Veil of Alaris

EverQuest's eighteenth expansion. Released November 15, 2011. Additional AAs were added in December.

Details

 * Increased possible buff slots. AAs can purchase five more.  You will also be able to get more buff slots from content in-game.   It is assumed but not confirmed that the maximum possible will be 42.
 * Guild halls with trophies and better housing item management
 * Two different guildhalls
 * New guild rank system
 * Hotbars will be resizable and 12 buttons per hotbar
 * Email items
 * Ability to link items and clickies directly to hotbar. Including from inside bags.
 * Customizable guild ranks
 * 12 New Zones. Six raid zones.
 * Level cap increase to 95
 * New continent
 * New AAs
 * Additional Extended Target slots. AAs can purchase three more.  More may be possible through other means, as the UI has room for 20 total possible.

Zones
Zones in Veil of Alaris have very little restriction. Players can basically go wherever they choose in the expansion. There is no need to "unlock" a tier to enter it.

Getting to VoA
Anyone with the expansion can take an airship from Steamfont to Argath. Guild portals will also take you to Argath. Druids and Wizards can get self only, group, and translocate port spells at level 90. Druids and Wizards will get ports to Pillars of Alra. Druids also get ports to Beasts' Domain. Wizards get ports to Sarith.

Tiers
 Tier 1 
 * Argath, Bastion of Ildaera
 * Valley of Lunanyn (a/k/a Arelis, Valley of War) [North area of zone]

 Tier 2 
 * Valley of Lunanyn (a/k/a Arelis, Valley of War) [South area of zone]
 * Sarith, City of Tides

 Tier 3 
 * Beasts' Domain
 * Rubak Oseka, Temple of the Sea
 * The Resplendent Temple

 Tier 4 
 * Erillion, City of Bronze
 * Pillars of Alra
 * Sepulcher of Order
 * Sepulcher East
 * Sepulcher West
 * Windsong Sanctuary

Progression

 * SOE official Overview of Progression for Veil of Alaris

Some content (some tasks and missions, higher rank spells, and class AA) requires a minimum of progression in order to obtain. This progression is based off content completion, with an additional requirement of knowledge of the Alaran language, earned through completing tasks and missions.

There are essentially three types of advancement: Content, Spells and AAs.

Content
Task and Mission content progression will be very similar to past expansions. Missions are part of a series of tasks which will have to be done in order to request the tasks and missions. However, we will also be requiring some level of understanding of the Alaran language to get some of the content. You gain skill with that language by doing the content anyway, so in practice there isn't much of a change here.

Our first two zones (Argath and Valley of Lunanyn) have almost no language requirements. Only the missions in Arelis require a language skill, and they only require a skill of 10. This which can easily be obtained doing the content that leads up to those missions. Later tiers have greater language requirements, which I'll show below.

Tasks will drop books, and clicking those books will update your language skill based on the content you have completed. Oh, and if you have completed the task Baga's Stand, you will get a 5 point head start on your language skill (though you will have to complete one task to get a language book first).

There will be some lists and charts coming later. The main thing to understand here is that as you do the quests you will learn the language that you need to access the next tier of content.

Spells
See Spells below.

AAs
The VoA General and Archetype AAs can be purchased without restriction. In order to purchase the Class AAs available in Veil of Alaris, a character will have to obtain the AAs called Knowledge of Alaran Culture and Knowledge of Alaran Culture - Advanced.

The basic Knowledge of Alaran Culture will simply be given to any character entering any of the expansion basic zones. The Advanced AA will be given to any character that has earned an Alaran Language skill of 71 or better when they click one of the language books.

Alaran language
In Argath and Valley of Lunanyn, each task gives a different book, each with its own bit of story. Each zone after that will give the same book for every task. Clicking any of these books will set your language skill to the proper value based on the tasks you have completed. Here are the language skill calculations:


 * Having the pre-launch mission reward An Ancient Text will add 5 points to the language value beyond the numbers below.
 * The tasks in Argath or Valley of Lunanyn will get your Alaran to 70 (75 if you have completed the pre-launch task). You can get the full value from those two zones by doing just about half of the content, or if you focus on either zone you can get the full 70 points by completing that one zone. Missions give more points than tasks, and more complex tasks give more points than the simple "kill" tasks.

