News/2011

2011

December

• December 26th - Stroseria - Hiring

Stroseria, one of Graal's most exciting upcoming servers, is looking for some developmental aid. The server is an RPG server focusing on various guild events, such Island Battles, is looking for all kinds of developers, including sound producers, storyline writers, and a website designer (however Stroseria is not in need of any player relations staff so please refrain from applying for those positions). Stroseria is aiming for multiple platforms with the possibility of a single cross-platform server.

If you are interested, please here to visit the forum application thread. Good luck to all those who apply and Merry Christmas!

• December 25th - Merry Christmas from GraalOnline!

GraalOnline would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, and a happy new year! Most servers are prepared for the holidays and have special events going on so be sure to check them out!

• December 25th - Coming Soon: Christmas on Graal Kingdoms

• December 8th - Snow on Graal!

It's this time of the year again, when temperature and snow are falling - you can see it all over Graal! You can see it on Unholy Nation, on Zodiac, on Era, and even on the iPhone and Facebook servers of Classic and Era! Time to throw some snowballs and have fun.

November

• November 6th - Era is Hiring

Era is currently looking for talented developers to fill positions on the server. All major development roles are needed. To apply or for further information please click here.

October

• October 31st - Happy Graaloween!

Happy Halloween on Graal! Many servers have prepared fun stuff for Halloween, be sure to check them out.

• October 22nd - PWA is Hiring!

The Playerworld Administration Team, responsible for overseeing playerworlds on Graal, is looking for an additional team member.

Details for those interested in applying can be found on the forums

All applications must be received by December 20th, 2011.

Good luck!

• October 18th - Maloria to Hosted!

May I draw your attention to the Hosted tab!

Since Maloria wasn't happy with the direction it was going while on Classic tab it has restructured and gone back to its roots in many areas of the server. While you will still be seeing many changes in its basic structure you can look forward to its historic rivalry amongst the 3 nations with "Nations War" events held weekly.

In the meantime you can hone your fighting skills killing monsters, doing quests and taking on bounties for those rare monsters that just might give you something special. Remember to level up so your health and stats grows and so you can get that gear you'll need for the player vs player competitions.

Please give Maloria a warm welcome back home and enjoy watching it grow.

• October 15th - Era - Halloween Hat Competition

The guys at Era are kicking off the Halloween festivities with this rather exciting Halloween Hat Competition. Bringing the creative aspect of designing your own mask online so that when you make someone wet their pants at the very sight of the nightmarish mask you get a nice warm feeling inside knowing "I did that!" So, if you have an amazing idea for a Halloween hat or mask and want to brandish that idea for all to see then please! give it a go!

Deadline: October 20th

All entries must be in by then and will be entered into a poll to pick the 3 winners. Additionally, all hats judged to be good enough will available for players to purchase when they go on sale on October 28th and to congratulate those who have a hat chosen you will be rewarded with one free copy of your masterpiece!

Limitations:

• Participants may enter up to two hats/masks
• Hat/Mask must be of typical size as the hats you see on Era
• Be careful of copy-infringements

For more information or if you have any questions you can click here for the forum page.

From Era Staff and the Global News Team, Good luck!

• October 11th - Valikorlia

To say Valikorlia is a unique experience seems a bit cheap. Valikorlia is one of the longest-standing text role play communities on the Internet. It began as a server on classic Graal in 1999, and has persisted to this day due to an extremely dedicated community, and by cultivating the best talent Graal has to offer.

As a role playing server, Valikorlia gives players new and old alike a chance to experience the world of Kharlia from the standpoint of a Player Character. Consider Crono from Chrono Trigger, or Link from Zelda: you're not them, but you're directing them. You have direct control over how your Player Character (Completely of your own design) interacts with the environment. If you haven't role played before, our role play administration team will be happy to teach you the ins and outs of our server.

Valikorlia takes place in the persistent setting of Kharlia. Kharlia is a fantasy world populated by cunning rogues, fearless knights, wizards of unspeakable power, and the terrifying enemies that press them for dominance of the world. Player characters stand firm against the attacks of the Seven Sins, the fiendish hordes of Nuzalheim, and the ferocious armies of the Underdark, struggling valiantly to protect what they know and love...or, in the cases of players who want to be the villain, struggling to conquer what others know and love.

