3 September

August 2019 Community Journal

By Serpentius

Salutations everyone! Domain and Settlement Selection has restarted, and all monarchs have already chosen their duchies, counties, and settlements! Dukes and Duchesses are picking this week, and next week Counts get in on the action! Let's review everything else that occurred in August!

A look back:

  • In the first shiny of the month (that happened to fall on the 1st), Snipehunter shares first looks at a To'resk village WIP in the Prelyria client! Check out the screenshots in this post.
  • This month was all about public testing of the many release candidates of the final maps we were generating. Throughout the start and middle of August we cycled through 10 different map iterations with several testing cohorts under NDA to ensure the final maps were the best they could possibly be.
  • The next shiny that Snipehunter shared discussed the design of apparel and clothing. This post shows off the To'resk clothing designs and how slight variations can make the mann.
  • Vye took some time to talk to the community about What it means to Find the Fun in this insightful post addressed to the entire community.
  • A surprise live stream occurred in the middle of the month as Vye and Snipehunter took the community on a journey through the live Domain & Settlement Selection system. If you missed it you can find the video on our YouTube channel.
  • After the live stream, it was revealed that we were bringing the Domain & Settlement Selection app online in read only mode for all to access! Players rejoiced as the final maps were revealed and they could utilize the system they've waited in anticipation to experience.
  • Our next shiny of the month was about combat and underground lighting effects in the Prelyria client. Check out the cool video snippets in this link, the combat one has sound too!
  • We received a ton of feedback from the community for this, and as a result we introduced a limited time County Upgrade.
  • With much fanfare and celebration, the studio announced Domain & Settlement Selection claiming will officially begin on August 30th, 2019. Monarchs will start by choosing their duchies, counties, and settlements, followed by Dukes week starting September 2nd. Exciting times are afoot!
  • After hearing from the community once more, as a studio that listens, we decided to add a limited time Mayor Upgrade to our online store, which along with the County Upgrade, will go away at the end of D&SS.
  • The community has had a voracious appetite for the professions as they explore the maps of D&SS. To lend aid in that quest, Snipehunter promised and then provided a comprehensive list of them including some very detailed and humorous descriptions. Check out the full list here!
  • Fauna was the subject of this month's final shiny as Snipehunter shared screenshots from the Prelyria client showing all sorts of animals and critters from the game.
  • Snipehunter shared details of The Dutch auction, often referred to as the Settlers of Elyria event, where properties on the server maps will be sold after the D&SS event ends.
  • With a lot of confusion surrounding Villager Tokens, Snipehunter posted up Caspian's short DJ in order to clear up any confusion about them today, and what they represent later during Exposition.

Discord Server Boosts

A new feature added recently by Discord, which gives server communities more perks to spruce things up! You can learn about the benefits the varied levels of Server Boosts provided at the link above, and since you can only choose 1 server to dedicate your love towards, we'd like to thank the following members whose boosts helped us gain or maintain our perks in July! (boost verified on August 31st, 2019 - the number in parenthesis indicates how many times you’ve appeared on this list)

  • Caspian (3)
  • Blankwindow (3)
  • Ikkerens (3)
  • Zenko (3)
  • Serpentius (3)
  • Ranulf (2)
  • Rellik (2)
  • Rex SteelFist
  • Kaeolin (2)
  • Odin
  • Mimots
  • Count
  • Aeson Holf
  • DarioZ
  • FitzGibbon
  • Kaelestius
  • Seal Pupppy
  • Huldra van Draco
  • Dragendave
  • Master House
  • Kitlandria
  • Levi Symond
  • Zazulu Kintridge

Thank you all!

Surname reservations:

We consistently review surname reservations on a daily basis. Each month, we like to share a few from the past period that caught our eye.

Random declined surnames:

  • Sparkles
  • Pong
  • Lycan
  • Sylvanas
  • Master
  • Pikachu
  • Dominator
  • The German
  • Poeticisms
  • Aussie
  • LilAussie
  • Holliwood
  • Beergut
  • Hurenmeister
  • Foulup
  • Crayola
  • Astral
  • Sensei

Most attempted surname: Names meaning 'from Australia'

Standouts:

  • Morgil
  • Wolfstamme
  • Kraythorne
  • Tzaçashrois
  • Handverk'stolts
  • Tmërairë
  • McVærun
  • Radekopf
  • Lleaundî

Domain name reservations

We consistently review domain name submissions now that D&SS is underway. Here are some examples of ones that were declined and a few of our favorites.