Note: You get points for completing a task once. Repeating those tasks will not improve your language skill.


 * The tiers after that will grant 5, 10 and 15 language points respectively, giving a total of 100 (105 if you have done the Baga's Stand task).

 Tier 2 
 * Doing all of Sarith = 5 points
 * Doing half of them = 3 points
 * Doing 1 of them = 1 point

 Tier 3 
 * Doing all of Rubak = 3
 * Doing half of them = 2 points
 * Doing 1 of them = 1 point
 * Doing all of Beast Domain = 3
 * Doing half of them = 2 points
 * Doing 1 of them = 1 point
 * Doing all of Resplendent Temple = 4
 * Doing half of them = 2 points
 * Doing 1 of them = 1 point

 Tier 4 
 * Doing all of City of Bronze = 3
 * Doing half of them = 2 points
 * Doing 1 of them = 1 point
 * Doing all of Pillars of Alra = 4
 * Doing half of them = 2 points
 * Doing 1 of them = 1 point
 * Doing all of Windsong = 4
 * Doing half of them = 2 points
 * Doing 1 of them = 1 point
 * Doing all of Sepulcher = 4
 * Doing half of them = 2 points
 * Doing 1 of them = 1 point

Rain of Fear quest
Completing the Rain of Fear quest Words of the Unspoken in Shard's Landing will get your Alaran language to 100 (if not already there).

Raid progression
From a post on the SOE forums:

The first time you complete any VoA raid, a book will appear in your inventory: It is called the Record of Tales, and it is where you will record your raid accomplishments. You must keep this book with you throughout progression. If you don't use your book after every raid, you will not get progression credit for it.

When you use this book in other locations or situations, it will inform you about what raids you have defeated, what tiers you have access to, and what, if any, tiers you have completed all events in.

Flagging
When you complete a raid, equip and use the Record of Tales. It will tell you of your accomplishments, and if you have just defeated a raid, it will gain experience and record your deeds for later. You have 30 minutes following a raid victory to use your book, and the zone will send you a reminder every minute if you are eligible to gain experience but have not done so yet. Only 54 people can gain experience for a raid, and you must have participated in the raid to get experience.

When you have defeated a certain number of raids, your book will evolve. When it does so, you have access to enter the next tier of raid zones. You do not have to defeat all the raids in a tier for access, just enough raids to make your book evolve. Once your book has evolved to the final form, the Record of Legends, you have access to all raid zones and you no longer need to carry your book with you. You can still use it to check to see what individual raids you've completed and to grant your 'completion' flags when you have defeated all the raids in a tier.

Here are the number of raids you will need to defeat in order to make your book evolve to the next tier:


 * Access to tier 2: 3 raids in Argath
 * Access to tier 3: 9 raids in Lunanyn or Sarith
 * Access to tier 4: 13 raids in Rubak Oseka, Beasts' Domain, or Resplendent Temple
 * Access to Sepulcher of Order: 3 raids in Pillars of Alra, City of Bronze, or Windsong Sanctuary

Here is a partial list of things you do NOT need to enter a raid (again, see the requirements for requesting them below):


 * Faction
 * Language
 * Missions
 * Quests
 * That cool rock you found by the river, just look at it
 * Education
 * Thought Control
 * a broken arrow

If you're not requesting the raid, you just need your book to have evolved to the right level to get in.

Backflagging
The 85/15 rule applies to all VoA raid zones. If you are part of a raid force that defeats a raid in a tier that you don't have access to, your book will gain more experience than normal. One tier ahead will double the experience. Two or more tiers ahead will triple it. This system is designed to speed up the process of backflagging without allowing someone guesting with a T4-capable guild to get one backflag item and cut out the entire flagging process.

Your book will not gain experience for defeating raids that are below the tier you are flagged for.

