Return of Reckoning ~ Custom Capes

Recently a new artist decided to give his time and skills to help increase the pool of assets for Return of Reckoning – new for RoR, but not new for Hypothetical War. For many years I have been grateful to ArchExecutor for his continued help giving my crazy ideas a depiction, but now the Warhammer Online community will also benefit from his talents. Return of Reckoning is a project that is built and grows based on volunteers, and we are always looking for more artistic talent! Due to our current limitations, we can work on retexturing existing texture files, or introducing static models. What we cannot do – which I know many of us long for – is introduce/retexture armor pieces. Hopefully one day we will get the tools for this, but as of now our ‘armor’ updates are limited to capes. Below you can find some of our custom capes that have already been released, with a few more in the pipeline!

Return of Reckoning ~ Armor Sets

One of the projects I eagerly took up while on the RoR team was categorizing and reorganizing the armor sets for all the classes. My goal was to amend what I saw as a problem introduced by previous developers who gave out high-end armor appearances to mid-tier gear (because at the time the highest armor set that could be obtained was Conqueror), and to instead create a smoother visual progression of the armor sets as players obtained more powerful sets. Working together with Grunbag, we agreed upon a visual progression which we felt was appropriate. This was understandably met with some negativity from the community who found their favorite appearances, which were once on mid-tier gear, locked behind higher end (or even PvE) gear sets. My goal was not limited simply reorganizing the appearances so that sets labeled as ‘Tier 1’ were indeed on Tier 1 sets, but to also create a visual guide so that players knew where to find the appearances that appealed to their aesthetic.

Below you can find the links to the visual guides for the armor sets

Warhammer Online: Return of Reckoning

I wanted to briefly write about Warhammer Online : Return of Reckoning (ROR) because some of my viewers may not know that this private server of the Warhammer Online MMO exists. For those of you wishing to re-live the Warhammer Online experience I urge you to give RoR a try. The community consists of passionate PvP gamers, and Warhammer lore enthusiasts. If you have never heard of Warhammer Online and simply stumbled upon my blog searching for different material to supplement your lore, then perhaps the MMO experience is something that may work for you. Warhammer Online is an MMO set in the Warhammer fantasy universe (albeit an alternate timeline) where the forces of Order (the Empire, the Dwarfs, and the High Elves) fight in a desperate struggle to keep the forces of Destruction (the warriors of Chaos of the Tzeentchian flavor, the Greenskins, and the Dark Elves) at bay. While the game is most known for its PvP system known as Realm versus Realm (RvR), which pits hundreds of players in an endless struggle over keeps and fortresses as they seek to invade the other faction’s capital city, there are also PvE elements to enjoy (besides the standard quests, there are public quests where you can work with allies to defeat a greater foe, lairs, and dungeons.) With 24 classes to choose from, and each class having three mastery paths, there are multiple ways to try and enjoy the game. If you want to see what the game is about before jumping in, there are usually a few streamers every day streaming RoR on Twitch – you can always jump in and ask the streamers questions if you have them!

What’s more, RoR is trying to develop upon the original game. In 2018 I was contacted by Max from RoR to join the team as a contributor by using the only talent I have – creativity. I am proud to be on the team and work to bring our community new content (or bring back old content from ‘Live’ which hasn’t been implemented yet.) The team consists of many volunteers from around the globe who give their time and passion to help the project grow. The game is, and always will be, free. We don’t want your money or donations-in-kind – we just want you to join our community and enjoy the world of Warhammer together!

1.9 Cycle Conclusion

Today we take a look back on the ‘1.9 patch cycle’ of the Hypothetical WAR universe to see how I attempted to conclude my ‘fixes’ to balance and fill in the gaps of Warhammer Online (i.e. if the game had been published in this state then I think it would have had a greater chance at success.) This post is somewhat of a cathartic experience, because if you scroll back to the dates of the patch cycle you will see that the first post of the patch cycle was in December of 2012, with a few posts spread out over the next year to bring to fruition one of my first passions – and that was to recreate the missing capitals of Warhammer Online. Mid 2014 to mid 2015 saw the introduction of my first mercenary army of what was intended to be a three-army mercenary faction, but alas I disappeared for nearly 5 years until I picked up the proverbial pen and finished the last two armies to round off the mercenary faction. I place my gratitude in the hands of those who motivated me to finish, and helped provide the art for me to do so. So let’s take a look at what 1.9 was meant to bring…

Optimate ~ Border Prince HDPS

“What a beautiful sight it was to see the ranks of the optimates in action. A bloody melee as the orc boar boy cavalry crashed into their defensive line, only to be slaughtered. One could not help but wonder if under those stern face masks they smiled as the orcs and their boars squealed in pain as they were impaled in their fool-hearty attack. These masks made them look all the more imposing, and less human, almost as if the taking of life had no emotional impact on them. The orcs don’t seem to mind the emotional emptiness of their foes, but I suspect more civilized races would find it unsettling to face a foe who looks upon their death with apathy and indifference.”

~ Rahim Suffeyad, Arabyan Poet and Merchant of El Mansura

Optimate

Archetype – Heavy DPS

Armor – Heavy Splint

Weapon – Polearm

Mechanic – Megale Optimatoi

• You are a member of a great and powerful brotherhood. Your fame on the battlefield against heavily armored foes has earned your brotherhood prestige among the courts of the Old World. You have a pool of Megale Optimatoi points which ranges from 0 to 100, and regenerates at 5 per second. These Megale Optimatoi (MO) points are used when attacking heavily armored targets, as you have been trained. Attacking targets with armor classes other than heavy uses action points as normal.

