We are excited to announce the next chapter in Starfall Prophecy with 4.1: Forged in Flame! On March 1st, join us to explore new systems and content in Telara.

We've become familiar with the struggles of the Comet of Ahnket; sections of the Planes of Life and Fire have been torn up and merged with the enigmatic and malevolent Tenebrean. Now the lords of Fire and Life battle for control of the comet's power, while Ahnket herself is bent on the destruction of Telara.

It is up to you, Ascended, to change the dreadful fate that lies in store for our beloved lands. It is time to assail the Lords of Fire!

Forged in Flame brings with it a new 10-man raid: Tartartic Depths. This fiery prison was created by the devils to imprison the Red Flight - to ensure that no dragon would ever hold sway over them again, as Maelforge once did.
Rituals conducted within the Tartaric Depths have created Malannon, an avatar of the Tenebrean god, The Enigma. Some of you have glimpsed one of the four bosses on the Public Test Shard already, and there are three more to come.

Tartaric Depths is accessed through our new Looking For Raid (LFR system), already in game and being fine tuned as we approach 4.1.

Forged in Flame will also see the introduction of the long awaited Eternal Items! These unique weapons will be earned (and improved) through a level 70 questline. Developing your Eternal weapon will require you to complete many challenges, such as sealing rifts, conquering jumping puzzles and vanquishing monsters. Every Eternal Item is truly "Best in Slot," providing an unmatched degree of power.

Clerics, Mages, Warriors and Primalists will gain a 2-handed Eternal weapon, while Rogues will earn two one-handed Eternal weapons. On very rare occasions, Eternal armor pieces and additional weapons will also drop in Telara, and can be improved through the Active Upgrade system.

Intrepid Gyel Fortress is already well into development and will release in February, but 4.1 will bring Intrepid Rise of the Phoenix as well! This brings yet another level 70 challenge to the game.

Finally, we are bringing exciting tint improvements to the wardrobe system! Colors will be much more accurate to the dye selected; more vibrant and appealing. New colors will also make an appearance!

There is no additional charge for this update - it will be accessible to all who have invested in Starfall Prophecy. We'll bring you more information as we march toward launch. Watch for articles and livestreams to come!

We are excited to announce the next chapter in Starfall Prophecy with 4.1: Forged in Flame! On March 1st, join us to explore new systems and content in Telara.

We've become familiar with the struggles of the Comet of Ahnket; sections of the Planes of Life and Fire have been torn up and merged with the enigmatic and malevolent Tenebrean. Now the lords of Fire and Life battle for control of the comet's power, while Ahnket herself is bent on the destruction of Telara.

It is up to you, Ascended, to change the dreadful fate that lies in store for our beloved lands. It is time to assail the Lords of Fire!

Forged in Flame brings with it a new 10-man raid: Tartartic Depths. This fiery prison was created by the devils to imprison the Red Flight - to ensure that no dragon would ever hold sway over them again, as Maelforge once did.
Rituals conducted within the Tartaric Depths have created Malannon, an avatar of the Tenebrean god, The Enigma. Some of you have glimpsed one of the four bosses on the Public Test Shard already, and there are three more to come.

Tartaric Depths is accessed through our new Looking For Raid (LFR system), already in game and being fine tuned as we approach 4.1.

Forged in Flame will also see the introduction of the long awaited Eternal Items! These unique weapons will be earned (and improved) through a level 70 questline. Developing your Eternal weapon will require you to complete many challenges, such as sealing rifts, conquering jumping puzzles and vanquishing monsters. Every Eternal Item is truly "Best in Slot," providing an unmatched degree of power.

Clerics, Mages, Warriors and Primalists will gain a 2-handed Eternal weapon, while Rogues will earn two one-handed Eternal weapons. On very rare occasions, Eternal armor pieces and additional weapons will also drop in Telara, and can be improved through the Active Upgrade system.

Intrepid Gyel Fortress is already well into development and will release in February, but 4.1 will bring Intrepid Rise of the Phoenix as well! This brings yet another level 70 challenge to the game.

Finally, we are bringing exciting tint improvements to the wardrobe system! Colors will be much more accurate to the dye selected; more vibrant and appealing. New colors will also make an appearance!