Random declined domain names:

  • Phylladelphia
  • Great Elysium
  • Thanatos
  • Mountain Dew
  • Latium
  • Utopia

Notable domain names:

  • Dréshurí
  • Zuul'Dánar
  • Delmunÿa
  • Middenstedt
  • Khazad Melnun
  • Falrenstal
  • Chul'terok
  • Charmed Sands
  • Draigh's Falzame
  • Kala Vos Mordrak
  • Otterbear's Den
  • Kalvinder
  • Ki Nora
  • Uzbadul Dum
  • Tarkhoum

As D&SS has just gotten underway a few days ago, this list is short for now. We expect by the time next month's CJ rolls around this list will get longer and more interesting.

Random Memes

Each month we'll spotlight a few random memes that were shared via the forums or Discord.


Zenfyre shows off knowledge of the force story in this map-related meme:


Our next meme, brought to us by Hawarth Hugiz, shows what type of trade they believe Hrothi will participate in post-D&SS:


Last, but never least, our prolific meme-master Huldric provided this D&SS-related gem:


If you'd like to see your meme highlighted, share it with us in our Discord or forums and it may show up here one day!

Ask a Dev

A new column in the Community Journal, this section will highlight and provide answers to interesting questions submitted to us by the community.

This month our question comes from Levald, and they asked:

Question:

”We've heard a lot about the various methods available for food preservation at the starting tech levels, but aside from speculation there's been no information as to the necessity of preserving food. Every week a year passes and even modern preservation methods don't hold up for long. How vital will food preservation be in the game and when will we need it? Would preserving food for travel be a viable profession or should it just be part of cooking?”

Answer:

Snipehunter responds:

”In Elyria, food and harvested raw ingredients like meat or vegetables will rot away over time. However, the rate at which that happens on Elyria is slower than it is on Earth. You could set out on an adventure with 5 Elyrian days worth of rations in the form of cheese sandwiches, for example. Those rations on Earth would probably lose their freshness before the 5 days was up since there was nothing preserving them in our example. However in Elyria, that will take slightly more than twice as long, so that after 10 or so Elyrian days, they would still be edible, though just barely so. By 15 Elyrian days they would be too rotted to eat, unless you were a Dras.”

”Now, to be fair, I'm answering in very broad strokes - different ingredients and foods will rot at different rates, and in some cases the environment you are in will hasten or slow down decay. Those same items in your pack as you slog through a swamp aren't going to last as long.”

”So food preservation becomes a question of what your plans are. If you're a "day adventurer" who just explores during a single game session and then returns home, you might not need much in the way of food preservation, but if you're a ship's captain setting out to sail the length of the continent or an explorer ranging far from civilization, you will want to do what you can to preserve your stores, be that by pickling what you can, or wrapping them in paper and placing them in an oil filled cask so that air can't get to them, or via some other preservation methods such as wax sealing them.”

”Certain items, such as the pilgrimage bag from the first festival of renewal have preservative properties to help in this endeavor, and eventually, folks will research other methods of preservation, but for now, and at launch, preserving food long term will be a challenge for most players. I don't know that will make food preservation a profession in and of itself, but the need for it will certainly be there.”

”Hope that helps!”

If you would like to submit a question for the Ask a Dev column in hopes it will get answered in a future Community Journal, use this form.

Meet a Mod

Our volunteer moderators are not only bastions of peace in our community; they are a helpful hand whenever you need assistance. They are very knowledgeable about Chronicles of Elyria and provide valuable feedback that helps keep our community amazing. Each month in the past we provided a little insight into who they are and what makes them tick.

Since we had interviewed everyone on the team, this column was put on hiatus. But with the addition of Focii to our team recently, we’ve got a new interview to conduct. Let’s meet him and say hello:

”Get off my mountain!”

Q: Tell us a little about where you grew up or your upbringing.
A: “* I grew up on the south side of Chicago. I moved away many years ago, but still miss it to this day. Well mostly the Italian beef and the pizza. And for any southsiders out there you can hate me if ya want, but I will be a Cubs fan till the day I die. Just saying…”*

Q: When you were a kid, what did you aspire to be when you were older?
A: "Wow that's a hard one. Youngest I wanted to be Chicago cop cause 4 of our neighbors were. When I got a bit older and lived in Florida, I wanted to be a Marine Biologist. Nearing the end of High School I decided I wanted to be an Electrical Engineer and went to college for that. My one regret in life was not finishing college. But boy did I have fun."

