Rivals of Aether - Etalus
This weekend at GT-X we revealed our newest Rival – Clairen, The Flame’s Salvation. She’ll be joining Ranno on Steam in a two-character pack on 10/17/17 for $4.99.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGLgSZTmUVU
Profile:
Clairen is a seasoned warrior from a distant future where both Zetterburn and Forsburn have vanished and never return. In her time, Loxodont grew to become a powerful emperor and expanded his domain over nearly all of Aether. Through the years the fire people lost their connection with the flame and could no longer control it. To offset this, their soldiers were issued plasma weapons as the Fire Empire became reliant on technology to retain its power.

One young girl realized she could still control the flame and plasma. After enlisting in the Imperial Guard, she hatched a plan to destroy the endless Loxodont hoping that it would return the flame to the people. But Loxodont had grown invincible over time and his corporeal form was replaced with fortified machinery. Clairen was defeated in the throne room and was set to be executed. But there were others who also despised Loxodont, and Clairen’s bravery motivated them. An unlikely ally helped Clairen escape using a machine to go back to a time when Loxodont was still vulnerable.

Now Clairen is on a mission in the past. To find the missing heroes that inspired her resistance and to destroy the endless emperor before he become invincible.



Elemental Powers:
Ionized Tip – Unlike the other future soldiers, Clairen manipulates her blade to be two-toned. The end of Clairen’s sword is super-charged, allowing her to stun enemies who are hit precisely with the tip.

Plasma Echo – Clairen dashes forward with her Side Special to quickly escape. The deadly plasma resonance left behind can damage enemies and even KO opponents with its sweet spot.

Energy Field – Performing a Down Special right before an attack hits Clairen will trigger her energy field. This field damages and pushes other Rivals away on activation. The zone that remains will nullify all projectiles that try to enter it.

Gameplay:
Clairen plays like a sword fighter you would find in other platform fighters. Her blade is much longer than Forsburn’s dagger and she relies on disjointed hitboxes in order to keep her opponents at bay. Clairen excels at medium range but can struggle at both close and far ranges from her opponents.



Clairen’s Ionized Tip is a critical aspect of the character that players will have to master. When spacing her attacks correctly, she gets stronger knockback and can stun her opponents which opens up combos that are only possible by using the tip of the blade. Players can see clearly when they landed the Ionized Tip by the plasma stun effect that envelops their opponent.



Finally, Clairen’s Down Special is her Energy Field. This ability is the first counter in Rivals of Aether with a truly electrifying result. When successful, Clairen spawns an Energy Field that makes up for her lack of projectile. The field creates a large null zone that destroys all enemy projectiles inside it.






Rivals of Aether - Etalus
This weekend at GT-X we revealed our newest Rival – Clairen, The Flame’s Salvation. She’ll be joining Ranno on Steam in a two-character pack on 10/17/17 for $4.99.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGLgSZTmUVU
Profile:
Clairen is a seasoned warrior from a distant future where both Zetterburn and Forsburn have vanished and never return. In her time, Loxodont grew to become a powerful emperor and expanded his domain over nearly all of Aether. Through the years the fire people lost their connection with the flame and could no longer control it. To offset this, their soldiers were issued plasma weapons as the Fire Empire became reliant on technology to retain its power.

One young girl realized she could still control the flame and plasma. After enlisting in the Imperial Guard, she hatched a plan to destroy the endless Loxodont hoping that it would return the flame to the people. But Loxodont had grown invincible over time and his corporeal form was replaced with fortified machinery. Clairen was defeated in the throne room and was set to be executed. But there were others who also despised Loxodont, and Clairen’s bravery motivated them. An unlikely ally helped Clairen escape using a machine to go back to a time when Loxodont was still vulnerable.

Now Clairen is on a mission in the past. To find the missing heroes that inspired her resistance and to destroy the endless emperor before he become invincible.



Elemental Powers:
Ionized Tip – Unlike the other future soldiers, Clairen manipulates her blade to be two-toned. The end of Clairen’s sword is super-charged, allowing her to stun enemies who are hit precisely with the tip.

Plasma Echo – Clairen dashes forward with her Side Special to quickly escape. The deadly plasma resonance left behind can damage enemies and even KO opponents with its sweet spot.

