[dev1007]Voidwatch Emerges

[Lovex]

What Is Voidwatch?
In Voidwatch, bands of six to eighteen members will square off against “Voidwalkers,” savage entities that have breached planar bounds to invade multiple landscapes spanning past and present. By slaying these manifestations of terror, you and your stalwart comrades will gradually come to discover the true nature of the threat that has all of Vana’diel up in arms.

The May 9, 2011 version update introduces the first installment of this new challenge, and readies eighteen fields whereupon you will duel the dreaded Voidwalkers. The battle will expand to yet more areas in ensuing releases.
*Accessing this content requires the purchase and registration of the “Wings of the Goddess” expansion.



Participation Requirements
•Level 75 or above.
•Possession of the following key items:
Adventurer’s Certificate / Stratum Abyssite / Voidstone
•Affiliation with the Allied Forces of Altana.


Progressing Through the Ops
Voidwatch Ops are broken down into three distinct jurisdictions as follows:

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4
San d’Oria East Ronfaure Ordelle’s Caves Jugner Forest King Ranperre’s Tomb
East Ronfaure [S] Jugner Forest [S]
Bastok North Gustaberg Gusgen Mines Pashhow Marshlands Dangruf Wadi
North Gustaberg [S] Pashhow Marshlands [S]
Windurst West Sarutabaruta Maze of Shakhrami Meriphataud Mountains Outer Horutoto Ruins
West Sarutabaruta [S] Meriphataud Mountains [S]



[1] Acquiring the Key Items
The “stratum abyssite” and “voidstone” key items can be acquired by speaking to one of the Voidwatch officers posted at the following locations:
Southern San d’Oria [S] (L-9) / Bastok Markets [S] (G-5) / Windurst Waters [S] (G-5) / Southern San d’Oria (F-9) / Bastok Markets (D-11) / Windurst Waters (G-5)


•Stratum Abyssite
Stratum abyssite are permanent key items and need only be obtained once. There exist three types, each corresponding to a jurisdiction as follows:
•San d’Oria: Crimson Stratum Abyssite
•Bastok: Indigo Stratum Abyssite
•Windurst: Jade Stratum Abyssite
•Voidstones
These magicked stones find use across all jurisdictions. Information regarding voidstone stock and issuance can be confirmed by speaking with a Voidwatch Officer NPC.

[2] Undertaking Voidwatch Ops
Voidwatch Officer NPCs will assign you an operation based on your current progress, after which you must make your way to the designated operation site. Players may choose to utilize the teleportation service offered by the nearby Atmacite Refiner NPC in exchange for cruor (the same substance as that found in Abyssea).



[3] Battling Voidwalkers
Each Voidwatch operation takes place at one of three predetermined “planar rifts,” weak points in the fabric of space. Enemy strength and spoils obtainable will not be affected by the choice of rift.



To spawn a Voidwalker and initiate battle, simply examine a planar rift while in possession of the requisite key items. Combatants have thirty minutes to dispatch their foe, after which time the Voidwalker will disappear and the operation will be deemed a failure.
*A single voidstone will be expended for all who possess one, and not only the character who initiated battle. While those without a voidstone can still participate, their reward will be limited to experience points and cruor.



The “Voidwatcher” status will be bestowed upon players for the duration of a Voidwatch operation.
*Players will be unable to benefit from the effects of Signet and Sigil during this time.



[4] Obtaining Spoils
At the successful completion of battle, a mysterious “riftworn pyxis” will manifest from the planar rift and remain for three minutes. All combatants may examine the pyxis, the contents of which will differ for each person. Players can improve both the quantity and quality of their spoils as well as obtain rare atmacite and periapt key items by manipulating “spectral alignment” values as outlined below.



•Spectral Alignment
There exist five lights in the existential spectrum. Their alignment values can be enhanced to produce the following benefits:
•Blue: Increases reward quantity.
•Red: Increases reward quality.
•Yellow: Increases experience yield.
•Green: Increases cruor yield.
•White: Increases chances of atmacite and periapt obtainment.
The alignment values for the above can be enhanced via the two methods below.
(1) Trading “ascent items” to a planar rift ahead of battle. Doing so will enhance alignment values for that player only.
•Ascent items can be obtained in the following ways:
•Purchased with cruor from a Voidwatch Officer.
•Purchased with Conquest Points from a Conquest Guard.
•Purchased with Imperial Standings from an Imperial Guard.
•Purchased with Allied Notes from an Allied officer.
•Found in a treasure casket.


(2) Striking Voidwalker weaknesses.
Doing so will enhance alignment values for all combatants.
*Alignment values increased via ascent items are reset when the player opens a riftworn pyxis.
*Alignment values increased by striking enemy weaknesses are reflected in pyxis content and reset at the end of battle.
*Enhanced values will not benefit combatants who did not expend a voidstone at the commencement of battle. In this case, the portion of alignment enhanced via ascent items will be carried over.