Q: Commodore or Atari?
A: "Atari Pong ftw. Yes I really am that old My first computer was an AT&T 6300 with a 20mb hard drive 1984. Yeah cutting edge I know. I had a sister that worked for Bell Labs."

Q: What got you into gaming?
A: "I grew up in a family that played a lot of board games. Then I got into Risk and D&D in high school and played a lot. I was always into electronics even when I was young, so it was a natural progression. (Yeah I was the OG Cool Nerd)."

Q: What are you playing now? How do you like it?
A: "Nothing... Started with dialup MUDs, then Neverwinter, First MMO was "The Realm". Then came EQ and I ended up playing for over 15 years. I was a member of the first guild in EQ called "The Wandering Wolves of Norrath". I ran a few guilds over the years and broke my mod teeth running EQ fan forums and guild sites. After EQ, I went to EQ2 and then so many games I can't remember. I have piles of boxes. I never did find that thrill again. Hopefully I have found it in CoE. I haven't been this excited for a game in over 10 years."

Q: What is your favorite brand of beer and why?
A: "'The Beast' is what I drink now as it has the best carb to alcohol ratio of any domestic beer. Yeah, when I was young I drank the fancy stuff. I even went all dark/craft beers for about 8 years. Now I go for what has the most buzz for the least belly."

Q: Do you have plans in Elyria? Care to share them with us?
A: "Yes I do. I plan to be an adventurer and travel the lands learning every style related to dual wield (old school ranger). I will only go into town to train or resupply. I also plan to get a few parcels to set my wife of 27 years up with a crafting station and a shop to sell her wares. Beware the old frail guy out in the woods weeding his garden. He may just snap that rake in half over his knee and own you like the punk wannabe bandit you are, laughing while you cry for your mama. (Sorry, I let the other Focii slip out there for a second)."

Q: Some folks think you are a bit enamored with Ancestral Land; what do you have to say about it?
A: "Enamored? Nah. Will I have an Ancestral Dynasty? You bet. Why? Ummm, ask the other Focii . Where? Find me if you can but. remember if you do. I will be laughing and you will be crying for your mama. Just saying..."

Q: While you certainly aren’t what we’d call a curmudgeon, you have a unique style. How would you describe yourself?
A: "Get off my lawn!"

Q: As I understand it you’ve managed large amounts of people in your career. What important lesson do you think that experience taught you?
*A:
*"That every person responds to different things in different ways. If you are going to connect with someone you need to be able to figure out what motivates them and what approach you need to take to get their attention."

Q: How did you find the CoE community?
A: "As much as I hate to say it. It was mmorpg. Yes I stay miles away from the comment section as it is, ya, you know what it is."

Q: What do you think about being on the moderator team?
A: "I love being a part of the Mod team and giving back to the community. I have been gaming for many years and the community service team for CoE is one of the best I have ever seen. Period..."

Q: Anything you dislike about it?
A: "Ummmm you would need to ask the other Focii about that because he really prefers to call ‘em how he sees them. I will leave it at that."

Q: If you could say one thing to the entire community, what would it be?
A: "To hang in there and don’t let the negativity and wannabes turn you against what brought your here in the first place. The vision. This genre needs needs new life, and I truly believe CoE can be the game changer we are all yearning for. If I didn't believe that I wouldn't be here. Just saying..."

Thanks again Focii for taking the time to help us learn more about you!

Peruse our previous Community Journals for all of the previous interviews from the current and former mod team members...

More about Mods

As you may already know, our volunteer Moderators and Super Moderators spend countless, often tedious hours supporting and helping the community to ensure peace and happiness across all of our platforms.

In August, Kaelestius re-joined our team after a long time away due to RL busyness. You may not recognize him because he used to start his name with a “C”. If you see him around be sure to welcome him back! We are super happy to have him back in the fold <3

If you want to talk to a moderator, you can find them in the forums with a Moderator title, or in our official Discord server in purple (Moderator) and gold (Super Moderator).

Becoming a mod:

If you have an interest in becoming a moderator for our team, please; don't call us, we'll call you! There is no application process, we constantly seek out capable, kind, considerate, helpful, and supportive individuals who have a reputation in the community of being upstanding players who are honest and have integrity, If that sounds like you and you are present in our community, keep up the efforts and we'll find you!