Energy Field – Performing a Down Special right before an attack hits Clairen will trigger her energy field. This field damages and pushes other Rivals away on activation. The zone that remains will nullify all projectiles that try to enter it.

Gameplay:
Clairen plays like a sword fighter you would find in other platform fighters. Her blade is much longer than Forsburn’s dagger and she relies on disjointed hitboxes in order to keep her opponents at bay. Clairen excels at medium range but can struggle at both close and far ranges from her opponents.



Clairen’s Ionized Tip is a critical aspect of the character that players will have to master. When spacing her attacks correctly, she gets stronger knockback and can stun her opponents which opens up combos that are only possible by using the tip of the blade. Players can see clearly when they landed the Ionized Tip by the plasma stun effect that envelops their opponent.



Finally, Clairen’s Down Special is her Energy Field. This ability is the first counter in Rivals of Aether with a truly electrifying result. When successful, Clairen spawns an Energy Field that makes up for her lack of projectile. The field creates a large null zone that destroys all enemy projectiles inside it.






Rivals of Aether - d4nace
Clairen, the Flame's Salvation, joins the Rivals of Aether roster! Check her out in her reveal trailer below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGLgSZTmUVU
And if you missed the reveal for Ranno, you can check him out here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdq740fS6jo

Both characters will be available in a DLC Two-Pack on October 17th!
Rivals of Aether - d4nace
Clairen, the Flame's Salvation, joins the Rivals of Aether roster! Check her out in her reveal trailer below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGLgSZTmUVU
And if you missed the reveal for Ranno, you can check him out here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdq740fS6jo

Both characters will be available in a DLC Two-Pack on October 17th!
Rivals of Aether - Etalus
The Rivals team is going to be in Salt Lake City this weekend at GameTyrant Expo, and we've got something exciting planned. Along with our tournament we'll also be unveiling the next Rival in the Vivint Smart Home Arena.

We expect this to be any time between 3MDT - 4 MDT depending on how long Smash 4 goes.

If you're not able to tune in live on https://twitch.tv/vgbootcamp, make sure you keep an eye on our social accounts since we'll share the trailer there too!



Rivals of Aether - Etalus
The Rivals team is going to be in Salt Lake City this weekend at GameTyrant Expo, and we've got something exciting planned. Along with our tournament we'll also be unveiling the next Rival in the Vivint Smart Home Arena.

We expect this to be any time between 3MDT - 4 MDT depending on how long Smash 4 goes.

If you're not able to tune in live on https://twitch.tv/vgbootcamp, make sure you keep an eye on our social accounts since we'll share the trailer there too!



Rivals of Aether - Etalus
Today is a monumental day for Rivals of Aether players everywhere. One of the most prevalent questions of our times ("When's Ori?") can finally be answered. That's right, Ori is now.



New Content - Ori and Sein + The Spirit Tree

> Ori and Sein along with The Spirit Tree stage are now available here!



Ori and Sein bring their abilities learned throughout Ori and the Blind Forest and put them to the test in Rivals of Aether. While Ori works to Bash, Stomp and Glide their way to victory, Sein can use the Spirit Flame or the Charged Flame to put enemies between a rock and a hard place.
  • SPIRIT FLAME - Sein follows Ori around the battlefield. Ori can tap Neutral Special to have Sein quickly fire a Spirit Flame from wherever Sein is. Ori can hold Neutral Special to have Sein use the Charged Flame.
  • BASH - Ori can use Down Special to Bash nearly anything in Rivals of Aether – from characters to projectiles to rocks and plants. Ori can also move around the stage by bashing the Light Grenade that is thrown by using Forward Special.
  • TAG TEAM - When Ori and Sein are close enough, Ori can use Strong Attacks to initiate tag team combos. These Strong Attacks have more powerful properties as Sein assists Ori for a more devastating blow.



The new Spirit Tree stage comes with both a casual Aether version and competitive Basic version. On the Aether version, players will have to look out for Kuro as she dives toward the screen, striking those who have not taken cover under the platforms. Gumo, a fan favorite from Ori and the Blind Forest, also makes an appearance on the Aether version of the stage as he moves a platform around. Competitive players can play on the Basic version for a fair fight while enjoying some great music inspired by Ori and the Blind Forest.


