Crowfall - Open World PVP MMO

For what it's worth, I'd never expect to hear CU backer saying "...kickstarter rape you packs to alpha test"!? Oh by the way, I'm also a big fan and supporter of the game, in fact of anything by Mark Jacobs.

On topic, here's couple player made buildings from this weekend tests:

 
It has been awhile since I wrote an update but testing is progressing nicely indeed!

Check out this recent news post showcasing some of the concept art for the male Assassin and Druid - https://crowfall.com/en/news/gender-variants-male-assassin-and-druid

Here's an update to powers and action bars, including designing new powers designed exclusively for when the player is affected by a special condition like crowd control - https://crowfall.com/en/news/how-it-works-powers-selection/

I still have access to some discounted packages so feel free to let me know if you're interested

Enjoy!

P.S - Chronicles of Elyria game update coming soon as well in the thread for its game
 
Here's a fancy tool for personal kingdom building (like, VIRTUALLY creating the landscape before building actual buildings atop of it):



To avoid confusion: general test access is up to beta 2 players and, so far, pre-alpha 1&2 ones have access to this kingdom building tool. Of course, it should slowly expand to other test groups, same as any new feature.

PS the video makes it look like you have to buy stuff in cash shop - no, it can all be built in-game too, and cash shop buildings are only for instanced personal housing / personal servers.
 
Thanks James! In fact, they are just about to start testing the in-game crafting systems that will grant users the ability to build, in-game without real world financial outlay, just about all the land parcels and buildings including those so far listed on the cash shop!

A recent update details the new professions soon being added to the test - Geomancy and Architecture - https://crowfall.com/en/news/on-the-horizon-architecture-and-geomancy/ . While existing playtests are granting players ready-made land parcels and housing items, the plan is for them to be crafted by players in game, much like everything else! Geomancy is the crafting skill associated with creating raw land parcels needed to "put down" anywhere such ownership is allowed, such as expanding the size of an Eternal Kingdom plot. The type of parcel will affect its size (ie 1x2, 1x3, 3x4), its type (ie "basic" farmlands, more unique "wilderness" lands, and "stronghold" plots for player towns ranging from sleepy hamlets to a fortress city set on top of a mountain!), and its aesthetics/function ( an advanced wilderness parcel with a rushing river will offer the potential for fishing, whereas basic farmland gives only basic low quality wood, stone and the like). Architecture on the other hand governs everything that goes ON a land parcel, from various types of homes, crafting equipment and halls, decorations, castles and fortifications as well as all the component parts thereof, such as walls and palisades. In both cases, much like Crowfall crafting in general, making more complex items don't just require more materials directly, but multiple steps combining component parts, such as making a larger plot of land by combining several smaller ones.

As an aside, one thing that really excites me about Crowfall is that for once player-derived professions (gathering, crafting etc) will be a major focal point of progression and gearing. Where many MMOs include crafting, they put the most desirable gear (functionally or aesthetically) exclusively behind another gated system - from say, dungeons and raids to even real money "Item Shops" . Crowfall will have other content types that grant gear/rewards, PVE and PVP alike, but in most cases it will take a skilled player to turn those resources and "tokens" into something usable, ensuring that crafting will always be valuable! Likewise, there are so many interdependent crafting systems that are needed that it facilitates trade and both cooperation and competition, engaging game systems. Crafting will be a constant presence in the game world, with the resources from Campaign Worlds being brought back to Eternal Kingdoms to be fashioned into new items. There's even the possibility stated to be a "pure" crafter on a certain character, provided that you have someone going into the hazardous areas to get your materials for you; we'll see how this plays out of course. In any case, it seems to have some exciting new potential.

Progress continues and new systems like this are on the docket to be added piece by piece, building toward the base necessary to bring the complete gameloop into testing! The more testers we have with diverse interests and backgrounds, the better we'll be! Questions or comments, feel free to post or PM!
 
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Well time for another update! This time there's a big, fantastic news!

