Announcements & News

[center][permalink][img]http://flightrising.com/dropbox/communityupdate_w.png[/img][/permalink][/center] It's time for a long overdue Community Update! Today we've got an update for you on our team's status, Ask the Team answers, FRFanArt spotlights, and more! [center][permalink][b]Let's get started![/b][/permalink][/center] [more] [center][i][b]NOTE:[/b] Due to the length of this update we will not be recapping elemental festivals. When the 2019-2020 elemental holiday year ends with Greenskeeper Gathering we will do a full recap of all the player created festival events![/i][/center] ----- [b][size=5]Team Update[/size][/b] We want to give you a brief update on [I]Flight Rising’s[/I] development status during the covid-19 outbreak here in the States. [b]Development continues as planned.[/b] We did not have to make adjustments to work remotely as we have been doing so from the start. Our team members are taking every precaution to remain safe and healthy. They are following the recommendations and orders from the CDC and their local governments. We will update you if something happens that could significantly delay game development. We hope that won’t happen but we're discussing and preparing for that possibility. We truly wish you and your loved ones make it through this global crisis safely and in good health. ----- [b][size=5]Development Stream[/size][/b] Earlier this month we introduced the Development Stream hosted on [b][url=https://www.youtube.com/user/FlightRisingOfficial]our official YouTube channel.[/url][/b] As the reality of our changed world settled in, we found we wanted to bring some positivity and fun to everyone, ourselves included. How the stream progresses over time, we don’t know yet. There are multiple possibilities and directions we could take it in. You’ll just have to stay tuned (and if you’re on YouTube, subscribe) to find out! [b]What you can expect:[/b] [LIST] [*]Streams will not run on a set schedule, to allow our team flexibility. [*]Streams will be announced on all our social media channels, as well as in the Site Status box on the front page. [*]They will generally last around an hour or two. [*]If you miss a stream, that’s okay—you’ll be able to watch the streams on our channel after they’ve concluded! [*]Sometimes work will be recorded in advance and uploaded to YouTube instead of live-streamed. See: flexibility [*]Comments, questions, and feedback about the stream can be posted in the discussion thread found here in Flight Rising Discussion. [/LIST] Chat and comments on YouTube are currently and will remain disabled for now. We know chat helps viewers interact with the streamer, but it's important to us that our team members have flexibility on [i]when[/i] they stream. The goal is to share with you insight on our development process. Disabling chat and comments allows us to focus on that goal, and not moderation. [b][size=4]Ancient Breed #3[/size][/b] We kicked off our Development Streams with the concept work for our next ancient breed! We know many of you want ancient breeds that don’t follow the four limbs, two legs, one head convention. We know that because we told you ancient breeds would break convention. Those dragons [i]are[/i] coming, but not for Ancient Breed #3. As this ancient breed will be [b]available in the gem marketplace[/b] it will follow a more conventional limb/head configuration. To those of you who want non-conventional ancient breeds—don’t worry, they’re on their way. Gene scrolls for the breed will still [b]follow the same rules [/b]as previous ancient breeds: parallel genes will match the acquisition methods of their modern gene equivalents, and unique genes will be offered via a variety of methods (treasure, gems, gameplay), etc. The [b]elemental alignment[/b] for this breed has [b]not been determined yet[/b]. We can tell you that it will be an element that only has one (1) dragon breed associated with it as of the time of this Community Update. This ancient breed does not have a release date but it will release in 2020* and it [b]is not[/b] our anniversary feature. *[I][size=2]It's possible that covid-19 could delay this release but we are doing our best to ensure it does not.[/size][/I] [br] ----- [b][size=5]Ask the Team[/size][/b] Do you have a burning question about [i]Flight Rising[/i] lore that hasn't been addressed yet? Are you curious about our development process or philosophy? Maybe you're interested in learning more about the game itself? If you do, send us a message through Contact Us using the category [b]Ask the Team![/b] [center][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/asktheteamcats.png[/img] [/center] [b][size=4]How It Works[/size][/b] [list=1][*]Navigate to our [b][url=https://www1.flightrising.com/site/contact-us]Contact Us webform[/url][/b]. [*]Select the "Ask the Team" category in the dropdown menu. [*]Fill out the required fields, including your question. [*]Submit your completed webform.[/list] You will receive an automated reply confirming receipt of your question. When you use the "Ask the Team" category your question is tagged for the team to review. [b][size=4]Ask the Team Answers[/b][/size] Questions submitted to us through the "Ask the Team" category will be answered in our Community Updates. [i][b]Note:[/b] While we won't be able to answer every question sent to us, all questions are documented for the [i]Flight Rising[/i] team to review, both now and in the future.