There is no additional charge for this update - it will be accessible to all who have invested in Starfall Prophecy. We'll bring you more information as we march toward launch. Watch for articles and livestreams to come!

A BALANCING ACT:

What is balance, anyway? Who decides what abilities get buffed, nerfed and tweaked? How do they make the call?
This week, we explore the philosophy, methodology and processes employed by the RIFT Systems Team when addressing the ever-moving goals of class balance. RIFT is unique among games in having am almost limitless combination of soul builds to work with, and this complexity often leads to heated discussions between passionate gamers on forums, Reddit and in-game.

Chris “Keyens” Meyer will be on hand to talk about how the team views and evaluates balance, and the challenges of trying to accommodate the widely varied opinions and desires of RIFT players when it comes to specific classes, skills and builds. Balance in this game is definitely not one size fits all, and Keyens will describe the internal process of evolving class skills, including when and how the Systems team decides to tweak them.

Keyens will delve into the challenges of working with player feedback, parsers, opinions, synergies and perspectives in a world of widely varying playstyles and approaches. We will take a number of questions from the Livestream forum question thread.

Caveat: Keyens is here to address class balance philosophy, evaluation and process, not the highly detailed raid parse of a specific build or what happened with a single ability or soul.

Finding new ways to take on content with RIFT’s complex Soul system is part of the meta game in Telara.

Please post your Balance questions for the livestream to this thread!
http://forums.riftgame.com/general-discussions/news-announcements/491625-rift-livestream-jan-13-balancing-act-post-qs-here.html#post5281122

We look forward to hearing from you!

~Brasse

A BALANCING ACT:

What is balance, anyway? Who decides what abilities get buffed, nerfed and tweaked? How do they make the call?
This week, we explore the philosophy, methodology and processes employed by the RIFT Systems Team when addressing the ever-moving goals of class balance. RIFT is unique among games in having am almost limitless combination of soul builds to work with, and this complexity often leads to heated discussions between passionate gamers on forums, Reddit and in-game.

Chris “Keyens” Meyer will be on hand to talk about how the team views and evaluates balance, and the challenges of trying to accommodate the widely varied opinions and desires of RIFT players when it comes to specific classes, skills and builds. Balance in this game is definitely not one size fits all, and Keyens will describe the internal process of evolving class skills, including when and how the Systems team decides to tweak them.

Keyens will delve into the challenges of working with player feedback, parsers, opinions, synergies and perspectives in a world of widely varying playstyles and approaches. We will take a number of questions from the Livestream forum question thread.

Caveat: Keyens is here to address class balance philosophy, evaluation and process, not the highly detailed raid parse of a specific build or what happened with a single ability or soul.

Finding new ways to take on content with RIFT’s complex Soul system is part of the meta game in Telara.

Please post your Balance questions for the livestream to this thread!
http://forums.riftgame.com/general-discussions/news-announcements/491625-rift-livestream-jan-13-balancing-act-post-qs-here.html#post5281122

We look forward to hearing from you!

~Brasse

When Archonix is away on holiday, the Boglings get busy. This time, they’ve decided to rig the Patron sale to go on for an extra week, to allow even more people a chance at it!

You’ll never see Patron offered at a lower rate, so don’t miss out – lock your rate in NOW with this fantastic deal! $99 for an entire year ($8.33/mo).

There are a great many reasons why Patron status is coveted throughout Telara. Patrons receive loyalty rewards, store discounts, affinity rewards and convenience perks. In addition, all Patrons gain an amazing array of in-game bonuses, including experience gains and mount speed.

Log in TODAY and find this Patron Sale in the RIFT Store!

When Archonix is away on holiday, the Boglings get busy. This time, they’ve decided to rig the Patron sale to go on for an extra week, to allow even more people a chance at it!

You’ll never see Patron offered at a lower rate, so don’t miss out – lock your rate in NOW with this fantastic deal! $99 for an entire year ($8.33/mo).

There are a great many reasons why Patron status is coveted throughout Telara. Patrons receive loyalty rewards, store discounts, affinity rewards and convenience perks. In addition, all Patrons gain an amazing array of in-game bonuses, including experience gains and mount speed.

