Runes of Magic: Chapter II Expansion Interview

How much land mass does this expansion add to the game compared to what was there before?

Looking at the new world map we released a few days ago, you can see that the new areas we are adding with Chapter II are huge. For example, the Aotulia Volcano is almost the size of Sascilia Steppes and Dragonfang Ridge combined! And then there are the rainforest area of the Savage Lands and the new starting area, the Elven Island.

The release of Chapter II itself will be something new as well. We are already releasing content f the new chapter in August by opening the new zone Weeping Coast zone, packed with a massive amount of new quests, and we are raising the level cap to 52. So all of our players will get a taste of Chapter II before launch and can prepare for the big release with lots of new content in September.

How much new content will this expansion add?

I think it´s pretty safe to say that we are adding content for every type of player. We are offering a completely new race, the Elves, and two new classes, Warden and Druid, which don't just allow for a new gameplay experience, but also extend our innovative dual class system as well. There will be lots of new instances for groups as well as for raid parties, giving you an intense PvE feeling with complex boss fights and some very nice loot.

For PvP-players, we will implement new game modes and improve our current ones, so expect some nice player versus player fights. We will raise the level cap to 55 and, as mentioned before, add new areas with a massive amount of new quests for all you explorers out there. We are also working on new features like the "pet system," which we are already very proud of, that will add a completely new game experience. And - as always - we are working on improving the existing content we already offer in game.

Will the expansion add any new races or classes to the game?

The Elves will become a playable race in Runes of Magic with their own starting zone, the "Elven Island," and other zones including the rainforests of the Savage Lands. Of course, the Elves will add their heroic but tragic lore to the world of Taborea. Along with the Elves, we are offering two new classes, both representing the Elves' close connection to the powers of nature.

The Druid is very versatile with his abilities and can be played in very different ways. Using Natures' power, druids can support their group or themself and have a wide range of healing spells available. They also possesses strong and powerful magical attacks, making them frightening opponents.

The Warden will be our first "pet class," although that may not be the correct description, because they command the spirits of nature, meaning they have the power over woodland plants that support and strengthen themselves with the power of the forest. So, maybe the term "plant class" would be more accurate for this class. It's their duty to protect the Elves, so they are excellent close combat fighters as well. So having a "plant class" combined with a fighter is a very special and powerful combination for our players to try out.

Will there be any statistical advantage or disadvantage to playing as an elf?

At the moment we are not planning any statistical advantages or disadvantages when playing an Elf. One could argue that with the Warden and the Druid as their exclusive classes, Elves might have an advantage, but then they do not have access to the Priest or Knight classes. The goal is for it to be balanced, and at the same time, introduce a new race that is very popular among fantasy game players.

Can you give us the Cliff Notes version of the story behind the expansion?

Once, during the war against the Nagas and the Demons, the Elves and the humans fought together as allies. After their victory, they used magical artifacts to establish a ban shield to imprison the Nagas in the area around Aotulia Volcano. One of these artifacts was the Elven sword "Arclight." After the downfall of the kingdoms, and being threatened by the "Guardians," a powerful human creation that went terribly wrong, the Elves retreated to their island and the forests of the Savage Lands.

As if this wouldn't have been enough already, the elves are cursed by the "The Curse of the Elven Twins." This curse drove an elven twin, in attempt to do good, to use "Arclight." By using this holy sword, he destroyed the ban shield that held off the evil Nagas. Now the Nagas are trying to take over and have started to spread across the world of Taborea threatening Elves and humans alike.

Facing a possible war in the North of Candara, Yabis'an, king of the elves, once again calls his allies, the humans, to arms.

And now, it's up to you to overcome this new challenge!

How often can players expect to get these content expansions?

We are publishing free content updates on a monthly basis and are planning to release additional new chapters on a regular basis - also free of charge.

What qualifies Chapter II as an expansion rather than an update?

We're continuing to extend the lore of Taborea by adding new content, a new playable race, two new player classes, a large physical extension of the existing world, many new quests plus other, yet undisclosed features. With all of that, we think that Chapter II - The Elven Prophecy qualifies as an "expansion," although, we don´t like the word "expansion" for our free content updates. Imagine the world of Taborea like a large book with many chapters and we've just reached the second one!

But, since Runes of Magic is free to download and play, everyone is invited to check out our new content and features. So why not see it with your own eyes? New zones, raids, instances, classes, elves, quests, improvements and much more will be out very soon!

Your press release quotes the number 1.5 million players. Is this active players, players active in the item shop, or players who have ever signed up for the game?

That's the number of accounts that have been created. This is quite usual for a free-to-play game, because the game is free to download and play, and some players might just register to give the game a quick spin. Also a lot of people play regularly, some only a few hours a month.

We think that this is one of the huge advantages of Runes of Magic: No matter how often and how long you play the game, there are no costs involved and there is no complicated process involved as there is with subscription games, such as pausing your subscription for the holidays.

Nevertheless, we are seeing a significant increase in the number of active players every day and have already added several new servers since launch. We even offer localized servers for Spanish and French speaking players and offer our website and forums in Romanian and Dutch.

Thanks everyone for reading, and I hope I got you interested in checking out Chapter II! If you have any more questions, everyone is welcome on our official forums and fan sites.