Meet an Organization

Each month we spotlight an organization from our community. We have many creative members who are building amazing groups in Elyria, and this is one way we can help bring them to your attention. This month we learn about the Bulwark Corps from its founder, Cyneric Torrin

Official Organization name: The Bulwark Corps

Server: Luna (NA-E)

Kingdom affiliation: Kairos

How did you form? "We realized that we didn't have much in the way of defensive focused organizations. With how small we were in comparison to other kingdoms, it felt like it made sense to prioritize skills, abilities, and resources that would make us able to withstand foreign pressure. We didn't just want to be a guild, but wanted to dedicate time and resources to making the organization a research focal point for the Kingdom."

Tell us about the leadership: "The school portion is run through Cremoria leadership as it's center of the duchy. The guild aspect essentially acts as branches for masons and other defensive focused specialists to work out of, and to quickly get to in times of need, as well as to establish strong infrastructure throughout the kingdom, so anyone can become a branch leader for their location by reaching out to us."

Organization purpose: "To build, and prepare Kairos to weather any invasions both foreign and domestic. To see that our infrastructure is the best on the continent."

Motto/Slogan: "Skilled workers; Open Opportunities"

Fun Fact: "Nihz made all of our artwork, and we wouldn't be half as accomplished without her.."

Discord: Here

Recruitment thread: Here

Thanks Cyneric for helping us learn more about the Organization!

Meet a Kingdom

Today we learn more about Valyria, as explained by their monarch and leader, Azeron.

Official Kingdom name: Kingdom of Valyria

* Server:* Angelica (NA-W) - Kingdom 3

Leadership: "The Kingdom of Valyria is a Parliamentary Feudal Monarchy whose structure is outlined in our constitution, the Great Charter of Valyria. There are two great powers in the kingdom: The Crown and Parliament. Parliament is a bicameral legislature and consists of an upper house containing all dukes and counts in the whole kingdom, and a lower one consisting of elected barons or mayors. Parliament is empowered to both propose and ratify laws for the kingdom. The Crown, on the other hand, is an executive branch headed by the King and his Royal Cabinet. The Royal Cabinet are the heads of various departments devoted to administration. The Great Charter outlines a system of checks and balances between the two great powers, and recognizes decision-making power under the King in "Three Great Officers of State": A Royal Hand or Lord Privy Seal who runs the Cabinet, a Lord Chancellor who leads a Parliament, and a Lord Constable who leads the military."

Kingdom colors: "Crimson Red and Gold"

Kingdom crest:

Goals of the Kingdom: "Valyria is led by people who have been chasing the dream of a working feudal kingdom in an MMO game for decades. We recognize that no other game before Chronicles of Elyria has provided as much opportunity to succeed at that. A working feudal kingdom for us means an immersive experience where the reality of the game imitates politics and pivotal historical real life decision making. Ideally, this happens not from the implementation of an artificial facade or window dressing of "lore" and "titles", but because everything we design for our kingdom has meaning or purpose, and possibly gives advantage in the very real competitive aspects of the game. We aim to be contenders in the Dance of Dynasties, and we plan to do so by crafting a unique, deep and rich culture that allows individuals to plot and live out real character careers against a convincing social backdrop. "

Fun Fact: "The design and government documents of Valyria were inspired by those which were used ten years ago to successfully organize a large kingdom of 45 separate clans to conquer half of the server of 2009's Darkfall in the first year of its release. This was the Kingdom of Hyperion, which was one of the first gaming groups to try implementing a true feudal culture as seen in Chronicles of Elyria."

Discord: here

Recruitment thread: here

Closing statement: "As the largest kingdom on Angelica in both geography and population, Valyria is the bridge between the north and the south of the continent. Being so influential and centrally located, but also because we are the most experienced in the matter of kingdom building, it can truly be said that 'All Roads Lead to Valyria.' Join us at the cosmopolitan heart of the entire server, the crossroads of Angelican civilization."

Community Spotlight

To be considered for this spotlight, submit your content here.

Thank you for continuing to send us your wonderful creations!

Important: Continue to share your creations. We need more of them. Please utilize the link above so we can show off your efforts to all Elyrians!

Remember, even if your submission wasn't featured this month, we may still use it in the future.


Athorias shared his latest version of his attempt to create a city layout on a 4k map:


Our resident purveyor of the arts Hellmoon shared with us her latest creation in commission for SirApetus. I wonder what it could be?


Lastly, a Drasean favorite, Eyes of Cimeies (Chimaera Corbeau) shared their latest creation titled “Swamp Songs”:


More submissions are needed!

