Lost Ark Update Brings Class Balance Changes And Sets The Stage For Server Merges: Full Patch Notes

The latest update for Amazon and Smilegate RPG's free-to-play MMO Lost Ark is set to arrive later today, with a focus on delivering various class balance changes and quality-of-life improvements over the addition of new content. It also will include back-end tech changes to set the stage for the game's first round of server merges, which will happen later this month. The update is on track to go live following server maintenance, which is expected to end around 2 PM PT/ 5 PM ET.

As detailed in the official patch notes, once the update is live, players will have the ability to alter aspects of the game's user interface, including the size of the HUD and various buffs. Improvements are coming to Lost Ark's various chat systems, and friend lists are now Roster-wide rather than on a per character basis. Jumping into Proving Ground matches should now be quicker, with a shorter introduction sequence and the option to skip cinematics when entering a match. A free-camera spectator mode has also been added to Proving Grounds, and there are two new hairstyles for each base class to choose from when creating a charactor.

The team is working through a fix that may allow us to release the September 7th Update later today, but unfortunately this will require additional server downtime. Servers are expected to come back up at approximately 2 PM PT / 11 PM CEST.
More details:https://t.co/qQ7fXYHHU1

Players will no doubt be interested in the various class balance changes coming with the update, and while there are a few classes that haven't received any changes, most are seeing a few of their abilities tweaked in some form. Across all classes in PvP, the conditions for activating Super Armor have been reduced.

Strongholds are receiving some major changes with the update, with new items added to the Pet Ranch, improvements to the Stronghold UI, the addition of a Stronghold activity notebook, and the ability to more easily visit the Strongholds of friends, guildmates, and other players in general.

It's not as big or exciting an update as Lost Ark players may have become accustomed to, but more is on the way soon. Another update slated for later in September will introduce the new Machinist advanced class along with the Kakul-Saydon encounter, the game's third Legion raid that will pit players against the killer clowns of the Midnight Circus. Lost Ark's August update added the Pet Ranch feature to Strongholds, allowing players to level up their pets in order to receive powerful buffs.

Lost Ark's update cadence has been steady ever since the game's February launch, with multiple new classes and additional endgame content having been added in recent months as Amazon looks to bring the global version of the game to parity with the Korean version, which launched in 2019. Amazon at one point apologized for releasing too much new Lost Ark content too quickly, as some players reported feeling pressured to spend money in order to keep up with the latest content. You can check out the full patch notes for the September 7 update below.

Lost Ark September 7 Update Patch Notes

SETTINGS

• Added new settings
  • UI Display Settings
    • Alter HUD Size, Buff Icon Size, and the number of Buff icons shown
  • Set Buff Icon Display Priority
• Added an option to favorite different settings, along with a new widget under the mini-map to quickly access favorited settings.
• Added a new tab under ‘Gameplay’ named ‘Combat Related Settings’
  • Revised the location of various settings to fall under this new tab.

CONTENT STATUS IMPROVEMENTS

Updated the Content Status UI to better display the status of content (in relation to its completion) on each character. This includes adding new settings, changing how the status is shown, and implementing the following updates:

• Added full-screen option to check detailed completion status of all content.
• Added an icon to indicate if gold can be obtained from various pieces of content.
• Content that you cannot obtain gold from can now be displayed.

SOCIAL SYSTEMS

GLOBAL CHAT IMPROVEMENTS

• You can now write announcements in Global Chat.
• You can now search past messages in Global Chat conversations.
• Button to send messages via mouse-click instead of 'Enter' has been added

CHAT SYSTEM IMPROVEMENTS

Chat category filters have been added and integrated.

• Added 'Combat' and 'Content' filters.
• 'Error' and 'Warning' have been merged into 'Caution (warning)'.
• Consolidated several chat tab groups such as 'Loot', 'Experience', and 'Currency' into 'Obtained (Consume)'.

GENERAL COMMUNITY UPDATES

• All friends and blocked players have been converted to be Roster-wide.
• Added a chat command to block another player using "/block" or "/ban" followed by their character name.
• You can now update your status in the Friends menu to switch between Connected, AFK, and Offline.
• You can now add friends from other servers in the same region.

