Lost Ark News

Heroes of Arkesia,

The Voldis Wonderland Update arrives in Arkesia tomorrow. Downtime will begin on December 13 at 1AM PT (9 AM UTC) and is expected to last 5 hours. With a new continent to explore, Guardian Raid, Holiday Event, and the start of Proving Grounds Season 4, the first of our December Updates has something for every player. Find the full list of content, events, skins, and other updates below! Henry is back with an episode of “Patchnotes with Henry” for any players looking for an express video explanation and visual showcase.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

Let us know on YouTube if you enjoy this type of content from our team and would like to see more heading forward. Want all the details? Find the full list of content, events, skins, and other updates below!


[h3]New Continent - Voldis[/h3]


Voldis is a new continent with an entrance Item Level of 1520 and above. The continent of Voldis is the land of sages and alchemy, with the magnificent city of Kalinar located at the mouth of Ketsla River. The city is always bustling with tourists seeking advice from the renowned sages. The city itself has a fantastic view and is full of cute Homunculi dashing to-and-fro as they run the citizens’ errands. Voldis is home to the Sages, who delve into many secrets regarding alchemy, the body, and the mind. They are well-respected for their vast knowledge and powers, and with the Chaos Guardians returning, their aid will be more than helpful in the upcoming war.

Outside of the city, much of the continent is full of giant trees – all part of the Great Rainforest. The Rainforest holds many mysteries, with powerful monsters lurking in the shadows. Players can get help from the Raiyas, the people of the Forest, to enter the Sage’s Tower and reach the end of the story.



To experience Voldis, players will need to reach Item Level 1520, complete the following pre-requisite quests: Pleccia World Quest "Twilight Hill", Voldis Prelude Quest "Shattered Sea's Cradle", and then receive quest "Kalinar, City of Sages" at Macaboa Port in Voldis.
After the story has ended, players can complete their Adventurer’s Tome, as well as complete a brief set of epilogue quests. Notably, Voldis introduces a new Field Boss— Drakus, a 1610 Chaos Gate, and a 1610 Chaos Dungeon. Voldis will also include:

• Voldis Guide Quest '[Guide] Guides: Voldis' added
  
• Una's Task & Quests added for Voldis
  
• 5 New Rapport NPCs. Voldis Adventure quests can be accessed after completing Voldis World Quests. Prerequisite: 'A Historic Alliance' Adventure Quest completion.
  
• 4 Rapport Items added
  
• Can exchange Voldis Rapport Item Chest from Voldis Rapport Exchange NPC 'Nada'
  
• Adventurer's Tome
  
• Memory Tome
  
• New Trade collectibles
  
• 3 New Emotes
  
• 27 New Achievements
  
• 7 New Titles
  
• 13 New Card Sets, 5 New Card Book Sets
  
• 9 New Jukebox Songs
  
• Voldis Stronghold Research - Crafting Recipe: Voldis Excavation Ruins Map & Craft Method: Voldis Treasure Map Chest
  
• Voldis Knowledge Transfer
  
• Voldis Feast
  
• New NPC Stronghold Skins
  
• Voldis Wandering Merchant Ship, which includes 1 New Sail glyph and 2 New Stronghold Crew
  
• Voldis Wandering Merchant 'Gudis' Added with following items
  
• Secret Pouch: Pouch Seeping With Magick - "Rainbow Bait" & "Rainbow Essence"
  

Reminder - Endgame Content Arrives on December 20.
After a week of exploring Voldis, encountering the new threats of the Guardian Gargadeth, Field Boss Drakus, and more, the Ivory Tower Abyssal Dungeon will release alongside Elixirs on December 20.

[h3]Gargadeth Guardian Raid[/h3]


Gargadeth is a powerful Guardian who can control the weather and stormed onto the battlefields of the Chain War long ago. The thickening energy of chaos brought Gargadeth back from a long slumber. Possessed by the chaotic energy, Gargadeth now shows aggression towards all living beings— beware the fierce tempest summoned by Gargadeth. Once you get swept into the thunderous storm, you may not find your way back to reality.

Gargadeth is the second Purification I Guardian, and can be challenged by players at or above Item Level 1610 in the new Shadowed Swamp of Silence map. Players can earn honing materials, accessories, and have a chance to drop the Legendary Galewind Skill Rune can be obtained through Purification I Guardians (available to earn once per Roster). Gargadeth also brings 4 new achievements, a new title, the Gargadeth Card, and a new Card Book Set: Greed Without End.

