Greetings and salutations!
With inventory stacking, surname changes, and other updates this month, progress is really stacking up. Here's a summary of the February announcements.
A look back:
- For folks in the Early Access group, there were many updates posted throughout the month to the Early Access forum. If you have Alpha 1, make sure you check it out! Additionally, we added a new channel just for Early Access announcements so those who don't have early access (yet) can mute it if they don't wish to be pinged. Thank you for your feedback!
- Just like last February, love was in the air and a romantic love story celebrating Elyrian traditions was shared in this tale titled Love Fortunately.
- The first shiny shared this month was the last of our armor sculpt series, where we shared the Neran Heavy Armor concept.
- After the Lost Vault event late last year, many players were experiencing the wonderful issue of having too many items in their inventory. To remedy this, and to improve the overall functionality of a players inventory, we released a significant update to the website officially titled Inventory Management Update.
- Our annual festival of love returned with our Elyria and Chill promotion. Players shared their love and were able to purchase a Flower-cup Porcupine, Moonlight Delights, and more! Gift cards made a return as well and have stayed for the foreseeable future. Read the details here.
- The next shiny we shared started a new series that kicked off with concept sketches of Brudvir architecture. Check out the drawings and read details shared by Snipehunter in this post.
- Following on the heels of our first architecture sketch share, we followed up with the 2nd set in the series, and delved more deeply into why some of the structures appear to be built into a hill or submerged in the ground.
- A very anticipated feature, Surname Changes, was released! Now any player who desires to change their surname from their original reservation, or wants to extend their surname to all servers as nobility, is able to! Read the details here.
- The last shiny of the month completed our Brudvir architecture sketches with larger structures, and delved deeper into how the Brudvir protect themselves using innovative methods during construction.
For more details and updates, check out all our news and announcements at https://chroniclesofelyria.com/updates
Surname reservations:
We consistently review surname reservations on a daily basis. Each month we like to share a few from the past period that caught our eye.
Favorite declines:
- Biggus Dickus
- Llama
- Incontinentia Buttocks
- Legendary
- Monte Cristo
- Erebos
- Goddess
- Fuhrer
- Spellborn
- lovesboobs
- Elyria Selene
Most attempted: various famous names from Tolkien
Standouts:
- Quetzenarch
- Häugsvarr
- Guleonaire
- Linsesklyrt
- Skysong
- Beyoriâs
Popular Memes
Each month we'll spotlight one or two of our favorite memes that were shared via the forums or Discord.
Araborn Telcontar shared their idea of what the monarch of Bordweall was doing during our Elyria and Chill event:
Next Anatar, who shared quite a few memes this month, had a winner with their cartoon about our February promo:
Lastly, since it is rare for him to post, we are giving an honorable mention to Souzou's electrified thoughts on the #coe-memes channel:
If you'd like to see your meme highlighted, share it with us in our Discord or forums and it may show up here one day!
Journal excerpt number 37
By Souzou
Part 1
When I was a boy, I saw a ghost.
My mother had grown ill during my father’s absence, having been called away with the other menn to perform their duty to the tribe. Oftentimes they’d return within days, without much fanfare, and this happened regularly enough that we never gave it much thought.
This time, on the day the menn were summoned to the village center to do last-minute preparations before setting off, my parents had looked at each other strangely as they said their goodbyes at the door. I didn’t understand then, but now I know, that the look in my mother’s eyes had been the look you give when handing something fragile to someone else. Even if you trust that it won’t be harmed, you cannot help but worry.
It seemed silly to me at the time, and I quickly sought my mother’s attention by asking her to teach me another one of her recipes. The way she could transform ingredients into such delicious food was like magic to me. Out of the whole village, no one was better at cooking than her, and she often playfully teased my father that he fancied her “with his stomach more than his heart.”
The days went by as we passed the time together, and I paid no mind to the spanning of time at first. The menn had been gone for quite a while, in retrospect, but it didn’t truly dawn on me until one day as my mother and I played at preparing a stew, she collapsed onto the floor as she was tending to the pot. What alerted me first was the sound of the pot hitting the ground.
