Lost Ark News

Heroes of Arkesia,

The Spells in Spades Update brings a new Advanced Class— the Arcanist— along with a variety of new progression events for new and existing players alike. With new alternate characters available to level-up easily with tools like the Punika Powerpass, Hyper Express Event, and more, we thought it would be the perfect time to sit down with the Lost Ark legend ATK and share some tips and tricks with players interested in expanding their roster. With his own stacked roster of over 20 characters, not to mention the skill needed to play them, few know more about managing a roster and making efficient alternate characters than ATK.

If you’re interested in learning about the new progression events, you can find specific details in The Spells in Spades Release Notes. Find ATK’s advice on making alternate characters and managing a growing roster below!

[h2]BENEFITS OF ALTS[/h2]
Before getting into how to pick an alternate character or when he recommended progressing an alt, we started off by asking ATK for his thoughts on some of the benefits of creating alternate characters.

[h3]TRYING NEW PLAYSTYLES
[/h3]Trying out different classes can help you get better at Lost Ark in general. By experiencing different playstyles, you can better learn about back-attack classes, the different DPS positions and rotations of classes, and better understand how support plays. Knowing how the support/team-buff operates for various classes is also crucial to generally improve performance.

[h3]MORE GOLD & RESOURCES
[/h3]ATK dives further into some specifics in the Progression section below, but simply put, having multiple characters ready for Legion Raids yields you more Gold. With the recent additions of Legion Commanders Valtan and Vykas, having a Item Level (ilvl) 1430 or 1445 character will get you a significant Gold boost— as a Normal Legion Raid clear grants 2,500, and Hard Mode clear grants 4,500. Up to 6 characters on your roster can earn Gold from weekly activities, called “raw Gold generation”.



Apart from Gold, alt characters can generate a variety of materials by doing daily Chaos Dungeons, Guardian Raids, and Silver through Una’s Tasks. Una’s Task rewards are character bound, but Silver isn’t! You can also sell many of the materials from Chaos Dungeon and Guardian Raids your alt characters generate, or transfer them to another character on your roster. For example, having a 1370 character can yield you materials from the 1370 Chaos Dungeon, Nightfox Yoho for Great Honor Leapstones and Tier 3 Guardian and Destruction stones. Characters stay in Tier 3 for a long time, so simply having another character in Tier 3 will help you gather various materials to bolster all of your roster’s characters. Unlike gold generation, you can have more than 6 characters that can generate materials, but I always want to advise don’t make too many characters or you will be overwhelmed with dailies!

[h3]VERSATILITY, EXPLORATION, AND UNA’S TASKS
[/h3]Bifrost teleports are character specific, meaning more characters will give you more total Bifrost teleports for your roster. With more points, you can strategically set your Bifrosts to different locations you need to travel to, like special event islands, traveling merchants, or for different Una’s Tasks.

You can work on multiple Una’s Tasks with alts, as each character can do 3 Daily Una’s Tasks. If you find yourself wanting to do a specific Una’s Task to earn Leapstones for your main, you can utilize your alt characters to earn progress on other Una’s Tasks that grant important reputation rewards, like Giant Hearts, Omnium Stars, Skill Point Potions, and more.

Sometimes during an event where you earn various tokens to trade for rewards, tokens can be obtained by completing Chaos Dungeons, Guardian Raids or even Una’s Tasks. If you happen to have enough characters, you can generate enough tokens for doing dailies, if you don’t enjoy the event’s activities.

[h2]PICKING AN ALTERNATE CHARACTER
[/h2]


Are there any tips you have for players when picking a new character?

I think people should try all the classes for fun! I would never pick a class based on the meta or a “best performing” class, I get asked this all the time and I believe people should play the class they enjoy playing. There is nothing more stressful investing into characters you do not want to play simply because they’re in the meta.

Have at least one support in your roster. You don’t need to if you dislike the playstyle, but I can guarantee your knowledge of Lost Ark will double if you play a support. DPS players can perform better if they have a support in their roster, because they know how a support thinks and how they rotate their team-buff skills. Also, it’s easier to learn mechanics in a raid with support because you have more time to observe the boss’s patterns.

