Version 5.4.0(.1) Valantia + Additional information

Update 22nd November 2021 00:35: For several bugfixes related to the dice game and the behavior with items we replaced the original version with a hotfix version 5.4.0.1, you can find the changes in the changelog as usual.
We strongly recommend to update as soon as possible.


Original post from 13th November 2021:

Prologue

The scene: a nervous programmer, wearing a check shirt with muted but bright colors, steps onto the stage.
In the background, two other people can be seen, apparently trying to encourage the programmer, as they appear to be working on final pieces of work.

PROGRAMMER
(taps carefully against the microphone).
“Is this thing on?”

The room surrounding him throws back a frightening and oppressive silence; in the distance, unusual for this time of year, a cricket can be heard chirping.

The programmer begins to speak nervously into the vastness of the room, his words echoing off the large walls.

PROGRAMMER
(too loudly at first, then normally, enthusiastically).
Hel-. Hello everyone!

New version

With today’s version we would like to address some problems that have occured in the course of the last year and especially recently.

First of all, with this version an adjustment has been made with which accounts of all (official) worlds should be playable again. At the same time, some fixes have been made to the bot that improve the handling of legendary gems at least to the point where the bot no longer sells them.

Also, some fixes have been made to existing functionality, most notably the often reported and sometimes confusing fact that the building upgrades for Fortress and Underworld were done in the wrong order. Please check your settings and make sure they are still correct.

General Information

It is already foreseeable that in the future we will no longer be able to release new versions of the bot in the update cycle we were used to in the past, as the current developers and moderators simply do not have enough time at the moment to make and release changes in a planned, regular rhythm.
Note: This does not mean that we will not continue to develop!

We will of course continue to try to release updates and respond as quickly as possible, especially to critical issues. Note, however, that this may take a little longer compared to the past.

At the same time, a long-time-stable part of our server infrastructure has not been available since the summer, which at the time briefly caused problems (missing dungeon enemy updates, news, changelog, …) that we hadn’t foreseen. These problems should be corrected by now, but if you still notice something that seems unusual, feel free to write in the forum or via email.

Please also note that today’s update does not yet include several features that are still under development. For example, we’re working on the events, but for this version we’ve only included rudimentary, low-risk support for the new events – we primarily wanted to make sure that the basic functions are running again on all servers. Promise, we haven’t forgotten your requests. 🙂

New events

Since the new event approach is a bit different from the old one, we haven’t found the time to look into it in more detail yet. Therefore, as mentioned above, we have included a rudimentary support that does a mapping of new event types to the old ones, where the new events trigger old event mechanisms.
The mapping looks like this:

Exceptional XP Event: ExperienceEvent
Glorious Gold Galore: GoldEvent
Epic Shopping Spree/Good luck Extravaganza: EpicEvent

Linux notes

Since our Linux console variants are rarely and barely functioning with more modern TLS versions which are necessary to not cause problems for normal clients, the automatic update from the last version to this one will not work. So please download the version directly, we will find a solution for the next versions.
Also note that there may be problems when starting the Linux version, as we can’t test all versions and had to modernize part of our build infrastructure.

Download

You can find the latest download as always on the Downloads page, as well as you can find the changes of this version in the Changelog.

Please note that the current version seems to be classified as “possibly harmful” by various browsers. This is a false positive and is most likely due to the nature of our build process. If you run the file through virus scanners, they – as usual – don’t report anything, so there is no reason to worry.

Epilogue

The programmer then steps away from the microphone and turns to his laptop. He seems to be having a little trouble operating an administrative interface.
[Close-up: A flickering, dusty monitor can be seen. It appears to have been unused for a long time].
The information on the monitor seems a bit cryptic. But the warning messages are clear, and the programmer is sweating as he clicks through them.

PROGRAMMER

How do you operate the darned update panel again?
(he mumbles quietly to himself)
Who made this mess?


In the lower right-hand corner of the panel, a name can be read that is difficult to recognize on the old display.
It is that of the programmer.
He flips through the manual lying next to the laptop, cursing, doubting whether his idea will turn out successful.

PROGRAMMER

Ha… I think that was the right button.
That should bring up a new update of the bot…. Ah no, that was the changelog.
(slightly annoyed, addressing the room).
Could someone explain to me again who was so stupid to offer three different ways to list the changelog???


The room is silent.
Light chuckling can be heard from the background.

PROGRAMMER

Thought so.
(facing the interface)
So, could you please do what you were told to do ages ago?
All you have to do is accept, distribute and publish this, this and that file.
Oh, the version isn’t even recompiled? Hm. Yes it is, I just uploaded the wrong files.
Oh, that went wrong too. That’s right, I never included that feature, I have to manually distribute stuff to extra servers because the Linux versions can’t handle newer certificates.
Oh, that doesn’t work now either since the old server went down. Yay?


The room is silent. You get the feeling that the room has become even quieter. The cricket has now also hopped up curiously and stares intently at the screen.
[The field of vision changes: the programmer is now visible again].

PROGRAMMER

(theatrically presses a button, mumbles, nods a few times and then closes his laptop)

Well, that seems to be it.
Quite unspectacular actually, so why does it always take so long?

CRICKET

(chirps thoughtfully)


You can now see the empty room in a larger image area, where the programmer steps off the stage and leaves the room, whistling slightly absentmindedly, with his laptop tucked under his arm.
The initial people in the background, who are also still sweating, follow him, secretly hoping that everything has really worked. They visibly doubt.
[Transition to black image]
END