As Halloween comes to a close it seems NCWest is on a chatter storm.

Also be sure to make your entires to Aionsource's Mystery Event!


Navalie, Templar on [ENG]Telemachus, asks:

"Many are complaining that it gets too slow to level up on some levels. When are you going to do something about that?"

Character progression is a complicated matter. Look at the famous board game, Monopoly. If each player started the game with twice the amount of money or a set of properties already owned, the challenge would be reduced, and ultimately the game would not be as enjoyable. However, the game would not run for as long, and you would more quickly get to the point where you manage the red hotels, which-let's face it-is good fun.


We want Aion to be as enjoyable as we can make it. We realize that the rate of progression is a little bit too slow in certain areas of the game right now, and we recognize that there are things that can be done to improve that. We want players to be able to reach the Abyss in a timely manner so that they can go head-to-head with the opposing faction, but we also want them to enjoy the game's lore and reach immersion in the world of Atreia. The golden middle road is the one we are aiming for. The recently posted Aion 1.5.1 patch notes highlighted a few imminent actions we are taking to increase the speed of progression:

• We are increasing the experience reward of a lot of quests. Many of these are in the level 15?30 range.
• We are increasing the experience gained from gathering and crafting.
• We are slightly reducing the experience penalty applied due to the difference in levels of group members when a character is in a group or raid alliance.

As we move forward, we have more plans to not only include more quest experience boosts for the higher levels, but also infuse the game with a flow of new content and new mechanics that ensure that gameplay is fun and entertaining.




Another week has passed, and we're rapidly nearing the Halloween weekend. We introduced a couple of forum updates with our latest website maintenance (post bumping!) and took a stab at creating a scary Aion character with Aion's character customization system (send us your own creations to aion_community@ncsoft.com).


Without further ado, let's have a look at the community happenings you sent to us this week!


Aion Pumpkins from Legio XIX

Pumpkin carving is one of the reasons why we love Halloween. Granted, it's messy, and yes, it takes time and patience, but it's an art form with great potential to produce masterpieces! I definitely suggest that you take a look at awitelintsta's carved Aion vegetables. They're pretty nice.


Tora's Art Study

Toraneka set up a thread over at Aionsource for a couple of Aion character sketches she made. Looking good so far!


Eye on Community article is a way for us to highlight cool stuff each week that you do. Keep your submissions coming to aion_community@ncsoft.com.



Fly safe,
Aion Community Team


A couple of weeks ago we mentioned that Veteran Rewards, fine loot destined to fill the treasure chests of our most steadfast Aion players, are on the horizon. The concept is simple: The longer you play our game, the cooler things you get! Aion's Veteran Rewards will first be available on November 4, and at that point, those of you who have played the game for a month or more will be able to redeem your treats.

The first reward package will contain an Expand Cube Ticket to expand your inventory space, a Pop Legend dance emote to get funky with, four Lodas Amulets to boost your experience gain, and four Revival Stones to bring life and light when things look grim.

Visit our Veteran Rewards page to find out more!


DreamHack Winter is one of the largest PC festivals in the world and annually hosts more than 10,000 LAN-partying gamers for three full days. This year's iteration of the festival takes place between November 26 and 29 in Jönköping, Sweden.

We are bringing an entourage of 16 fully decked out Aion gaming stations for anyone who hasn't yet tried the game to DreamHack! Representatives of the Aion team will be staffing our booth. They'll be there to help you answer questions and to show you the ropes in Atreia. Once Aion gets all of your friends properly hooked, we will have demo serial codes to give to your friends so that they can try the game a bit more before committing to a purchase. The demo serial codes will run for three days, five game play hours, or seven levels, whichever comes first.

Our festival schedule offers a hot Aion PvP tournament where brave battle teams will duke it out against each other in our booth. Shiny prizes (loot!) will be provided by Razer and SteelSeries, given to the victors in the tournament's prestigious DreamArena finals.

Our Swedish Aion fansite has also arranged for festivities. If the thought of being surrounded by other Aion fans for three days nonstop appeals to you, then the following seat numbers might just be worth staying nearby: D22:65-D22:51 and D21:66-D21:52. Fansite staff, members, and several prominent Scandinavian Legions will be present to hold the Aion banner high and steady.