[/i] [b][size=4]As Always[/size][/b] We don't provide estimated release dates, privileged information, or discuss account actions with third-parties. We understand there may be a preference for the weekly/bi-monthly stickied thread. Our goal with this new format (Contact Us webform category and answers in Community Updates) is to answer more than a small (and rushed) handful of questions at a time. Now on to your questions! [br][br] [quote]Everyone knows that Pearlcatchers value their pearls as much as if not more than their own lives, and that they carry them everywhere. In their breed art, both sexes are shown carrying it in their talons. My question is, do they ALWAYS hold it in their talons, or do they create bags and other ways to carry it in a way that frees their talons up? I would think it would be difficult to walk from place to place if you always had one or two paws holding onto this pearl, even if it were strong enough to support their weight as they walked like in the male breed art.[/quote] Pearlcatchers have long come up with creative ways to keep their pearls close, and that definitely includes tools like satchels, slings, and backpacks. The art depicts the dragons physically holding them because the pearls are such a focal importance to the breed and its identity. [br][br] [quote]I notice that with the first release and tease of ancient breeds, Goalers are an ice themed/lore breed. I expect there are more flight-aligned ancient breeds to come, but is there a possibly of neutral themed ones or even Shade or corrupted beasts?[/quote] We don't have any plans for Shade or corrupted dragons, but unaligned dragon breeds are definitely a possibility! That said, we do want to also focus on getting more of the elements two breeds under their belts. From our [b][url=https://www1.flightrising.com/forums/ann/2666061]Developer Update[/url][/b] introducing the Ancient Breed System: [i]Many of these archaic creatures were crafted by the gods when they first began to vie for territory. Hastily designed, these creations were needed to carve the land into distinct realms, and remain very different from one another to this day. Not all ancient dragons were created by the elemental gods—others sprang forth from pure coagulated magic, owing no allegiance at all.[/i] [br][br] [quote]The last hints that we got had been Roulette, Firefly, Superb, and Wheel. I was wondering have all the things that they had been hinting at been released by this point? And if they have, do you have anymore hints about what is to come?[/quote] Everything but superb was revealed because these little floofs, Superb Gryphlets, went off exploring on their own but now they're back! You can find them right now over at [b][url=https://www1.flightrising.com/trading/baldwin]Baldwin's Bubbling Brew[/url][/b], available to alchemists level 25+! [center][img]https://flightrising.com/dropbox/familiars/simplysuperb.png[/img] [item=sorrel gryphlet][item=superb gryphlet][/center] [b][size=4]Here's the new list of hint words:[/size][/b] [LIST] [*]Goldfish [*]Portal [*]Fairy [*]Landscape [/LIST] [br][br] [quote]Flight Rising started out after a successful kickstarter in 2013 and has become one of my favorite sites in the web to use. Going strong for a good 6 years now, how did your ideas and goals for the site change over the years and do you have any sneak peaks for us about what's to come?[/quote] We've gotten a lot better about forward planning and project scoping, which has helped us a great deal in making assurances to our players that we can realistically follow through on. When we started out, we were very new to game development and couldn't be as accurate with our goals. While we still have a lot to improve on, the growth of the team and an evolution of how we plan the site out month-to-month has been really helpful. As for sneak peeks, we'll continue to showcase them in our Developer Updates, so stay tuned! [br][br] [quote]Is there an official name for the gem on a skydancers head? The encyclopedia entry for skydancers describes it as being a 'bony sphere' and a 'gem-like orb' though I was unable to find a word that a dragon would use to refer to it directly[/quote] Actually, come to think of it, no! We haven't given that particular feature an official term. What do you think it should be called? [br][br] [quote]once the site rehaul/redo/update is done, is dark theme at least a possibility? i love flight rising with all my heart but it's incredibly hard to play due to major sensitivity stemming from disability, and having an official dark theme would be a life saver for me and many others with disabilities like mine.[/quote] Good question! As you noted, the site rebuild has to be completed first before we can address any suggestions like themes or dark mode. In the interest of transparency, we should let you know that there are complications with much of the artwork used across the site with regards to dark mode, but it is something we're considering as we move forward. [br][br] [quote]The possible Coliseum PVP sounds awesome! How can I be one of the testers?[/quote] We don't have any information to share on Coliseum PVP testing at this time. When we have more information on this, we will update the community. [br][br] [quote]How do you choose which fest items to recolor for Joxar? Is there a pattern, like, "Oh, we don't have enough recolors from 2015, we need to get to that next?" Or is it based on what there's demand for? Or is just whatever the artists randomly get inspired to work on?