Example 1:


 * You have completed no raids at all (Tier 1 access). Your guild uses the 85/15 rule to get you in to the Beasts' Domain raid (a Tier 3 raid).
 * When you win, you get triple the experience, and your book will immediately level when you use it, giving you access to Tier 2.
 * If your guild then takes you to the Resplendent Temple and you beat that raid, you will get double the experience, meaning you only have 7 raids left to finish tier 2.

Example 2:


 * You are flagged for tier 2 and have completed 7 raids (77% evolved). Your guild uses the 85/15 rule to get you in to the first Sepulcher raid.
 * When you win, you get triple the experience, and your book will level immediately, giving you access to tier 3 and counting as one raid in that tier. Your book will now be at 7% into level 3.
 * If your guild then defeats a second Sepulcher raid, you will get triple the experience and your book will go to 30% into level 3 (4/13).
 * If your guild goes on to defeat the other three Sepulcher raids, you will get triple experience three times and your book will have reached level 4 at the end of the night.

Example 3:


 * You are a new recruit with no raid completions and you are joining a guild with full raid access. They decide to take you through all eight Tier 4 raids (5 in sepulcher plus the 3 outside).
 * The first win in Pillars of Alra gives you triple the experience, leveling your book to 2 immediately.
 * Wins in Windsong Sanctuary and City of Bronze give you triple experience, and you enter Sepulcher at 66% to level 3.
 * The first Sepulcher raid gives you triple experience, leveling your book to 3.
 * The next four Sepulcher raids also give you triple experience, and you end the night 92% into level 3.
 * Next raid night it's the same program:
 * The first win in Pillars (or Windsong or City of Bronze) gives you double experience, leveling your book to 33% in level 4.
 * The next 2 T4 wins will get standard experience and evolve your book, flagging you for Sepulcher.

Requesting Raids
In order to request a raid for a zone, you must meet the following criteria:
 * You must be flagged for access to that raid tier (through the book, above)
 * You must have completed all of the raids from the previous tier (also happens from using the book)
 * You must have completed all of the progression quests and missions from that zone
 * You must have sufficient Alaran language skill (which is generally a requirement to get the prerequisite mission anyway)

Each individual raid-giver has his/her/its own requirements, so I can't list them all here.

Spells
 Rank I Spells 

Rank I Spells have the following Alaran language requirements:
 * Basic Rank I spells from level 91 to 93 are available with no restriction.
 * Uncommon Rank I spells from level 91 to 93 are available if you have a language skill of 25 or more.
 * Basic Rank I spells from level 94 to 95 are available if you have a language skill of 25 or more.
 * Uncommon Rank I spells from level 94 to 95 are available if you have a language skill of 50 or more.

Rank I spells are obtained by the spell vendors near the Argath zone in.

 Rank II Spells 

Rank II Spells have the following Alaran language requirements:
 * Level 91 spells are available without restriction.
 * Level 92-93 spells are available if you have a language skill of 25 or more.
 * Level 94-95 spells are available if you have a language skill of 50 or more.

Rank II spells are obtained by turning in "Alaran Cantrip" items to The Sklyg in Beasts' Domain. These Cantrips commonly drop in all Veil of Alaris zones. Each named drops 1 Cantrip, and they can drop from trash as well. Chest rewards from missions also drop a single Cantrip.
 * Level 91 - Minor Alaran Cantrip
 * Level 92 - Lesser Alaran Cantrip
 * Level 93 - Median Alaran Cantrip
 * Level 94 - Greater Alaran Cantrip
 * Level 95 - Glowing Alaran Cantrip

 Rank III Spells 

Rank III Spells have the following Alaran language requirements:
 * Level 91 spells are available if you have a language skill of 25 or more.
 * Level 92-93 spells are available if you have a language skill of 50 or more.
 * Level 94-95 spells are available if you have a language skill of 75 or more.

Rank III spells are obtained by turning in "Alaran Periapt" items to The Sklyg in Beasts' Domain. These fragments drop from chest rewards for VoA raids.
 * Level 91 - Minor Alaran Periapt
 * Level 92 - Lesser Alaran Periapt
 * Level 93 - Median Alaran Periapt
 * Level 94 - Greater Alaran Periapt
 * Level 95 - Glowing Alaran Periapt

Quest rewards for spells that you already have scribed should be hidden from you. This does not check for scrolls you have in your inventory! It also does not check Disciplines.