Regardless of whether you choose to play a hero or villain, the choice is always yours, and your character's actions could shape the world of Kharlia forever. What role will you play?

• October 7th - Lexia

Lexia is a new, unique and wondrous server, full of excitement, curiosity and adventure! We have been open for 2 weeks now and we already have a tileset, a concept and an alluring story line to go with it! The server will be based mainly around adventures, quests and through a whole lot of good, hard work and you end up with Lexia! The story line will start you off on an airship traveling through Lexian space, fleeing from your old world destroyed by black magic. Your only hope for survival is to rebuild your empire on a new world called Lexia, and return to Laria to reclaim your planet and thrive once again. However, after the initial landing on Lexia hundereds of years ago you have forgotten the knowledge that your ancestors taught you. You must venture out on this courageous and spellbinding journey to reclaim what was once yours and boldly cement your name into history as the hero of the once proud and illustrious world you once called home.

• October 2nd - Noctorious

Noctorious is a Modern styled world with a few RPG features, our main goal is to make the server as fun as possible for our players and always have new and exciting things for them to enjoy.

Over the past month we have been working hard on Noctorious and have added some essential features to enhance the game environment, these enhancements were put in place so that the players will always have something to do and enjoy. At the moment we have 6 playable jobs to choose from and over this next month seamless improvements will to made to the system to make each job uniquely enjoyable. Aside from the jobs we will have some of our old features like radio stations, apartments, tree houses, vehicles, and quests.

Be sure to check our Facebook page for future updates and staff hirings.

September

• September 25th - Era (PC): Upcoming Updates

Era is currently preparing major updates for the server. The following are the updates will be released in the coming weeks:

• Gang System: There will be a requirement that all gangs who wish to remain active must maintain a minimum amount of points each week. In addition to that, a gang points shop will be added with the ability to purchase items or other add-ons. Special bases will be added with unique features to make them beneficial to the gangs who own the base.

• Jobs: Current jobs will be balanced to make them fair to every player. Along with the balancing of jobs, two new jobs will be created: fishing and farming.

• Translations: The existing translations on the server will be expanded, which will help to increase involvement from players around the world.

• Tutorial: An optional tutorial will be implemented for new players.

An improved GMAP is also being worked on and is expected to be ready before New Year.

• September 17th - Era (iPhone): New Guns and Events

Recently we've added a lot of new weapons, and the mystical Cronos appeared! Also check out the new events: car dodge, lazer tag and new races!

• September 17th - Classic (iPhone, Facebook) got Tournaments, Railroads and RPS

While working on improving the Facebook version of Classic we have also added new railroads to travel through Classic, and added Rock-Paper-Scissors to challenge your friends! We are working on new areas and plan to release them soon.
The first two Guild Spar Tournaments have been won by the guild US, congratulations!

August

• August 1st - Graal v6 GM and new payment methods

Graal v6 is making big steps. A GM (Golden Master) version has been released which should fix most problems and brings the new version to a level where it can replace v5 and at the same time bring tons of new features which can be used by server staff to bring new exciting things to the players. Get it by clicking on Start->Install packages (on Windows) or go to http://www.graalonline.com/downloads and download the latest beta version.
We have also enabled a new payment method (SuperRewards). It makes it easier to pay with PayPal, phone, scratch card or even by installing other programs. Check it out by clicking on 'Shop' on the bottom bar and then click on 'Refill'.

July

• July 24th - Dustari Spar Tournament Winner!

Congratulations to Storm Leonhart (StormYs) who won the Dustari Spar tournament defeating General Richard Disraeli, Archknight Hovan Rayleigh and Chancellor Leonidus Rayleigh on his way to winning the Shield of Dustari.

• July 14th - GraalOnline Classic on Facebook

GraalOnline Classic has finally launched on Facebook! The app lets you enjoy Classic and features a standalone world for Facebook users. The Facebook app also supports integration with the iDevice world and allows users to link up their accounts for an additional monthly subscription. For more information, please click here.

• GraalOnline Classic Facebook
• GraalOnline Classic iPhone

• July 4th - Ol' West Returns

Graal's western shooter server, Ol' West, has returned to the community. We are currently developing Ol' West for multiple platforms and require development help to complete the project as quickly as possible. For information about hirings, check the forum thread.