Leverage your existing resources. Legendary Engraving recipe books are expensive, so people tend to make alts based on what Legendary Engravings they’ve read, for example:

• Hit Master is used by Artillerist, Sorceress, Sharpshooter, Gunslinger, Arcanist, and Shadowhunter.
  
• Ambush Master is used by most back attack classes like Deathblade, Striker, Deadeye, Reaper, Scrapper, and Control Glaivier.
  
• Supports use Engravings like Expert and Awakening.
  
• Grudge, Cursed Doll, and Keen Blunt are expensive, but are used by all DPS classes, so you can make a variety of DPS alts if you’ve read them.
  

[h3]DUPLICATE CHARACTERS
[/h3]


Are there pros/cons to making an alt that's the same class as your main, or a duplicate of another class you enjoy playing?
Pros

• You can share Class Engravings and Gems.
  
• If you’ve read Legendary Class Engravings, your alts can benefit from it.
  
• Gems do a significant role in damage, and if you have characters of the same class, they can benefit from the high level gems.
  
• Your mastery of the class will be great.
  
• I have seen one-trick players inLost Arkthat were significantly better than players who play multiple classes simply due to their mastery and understanding of the class.
  
• If there are users who are planning to be the best player of a certain class, I’d suggest they should make multiple alts of the same class.
  

Cons

• Unless you love the class, it can become repetitive.
  
• As mentioned above in the benefits section, having different alts can help you learn how different classes work and how your teammates think about, or position themselves, in different situations. While you can master a class this way, you might not have as much insight into your teammates’ thinking.
  

[h2]PROGRESSING YOUR ALTS[/h2]


When advancing/honing your roster, do you have any tips for players? When’s the right time to push a character?

I get this question all the time— and I want to stress that it should always be specific to the player— because fun and goals are subjective topics. Here’s a good foundation that could potentially help.

If you think it’s fun, do it! I have so many people trying to justify pushing a character’s ilvl. The truth is, you cannot justify pushing a character by means other than your desire to make the character stronger. You get more resources, but the payback usually does not cover the initial investment. Unless you think it’s fun, you should never buy materials to push. The game provides you enough bound items if you do your dailies. Gold is valuable, and I wouldn’t spend it to push your alts.

Play at your own pace! I would never over-push your characters with Gold unless you desire to play them, due to it being fun. Think of it as a marathon, not a sprint.

[h3]MAKING ALTS MORE EFFICIENT[/h3]
Prioritizing Versatility, Silver, and same-tier materials make an efficient alt. More Bifrost and Lopang Una’s Tasks for Silver gains are good enough for a low investment alt. For example;

• Item level 960 - 1301 yields you 52,560 Silver per day.
  
• Item level 1302 - 1414 yields you 79,200 Silver per day.
  
• Item level 1415 - 1490 yields you 93,600 Silver per day.
  

If you keep doing your dailies, you’ll gain enough bound materials to keep pushing the alt’s ilvl, and then your alts will be able to generate gold. Here are some of the major thresholds for reference:

• 1325 - 1340 - Abyssal Dungeon Normal Gold, 1340 Chaos Dungeon, 79,200 Silver
  
• 1370 - Argos + Abyssal Dungeon Hard Gold. 1370 Chaos Dungeon, 79,200 Silver
  
• 1415 - Argos + Valtan Normal Gold. 1415 Chaos Dungeon, Deskaluda, 93,600 Silver
  
• However this requires you to build decent Engravings.
  
• 1430 - Argos + Valtan Normal + Vykas Normal. 93,600 Silver.
  
• This is where I had my 16 alts parked for 6+ months.
  
• Deskaluda - a 3-4 minute fight.
  
• 1445 - Argos + Valtan Hard + Vykas Normal. 93,600 silver
  
• This is the ilvl you can experience the character’s “true late game” with full Relic gear and accessory sets. This is the ilvl you should experience before deciding pushing further as main, because it becomes significantly more expensive to push further to experience newer content.
  