[/quote] There's no real set pattern, though we do try to take equal elemental representation into account whenever possible. [br][br] [quote]Does the scrying workshop Imperial have a name?[/quote] The art for Scrying Workshop was some of the earliest we created, and a bit before we started thinking about expanding the NPC roster of [i]Flight Rising[/i]. So, no, just a random Imperial to showcase how the workshop is used! [br][br] [quote]Someone close to me died and they really loved Flight Rising. Can you keep their dragons fed or transfer their favorite dragons to me so I can keep them fed?[/quote] Due to regulations, privacy laws, as well as our own Privacy Policy and Terms of Use, we can't make changes to an account or release information based on the word of a third-party. We understand that may sound harsh and we apologize. Losing a loved one is terrible and we are sorry to hear of your loss. While we can't transfer dragons or maintain an individual account, the account will otherwise remain untouched and unchanged. Specifically that no dragons or items will be removed from the account, nor (barring a rule violation) will their account name, dragon names, and anything they've written on the site be changed or removed. [br][br] [quote]When artists share fanwork of Flight Rising, does the social media team mind if the artists tag the Flight Rising social media accounts in their postings?[/quote] Feel free to tag us! We love seeing your fan art! [br][br] [quote]Hello, when giving credit to SFW art, is it okay to link to sites such as Deviantart and Furaffinity profiles? I know you're not supposed to link to NSFW sites, but these sites aren't NSFW by default, just when the artist also does NSFW work (which I believe is also not visible without an account but I'm not 100% sure on that). Is it always okay to link to such an art profile? Only when they post SFW stuff? Only when the NSFW stuff is not visible without an account? I'd like some clarity on this before I link to something that's not allowed. Thank you![/quote] Our rule regarding links posted on our site pertain to what you see when following the link. We've given some examples below, but this rule includes but is not limited to these examples: If "NSFW," aka Not Safe For Work, images or content can be easily viewed when visiting the link, it would be removed from our website. If "NSFW" art commissions are openly offered when visiting the link, it would be removed from our website. If explicit directions on how to find or commission "NSFW" art are readily available when visiting the link, it would be removed from our website. [i][b]Note:[/b] As this is a rules question, [b][url=https://flightrising.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/115005918783]per our policy[/url][/b] we will not be responding to any follow-up questions in this announcement post.[/i] [br][br] [quote]What sort of homes do the Beastclans typically inhabit, other than the ones elaborated on in the Encyclopedia? For example, do some races live out in the open, underground, or in treetops, or do most construct buildings based on their culture and environment? Do any of them parallel known types of dragon lairs?[/quote] The beastclans have had to be extremely adaptable to hold their own in the age of the dragonkind. This means that their choices for building homes and communities can vary heavily based on the region or subregion they're living in. [br][br] [quote]I was curious if we could know the official biggest and smallest naturally possible sizes/weight for dragons? Specifically I was curious about the imperial breed. Thanks if you can answer[/quote] Faes are the smallest breed. Imperials are the longest. Guardians are the heaviest. [br][br] ----- [b][size=5]Fan Art Fridays[/size][/b] For our social media communities, we've introduced Fan Art Friday on [b][url=https://twitter.com/FlightRising]Twitter,[/url][/b] [b][url=http://flightrising.tumblr.com/]Tumblr,[/url][/b] and [b][url=https://www.deviantart.com/flightrising]Deviant Art![/url][/b] [b][size=4]How to Participate[/size][/b] Participation is simple—just add [b]#FRFanArt[/b] when you post your [I]Flight Rising[/I] fan art! [b][size=4]Why use the hashtag?[/b][/size] Using this hashtag communicates to us that it is okay to reblog, retweet, or even spotlight your work on the [i]Flight Rising[/i] website! The Community Update spotlight consists of a thumbnail that links directly to your fan art and your [i]Flight Rising[/i] username. We only spotlight fan art that doesn't contain profanity, nudity, etc. If your username or the post itself has that, your fan art is not eligible for a spotlight. While we may not be able to share all posted fan art, using [b]#FRFanArt[/b] is also a way to show off your fan art to new people and fellow players when they browse the tag. [b][size=4]Why Social Media?