June

• June 25th - Bellview - Interview

Bellview is a sim-based modern server where players will be expected to take good care of themselves. This means making sure they are well-fed, suffiently clean, and that their bowels are regularly evacuated. But it's not all about hand sanitizers and having three square meals a day. In this open world server, you can set your own goal. You may want to build your dream home, head up your own bussiness, or even just be the hype of the social scene; the ultimate goal is up to you.

I met up with Bellview's owner, Patrick (patrickp2p), to find out more about his ideas for the future of Bellview. For the full interview click here.

• June 23rd - Zone Updates!

Current Updates:

• A new GUI has been added to Zone, to give Zone a more tidy and even guide. The GUIs have been implanted into Zone, the GUIs contain, a new radar, weapon information (when your weapon is equipted), shop, terminal and classes.

• New Weapons/Melee's have been added to the shops

• Roll has been nerfed to 70% and mouse click has been removed.

• Boxes are now enabled to place next to doors, bringing back Zone's minor laming gameplay back.

• Nerfed weapons including; BFG11(changed to energy, less damage and more spread) Acidrifle (reduced the spread of the weapon)

• Cookies have now been updated and can hold 10 Cookies instead of 2.

These may be a few minor updates, yet it really effects Zone, as the playercount is gradually rising. I'd also like to announce that there will be Events hosted throughout this week, so be sure to log into Zone and keep updated! You'll never know what were going to host off

Zone is currently hiring! Please view our forum thread: click here for details.

• June 20th - Shaded Legend: Revival Project

Long ago, Shaded Legend was a world of great life. Hundreds of talented craftsman, they educated themselves about the art of collecting, and they were skilled in the many events they played in their offtime. Everything was bliss. But then...

There was nothing. And not even the heavens above dreamed there would ever be anything. Ever again.

Several years later, today, however, a brave man by the name of CujoDaMan can see that Creslik Village still had hope. He can see that Graal has been missing out on the wonders of the joyous land. Luckily for us, he has embarked on a quest to save the great land, but there is something in his way... Something dark, mysterious... Something horrible in every way... And he needs your help to extinquish it forever.

Luckily, life still goes on. Another courageous man called Skill is giving the few people left in Creslik Village a little break from the battle by hosting much needed events. Just remember, the fact still remains that there is terror abroad, and if you think you have what it takes to put a stop to it, log onto Shaded Legend today.

(Elite messengers were able to sneak into the village and contact Cujo for an interview. Click here for more information about the world of Shaded Legend.

• June 10th - Europa

Europa is an upcoming server being managed by the very talented Vinka. It features two kingdoms in a constant state of war and some of the very best graphics on Graal. The server is currently open to the public and visitors.

I sat down with the very talented graphics and levels artist, Vinka, for an interview today. You can read it here.

May

• May 28th - Graal Kingdoms - Spar Tournament

On Sunday, May 29th we will be bringing our very special days of events to an end, but I assure you we will be ending the festivities in spectacular fashion. Last Saturday was a huge success and we expect more of the same this Sunday. Headlining the day will be two events which you simple can't miss! Two massive spar tournaments are scheduled for the day with some very exceptional prizes. Our elusive Events Admin is being tight-lipped on the Magic Tournament but you can find out more about the Archery here. Including the rather remarkable prize that is up for grabs.

From the Global News Team, and Graal Kingdoms staff, Good luck! And have fun.

• May 13th - Graal Kingdoms - Days of Events

On Saturday, May 21st and Sunday, May 29th, we will be hosting a range of exciting events with some extremely valuable prizes up for grabs. The events will vary from spars, to races. Musical Chairs, to Lucky Altars, so expect to see the return of some old favorites as well, as the debut of some new, original events. And best of all, the prizes are going to be bigger than ever.

The events will begin at 2:00 PM EST, and they will start to end by 5:00 PM EST.

You don't want to miss out on this very special occasion, so log onto Graal Kingdoms to take part in the festivities!

Note: for more information, click here.

