Producer's Letter
Friends, players, realm-mates – lend me your eyes! What follows is an update on how Dark Age of Camelot is faring, and the updates you may expect, and it begins with communication.
You, the greatest community that ever was or will be, have sustained DAoC for 20 incredible years. I recall celebrating DAoC’s 5, 10, and 15-year milestones, and the one constant through it all has been our sentiment that we owe Camelot’s expectation-shattering longevity and success to you - and that we the devs are immeasurably grateful for your loyalty and your trust.
Dark Age of Camelot has certainly undergone its share of changes, and one needs only examine the stratified layers of its evolution to understand the nuance and complexity of the game. It is that complexity that draws in players who appreciate engaging in and mastering the RvR dynamic that has set DAoC apart from all other PvP MMOs.
After 20 years in operation quite a few original features have evolved, yet the beating heart of what makes DAoC so special has remained largely unchanged - three realms engaging in fierce RvR battles for pride, for glory, and domination of the Frontiers. We intend to preserve foundational RvR elements as well as to protect and respect the progress that so many have made since October 2001. Players and guilds from Camelot’s original game servers transferred to Ywain and re-formed to carry forward their progress, maintain their comradery, and to continue to fight in service of their realm. We will continue to update Ywain with class balance modifications, RvR changes, and quality of life improvements - but this is not our exclusive direction.
The core of Dark Age of Camelot is powerful and timeless. The experience of three-realm RvR can - and has - succeeded in a number of different dynamics. You need look no further than the legendary PvP combat on Andred and Mordred or the immense Battlegroup PvE encounters on Gaheris to agree that there are yet more possibilities ahead.
In this spirit, we have been working on a new server type. It wouldn’t be precisely accurate to call it an ‘Event Server’, though in some ways it can be thought of in that way. The scope and scale of the content will be larger, and access to the dynamics of the new server will be available for longer periods than our typical events or campaigns on Ywain. Simply put, we will provide the opportunity to start your journey on a level playing field, to focus on (or remove) specific expansion content and have wholly new and very exciting objectives!
This is our goal, and I hope it’s enough (for now) to know that we’ve made a solid beginning toward achieving that goal. Trust me, old friends, when I tell you that we’re aware that you are itching to know more – I certainly cannot wait to share more with you! Until that time, however, it is my fervent hope that we may rely on the trust and good faith with which you have honored us for so long. I will be providing regular updates here on the Camelot Herald, in our monthly Newsletters - and you can catch us lurking in our official Discord channel!
With the utmost sincerity and gratitude, the team here at Broadsword thanks you for being a part of this community, and we are looking forward to yet another chapter in the history of our beloved Dark Age of Camelot.
Faithfully yours,
Eldariian
You, the greatest community that ever was or will be, have sustained DAoC for 20 incredible years. I recall celebrating DAoC’s 5, 10, and 15-year milestones, and the one constant through it all has been our sentiment that we owe Camelot’s expectation-shattering longevity and success to you - and that we the devs are immeasurably grateful for your loyalty and your trust.
Dark Age of Camelot has certainly undergone its share of changes, and one needs only examine the stratified layers of its evolution to understand the nuance and complexity of the game. It is that complexity that draws in players who appreciate engaging in and mastering the RvR dynamic that has set DAoC apart from all other PvP MMOs.
After 20 years in operation quite a few original features have evolved, yet the beating heart of what makes DAoC so special has remained largely unchanged - three realms engaging in fierce RvR battles for pride, for glory, and domination of the Frontiers. We intend to preserve foundational RvR elements as well as to protect and respect the progress that so many have made since October 2001. Players and guilds from Camelot’s original game servers transferred to Ywain and re-formed to carry forward their progress, maintain their comradery, and to continue to fight in service of their realm. We will continue to update Ywain with class balance modifications, RvR changes, and quality of life improvements - but this is not our exclusive direction.
