New places to see, people to meet, and things to do
Mabinogi's idyllic little world really isn't so little anymore. Nexon continues apace with its aggressive update schedule; November, 2008 saw the conclusion of Chapter 1 with the Dark Knight saga coming to a close, but players have good reason to be excited for what comes next! Up until this point, Nexon America had pretty much maintained the release order for the Korean version of Mabinogi. However, they're planning something huge - Generations 4, 5, and 6 in one expansion pack that they are calling Mabinogi: Pioneers of Iria.
With past releases, a single Generation included tons of content all by itself. Check out how much is in store for players with this newest expansion!
New Lands to Explore
Perhaps the biggest addition to the game is the continent of Iria. That's right, a whole continent. Iria is about three times the size of Ulad, the continent that Mabinogi first starts on. Within Iria, there will be three distinct areas that players will be able to explore: Rano, Connus, and Physis.
Rano's map alone is 10-20 times larger than any of the other maps Mabinogi players explored in Ulad. The area spanned is so great, it encompasses three wildly different temperate zones: desert, forest, and prairie lands. Better yet, the whole map is one whole uninterrupted zone, so players can run from end to end without ever having to pause for load times - which might pose a different sort of problem, since it can take upwards of 90-minutes of real-world blood, sweat, and tears to traverse the span of the continent.
To help minimize the pain of overland travel, there are herds of wild ostriches and horses that roam across Rano, and their wanderings aren't exactly random. They traverse fixed paths at specific times, so they could be thought of as a fantasy-setting train station. Players who learn their migration patterns can exploit this by hopping on and riding them across Iria for faster travel.
Connus is primarily a desert setting, and the home of Longa Desert, which is plagued with sandstorms. Hidden within this gritty landscape is the Elf town of Filia. Hidden beneath the sands of Longa is a new dungeon - the Ant Pit - which is a labyrinthine tunnel system filled with mystery and treasure. Characters can use the divining L-Rod to find the sinkhole within Longa Desert that they can then jump into - but players beware! Ifrit, the raid field boss, lurks there.
The third area is the snow-filled land of Physis. In it, the frozen Reus River is surrounded by valleys and mountains inhabited by one of the new playable races: the Giants. Giants have the ability to stomp on the ground near the Reus River to break a hole in the ice in order to go ice fishing.
Throughout Iria's diverse landscapes are a series of passageways known as Mana Tunnels, which are interspersed throughout the continent. These tunnels can only be utilized at night, when the moon is up and the mana levels have risen. Once day breaks, these tunnels can no longer be used, but these tunnels can be used to travel between the three zones within Iria. Players will also be given the opportunity to travel between the continents every thirty minutes. There will be a boat that can take players back and forth between Iria and Erinn, and players can also choose to start out in Iria instead of Erinn.
Sidebar: The Cycle of Time in Mabinogi
The passage of time is an important factor in the way the world of Mabinogi revolves. Not only do characters grow older with time, but there are cycles of day and night and the days of the week change. There are special in-game effects, such as improved skill success rates or drop rates, depending on what day of the week it is in-game. Even weather can have an effect on things.
As day cycles into night, the power of the moon begins its peak cycle and mana levels rise all across the lands. As a result, character mana reserves are gradually replenished and moon gates open throughout Erinn, allowing characters to teleport across the continent in an instant. There is no real way to tell where the gates will lead to ahead of time, but it provides a method of quick transport, and if you're lucky, the right gate will open up when you need it. With the start of Chapter 2, rising mana levels will also allow people to traverse the Mana Tunnels throughout Iria.
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New Characters to Play
Pioneers of Iria come with two new playable races: the Elf and the Giant. Players creating Elf characters will begin in Filia, within the Connus zone. The Elves look mostly human, except for their elongated ears and pale skin, and they run a bit faster than either Humans or Giants. Their fashions are more elegant and designed for ease of movement. Bows are their weapon of choice, and Elf-exclusive skills allow them to shoot from horseback or fire two arrows at once. Giants are their sworn racial enemy and Elves will attack them and their supporters.
Giants are large and muscular - big enough to heft a Human over their shoulders and carry them around. Their fashion is more primitive, and generally thicker and better padded to help them survive in their harsh, frozen homeland. Giants prefer to swing their fists or use blunt weapons, and they can even knock down a tree to wield the trunk as a weapon. What's most notable is that they have a skill that allows them to swing two maces or clubs at once. They won't hesitate to attack Elves or their supporters on sight.
New Explorers to Level
With so many new places to see and visit, it seems logical that one of the new key features of the game would be the ability to become a better explorer. Mabinogi has added "Explorer Levels" as something players can earn by completing quests that can be found at the Qilla Base Camp exploration board. The experience that you gain from completing these quests is separate from regular character levels and gradually allows players to gain Exploration Levels, up to Level 25.
Gaining Explorer Levels will also grant the character Ability Points, providing players with another way to improve skills. Explorer Levels will reset upon Rebirth, so it is one of the ways to accumulate the large number of APs needed to advance skills to higher levels.