Log in TODAY and find this Patron Sale in the RIFT Store!

Today is the day the prophecy is fulfilled! The comet burns ominously overhead and the desperate call for brave defenders rings out across Telara… will you answer, Ascended? We also bring you a free gift, with our thanks for your support!

We are thrilled to embark on this new path with all of you! Starfall Prophecy is the culmination of a year’s hard work and encompasses a lot of content and features: four huge new zones, new challenges, features, levels, abilities, items and recipes.

To celebrate, we have a gift for ALL players – the Heroic Prophecy Pack! Just log in to RIFT any time before November 30th to grab all the free goodies, for a taste of all that the Starfall Prophecy expansion offers!

FREE HEROIC PROPHECY PACK:

• 5x Individual Rewards Charges
  
• Cosmic Earth Core Bundle
  
• Void Drake Lock Box
  
• Scatherran Lily
  
• Large Artifact Bundle

We’re not ready to rest yet – players who invest in the Starfall Prophecy expansion will enjoy many more features coming over the next few months, including: Fortress Sieges, an all-new 10-man raid, the LFR (Looking for Raid) feature, DeadSimon’s devious puzzles and hundreds of new artifacts. Of course, we’re also working on ongoing features, such as Fae Yule! There’s never a dull moment in the RIFT team’s day.

Today is the day the prophecy is fulfilled! The comet burns ominously overhead and the desperate call for brave defenders rings out across Telara… will you answer, Ascended? We also bring you a free gift, with our thanks for your support!

We are thrilled to embark on this new path with all of you! Starfall Prophecy is the culmination of a year’s hard work and encompasses a lot of content and features: four huge new zones, new challenges, features, levels, abilities, items and recipes.

To celebrate, we have a gift for ALL players – the Heroic Prophecy Pack! Just log in to RIFT any time before November 30th to grab all the free goodies, for a taste of all that the Starfall Prophecy expansion offers!

FREE HEROIC PROPHECY PACK:

• 5x Individual Rewards Charges
  
• Cosmic Earth Core Bundle
  
• Void Drake Lock Box
  
• Scatherran Lily
  
• Large Artifact Bundle

We’re not ready to rest yet – players who invest in the Starfall Prophecy expansion will enjoy many more features coming over the next few months, including: Fortress Sieges, an all-new 10-man raid, the LFR (Looking for Raid) feature, DeadSimon’s devious puzzles and hundreds of new artifacts. Of course, we’re also working on ongoing features, such as Fae Yule! There’s never a dull moment in the RIFT team’s day.

We bring you a second sampling of Legendary Powers for the final three callings. If you're looking for Rogue and Primalist, check out our previous article! Legendary Powers are just a few of the terrific features coming with Starfall Prophecy on November 16th!


CLERIC LEGENDARY POWERS
Shaman – Time is everything, and Legendary Deep Freeze makes the best of it – this version no longer stuns targets, but now lasts a full 10 seconds.
Sentinel –Legendary Light of Redemption also applies Redeemed to the target when they are healed, increasing damage resistance by 6% for 16s. When Light of Redemption heals anyone, all targets with Redeemed are also healed. Mana costs are passively reduced by 25%, and Legendary Light of Redemption heals for 50% more.
Runeshaper – Smite your enemies as they justly deserve! With Legendary Rune of Impending Doom, you gain a stack of Smiting Force any time you do damage to the target (in addition to existing effects).
Oracle – Have you been seeking a reliable “get out of death free” card to play? Cast Legendary Defend the Fallen to ensure that allies cannot die for 8 seconds afterwards, in addition to its other effects.
Defiler – Legendary Unstable Transformation also causes Aggressive Avarice and Explosive Rage to consume only a single stack of Rage or Greed while active. Economy leads to victory!

