5 sec, recovery effect debuff -50%

| Shadow Troll

- Changed the number of summoned normal monsters by Shadow Trolls as below.



| Normal monster
- Decreased the HP of all normal monsters by 7.4%.
[Dev Note]
We’re addressing how farming became more difficult due to the previous patch for monsters. In later patches, we plan to minimize pointless farming, increase the practicality of neutral monsters (Shadow Knight Captain, Shadow Shaman, etc.) just like in this Stoneback Crab patch. Hopefully, this will somewhat make defeating monsters more enjoyable.

[h3]■ Sound[/h3]

- Added laughter that will appear when a Hero obtains boss defense gear from defeating enemy players.
- Improved hero voicelines to better audible when ascending.

[h3]■ Official Website/Launcher Fixes and Improvements [/h3]

| [Launcher]
- Unified fonts used within the launcher.
- Improved the alignment of words in the setting window.

| [Official Website]
- Improved videos in the official website to load more quickly.
- Fixed the issue where, when you clicked Shadow Arena “My Activities” under [My Page] > [Account Info], you were not able to access the activities page.
- Fixed the issue where [Shop] > [Purchase Gcoin] screen did not work in mobile environment.



Thank you.