If you want to try Ori and Sein before you pick up the DLC, head over to tutorial mode to give them a test run.



We’ve made lots of changes since our last major patch, so a few screens you’re familiar with might look a bit different. We’ve also updated dev mode to fix some of the moves that were outdated along with some other quality of life changes.

  • Community News - The main menu now shows news and other things of interest to the community. Use your mouse to view sections you'd like to read more about. If the web pages don't open for you, follow this quick guide.
  • Profile Icons - Profile icons now save from session to session so you don't have to select one every time. Ori and Burrito Kragg icons have been added and can be unlocked with their respective DLC.
  • Respawn Invincibility Time - Invincibility time on respawn has been reduced from 120 frames to 90. Two seconds of invincibility was proving a bit long (especially on the smaller stages) which is why we're reducing it to 1.5.
  • Hurtbox Updates - Many animations that use the default hurtbox rectangle (jump, double jump, airdodge, walljump, hurt sprites) have been re-positioned to match the hurtboxes better. There are no framedata or other gameplay changes around this, the intent is only to give more visual clarity.
  • Reverse Hits - Many kill moves that could reverse (sending a character the opposite way that the attack faced) have been changed to disallow this. You'll see it mentioned on multiple Rivals below but this is a change across the board and not targeting any specific character.
  • Character Select Screen - We've got an extra character to fit in! Ori and Sein have been added to the roster. Selecting Ori will allow you to purchase them right from the Steam overlay.
  • Stage Select - The stage select layout has been changed with The Spirit Tree and future stages in mind. If you own The CEO Ring you can also now select this stage directly by toggling using the icon over The Rock Wall.
  • Dev Mode - Updated the properties and data for some character's moves to bring them up to date with current gameplay.


Zetterburn has been seeing a lot of play lately at the highest level. While his strong offense on stage is something we intended, we think his recovery options off stage are a little too good right now, especially when that was supposed to balance out his strengths.

  • Dspecial no longer gives back your double jump immediately. Instead, it gives you your double jump 20 frames after the dive starts (noted by a white flash on Zetterburn)
  • After 30 frames of Dspecial's dive, you can cancel it with a double jump, an air dodge, or Uspecial (you can still walljump out as usual).
  • Dspecial no longer spawns a fire puddle when parried
  • Dspecial hit 1 no longer stuns grounded opponents for unecessary lengths of time when trading
  • Fair sweetspot can no longer reverse


Orcane was perfect last patch and has been perfect for a long time. However, he is now EVEN MORE perfect after we decided to add 1 more damage to his Dair hits.

  • All hits of Dair now do 1 more damage
  • Dstrong angle flippers changed to avoid strange reverse hits
  • Fair can no longer reverse


We've given Wrastor a little more kill power on his Fstrong's sourspot. He also got a visual upgrade on his Ftilt to give him the style he deserves.

  • Ftilt has a new, smoother animation (less reach, same frame data, same knockback)
  • Fstrong sourspot scaling increased from 1.0 > 1.1
  • Utilt can no longer reverse


Kragg is a simple Rival who doesn't need much. With the addition of his Burrito skin and this rock throw change below, he's one happy bug.

  • Neutral rock throw can now be reversed
  • Fair can no longer reverse


Forsburn's specials are really cool right now and hitting all of our marks for a deception based character. Some of his other moves however were a little lackluster, so we've decided to make a few changes that give him more options.

  • UpStrong hit 1 (cape) replaced with a shorter, wider cape swing
  • Bair sweetspot active frames increased from 2 > 3
  • Bair sourspot active frames increased from 6 > 13
  • Both Bair hitboxes made bigger and moved to match animation better
  • Bair whifflag decreased from 7 > 3
  • Nair1 front hitbox active frames increased from 1 > 3
  • Up Strong Startup has been increased from 12 to 14 frames.
  • Uspecial hitstun modifier increased from .85 > 1.0
  • Uspecial base knockback increased from 6 > 8
  • Fspecial is now hidden/silent when used behind smoke (so sneaky)


Even with the addition of Ori, Maypul is still the fastest Rival around. We've cleaned up a few of her hitboxes this patch to make certain moves match their animations better.