PROVING GROUNDS

• When participating in the Proving Grounds the intro sequence at start of the game has been shortened for players to jump into the action even faster.
• Reduced the position selection phase in Team Elimination from 20s to 10s.
• Added an option to skip cinematics when starting a PvP match.
• Added a free camera in Team Deathmatch spectator mode.
  • You can move the camera point of view with the W, A, S, and D keys.
  • You can zoom in/out the camera with the Q and E keys.
  • You can adjust the camera movement speed with the Z and C keys.
  • You can switch between full screen and specific participant cameras using Number Pad 1-9 keys.

STRONGHOLD UPDATES

• The Recommended Strongholds tab in the Stronghold Members menu has been improved with additional filters.
• Added a Stronghold Activity Notebook that contains weekly missions and replaces the previous weekly Stronghold quests.
• Pet Ranch Updates
  • Split the available items in the Jelly Cookie Exchange shop between 3 separate tabs:
    • Pet supplies
    • Skin
    • Other
  • Added new items to the Pet Ranch Vendor
    • Legendary - Rare Card Pack
    • Eternity Essence
    • Phoenix Plume
    • Pet Expertise Potion
  • The number of weekly 'Legendary - Uncommon Card Pack' available has increased from 1 to 6
  • The number of weekly 'Soul Leaf' available has increased from 7 to 14 .
• Added a Lord chat channel that’s accessible while in the Stronghold.
  • You can switch to the lord chat channel by using the tab on the left side of the chat input window or the commands '/lord', '/t'.
• Consolidated the Stronghold Acceleration Chips into a singe ‘Stronghold Activity Acceleration Chip’ item which can be used to reduce Dispatch, Lab, or Workshop wait times.
  • Existing Acceleration Chips stored in mail, material storage, integrated storage, or other existing Acceleration Chips delivered in boxes can be disassembled to obtain 'Stronghold Activity Acceleration Chips'.
• Improved the Stronghold HUD in the upper-left corner and added a “Like Button” called Saved Stronghold.
  • Added new Achievements and a reward for the total number of accumulated “Likes” (Saved Stronghold).
• All guide quest icons conducted in the Stronghold changed to orange colored icons.
• The “Visit Stronghold” button in the Friends & Guild UI is now always activated.
• Added an option in the Global Chat menu to immediately access any player’s Stronghold in their region.
• Added Stronghold Badges shown in the Profile menu earned after meeting various Achievements.
• Added an 'Invite' other players function while in your Stronghold.
• You can now acquire Stronghold Badges from completing various activities related to the Stronghold.
• Instead of having to manually place each piece of a Stronghold prop theme yourself, a new Theme Placement menu has been added which allows you to place a single pre-arranged object containing all the required items. If you do not have the items, then you can also buy them in this menu.

TRIXION IMPROVEMENTS

• Improvements have been made so that all of the following setting items can be changed in the Trixion Training Center:
  • Combat stats, skills, Tripods, Skill Runes, Gems, Engravings, and Cards.
    • The Card Set effect can be equipped by selecting the desired total awakening value.
• The maximum Combat stat points have been increased to 2900 points with a cap of 1850 points per stat.

MATERIAL STORAGE REORGANIZATION

• Added a new ‘Content’ storage tab in the Inventory.
  • This hold 3 categories of items:
    • Event Tokes/Materials
    • Exchange Materials
      • Items obtained from Una's Tasks, Chaos Dungeons, and Chaos Line
    • Skin Material
      • Various dyes
• Moved 3 items to the Stronghold Storage tab: Vernil, Caldarr, and Oreha Woodworking Box.

GUILD UPDATES

• Added a guild group chat system – Each guild can have up to 5 separate chat rooms.
  • Guild leaders can open guild group chats for 3000 Bloodstones.
• Added filters to the Weekly Tasks Guild menu to make finding tasks easier.
  • Can now check each type of Weekly Tasks with filters (Favorites, Combat, Life, Sailing)
  • Removed the ability to refresh Weekly Tasks.
  • All Weekly Tasks can now be viewed.
• Guild members who have authority to change Guild Skill and begin Research can see the alerts, (but other Guild members without authority cannot).
• Guild Skill Levels can now be freely changed.
• Guild Skills have been rebalanced.
• You can now swap gears and skills outside of Battle Workshop in Raid Match and Sieges.
• The following changes are applied to Medeia, Slime Island, and Death's Hold Island bases:
  • Gear set effect is no longer applied.
  • Damage & defense stats will change.