This past week there was a "Teaser Week' with lots of update showcasing neat bits and pieces, with the promise of a "Massive Reveal" at the end of it all and I'll say, ArtCraft Entertainment delivered! Check out the news section for all of the Teaser Week content, which ranges from artwork showcasing some very interesting developments (Is that guinea pig...er.. "Guinacean", wearing heavy armor?), lore, and general progress updates such as the plans for allowing players to start testing their Eternal Kingdoms in PVP mode if they so wish, as well as Public or Private/invite-only. They're even granting backers a Medium Keep (a significant size castle!) to test which is a neat chance to see what ownership and construction of a castle in an EK will be.

However, the real highlight of the week is Tuesday's Massive Reveal ( https://crowfall.com/en/news/massive-reveal-day-is-here/ ), which showcases a tremendous expansion of game systems! To put it succinctly, thanks to the additional financing they've secured, they can now implement a system where "Archetypes" are gone, replaced by a system with a ton more flexibility where Race is decoupled from Class! Where before every Legionnaire was a Centaur, Champions were Human, and Duelists were Guinaceans, now the system offers even more variation where you can choose a Race for your vessel and then pick one of the several compatible Classes for said Race! This is noteworthy for many reasons, but it will also give more variety to a given class and balance overall as Racial traits will be retained (ie. Guinaciens of ALL classes will have access to Burrow, whereas previously if you wanted that ability it meant being a Duelist. Likewise, a Human Knight and a High Elven Knight will have different racial traits. There is now a chart of the first Race/Class combos on the announcement they're planning, but they specifically mention they plan to add additional ones later on. Remember, that even one's Race is a product of your "Account-Self", the "Crow" inhabiting the Vessel, so you can switch to an "Alt" without losing any progression!

Besides the announcement of the initial Race/Class pairings, the news post also showcases a number of Discplines which can be taken to further customize a given race/class. These fall into Major, Minor, an Weapon Specialization. Major Disciplines are more like "sub-classes" granting several active and passive abilities as well as unique traits (like "Bard" conferring the ability to use active and passive songs, equip instruments etc..), while Minor Disciplines grant a single theme (such as "Uniform Plate" giving a bonus to attack power if you're wearing a full set of plate armor), and Weapon Specializations are as they sound, focused on a single weapon type (Master of Pistols, Master of Rapiers, Master of Scimitars etc) which grant some pretty significant bonuses but if I recall you can only equip a single Weapon Discipline as a time. Its worth it to note that Discipline Runestones will be crafted by players , much like everything else in game, giving Runecarver specialized crafters a booming work queue, considering that when applied Disciplines overwrite the last thing in the slot so you'll need another Runestone if you plan to make use of the Discipline again.

Here's a video showcasing all of these changes -

While the whole Race/Class/Discipline Overhaul is already a lot to take in, the Massive Reveal also announces the next graphical fidelity upgrade for Crowfall! The team has been working on improving graphics substantially, both in terms of assets/textures and user-controlled options for shadows and other graphics settings. This is only the tip of the iceberg according to ArtCraft and more graphical enhancements will be coming soon. Check it out this entirely in-engine video! -

This may excite many current and new players to want to test out the changes ASAP and the devs aren't going to set this as some far off goal; in fact, this weekend (Starting Friday!) will debut the first test of both the graphical and the new Race/Class Overahaul system! So if you want to see how things are coming together, now is the time to get set up! Questions or comments let me know, and if you want to get started in the game I am pleased to offer discounted pledges/keys coming in below current MSRP! Enjoy!
 
I like the new darker and richer look. The original concept was a bit different than SB, but this looks more similar.
 
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Thanks for bumping this up! There's actually a BIG Announcement. Alongside the 5.3 on Test Server (which is the first version with the updated race/class system!) they are altering their pledges! In preparation for moving further into development and with the changing of the year (every year they've changed their pledges a bit, but this is bigger) they're going to be removing many of their higher dollar value pledges and streamlining things.

https://crowfall.com/en/news/articles/founders-update-moving-from-pledges-to-preorders/

--------------
"
As the end of the year approaches, we turn our attention to the coming year – and to the next phase of our company.

A number of changes are in store for 2018 – big strides in Crowfall®’s development leading to beta (and then launch), a massive effort to ramp up for live service operations, an increased focus on marketing and PR – and, of course, a revision to our offering (in other words, what we are going to sell once the game goes live).

