[GM Note] The Land of the Morning Light, Developer’s Commentary

GM Notes [GM Note] The Land of the Morning Light, Developer’s Commentary

Black Desert 2023-07-25 00:00

Greetings, Adventurers.

A new challenge and adventure in the world of Black Desert!
The Land of the Morning Light will be updated on the Black Desert console on July 26 (Wed).

Trying something new is always exciting and somewhat daunting.

However, rather than focusing on the meaning of success or failure, we believe that the significance lies in the challenge and the attempt itself, as it paves the way for progress. In the Land of the Morning Light, we have taken on several new challenges.

The first challenge is to move away from the Medieval Europe and fantasy backgrounds and introduce a concept inspired by Korea's Joseon era, which may feel unfamiliar to our global adventurers but will offer a fresh visual experience, even for Korean adventurers in their 20s who haven't seen it before.
However, on the contrary, I have thought about it differently. If it feels new to Korean adventurers, then it could truly be a world of fantasy unlike anything overseas adventurers have even seen. I wanted adventurers to experience the Korean medieval era, its architecture, clothing, mythology, and joys and sorrows of life, that would be unfamiliar but still quite relatable. We made every effort to capture the beauty of both the Joseon era and of Black Desert.

The second challenge was a bold departure from the existing play style. We believe that Black Desert has, through time and numerous updates, established a solid basic system of gameplay. Of course, there will always be fine-tuning to be done. Many players have enjoyed the action style and command-based skills of Black Desert, and defeating monsters based on those elements added to the enjoyment of the gameplay.
However, no matter how good something is, if you keep encountering it, you start to become too accustomed to that consistent style of gameplay. We needed a change and made various attempts. We tried to create a desert of harsh environmental extremes, an ocean with seemingly no end, Kamasylvia, where you can feel the foundation of growth and a fantasy atmosphere, and Drieghan with its highlands and dragon legends. We realized that while we should borrow from each of their good aspects, there is a need to fill in the gaps and make even greater changes. We felt that new adventures in a new region should not be the same as existing regions. Therefore, in the Land of the Morning Light, we removed the repetitive mob grinding gameplay. Even from the perspective of the Black Desert development team, it was a daunting challenge. However, we rose to the challenge. In the Land of the Morning Light, the basic gameplay revolves around defeating each boss. The ability for players to set the difficulty of a boss was the very definition of that "challenge."

The third challenge was to transition from our previous linear quest progression to an omnibus-style one. Adventurers will experience gameplay in the order they choose, based on the storylines they select in Dalbeol Village. This allows them to focus on each individual story. You will be able to enjoy each story with a sense of immersion, similar to reading a fairy tale or novel. Please look forward to what new stories await in the Land of the Morning Light. With its new adventures, the Land of the Morning Light, is a new challenge in Black Desert. We could have walked the proven path by simply adding new monster zones and bosses.

However, we wanted to offer adventurers a slightly different experience here in the Land of the Morning Light.
While Black Desert provides a reliable play pattern, we also want players to feel like they can embark on a new adventure at any time.

And we hope that adventurers feel that they can carve out their own stories in the Land of the Morning Light.

Enter the Land of the Morning Light!

The Morning Light Adventure has begun.

Dear Adventurers, a new adventure awaits you in the Land of the Morning Light, which begins in Nampo. Nampo is the new name of Port Ratt after its expansion.

The Bartali family of Velia, aspiring to establish a stronghold in Calpheon, seeks your help in securing trade relations with Nampo. If you are Lv. 56 or above, you can embark on a journey to the Land of the Morning Light via the Black Spirit.

The main questline of the Land of the Morning Light consists of a total of 15 parts. All the stories begin in Dalbeol Village, the center of the Donghae Province. You are free to enjoy the chapters in any order you prefer, as an omnibus style. And we have introduced a new system called the Collection of Tales for easier gameplay. Select any story you want, and it will guide you to the starting quest to unfold the storyline.

In addition, to avoid any confusion and ensure a smooth adventure, one needs to complete a story before starting another.

Land of the Morning Light has also been added as a Starting Zone so that new adventurers can play in the Land of the Morning Light. Select “Land of the Morning Light” after character creation and begin your journey in Black Desert.

Land of the Morning Light is the first addition to console after the Ancient Stone Chamber. We will continue to make endless efforts to allow Adventurers to start their adventures through various routes.

Tips for heading to the Land of the Morning Light across the sea!
Without going through the exclusive quests, you can still travel to the Land of the Morning Light by ship.
However, to fully enjoy the various contents, it is essential to complete the main quests of the Land of the Morning Light. So it is recommended that you reach Lv. 56 or above and receive the Land of the Morning Light quest via the Black Spirit before your journey.

You can travel between the Land of the Morning Light and Balenos by ship. And you can also pay 16 million Silver to Gapdol Ahbum so that he will take you there. However, to board Gapdol Ahbum’s boat, at least one character in the Family should be created in the Land of the Morning Light, or a character at Lv. 56 or above in the Family must complete the first main quest of the Land of the Morning Light. After that, you can freely travel back and forth by simply paying the required amount of silver.