• May 8th - New PWAs Have Been Chosen

After a couple months of applications and hard decisions, two new PWAs, one, a returning member, and another, an experienced staff on Zodiac, are being added to the Playerworld Administration Team (or PWA for short). Congratulations to Bell and Sinkler! If you require any PWA needs in the future, don't be hesitant to contact them for help. (You can contact them through one of the following methods:)

• Bell
  • Forum PM: Bell
  • Email: bell@graalonline.com

• Sinkler
  • Forum PM: Sinkler

If you see either of these new staff in game, be sure to congratulate them; they deserve it!

• May 8th - Graal Kingdoms - Zormite Victorious!

At 2:00 Eastern time, two glorious kingdoms engaged in a battle like no over we've seen. Both sides fought valiantly, without mercy, and with a well driven desire to win. After a heated battle causing casualties on both sides, it looked like Samurai was going to come out on top having dealt critical amounts of damage to their opponents core. However, Zormite managed to regroup and launch a relentless attack on Samurai, and their victory proved that strong leadership and teamwork always prevails. With Zormite emerging victorious and Samurai liberated from a its tyrannical leader... who knows what will come of the once so powerful kingdom? All that is certain is that the kingdom is under Zormite's influence... at least for now.

• May 8th - Graal Kingdoms - The War is on: Zormite vs. Samurai!

At 2:00 Eastern, on May 8, 2011, great battles will be fought between the people of Zormite and Samurai!

It is Zormite's belief that Samurai has been taunting them as of late, and now the two kingdoms are engulfed in war. Zormite is prepared to do whatever it takes to put a stop to Samurai, for they believe that their only goal is world domination and that they wish to be the only kingdom alive in the world. But Samurai knows deep in their hearts that they have nothing to worry about, for they will undoubtedly emerge victorious from the upcoming battle. But who will you support? Which side will you take? Log onto Graal Kingdoms to take part in the bloodbath that is sure to determine the fate of both kingdoms, as well as the rest of the server!

• May 2nd - Looking To Better Your Scripting Skills?!

In an effort to create a fun, relaxing environment where Graalians can become a better scripter, papajchris, with the help of Chompy, is going to be organizing and conducting a free scripting group that will work together as they attempt to more knowledgeable with GraalScript2.

Next week, on May 9, the first class will take place. You, if you wish to participate, as well as at least 20 others will practice scripting with a specific assignment. At the end of the week, more experienced scripters will critique your scripts and answer your questions. As time goes on, different sub-groups may be created based on each user's abilities.

If you wish to participate, simply click here to fill out the submission form. (Be sure to include your email for contact information.) You can also view the Forum Post. In addition, if you have any further questions, please feel free to contact papajchris at cwesthq@gmail.com. He looks forward to seeing you at the next meeting!

• May 2nd - Noctorious Is Back!

Noctorious is a virtual modern city where you can do, well, pretty much anything!

Do you ever get tired of your real life? Or do you just want to take a step away from reality and do something, say, impossible or out-of-the-ordinary? Then look no further than Noctorious!

You can get together with some friends, gather up some weapons, and rob the bank! You can race around town at full speed in a nice, gleaming, new car! You can even team up with your buddies and go on a full-force zombie killing expedition. And then, after a long day of living the sweet life of Noctorious, you can take a break in your house or condo, and even sit back and run your own business!

With all that said, the possibilities are endless with Noctorious! Log on today, and see for yourself!

(For more information, please click here to view Noctorious's website!)

April

• April 24th - Happy Easter from Graal Kingdoms

Happy Easter from the Graal Kingdoms team! For more information on this years' event, check our forum thread!

• April 23rd - Happy Easter

Happy easter to everyone on Graal! Have fun playing on your favourite Graal server. Most servers have prepared special events and items for easter, so go play and find them!

• April 13th - Graal News Twitter

Keep up to date with all the latest news by following the Global News Team on Twitter or by subscribing to the GraalOnline RSS feed.

• Twitter
• RSS

Note: The Twitter account is a 3rd party service ran by the Global News Team and is not in direct affiliation with GraalOnline.

March

• March 29th - Suspicious Activity Detected on Unholy Nation

During a routine scan this evening, Graal Police on Unholy Nation intercepted a conversation between several unknown Graalians. Although they were breaking no rules, the content of their conversation implied that they may be "executing" a plan on March 31st at 8 PM.