[h3]Proving Grounds Season 4[/h3]


Season 4 of Competitive Proving Grounds PvP arrives. Prove you’re one of the best warriors in Arkesia to earn season ranks, rewards, and prestige. In Season 4, MMR Values will undergo a soft reset at launch, and the requirements for different ranks has been adjusted. the new values are:
Silver: 1100 - 1250
Gold: 1250 - 1400
Platinum: 1400 - 1550
Diamond: 1550 - 1800
Master: 1800+ & Rank 50 - 11
Grand Master: Rank 1 - 10
The end date for Season 4 has not yet been determined, and will continue for the foreseeable future. Good luck on the battlefield!


The Event Guardian Raids will draw to end with this update.
The Daily Playtime Rewards will continue for another month with this update.
[h3]Freja Island Event[/h3]


A new seasonal event arrives. Have you been good this year? Find out as you traverse the Naughty and Nice Maze on Freja Island to earn rewards. You can enter every even hour (2PM, 4PM, etc.), and once per roster per day, or earn tokens from clearing Chaos Dungeons and Guardian Raids. Tokens from Freja Island can be spent at the event shop, which has a variety of valuable items and holiday-themed rewards that can be earned! Special event feast items will also be available during the event. Freja Island will last until the February Update, with new activities arriving in January.


Embrace the holiday spirit with two special, holiday inspired cosmetic collections. Find both showcased below!
[h3]Starry Galaxy Cosmetic Collection[/h3]
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

[h3]Festive and Eve Cosmetic Collection[/h3]
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

[h3]Royal Guard Ark Pass[/h3]
The newest Ark Pass arrives and adds new ways for players to earn impactful rewards just by playing Lost Ark. Players can complete missions to progress through 30 Ark Pass levels, and with each level reached, new rewards will be unlocked and earned. The regular Ark Pass is completely free and grants a variety of helpful rewards, such honing material selection chests, battle items, rapport items, and even a Legendary Card Pack! Ark Pass progress is earned across your entire roster, and the rewards are roster bound.

While all players will have access to the free Ark Pass, those interested in more rewards and cosmetics can exchange Royal Crystals for two premium reward tracks (Premium & Super Premium) which each layer in additional rewards to the leveling track. The Premium Ark Pass adds rewards at all 30 levels earned alongside the free rewards. Examples include more honing material selection chests, battle items, rapport chests, and more! On top of the Regular & Premium rewards, the Super Premium Ark Pass weaves the Royal Guard cosmetic collection, Pheons, and a Legendary Card Pack throughout the Ark Pass.

The Premium and Super Premium tiers will be available in exchange for Royal Crystals until February 7, 2024 and players will be able to earn XP and rewards on all tracks until February 28, 2024.
Find the cosmetics showcased below.
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

[h3]General Updates[/h3]

• Max-cap extended and rewards added for Mokoko Seeds, World Tree Leaves, Omnium Stars, Sea Bounties, and Ignea Tokens.
  
• Ebony Cube 5th Forbiddance Added. Tickets can be earned in the 1610 Chaos Dungeon introduced with Voldis, or in the new Sage Entrance Ticket Chest available in exchange for Bloodstones.
  
• With the release of Voldis, content that rewards Legendary Card Packs II will be replaced with Legendary Card Packs III. This includes: Endgame Content: Transmuted Reward Chest, Chaos Dungeons, Challenge Abyssal Dungeon, and Adventure Islands.
  
• Awakening Skills will no longer require Awakening: Chaos Shards.
  
• Awakening: Chaos Shard items will be removed from quests, powerpass rewards, the Codex, the General Merchant NPC.
  
• The item name will change to Chaos Shard due to the changes of its usage.
  
• Awakening: Chaos Shards purchased from an NPC within 102 days but not used yet will be auto-exchanged with silver. The shards obtained through event rewards or trade is not subject to this policy. For these shards, players can receive Silver by selling their items to the General Merchant NPC manually.
  
• Added a Chaos Gate Matching Improvement which slightly shortens the time after matching for Chaos Gate entry.

• Fixed an issue with Specialist face presets not displaying correctly.

Heroes of Arkesia,

We wanted to share our plans for releasing the massive amount of content that arrives alongside Voldis. This month, we will have two major updates, a week apart, on December 13 and 20.