• This is where most of my characters are parked, and this is when Deskaluda becomes a 2-3 minute fight with full Relics.
  
• Any ilvl above 1445 is considered a main investment. This category is for under 6 characters because only 6 characters can make weekly Gold. Any more characters above this level are not recommended by me, as you could be overwhelmed by dailies and content.
  

[h2]SWAPPING MAINS[/h2]


Is there ever a good time or way to swap your main?

A good time to swap your main is simply anytime you enjoy and desire to make that class stronger. Sometimes you will find yourself really enjoy playing a certain class, even if that class is low level. Mains should always be based on how much fun you have, not the ilvl. Item level always comes as you spend time on the character. I have so many friends who switch mains all the time, since there are enough resources for everyone to utilize to try new characters, like Trixion in-game and watching streamers who play the class.

LEARN MORE FROM ATK
If you need additional help picking a new alt, make sure to checkout ATK’s character interviews and content on YouTube— a great way to see what an Advanced Class is all about! You’ll find more insights, guides, live high-level Lost Ark gameplay, and more original content on ATK’s Twitch and YouTube channels:

• ATK’s Twitch Channel
• ATK’s YouTube Channel

Thanks for joining us for this special edition of Lost Ark Academy, and we wish you luck as your roster grows with the new progression events and Advanced Class in this month’s update!

It’s a big day for Lost Ark players, as the Spells in Spades update is going live today! This update brings with it a new advanced class to play, a new summer-themed event, new challenging end game content and a slew of changes to make gearing up a character easier for players.

The new class - the Arcanist - is likely the star of the update for those looking for a new character to level or thinking of jumping in for the first time. It’s all about casting powerful magical abilities with a collection of mystical cards, each with their own unique effects.

This class comes following the Bard and Sorceress as mage advanced classes, and provides a special twist on the archetype that is sure to appeal to a vast number of Lost Ark players. To help them gear one up, honing costs across the three tiers of content have been streamlined as of this update, making the process of upgrading your equipment far less of a time, money, and resource sink than it previously was.

Read more

The latest class to join Korean fashion-fantasy MMO Lost Ark is the arcanist, a third advanced class for mages alongside the existing bard and sorceress. Arcanists are part of July's Spells in Spades update, which also adds support effects to make climbing the item levels faster, higher difficulty levels for the Valtan Legion Raid and Abyssal Dungeons, a pool party event with water pistols, and beach-themed cosmetics...
Read more.

Heroes of Arkesia,

The July “Spells in Spades” Update arrives in Arkesia tomorrow! Downtime for the update will begin on July 20 at 12AM PT (7AM UTC) and is expected to last 4 hours. Spells in Spades includes the Arcanist Advanced Class, the Inferno Difficulty of the Valtan Legion Raid, Challenge Abyssal Dungeons, a new summer event, summer cosmetics, and more! Find the full list of content, updates, and bug fixes below.

[h2]Spotlight[/h2]
[h3]New Mage Advanced Class - Arcanist
[/h3]


The Arcanist imbues special cards with her Magick and uses them for a wide variety of effects. From slicing up enemies with a deluge of thrown cards to summoning powerful Magick attacks from the cards themselves, the Arcanist has a trick up her sleeve for every situation. The Arcanist will join the Bard and Sorceress as the third available Mage Advanced Class.

You can find more information in our recent Arcanist Lost Ark Academy to see if the Arcanist makes a good addition to your roster. Learn about the three types of skills, the Specialty Card Meter, and start planning the skills and engravings you’re interested in using to enhance your impact on the battlefield.

[h3]Valtan Legion Raid - Inferno Difficulty
[/h3]


The most difficult version of Legion Raids, the Inferno difficulty is all about proving you’re the among the best of the best in Arkesia, and earning the prestige accompanying that feat. Rather than chasing the normal rewards of gear, honing materials, and everything else you’d receive in a Legion Raid, Inferno rewards instead showcase your victory with titles, achievements, Stronghold structures, and more! A new in-game vendor will be added for players to access a variety of prestigious rewards, earned after various numbers of clears.