She was burning up. It was then that I keenly felt my father’s absence. I ran through the village shouting, knocking on every door. The children playing watched me curiously as their mothers, who understood what was happening, slowly gathered. The village wisewomann was called to my mother’s hut as the children were called inside and she and several of the other women, friends from the village who were close to my mother, gathered by her bed. She was in a deep sleep, stirring uncomfortably at times and sweating profusely.
The wisewomann drew close to inspect her while the rest waited. I scanned the faces of the women slowly, waiting anxiously for when they would agree on the best course to take and then spring into action. After what seemed like an eternity, the wisewomann turned to the others and slowly shook her head. What I saw on their faces shattered my reality. It was sorrow, pity, and resignation.
“What’s wrong with her?!” I shouted. “You’re going to help her, aren’t you!” I demanded as much as I pleaded.
“I am sorry, child. We cannot do anything...,” said the wisewomann.
“What do you mean?” I asked indignantly. “You’re the wisewomann. You have to have medicine that can fix her!”
“The sickness she suffers from can normally be cured by my potions, yes, if treated soon enough. However, the sickness has been festering for days and is too strong for my potions now.”
I looked at her blankly, and then the realization came. She must have started to get ill several days earlier and kept it from me. She had only spoken about the feast they would all enjoy when my father returned, believing adamantly in his return. She must have been worried the menn weren’t coming back this time and so acted strong and healthy in front of me…
“I am sorry, child.”
I ignored her platitude and pushed past the womenn to stand at my mother’s bedside, staring vacantly at her. Studying her face, watching her eyelids flutter as she looked back and forth at whatever was haunting her fevered dreams, trying to make sense of reality, to wrap my head around this. She who had taught me to cook, who smiled brighter than the sun at my experiments in the kitchen, who told me stories of the world and its wonders. I don’t know how long I stood there, inconsolable in my grief, and I barely noticed when the womenn began make their way out— to give a boy’s grief the space and privacy it needs. Only the wisewomann remained, without word or motion.
My mother was fine just this morning and now, suddenly and without warning, she was going to…
“You said the illness is ‘too strong for my potions’…,” I said to the wisewomann, still staring.
“Yes.”
“Your potions…does that mean…there are other potions that could fix her?”
The wisewomann remained silent for a moment while gazing at me intently, as if seeing inside my soul, before finally speaking, “You are not wrong, but the potion that could help her is made with the Marcher’s Flower, and it does not grow near this village.”
I finally turned from my mother when she said the name of the flower.
She continued to hold my gaze as I looked at her. If she knew what I was thinking, she didn’t let on to it. Instead, she remained perfectly still, as if rooted to the spot and appearing as though she were a statue built long ago to honor the form of some god of the forest.
“If my father were here…,” I said quietly as I looked down defeatedly at the floor of the only home I’d ever known; the home where I knew I could always find my mother and father waiting for me upon return from a long day of play.
“I will stay with her, to ensure her passing is peaceful,” she said, trying to offer me some comfort.
“You will? Please…”
I slowly lifted my head up, gave my mother one last look, turned towards the door, stopping only for a moment, and left. As I closed the door on my mother and the wisewomann behind me, I knew what I had to do. Wary of the other mothers, I slowly made my way through the village, hanging my head as if inconsolable. I wandered into the wooded copse just beyond town. I needed to appear devastated to the others, to not betray the burning determination that filled me instead, or they might catch on and try to stop me and, worse still, probably succeed. I was fast as a child, but the adults of my tribe became faster still as adults, and few could match their speed.
As soon as I felt I was no longer within view of the eyes undoubtedly watching me, I took off in a dead sprint, running with the speed and urgency of a fleeing creature.
Children were forbidden from wandering far from the village to begin with, and the elders were very clear that you were never to step into the swamps.
“There is nothing but death there,” they would say.
I had never been bold or foolhardy enough to betray their orders, but that hadn’t stopped me from reading all I could about the unique environment and, more importantly, the flora and fauna held within. I gripped tightly the drawing of the Marcher’s Flower I had torn from the botany book that had been on the shelf by the front door.
The smell was the first indication that I had truly left the safety of the woods of my childhood. I could best describe it as a miasma—a scent that carried death, poison, and hunger.
Meet a Mod
Our volunteer moderators are not only bastions of peace in our community; they are a helpful hand whenever you need assistance.