The core of Dark Age of Camelot is powerful and timeless. The experience of three-realm RvR can - and has - succeeded in a number of different dynamics. You need look no further than the legendary PvP combat on Andred and Mordred or the immense Battlegroup PvE encounters on Gaheris to agree that there are yet more possibilities ahead.
In this spirit, we have been working on a new server type. It wouldn’t be precisely accurate to call it an ‘Event Server’, though in some ways it can be thought of in that way. The scope and scale of the content will be larger, and access to the dynamics of the new server will be available for longer periods than our typical events or campaigns on Ywain. Simply put, we will provide the opportunity to start your journey on a level playing field, to focus on (or remove) specific expansion content and have wholly new and very exciting objectives!
This is our goal, and I hope it’s enough (for now) to know that we’ve made a solid beginning toward achieving that goal. Trust me, old friends, when I tell you that we’re aware that you are itching to know more – I certainly cannot wait to share more with you! Until that time, however, it is my fervent hope that we may rely on the trust and good faith with which you have honored us for so long. I will be providing regular updates here on the Camelot Herald, in our monthly Newsletters - and you can catch us lurking in our official Discord channel!
With the utmost sincerity and gratitude, the team here at Broadsword thanks you for being a part of this community, and we are looking forward to yet another chapter in the history of our beloved Dark Age of Camelot.
Faithfully yours,
Eldariian
DAoC Community Lead
Broadsword Online Games
Broadsword Online Games
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Comments
We are working toward releasing an exciting new server by the summer.
Broadsword Online Games
WOOT!! Thank you @Carol_Broadsword !!
Short lifetime. Disappointing, but better than nothing/Ywain.
Can we please get some events that don’t require us to be lvl 1?
I also have LGM all, all 3 realms. I’m definitely not re-leveling my crafters on another sever.
Da fly family - 4501 4502 4503 4504 4506 4508 4509
Da spider family - 441 442 443 444 445 447
Ywain 1 Mid - Carlingford Hib - Tullamore Alb - Dalton
https://divoxutils.com/user-characters
Just cuz you have dozens of 50s doesn't mean there are others that would love to re-live and level toons throughout a new server watching a fresh economy begin and have fun with the race to the top and level 50 rvr. What's the point of being an RPG if there's no progression, everyone begins fully templated, and it's immediately day 1 top heavy?
I'm not trying to offend you, and trust me, I do get where you're coming from. I play regularly on everquest TLP servers. I played on one from the launch of it until it hit the the most current expansion which took years, and in some ways it sucks yes to start on a new TLP not having my dozens of level 100+ characters, tradeskills, years of progression/gearing/leveling. It's hard to explain it if you haven't experienced fresh servers even if starting at level 1. There is something (sounds cliche AF) but kind of magical about the "life" you feel from the players, the economy, the server on a fresh TLP on EQ despite everyone starting at level 1 again. There's a reason EQ has been regularly releasing TLPs yearly. I only hope the same sort of life and player return happens on DAOC that I saw on EQ when they took that approach with alternate ruleset servers.
I only hope BS has enough money to actually do a little bit of a marketing campaign to get the word out instead of only being word of mouth. Whenever EQ has a new TLP, I see adverts begin to pop up on facebook and the like for example.
There's a reason that even the themed "template" free shards are crap in population to the ones that start fresh and build an economy from the start with Classic + SI + Housing. Doesn't mean they shouldn't do template event servers like that, but my first goal if I were in their shoes would be to get as many shard players as humanly possible back to the official game. By a huge margin the only servers that have AND maintain high population for shards are the ones that started with a fresh economy Classic + SI + Housing and level 1. No debating, just facts if you look at the history of them and their server numbers.
If I were BS:
Don't forget Ywain, keep updating it, keep that a great focus of course for the current players which they've obviously stated they're doing.