MAGE LEGENDARY POWERS
Pyromancer – Legendary Fusillade casts Fireball on the target once every 0.5 seconds. At the end of the channel, if also hurls a satisfying Fulminate on the target.
Necromancer – Choose Legendary Condemn to convert all of the Mage's stacks of Deathly Calling on the enemy into stacks of Condemn, dealing Death damage over time per stack. Make things even worse for your enemy when it adds two stacks of Deathly Calling to the Mage when this ability ends.
Storm Caller – This soul has a simple need – more lightning! RIFT answers with Legendary Lightning Arc; it consumes stacks of Electrified to deal increased damage. Simple. Effective. Deadly.
Elementalist – The Legendary Elemental Burst has a chance to be automatically cast a second and third time after the initial cast.
Archon –Every time Illuminate deals damage, Legendary Illuminate amplifies the damage of your next Pillaging Stone by 10%. Even better, it stacks up to 20 times.

WARRIOR LEGENDARY POWERS
Warlord – Legendary Breaking Blow no longer consumes AP. It merely consumes up to 60 Power to deal additional damage.
Void Knight – If you consume 3 pacts, Legendary Ascended Discharge doesn't go on cooldown.
Tempest – Pulses reduce the cooldown of Legendary Wavelength by .5s each time they deal damage.
Reaver – Legendary Shadow of Dread passively causes your reaver dots to tick three times as fast but last 50% less time. It gets you to your goal faster!
Liberator – Legendary Medical Facility no longer reduces the cast time of Deliverance and Fast Relief. It causes Deliverance and Fast Relief to splash 12% of their healing in an AoE around affected targets.

We bring you a second sampling of Legendary Powers for the final three callings. If you're looking for Rogue and Primalist, check out our previous article! Legendary Powers are just a few of the terrific features coming with Starfall Prophecy on November 16th!


CLERIC LEGENDARY POWERS
Shaman – Time is everything, and Legendary Deep Freeze makes the best of it – this version no longer stuns targets, but now lasts a full 10 seconds.
Sentinel –Legendary Light of Redemption also applies Redeemed to the target when they are healed, increasing damage resistance by 6% for 16s. When Light of Redemption heals anyone, all targets with Redeemed are also healed. Mana costs are passively reduced by 25%, and Legendary Light of Redemption heals for 50% more.
Runeshaper – Smite your enemies as they justly deserve! With Legendary Rune of Impending Doom, you gain a stack of Smiting Force any time you do damage to the target (in addition to existing effects).
Oracle – Have you been seeking a reliable “get out of death free” card to play? Cast Legendary Defend the Fallen to ensure that allies cannot die for 8 seconds afterwards, in addition to its other effects.
Defiler – Legendary Unstable Transformation also causes Aggressive Avarice and Explosive Rage to consume only a single stack of Rage or Greed while active. Economy leads to victory!

MAGE LEGENDARY POWERS
Pyromancer – Legendary Fusillade casts Fireball on the target once every 0.5 seconds. At the end of the channel, if also hurls a satisfying Fulminate on the target.
Necromancer – Choose Legendary Condemn to convert all of the Mage's stacks of Deathly Calling on the enemy into stacks of Condemn, dealing Death damage over time per stack. Make things even worse for your enemy when it adds two stacks of Deathly Calling to the Mage when this ability ends.
Storm Caller – This soul has a simple need – more lightning! RIFT answers with Legendary Lightning Arc; it consumes stacks of Electrified to deal increased damage. Simple. Effective. Deadly.
Elementalist – The Legendary Elemental Burst has a chance to be automatically cast a second and third time after the initial cast.
Archon –Every time Illuminate deals damage, Legendary Illuminate amplifies the damage of your next Pillaging Stone by 10%. Even better, it stacks up to 20 times.

WARRIOR LEGENDARY POWERS
Warlord – Legendary Breaking Blow no longer consumes AP. It merely consumes up to 60 Power to deal additional damage.
Void Knight – If you consume 3 pacts, Legendary Ascended Discharge doesn't go on cooldown.
Tempest – Pulses reduce the cooldown of Legendary Wavelength by .5s each time they deal damage.
Reaver – Legendary Shadow of Dread passively causes your reaver dots to tick three times as fast but last 50% less time. It gets you to your goal faster!
Liberator – Legendary Medical Facility no longer reduces the cast time of Deliverance and Fast Relief. It causes Deliverance and Fast Relief to splash 12% of their healing in an AoE around affected targets.