They are very knowledgeable about Chronicles of Elyria and provide valuable feedback that helps keep our community amazing.
Each month we provide a little insight into who they are and what makes them tick.
This month we speak to our other Oceania moderator, Dreamar! Along with our interviewee from last month, that completes our team from Australia.
"Thanks for chatting with us Dreamar."
Q: So as an Aussie, tell me something interesting about your upbringing?
A: "I think for most part I had a fairly nondescript childhood, but I have many fond memories of kangaroos wandering down our street on their way from one green area to another, dropping in for some water. We did have to steer one out of our back yard once though, because it couldn't find the gate. Bit tough when you don't want to over-stress them, or get hurt trying to help them."
Q: Any interesting stories from your interactions with the local fauna?
A: "When I was growing up we would frequently have a possum family visit our back yard. They were pretty used to human presence since each generation would come and visit us. I remember one occasion where a mother came and had a baby on her back. While I generally try not to touch most wild animals, she was pretty sweet and liked sitting next to us when we were sitting outside - not even asking for food, she just liked the company. We were able to pat her and the baby, I felt quite privileged by that she trusted us enough to allow that and quite often brought her baby to visit us until it was old enough to go off on it's own."
Q: What got you into gaming?
A: "Some friends back in high school, although I initially started off on a social MMO back in 1999, I later slowly progressed into more combat based gaming from there. I think the first proper game I actually stuck around in for a few years was Mabinogi. After that I continued on to more serious games and landed myself in Rift for a few years. I was pretty shy growing up, so once I finally felt comfortable talking to people in voice chats, it really helped me come out of my shell."
Q: Are you playing anything now, how is it?
A: "Currently very in and out of MMO games. I was playing Black Desert Online until somewhat recently. I did enjoy it very much, though it can be hard returning to it after taking a break, I'll probably poke it off and on until CoE comes out."
"I also recently finished playing a single player game by the name of "Soma". Great if you like spooky or eerie, Sci-Fi games. The game play itself can be a tad cumbersome at times, but the story is well written and the game also features some really amazing voice acting. I also managed to test out Division 2's beta and enjoyed that, so I'll probably be sinking my teeth into that for a while when it releases."
Q: Quandong or munthari berries? Why?
A: "I don't believe I've tried either actually. Both of these tend to grow more commonly in other areas of Australia compared to where I am. Although if I had to pick one to try, I'd go with the quandong, purely because it's meant to be sweeter in taste. Sweets for the sweet n' all!"
Q: I have seen some really nice artwork from you, is it a hobby of yours?
A: "It is! For most part at least. I do love drawing, I'd feel pretty lost if I wasn't able to draw. I've also done numerous commission pieces over the years, including a book cover, (that project currently stands as taking the longest time I've ever worked on a single piece, at about 36 hours). However, predominantly, I use it as a relaxation tool or as a way to express myself. It's also a great feeling of accomplishment when I complete a piece too."
Q: What is Yulefest?
A: "Yulefest is essentially a "Christmas in July". Since Christmas itself is during summer here, some places have a winter festival of sorts as an equivalent. Yulefest being one of the more notable ones, is located in the Blue Mountains (about an hour from Sydney but 3+ hours from where I live). I haven't been to that one, though I've been to similar festivals locally a few times!"
Q: How did you find Chronicles of Elyria?
A: "I found it when perusing the Kickstarter for soon-to-finish and recently finished games. I watched it for a few months, as I'd missed out on the Kickstarter by a couple of days. When the store opened up later in the year, I ended out deciding to back. I started off with an "Ursaphant Rider"... but as it does, I was drawn in and upped my pledge slowly after that. No escape now!"
Q: What do you plan on doing in game?
A: "I'll be a Countess in game, so I'll likely be overseeing different projects and helping people underneath me where I can. I've attempted to avoid grandiose plans as much as I can and mostly attempting to keep myself to a more broad plan rather than planning too carefully, as things can change as we get more knowledge on how some of the systems will work. However my county, will be very trade and husbandry focused."
"As for "extra curricular" plans, I have intentions for my character to gain veterinary knowledge. I do also have plans to provide assist newer players in being able to branch out and supporting them selves in game, however that's still a 'work in progress' and will need to be adjusted and tested based on how the contract system works."