The December 13 update will include Voldis, the Gargadeth Guardian Raid, a new seasonal event, Proving Grounds Season 4, and much more! Stay tuned to next week’s release notes for the full details. After a week of exploring Voldis, encountering the new threats of the Guardian Gargadeth, Field Boss Drakus, and more, the Ivory Tower Abyssal Dungeon will release alongside Elixirs on December 20.

[h2]DECEMBER 13 - VOLDIS WONDERLAND[/h2]
[h3]VOLDIS[/h3]
Voldis is a new continent with an entrance Item Level of 1520 and above. The continent of Voldis is the land of sages and alchemy, with the magnificent city of Kalinar located at the mouth of Ketsla River. The city is always bustling with tourists seeking advice from the renowned sages. The city itself has a fantastic view and is full of cute Homunculi dashing to-and-fro as they run the citizens’ errands. Voldis is home to the Sages, who delve into many secrets regarding alchemy, the body, and the mind. They are well-respected for their vast knowledge and powers, and with the Chaos Guardians returning, their aid will be more than helpful in the upcoming war.


Outside of the city, much of the continent is full of giant trees – all part of the Great Rainforest. The Rainforest holds many mysteries, with powerful monsters lurking in the shadows. Players can get help from the Raiyas, the people of the Forest, to enter the Sage’s Tower and reach the end of the story. After the story has ended, players can complete their Adventurer’s Tome, as well as complete a brief set of epilogue quests.

[h3]ADDITIONAL CONTENT[/h3]
Players can look forward to the Gargadeth Guardian Raid, Proving Grounds Season 4, a new seasonal event, and much more!

[h2]DECEMBER 20 - ENDGAME UPDATE[/h2]

Learn about the Abyssal Dungeon and Elixir system below— and be on the lookout for more information and news as we head toward the December 20 endgame update.

[h3]IVORY TOWER ABYSSAL DUNGEON[/h3]
The Ivory Tower is a new Abyssal Dungeon located in Voldis, which has 4 gates. The entrance Item Level is 1600 for the Normal difficulty and 1620 for Hard Mode. The rewards include Honing Materials (Refined Protection Stones, Refined Obliteration Stones, Radiant Honor Leapstones, Honor Shards), Gold, special hidden rewards, and the new Elixir system.

[h3]ELIXIRS[/h3]
Elixirs are a new system which will drastically increase player’s combat abilities by imbuing their gear with new, powerful effects. Epic elixirs will be obtainable through the Normal mode of the Ivory Tower Abyssal Dungeon, while Legendary Elixirs can be earned via Hard mode. Once obtained, Elixirs need to be refined and imbued onto a player’s gear.

• To refine an Elixir, players need to first get ‘Ductility Catalyst’ by paying gold and Chaos Stones. Catalysts are also acquirable through Wandering Merchant in Voldis.
  
• The refining process requires both a certain amount of Gold and Catalysts. Players have a set amount of tries for each refining process, and players can use the advice from the three Sages of the Tower to pick the best outcome possible. Players will need to think carefully and use the advice well – it’s important to understand the logic of the system.
  
• There are powerful Set bonuses to aim for when special conditions are met. The refining process is unlike any other experience in Lost Ark – it relies on a certain amount of luck, but it also requires the players to think carefully and logically to plan for the best outcome.
  
• Once the Elixir is done refining, players can imbue the Elixir to their equipment to get bonus effects. There are various types of bonuses that Elixirs provide – categorized broadly into offensive, defensive, and utility. Players can choose a maximum of five abilities for each Elixir and refine two out of the five. There will be 10 abilities once refining is done – two for each equipment (as Elixirs are not applied to the weapon).
  

We look forward to sharing more information about the December Updates in the coming weeks. In the meantime, we’ll see you in Arkesia!

Heroes of Arkesia,

When bringing updates to Arkesia’s western shores from Smilegate RPG, there’s a lot that factors into our decisions and process. With the highly sought-after balance changes that recently released in Korea, we wanted to let players know we hear their feedback and give a look into our process.

First, let’s dive into how we bring over “base builds” to the West. Base build refers to the Korean build version used for an update in the West. For example, the November 2023 update includes features from patches that were released in Korea between July 5 and September 13. All packaged up and prepared by Smilegate RPG and Amazon Games, these combine to make a base build, which is different than just releasing an independent piece of content.

Each base build contains hundreds of different updates, including everything from system/UI improvements, additional settings, combat and character and skill updates, guild-related improvements, additional tooltips and help, design/model improvements, or difficulty changes to various combat content, along with many backend changes not visible to players. Some of these updates are specific to Korean content or systems that have not yet been released in the West. The team at Smilegate RPG has to work to remove updates that don't apply to West, or to rearrange them to fit into West's player progression. Of course, these changes need to be fully tested again. After this process, the Korean base build is applied to the West build.