For the last two years, we’ve used crowdfunding (and company investment) to fund the game. Now that we’re getting closer to launch, we need to transition our project from selling pledge packages to selling pre-orders of the game.

On December 31st, we will retire all 2017 pledge packages and the majority of our parcels and strongholds bundles. Essentially, everything that was priced over $200 USD is being removed from our virtual item catalogue. (See the FAQ below for more details.)

In late January, we’ll be transitioning pricing for almost everything in our store to a micro-transaction currency (known as ‘crowns’), which function in a manner… well, like pretty much every other online game. All virtual items will use crown pricing while digital and physical copies of the game, VIP Tickets and a few services will continue to be priced using real-world currency. All existing wallets will be converted to crowns, at the highest currency-to-crown ratio that we offer.

The year may be winding down, but the Crowfall team is all fired up to bring 5.3 to LIVE as soon as possible. We’ve got more big updates planned for December, too… so stay tuned!

Thanks for your continued support,

J. Todd Coleman and Gordon Walton
Co-Founders, ArtCraft Entertainment


GOT QUESTIONS?

Here’s a quick FAQ with questions we anticipated you may have.

What’s the difference between a pledge package and a pre-order bundle? What exactly is different about the store?

In a nutshell, this change means that we’re going to:

  1. Remove all of the “high dollar” bundles (and items) from our store
  2. Break apart many of the remaining “low dollar” bundles into smaller pieces
These parcels, strongholds and items are still available in the game, of course. You’ll just have to earn them through gameplay.

Can I still pre-purchase the game and get access to the playtest?

Yes. Once we retire the pledge packages, we will instead offer three different pre-order packages. Exact pricing will be announced at a later date, but you can expect them to be in the range of $50 to $200.

We’ll also continue to offer the physical Collector’s Edition for $179; however, the price for this will escalate next year. It is also likely we will retire it prior to launch.

Purchasing any of the above will provide immediate access to the LIVE playtest environment. (At that time, LIVE will include all players in the Pre-Alpha 1 though Beta 3 test groups).

Which items are you removing from the store?

As of December 31st, the following items will be REMOVED from the store:

  • ALL Guild Stronghold bundles
  • Any parcels priced > $200.00
  • Any buildings priced > $200.00
  • Any construction kits (stronghold walls and towers) > $200.00
Will you be adding anything new to the store?

Yes. We’ll be adding some new items and kits– but these will be smaller packages offered at a much lower price point. And, just as before, these additions will be limited to cosmetics and construction items that can be used only in the Eternal Kingdoms (i.e. the player- and guild-owned worlds). They cannot be imported into the Campaign Worlds.


Does this mean that I won’t be able to get a Castle, Mountain Citadel, or an Imperial Palace?

These strongholds will still be available in the game (and can be crafted using resources), but they will no longer be available for purchase in the store.


Will I still get my previous rewards?

Of course. Pledge bundles that were purchased prior to this change will be unaffected.

More questions?

If you still have questions, we invite you to post them on the forums or email us at [email protected].

"
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I added bold for emphasis on some important parts. First of all, its very good to hear them confirm that many high dollar pledge items (ie forts, castles etc) WILL be available in game, not either exclusively on the Store for real money or unavailable. Next, everything here points to the fact that potentially interested players will get the best possible deal if they pledge before the end of 2017! When the pre-order style packages arrive, there will be fewer options of them (only 3) and they'll have less in them compared to pledges at similar value. Likewise, the new items they offer will be cosmetics and constructions that only are usable in Eternal Kingdoms etc... compared to existing pledges which in many cases offer building components that ARE able to be placed in Campaign Worlds in addition to EKs (note: I'll have to double check on which ones exactly qualify; I'm going on my recollection from my earlier pledge eras)

There's a long precedent of crowdfunding MMOs offering more content at better values for earlier pledge versions and Crowfall has iterated their packages a bit every year. However, this 2018 conversion is a big change in preparation for wider testing and eventual launch. Those who are potentially interested in Crowfall would be advised to pick up packages ASAP before the cut-off! I should mention I am able to offer 2017 era pledge packages and other Crowfall store items at BELOW MARKET PRICE. PM for details or check out my FS:FT thread for some info.

