Albion Online News

Albion's sixteenth Guild Season kicks off June 11, with big changes to Castles and Castle Outposts, a new Crystal League mode, Might Level adjustments, and more.
[h3]Castles Re-Envisioned[/h3]
Season 16 updates Castles and Castle Outposts, with improved layouts to encourage fighting on multiple fronts, and reworked visuals to make them more varied and visually appealing. Instead of generating passive points, Castle and Outpost chests now grant Might to those who claim them, and appear dynamically on a new timer. And a dedicated Might Level in the Conqueror’s Challenge still allows big Season Point payouts.
[h3]Crystal Arena and Non-Lethal Crystal League[/h3]
Season 16 brings two new 5v5 modes for players of all levels. The new Crystal Arena offers a ranked version of the classic Arena, with matches played in the Crystal League map with knockdown mechanics. And the new Non-Lethal Crystal League provides access to the full 9-level experience, but without the full-loot kills of the regular League. Both modes have unique rewards as well, including Gladiator Wardrobe Skins. And of course, the classic 5v5 and 20v20 full-loot modes are still available for players looking for hardcore endgame content.


[h3]Might Level Balancing[/h3]
To keep seasons balanced, progress has been boosted in several Might Levels where guild progress was somewhat behind the curve. Corrupted Dungeons, Crystal Spiders, and Outland Treasures now offer faster level progress, giving guilds more overall Season Points and more ways to stay competitive.


[h3]Unlock the Behemoth[/h3]
Players who gain enough Might will receive unique Avatar Sets, as well as the coveted Behemoth and valuable Fame Buffs. Might is earned through a huge range of activities in the Conqueror's Challenge, and there are additional bracket rewards for guilds who reach at least Iron Rank. And as always, the season's number-one guild will become a permanent part of the world of Albion with their very own statue in Conquerors' Hall.



For the full list of season rewards, check out this forum post.
[h3]Watch the Season Kickoff on AlbionTV[/h3]
The season kickoff on Saturday, June 11 will be broadcast live on AlbionTV starting 17:30 UTC, with hosts Shozen, Lewpac and Bogul bringing full coverage of Invasion Day.

At 18:00 UTC all territories will be reset for guilds to claim. Those in the North and South American time zones can tune in for the second round of territory resets on Sunday at 00:30 UTC, when hosts Shozen, Robinhoodrs and Tazzik cover the next round of invasions. All open-world fights are broadcast live with a 15-minute delay.

Check out AlbionTV's latest Invasion Day coverage:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
For the complete Season 16 Schedule, see this forum post.

Last weekend saw the Season 15 Crystal League Championship take place, with TheyTamedBears taking the crown.

Congratulations to them on their victory in Albion’s showcase 5v5 event, and to the 2nd-4th place teams:

• 2nd: Gone Glonkin’
• 3rd: Back for HOTs
• 4th: LAST MINUTE

TheyTamedBears take home the coveted Sabertooth Rex Swiftclaw Skin as their grand prize!



Thanks, as always, to the AlbionTV crew of Shozen, Lewpac, Tazzik, Bogul, and Robinhoodrs, along with Community Managers Nesnes and Shadowbrick, for all their work over the weekend.

Season 16 begins on Saturday, with the introduction of the Non-Lethal Crystal League and the Crystal Arena, and the new Crystal Gladiator Wardrobe Skin up for grabs. You can learn more about these changes and new features here.

The Into the Fray update is live, bringing a host of new features including reworked Magic Staffs, new Portal Towns, improved Castles, Dynamic Events, new Arena and Crystal League modes, and much more.

To celebrate the launch of this update, we've created a brand-new trailer:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
[h3]Get Into the Action[/h3]
Magic Staffs have new visuals and animations alongside reworked abilities. Castles and Outposts have been overhauled with new graphics, layouts, and mechanics to make these high-end objectives more thrilling than ever. And the Crystal Arena and Non-Lethal Crystal League offer competitive but accessible 5v5s for players of all levels.


[h3]Albion at Your Fingertips[/h3]
New Portal Towns in the Outlands offer Bank and Marketplace access along with visually reworked Invisibility Shrines. Resources have received a graphical overhaul, standing out within their environments and making gathering easier and more enticing. New Daily Events offer bonuses for a wide range of activities, encouraging players to try new parts of the game and shaking up Albion’s economy.


[h3]Additional Improvements[/h3]
A new Activities UI provides a convenient overview of all ongoing events. Twitch Drops are available for the first time, and Victory Emotes let players mark kills with audiovisual flourishes. Lost Equipment Loadouts allow easy regearing after death, a new Journey Back ability helps cut down on long travel times, Gathering Tomes offer faster gathering progress, and Training Dummies allow players to practice combat and healing abilities on their Islands.