  • Fstrong hitbox made slightly bigger
  • Added 2 hitboxes to Dstrong in order to match the animation better
  • Strong attack wrap time scaling increased from .1 > .13
  • Fair can no longer reverse


Absa has started to show up consistently in tournaments which is nice to see. We've made a few QoL changes to her in addition to making Ftilt1 slightly harder to abuse, since the move shouldn't be so good that it's all she wants to do.

  • Ftilt 1 startup increased from 4 > 7, hitbox moved VERY slightly forward and narrowed (removed about 4px of backward range)
  • Ustrong hitboxes made taller to reach crouching Orcane
  • Bair sweetspot can no longer reverse
  • Fstrong can no longer reverse
  • Interrupting Absa while she's charging her cloud pop will now cancel the cloud pop instead of having the cloud auto-charge into the strong hitbox


Etalus's presence on stage is big and that's just how we like him. We've made a small change to ice armor this patch to keep him from getting overwhelming.

  • Ice armor is now eaiser to break, damage needed decreased from 50% > 40%
  • Fstrong (both with ice armor and without) can no longer reverse
  • Uair now functions correctly when hitting multiple enemies

Thanks for playing, and we hope everyone enjoys Ori and patch 1.1.2. If you're looking for some more Rivals action this weekend make sure you tune into Shine to watch the top 8 on https://twitch.tv/bigbluegg at 9EDT / 8 CDT/ 6 PDT.
Rivals of Aether - Etalus
Today is a monumental day for Rivals of Aether players everywhere. One of the most prevalent questions of our times ("When's Ori?") can finally be answered. That's right, Ori is now.



New Content - Ori and Sein + The Spirit Tree

> Ori and Sein along with The Spirit Tree stage are now available here!



Ori and Sein bring their abilities learned throughout Ori and the Blind Forest and put them to the test in Rivals of Aether. While Ori works to Bash, Stomp and Glide their way to victory, Sein can use the Spirit Flame or the Charged Flame to put enemies between a rock and a hard place.
  • SPIRIT FLAME - Sein follows Ori around the battlefield. Ori can tap Neutral Special to have Sein quickly fire a Spirit Flame from wherever Sein is. Ori can hold Neutral Special to have Sein use the Charged Flame.
  • BASH - Ori can use Down Special to Bash nearly anything in Rivals of Aether – from characters to projectiles to rocks and plants. Ori can also move around the stage by bashing the Light Grenade that is thrown by using Forward Special.
  • TAG TEAM - When Ori and Sein are close enough, Ori can use Strong Attacks to initiate tag team combos. These Strong Attacks have more powerful properties as Sein assists Ori for a more devastating blow.



The new Spirit Tree stage comes with both a casual Aether version and competitive Basic version. On the Aether version, players will have to look out for Kuro as she dives toward the screen, striking those who have not taken cover under the platforms. Gumo, a fan favorite from Ori and the Blind Forest, also makes an appearance on the Aether version of the stage as he moves a platform around. Competitive players can play on the Basic version for a fair fight while enjoying some great music inspired by Ori and the Blind Forest.


If you want to try Ori and Sein before you pick up the DLC, head over to tutorial mode to give them a test run.



We’ve made lots of changes since our last major patch, so a few screens you’re familiar with might look a bit different. We’ve also updated dev mode to fix some of the moves that were outdated along with some other quality of life changes.

  • Community News - The main menu now shows news and other things of interest to the community. Use your mouse to view sections you'd like to read more about. If the web pages don't open for you, follow this quick guide.
  • Profile Icons - Profile icons now save from session to session so you don't have to select one every time. Ori and Burrito Kragg icons have been added and can be unlocked with their respective DLC.
  • Respawn Invincibility Time - Invincibility time on respawn has been reduced from 120 frames to 90. Two seconds of invincibility was proving a bit long (especially on the smaller stages) which is why we're reducing it to 1.5.
  • Hurtbox Updates - Many animations that use the default hurtbox rectangle (jump, double jump, airdodge, walljump, hurt sprites) have been re-positioned to match the hurtboxes better. There are no framedata or other gameplay changes around this, the intent is only to give more visual clarity.
  • Reverse Hits - Many kill moves that could reverse (sending a character the opposite way that the attack faced) have been changed to disallow this. You'll see it mentioned on multiple Rivals below but this is a change across the board and not targeting any specific character.
  • Character Select Screen - We've got an extra character to fit in! Ori and Sein have been added to the roster. Selecting Ori will allow you to purchase them right from the Steam overlay.
  • Stage Select - The stage select layout has been changed with The Spirit Tree and future stages in mind. If you own The CEO Ring you can also now select this stage directly by toggling using the icon over The Rock Wall.
  • Dev Mode - Updated the properties and data for some character's moves to bring them up to date with current gameplay.