Q: What do you like best about being a moderator?
A: "Seeing on the "other side of the fence" is always an intriguing experience, so probably the experiences and alternative views it's brought, is probably the biggest stand out for me. Being able to get to know the other moderators and seeing their methodologies has been enlightening and a great learning experience so far."
Q: Anything you dislike?
A: "I don't think there's anything I specifically dislike per-say. I think my least favourite, would probably be having to moderate someone when their intentions were good, but the execution of their expressing ends out breaking the rules. Although it's never fun having to put your foot down, sometimes it's a necessity."
Q: If you could say anything to the entire community, what would it be?
A: "Stay awesome! It's amazing to think just how much of a community has been built - all prior to released. Things can be up and down sometimes, but this community has been one of the best ones I've been part of."
Great stuff, thanks for sharing Dreamar!
More about Mods
As you may already know, our volunteer Moderators and Super Moderators spend countless, often tedious, hours supporting and helping the community by ensuring peace and happiness across all of our platforms.
In the last 30 days, we've made a lot of progress as a team as we discussed issues related to unique nicknames, necro posting and bumping, and other interesting topics. As we finalize each of these improvements in our guidelines we will share them with everyone.
Becoming a mod:
If you have an interest in becoming a moderator for our team, please; don't call us, we'll call you! There is no application process, we constantly seek out capable, kind, considerate, helpful, and supportive individuals who have a reputation in the community of being upstanding players who are honest and have integrity. If that sounds like you and you are present in our community, keep up the efforts and we'll find you!
Meet an Organization
Each month we spotlight an organization from our community.
We have many creative members who are building amazing groups in Elyria, and this is one way we can make sure you know about them.
Recently we learned about the Academy of Life from their founder, Dream.
Official Organization name: Academy of Life
Server: Oceania (OCE)
Kingdom affiliation: Caprakan
How did you form? "The idea of the organisation started with a conversation me and others had over how player tend to act and behave in normal games in regards to NPC's from killing a hostile dragon to simple slaughtering a herd of sheep because... sheep? I then decided I would like to crate a organisation based around protecting and preserving animals and plants."
Leadership: "There are several heads in the organisation as one man cant control everything these being: Head of the Academy (Myself) , Adviser Role, Master of Coin, Head of Security and Master of Trade. Theses are simply the top positions and will all have roles under them to help manage and organised people to the best of their ability."
"The Head of the Academy will do a larger over view of management simply making sure the that the other heads stay on track and simple management of the other heads."
"The Adviser is a role I find important as I don't believe anyone person can run a organisation on their own opinion the Adviser will have as larger overview of the people under the top positions to have a better understanding of what is happening under of what is happening in the organisation."
"The Master of coin will manage income making sure the money goes to people in the organisation that can use it most and helping new people set up and being able to take care of what it is they have chose to due in the organisation."
"Head of Security will be in charge of the organisations guard unit. The guards unit specifically to take care of people that may be having difficulty with thieves and bandits. Other internal problems will also be solved with the use of the security to prevent harm to kingdom solders and personal assets in case of dangerous situation."
"Master of Trade, the role will focus on opening and managing trade threw out the kingdom to supply the kingdom with resources from sustainable sources (such as meat, leather and other such resources the organisation might work with) and supplying the organisation with what it requires (Land, supplies or newly discovered creatures/plants)"
Purpose of the Organization: "The goal of the organization is to preserve and protect, our aim is to help farmers, breeders and adventures that are willing to protect animals and plants from becoming extinct, by providing them with the resources needed to maintain them at as low cost as possible."
Motto/Slogan: "Preserve and Protect."
Fun Fact: "We wouldn't exist if people didn't like killing."
Discord here
Recruitment thread: here
Thanks bunches Dream for introducing the community to your your Academy!
Meet a Kingdom
This month we learn more about the EU Kingdom of Arkadia.
We received these details from their Monarch, Raziel.
Official Kingdom name: Arkadia
Server: Selene (EU)
Leadership: "Constitution Kingdom."
