Drathrok's Duskruin
Drathrok's Duskruin has currently been run twice:
- Drathrok's Duskruin 419: January 22 – January 31
- Drathrok's Duskruin 421: September 16 – September 25
About
At times, Drathrok and Zoluren's leaders send out the call far and wide for brave adventurers to step into arenas and Dwarven mazes to hone their skills for the battles that lie ahead. Compete against dangerous (some long forgotten) foes with mighty spells and abilities, never-before-seen traps, and the clock to earn bloodscrip, or explore the shifting maze below to search out bloodscrip and other treasures.
Entry
There are two ways to enter the arena.
- In Zoluren find Drathrok's Duskruin near the Stone Clan Traders' Outpost.
- Outside Zoluren, check NEWS 4 1 for portal locations
Arena
The arena is an individual event where a player fights against various creatures and traps in the hopes of earning prizes and bloodscrip. There are multiple arena rooms, allowing up to 50 players to be competing in the arena at once.
Spectators can use YELL and CHEER to encourage those in the arena, or taunt their failings. The WATCH LIST command will show who is currently competing, while WATCHing any player, such as WATCH BOB will allow you to track their progress.
To enter, players can GO PORTCULLIS while holding a dueling slip and will be escorted to an arena and the announcer will explain the rules. Players will face 25 challengers, and every 5th one will be a 'boss', or more difficult opponent. Only one creature or opponent will face a player at a time. Players can use the WATCH command to assess the situation and react accordingly to try and avoid these traps. Your time in the arena is limited, so make good use of it. If your time expires, you will be moved out to collect your winnings.
To avoid the traps, you can attempt to WATCH to see how to respond to any traps that are active. If at any point you've had enough, you can SURRENDER and quit early. However, if you surrender your coin and bloodscrip earnings for that session will be cut in half. Should you fail and die in the arena, you cannot DEPART but will be automatically dragged out, and healed to full health. The arena's healing services include returning you back to life, but any normal death penalties (lost field experience, scrolls, etc) will still apply normally.
If a player does everything perfectly in a single session, the most they can earn is 250 bloodscrip. Players always get some bloodscrip even if they SURRENDER or die, with the minimum at 50 bloodscrip for participating.
Currently, there is no specific combat mode with constructs for Empaths, but it is being considered. Necromancer and Empath, and other pets are allowed in the arena. Players may receive buffs or other help from players before entering.
Arena Titles
Players can get several temporary titles by participating in the Duskruin Arena. These titles are temporary and clear after logging out and back in. However, if you are wearing a title the announcer will skip the introduction and rules segment of the arena session, allowing you to do more sessions faster. You are also able to purchase slips that grant you these titles if you have one worn at the time of purchase.
- Duskruin Combatant - Earned by participating in any Duskruin arena session.
- Duskruin Arena Champion - Earned by making it through and beating all 25 rounds.
- Duskruin Arena Hero/Heroine - Earned by beating all 25 rounds without getting a 30 second warning and scoring over 220 (needs confirmation).
Labyrinth
Located on the eastern side of the arena, the labyrinth does not have any combat. Players enter by paying with Golden Rat Tokens, and are lead inside. True to its name, the labyrinth is a maze that occasionally reorganizes itself, so any attempt at mapping it is futile. Players can attempt to chase and capture the rat running around inside via the SEARCH command. Each session, a player may do 10 searches and obtain various treasures hidden within labyrinth. There is a 1 hour time limit to perform the SEARCHes with a 5 minute warning near the end.
Only one rat may be obtained per character, per opening of Duskruin. However, there are many different treasures hidden in the labyrinth, so even if a player already has a rat there are things to search for.
The most bloodscrip that can be earned in any one labyrinth session is 200 bloodscrip.
Bloodscrip
Bloodscrip is a currency similar to the Grey Raven Commissary scrip. While Grey Raven scrip is automatically accumulated in your character's total listed under the TICKETS, some bloodscrip starts off as an actual item when found and can be bought, sold, or otherwise traded to other characters. Once REDEEMed on a character, bloodscrip cannot be turned back into an item and traded. Bloodscrip can be obtained in the Duskruin Arena and Duskruin Labyrinth and redeemed at various locations within Duskruin and appears as Duskruin bloodscrip.
Note: Because bloodscrip can be a actual item in game, it is highly recommended you treat it with the caution you would any item you would not want to lose.