Mastery Trees

• Purifier – Your blows are definitive and focus on direct damage.
• Unifier – Your attacks are meant to weaken the enemy in preparation for their fall.
• Pacifier – You focus on attacks which give you a chance to survive the fight against your foe.

Hikanatos ~ Border Prince MDPS

“I’ve made a strange observation recently. Ogres typically fight with greater vigor when they hunger, which is often the case, and their appetite is whetted by the sight of flesh and smell of blood. That upstart Brazen Cat, or whatever they call him, has in his employ a company of soldiers who pose a problem for my ogre mercenaries. I pay them to fight but they seem unenthused by the prospect of fighting these so called Hikanatoi. With almost not a shred of flesh visible the ogres seem tend to ignore them and go for more meaty targets, which has put my battle plans in jeopardy on more than one occasion. Who are these renegades to cover themselves from head to toe in chainmail and appear specter-like on the battlefield?”
~ Garlan Lemarc , Questing Knight and ‘Prince’ of Philany

Hikanatos

Archetype – Melee DPS

Armor – Medium

Weapon – Dual-Wield Axe & Mace

Mechanic – Able Defender

• The years of war have taught you the skills you need to live and survive that you may fight another day. There is no other way to make it in the Borderlands for these are not lands where chivalry and honor have any value on the battlefield. You have a pool of 100 Able Defender (AD) points which you can use for certain abilities to help you survive to see another day. This pool will replenish at a rate of 1/second while in combat, or 10/second while out of combat.

Mastery Trees

• Kharnos – A focus on dealing direct damage and quickly subduing your foes.
• Hvargir – A focus on fighting drawing out the fight and bleeding your opponents dry.
• Gloom – A focus on increasing your chances of surviving the fight.

Akrites ~ Border Prince RDPS

“While Hochland may be known for its long rifle, a true marksman knows the way of the bow. Any man, or even a boy, can fire a rifle with a day’s worth of training, but it takes years to master the bow. When my son was convicted of poaching, the elector count would hear nothing of his skill with the bow and chance at redemption in the name of the Emperor, so my son fled. The Borderlands offers men facing death another chance at life. I heard he joined the elite company of bowmen known as the Akritai, a band of men patrolling the most treacherous frontiers and forest facing the darkest of foes including beastmen and strigoi. I pray that Taal bless him and his companions, and give them courage to face the darkness before them.” – Erich Kaitel, Hochland Huntsmaster

Akrites

Archetype – Range DPS

Armor – Light

Weapon – Bow and Javelins

Mechanic – Frontier Watch

• The only way to survive on the fringes of the Borderlands is to have an ever-alert eye, capable of noticing the slightest movement on the horizon and felling it as if your life depends on it – for it may be your dinner, or what intended to have you for dinner. In the Borderlands there is no in-between. Your keen gaze tracks every movement making it harder for them to elude you. You mark your targets and every second you accrue an additional point applying to this mark, for a maximum of 30 points. You may only have one mark active at a time.

Mastery Trees

• Varenka Hills – A focus on bringing down heavily armored targets, with an emphasis on your javelins.
• Mad Dog Pass – A focus on mobility and anti-melee attacks with a mix of bow and javelin attacks.
• Howling River – A focus on anti-range attacks with an emphasis on your bowman-ship.

Scholari ~ Border Prince Healer

“Oh those feeble minds, how they strain to grasp at the power of the Winds of Magic. And here I had thought that we established the Imperial Colleges for the humans to learn in a safe environment how to harness the power of a single wind, yet these hedgefolk go off on their own. They are as much a danger to themselves as they are to others. One cannot hope to be successful without proper training, for there is a fine balance of the mind that must be achieved when casting every spell. They think that by pouring over the texts of greater men that they can achieve greatness too. They shall learn the price of hubris.” ~ Aethellan Moonsong, Archmage of Saphery

Scholari

Archetype – Healer

Armor – Light Robe

Weapon – Staff & Tome

Mechanic – Academic Nascence

• The untrained, yet ambitious, minds of the scholai have unharnessed potential. A single scholari is a danger mostly to himself, but a company of scholai are a danger to the entire regiment. You must focus your mind to seek balance between the destructive and restorative nature of the winds of magic. Your Academic Nascence meter will shift from your restorative end to the destructive end depending on your use of healing and offensive magic spells, respectively. The more you focus on one aspect, the stronger you become in this aspect, but the more vulnerable you become and take damage as the winds of magic tear your mind apart. If your Academic Nascence meter is focused on the Restorative end, your healing abilities will become stronger, but you will take more damage; if your meter is focused conversely on the Destructive end, your damage abilities will become stronger, but you will receive less healing. This power manifests itself as healing or magic power. The further you stray from the center the higher the chance that your spells will cause a backlash and damage you.

Mastery Trees

• Cleric – A focus on the ancient texts based on healing properties and medical rituals.
• Geomancer – A focus on the ancient texts based on the study of the earth and it’s dangerous shifts.
• Sage – A focus on ancient texts which bring weakness to your foes, that you may prevail.