If you have art, songs, poems, or any creation that relates to Chronicles of Elyria you'd be willing to share in a future CJ, find the link at the top of this section, submit, and maybe you will be spotlighted!

Thank you to all of those who submitted your fan pieces!

Studio gifts!

Every so often our community sends us wonderful gifts. Sometimes they are food or drink items, sometimes other more customized gifts are received.

Regardless of what or from whom, we're constantly awed and humbled by the fact that our community blesses us with gifts every so often.

To that end, since we now post a thank you thread, we felt it made sense to highlight them again here for anyone who missed them. In August, we received 4 studio gifts.


  • The first, from Quintero, Headmaster of the Talqamar, a university within the Duchy of Mytharbor in Alesia who sent the entire studio lunch! Check out the pics and yummy goodies here
  • Next, Count Venithar of the Wilds got us a large cache of a sweet and sticky gift in this delicious ten pound box of salt water taffy! See the variety here
  • Our third gift of the month came from Fieran and the members of the Duchy of Fioralba. Seeds, Jelly Bellies, and a boatload of amazing coffee were the rewards they shared, here’s the thread with details.
  • Last but certainly not least, a new Markovian shipment arrived from far overseas, and with it Markof and the County of Markovia, as usual, outdid themselves. Feast your eyes on the incredible bounty of goods we received!

From all of us at the studio to all of you, THANK YOU all so much <3

Meet a Dev

To help you get to know our team better, we try and interview one developer each month, or as often as is possible.

We’re lucky to get to interview Jörmungandr this month. Let’s dive into questions!

Q: Would you tell us a little about growing up, such as where you did, what it was like, or something interesting from your upbringing?
A: "I grew up loving art, drawing and making my own comics strips. I grew up with creative parents and I guess I kind of absorbed some of it. My dad was into photography and computers. My mom is an artist and a teacher, so everything that hung on our walls was either a photo my dad took or art that my mom made. I thought that is just how all parents where, until 4th grade, when I found the same painting hanging in two separate houses. It blew my derpy little mind."

Q: Have you been a gamer your whole life? When did it start or what game got you into it?
A: "This is going to date me a bit, but the first game I ever played was called “Clown Math”. If you haven’t heard of it then I’m not surprised; my dad wrote it for our TSR80 to help me practice my times tables. I have to admit I spent more time drawing with the XPAD than I did playing Clown Math, but I admire my dad deeply for trying. King's Quest, Black Cauldron, and Castle Master where awesome, but I didn’t really get into gaming until the mid 90’s when games like Ultima Online and Half Life really pulled me in."

Q: Have you always been into animation or did you start your career doing something else?
A: "Once I found out that I could create custom content for games, my whole focus shifted to making maps, skins, and animating characters. At the time I didn’t think making game art was a viable career path. Making games back then was really technical, and I definitely fell in the artistic side of things, so I went into graphic design instead. Which oddly enough lead me back to the gaming industry. I got a job working for Miller Freeman and United Advertising Publications and one of the magazines we worked on was Game Developer Magazine, which is now Gamasutra.com. It was basically a trade mag for game developers and I couldn't put it down. It showed me what game developers where doing and a lot of the skills I had, applied to what they where doing, so I went for it. It’s been 13 amazing years in game development and a pretty wild ride."

Q: Spiderman or Deadpool, and why?
A: "Which version of Spiderman? There are so many different flavors of Spiderman now I’m not sure I can compare them to Deadpool fairly."

Q: The studio has made the argument about verisimilitude versus veracity in CoE. What are your thoughts about realism versus entertainment factors?
A: "If it isn’t fun and engaging, then it isn’t going to hold players attention for very long."

Q: Coffee or Energy drinks? Which flavor/kind of your preference is your favorite?
A: "Coffee and coffee flavored accessories."

Q: Are there any applications in your day to day work outside of Unreal that you cannot live without?
A: "Maya. Hands down, it is the single most important app that I use; I love it for animation. When it comes to modeling, I lean pretty heavily toward 3dsmax and for generating materials Substance Painter and Designer. They are all amazing and it’s been great watching them grow and expand over the years."

Q: Do you have any advice for future would-be animators that you would be willing to share from your career?
A: "Start small. Whatever you think you should be working on, cut that in half, quarters or eighths. A lot of animators start out with grandiose schemes of cranking out a short in a few weeks or months. They bite off more than they can chew and those first few mouthfuls of bitter defeat can crush a lot of souls. So start small, use the momentum from those early wins to propel you forward into bigger projects. Those first few animations are about building that momentum not about building your portfolio."