Over 600 Exploration Quests are being added to the game, and these are split into three possible varieties. The typical quest is a hunting quest, with rewards awarded upon completion. Players may also be tasked to take "L-Rods," which are essentially divination rods, and use them to search for items in dungeons. These L-Rods will beep as players get closer to the object they are looking for. The third type of exploration quest is a Sketch quest, where players will have to draw specific animals or objects.
More Bells and Whistles
As significant as they are, the numerous updates in Mabinogi: The Pioneers of Iria are not limited to travel destinations. Since Elves get to shoot twin arrows and Giants get to swing two clubs, Humans are going to get the ability to swing two swords. New clothes, armor, weapons, and titles will be implemented, some of which are exclusive to the new races.
New actions will be added that will be sure to bring new dimensions to the game. Throwing Stone will let players remotely pull aggro, though it does no damage otherwise. Play Dead lets players fake death to drop aggro, though they will not be able to move while they're in this state. Elves will get the ability to Hide, which turns them semi-transparent and practically invisible to monsters. The Land Maker action will allow players to change the shape of the land in special areas, which will allow them to search for items buried in the ground. The Exploration-specific L-Rod and Sketch actions are also available.
Besides common actions, there are also new Skills to pour your hard-earned AP into. Ice Spear is a middle-level Ice Magic skill that can freeze monsters in their tracks. Final Hit is a human skill that allows attacks with no appreciable delay for a certain amount of time; it can also be used in PvP as a short-range teleport, making melee fighters more effective against ranged attacks. Giants get a skill called Stump, which allows them to stomp the ground and stun creatures around them; this is also usable at the Reus River to break through the ice flows to do a bit of fishing on the side, or in the snow to clear the field while treasure hunting. Mirage Missile is an Elf skill that allows them to imbue an arrow with their mana, which causes a health drain on their target that can also spread to other nearby monsters.
Finally, weddings, which were implemented in an earlier update, now allow for marriages between humans and either of the other races. Elves and Giants don't get along though, so they can't get hitched.
Sidebar: Things to Look Forward
Nexon America gave us an exclusive sneak peek at what's in store for Mabinogi after their huge expansion. They have already planned out their next two updates - one for early April, and the other for early June.
In April, they plan to introduce an Advanced Shield System, which will bump up the shield defense rate and make them more effective for the sword-and-board users. They will also be unveiling the Alby Advanced Dungeon and the Boss Trial Dungeon. In the Boss Trial Dungeon, players can compete to see who can rank in the top 300 for defeating multiple boss-level monsters in the shortest time possible. Also planned for April is the implementation of a one-on-one PvP system that will allow players to PvP freely anywhere in the game.
In June, Mabinogi will be adding more glasses to their offerings for the fashion conscious: Pinocchio Glasses, Horn-Rimmed Glasses, and Trudi Metal-Framed Glasses. There will also be more clothing patterns added to the game, as well as high-level skill books for Campfire rank B and rank A, First Aid rank A, and Resting rank 9.
For the culinary experts in the game, more cooking recipes will become available, while mushrooms can be collected to be added to recipes. And for a little bit of extra fun, the Emain Macha Cooking Tournament will become a regular feature. Every Saturday, there will be a cooking tournament held within the city to determine the top chef of Mabinogi. Each week's winners will compete once a month to see who is the best of the best.
For Mabinogi's magicians, wands will become upgradable to add the Chain Casting ability, which will allow these upgraded wands to cast up to four spells at once. Chain casting will only work with bolt-type spell though, and not the mid-level spells like Fireball. Multiple magicians can also now combine their magic bolt spells to create a bigger, more damaging effect too - effective for up to three magicians using different elemental wands and casting their corresponding elemental magic.
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Sidebar: More Free Content!
Everyone likes free. That's why Nexon America has unlocked a lot of what once was exclusive, Premium content and opened up more of the world of Mabinogi to its free-to-play player base. Here's what the changes to the Premium content will entail:
Rebirth no longer requires the purchase of a character card to complete! Now, any character that's older than the in-game age of 25 will be allowed to Rebirth without needing to purchase a basic or premium character card. The restriction is that they will not be allowed to change their appearance. Rebirth through the standard paid services will now be limited to one Rebirth per week, as opposed to once every three weeks.
The Generation 2 and Generation 3 mainstream storyline quests are now open to all players. These quests were once only available to those who purchased premium in-game services, but now everyone can enjoy playing through the full in-game story. This also opens up the opportunity for all players to complete the Paladin and Dark Knight character transformation quests, and be able to transform into either of these forms.
Finally, the Spirit Weapon system is also now a free service. All players will be able to make a Spirit Weapon and raise it without needing to shell out the cash.
There are, of course, still plenty of exclusive perks for paid services, but with these features opening up to the general players, everyone will have a chance to enjoy more of the game and what it has to offer.
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