Crowfall has grown considerably along with their funding, allowing all kinds of new features to make for a better experience. Especially if you were a fan of Dark Age of Camelot or Shadowbane, want a MMO with PVP potential, are excited for the Campaign World system that allows dynamic conquest in a novel way, or want to star in your own Game of Thrones, check out Crowfall! Lets hope that as they transition into the next development phase they stay on the player centric track and have good monetization policies.
 
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Hey guys, today is the LAST DAY for current 2017 Pledge orders!

Anyone thinking of giving Crowfall a try, this is the time to lock in witj a pledge that goes farther for the money! I will be purchasing a handful of 2017 pledges to offer them even after the cutoff, but my supply will be limited . Crowfall is striding forward towards its 2018 launch so contact me ASAP to get in and lock in your discounted package!
 
Looking good but questioning the cash shop. I'm a Camelot unchained backer but crowfall is interesting...
 
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$200 for something that looks worse than MMOs from 10 years ago? Shirley you can't be serious...

You know that it isn't $200 - the basic 2017 package is $49 . This is a buy to play title (subscription is optional etc). In fact, as they move forward in development they're changing their packages for this time to get rid of the more expensive ones as they come up on release.

As far as how it looks, realize this is an Alpha and a completely different type of game - it is supposed to have "cartoonish" graphics because there are going to be tens or hundreds of players involved in PVP combat with factors like no-clipping avatars involved (not to mention terrain deforming crafting/building of settlements), so making it latest generation photo realistic graphics will mean fewer can play. Crowfall is an evolution of the kind of gameplay offered by those similar to Ultima Online, Dark Age of Camelot, and (notably before its time) Shadowbane, mixed with of course newer dynamics and what we've learned since (ie they solved the typical PVP MMO problem of the first-come/strongest-zerg always in charge by having Campaign Worlds with a set time limit and different rules, so newcomers don't find all the "good stuff" already taken and leave.).

Looking good but questioning the cash shop. I'm a Camelot unchained backer but crowfall is interesting...
I'm always skeptical of those, but the recent post gave me some hope by confirming that just about everything on the shop can be earned in-game etc.. so it isn't like someone with a huge guild patreon gets an unassailable fortress and everyone else has to deal with a wooden lodge.
 
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$200 for something that looks worse than MMOs from 10 years ago? Shirley you can't be serious...

It becomes much more interesting once you learn it's actually an interactive 3D object - moveable,upgradeable,destructible,connected to voxels and physics...but the reason most people are buying is it's connection to economy (say, tax benefits + adding slave NPCs and crafting stations turns it into a small factory).

What we had in MMOs 10 years ago, or in fact just yesterday, is basically a static 3D wallpaper; Making a painting look good is quite easy.

Looking good but questioning the cash shop. I'm a Camelot unchained backer but crowfall is interesting...

If you worry about cash shop, there will be Campaigns (servers) with zero import, i.e. everyone starts naked and crafts/builds only with what they can find ingame, or loot from enemy's cold dead hands.
 
Has anyone tried this game recently? I bought it a couple of weeks ago and it was a huge mistake. I can't believe how little they've accomplished in 5 years. I was really hoping for something as good as shadowbane was but I've lost hope. I don't know if this game is even going to get finished
 
Has anyone tried this game recently? I bought it a couple of weeks ago and it was a huge mistake. I can't believe how little they've accomplished in 5 years. I was really hoping for something as good as shadowbane was but I've lost hope. I don't know if this game is even going to get finished

Did you actually play SB in it's infancy? Game was hot trash. If Crowfall is even worse that's laughable lol.
 
Once again I don't think its good to judge a crowdfunded, public-facing-development MMO project like this during intermediary stages. Just like with Star Citizen, Shroud of the Avatar, and many other titles someone points to a testing version and feels it is insufficient, despite the fact the game is in no way even "whole" as of yet. Later down the line, whole new complimentary systems are added, things are polished etc... and things can feel significantly different. Often times "They'll never do X " is refuted down the line.

Shadowbane in its early days was hot garbage for both technical and mechanic/game design reasons, some of which were fixed later on (admittedly, they were a bit too early in the scheme of hardware to really get a fair shake. If they came along a few years later with more broadband Internet, later GPUs etc.. it could ahve been different). Lets give Crowfall time to finish the game and then refine it, before we write things off.
 