For more on Twitch Drops, see this article.



For the complete list of changes, check out the official patchnotes, and for more info, see the official update page:

We’re excited to announce that from today, with the launch of the Into the Fray update, Twitch Drops will be available to Albion Online players. In up to seven weekly drops you can earn exclusive wardrobe and mount skins, along with charges for our new Victory Emotes, simply by watching Albion Online streams!

In order to receive Twitch Drops, connect your Twitch account with your Albion Online account here and tune in to Twitch streams from members of the Albion Online Creators Program. You can find a list of participating streams here. The longer you watch, the bigger the rewards you’ll get!

LINK YOUR ACCOUNTS

And to celebrate the launch of Twitch Drops, we’re doubling the rewards handed out during the first Drop campaign which runs until June 14. So each time you receive a chest, you’ll actually get two!



We can’t wait to see you trying out the new Victory Emotes in-game and showing off your new vanity skins. For more information about linking accounts, Twitch Drop rewards, and the campaign structure, check out this forum post.

One of the central features of the Into The Fray update is a significant rework of the entire Magic Staffs weapon line. We spoke to Art Director Marcus Koch, Senior Animator Alex Pierschel, and FX Artist Daniele Bornino about the ideas and processes that went into this upgrade.

NOTE: Images used in this article were taken from in-progress states and may appear differently in their final state.

What were the main goals of this rework from a visual point of view?

MK: Firstly, we wanted to achieve a clear understanding of what category a staff belongs to, and to better communicate an item’s power level through its appearance and size. We also sought to clearly differentiate between one-handed and two-handed staffs in the item icons and animation, as previously both sets used similar animations. And overall, we wanted to increase the feeling of being a mage, cleric, or druid - of casting spells rather than fighting with melee weapons.



AP: The Magic Staffs are one of the oldest weapon lines in the game, and therefore carried around very old animations from the early days of Albion Online. Our aims were, firstly, to raise all staffs to the same dynamic look and feel of the newer weapons through new animations, and secondly to achieve a visual distinction between one-handed and two-handed staffs through different animation sets.

Could you tell us about how you tried to convey the characteristics of each staff line?

MK: All colors and shapes now clearly show what kind of magic to expect from a staff. For example: Holy Staffs now have a glowing, white circle in the headpiece; Nature Staffs are made of wood and have leaves in their respective tier-level colors; and all faction-based artifact staffs now have the look and feel of the specific faction they belong to.



The animations reinforce the staff’s role - healing spells are much less aggressive than combat spells, which have forceful and fast motions to target enemies.

DB: The role of VFX here is not only to deliver a visual cue to the effect that a staff has in the game, but also to differentiate the staffs from one another: using very different and evocative color palettes, or unique volumes and shapes for each one of them. So for example, dark red and black with smoky, ghostly VFX are emblematic of the cursed staff, while bright and light-driven VFX are more appropriate for the holy line.



AP: The most important task for us as animators was to convincingly visualize the difference between one-handed and two-handed Staffs. We achieved this by making the animations for the one-handed Staff agile and fast, and for the two-handed Staff a little slower but more powerful. The one-handed weapon now fits easily in the character's hand and can be quickly twirled through the air. With the two-handed staff, on the other hand, movements are kept to a minimum and all the character’s energy is focused on its magical powers. They can unleash the magic of the staff with their offhand and hurl it at the opponent, while for stronger spells the staff is used with both hands.



The new staffs have a much more dynamic ‘feel’ to the user with their animations - how did you achieve that?

AP: The dynamic results from the variety of spell animations. We gave the reworked Staffs about four times as many animations as before.



This rework comes not long after the launch of the War Gloves weapon line. Was the experience of working on War Gloves instructive to this project, and how?

DB: With War Gloves we had the opportunity to create something completely new in Albion, both from a gameplay and an aesthetic perspective. I think the biggest takeaway from this experience was a change of attitude that gave us more freedom to invent and create, rather than following predetermined rules on how things should look and feel in a video game.

AP: We learned a lot working on War Gloves. For example, with using multiple autoattack chains with different timing. Also, since War Gloves we've been iterating animations with more effort. We want the animations to be as legible as possible, and to visually communicate player behavior correctly. Of course, we also incorporate feedback from the player community. Each animation should feel high-quality and dynamic and be precisely synchronized with the weapon’s effects. With that in mind, we aim to continue polishing older weapon lines in the future.

For more on the Into The Fray update, see the official update page.