Build your first server with the main goal in mind of getting back as many people as humanly possible by that has proven by numbers been the most popular server type on shards (Classic + SI + Housing, level 1 start). From my experience on EQ TLPs I'd be ok personally with maybe a permanent exp bonus on the server as even Everquest TLPs don't launch servers at the "original" classic exp rate values because they know people don't want quite that "oldschool MMO" grind, but also don't want it trivial at the same time. (permanent 50-100% exp rate, even at 100% exp rate it would still take a decentish amount of time to level to 50 when comparing to original classic+SI values)
Next, to retain returnees and prevent attirition and burnout begin fun timed event servers like you're talking about maybe with not starting right at level 1, etc to please those like yourself. Either template servers, or a combination of a template server that has a unique "smaller" frontiers for faster action and made to operate with a lower population. They could also do and think of various ways to encourage those returnees to give Ywain a try. Maybe a free cosmetic item on Ywain when you have a level 40+ character on the new server, or whatever they want to market as encouragement to try the current game as well.
No, I was talking about the Caledonia event. We have already had at least 2 of those. I want to be able to play in the events on THIS server, WITHOUT having to make new toons. Maybe they can make Caledonia a 2 week thing, and have the 2nd week, let anyone play, or something like that.
My only issue with the new server, is having to re-level all my crafters. Maybe we can transfer toons, without RPs or something like that.
Da fly family - 4501 4502 4503 4504 4506 4508 4509
Da spider family - 441 442 443 444 445 447
Ywain 1 Mid - Carlingford Hib - Tullamore Alb - Dalton
https://divoxutils.com/user-characters
Gotcha, my bad and my misinterpretation then.
Unless they're making some unique event server that having a fresh growing economy with leveling crafters doesn't make sense, then yea maybe they could do something like that.
If though that they're making a Classic + SI + Housing fresh server starting at level 1 to have everyone on a level playing field, it makes no sense to let people xfer LGM crafters of course. But yea, it's unfortunate, I've had my own LGM crafters back in my old days of playing DAOC. Not an easy or quick feat lol. I've been away from the game so long though that I'm actually REALLY looking forward to leveling crafters in a Classic + SI + Housing ruleset. I feel like that was the golden age of crafting because for the most part there wasn't purely items that dropped that would give you a perfect template for the most part. You had to craft to really template out perfectly. I could be very wrong about the current state of the game though and you could tell me crafters are as important as ever in today's game.
Your note was read in our tavern a moon past midwinter, and with the finish of its verse, and our return to the present, the quiet room exploded in talk. It appears there are at least a dozen able and earnest lads and lasses in this town, sick and tired of hearing only tales of long past, looking simply for that worthy opponent, on a new battlefield, with old foes, and fabled tacticry. We have not forgotten.
While we understand the battlefield is yet unknown, the place and manner in which we meet our foes is of only off-hand relevance. Still, I will leave with with a few of the questions that echoed in our tavern even after the last had departed and the embers of our great fired dwindled, on the chance these are also your considerations.
The immediate question asked, was for how long shall we prepare to battle? How great is our foe? If we are graced by the hand of Odin, when will our families look for our return from battle?
We shall make every effort to arrive before the Siskin leaves its nest, though we shall need time to prepare. Is there a chance we will see smaller skirmishes as we prepare for full battle? The thought of this has I suspect, cast a crafty smile on Freyja, the likes of I have not seen since a great boar hunt many seasons past.
When we arrive, will we be able to be joined with our guilds of old for their honor and renown, if there are some of our brethren yet awake on those battlefields that remain?
We have heard tell that the kink has rewarded his veterans with items for their length of service. Will this also be done on these new fields?
Will our deeds and bravery be heralded and recorded by the scribes in numbered set, or shall only those who live, serve to tell the tales of those battles not yet fought?
If you have need, we have several younger scouts that have already begun the journey, in haste, and would be more than honored to assist in surveying the battlefield and reporting any issues large or small, ahead of any foray.
We are honored your letter found us in these distant parts.
Your servants yet,