I was a beta tester for shadowbane and it actually got worse after release. The last beta client or the one before that was far more stable than what they released with and it went downhill from there. I spent a good 6 months in Shadowbane which is longer than any MMORPG has been able to hold my attention other than EverQuest
 
I was a beta tester for shadowbane and it actually got worse after release. The last beta client or the one before that was far more stable than what they released with and it went downhill from there. I spent a good 6 months in Shadowbane which is longer than any MMORPG has been able to hold my attention other than EverQuest

SB was hot garbage from Alpha till about 2 years after release, at that point it was too late. EQ was a far better game in every way though there were no building mechanics.
 
All I want is a MMORPG with pvp as good as sb and pve as good as eq. It seems like no one has ever even tried that
 
Last I heard Camelot Unchained wasn't going to have any pve at all. I guess I should look into it again. DaoC would have been awesome if I hadn't been so burned out from EQ back when I played it
 
Last I heard Camelot Unchained wasn't going to have any pve at all. I guess I should look into it again. DaoC would have been awesome if I hadn't been so burned out from EQ back when I played it

They will have more than likely have the RVR type raids, where you have an open dungeon you will have to PVP for, to PVE, if that makes sense like they did in DAoC.
 
Last I heard Camelot Unchained wasn't going to have any pve at all. I guess I should look into it again. DaoC would have been awesome if I hadn't been so burned out from EQ back when I played it
It will have a darkness falls/labyrinth of the minotaur type dungeon but it may not be in at launch. It isn't going to have much pve.
 
It will have a darkness falls/labyrinth of the minotaur type dungeon but it may not be in at launch. It isn't going to have much pve.
The Depths will be pretty elaborate with plenty of PvE and PvP. Creatures and spirits will populate the world just like we can see in many MMORPGs. There's no PvE leveling though.

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The studio behind Crowfall has now started working on the last major milestone of the game, before bug fixes and polish.

This milestone includes:
the Frostweaver
the Dregs (GvG campaign)
caravans
mounts
refineries
ability to create, move and destroy buildings
etc.
 
Has anyone tried this game recently? I bought it a couple of weeks ago and it was a huge mistake. I can't believe how little they've accomplished in 5 years. I was really hoping for something as good as shadowbane was but I've lost hope. I don't know if this game is even going to get finished

Ya I was an original backer but I sold my Crowfall account. It's like took all of the worst PvP elements out of Guild Wars 2 and made a game out of it.
 
More closed beta invites are going out and just got mine. Played for a bit, but so far just standard boring quests.
 
I figured that, but was just disappointed in this day we are still getting standard MMO starter quests in new games.
 
By the way, if anyone would like a copy of the game I have some extras (these are 2017 Patron pack editions so they may or may not confer some extra benefits; honestly unsure now) that I can offer to the community at a discount! Just PM me if interested!

It has been a long time since I've played the test and I'm eager to see how things have advanced for launch (though, I admittedly am a bit annoyed that the Duelist class is Guinecian specific - its the ONLY class that remains race-locked and has race-integrated abilities (ie burrow, which doesn't make sense if you're not playing a rodent) last I checked. I like the idea of playing a graceful sword, pistol, and alchemy rogue type character but i'm not a huge fan of bestial races for my main avatars.). At the moment the servers are in maintenence mode which, for veteran MMO players, can be a GOOD thing as there's enough interest in the title! Looking forward to it!
 
Just saw a review for 8/10 but the comments said it just looks like a big Zerg fest and said No Thanks.
Starting area look like Rifts level 60 zone with sandpaper. The lack of PVE pretty much doesn't appeal to me basically
it's PVP but who wants to spend the time getting zerged all day with sub par graphics. EQ 2 basically looks better from 2004
which was the ultimate Fay game.
 
Just saw a review for 8/10 but the comments said it just looks like a big Zerg fest and said No Thanks.
Starting area look like Rifts level 60 zone with sandpaper. The lack of PVE pretty much doesn't appeal to me basically
it's PVP but who wants to spend the time getting zerged all day with sub par graphics. EQ 2 basically looks better from 2004
which was the ultimate Fay game.
After reading that, I am definitely checking the game out, sounds fun.
 
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