New Item

Dahn's Gloves

We also have the new, highly anticipated gear, "Dahn's Gloves."

The gloves come in two versions: damage reduction and evasion. You can first craft either of these versions and then exchange them for a different version later on.

We made the gloves a loot drop for defeating the bosses in the Land of the Morning Light. However, the chance of obtaining them as loot is very low. Additionally, a new material called "Flame of Hongik" is required to craft the gloves. The materials for Flame of Hongik and the gloves can be obtained through defeating bosses.

Dahn's Gloves were crafted with the motif of the gloves worn by King Taejo of Joseon, Yi Seong-gye, one of the greatest archers in the history of Korea. Therefore, their appearance reflects its significance. Also, mark your calendars for the upcoming Caphras extraction event, which will start at the launch of the Land of the Morning Light.

New Crystals

Furthermore, new crystals will be added. Adventurers can unlock two additional crystal slots as they venture through the Land of the Morning Light.
You'll be able to equip existing crystals or the new Morning Light crystals in these slots.
Various crystals with diverse effects will be added, including the previously introduced "Bonghwang's Tear."
Additionally, new materials for upgrading the Combined Magic Crystals will be introduced, allowing for even more versatile builds.

Black Shrine – Boss Blitz

In the Land of the Morning Light, we have tried a new combat style, where there are no typical monster zones, but instead, the region consists solely of boss encounters. We call this the "Black Desert Boss Blitz".

The eight bosses include the enchanting fox spirit Gumiho, the Bamboo Legion from Korean folklore, the Changui, evil spirits of those who died from a tiger attack, the powerful Mudang Wraith, the Songakshi also known as the Spinster Ghost, the mischievous Golden Pig King, the king of the Dokkebi, Duoksini, and the tiger king, Sangoon, who is terrorizing the Land of the Morning Light.

Each of these bosses has their own story and distinct characteristics. As Adventurers, you can gradually conquer these challenges by learning their traits and patterns.

Furthermore, I'd like to share information about the damage dealt and received by the bosses. 90% of the damage dealt to the bosses in the Land of the Morning Light is from your attribute AP and 10% from your character's AP. The DP ratio is also set the same way.

With these ratios, it enables adventurers just starting out to face these bosses after they play through the Land of the Morning Light.

Also, please look forward to the new boss, Imoogi, currently under preparation.

Life and Life Accessories

In the Land of the Morning Light, from Gathering Artisan 1, you can start a questline via Hyunyong at Nampo’s Moodle village that takes you on a Life adventure. During this process, you can acquire the "Green Thumb" knowledge. And once you learn this knowlege, you'll obtain a new skill called, "Green Artisan."

This gives you the chance to activate a new mini-game when you Gather after learning this skill. The mini-games, with simple controls, activate through various gathering activities such as Lumbering, Fluid Gathering, Hoeing, Butchering, Mining, and Tanning.

You'll use more energy to clear the mini-game, but you can get a lot of gathering materials, which overal allows you to significantly reduce the time required compared to traditional gathering methods.

Additionally, there's an extremely rare item that can only be obtained in these mini-games. Introducing the "Millennial Wild Ginseng!" In the Land of the Morning Light, this herb is highly valued, surpassing any treasures of gold or silver. When used, it provides a unique buff to your character that lasts for approximately three months.

You can gather and use the illennial Wild Ginseng yourself, or trade it on the Central Market at a high price. Consider this as a jackpot from gathering.

We’re also planning to add new cooking recipes, Life crystals, new Nodes, and workers, which will be a welcome news for those who enjoy Life contents.

However, there is something we would like to apologize for.

We’ve tried various methods, but due to limitations of the platform, we could not find a solution to provide sniper hunting for console players. Hence, we could not update sniper hunting in this update. We hope you understand.

Storage Unification and Abyssal Legacy Skills

Unified Storage and Abyssal Legacy Skills will be updated on July 26, along with the Land of the Morning Light update.

Unified Storage and Abyssal Legacy Skills can be unlocked when meeting one of the following conditions: Completing the Calpheon main quests, reaching Lv. 50 on a character with the simplified questline, or reaching Lv. 56 with a character that started in the Land of the Morning Light.

Complete the Skill Preset quest after meeting one of those conditions, so that “[A Fresh Adventure] In Search of Lost Memories” becomes available. After completing it, complete “[The Magnus] Revelations,” once per Family – and then Unified Storage and Abyssal Legacy Skills will be unlocked.

Once all storages are linked, you can access storage of other regions regardless of your current location. For instance, you can move and store items from Velia Storage Keeper to Kamasylvia Storage. You can also obtain loot in Star's End and put them into the Valencia Storage through a storage maid. However, the feature is only available in regions revealed on the map.

In addition, you can acquire Abyssal Legacy skills via revelations.
Any class can learn these new skills through the quests.

This concludes our introduction to the Land of the Morning Light. We’ll share more with you with the July 26 (Wed) update.

We hope you enjoy your adventures in Land of the Morning Light.