17.3 - Inferno Playfield - Albtraum
Long known as Albtraum by the Yuttos, this previously hidden corner of Inferno has recently been revealed to JOBE scientists. The Yuttos have opened mystical portals in one of their camps that allow explorers to explore this new area, providing you are willing to help them with some tasks.
17.3 Preview - New Shadowlands playfield
The main content update in the 17.3 version is the release of a new playfield linked to Inferno in the Shadowlands.
Long known as Albtraum by the Yuttos, this previously hidden corner of Inferno has recently been revealed to JOBE scientists. The Yuttos have opened mystical portals in one of their camps that allow explorers to explore this new area, providing you are willing to help them with some tasks.
Gameplay Features
New Shadowlands Team instanced playfield: High level players can now access a special new playfield in Inferno.
Playfield is instanced to your specific team.
You must be in a team to enter the playfield.
If a player leaves the team they will teleported out to the entrance in Inferno (This includes link death). Rejoining the team will allow the player to re-enter.
If all players in the team leave the playfield it will reset after a few minutes.
A Quest series will give players a series of repeatable goals inside the playfield.
These quests can be obtained from the Yuttos in the tent near the portal to Albtraum.
Completing the entire quest line may involve several trips through Albtraum
Three separate types of bosses, mini-bosses during the quest chain, a final boss encounter as well as a series of spawnable pocket bosses
The mini-bosses that can be triggered through the quest allow for the collection of items that can make the final boss fight easier.
It is possible to trigger the final boss without always killing the mini-bosses once you have done the quests once, but remember he might not be so easy! (Don't say we didn't warn you!)
The spawnable boss crystals drop primarily from the quest boss, but the normal mobs in the zone also have a rare chance of dropping the crystals.
The final boss and the crystal spawned bosses employ some new tricks and tactics. The new encounters also for the first time allow us to balance boss encounters for a set number of players. We hope that this will allow us to provide a series of boss encounters that will provide a real challenge for a range of players. Some of the encounters will be easier then others, but hopefully some will provide a good challenge for even the most experienced of players.
The majority of the loot items from Albtraum are used in new tradeskill processes that players can perform to craft a range of new items.
Tradeskills
The creatures found in Albtraum will drop a number of component parts that can be combined through a variety of tradeskill processes to create a series of new and upgradeable items.
The component parts are able to be traded between players so that you can collect and exchange the parts required for the upgrades you wish to complete. The parts needed to upgrade your items can then freely be produced by those who have the necessary skills. This should allow for a new set of tradeskill processes where people can provide a useful service to their fellow players, and also where people can upgrade items without having to invest in the tradeskills themselves.
the parts where the final reward is NoDrop are designed so that anyone who could have attained the NoDrop part of the process should easily be able to apply the upgrades required.
Each component part will have a variety of uses and options that will allow players to investigate and complete a series of increasing complex tradeskill processes.
Items will include new utility items, bracers, new stims and also special items that can upgrade existing items like NCU chips.
New Nano Formulas
There will be new nano-formulas available from the Victory Points vendors.
Bureaucrat Nanos
17.3 sees a stock of great new support tools for Bureaucrats and their trusty robotic assistants.
Firstly Last Minute Negotiations and Junior Last Minute Negotiations provide a new style of calming that will allow players to calm mobs that are otherwise not effected by these types of nanos. These specials calms do not belong to any resistance line and as such have a chance to work on any mob in the game. They are though of a short duration and the same mob cannot be effected by the same nano for a period of time afterwards. These nanos are designed to allow the Bureaucrat to give their team or themselves a reliable but brief respite from any encounter.
Next up the Bureaucrat gets the ability to provide their robotic pets with a little extra protection and power through a series of new buffs:
Calm and Charm Resist Buffs
Lesser Corporate Insurance Policy
Corporate Insurance Policy
Greater Corporate Insurance Policy
Damage and Offensive buffs
Droid Damage Matrix
Corporate Strategy
Defensive Buffs
Nanite Robot Protection
Lesser Nanite Robot Protection
Basic Nanite Robot Protection
Lastly there is a special new nano called Take the Bullet that allows the Bureaucrat to sacrifice their robotic assistance in return for a short protective shield that is designed to allow them to escape tricky situations.
New MP pet buffs
MPs can look forward to a series of pet buffs that can strengthen their pets with PVP in mind.
Damage Buff
Evocation of The Enraged
Calm and Charm Resist Buffs
Evocation of The Enlightened
Evocation of The Empowered
Evocation of The Reinforced
DoT Resist Buffs
Evocation of The Pure
Evocation of The Cleansed
Engineer Nanos
Like the other pet professions Engineers will have the ability to augment their pets resistance to calms and charms.
Calm and Charm Resistance Buffs
Lesser Software Hacking Shielding
Software Hacking Shielding
Advanced Software Hacking Shielding
New Soldier Nano
Soldiers also get a new nano called Remedy Inhibitor that prevents the target from having certain HoTs placed on them.
New Doctor DoTs
Doctor's get some new Damage over Time nanos that are designed to be more PVP friendly with better damage and reduced casting times.
Nanite Enhanced Mutagenic Compound
Nanite Enhanced Mutagenic Plague
Weak Mutagenic Plague
Lastly there is a very special new DoT called Dr Blazes Mutagenic Compound that can only be utilized when the Doctor is using certain new weapons that are rumoured to have found their way to the military bosses introduced in 17.2
Other Changes
Of course that is not all that will be in the 17.3 Update, here are some of the highlights from the rest of the changes in 17.3
Single IPR points can now be purchased from the OFAB vendor for 50,000 VP or from Jobe for 250 million credits
The Unicorns are interested in speaking to anyone who has secured the Alien Invasion plans from Sector 42
New OFAB Vendor items including new profession rings and new Martial Arts attacks
New Bureaucrat calm nanos aimed for use in boss encounters
New Bureaucrat pet buff nanos
Carlo Pinetti's contract has been renegotiated to be more flexible
New MP pet buff nanos
New Engineer pet buff nanos
Reduced cost of plastic surgery clinic to 25 million credits
Bank terminal added to player market buildings
