The places come alive

A village only feels like a village when you can watch it at work. That was the focus of this round.

People at work. Traders stand at their stalls, the fields are being tended, people fish at landing stages and quays, wash at wells and hammer at workplaces. In the inn the innkeepers cook, and at meal times guests sit at the tables. In the evening people go home, the lamplighters make their round, and at night it gets quieter. Where an activity still lacks its own picture, the posture alone carries it for now; that is a placeholder. Requests that residents give out of their own need are planned but not yet in the game.

Bridges in Lanterhall. Walk through Lanterhall and you keep coming back to the water. We kept working on the canal bridges and the roofed market crossing so that roads and water fit together. The distribution of people there is tuned as well, so they do not block each other on the paths.

A professions trial. Herbalism, alchemy and first aid are in as a trial. The trainer Nell Sparrow in Ambercombe shows you the first grade. Then you gather herbs at the nodes, open the “Trades” window with K (or from the micro bar) and craft draughts and bandages. Crafting takes cast time: moving or pressing Esc cancels it, and the ingredients are used up only at the end. “Make all” crafts as many pieces as your ingredients allow. The entry herb, lampwort, is also sold by the vendor in Ambercombe, but only in limited amounts. It is a trial: we want to see how it feels before it becomes more.

Auction house: coming soon. Trade between players is getting an auction house. We are not naming a date, and we do not promise in which order places will get it. Once it is playable, it will be listed on the status page.

To join, sign up for the waitlist under “Join in”. Places are limited, the alpha is free, and donations give no priority. Bugs belong in the bug form, impressions in the questionnaire. Progress is not guaranteed to survive in the alpha; the alpha agreement governs.

Saltwarden Online is inspired by classic MMORPGs and is not affiliated with or endorsed by any other game or its publisher.