[/size][/b] There are many of our players who don't visit the forums regularly and instead spend their time on various social media platforms. It also means artists can share their art on the platform of their choice and followers can easily find their work. [b][size=4]FRFanArt Friday Spotlight![/size][/b] Click on the preview to be taken to the artist's post! [center][b]@AlpineHell[color=transparent]...boop[/color] @azurebolt [color=transparent]...boop[/color] @BlackRayser [url=https://twitter.com/AlpineHell/status/1240463069462933504][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/AlpineHell3060.png[/img][/url][url=https://azurebolt-fr.tumblr.com/post/612310126359085056/the-girls-are-singing][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/azurebolt506538.png[/img][/url][url=https://www.deviantart.com/blackrayser/art/Majestic-Commission-814368782][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/BlackRayser194073.png[/img][/url] @Bluekea[color=transparent]........boop[/color] @dransnake[color=transparent]...boop[/color] @fruitcube [url=https://www.deviantart.com/eagleclaw6089/art/Zidian-Gift-824598413][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/Bluekea259633.png[/img][/url][url=https://twitter.com/dransnake/status/1238939384449101824][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/dransnake37686.png[/img][/url][url=https://twitter.com/corantus_/status/1238595039141351425][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/fruitcube339701.png[/img][/url] @Gouldiae[color=transparent]......boop[/color] @Koobi[color=transparent].....boop[/color]@Lokenosse [url=https://andalorii.tumblr.com/post/613130559010553856/i-made-a-mystical-slight-eyewing-oc-for-a-roleplay][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/Gouldiae46811.png[/img][/url][url=https://www.deviantart.com/koobicorn/art/Dessert-Coatl-807205689][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/Koobi56500.png[/img][/url][url=https://www.deviantart.com/olessan/art/Grassland-Stroll-Flight-Rising-817700381][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/Lokenosse137067.png[/img][/url] @MaficMystery[color=transparent]......boop[/color] @Match[color=transparent]......boop[/color] @MaybellMay [url=https://twitter.com/firewyrm2018/status/1237965710820667394][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/MaficMystery63488.png[/img][/url][url=https://twitter.com/haidasmatch/status/1200223702148952064][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/Match86507.png[/img][/url][url=https://twitter.com/Mays_workshop/status/1204787911666872325][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/MaybellMay260579.png[/img][/url] @Nioell[color=transparent]......boop[/color] @Noodlestuff[color=transparent]......boop[/color] @Owleics [url=https://www.deviantart.com/nioell/art/Commission-mus-808199099][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/Nioell45624.png[/img][/url][url=https://www.deviantart.com/noodlestuff/art/Nebula-820414961][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/NoodleStuff270762.png[/img][/url][url=https://owleics-fr.tumblr.com/post/612673921502871552/bust-commission-for-starspeckledink-on-fr][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/Owleics341906.png[/img][/url] @pheelthemoment[color=transparent]boop[/color] @semolina[color=transparent]...boop[/color] @Serpentarius [url=https://dire-vulture.tumblr.com/post/612876046594916352/heres-a-drawing-of-lilypad-for-tuxedo-floracat][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/pheelthemoment266940.png[/img][/url][url=https://semolinaart.tumblr.com/post/613206282455941120/another-headshot-commission][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/semolina356053.png[/img][/url][url=https://serpentarius-fr.tumblr.com/post/613561566864998400/abyss-striker-ive-decided-i-want-to-try-and-draw][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/media/serpentarius216145.png[/img][/url][/b][/center] [br][br] ----- [b][size=5]Miscellaneous Notes[/size][/b] [size=4][b]April Fools Day[/b][/size] [i]Flight Rising[/i] will again be participating in the fun of April Fools day with our own site activities! We feel that, given what's going on in the world, it's especially important that we have the opportunities to laugh and smile. As with past events, we don't aim to deceive anyone, but rather bring a much needed infusion of levity to what is sadly shaping up to be a very rough, serious, and uncertain time for so many. As far as timing this year, expect things to [b]get started at 6:00 server time[/b] (rather than at rollover) as this is when the majority of the development and community teams are working on the website. [size=4][b]400 Error Update[/b][/size] Over the past few weeks a very small number of players have been consistently experiencing 400 errors when trying to access the website. We've been unable to reproduce the issue as of today, making it difficult to diagnose and fix. We are actively working on identifying the cause, and we are now able to see when it is occurring in our logs. We're in the process of adding more logging so we can figure out why it happens. In the meantime, if you are one of our players experiencing this error, please clear your cookies/browser cache for at least www1.flightrising.com. We want to get this fixed for you as fast as possible, and thank you for hanging in there with us while we play whack-a-400-error-mole. [emoji=familiar heart size=1] [br][br] ----- That is it for this update. Thank you for being a part of our community and all our love to you and yours!

As always, please remember to stay on topic! If you have any (non-rule/policy) suggestions, be sure to share them with us in the Suggestions Forum!