Allods Online is the online successor to the Rage of Mages series and promises intense combat between ships that float in the Astral space; Myrthos brings us back impressions from GamesCom:

Once you've created your character, you'll find yourself aboard a ship that floats through the Astral space. These ships look nothing like the spaceships we know from Star Wars - they are more like flying Spanish galleons. This part of the game acts as a tutorial where you will have to defend the ship from attacks and will get your first quests. After a while, you'll leave the ship and continue on one of the 16 available Allods to level your character up in order to get to the most interesting part of Allods Online: building and owning your own ship.

This will take you 2 to 3 weeks depending on the amount of people you can convince to help you in achieving your goal and it involves a lot of questing. Once the ship is finished you will need 6 persons as a bare minimum to operate it; there is no soloing when you have a ship. Things will be easier if you have a larger group of people assisting you but there can never be more than 20 persons on your ship. The teammates on the ship have to select a captain - this does not necessarily have to be you as the owner of the ship; anyone can take the role of captain on a ship, just as you can take any role as well. The captain gets a special visor that allows him (or her) to see the space around the ship and navigate the ship through the Astral. Then there is the helmsman who actually steers the ship and you'll need a few gunners to operate the canons and torpedoes. In case the ship is damaged, you'll also need someone who is in charge of the repairs.

Read it here.

A new trailer of Allods Online showing some of the landscapes in the game is now available.

The registration for the closed beta of Allods Oline has just started.

Registration for the Allods Online Closed Beta Test are now open

 Players can now pre-register for the Allods Online Closed Beta this Autumn at gPotato.eu

DUBLIN, Ireland – August 25^th – Allods Online is the AAA fantasy and space opera MMORPG developed by Astrum Nival and published in French, English and German on the www.gpotato.eu games portal this Autumn. As the game moves closer to launch, gPotato Europe is proud to announce that registration for the Allods Online Closed Beta Test is now open to public at http://en.allods.gpotato.eu/ad/.

Developed by the Astrum Nival development team drawing on over a decade’s worth of experience on online development and a USD$12 million budget, Allods Online looks to set a new standard in the quality of free to play MMORPG. Set on the remains of the fantasy planet of Sarnaut, which exploded during its history, the six surviving races are scattered across archipelagos of floating islands known as allods. The games 1,500 varied quests at release unravel the mysteries of the planet’s past and intrigue, covering thousands of years of in-game history. By picking their allegiance from one of the 2 opposing factions, the League and the Empire, players can select from one of the 28 classes. With the best of traditional ground-based MMORPG gameplay that players expect from an AAA MMORPG, Allods Online raises the bar by giving high level players the Astral space, a dynamic environment ripe for exploration and ship based combat and voyages of discovery in their Astral battleships.

The Closed Beta Test will be kicking off in the upcoming weeks and the registration for this early test phase is now open. Beta access will be granted to selected players among the registered users, and more and more players will be able to enter the game throughout several phases of testing. Players who reach level 17 during the closed beta period will also be able to keep their character name and friend list for the launch of the game. Guild Leaders who reach level 21 and gather 24 members will also retain their Guilds into the Open Beta then further on to the release.

To sign up for the Allods Online Closed Beta Test, register for your free gPotato.eu account at http://en.gpotato.eu/Account/AccReg.aspx and pre-register at http://en.allods.gpotato.eu/ad/ .

It’s easy to follow Allods Online. The official European website has lots of information on the game’s history, development and background at http://allods.gpotato.eu . Facebook users can join the Allods community here and YouTubers can watch the Allods Channel at YouTube.com/Allods. You can also follow Allods Online on twitter at http://twitter.com/AllodsOnline_en. Further information on the CBT will be announced in the coming weeks, so stay tuned to gPotato.eu for more information.

Here is some information about Allods Online that was dropped in the mailbox; it's about the Warrior, Templar and Scout archetypes that will be available to players in Allods Online when it launches this Autumn.

gPotato Europe unveil information on player classes in Allods Online

Melee and Ranged fighters for both the Empire and the League explained and illustrated

DUBLIN – August 11^th, 2009 – Allods Online is the upcoming free-to-play AAA MMORPG developed by Astrum Nival and published by Gala Networks Europe across Europe. It will be available as a free-to-play download from the gPotato.eu portal this Autumn.

Allods Online gives players twenty eight playable classes to choose from. These are derived from the game’s six races and eight archetypes. Each of these classes has its own class-specific special move, as well as their own armour set. This will allow players to develop their own range of powers, appearance and gameplay strategy. The gPotato team is proud to unveil an overview of the melee and ranged fighters in Allods Online. These feature classes from both the League and Empire, and cover the Warrior, Scout and Templar archetypes.