Zetterburn has been seeing a lot of play lately at the highest level. While his strong offense on stage is something we intended, we think his recovery options off stage are a little too good right now, especially when that was supposed to balance out his strengths.

  • Dspecial no longer gives back your double jump immediately. Instead, it gives you your double jump 20 frames after the dive starts (noted by a white flash on Zetterburn)
  • After 30 frames of Dspecial's dive, you can cancel it with a double jump, an air dodge, or Uspecial (you can still walljump out as usual).
  • Dspecial no longer spawns a fire puddle when parried
  • Dspecial hit 1 no longer stuns grounded opponents for unecessary lengths of time when trading
  • Fair sweetspot can no longer reverse


Orcane was perfect last patch and has been perfect for a long time. However, he is now EVEN MORE perfect after we decided to add 1 more damage to his Dair hits.

  • All hits of Dair now do 1 more damage
  • Dstrong angle flippers changed to avoid strange reverse hits
  • Fair can no longer reverse


We've given Wrastor a little more kill power on his Fstrong's sourspot. He also got a visual upgrade on his Ftilt to give him the style he deserves.

  • Ftilt has a new, smoother animation (less reach, same frame data, same knockback)
  • Fstrong sourspot scaling increased from 1.0 > 1.1
  • Utilt can no longer reverse


Kragg is a simple Rival who doesn't need much. With the addition of his Burrito skin and this rock throw change below, he's one happy bug.

  • Neutral rock throw can now be reversed
  • Fair can no longer reverse


Forsburn's specials are really cool right now and hitting all of our marks for a deception based character. Some of his other moves however were a little lackluster, so we've decided to make a few changes that give him more options.

  • UpStrong hit 1 (cape) replaced with a shorter, wider cape swing
  • Bair sweetspot active frames increased from 2 > 3
  • Bair sourspot active frames increased from 6 > 13
  • Both Bair hitboxes made bigger and moved to match animation better
  • Bair whifflag decreased from 7 > 3
  • Nair1 front hitbox active frames increased from 1 > 3
  • Up Strong Startup has been increased from 12 to 14 frames.
  • Uspecial hitstun modifier increased from .85 > 1.0
  • Uspecial base knockback increased from 6 > 8
  • Fspecial is now hidden/silent when used behind smoke (so sneaky)


Even with the addition of Ori, Maypul is still the fastest Rival around. We've cleaned up a few of her hitboxes this patch to make certain moves match their animations better.

  • Fstrong hitbox made slightly bigger
  • Added 2 hitboxes to Dstrong in order to match the animation better
  • Strong attack wrap time scaling increased from .1 > .13
  • Fair can no longer reverse


Absa has started to show up consistently in tournaments which is nice to see. We've made a few QoL changes to her in addition to making Ftilt1 slightly harder to abuse, since the move shouldn't be so good that it's all she wants to do.

  • Ftilt 1 startup increased from 4 > 7, hitbox moved VERY slightly forward and narrowed (removed about 4px of backward range)
  • Ustrong hitboxes made taller to reach crouching Orcane
  • Bair sweetspot can no longer reverse
  • Fstrong can no longer reverse
  • Interrupting Absa while she's charging her cloud pop will now cancel the cloud pop instead of having the cloud auto-charge into the strong hitbox


Etalus's presence on stage is big and that's just how we like him. We've made a small change to ice armor this patch to keep him from getting overwhelming.

