Flavescent Friday and Planet Liath

Flavescent Friday! The Event section of the Shops interface is where you will find the Flavescent Friday Discounts and Rares! There is a limited selection of Rare mecha models as well as non-rares. The non-rares are 50% off the normal selling price!  The weapons selected are 50% off as well.  The version of the RARE Chronomech that is in the shop is not quite identical to the one that was offered with the 3011 Calendar. It scales only to Level 50 and has been named differently to help distinguish it from the promotional version.  

We took your input on the forums and considered the pros and cons of everything you said you would want to see (and not to see) in the shops this year.  It turned into a lively debate again, and it was fascinating to see what interests you.  Honestly I was originally considering limiting this year's offerings to mechas only, but everyone was interested in having a weapons shop - and I'd like to remind you that we have the Salvage quest in Soluna City which really does fill that niche nicely.  This year's selection of weapons is mostly for over level 20 - but you can stock up now in advance for when you attain that higher level!  (The level range is my fault - I was so focused on getting just the right mecha models selected that I ended up putting weapons on the back burner.) There is a chance that I might add something for the neglected levels, as suggested by ZamuelNow on the forums - Korin gave his blessing so it just depends on how the weekend plays out.  I do love the name "Saturated Saturday" that ZamuelNow came up with!

Korin & I decided that Flavescent Friday will last for the entire weekend, so you have time to decide what you'd like to add to your inventory!  Keep an eye on the shop, in case we have time to add anything. No promises, but if I add something I'll put out a quick Design Note!

Planet Liath: The Black and White Planet! Liath is now open to everyone who has completed Val's quests at the Museum and also has flight clearance! There are now Non-Star-Captain shoulders in the reward shop (the Nova Gem Preview weapons are Rare FOREVER) and Star Captains still have a nice shoulder in the shop as well, although it is a bit different from the SC Exclusive Preview version. blues designed the specials and Vivi coded them up - and Vivi also made their database entries and did the shop work! Huzzah! (Debut in the database!) (And many many thanks!)

Minar arted up the cool and all-new backgrounds for the town and new element for the new quest, and there's an 'establishing shot' he also made that isn't LIVE yet, because we are adding a landing cutscene next week.  (I'll be plotting that out next, along with a little extra dialogue.) Many thanks to Minar for being such an integral part of our dev team while still going to school, etc. !!

Korin let me put together the general visual design for this planet and much of the storyline planning and specific dialogue - I tell you this because I am starting to hear that people don't know who does what, and I generally tell you what everyone else does but not too much about what I do.  We do a lot of collaboration as well. So for example I'm hoping Lyris will have time to work with me on one of her awesome animated cutscenes for the landing ... 

Korin has introduced a brilliant feature in the quest after you arrive in the town - making rolls to advance much easier and more hopeful - it actually made me not care about rolling under the required number while testing, because I was given hope that I'd succeed and the end was really in sight - and it was! What do you think of this new feature? The new 'organic' dinosaurs are Korin's brainchild (or should that be "brainchildren") too! 

*Teaser* Arklen has sent along a something that is animated and relates to Planet Liath... something blues and Vivi will definitely be involved in working on, and something I'll have a hand in... speculations welcome, but no further spoilers are forthcoming anytime soon! 

Have a fantastic weekend - thanks for playing MechQuest!