Every party that wants to survive an adventure in the dangerous world of Allods Online will need a heavily armoured fighter with them. Taking the hits and protecting their companions are the Warrior archetype. This archetype has combat advantages which put them squarely in the front line of battles. The Kanians have their ‘Champions’, the Gibberlings have ‘Brawlers’ that use their agility to hold their own in a fight, the Xadaganian ‘Vanquisher’ has higher magic resistance than his peers, while the Orc ‘Brute’ is a strong, tough fighter.

Working alongside these walking tanks are other important fighters: Templars. The Templar archetype has special self-shield that will absorb some of the damage they receive. Players will be able to choose from the Kanian ‘Knight’ and Elven ‘Paladin’ that can inflict heavy damage on their opponents. Alternatively, they can choose a Xadaganian ‘Commissar’ who can lower damages on his entire party with his battle cry, or an Orc ‘Reaver’, destroying everything in its path.

Finally, the last of the non-casting archetypes is the light-footed and stealthy Scout. The Scout archetype can enchant their arrows with various types of magic. Kanian ‘Stalkers’ can shoot a blinding arrow. Gibberling ‘Tricksters’ are specialist in rooting their enemies with their net. Xadaganian ‘Saboteurs’ are specialists with anything to do with explosives, and a penchant for laying mines, while Orc ‘Headhunters’ are fierce trackers that few of their targets are able evade and survive.

Depending on the Archetype chosen, each class has its own special abilities, look, style and tactics. This gives players plenty of choice depending on whether they want to side with the league or the Empire. Further information on the casting classes will be released in the not too distant future, but for the latest news on Allods Online, check out the official European website at http://allods.gpotato.eu . You can also get information on the game by signing up to the RSS feed, or by visiting the official YouTube channel at http://youtube.com/allods.

The first three races from Allods Online have just been announced. Here are the details:

Rise of the Empire in Allods Online

gPotato Europe unveils the first of two warring factions in the upcoming free MMORPG Allods Online

DUBLIN, IRELAND - June 24, 2009 - Allods Online is the upcoming free AAA MMORPG developed by Nival Online, the makers of Heroes of Might & Magic V. It will be published by Gala Networks Europe this Autumn in English, French and German at the gPotato.eu portal. The gPotato Team is proud to introduce players to the first faction. The Empire is an alliance between the Xadaganians, the Orcs and the Arisen races. They are one side in the war for domination of the Astral.

The Empire is a totalitarian state ruled by an enormous bureaucratic system, which controls all aspects of civilian and military life inside its territory. At its head is their self-proclaimed sovereign: The Great Mage Yasker. The Empire was formed after a bloody coup which saw Yasker throw away the old ways, and unite the Orcs and Arisen races with the Xadaganians. All three of these distinct races are fully playable to any player who chooses the Empire over the League.

• The Xadaganians are a perfect war machine, always ready to fight for their ultimate goal: complete domination of the Astral. This human race is fuelled by a strong military culture and is highly industrialised, building gigantic cities similar in structure to hives where children are trained from birth to become soldiers.

• The Orcs are strong and mighty creatures that live in the places that are inhospitable to other races. Their strength is mighty, capable of destroying almost anything in their paths when they gather for a raid. In this, warriors are supported by shamans and their mystical powers. Orcs are freedom loving creatures, and while they joined the Empire out of necessity to come under the protection of the Xadaganians, they remain very independent within the Empire however very faithfull to it.

• The Arisen are a race of former humans that were brought back from the dead and granted the gift of eternal life. This keeps their bodies alive with a combination of mechanical body parts and mystical body paintings. Cold and detached from life in the Empire, they have been accepted as Empire citizens. Only fools openly joke about the smell of their rotting flesh...

Featuring six distinct playable races, Allods Online will give players a rich new world, with a gaming lore over a decade in the making. It features innovative and diverse new gameplay, and is completely free to play. Further information on the game will be released over the coming weeks and months.

It's easy to follow Allods Online. Visit the official European website at http://allods.gpotato.eu , read up on the history of the Allods Online universe at the gPotato.eu portal at http://en.gpotato.eu/Forum/?FCD=ALLODS_EN_N001 or follow the gPotato.eu RSS feed at http://rss.gpotato.eu/?game=all&lng=en to get the latest news, straight to your RSS reader.

Some new information about the astral space from Allods Online was published today (see the announcement below). In addition there are 6 new screens and 3 pieces of artwork in our gallery and a new video has been released.

Here is the press release:

DUBLIN - June 16, 2009 - Allods Online is the upcoming free-to-play AAA MMORPG developed by Nival Online, the makers of Heroes of Might & Magic V, and published by Gala Networks Europe on the gPotato.eu Portal in Autumn 2009. The gPotato Team is proud to unveil information about the Astral Space today, a defining feature and important part of the gameplay in Allods Online, taking its inspiration from the best elements of space opera.