DreamHack still has spots available, whether as a visitor or to partake in the full event. Don't miss it!


And that sums us up for NCWest recaps for now, happy gaming all and see you in the Abyss!

Later,
Pumpkin-Head Man Cynic <3

Hey everyone and Happy Halloween!

Now that the Mystery Event is fully updated, its time for everyone to submit their entries!

Step 1) Check out the AionSource Mystery Event thread and read the stories in the OP.

Step 2) Choose which person(s) you wish to arrest.

Step 3) PM Knite with your version of how they did it, why they did it, etc. Please be sure to explain enough as one line wouldn't be sufficient evidence to put them away. Please title your PM "Mystery Event Entry"


Please also remember that anyone can enter this contest, but to win the grand prize (Aion bag filled with candy) you must be 18+ and live in the USA (sorry!).

We will choose 20 winners from all entries who will receive an in-game potion pack (while our supplies last) and a Chief Investigator title for the AionSource forums (if they wish). From those winners, one will be chosen to receive the Grand Prize, so best of luck to you all!


Just remember the bottom line here is all suspects are innocent until proven guilty. It is your job to prove to us that your suspect did it, so use the stories, use your own imagination and let's solve this mystery!


Have fun and best of luck!

Aion? Veteran Rewards Program

The Aion Veteran Rewards program rewards steadfast Aion gamers for their time spent playing Aion.
For each month you have an active account, you are eligible to redeem in-game items, such as weapons, armor, titles, and emotes. Each program reward can be redeemed once for every character within each respective Aion game account.


We reserve the right to expand, revise, or end the Veteran Rewards program at our sole discretion.

• Eligibility
• Availability
• Redemption
• Veteran Rewards Items
• Veteran Rewards FAQ

Eligibility

You are eligible for Veteran Rewards if you have an active game account.
If you have an active account, the only thing you need to do is to redeem your items each month via your Aion game account in your NCsoft Master Account. After each one-month milestone, new rewards become available and will be delivered via in-game express mail once redeemed.


Free time included in purchasing Aion counts toward your Veteran Rewards status, as does any time received from specified promotional programs that involve a player receiving free time. Your Aion game account page displays your Veteran Rewards time. It indicates which Veteran Rewards month you are eligible for.


Availability

Veteran Rewards will become available on the first day of each subscription month starting with the second month.


The in-game items you accrue in the Veteran Rewards program are redeemed via your Aion game account in your NCsoft Master Account, and then delivered to your characters via in-game express mail. The redemption process is very similar to the way that you redeemed Collector's Edition items (if you purchased either the Collector's Edition box or digital-only version of the game).


Note: The first month's Veteran Rewards won't be available until November 4, 2009.


Redemption

Follow these steps:

1. Log in to your NCsoft Master Account.
2. Click the Game Accounts link.
3. Select an Aion game account listed on the Game Accounts page.
4. Click the Apply in-Game Items link in the Action section.
5. Select a server in which you have made a character, and click the Next button.
6. Select a character to receive the Veteran Rewards, and click the Next button.
7. Click the checkbox next to an item pack or packs, and click the Next button.
8. Review the confirmation page, and click the Apply the Items/Item Packs to This Character button.

Once you've assigned items to a character, log in to Aion and retrieve the items via in-game express mail.
For additional help, visit our knowledge base.


Veteran Rewards Items

Month 1: Pop Daeva

• Expand Cube Ticket
• Pop Legend emote
• 4 Lodas Amulets
• 4 Revival Stones

You jumped into Aion and are off exploring the visually stunning world of Atreia. To help you along in your travels, we will give you four Lodas Amulets, four Revival Stones, an exclusive Pop Legend emote, and an Expand Cube Ticket.


Month 2: Honored Daeva

• 4 Lodas Amulets
• 4 Revival Stones

This month, we will give you four more Lodas Amulets and Revival Stones to fortify you against the challenges ahead. Good luck! Atreia is counting on you.


Month 3: Dance Daeva

• Adept of Aion title
• Forbidden Dance emote
• 4 Lodas Amulets
• 4 Revival Stones

Your commitment has earned you the title "Adept of Aion" and another exclusive emote: Forbidden Dance! In addition, we will give you four Lodas Amulets and four Revival Stones.