For this reason, simultaneous releases are not easy, and some updates in Korea may be adjusted again at a later date, so West builds have the advantage of additional testing that collect and combine those changes. However, if Amazon Games determines that we need significant improvements sooner (such as the endgame raid changes and Chaos Gate update) we will work with Smilegate RPG in advance and aim to bring it to West as soon as possible, separate from the base build update.

Most QoL and Balance updates are made via base build updates, which occur roughly every three months. In some cases, Korean balance updates are rebalanced after release, so once we've confirmed that they're sufficiently optimized, we add them to the base build. With the November update including the last Korean base build, we are currently working on preparing the next base build for January, 2024.

We appreciate your passion for Lost Ark and excitement for the recent changes in Korea, and we know that many players would like to see Balance updates released more quickly in the West. Amazon Games is working with Smilegate RPG to look into how we can make this happen outside of the base build system we currently use, and we're working hard to bring you more good news in the future.

Heroes of Arkesia,

With many players beginning on their own “path of the Souleater”, we wanted to share some tips and tricks for those looking to maximize their potential— so we partnered with Lost Ark veteran ZealsAmbitions. Zeals has a ton of Souleater experience, so if you’re looking to learn, make sure you checkout his content on Twitch and YouTube, along with Zeals’ tips found below.

[h2]Full Moon Harvester[/h2]
The most asked questions I get are about engravings and gear sets.
[h3]Engravings[/h3]
While I recommend players that are serious about having Full Moon Harvester as a main to have a separate +3 Cursed Doll and a separate +3 Hit Master earring or ring accessory with +12 Cursed Doll and +12 Hit Master engraving books learned to swap engravings at any time, here are some pros and cons of the 4 engraving choices if a player decides not to go Adrenaline 3 and Ether Predator 1:

• Hit Master - Does not apply to Awakening Skills, Bleed Rune, and Head/Back Attack Skills.
  
• Cursed Doll - Applies to everything and can use Reaper's Scythe with Tenacity Tripod, which can save player's life in numerous situations. Has the healing potion penalty and diminishing returns with Atropine Potion.
  
• Super Charge - Cheaper accessories and faster charging speed, but cannot change Vestige's Concentrated Attack Tripod and Reaper's Scythe Condensed Soul Tripod. Doesn't apply to all of the Full Moon Harvester Souleater's skills so it has less damage value than Hit Master and Cursed Doll.
  
• Mass Increase - Same as Cursed Doll but more attack. Doesn't have the potion penalty but has the attack speed penalty and since Full Moon Harvester Souleaters do not have attack speed cap, this is only recommended for those who want an extremely high risk, for a slightly smaller reward.

[h3]Gear Sets[/h3]
As for sets I recommend new Full Moon Harvester Souleater players to use Hallucination until Elixirs come into play. Nightmare has a higher ceiling in the endgame, but the switch from Hallucination to Nightmare is decided later after factoring in Ancient accessories, 9/7 or 10/6 Ability Stones, Bracelet (Precise, Cycle, Weakness Exposure from Supporters, etc.), party synergy, and Elixirs.

The golden recommended rule by the Souleaters is 70% Crit Rate so that she's at 90% Crit Rate in Deathlord Mode. Crit Rate is just too highly valued in Lost Ark in general. Also, at 70% Crit Rate Keen Blunt Weapon Engraving has 18.2 value and during Deathlord Mode 21.2. That is 20.04 per cycle! Do note (depending on your gem situation), Full Moon Harvester Souleater damage distribution is currently around 4:6 ratio. Four during Possession Meter building phase and six during Deathlord Mode phase. Having a high Crit Rate matters because of this ratio.

[h3]Skill and Combat Tips & Tricks[/h3]
Do not use Vestige when coming out of Deathlord Mode. Upon closer inspection on the Full Moon Harvester engraving, it does say "upon using Soul Stone, recover Possession Meter by 5%." However, when exiting Deathlord Mode by using Reaper's Scythe and immediately using Vestige (or any Deathlord Skills) to do the 3 Vestige cycle into full Possession Meter, you won't gain the 5% Possession Meter. Give the game a second to exit out of the Deathlord Mode by using a non Deathlord Skill. For example, I highly recommend opening the next Possession Meter cycle by opening with either Astaros or Lunatic Edge. Also, do note two things:

1. Stygian Skills gain Possession Meter when the Stygian Skills deal damage to the target.
   
2. Deathlord Skills gain Possession Meter when first launching the Deathlord Skills (due to Full Moon Harvester engraving) and again when they deal damage to the target.