We urge all members of Graal--those who play Unholy Nation as well as those who do not--to remain vigilant at 8 PM EST on Thursday, March 31st. We do not know what will happen at that time, but we assure you that the staff of Unholy Nation will do everything in their power to keep players safe.

• March 24th - Zodiac 1v1 ZTT Tournament

The tournament has been postponed until this weekend. It will be held at 5PM EST on Saturday, March 26, 2011. The host of the tournament will be Pat (BigBear3). Calling will go out one hour before the start of the event.

Prizes:

• First Place: 25 ZTTs.
• Second Place: 15 ZTTs.
• Third Place: 5 ZTTs.

Disallowed classes include: Druid, Freelance, Battlechanter, Priest and Paladin so prepare accordingly.

Good luck to all who enter.

• March 20th - GraalOnline - Free to play on Facebook and V6 release announced

Graal Classic and Era (iPhone) are now moving to Facebook which will be fully available using Flash Player 10. The version is currently going through beta testing.

To find out more click here.

In addition the native V6 Graal Client is due to be released for Windows, Mac, and Linux in the first weeks of April with further news for an Android version later in the same month.

• March 8th - Zone - Capture the Flag Update

The Capture the Flag planet on Zone has been updated with a new map! The updates include the downsizing of the map to provide faster and more intense matches with bases closer together. In addition the tiles have been changed to snow to match the popular Irica planet.

• March 4th - Zone: Chat System

A new chat system has been released on Zone! The new system will enhance communication allowing players to hang out in the Zone Plaza room or create their own room to chat with friends and teammates during battles. The system is currently in version 1.1 and further updates are expected so stay tuned.

To enter the new chat system press Tab and Ctrl + C.

For more information click here.

February

• February 15th - Era iPhone - Valentines Day

Valentines Day has started on Era iPhone with the release of special items!

• Two new hats
• Two new furniture items
• A love bus
• Love Grenade
• Love Skateboard

January

• January 30th - Maloria goes Classic

Maloria has passed the Classic Inspection and is now available on the Playerworlds list. Start your Malorian Adventure today!

Join the Maloria community @ www.maloria.com.

• January 23rd - Atlantis - A sneak peak

I caught up with talented developing duo of Crow and Nitron from Atlantis to find more about what is going on behind the scenes to restore Atlantis to it's former glory. For the full Q&A click here. More information on Atlantis as well as any current and future updates can be found here.

• January 16th - GraalOnline Era Skateboards

Sally's Skate shop is open for business with a range of board designs to choose from. Visit Sally's Skateboard shop east of the Mercy East Hospital to get your own board and hit the skatepark! Tear it up with a combination of grinds, kickflips and jumps to prove you can nail it with the best one them!

Related Article: Era iPhone is holding a picture contest giving you the chance to win a hat of your choice, click here for more information.

From Era iPhone Staff and the Global News Team, good luck!

• January 14th - GraalOnline Era Free iPhone Version

The free version of GraalOnline Era on iPhone has just been released! Download

• January 11th - Maloria

We have recently applied for a Classic Inspection, which we are hoping will end well. Before that though, we could *REALLY* use as much feedback and bug testing as possible. All suggestions will be considered by the staff team, and all bugs will be looked into and hopefully be fixed.

Both suggestions and bug reports should be posted at www.maloria.com.

-The Maloria Staff Team

• January 9th - Zone - Updates

Planet Points

Planet Points are a new feature for the Iricia planet that awards players with points for participating in matches which can be used to obtain prizes. 10 for winning and 3 points for loosing a match.

Prize List

• 50 points for 50 pipe bombs
• 150 points for a Silencer (1 month)
• 200 for 100 cakes
• 300 for 100 gas grenades
• 700 for Bluepistoles (2 weeks)
• 1200 for Reapers (1 month)
• 1750 for a Scifi Pistol (1 month)
• 3000 for a BFG11 (permanent)
• 3500 for redpistoles (3 months)

Profile Changes

Zone player profiles now lists the amount of remaining experience points to gain a rank.

Rolling

The speed of rolling has been reduced by 65% to improve the balance of battles and make it easier to fight other players.

For more information on updates and changes please click here.