Kingdom colors: "White and Blue"
Goals of the Kingdom: "Become the greatest economical and naval power of Elyria"
Fun Fact: "Raziel originally started as a bloodline pledge but he already had written his project of kingdom. Though, because of a compulsive spending problems he escalated into a Duke by the end of the Kickstarter. So, Arkadia started as a simple duchy wanting to make a kingdom despite not being one, after having accumulated 7 other dukes willing to follow him, King Raziel decided to pledge as King to offer more security and stability to his people for the begining of the game."
Discord: here
Recruitment thread: here
Closing statement: "Join us if you dream of a better future, don't do it if you live in the past !"
Community Spotlight
To be considered for this spotlight, submit your content here.
Thank you for continuing to send us your wonderful creations!
Important: Continue to share your creations. We need more of them. Please utilize the link above so we can show off your efforts to all Elyrians!
Remember, even if your submission wasn't featured this month, we may still use it in the future.
Clockwork_Horologist / Dragan Darkholm sent in this and described it as "Rowena's Sacrifice [NA-W][Blackheart][Darkholm] inspired by Ellen Terry as Lady Macbeth"
A regular contributor to the Community Spotlight, Cimeies shares their latest work titled "Black Bards of Blackheart"
Hinata1711 shared their drawing of "An Elyrian clad in green wanders through the desert in search of lightning glass."
Our final spotlight this month comes from MLD (Bombastus) and he described it as "A To'resk, a Kypiq and one of The Waerd on a journey together."
Thank you to all of those who submitted your fan pieces!
Meet a Dev
To help you get to know our team better, we try to interview one developer each month, or as often as is possible.
This month Death is our subject. No, not the destination at the end of our lives, our UI/UX developer. Read on to learn more about him.
Q: Tell us a little about your upbringing, anything you are willing to share?
A: "I grew up in the Midwest in a small farming town of about 100 people. I always had a really active imagination and ended up spending my days fighting off hordes of monsters in the backyard with stick swords and garbage can lid shields."
Q: What got you into gaming? Were you a gamer as a kid?
A: "When I was 6 my dad got me and my brother a Nintendo for Christmas, that is where it all began. We spent many nights playing games, Mario bros., Ikari warriors, tiger heli, whatever we could get our hands on. "
Q: As a game, user experience, and site designer, what made you passionate about the form of things?
A: "I always had an interest in different peoples life experiences and a passion for design and creating beautiful experiences . UX design was the perfect field for me to work in where I can leverage both of those interests."
"For me I really enjoy when I make something that makes people’s lives easier. There is too much in the world that is stressful and any little bit I can help ease makes me jump for joy."
Q: Does that same appreciation translate into the material world as well?
A: "I would like to think that passion carries over quite well. I’m always a fan of learning more about people and their experiences. I’ve been lucky enough to get to travel a bit (prior to the kid) and have met people from all around the world. My side hobby is photography which allows me to create beautiful images from the places I go, so basically I’m a UX design for the digital world and real world ;)"
Q: Which do you prefer and why, Pomegranate or Avocado?
A: "Avocado, guacamole is pretty amazing. I got hooked on Avocados when I was in Honduras. Every morning a guy would bring a giant cart down the beach with a ton of fruit and avocados. You could get like 3 for $0.25 USD, it was pretty amazing."
Q: How did you become a part of the Soulbound team?
A: "I’ve known Caspian for about 10 years now since I moved out to the Seattle area, he was always talking about his dream game and now he is making it. The timing from leaving my last company worked out because he needed help on the web side here at Soulbound so I jumped on board."
Q: What are your plans in game after CoE launches?
A: "Amass a large tribe of Cannibal Kypiqs, think of it like humanoid piranhas."
Q: Would you ever consider doing a ChamberBot session with the community?
A: "Possibly, if I have free time ;)"
Q: If you could say one thing to the Chronicles of Elyria community, what would it be?
A: "Ok we’ve have some word that there is some bad red rope licorice circulating in the crowd. Please stay away from the red rope licorice...do not bite any off or chew it...it could cause a potential emergency..."
Thank you for helping us learn more about Death xD
Reddit community
The Chronicles of Elyria community has a Reddit community, lovingly managed by Hellmoon, Mickdude, ImbuedGreen, and SirApetus.