•Atmacite and Periapt
•Atmacite
By infusing yourself with atmacite using a specific key item, it is possible to enhance your fighting prowess during Voidwatch Ops. Furthermore, atmacite can be upgraded in stages by enriching it with cruor. Detailed information on the infusion, purging, and enrichment of atmacite can be obtained via Atmacite Refiner NPCs and planar rifts.

•Periapt
These talisman-like objects bestow myriad benefits upon their bearers, such as reducing waiting time for voidstone issuance and enhancing the bonuses granted by ascent items.
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If you wish to discuss or submit feedback on this topic, please use the [dev1007] tag.

I was really hoping to move away from abyssea type crap. Oh well. Looks like SE wont be seeing anymore of my money for awhile; ;! Not like they care anyway.

Really dissapointed. Sounds like more Abyssea type shit. Enjoy!

[Shenrien]

Abyssea v2 >_>

[Fievel]

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f2...-this-shit.jpg

[Kaisha]

Well, at least we won't have to run all over the world for these pops thanks to the warp npcs. Bit curious if they'll do that for ZNM eventually to help speed up the process of farming PW pops.


[EDIT] Shit kinda reminds me of those augmented-weapon battles. Get pre-reqs, head to a point, initiate a battle for your group along with whatever gimmicks it employs, which in this case would be the different lights/trigs.


As much as BG will complain about this, they'll likely suck it up and do it religiously anyways if the loot outclasses Abyssea gear.

[Darkmagi]

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f2...-this-shit.jpg

^

[Kuishen]

Jesus fucking christ, really SE? Fucking retarded.

[Yugl]

I won't complain since we haven't seen the NMs they put out. It's entirely possible that they scale the fight to match the strength gained by buffs.

[Draylo]

sigh

[Plow]

sounds pretty awesome to me really...

at least it's not vnm

[Fievel]

sounds pretty awesome to me really...

at least it's not vnm

Really am happy about that

[Myrrh_Quetz]

Sounds like this is those WOTG ??? NMs where you got thoat shitty augmented gear from those hard ass 6 people only fights. The fuck where they called?

[Yugl]

ANNM.

[jimbobsonofgod]

Sounds like this is those WOTG ??? NMs where you got thoat shitty augmented gear from those hard ass 6 people only fights. The fuck where they called?

Reminded me of that yeah
Succor to the Sidhe
ANM too (but ANM rewards changed based on the zone you did)
people gonna find the easiest one and spam the fuck out of it in cockblocking lines.
while the other billion zones go untouched since loot doesn't change zone to zone

Also got that WOE element to it as well, different rewards for different people based on different things done by the looks of it

[Lyall]

I don't know, it sounds kind of interesting. What I'm not crazy about is there only being three paths for it, which means potentially more fighting over fucking ???s with people.

[Kuishen]

Here's a major problem I'm seeing with this.

What if those buyable ascent items are not universal across all currency (IS, CP etc.)? So say you have to spend 1-5k IS to get the "more quality treasure" or red ascent item. I don't know about other people but I have 1k IS on my main and however much on my mule. There is absolutely no efficient way to farm IS. Your options are getting like 1-4 IS per mob killing shit (in a party) in ToAU or doing Besieged for 2kish. Is anybody else frightened by the fact that we may have to fucking kill Greater Colibri for hours on end again just for IS to get drops from this new system? It would be even worse with CP (although almost everybody has an excess of THAT, it would still run out eventually).

Extremely Dickish move by SE if the above assumptions are correct.

EDIT: What I mean in the second sentence is what if each specific ascent item is tied to a specific currency? (IS = red, CP = yellow, etc.)

[Myrrh_Quetz]

Ya, ANNM 2.0

[Deathbringer]

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f2...-this-shit.jpg

hnnnnnnnnnnnnnnngggggggggggggggg

[Forte]

My fucking god, you people bitch about everything.

I mean come on, didn't you say that Abyssea was one of the best fucking things to happen to this game? And what, they give you ANNM shit that has been improved with Abyssea like qualities and the first post has "Fuck, Abyssea is lame, SE should die."

Let me give a big hearty FUCK YOU to the people who don't like Abyssea. You can kindly get the fuck out and take your incessant bitching elsewhere. This sounds like it could actually be fun and not a fucking pain in the ass like most of the previous forgotten content.

I've lost faith in you people to be anything more than whiny jackoffs.

[Draylo]

My fucking god, you people bitch about everything.

I mean come on, didn't you say that Abyssea was one of the best fucking things to happen to this game? And what, they give you ANNM shit that has been improved with Abyssea like qualities and the first post has "Fuck, Abyssea is lame, SE should die."

Let me give a big hearty FUCK YOU to the people who don't like Abyssea. You can kindly get the fuck out and take your incessant bitching elsewhere. This sounds like it could actually be fun and not a fucking pain in the ass like most of the previous forgotten content.

I've lost faith in you people to be anything more than whiny jackoffs.

So you are mad because people have differing opinions? Fuck off?

[Forte]

So you are mad because people have differing opinions? Fuck off?

I'm mad because you have bipolar opinions. Get on your fucking meds and stop acting like a menopausal woman.