Each quest should always offer you a return of your item (in case you don't have a viable option). In addition, you now have the option (at least for Rank II, Rank III has not been confirmed) to trade your Cantrip for a lower level Cantrip.

Type 3 augs
All type 3 focus augs are from The Interceptors (Jayt Steed, Jheron Welson, Rocher Hampstin) in Beasts' Domain near The Sklyg. They cost about 15,000 platinum each and require 71 Alaran language skill to buy.

Armor

 * Rasper's Repository: Group Visible Armor
 * Rasper's Repository: Raid Visible Armor

Note: Shadowknights, Shaman, Necros, and Beastlords may combine their wrist armor inside the Reliquary of Refinement to change the focus on it.

Also, it appears that both Yaun and Kelur seem to sell a lot of the same items, so you can check both to find what you need.

Group

 * Tier 1: To create the first tier of armor you need "Rustic xyz of Argath", which are slot specific and drop from first tier named around half the time. Once you have that you'll need to acquire a tradeskill crafted Osmium or Fantastic template, and purchase a coalescing agent that matches your class as well as a Reliquary of Refinement from the Yaun in Argath, the Mountain Fortress. Combine the dropped item, agent, and template inside the Reliquary, which is consumed on use, to create the armor.
 * Tier 2: You'll need a "Formal xyz of Lunanyn" from a tier 2 named. You then combine that with either a tier one piece of armor; or with a piece of Plain Unadorned Armor (about 10.5k) and coalescing agent sold by Yaun, inside the Reliquary of Refinement (consumed on combine).
 * Tier 3: You combine an "Embellished xyz of Kolos" with a tier two piece armor; or with a Detailed Unadorned Armor (about 13k per, requires 71 Alaran to buy) and coalescing agent sold by Kelur, inside the Reliquary of Refinement.
 * Tier 4: The fourth tier uses a "Grandiose xyz of Alra" with a tier three piece; or a Sophisticated Unadorned Armor (about 16k per, requires 90 Alaran to buy) and coalescing agent also sold by Kelur, inside the Reliquary of Refinement.

Raid

 * Tier 1: To create the first tier of armor you need "Modest xyz of Illdeara", which are slot specific and drop from the first tier raid. Once you have that you'll need to acquire a tradeskill crafted Osmium or Fantastic template, and purchase a coalescing agent that matches your class as well as a Reliquary of Refinement from the Yaun in Argath, the Mountain Fotress. Combine the dropped item, agent, and template inside the Reliquary, which is consumed on use, to create the armor.
 * Tier 2: You'll need a "Elegant xyz of Lunanyn" from tier 2 raids. You then combine that with either a tier one piece of armor; or with a piece of Plain Unadorned Armor (about 10.5k) and coalescing agent sold by Yaun, inside the Reliquary of Refinement (consumed on combine).
 * Tier 3: You combine an "Stately xyz of Ladrys" with a tier two piece armor; or with a Detailed Unadorned Armor (about 13k per, requires 71 Alaran to buy) and coalescing agent sold by Kelur, inside the Reliquary of Refinement.
 * Tier 4: The fourth tier uses a "Ostentatious xyz of Somewhere" with a tier three piece; or a Sophisticated Unadorned Armor (about 16k per, requires 90 Alaran to buy) and coalescing agent also sold by Kelur, inside the Reliquary of Refinement.

Alternate currency
The raid armor pieces, as well as the "templates" may be purchased for VoA raid currency. The Plain Unadorned Armor can be bought from the tier 2 raid vendor, Riallion Cassand in Sarith City for 6 Rebellion Chits. The Detailed Unadorned Armor can also be bought from the tier 3 raid vendor, Olgor the Finder in Resplendent Temple for 12 Diamond Coins. The Sophisticated Unadorned Armor can also be bought from the tier 4 raid vendor, Sholano in City of Bronze for 50 Bronze Fiats each.