Months 4 and 5: Honored Daeva

• 4 Lodas Amulets
• 4 Revival Stones

These months, we will give you four more Lodas Amulets and Revival Stones to fortify you against the challenges ahead. Good luck! Atreia is counting on you.


Month 6: Soaring Daeva

• Wing Feather of the Black Cloud Traders (level 40)
• 4 Lodas Amulets
• 4 Revival Stones

You've played for half a year- still, there is much more to accomplish!
To boost you to new heights, you have earned a Wing Feather of the Black Cloud Trader (level 40). This wing set not only increases a character's flight time, but also HP and MP. We also reward you with four Lodas Amulets and four Revival Stones.


Veteran Rewards FAQ

Q: What do I have to do in order to receive my Veteran Rewards?
A: If you have an active account, you don't need to do anything except log in to the game. After each one-month milestone, the appropriate Veteran Rewards will be added to your Aion game account and delivered via in-game express mail once they are redeemed.


Q: How do I redeem my Veteran Rewards?
A: Follow these steps:

1. Log in to your NCsoft Master Account.
2. Click the Game Accounts link.
3. Select an Aion game account listed on the Game Accounts page.
4. Click the Apply in-Game Items link in the Action section.
5. Select a server in which you have made a character, and click the Next button.
6. Select a character to receive the Veteran Rewards, and click the Next button.
7. Click the checkbox next to an item pack or packs, and click the Next button.
8. Review the confirmation page, and click the Apply the Items/Item Packs to This Character button.

Once you've assigned items to a character, log in to Aion and retrieve the items via in-game express mail.
For additional help, visit our knowledge base.


Q: What is the first day that I can expect my Veteran Rewards to show up?
A: Veteran Rewards will become available on the first day of each subscription month starting with the second month. Your Aion game account page displays your Veteran Rewards time. It indicates which Veteran Rewards month you are eligible for.


Note: The first month's Veteran Rewards won't be available until November 4, 2009.


Q: Where can I find out how many months I have played with an active account?
A: Your Aion game account page displays your Veteran Rewards time. It indicates which Veteran Rewards month you are eligible for.


You can view your earned Veteran Rewards time by logging in to your NCsoft Master Account. Click Game Accounts, and select your Aion game account. In the Account section, locate the Veteran Rewards Time section, which indicates the amount of time that you have played with an active account and earned Veteran Rewards for. Your Veteran Rewards time will not always match your total paid time (also displayed in this section) due to promotions you have taken advantage of, game account inactivation and reactivation, and so on.


Q: My account is no longer active. Can I still receive Veteran Rewards?
A: Yes, but the time that your account was inactive does not count toward your Veteran Rewards.


To receive your Veteran Rewards, reactivate your account via credit card, game time card, or another payment method, and the appropriate Veteran Rewards will become available for all of your characters. Just log in to your NCsoft Master Account, redeem the Veteran Rewards, and they will be waiting via in-game express mail.


Q: If I use game time cards, will that count toward my Veteran Rewards?
A: Yes. You are rewarded for the number of months you have an active account, no matter which payment method you choose.


Q: Can I pay for a certain number of months into the future in order to receive my Veteran Rewards now?
A: No. Veteran Rewards are delivered based on the number of months you have had an active account. This only applies to time that as already passed, not the future.


Q: I participated in the Aion closed and open betas, as well as the Head-Start Program period. Does that time count toward my rewards?
A: No. Veteran Rewards are for the number of months a player has had an active account, so the beta and Head-Start Program periods do not count toward accruing Veteran Rewards.


Q: Does the free month that was included with my game purchase count toward my Veteran Rewards time?
A: Yes, the game time included with the purchase of Aion counts as your first month. You'll be eligible to redeem your first Veteran Rewards on the first day of your second month.


Q: I have multiple Aion game accounts, and some are newer than others. Will my Veteran Rewards for my oldest account apply to my other accounts as well?
A: No. Veteran Rewards are based on each individual Aion game account.


Q: Will each character I have available now or will create in the future be able to redeem each of the Veteran Rewards that I have earned?
A: Yes, you will be eligible to redeem each appropriate month's Veteran Rewards once for every character you create on a respective Aion account.

Hey everyone-

NCsoft just released their preview for the upcoming patch 1.5.1! Take a look below and let us know your thoughts on the changes!