  • Ice armor is now eaiser to break, damage needed decreased from 50% > 40%
  • Fstrong (both with ice armor and without) can no longer reverse
  • Uair now functions correctly when hitting multiple enemies

Thanks for playing, and we hope everyone enjoys Ori and patch 1.1.2. If you're looking for some more Rivals action this weekend make sure you tune into Shine to watch the top 8 on https://twitch.tv/bigbluegg at 9EDT / 8 CDT/ 6 PDT.
Rivals of Aether - Valve
Today's Deal: Save 66% on Rivals of Aether!*

Look for the deals each day on the front page of Steam. Or follow us on twitter or Facebook for instant notifications wherever you are!

*Offer ends Thursday at 10AM Pacific Time
Rivals of Aether - Etalus
Super Smash Con 2017 is officially all wrapped up! Smash Con has a special place in our hearts as it’s one of the earliest conventions we ever brought Rivals to. This being our 3rd year in a row meant a lot when we were able to come back in a big way and see so many returning fans.

This tournament was also our largest live event yet with a 160 player bracket for singles and 42 teams participating in doubles, in addition to a character reveal panel. If you missed the action last weekend this recap should bring you up to speed.

Character Reveal Panel
We revealed our newest Rival – Ranno, the poisonous pacifist on Friday morning.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdq740fS6jo

Along with this reveal trailer we also did a panel that delved deeper into some of Ranno’s lore, moveset, and design with a Q&A at the end. This was broadcast by VGBootCamp and you can watch the entire panel on their channel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCfombnVYL0

Xbox One and Ori DLC Launch Date
We’ve finished our Xbox One version of Rivals and Xbox players will be able to get the full version of the game on August 23rd. Players who’ve already purchased the game on Game Preview will be automatically updated to the launch version of the game for free.



Rivals Singles Tournament
This year’s singles event was the largest Rivals of Aether tournament to date, with a 160 player bracket that we capped off with our top 8 Saturday morning on VGBootCamp. Congratulations to Edax | FullStream for his first place finish and dominating performance that netted him the lion’s share of the $2,000 pot bonus.

This was the second live event we’ve seen FullStream mix it up with characters other than Wrastor, with him playing Zetterburn for the majority of the tournament and even a suprise Etalus pick to reverse 3-0 Fable | MSB.

You can watch the VoDs from the event on VGBootCamp’s VoD channel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhXIxGSwoFE&list=PLcMdMmtHkPpRKrQTF4PnN3Y-sAeNX2y3V

If you’re interested in just the highlights, youtuber Jarek4 Gaming also put together a great highlight reel here from the event:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39pSpGZyxok

Full Standings: https://smash.gg/tournament/rivals-super-smash-con/events/rivals-of-aether-singles/standings

Rivals Doubles Tournament

This doubles tournament had a bit of a twist as both Ori and Sein along with Ranno were legal. Many teams tried out the new characters to varying success and at the end of it all Edax | FullStream and Edax | Turtlebox were crowned the champions. Congratulations to the double Edax Pro squad for securing first place and maintaining their undefeated record at RCS events in doubles.

Full Standings: https://smash.gg/tournament/rivals-super-smash-con/events/rivals-of-aether-doubles/standings

Event Photos
Edax | Zam took some great photos at the event and kindly uploaded an album for everyone to enjoy. Browse through for a look into Super Smash Con 2017, the Rivals community, or to find some pictures of yourself if you attended.

http://imgur.com/a/wYAub

Later This Week
The official Rivals twitch channel will be doing some match analysis from the top 32 this week since those games weren’t able to be streamed at the event. If you were a player in the top 32 who would be interested in having your game looked at, leave a comment below!

Renzo was also hard at work during the event making sure we got all of the replays from the top 32. He’s planning to upload them to his YouTube channel so people can see some of the great matches from pools.

Upcoming Events
Thanks again to everyone in the community (as well as the new players) who came out for Super Smash Con. The event was a blast and we can’t wait for the next one. We’ll see you all at Shine on August 25th! We’ll also be at these events later this year:

Shine (8/25 - 8/27)
Balcy's Palace (9/8 - 9/10)
Heat Wave (9/23)
GameTyrant Expo 2017 (9/29 - 10/1)
PAX West (10/1 - 10/4)
...