There are a few key differences between Normal/Hard and Inferno difficulties:

• ‘Scale of Balance’ is applied, and the raid requires use of the Book of Coordination, so everyone’s gear is normalized against the level of your Legion Commander opponent.
  
• The gate progression system will not be active - you can’t make it half-way and come back later in the week.
  
• Inferno mode will not count against your weekly attempt limit for Legion Raids, so you can play Valtan on Normal/Hard and Inferno in the same week, and try Inferno as many times as you’d like.
  

Valtan Inferno difficulty will require item level 1445 for players to participate.

[h3]Maharaka Festival & Waterpop Arena
[/h3]


Enjoy pool-party pandemonium in a new time-limited Event! Hop in the Maharaka Paradise pool and compete on teams as you try to push the opposing team out of the arena by firing at them with a Water Pro water gun. As the game progresses, the arena gets smaller and smaller. Try and rack up points as quickly as possible to win. The event occurs every two hours, and players can earn Maharaka Leafs to exchange at an Event Vendor for a variety of valuable rewards. If you’re excited to further embrace the pool-party summer spirit, you’ll definitely want to checkout the Store Updates section below.

[h3]Challenge Abyssal Dungeons
[/h3]


Similar to how Challenge Guardian Raids applies Scale of Harmony to equalize your power against your foe in Guardian Raids, Challenge Abyssal Dungeons will use this treatment on Abyssal Dungeons in a new weekly activity. With greater challenge also comes greater rewards. Various honing material selection pouches— like Challenge Guardians, you can pick the offering closest to your item level— will rotate through the rewards, and cards aplenty are available as drops or in the end-of-dungeon loot auction. You can play through each Abyssal Dungeon once (per roster) each week.

[h2]General Updates
[/h2]
[h3]New Progression Events
[/h3]
This update introduces two new progression events, a Punika Powerpass and a Hyper Express Event that helps accelerate a character from Item Level 1302 to 1370.

Players will receive a Punika Powerpass after completing Punika's quest “Berver's Friend” during the event period. To access this quest, players must first complete all Adventure Quests (marked by purple exclamation marks) on Punika to collect stamps and become a citizen. Once the final quest in this chain, “Honorary Punikan" has been completed, you can talk to Nia in Nia village to start "Berver's Friend."

If you've already finished the quest before the update, you'll get the Powerpass when the event starts! The Punika Powerpass will function like the North Vern Powerpasses available to players in the launch version of Lost Ark— once you’ve completed the storyline through that continent, you can use it to bring an alternate character to that point in the game. With the Punika Powerpass, you'll receive Item Level 1302 gear. This is an event Powerpass that expires on September 28.

Players will be able to designate one character between item Level 1302 and 1370 on their roster to participate in the Hyper Express Event, where they’ll earn honing materials, and level up quickly to Item Level 1370. The designated character will earn rewards upon reaching Item Level 1302, 1310, 1320, and every ten levels until Item Level 1370— which grants a particularly valuable reward.

We’re excited to see the new alternate characters roaming Arkesia as players experience different playstyles or quickly level up a brand new Arcanist. For newer players, we hope the new Mokoko challenges found below help them quickly level up and reach the additional events.

[h3]Mokoko Challenge
[/h3]
This update will replace the existing Welcome Challenge series of missions with the new Mokoko Challenge. Functioning similarly to the Welcome Challenge, the Mokoko Challenge layers in additional progression mechanics to help accelerate new players and characters through Tier 1 and 2.

• Mokoko Buff - Players that have a new account or haven’t played within the past 30 days and have no characters at item level 1370 or higher will receive the Mokoko Buff. Users with the Mokoko Buff will deal 20% more damage to monsters and take 40% less damage. After 90 days pass or a character in your Roster reaches item level 1370, you will no longer be considered a new adventurer and the buff will end.
  
