The Spring Update has arrived and is ready to be explored! It's got a 7th Character Slot, new gameplay mechanics, exciting events like the Deckathalon, and of course cute pandas following you around as pets or as a mount. Journeying across the Spiral with friends is now more fun than ever!
Thank you once again community for helping to test the Spring Update on the Test Realm over the last few weeks. You discovered and submitted important issues, which allowed us to quickly resolve them before they made their way to the live servers. Working with our community in making sure future releases are solid is a top priority for us, so we hope you will join us for our next Test Realm event.
Let us know what you think of the Spring Update by tweeting us @Wizard101, responding to a Facebook post, or posting in the forums!
As always, keep updated daily on the latest news for next month on Twitter and Facebook!
Spring Update Videos by the Community
The new Deckathalon events during Test Realm for the Spring Update were well received! Here are a couple of community videos on what to expect when the next event begins (coming soon!):
And a walkthrough of the latest revamp to the Wizard City zones:
Get more community news, including a bunch of new gameplay guides, in the Community News section at the end of this newsletter.
KI Live with Sparck & Professor Falmea
This past month’s KI Live was dedicated to celebrating the exciting new Spring Update (just look at those cute little pandas added to the game)! Watch the show on KingsIsle’s YouTube channel below:
Question for our newsletter readers... who wears the hats better, Professor Falmea or Sparck? @Wizard101 your vote!
A Wizard101 tip from this month’s KI Live comes from community member Indemnity:
“Ask someone to hatch with or go to the Hatching Kiosk to hatch with an Enchanted Armament. Train the pet up so you can get the sharpened blade treasure card and the stats you want. You can use sharpened blade item card to buff your blades up and stack them.” - Indemnity (W101 Central)
The traditional and ever popular Zone of the Month continues with a discounted offer! This month we’re featuring the polished Firecat Alley in Wizard City. Access to this area usually requires 750 Crowns, but because this is our zone of the month, we’ve discounted this area to 525 Crowns through May 19!
Sam Johnson, KingsIsle’s Lead Creative Designer, has been quite pleased with the community’s reactions to his last few Zone of the Months and would like to know what you think of this latest one. Post a comment on social media, in the official forums, or contact us directly and let him know where you would like the story to be taken next!
Name: Firecat Alley
Location: Firecat Alley is a street in Wizard City.
Description:
Firecat Alley has always been considered some of the hottest real estate in all of Wizard City, despite sporadic denizen corruption and Undead incursions.
Secrets:
A large section of the street near the entrance has been blasted away, leaving massive chunks of debris hanging in the air. What exactly happened here? Nobody seems to be able to give a good answer – even Professor Falmea doesn’t seem to know.
Don’t Miss This Side Quest!!
Be sure you pick up the Side Quest given by Shelus Gruffheart titled, “Gotta See Gretta”. Perhaps more important than the quest itself is who is involved. *HINT HINT, WINK WINK* Gretta Darkkettle is someone you’re going to want to know about.
Who’s That Boss?
Malweena Smite, one of two Banshees who’ve taken up residence in Firecat Alley, lurks in the Forlorn Tower. The spirit of a former teacher, Malweena is obsessed with unlocking the deepest secrets of Fire Magic.
A Peek Behind the Dev Process:
One of the side quests given by Shelus Gruffheart gives the first mention of Celestia. At the time Celestia was nothing more than a cool name, and no plans existed to bring it into the storyline. But player response to the name was so strong and it was mentioned so often in feedback, it became the first world of the second story arc.
Which area in Wizard101 should we spotlight for next month? Let us know by tweeting your suggestion @Wizard101 or by emailing community@Wizard101.com!
Fan Screenshot of the Month
Pandas galore! These things are so cute, all Wizards should have one as a companion in the game. Along with the featured screenshot above, see below for more from the community:
Fan Art Spotlight
We have some amazing talent in the community, wow! For this month’s fan art spotlight, here is a piece from Ghostfinder101, depicting her friend’s Wizard, Hunter BlueGem, fighting a Draconian:
We also had this set of school symbols from community member Drago. He titles his piece, the ‘The Balance of Elements and Spirits’:
We would love to see more screenshots and art from the community for next month’s newsletter. Do you have something amazing to share? Send it to us in an email to community@Wizard101.com! We’re always interested in showing off more fan art, gameplay guides, and other content.
Thanks, Wizards!
Community News
The community Fansite Festival was a huge success with several of the developers here at KingsIsle also attending! A community led in-game event, here are some screenshots we received from players:
Adventures of the Spiral’s Julia Lionflower now has Part 2 of her ‘Creating a Caravan’ post up! Speaking of this wonderful community site, they are looking for staff! Join them and write for Wizard101 today!
The unaffiliated-with-KingsIsle “Community Newsletter” had a great selection of Wizard101 links this month. NOTE: Be sure to visit and follow their Twitter page for more information. To subscribe to their newsletter, send a message to them over Twitter inquiring to be added or email them at community.newsletter.101@gmail.com. You can unsubscribe at any time by sending them an email with the phrase “UNSUB”.