Not too much new activity this month, the team updated me and said: "It's been a meme-tacular month on the subreddit, as we've updated our previous rules regarding memes. Long live the CoE memes!"
If you are interested in joining our subReddit, find it here
Community shows
The Chronicles of Elyria community is a busy one, and has been for a long time now. It’s so active that there are many live shows hosted each month. To help you be aware of them, and attend these enlightening and often revealing events, we've summarized those we know occur consistently each month. If you host a show on CoE and want to be included here, please contact us at [email protected].
Learning Elyria is "a series hosted by Jason and Ryan from Jbros (forum names Duyo and MeltedWater). We are a new weekly show that covers different topics from Chronicles of Elyria as well as starting a weekly lore show."
Their Channel
A CoE Talk show from and for German speaking community members is online, hosted by Olaf Biebelix, Loki, and Creamas.
"In our CoE Talk we discuss the latest CoE news, previously prepared topics and answer questions from the viewers. All of that in a fun atmosphere. We want to bring this awesome game to a group that isn't able or willing to translate everything on their own so they can be a part of an awesome community. It's hosted every Wednesday at 8 pm."
Their Channel
A Pirate's Guide to Elyria. It is "an interactive Lore and RP based CoE Talk Show, hosted by Captain Seli and Zigsmash, where we casually dive into the world of Elyria and talk about its lore! Each episode will cover a range of topics from the Tribes of Mann and their Religions, to the solar system and everything in between. Chat from the audience is highly encouraged, and we'll discuss theories and fan lore as well!"
"Show times are determined by how much rum the crew has had the day prior, so stay alert for announcements of when (Generally Tuesdays around 2PM Eastern, but could happen any day and time)!"
Their Channel
Run by Anibal and co-hosted by our Spanish-speaking Ambassadors and long-time community supporters, Gammea and Daedhel, Taberna Elyria is "a monthly podcast in Spanish where they introduce Chronicles of Elyria and its news to spread the word to all Spanish-speaking gamers."
"Join Anibal, Daedhel and Gammea in this new adventure!"
Their Channel
The Arkadian Herald focuses on creating presentation videos for CoE from the Kingdom of Arkadia in different European languages to help people that don’t speak English. or speak very little, to learn about the game and its major features. As of now the covered languages are : English, French, Italian and Russian. A new series of videos exclusively in English, focusing on debating on specific matters regarding the game are being worked on right now. We hope to see you soon to help us spread the world of CoE to the World!"
Their Channel
Conclave 360 is “a community based discussions channel that seeks to help people find their home in the larger Elyrian community. Videos focus on topics ranging from introducing local community leaders, guilds, associations, and schools to discussions on how the mechanics 'as described so far' will impact those people and institutions."
"Free at 1pm PDT/4pm EDT on Sundays? If you're looking for a home in Elyria, tune in to Face the Conclave and find one!"
Their Channel
Oceanus FM is "a collaborative broadcasting effort hosted by Alleykat and featuring all OCE Kings including Aequitas, Lor Voskara, Caprakan, and Tylsia as regular co-hosts. The channel was created to provide an Oceanic time zone live stream and video series, to talk about issues relevant to the Oceanus server of Chronicles of Elyria."
"Oceanus FM does not follow a strict broadcast schedule due to shift work. Watch out for announcements!"
Their Channel
Cremoria News Network [CNN] "is a weekly CoE talk show brought to you by the Duchy of Cremoria. They do deep dives on CoE mechanics, interviews, and community news. Tune in every Sunday at 6pm Eastern / 3pm Pacific for this classy and sassy stream."
Their Channel
Vendor Trash is "two guys with a laundry list of gaming street cred dating back to the 80’s. It was first a failed dumpster diving blog, then they failed at motivational speaking, and then finally found their calling talking about Chronicles of Elyria. They are excited the game they've always dreamed of is finally being made. After many episodes they are still going strong, come join their throbbing obsession."
Find past episodes on iTunes or your favorite podcast app.
Their Channel
TheoryForge. "This veteran team of streamers began a new show on Friday, May 10th, focusing on Chronicles of Elyria. The current hosts have all purchased packs with Alpha I access, and are excited to become more active members of the community. We are drawn to CoE because of its unique mechanics, and the migration of the Revival community."
