Dear Tibians,

We are ringing in the final round of our insight releases. This time, the ever-popular Lionet from the content team shares some background information on the new vocation:

Designing the lore and historical rooting of a new vocation within the world of Tibia was an exceptional opportunity for me to build a game device that functions as an engaging story while laying the foundation of an additional pillar of Tibia together with the other vocations. The background of the monk focuses on the legacy and heritage of the ancient Merudri, seclusive people that honed mighty skills and were historically pushed to the brink of exctinction. Unified in their will to survive and keep their culture alive, they are now coming out of hiding, trying to gather allies and passing on their unique set of powerful skills to a new generation. And this is where the player and we as designers come in: to fill this completely new role within the known world with life and purpose.

A major part of the content design was the planning and writing of a compelling lore that firmly embeds the new vocation inside the current world of Tibia. Besides this task, very early in development I was also given the time and space necessary to create a tangible and breathing framework for us to work with and build upon. It also had to be versatile enough to be able to expand upon it in future updates and content expansions. I decided to lay the foundation for the monk with the lost civilisation of the Merudri. That part was also one of my favourite projects so far: I had to come up with a narrative, character design, culture, and world design for their secluded exile, the "Blue Valley".

One of my favourite places with a little secret.

Not long after briefing our graphic artists with the background of these mystic people and their legacy and a vision for the design of the outfit, they came up with several concepts. One of which struck that tone we were after in practically every aspect, and then some. The one that became the final design for the Merudri warriors was also the base for the actual monk outfit since players are not only introduced to these mystic warriors but also invited to follow in their footsteps to become the most powerful martial arts fighters in Tibia. The design had to reflect a culture as well as to transport the strength and energy of ancient combat masters.

And there were a lot of other interesting challenges to master as well. Such as adjusting a lot of existing content and quests to adapt to a new vocation: from new items to fill any potential gaps - which had to be integrated into the world of Tibia seamlessly, as if they always had been there - to classic NPCs mentioning the monk or the Merudri in a natural, organic way. I treated the Merudri as something that has been part of the Tibian world for a long time but shrouded their whereabouts and original mission in mystery. This allowed me to introduce them to the actual world of Tibia very similarly to how players made their acquaintance.

Needless to say, we all had a lot of fun outlining the various weapons, spell effects, summons, and even everyday items such as training circles or writing desks of the monks. During development, there was always a focus to integrate the new lore as seamlessly and organically as possible. We wanted to have a smooth introductory phase and a specific place for the monk vocation that is rooted in Tibia to feel right at home from the get-go.

Of course, the implementation of a new vocation into a world full of history and existing geography also meant respecting the multitude that are Tibia's quests, NPCs, and creatures. We rebalanced creatures, added rewards to existing quests, and incorporated the monk into the mechanics of puzzles and bosses. The nature of many of Tibia's most famous and well-liked quests also leads to the conclusion that some quests had to be left alone: out of consistency and to respect the legacy and complexity of the existing Tibia lore.

A mosaic from the Merudri temple that once again beautifully illustrates the focus on the three elements and the temple in its whole glory.

Naturally, in the reality of Tibia, things do not happen "suddenly". A new vocation does not appear in a book or a dungeon out of thin air. Every trace of the monk had to be part of the historical process and evolution of Tibia. For example, the fact that the Merudri monks now reveal themselves and offer a glimpse into their culture and teach their ways is the result of an intricate mesh of events that almost lead to their utter destruction. With the players now able to help carry the legacy of the Merudri through the vocation of the monk, I wanted to add a meaningfulness and weight to the decision and challenge of becoming a monk.

Happy exploring!
Lionet

The wizards Furb of Fun, Feiz of Power, and Fern of Nature are back in the land of Tibia, competing for the votes of the Tibian citizens. You can now decide again who is the most popular wizard among them in your game world.

Starting with today's server save, various monsters will drop envelopes with red, blue, or yellow powder. If you want to know how to colour yourself and mix colours, check the letter that is included in the envelopes.

If you are interested in further facts about the event, please check with the wizards' loyal fans: Friedolin, the fan of the orange wizard awaits you in Carlin. Paulette supports the violet wizard and can be found in Thais. Representing the green wizard, Nathaniel stands in Venore.
During the competition, you will receive bonus points, which you can trade with these three supporters of the wizards after you have chosen your colour.
Use the bonus points to get your own chess box if you did not possess one yet. If you have one already, you can complete your set of Zaoan chess figurines made of jade and obsidian.

Time to decide which team you go for since each of the three offers a different special reward. Depending on the wizard with the most followers on your game world on March 23, server save, your world will benefit from one of the following rewards for one week:

• Furb of Fun (orange): The shared experience bonus in party mode will be raised by 30%. The chance to successfully sculpt from ice cubes and marble will be multiplied by 10. Also, fireworks rockets, party trumpets, snowballs and party hats can be found in all the creatures which dropped envelopes.
• Feiz of Power (violet): The majority of spellcaster creatures such as ice witches or draken spellweavers, for example, will give 25% more experience points. In addition, the skill bonus of berserk and bullseye potions will be raised to +7, and the shielding decrease will be set to -8 instead of -10. The magic level bonus of mastermind potions will be raised to +5.
• Fern of Nature (green): All health and mana potions will be enhanced by 10%.

Happy colour mixing!
Your Community Managers