Alternate currency
The Veil of Alaris expansion introduced three new alternate currency types. These are obtained by being present during a raid win. They can be used to purchase raid loot items.


 *  Rebellion Chits 

These are earned by all participants of tier 2 raids. Plain Unadorned Armor can be bought from the tier 2 raid vendor, Riallion Cassand in Sarith, City of Tides, for 6 Rebellion Chits.


 *  Diamond Coins 

These are earned by all participants of tier 3 raids. Detailed Unadorned Armor can be bought from the tier 3 raid vendor, Olgor the Finder in The Resplendent Temple, for 12 Diamond Coins.


 *  Bronze Fiats 

These are earned by all participants of tier 4 raids. Sophisticated Unadorned Armor can be bought from the tier 4 raid vendor, Sholano in Erillion, City of Bronze, for 50 Bronze Fiats each.

Pre-order information
From SOE: Hail Norrathians!

The EverQuest team is proud to bring you our 18th expansion, Veil of Alaris! Starting today, October 18, 2011, you're able to pre-order your copy of Veil of Alaris. Pre-orders will end on November 14, 2011.

New Veil of Alaris Game Features:


 * Go from 90 to 95 – Achieve a New Max Level of 95 and set a new standard of gameplay
 * Improved Hotbars! – Have better control of your characters experience with a revamp of the Hotbar system including the ability to display more hotbars with more buttons; assign icons to individual buttons; link and click on items from your hotbar instead of hot-swappping; and cool-down timers!
 * Parcel & Coin Delivery system – Mail items and coin to your friends while they are offline; share profits from your adventures with your friends and receive items from them easier than ever before!
 * New Guild Halls – Take Guild Halls to new heights with an integration of Tools and Functionality derived from EverQuest’s robust Housing System. Customize and place your guild hall in one of our housing zones including multiple exterior and interiors.
 * New Guild Rank-Based permission system – Personalize your Guilds with namable ranks and customizable permissions
 * New Guild Trophies with varying bonuses!
 * More than 800 AAs – Elevate your power and abilities beyond the norm
 * 13 Raids – Collect valuable rewards from all new adventures
 * 12 Zones – Be the first to discover untouched lands of Norrath
 * 500+ Spells – Exponentially add to your spell arsenal
 * 20 Missions – Experience intriguing lore and immersive Missions
 * 110+ Quests – Challenge your skills and gather useful loot
 * Legends of Norrath™ - 5 Digital Booster Packs

When you Pre-Order Between October 18, 2011 and November 14, 2011, you have your choice of the following two selections:

EverQuest®Veil of Alaris ™ – Pre Order $39.99
 * Includes VoA and All Previous Expansion Packs
 * Includes all of the following in-game items
 * Desert Kangon Saddle
 * Traveler’s Rucksack
 * Resplendent Sword Ornamentation (available immediately with pre-order)
 * Painting: Veil of Alaris
 * Painting: Original EverQuest Box Art (available immediately with pre-order)

EverQuest®Veil of Alaris ™ – Pre Order Digital Collector’s Edition $59.99
 * Includes VoA and All Previous Expansion Packs
 * Includes all of the following in-game items
 * Desert Kangon Saddle
 * Traveler’s Rucksack
 * Journeyman’s Pocketed Rucksack
 * Forest Kangon Saddle
 * Swinetor Contract
 * Concept Art Painting #1
 * Concept Art Painting #2
 * Sentry Stone Replica
 * Resplendent Sword Ornamentation (available immediately with pre-order)
 * Painting: Veil of Alaris
 * Painting: Original EverQuest Box Art (available immediately with pre-order)

If you order on or after November 15, 2010, the following options will be available :

EverQuest®Veil of Alaris ™ - $39.99
 * Includes VoA and All Previous Expansion Packs
 * Includes all of the following in-game items
 * Desert Kangon Saddle
 * Traveler’s Rucksack
 * Painting: Veil of Alaris

EverQuest®Veil of Alaris ™ – Digital Collector’s Edition $89.99
 * Includes VoA and All Previous Expansion Packs
 * Includes all of the following in-game items
 * Desert Kangon Saddle
 * Traveler’s Rucksack
 * Journeyman’s Pocketed Rucksack
 * Forest Kangon Saddle
 * Swinetor Contract
 * Concept Art Painting #1
 * Concept Art Painting #2
 * Sentry Stone Replica
 * Painting: Veil of Alaris

Pre-launch quests

 * Main article: Veil of Alaris pre-launch quests

From EQPlayers News: "The Gnomes are about to commence work on their greatest project ever! Join them Saturday, October 1 through Sunday [sic, recte Monday], November 14, 2011."

