[GM-Griffin]

Hey folks, as you probably are aware there's been quite a bit of discussion regarding eRO's direction in regards to rates and general server characteristics. After a couple aspirin and a reconsideration of what we want and what our community (you) wants, we've come up with the finalized list of features you'll see in the Third Age.

I'll keep it short and sweet for your consideration.

Rates:

• 10x Base EXP (excluding bonuses)
  
• 10x Job EXP (excluding bonuses)
  
• 7x Drop Rates (excluding bonuses)
  
• 25x/20x Drop Rates for WoE related items (including gear, cards, and consumables/materials)
  
• 3x/2x MVP Drop Rates
  
• 1x MVP Card Drop Rates
  
• 10% Bonus EXP per active character in party

Features:

• Town Warper
  
• 1/1 High Novice Resetter
  
• 20-point resetter, usable every so often
  
• Client Protection (Silentium)
  
• Weekly Themed EXP/Drop Events
  
• PVP Events
  
• Enchantment Stones
  
• Battle Grounds supplies NPC, usable in WoE.
  
• ... and more.

In addition, within the next two months we will be releasing WoE Characters and a corresponding twice-weekly xWoE event.

WoE Characters:

WoE Characters will be characters created for the sole purpose of participating in xWoE.

• Level limited.
  
• Limited to safe upgraded gear and non-boss cards
  
• Unable to drop/trade/vend
  
• Unable to leave xWoE designated maps
  
• Allotted set number of consumables per guild per week (cleared each week, can't stockpile)
  
• Unlimited free resets (stats and skills)

It's worth noting that this system delineates the basic restrictions. However, we plan to work the level and gear off a point-based system (you could sacrifice levels for better gear, or take worse shoes for a better armor). However, that system is difficult to describe, so just consider this as a guideline for now.

xWoE:
xWoE will be held at non-conflicting times before or after normal WoEs. WoE characters may participate in these events with allotted items and gear. In addition, normal characters (read: non-WoE) will be permitted to use xWoE consumables and gear if they so choose in addition to whatever they bring (yes, giving them an advantage). xWoE will have prizes that will correspond to the normal server for winners.

• Twice weekly
  
• WoE and non-WoE characters may participate
  
• All characters participating will be allotted xWoE-only consumables
  
• Non-WoE characters will not be gear-limited
  
• Prizes corresponding to normal server (yet to be decided)
  
• Bragging rights (Augmented by Rankings)

The reasoning behind xWoE is to provide an active, stable low rate server with War of Emperiums that draw international competition. We concede that many players simply aren't up to the task of hunting and leveling characters, which is what xWoE intends to remedy.

So yes, there will be essentially two concurrent servers in one. A WoE-only server as well as a low rate. Trust us, we'll make it work.

Oh, and last but not least... Apologies, but we're pushing release date to the 5th of December (Saturday).

Discuss here.

FAQ:
Q. Will the 10% EXP bonus per party member work outside of party share?
A. Nope, even share only.

Q. What items will be included in the 20-25x rate increase (WoE items)?
A. WoE related items include (but are not limited to) cards (think Thara Frog, Green Ferus), equipment (Wool, Tidal), and consumables (select ingredients for brewing). A full list will be available shortly. Note that MVP drops that could be considered WoE materials will not have an increased rate.

Q. Will there be some sort of promotional EXP event in the first few weeks?
A. Yes, we'll be continuing the v2 Battle Manual system. During the first two weeks the Battle Manuals will provide an additional boost, after which time they will still be obtainable but the EXP bonus will be reduced.

[Karei]

A note... there won't be two xWoE and 2 normal WoE. We're figuring out the details, and we'll make sure it works.

There will be incentives to have a real character. I promise.

[Karei]

Scheduled Release: 9:00PM GMT, Saturday December 5th, 2009. 4:00PM EST, 1:00PM PST.

[Kargha]

Due to some issues, the new grf file for v3 will NOT be possible to download with the v2 patcher. This is due to the internal workings of the patcher. Instead a mirror for the grf ONLY will be available for those who still have their old v2 files (the new client files can still be downloaded through the v2 patcher however).

So here are the options that will be available:

If you have the old v2 files on your computer:
1. Rename EternityRO.exe to EternityRO Patcher.exe.
2. Run EternityRO Patcher.exe.
3. Once it's done patching, it will reboot, press exit.
4. Delete the file eropatch.dat
5. Run the patcher again and let it patch up all of the files.
6. Download the GRF available HERE and place it into your RO directory.
7. Check if ChatWndInfo_U.lua exists in the \Data\ folder. If it doesn't, go back to step 4.
8. Done!

If you DO NOT have the v2 files or simply think the above way is a pain:
1. Download kRO + kRO Renewal OR RagRay and install them.
2. Download the zip/installer HERE and extract it into your RO directory.
3. Run EternityRO Patcher.exe to check for additional updates.
4. Done!


Note: If the download links fail for you, right-click and copy the URL and paste it into your browser.

Note 2: Seems some people still have problems with the kRO and Renewal download links so here's the login info for it:

Username: ragadmin
Password: icsragadmin!@

And don't forget to register your account once the account page comes up!

[Kargha]

Those with the old v2 files can now proceed to update to the v3 client by following the post above.

The v3 Client Zip/Installer for those with fresh kRO+Renewal installations will be up within the hour.

Edit: V3 Client zip is uploaded. Download and extract to your RO folder.

Edit 2: IF you get shadow.act, shadow.spr etc. errors, try the second option with the full v3 zip.

[Kargha]

Ok, I have seen people posting about renaming sdata.grf to data.grf or edit the DATA.INI file to sdata.grf

This is BAD practice. sdata.grf (sakray's data file) is discontinued by Gravity and will never be updated again. The latest update for Sakray was also half a year ago.

You use that fix on your own risk. If you keep crashing with it (with say rixsquirrel etc. etc. errors), we will not provide support as this is not the way we wrote in the instructions.

Get a correct kRO installation (this goes for those with shadow errors as well).