Open World PvP and Notoriety
The developers at Round 8 Studio have a long term goal of making open world PvP, and the gaining of Fame and Notoriety, one of the funnest PvP systems players will experience. The hope is that players can enjoy open world PvP as it builds a living world, with danger and challenges that lurk around every corner for every player.
Changes to Open World PvP
Round 8 Studio is also aware that not all players may enjoy this type of challenge, and want to carefully choose the places open world PvP is enabled. The goal is to carefully balance PvP so that no one feels overwhelmed and all players can gain enjoyment from the system.
To help with this, at launch, the safe zones, or non-PvP areas of the game will be as follows at launch:
- All of Carzacor Plains
- All of Navarra
- All of the Gnoll Wastes
- Rosso Castle in the Ruins of Tristezza
- Yeoman’s District in Padana Ruins
- Rabin Village in Eidolon Forest
- The Starlight Theater Encampment in Ostium
- Arduun Village in Beoran
- Skaa Village in Kannus Valley
- The Herbati Village in Kannus Mountains
- The Red Sun Base in the Timeless Jungle
- Sharp Talon Village in Zenkala
In addition to these major cities and quest hubs in each zone, an area of 15 meters surrounding each Soul Pyre is marked as safe from PvP Combat.
To Be Notorious
To help police those who intend to partake in Player vs. Player combat in the wilds of Lumios, the development team has implemented a Notoriety System (previously called the Karma System), which both rewards and penalizes players for success in open world PvP.
This system has been designed so that only players who wish to gain Notoriety will do so. Any player will gain Notoriety if they kill another player in open world PvP, regardless of what Union, Guild or any other Faction they belong to. Players who accidentally gain Notoriety will be able to return to lawful status after a short time. Players who successfully gain enough Notoriety will earn some small buffs to aid them in their quest to become truly infamous in Bless Unleashed. To help you understand the dangers, and benefits of this system, we’ve put together this chart:
Notoriety Level 1 | Notoriety Level 2 | Notoriety Level 3 | Notoriety Level 4 | Notoriety Level 5 | Notoriety Level 6 | Notoriety Level 7 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Approximate Number of Kills to Reach Level | 1 | 4 | 10 | 28 | 110 | 273 | 910 |
Can be attacked by other PCs | NO | YES | YES | YES | YES | YES | YES |
Will be Attacked By Guards | NO | NO | YES | YES | YES | YES | YES |
Can Group with Others | YES | YES | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
Notoriety Points | 100 | 200 | 540 | 1500 | 6000 | 15000 | 50000 |
Stat Bonuses | None | None | HP + 1% | HP + 2% | Crit Chance + 1% HP + 3% | Crit Chance +3% HP +4% | Crit Chance +5% HP +5% |
| Time Required to Reach 0 Notoriety | 30 Secs if 1 Kill | 20 Mins | 1 Hr 22 Mins | 8 Hrs 4 Mins | 49 Hrs 35 Mins | 249 Hrs. 10 Mins. | 832 Hrs. 30 Mins. |
Note: This chart is provided as an example, and while the penalties and rewards listed are currently correct, it is possible that this information could change before launch.
In addition to time, players may also lose Notoriety when they are killed by other players in open world PvP combat. If they wish, they may purchase an item for Starseed from the Limited Time Merchant which will reduce their Notoriety as well.
Players with high Notoriety will be easily spotted in Bless Unleashed. As a player’s Notoriety rises, their name will grow increasingly purple.
In future updates to Bless Unleashed, Round 8 will be introducing the Fame system which has been discussed previously. Meant to counteract the most egregious PvP players, fame will be earned by defeating Notorious players. Round 8 will also be introducing additional incentives for those who wish to become Notorious or Famous. Players can expect titles and other rewards for participating in open world combat as time goes on.