The Astral Space is a mystical substance holding the allods together, islands formed from the shattered remains of the planet Sarnaut. The Astral is an evolving and changing place, just like a living being, and can be seen moving from the surface of each allod. Thanks to the discovery of Astral Ship technology, people can now travel through it, conducting commerce, conquest, discovery and combat throughout the Astral, while trying to avoid the lurking dangers that it contains, mainly in the form of Astral Demons and Storms.

Astral Travel is facilitated by Astral Ships that can be controlled and crewed by dozens of players, helped by goblins technicians dedicated to the maintenance of mechanical functions. Players on an Astral ship have dedicated roles, such as the Navigator finding its way through the Astral, the Engineer in charge of the repairs and the shields, or the Shooters controlling the ships arsenal of cannons. Each of them need to be at the ready the whole time to face enemies like Astral Demons as well as other player controlled ships trying to board them up close or destroy them from a distance.

Astral travel, exploration and combat is a hugely important part of Allods Online's gameplay, making this game truly unique by combining the best elements of space opera, a high-fantasy universe and high production values. Further information on the PvP elements and Astral Battles will be released over the next few weeks and months. Until then, stay tuned to the official Allods Online website at http://allods.gpotato.eu , and keep an eye on the portal to read about the history of Allods Online.

For further information check out their own information page.

On the Allods Online site an interview can be found with the two music composers from Nival Online; Mark Morgan and Vladislav Isaev.

The music in Allods Online is influenced by a variety of styles, where did this come from and what was your inspiration for the music in the game?

The music in Allods Online combines lots of different elements and styles. These range from dark ambient and ethnic music, symphonies and rock music, as well as various industrial noises. Some tracks in the game retain a Russian melody spirit combined with high a quality production and its own unique sound.

For example, in Xadaganian locations of the game, the melody of the “Mayak” radio helped set a specific tone to the region. The Xadagan capital is filled with many small elements which should remind the players of totalitarian states, as pictured in many fantastic and sci-fi movies.

We combined any and all possible styles, methods and trends during the creation of the musical part of the Allods Online project. There is a lot of contrast between locations, races and so on in the game. We have worked hard to make the game as immersive and pleasurable as possible for players.

If you want to find out more about the history of Allods Online; two additional chapters in that history have been released. The second chapter of the history of Allods Online explains what caused the allods to exist and the third chapter is about the conclave of the great mages.

Recently a new online game made by Russian developers Nival Online was announced, named Allods Online with the subtitle: Fantasy meets Space Opera.

As we missed that announcement we now bring you the first chapter on the history of Allods about the planet Sarnaut.

Sarnaut, a peaceful and thriving planet

 

The planet Sarnaut was once a quiet and peaceful planet, where humans and other races lived a casual and productive life. The population were emancipated and thriving, fighting for larger territories, establishing new countries and living off an economy based on agriculture, crafting and commerce.

Sarnaut was comprised of several continents, each with adequate climates that allowed the prosperous development of the various civilisations and creatures that inhabited them. The largest continent on the planet was Yul, and three separate distinct civilisations were spread across the world: Elves mainly occupied the western lands, Humans lived in Southern lands while Orcs lived in Eastern lands. In addition to these civilisations, a wide variety of fauna and flora occupied every corner of the planet.

In Sarnaut’s long history, lots of countries appeared, thrived and vanished from sight. One of the most ancient civilisations is the elven kingdom of Airin in the north-west of Yul. Airin was an autonomous and closed land, providing protection for friendly civilisations and had a strong political system. The southern desert was home to the Zem tribes which vanished over a very short timescale due to a plague at the same time as the Junes curse.

 

The first human kingdom was created by the Junes. They lived in peace with the Elves for many centuries before a mysterious curse led to its own demise. The Junes almost disappeared, with the details of their downfall a great mystery, causing much debate among historians.

Time passed, and very little happened in southern lands until a people from the Aro tribe entered the ruins of the June kingdom. This triggered the Great Orc Migration and the former human lands became a battleground during a pitched war between the Aro and Orcs. The Aro were victorious  under the leadership of the Great Mage TENESS and established the Kanian civilisation.

 

Another hero of this was the Great Mage NEZEB. After victory over the Orcs, relation between the two mages became tense and led to a confrontation between the two. This ended with a magical duel which TENESS won. NEZEB was banished to the deserts in the south, home of the Zem tribes. NEZEB met a nomadic tribe called the Ugra and became their leader.

 Having regrouped and with a new army behind him, NEZEB was ready to confront TENESS in Kania. NEZEB conquered part of the Kanian lands and Xadagans, a strong independent human country was formed. Here lies the roots of the endless conflict between the Kanians and the Xadagans.

 

Several millenniums after the curse, the Great Cataclysm occurred. But that's another chapter of the story, so come back soon for the second part of the Allods History. For more information on the game, stay tuned to http://allods.gpotato.eu

There are also some videos to watch if you like. Just go to YouTube and search for Allods Online.