Q: Why Jörmungandr as your nickname? There has to be a story there?
A: "My grandpa had an old globe with a serpent that wrapped around it. I asked him about it and he told me a wild story about Norse Gods."

Q: If you could say any one thing to the entire Chronicles of Elyria community, what would it be?
A: "You guys are an amazing part of the team. It’s great to work with you."

Reddit community

Chronicles of Elyria has a Reddit community, lovingly managed by Hellmoon, Mickdude, ImbuedGreen, and SirApetus. We recently surpassed 4,000 subscribers, and continue to grow every month! Keep up this amazing momentum everyone and if you want to help spread the word about Chronicles of Elyria, join in!

If you are interested in joining our subReddit, find it here

Community shows

The Chronicles of Elyria community is a busy one, and has been for a long time now. It’s so active that there are many live shows hosted each month. To help you be aware of them, and attend these enlightening and often revealing events, we've summarized those we know occur consistently each month. If you host a show on CoE and want to be included here, please contact us at [email protected].

As a recent change, if your channel hasn't added any new content in the last 90 day period, we'll remove it from this list. If you feel your show was removed accidentally, please contact us or reach out to Serpentius.

Pre-recorded shows:


Ser Medieval's Channel is a place to find regular monthly news videos dedicated to recent Chronicles of Elyria news as well as any additional news for the game included in my monthly MMO/MMORPG news updates. Also a channel that hopes to cover several different aspects of gameplay and create guides, reviews, and even more news videos. Livestreams will be a very big part of the channel with the arrival of release and we will aim to create a community that's able to experience the game in all it's glory - together!

Their Channel


Learning Elyria is "a series hosted by Jason and Ryan from Jbros (forum names Duyo and MeltedWater). We are a new weekly show that covers different topics from Chronicles of Elyria as well as starting a weekly lore show."

Their Channel


Cremoria News Network [CNN] "is a weekly CoE talk show brought to you by the Duchy of Cremoria. They do deep dives on CoE mechanics, interviews, and community news. Tune in every Sunday at 6pm Eastern / 3pm Pacific for this classy and sassy stream."

Their Channel


A CoE Talk show from and for German speaking community members is online, hosted by Olaf Biebelix, Loki and Creamas. "In our CoE Talk we discuss the latest CoE news, previously prepared topics and answer questions from the viewers. All of that in a fun atmosphere. We want to bring this awesome game to a group that isn't able or willing to translate everything on their own so they can be a part of an awesome community. It's hosted every Wednesday at 8 pm."

Their Channel


Run by Anibal and co-hosted by our Spanish-speaking Ambassadors and long-time community supporters, Gammea and Daedhel, Taberna Elyria is "a monthly podcast in Spanish where they introduce *Chronicles of Elyria and its news to spread the word to all Spanish-speaking gamers."* "Join Anibal, Daedhel and Gammea in this new adventure!"

Their Channel


"The Arkadian Herald focuses on creating presentation videos for CoE from the Kingdom of Arkadia in different European languages to help people that don’t speak English. or speak very little, to learn about the game and its major features. As of now the covered languages are : English, French, Italian and Russian. A new series of videos exclusively in English, focusing on debating on specific matters regarding the game are being worked on right now. We hope to see you soon to help us spread the world of CoE to the World!"

Their Channel


Conclave 360 is “a community based discussions channel that seeks to help people find their home in the larger Elyrian community. Videos focus on topics ranging from introducing local community leaders, guilds, associations, and schools to discussions on how the mechanics “as described so far” will impact those people and institutions." "Free at 1pm PDT/4pm EDT on Sundays? If you're looking for a home in Elyria, tune in to Face the Conclave and find one!"

Their Channel


Oceanus FM is "a collaborative broadcasting effort hosted by Alleykat and featuring all OCE Kings including Aequitas, Lor Voskara, Caprakan, and Tylsia as regular co-hosts. The channel was created to provide an Oceanic time zone live stream and video series, to talk about issues relevant to the Oceanus server of *Chronicles of Elyria."* "Oceanus FM does not follow a strict broadcast schedule due to shift work. Watch out for announcements!"