• Mokoko Challenge Missions - Players that have the Mokoko Buff active can complete special missions to earn honing and other progression materials, helping them reach item level 1370. When the Mokoko Buff ends, the Mokoko Challenge missions will no longer be available, and unclaimed rewards for completed missions will be sent to Universal Storage.
  

[h2]Growth Support Effect
[/h2]This update also includes a new Growth Support Effect which will aid players in advancing their characters to item level 1370.
[h3]Tier 1 Growth Support
[/h3]

• 100% success rate when honing Tier 1 gear from level 1 to 15.
  
• Double level ups when honing Tier 1 gear at level 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11.
  
• Required honing XP reduced by 20% when honing Tier 1 gear from level 1 to 15.
  
• Honing breakthrough cost reduced by 100% when honing Tier 1 gear from level 1 to 15.
  

[h3]Tier 2 Growth Support[/h3]

• 100% Success Rate when honing Tier 2 gear from level 1 to 15.
  
• Double level ups when honing Tier 2 gear at level 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11.
  
• Required honing XP reduced by 15% when honing Tier 2 gear from level 1 to 15.
  
• Honing breakthrough cost reduced by 100% when honing Tier 2 gear from level 1 to 15.
  

[h3]Tier 3 Growth Support[/h3]

• Basic success rate increased by 20% (max. 20%) when honing Tier 3 item level 1302 gear from level 1 to 15.
  
• Required honing XP reduced by 30% when honing Tier 3 item level 1302 gear from level 1 to 15.
  
• Required honing breakthrough materials and cost reduced by 50% when honing Tier 3 item level 1302 gear from level 1 to 15.
  
• Tier 3 honing costs decreased (30% Gold decrease and 50% gear XP decrease).
  

[h2]General Updates & QoL[/h2]

• Added a new daily log-in reward track.
  

[h3]Gold Changes
[/h3]
Added new preventions to deter gold sellers. Paid gold (purchased from the currency exchange) will have a 3-day withholding period. Gold that is under a withholding period will be called 'withheld funds'. Gold without a withholding period will be called 'available funds'. Withheld funds will be restricted in the following ways:

• Cannot send withheld funds through mail
  
• Cannot deduct from withheld funds when accepting billing mail
  
• Cannot use on 1:1 trades
  
• Cannot use in Auction House
  
• Cannot use in Marketplace
  
• Cannot use in Loot Auctions
  

[h3]Jukebox[/h3]
Added a Jukebox for Strongholds. Talk to the new Jukebox Exchange NPC in your Stronghold to start the “One Thing Missing” quest and learn how to use your Jukebox.

• Players can now change the background music while inside the Stronghold or near a Jukebox.
  
• Only 5 Jukebox items can be used at the same time.
  
• New soundtracks can be purchased from a variety of different NPCs like the new Jukebox Exchange NPC, various Wandering Merchants, vendors located outside different ports, and more.
  
• Most soundtracks require players to complete specific Achievements before they can be purchased.
  
• Please note that the song "Consolation" will be unavailable, and will be provided for the Jukebox in a future patch.
  

[h2]Store Updates
[/h2]
The Spells in Spades Update includes new cosmetic collections to celebrate the Arcanist and summer Maharaka Event, new Growth Support Packs, Powerpasses, new bundles, and more! Enjoy summer in style.

[h3]Midsummer Night’s Dream Skins
[/h3]


[h3]Lover & Youth Skins
[/h3]




[h3]Armor Wagon Mount
[/h3]


[h3]Starfish Pet
[/h3]


[h3]Rohendel’s Destiny - Arcanist Exclusive Skin
[/h3]


[h2]General Store Updates
[/h2]

• Added a new Weapon Growth Pack, and refreshed the two Growth Support Packs sold in the June Update. Growth Support packs will be purchasable once per roster, per month.
  
• Added a variety of new packs and items to celebrate the launch of the Arcanist:
  
• The Arcanist Level Complete Pack, which can only be purchased and opened by an Arcanist.
  
• The Rohendel's Destiny Special Package, which includes Battle Items, Silver, and a Title to accompany the Rohendel's Destiny skin set.
  