"Deep in the valleys of the Steamfont Mountains the Gnomes are preparing perhaps their most ambitious endeavor to date, the construction of a massive airship. Does this have anything to do with the Emissary of Brell? Where do the Gnomes plan to travel? Has the King of Ak'Anon contrived some plan of his own? Journey to the land of the Gnomes and investigate their enterprise. Perhaps you could lend a hand, as the gnomish people have been known on occasion to be generous to those who assist them."

"Go forth and find the answer to this gnomish enigma! Seek the Chief Engineers for revelations on the future of Norrath!"

An Ancient Text
The pre-launch quests Baga's Stand (only in game at certain times) and Engine Trouble (Group Mission) have An Ancient Text as the reward. Engine Trouble only gives out one in the chest upon completion.

If you right click An Ancient Text, it gives you An Ancient Text (a different item, even though it has the same name). Reading An Ancient Text supposedly gives you a head start in learning the progression language for Veil of Alaris.

The Ancient Text from the Veil of Alaris launch event can now be read. Be sure to read it before the expansion launches!

Pre-release information
This is being kept here for historical purposes.


 * EQ Players VoA screenshots
 * EvilGamer.net forum post

Announced features are:


 * Brand new guild halls. Guild halls will be put in the neighborhoods.
 * 12 New Zones. Six raid zones.  City of Bronze, City of Pillars were named as areas and/or zones.
 * Hotbar Revamp
 * Level cap increase to 95
 * New continent

The expansion panel focused primarily on the lore of EverQuest: Veil of Alaris although we did spend a fair amount of time discussing the upcoming improvements to hot bars (including greater customizability, cool down timers, more buttons, and the ability to click items within bags from the hotbars) as well as the major upgrade coming to guilds.

It's one overlap zone and four final tier zones.

Details

From Tharkis.com:

Lore: from another plane of existence where gods gained power through worship and Alarans could ascend to godhood

Discord drove the Alarans from their plane to Norrath during the Age of Scale. The Alaran gods sacrificed themselves to move the Alarans to a continent on Norrath. Final god sacrificed itself to raise the "veil" around continent. Continent is on the globe in Skyfire.

Known zones:


 * Argath, Bastion of Ildaera
 * City of Bronze
 * Temple of Splendor
 * Beast Domain
 * More to come

Expansion details:


 * Guild halls with trophies and better housing item management
 * Two different guildhalls
 * New guild rank system
 * Resizable hotbars


 * Email items
 * 12 buttons per hotbar
 * Ability to link items and clickies directly to hotbar. Including from inside bags.


 * Customizable guild ranks

SOE Webcast

On September 22, 2011, SOE had a webcast which announced several features planned for VoA:
 * Improved Taunt. An ability that the mob ignores its hate list and will attack whoever used the ability.  The Warrior version is called Undivided Attention.  Paladins and Shadow Knights also get a version.
 * Free Target. This enables you to target areas.  One use is to spawn Auras.  Shaman will be able to spawn their Malos Idol in a spot away from them.  They will no longer have to run up and plant it.
 * AAs - Monks are getting a new pulling tool. Temporarily named Constrictive Dark, it is a single target silence whose main purpose is pulling caster mobs.
 * Bard instruments to be improved. They will extend songs of that type by 1 tic and the melee damage bonus is going from 25% to 30%.
 * Devs will now have NPC generated parses to better evaluate raids and group content.
 * New Power Sources under consideration, but will not happen by VoA launch.
 * Tier 1 VoA gear will be minimum level 85 and attunable. Although the content is designed more for level 90 toons.
 * Higher levels of Tribute.