Their Channel

Live streams:

TheoryForge. "This veteran team of streamers began a new show on Friday, May 10th, focusing on Chronicles of Elyria. The current hosts have all purchased packs with Alpha I access, and are excited to become more active members of the community. We are drawn to CoE because of its unique mechanics, and the migration of the Revival community." Follow them at the link below, they are live every other Friday at 9pm EDT, 6pm PDT.

Their Channel


A Pirate's Guide to Elyria. It is "an interactive Lore and RP based CoE Talk Show, hosted by Captain Seli and Zigsmash, where we casually dive into the world of Elyria and talk about its lore! Each episode will cover a range of topics from the Tribes of Mann and their Religions, to the solar system and everything in between. Chat from the audience is highly encouraged, and we'll discuss theories and fan lore as well!" "Show times are determined by how much rum the crew has had the day prior, so stay alert for announcements of when (Generally Tuesdays around 2PM Eastern, but could happen any day and time)!"

Their Channel


The BBC "(Bordweall Broadcasting Company) livestream deep dives into the latest developments from Soulbound Studios. Watch and discover what has them so excited about CoE, then join them and their guests in the CoE Discord voice after party and find out why they believe CoE is going to define a whole new genre in online gaming!" They stream live every other Tuesday at 8pm Eastern/5pm Pacific. Watch the CoE forums for their announcements!

Their Channel


The Town Crier is " a live informational show/podcast featuring Morbis (Duke of Vornair), Adam (King of Vornair) and Mickdude (Count from Alésia). The topic is typically the latest goings on with the game or in the CoE community, theorycrafting about things Caspian says, or watching them blunder around with recurring technical difficulties with all the grace of a three legged giraffe. Super entertainment!" You can catch them live every Thursday at 3pm (PT)/6pm (ET)/10 pm (UTC).

Their Channel


Community contests

We love running contests, promotions, and events for our players — but it turns out our players love running them as well! To help you keep track of all of the different contests and events at any given time, we've summarized them into one directory and stickied it in our General Discussion forum.

The Art of Elyria!

There are a ton of talented artists in our community, many who share their creations in our forums and on our Discord server. Recently, some of those artists (including our super awesome Hellmoon) have created an official Chronicles of Elyria group over at the ultimate web destination for all art, Deviant Art. Explore the creations, add your own or just support the creativity of our members in the CoE Deviant Art group!

Ambassadors

Each month we'll get to know one of our esteemed Ambassadors, as well as let you know the status of current nominations and votes!

Meet an Ambassador

Today we have an interview from our esteemed Ambassador West, who many of you on Discord know as Count Vestan Drake.

(These cuties are known as Rocky and Cleo)

Q: Where are you from? Can you share anything interesting that happened to you in the past?
A: "I am from the United States east coast. Probably the most interesting story is around how I joined the military. I signed up for the Air Force National Guard in the summer of 2001 with the idea of getting some free tuition and training. I was put on a wait list for boot camp, and was just waiting around when September 11th happened. Needless to say, it was one of the most frightening moments of my life. A few weeks later, I was given a training date. In the end, I never ended up being deployed and my experience was pretty benign, but I’ll never forget how young Vestan felt that day."

Q: Have you traveled much? Where was your favorite destination so far? A: "I have traveled all over the US and Canada, but my favorite vacation was a cruise to the southeast Caribbean. The weather and beaches were perfect, and the experience was one I’ll always remember."

Q: Have you always been into video games? Where did your passion for them come from?
A: "Growing up an only child with a single mom in the 80s and 90s, I was often home alone and bored. My mom gave me video games to ease the boredom. From Atari and old DOS games to all the Nintendo, Sega, Playstation, and Xbox systems, I grew up alongside the video game industry. I experienced first-hand the start of online gaming in MUDs, Ultima Online, and Everquest. I suppose that is where my passion comes from, the collection of visceral experiences that I have had in seeing the technology and storytelling evolve over the last 4 decades."

Q: Edge or blunt weapons and why?
A: "I’ve always been partial to blades, but it’s probably due to most of the best written characters in video games and novels always using swords and daggers, whereas blunt weapons seem to be the choice of the sidekick characters or pacifists. I’m excited to see how CoE changes that paradigm."

Q: If you could change anything about the world today, what would it be?
A: "The world is a bit of a scary place right now. I’d love to live in a world free of violence, where we all feel safe to live our lives in peace."

Q: Do you have any pets? Care to share?
A: "I do! My floofs are a 14-year old cat and a 13-year old dog. They have lived together all their lives and are best of friends."