Follow them at the link below, they are live every other Friday at 9pm EDT, 6pm PDT.
Their Channel
The BBC "(Bordweall Broadcasting Company) livestream deep dives into the latest developments from Soulbound Studios. Watch and discover what has them so excited about CoE, then join them and their guests in the CoE Discord voice after party and find out why they believe CoE is going to define a whole new genre in online gaming!"
They stream live every other Tuesday at 8pm Eastern/5pm Pacific. Watch the CoE forums for their announcements!
Their Channel
The Town Crier is " a live informational show/podcast featuring Morbis (Duke of Vornair), Adam (King of Vornair) and Mickdude (Count from Alésia). The topic is typically the latest goings on with the game or in the CoE community, theorycrafting about things Caspian says, or watching them blunder around with recurring technical difficulties with all the grace of a three legged giraffe. Super entertainment!"
You can catch them live every Wednesday at 3pm (PT)/6pm (ET)/10 pm (UTC).
Their Channel
Community contests
We love running contests, promotions, and events for our players — but it turns out our players love running them as well!
To help you keep track of all of the different contests and events at any given time, we've summarized them into one directory and stickied it in our General Discussion forum.
The Art of Elyria!
There are a ton of talented artists in our community, many who share their creations in our forums and on our Discord server. Recently, some of those artists (including our super awesome Hellmoon) have created an official Chronicles of Elyria group over at the ultimate web destination for all art, Deviant Art.
Explore the creations, add your own or just support the creativity of our members in the CoE Deviant Art group!
Ambassadors
Each month we'll get to know one of our esteemed Ambassadors, as well as let you know the status of current nominations and votes!
Meet an Ambassador
This month we interview Violet Winterlynn, who also happens to be the Queen consort and a Duchess in Alésia.
Q: Tell us about the beginning of your life, anything interesting occur you are willing to share?
A: “I honestly don't remember much of the beginning of my life because we use to move around so much there wasn't anywhere to really create memories. The only true memories I have from when I was younger was living with my Nana, she was like a mother to me and I always remember the big Christmas's we use to have they were really wonderful with the entire family. The tree would be stuffed all the way into the living room.
Q: How is the weather there right now? Are you freezing like many of us here in the states?
A: “Its been extremely cold between -40 to -50 C which is approximately the same in F weirdly enough. But lately it has been warming up, however, Mother Nature doesn't seem to be able to make up her mind because one day it'll melt a bunch of snow, and the next it'll just pour out a foot of snow for us. She seems a little moody if you ask me~"
Q: Cats or Dogs? Do you have a pet and if so, tell us about them!
A: “Honestly, I'm slightly torn between the two. I really really truly adore Cats and how absolutely soft they are but I've never lived anywhere that would allow cats, only small dogs. I currently have 3 little dogs, we use to have 6 little dogs but due to the move and everything we had to part ways with 3 of them. One has a name that was recently turned into a bad thing, so we call her itty witty, shes about 5 lbs and white with brown spots. My other two are Yoshi, who is 3 lbs, black with white toes and a white chest, and Dori who is 7 lbs and white with black&white freckled spots ^.^ She also has a brown eye and a blue eye which is really cool! 2/3 were rescued when they were really little from puppy farms and the like >:("
Q: Italian or Asian food? Why did you choose that?
A: “Pasta Pasta Pasta. I like me some Pasta. However, I do love dumplings."
Q: Care to share a hobby, project, or work you are fond of? (aside from CoE, that is ;) )
A: “Aside from CoE and streaming, I'm actually also really into Rainbow Six Siege and the professional aspects of it. I use to be a caster a really long time ago for some little leagues in call of duty and now I'm able to be an observer for a somewhat larger league for Rainbow Six Siege ^.^ (Basically I control the camera of the game and show the sick shots by the players!)"
Q: Always Remember Us This Way or Bohemian Rhapsody?
A: “I'm actually going to pick Always Remember Us This Way from these two because its a really touching song about how someone truly dear to her kept her up, on her feet and pushed her through the dark to bring up her confidence. And honestly, I know someone like that for me in the community and I'm that someone to someone else in the community. Everyone should be able to have someone to lean on, online, in real life, in a game, everywhere that you are and are able to put your heart into things with whatever it is that you do. That's another thing I'm grateful to CoE for is being able to find that someone for me and being able to be that someone to someone else. ^.^"
Q: Have you been a gamer long? Which are you playing right now?
