Jaru the Corrupted Disciple and I ducked and scurried toward an outcropping of volcanic rock to avoid being trampled by the Rampage-like Hunter and Rift Arachna as they tore at each other.
My eye was drawn once again to the blackness of the Great Rift, which seemed to have grown in the brief time since Jaru brought me there. At first I thought the shape emerging from the darkness was another tentacle, but it was white and, when I squinted to gain detail, braided. It lashed into Newerth and disappeared back into the Rift.
Then the tip of a steel sword sliced across the black veil. A jagged red blade that seemed to be made of bone met and stopped it, and both weapons retreated into the Rift. Jaru saw it as well. His orb began to glow brighter and spin faster. I made sure I was not between him and whatever might issue forth.
One of the giant purple tentacles uncoiled from the Rift and loomed above us. The end spread and dipped, its viscous fluid quivering. Our reflections in it appeared quite concerned, even terrified. The tentacle jerked once, twice, and fell into the dust and ash, where it rolled and whipped in a frenzy. Its severed base flopped through the Rift spewing purple blood that glowed upon the stones.
A warrior burst through the Rift and landed next to it. The white braid trailed behind him from a golden mask adorned with a fringe of white hair and a single giant green eye in the center. He carried two swords, wicked cleaver-like blades with rolling eyes embedded near the base. I shuddered, imagining what sort of creatures this Hunter had subdued in order to forge these weapons.
He gazed at us with the burning green eye for a moment, then swiftly drove both blades into the tentacle. It gave a final twitch and moved no more. The fluid which would have become a stalagmite spilled from its mouth and formed an opaque pool in a crevice. The Hunter pulled his blades free and turned to join the fight against the Rift Arachna. He had taken two steps when a glowing red streak burst from the Great Rift and slammed into him, knocking the Hunter off his feet into a graceless tumble across the harsh landscape.
He recovered and rose into a half-crouch to face the Riftspawn. This monster seemed to welcome the confrontation, as if it had finally cornered its elusive prey. It possessed the massive lance-like claws of red bone I had seen moments earlier. They grew from its forearms, leaving the hands and their hooked claws free to slash and pierce. Jagged bony armor ran down its back to a tail bristling with bulbous red tendrils that matched the two at the end of the whip-like antennae sprouting from its head.
Hello ladies and gentlemen of Newerth! Sell here, with a quick rundown of what’s brewing behind the scenes. We wanted to keep you all in the loop of both upcoming content and a few things under development as well. Hopefully you enjoy the first of my posts in our new blog.
League and Leveling Systems
We have been working on methods of rewarding players for their dedication and consistent play on their accounts. One of these methods in development is the League System. The current plan is to have Seasonal Leagues and League Ranks to differentiate players of varying skill levels and provide those seeking with continuous challenge and reward.
Also, the current Leveling System will be reworked with one more focused on rewarding dedication to your account. Players will be rewarded with more silver per game the higher their account level. You will not by any means lose your current level of investment in your account as that will all transfer into the new leveling system. The rewards for your first game each day will also be much more significant. These changes are still in the development stages and are looking awesome thus far!
Matchmaking
In response to community inquiry we are taking a closer look at the Matchmaking System and evaluating areas we can improve upon. This is quite an involved process and it is currently in development alongside the new League System!
Mid Wars
Mid Wars is the go to favorite of many of our players and we have been monitoring feedback closely. We are currently exploring options to encourage a bit more active play in Mid Wars and to prevent the games where there can be too much passive play. Right now we are experimenting with changes to Runes, Experience, Gold, and other elements in order to accomplish this. These changes are currently in different stages of testing and iteration.
Balance
We are continuing the trend of balancing and improving our hero pool. This ensures that we address any current hero concerns over focusing on hero release deadlines. The current feeling is that our players will enjoy a higher level of quality control to our current game, and more focused and polished new hero releases.
Currently we have been working on hero Asymmetry, which means that we are making sure that heroes do not overlap significantly in play style to provide players with more interesting options when selecting a hero. While the heroes are being looked at, new Staff of the Master effects are also being considered. More information on this can be found in Buro’s last blog post.
I hope you are all as excited about the new upcoming content as I am, and that you enjoyed the peek behind the curtain. Expect use of the new blog regularly and enjoy the upcoming posts!
-Sell
The miners outside the City of Iron were forced to dig ever deeper in their search for ore, and when the dust cleared from the Engineer's explosion they found among the rubble a church steeple. Examination by the martyrs proved it dated back to the Lost Civilization, when man had ruled the earth and subjugated all he could find, including the gods.
The martyrs prayed night and day while the miners carefully cleared the dirt and debris from around ancient stone church. They prayed for a sign from Sol, a gift that would aid in the war against the Hellbourne.
When they finally pried the petrified wooden doors open, the martyrs immediately realized their prayers had not been answered. Desiccated corpses were piled to the high peaked ceiling, their mummified robes marking them as men of the cloth, priests who had stood firm as man fell from the light. Someone--or something--had punished them for their devotion.
The martyrs watched in sorrow as the bodies collapsed to dust in the soft breeze. Their sorrow quickly turned to horror as the dust began to swirl, build, and burn with lifeless fire. The holy souls had been forsaken for centuries, entombed within the ruins of their temple, and now they would exact justice upon those who dared to carry a living soul upon Newerth.
Find Ruin Revenant haunting the HoN Store now.
The Rift Wars are on!
Your purchase determines who will emerge victorious from the battle of the Great Rift. This week, Hunter Rampage is head-to-head against Rift Arachna.
Visit the Specials Page in the HoN Store and choose your favorite!