Q: When did you first learn about Chronicles of Elyria?
A: "I first heard about Chronicles of Elyria in February of 2016, and the first video I watched was Morbis interviewing Queen Magistrea of Dol Aderyn on his Town Crier series. I ended up joining Dol Aderyn and the community we formed there later became what you now know as Vornair."

Q: What is your favorite feature that will be in the game?
A: "I love how this game breaks down the wall between PC and NPC. That all the jobs done by one can be done by the other. That we aren’t the heroes by default. We have to earn it. We are the quest givers, the dungeon builders, and the guides. We are the adventurers, the explorers, and the students. It is a true evolving world and we lucky few can make our own legends."

Q: You have quite a following in game, can you share any of the plans you have for your large domain?
A: "Back in those Dol Aderyn days, me and a few other counts came up with the idea of forming a powerful family, one that could rival any in the game. We wanted to create a legacy. We voted on a name, Drake, and began to build our community together. Three years later, we have over a dozen counties and a community of over a hundred players. While they don’t all bear the Drake name, I consider them all my family. We are really excited about what the future has in store for us, and look forward to building that legacy together in Elyria."

Q: How do you like being a Community Ambassador?
A: "I love being a Community Ambassador. I basically get to help people just as I did before, but with a strong support system behind me. I am very appreciative of those who nominated and voted for me. "

Q: Is this a role you ever saw yourself in or have you been in this kind of role before?
A: "I have never been in a role like this for a video game, but I have been in training roles professionally for the last 15 years. I love to share my knowledge and I feel that teaching is one of the best ways for me to hone my own knowledge."

Q: Anything about the Ambassador program you don’t like?
A: "I only wish for people to see it for what it is. A group of volunteers who are here to help people. We don’t really have any secret knowledge, just a willingness to help and go the extra mile to familiarize people with the game we all love."

Q: If you could shout out to the entire community, what would you say?
A: "With DSS coming up, people are going to get disappointed when they don’t get what they want. Promises have been made that will be broken. People will change domains to go where there is better opportunities. Don’t forget that it’s a game! Understand that it is better that these things happen now than in game, and that we have years to go before we enter this world for real. So forgive, forget, and appreciate the people that do want to play with you."

Ambassador Nominations

This month we had a new nomination and we are currently evaluating their eligibility. If all goes well, look for a vote later in September!

If you want to learn more about the current Ambassador program, or know someone you would like to nominate, click on the link! Thanks for your support, as always.

Subject Matter Experts

The Subject Matter Expert program allows players in the community to lend their expertise to the studio to help make Elyria the best it can be!

Find our Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) in orange in our official Discord server, and identified as "Subject Expert" in the forums.

Our current SMEs:

  • Hajime Saiko - Pharmacology, chemistry
  • huntsmaster - Metallurgy, materials
  • Nazrab - Law, contracts
  • Raykonx - Chemistry
  • Baronos - Jewelry, casting
  • Trug - Linguistics
  • Turlorn - Farming
  • Abelard - Philosophy, Medieval religions, Music, Shinto/Tao, Western Medieval Alchemy
  • Pentimento - Conservation of Archaelogical and Ethnographic materials
  • Almaric - Agriculture

Learn more about the SME program here

What’s next?

We always have a lot on our plate, here’s a sampling of some of what’s in store for you in the future:

  • Domain and Settlement Selection - currently live and happening, is our top priority!
  • Player event rewards - These are recorded and are forthcoming awards; related to Conquest, Kickstarterversary '18 and '17, Searing Plague, Lost Vault and other prizes the community has earned.
  • “Settlers of Elyria” (the Dutch auction) will be getting started right after D&SS concludes.
  • Updates on the status of Prelyria are always happening, look for more DJs and updates in these coming months.
  • The awesome and highly anticipated Kickstarterversary ‘19! More player rewards, items from the vault, unique new items, and surprises galore await you! Much excitement within!
  • Donovan’s Estate is getting remodeled. Would be architects rejoice, RP and contests are coming!
  • Details and access to setup Personas, your in character self, is still on the horizon.
  • Expect changes to the Ambassador role to be delineated very soon, including the new Recognition role.
  • Organization Faire - Organizations, Recruiting, DJs, Events, much fun incoming!

We have never been busier than we are right now, and we couldn’t be happier. As Domain and Settlement Selection takes place, the entire studio is elated beyond words that we’ve achieved this important milestone. And now that we’re here, we say “onto the next!”

Until next time,

More to come...