When in Deathlord Mode, it's recommended to open with Vestige. There are two main reasons for this. First, the skill has 2 stacks so using the skill will start the cooldown and it's highly recommended to have the cooldown rolling to get as many uses throughout the fight. Second, the skill goes through the boss so it can be used to reposition yourself to the back of the boss to land Reaper's Scythe, which is a Back Attack skill if you choose Tenacity or Energy Thief.

Reaper's Scythe with Tenacity or Energy Thief Tripod is the only Deathlord Back Attack Skill Full Moon Harvester Souleaters are recommended to use. It's recommended to land Reaper's Scythe at the back of the target for the 10% Crit Rate and 5% damage bonus, but it's not required. Souleater has many skills for repositioning so it won't be too difficult.

As for your second Deathlord Skill during the Deathlord Mode phase, it's recommended to use Guillotine Swing and take all the time you need within the 13 seconds of Deathlord Mode to land your Reaper's Scythe at the back of the target.

DO NOTE: if a player launches Guillotine Swing with Scaffold Tripod as their second Deathlord Skill and then uses Reaper's Scythe immediately, Guillotine Swing will not receive the Deathlord Mode's buff, because the player will exit the Deathlord Mode before the Guillotine Swing lands.

The faster you end your Deathlord Mode, the faster you can start building your Possession Meter to enter Deathlord Mode again. This is the mission of a Full Moon Harvester Souleater. Even if you're using Nightmare Set and you happen to be in Endless Mana state, it's recommended to not wait around too long to enter Deathlord Mode. Simply put, keep the flow going, build Possession Meter within 3 Vestiges, enter Deathlord Mode and burst, rinse and repeat.



When players use Guillotine Swing right before entering Deathlord Mode, the skill is enhanced by Deathlord Mode's buff (Attack and Movement Speed +10% / Crit Rate +20%) by the time the skill lands. However, any Guillotine Swings used right before entering Deathlord Mode will not be affected by the +15% damage portion of the Full Moon Harvester Engraving and Combat Stat: Specialization.

While it is recommended for players to use Vestige with Concentrated Attack Tripod and Reaper's Scythe with Condensed Soul Tripod, which turns both skills into charging skills, players can play an instant cast version of Full Moon Harvester by sacrificing damage by opting out of the charging Tripods.

However, I highly recommend learning the perks of the charging Tripods. For example, Reaper's Scythe with Tenacity Tripod can allow a player to hold the charging skill for an extra second after fully charged to ignore attack patterns with Tenacity or turn the character up to around 200 degrees to land the skill. Vestige while charging can be rotated about 90 degrees as well.

[h3]Awakening Skills[/h3]
As for Awakening Skills, Deathbringer and The End, they have similar damage (Deathbringer 221.958 / The End 271.895), while The End leads when looking at only the damage and a little shorter casting animation. While playing Full Moon Harvester Souleater, I prefer to use The End for extra damage during the opener as I use Awakening Potion before starting encounters. However, players can opt for Deathbringer for the three Soul Stones and the Weak Point level 2. If player chooses to use The End with Awakening Potion, make sure to use it in Deathlord Mode.




Night's Edge is more straight forward, but here are some tips and tricks for maximizing damage and efficiency.

Players should enter full Edge Meter when Lethal Spinning has about 1 second left on cooldown. Within the 12 seconds window players want to ideally fit in 2 Lethal Spinnings, 3 Lunatic Edges, and 3 Harvests. Also, Lethal Spinning has high Crit Damage so it's recommended to land it as a back attack.
If a player is using the Nightmare set and has a shard before pulling the boss, they can start with Guillotine Swing and cast Deathbringer. By the time Guillotine Swing lands (unless they’re using the Cross Swing Tripod) the Nightmare set buffs will be activated. After gaining 3 Soul Shards they can follow up Deathbringer with Reaper's Scythe.

I also get asked about why Reaper's Scythe is used right after enhanced Guillotine Swing and that's because fitting in 2 regular Reaper's Scythe is more damage than waiting around for 1 enhanced Reaper's Scythe.



Thanks for joining us for this tips & tricks article with ZealsAmbitions! We wish you luck as you work to master the new Souleater Advanced Class.