• Added the Arcanist’s Dawn skins.
  
• Added Powerpasses that can be purchased on the character select UI by pressing the “Powerpass” button. There are five passes available, each corresponding to a major continent.
  
• The passes start with North Vern, for 1100 Royal Crystals. Unlike the other passes, the North Vern pass can be acquired by a brand new player to start their adventure in North Vern at Item Level 302.
  
• The other 4 passes increase in price by 1100 Royal Crystals per continent; 2200 for a Rohendel Pass, 3300 for a Yorn pass, 4400 for a Feiton Pass, and 5500 for a Punika Pass. Pricing will automatically adjust based on completed content for a specific character; for example, if a character has completed through the Rohendel questline, a Punika Pass will instead cost 3300 Royal Crystals.
  
• Players will be able to purchase these Powerpasses even if they have not completed the in-game content on a previous character.
  
• These passes will be used immediately upon purchase, and is not eligible for a refund.
  
• Adjusted price and card quantities in the Special Card Package.
  
• Added Summer Dye Packs, a Battle Support Item Package, and a new Item Level Complete Crystal Pack for Tier 3.
  

[h2]Notable Bug Fixes
[/h2]

• Fixed an issue that caused only 'Q' to be shown in the QTE during Aira's Oculus Dungeon when using a controller and the AZERTY keyboard layout.
  
• Fixed an issue that allowed players to open a Korean website while in a Co-Op Battle.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the incorrect date format to be used for the PvP Rank header.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the Sale Date in the auction house to reference UTC time in all regions.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the Shadowhunter's Piercing Thorn skill to select the wrong target if the Advancing Thorns Tripod was active while using a controller.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the Sorceress' Punishing Strike skill to select the wrong target if the Unavoidable Fate Tripod was active while using a controller.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused Future Millionaire Zenri's appearance to be incorrect within the Stronghold Wardrobe menu.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the raid commander chat highlight to appear empty when a raid leader used an emoticon.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the texture quality setting to appear empty within the settings menu.
  
• Fixed an issue that blocked players from changing the eyebrow color when using specific face presets.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the Gunlancer's Leap Attack skill to select the wrong target if the Low Shock Tripod was active while using a controller.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused accessories with the same name to not equip properly when changing presets.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the Berserker's Red Dust skill to not play any audio when used while the Red Shock Tripod was active.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the Paladin's Sword of Justice skill to select the wrong target if the Way of Light Tripod was active while using a controller.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused Night Fox Yoho to be available in the Stronghold Dispatch Missions at item level 1355 instead of 1370.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the Golden Bait Buff required for South Vern's Adventurer's Tome to disappear upon teleporting.
  
• Fixed an issue that made the "An Adventure with Cindy" quest impossible to complete because of an invisible NPC.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused debug text to appear in the Achievements menu in non-English languages.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the Global Chat window to move when adjusting the opacity slider.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the incorrect buff icon to appear when using the Master's Tenacity engraving.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused the time shown in the Global Chat menu to be displayed in UTC.
  
• Fixed an issue that prevented players from entering the basement in the Underground Ossurary within the Werner's Manor after exiting it.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused gear set conversion changes to not save in any given preset.
  
• Fixed various localization issues.
  
• Fixed an issue that caused /star command to not initiate the Star Dance emote.
  

Thanks for your support, we’ll see you in Arkesia!

Heroes of Arkesia,

All Lost Ark servers and regions will be coming offline on Wednesday, July 13th at 12 AM PT / 7 AM UTC / 9 AM CEST for our weekly maintenance and update. Downtime is estimated to last up to 5 hours, and includes the following changes:

• Fixed an issue that caused the Currency Exchange to appear as a black screen if specific settings were in use.
  
• Fixed an issue that prevented Dancing Queen Rekiel on Heartbeat Island from dropping recovery ethers.
  
• Decreased Dancing Queen Rekiel's damage on Heartbeat Island.
  

Thanks for your patience, and we’ll see you back in Arkesia soon!