A: “I've actually been gaming since I was really little, I use to be a little nerd on my Sega Genisis, then my Nintendo we eventually got, then my PS2, Xbox, PC, Xbox 360, Xbox one and then back to PC~! (HALO DAYS!) I'm currently playing a lot of first person shooters but occasionally I've been playing Civ6, Stellaris, and Rimworld”
Q: What introduced you to Chronicles of Elyria?
A: “One of my old friends actually got me into the game, and even though we have parted paths many many moons ago I still appreciate him bringing me into CoE because I've never experienced such love, joy, and happiness from the people who I've been introduced to over the years."
Q: What are your plans once you are in game?
A: “I have so many plans its unbelievable because CoE just has too much stuff to do! I want to have a Soul Mate Café. I want to be an adventurer, I want to play on my Queen/Duchess character, I want to have a HUGE garden and pursue healing and alchemy, I want to become a tailor, I just want to do so much I'm unsure of how I'll be able to do it all but I have lots of time to try ^.^”
Q: What one mechanic or feature in Chronicles of Elyria is your favorite?
A: “The Soul Mate aspect of CoE. It's really intriguing and creates a dynamic story that I'm really interested to see in action and dive into!”
Q: How do you like being a Community Ambassador?
A: “I more or less love helping the community. With or without the title. I love being able to bring people into the game or basically "push them down the well" of knowledge about the game to where they take the plunge~! So yes I love being a Community Ambassador ^.^”
Q: Is there anything you don't like about it?
A: "“Everything evolves and requires changes over time as it grows and becomes something more. That's not to say there is anything that I dislike, just things that can definitely help to improve it is all”*
Q: If there was anything you could say to the entire community, what would it be?
A: "Be yourself, that's number one! If you have a question, ask it! Even if you think it's been answered before, even if you think it's stupid. And remember, you're not bound to any one place, pick the place that would be best for you, your community, your friends and your gaming experience. Never jump the gun~ Get to know all that you can before making decisions♥"
Thank you for talking to us and helping us get to know you better!
Ambassador Nominations
This month we had several Ambassador nominations. Those that met the minimum criteria for nomination were put up for vote and for feedback by the community in February.
With all votes tallied, comments reviewed, and everything considered, it is with great pleasure that we announce two new Community Ambassadors!
Welcome Labbe and Rofus!!
Give them a high five if you see them, and thank you for your contributions!
If you want to learn more about this program, or know someone you would like to nominate, click on the link! Thanks for your support, as always.
Subject Matter Experts
We have gone through a 2nd round of applications for the original five areas we've been seeking assistance in, and I'm super excited to announce three new Subject Matter Experts into the fold, welcome!!!
New SMEs:
- Abelard - Philosophy, Medieval religions, Music, Shinto/Tao, Western Medieval Alchemy
- Pentimento - Conservation of Archaeological and Ethnographic materials
- Almaric - Agriculture
Find them in orange in our official Discord server, congrats all and thank you!
Learn more about the SME program here
What’s next?
There are a ton of projects being worked on by the studio and here’s a few of them that are coming up:
- Title transfers / Trading titles for EP / Package merging/claiming - these are all associated and, as work continues on them, we'll be sharing more details shortly.
- 2019 IP rewards round - As we did last year, we’re planning a final round of IP rewards for contributions prior to D&SS.
- Player event rewards - Related to Conquest, Kickstarterversary, Searing Plague, Lost Vault, and other prizes you’ve earned up until now, some of these need to be awarded prior to upcoming features so we are working on these too.
- 0.5.0 Production update blog - We still have plans to share with you the news of our latest development adventure.
- Domain and Settlement Selection - Still one of the most anticipated pre-Alpha features, we’re working hard to ensure it is intuitive, exciting, and provides our players the ability to choose their domains easily and successfully.
Hopefully this Community Journal provided you some humor and insight, a summary of this month, and some ideas of what we're producing next. Thanks for reading and until next time,
More to come...