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Embers of Caerus newsletter updates beta development
Embers of Caerus' second monthly newsletter is out, and the various department teams are eager to share their progress in it. The landscaping is coming along, especially in regard to the quality of the trees. Populating the world is a different matter, however. The creatures have moved on to the modeling stage, and the concept team is also working hard at building up the city of Thaal. Lore, audio, and even ocean wave simulations are all in the works as well. The newsletter also contains a link to the recent game livestreams as well as a note about Gamer Safety Week. [Thanks to Flint for the tip!]
Embers of Caerus team puts out December newsletter and development update
Embers of Caerus has an ambitious feature list, a dedicated development team, and a long road to walk before the game is ready for public consumption. But as the year closes, the development team behind the game has produced a brief newsletter and a development update to let fans know where the game is now and what can be expected as we move into 2013. It's also a first look at the in-game environment, starting with the first major city of the game and its surrounding environs. The development update makes it clear that the programming team is hard at work integrating middleware solutions while getting the game servers to full functionality, while the art and lore team continues to flesh out the lore and models. Along the same lines, the newsletter mentions that the developers are moving toward working in a less volunteer capacity, establishing a central office and working for more than just a love of the project. If you're keen to see what the fruits of the game's Kickstarter project have been so far, take a look at the full rundown in both dispatches. [Thanks to Dave for the tip!]
Blizzard did the wrong thing with Ulduar-10 emblems
As we posted yesterday, it has been made very clear at this point that Emblems of Valor are the emblems that are going to drop in the 10-man version of Ulduar, while the 25-man version will drop the entirely new Emblems of Conquest. Nothing is being added to the EoV vendors aside from the relics that drop in Naxx-25. In other words, 10-man raids are basically getting glossed over, and 25-man raiders are getting all the new shinies. Where 25-man raiders get an entirely new quartermaster with access to gear on par with normal-mode Uld-25 drops (ilvl 226), as well as two of their tier 8.5 tokens, we get recycled EoV gear that was originally meant for Naxx-25 raiders. This is gear that is half a tier worse than the gear that drops in Uld-10 normal mode (ilvl 213 vs 219), and there is no way for us to buy our tier 8.0 gear with emblems, at all.
Vaneras clarifies Ulduar emblems
There has been a certain amount of confusion about what exactly is going on with emblems in Ulduar. We've known for a while that Emblems of Valor, which currently drop from 25-man Naxxramas, are going to drop in 10-man Ulduar, and that Ulduar-25 is going to drop a new badge: Emblem of Conquest. However, there were some rumors that the EoVs from Uld-10 would be a different "color" than the EoVs from Naxx-25, enabling purchase of some gear for the new EoVs that would not be buyable with the Naxx-25 EoVs. There have also been various theories about whether Tier 8 tokens would be buyable with emblems, like some of the T7 tokens are now. Vaneras has gone and clarified these questions and more, in a FAQ post on the European forums. I'll try to distill the information that I found useful into a few bullet points. The EoVs in Uld-10 are the same as the ones from Naxx-25, and let you buy the same rewards. Relics from Naxx-25 are being added to the EoV quartermasters; nothing else is being added to them at this time. Tier 8.5 gear tokens (chest and helm) will be buyable with EoCs (from Uld-25). Tier 8.0 gear tokens will not be buyable in any way. There will be a new EoC quartermaster with the two 8.5 tokens and additional ilvl 226 gear for purchase. The justification for T8.0 not being buyable for tokens is that they didn't want current Naxx-25 raiders stockpiling huge numbers of EoVs to buy stuff on the 3.1 release. This does make some sense, although there are other routes they could have gone with it. Anyway, it's good to have clarification.
Emblem of Conquest gear up on Patch 3.1 PTR
Emblems of Conquest are the new Emblems of Valor - that is to say, they drop from the 25-man version of Ulduar and enable you to buy ilvl 226 stuff. This much we knew. What we haven't known, until now, is what exactly they'd let you buy. With this latest PTR patch, the gear sold for Emblems of Conquest is now availabe. The names are placeholders ("Emblem of Conquest Healer Neck"), and the stats may also be relatively placeholder-y as well, but it's something to look at, anyway. Currently up are: Runed Orbs for 15 EoC; these are like Frozen Orbs and will be used for crafting. Necklaces for 16 EoC. Belts and gloves for 23 EoC. Legs for 32 EoC. Deadly Gladiator gear (38 EoC for hands and shoulders, 48 EoC for head, legs, and chest). Tier 8.5 chest and head tokens for 48 EoC each. Emblems of Valor for one EoC. You can see the stats on everything over on the inimitable MMO-Champion, although I don't think the tier 8 vendors are implemented yet, so we still don't know the precise numbers on those. What I'm really anxious to have confirmed is that we'll be able to buy tier 8.0 with the Emblems of Valor that drop out of 10-man Ulduar - if that's not the case, I will be one very upset raider. And what's with some of those prices? 38 badges? Really? Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
Intellon ships 26 million HomePlug-based Powerline ICs -- who's buying?
Intellon, the outfit responsible for providing HomePlug-compatible integrated circuits for all manners of applications, is pretty jovial today. Just this month, it surpassed the 26 million mark in terms of IC shipments, which have apparently gone to manufacturers of home networking, networked entertainment, Ethernet-over-Coax (EoC) and smart grid equipment. While all that may be fine and dandy, we're wondering just how many people outside of Intellon (and its tightest group of friends) actually care. To date, HomePlug is still struggling for recognition outside of the hardcore custom install market, and with wireless technologies gaining traction each day, we're left to wonder if HomePlug even has a shot at a second (or are we at third now?) life. Anywho, don't let us halt the party, but Intellon might want to divert some of that celebration cash to marketing.[Image courtesy of PCW]