GENERAL

• Controller support improved with updates made to using targeting-based skills.
  • You can set the pointer speed when point controlling.
  • You can turn on/off the display for the point control guide.
• Key Guide:
  • LS, RS: Depending on the point control skill, you can use the LS and RS keys to determine where to use the skill.
  • LT, RT: You can auto-target enemies within 16m of the character.
  • LB, RB: You can auto-target party members within 16m of the character.
  • X: Use skills, Y: Cancel skill use.
• Adventurer Tome Cooking Updates
  • Yorn
    • Gourmet Stir-Fried Mushroom
      • Mushrooms will now only spawn within the Mushroom Cultivation Grounds of the Unfinished Garden instead of being spread out.
      • The respawn time for mushrooms has been greatly reduced.
      • The number of times a mushroom can be interacted with has been changed from 2 to 1 per spawn.
    • Worm Head Jelly
      • The probability of obtaining a "Fresh Worm Head" has been greatly increased.
  • Feiton
    • Krakan Intestine Cream Soup
      • The probability of obtaining a "Fine Intestine" has been greatly increased
  • Rohendel
    • Snail Roll Cake
      • Increased the amount of times snails can be collected from 1 to 2 per object
      • Decreased the respawn timer for snails
• Card Pack icons have been updated to reflect the rarity of card packs that can be obtained from them. Similarly, the resulting individual pack icons have been updated as well.
• Added 2 new hair types for all root classes.

BALANCE UPDATES

GENERAL

• The conditions for activating forced Super Armor in PvP have been relaxed. Previously, forced Super Armor was activated if an additional hit or more is received after 4s of damage. This requirement has been reduced to 3s.

CLASSES

Berserker

• Mountain Crash - 'Numbing Effect' tripod now decreases the target's movement speed for 2s instead of 4s on hit.

Wardancer

• Swift Wind Kick - ‘Water Round Kick' tripod now decreases the target's movement speed for 2s instead of 4s on hit.
• Wind's Whisper - Cooldown time in PvP has been increased from 30s to 36s.

Scrapper

• Bolting Crash Skill- when applying the 'Repulse' tripod in PvP, the pushing distance and hit time when an attack is hit have been slightly increased.
• Merciless Pummel - Slightly increased the damage time when an attack hits in PvP.

Striker

• Swift Wind Kick - The 'Water Round Kick' tripod effect now decreases the target's movement speed for 2s instead of 4s on hit.

Sharpshooter

• Identity - In PvP, the Hawk Gauge no longer decreases during non-combat.
• Stalker - The 'Tenacity' tripod effect has been changed. Previously, the player was immune to damage until the first attack during skill casting. Now, the caster will be immune to damage taken during skill casting.

Gunslinger

• Stampede - The skill cooldown time in PvP has been increased from 8s to 10s.
• Quick Step - The skill cooldown time in PvP has been increased from 10s to 12s.

Arcanist

• Scratch Dealer - Slightly increased the Stagger time on targets hit by the attack during PvP.
• Celestial Rain - Slightly increased the Stagger time on targets hit by the attack during PvP.
• Spiral Edge - Slightly increased the Stagger time on targets hit by the attack during PvP.

Sorceress

• Ice Shower
  • Slightly increased the Stagger time on the target when the attack hits.
  • Reduced the freeze duration of the 'Frost Fragment' tripod effect from 5s to 3s.
  • In PVP, when the 'Frost Zone' tripod is applied, the Stagger time that occurs on targets hit by frost thorns has been slightly increased.
• Lightning Vortex - Rotation speed has been increased.

Shadowhunter

• While in Demon Form, reduced damage taken in PVP by 9%.
• Demonic Slash - The 'Numbing Effect' tripod effect now decreases the target's attack and movement speed for 3s instead of 5s on hit.
• Demon's Grip - The 'Numbing Effect' tripod effect now decreases the target's attack and movement speed for 2s instead of 4s on hit.
• Grind Chain - The 'Impaired Mobility' tripod effect now decreases the target's movement speed for 2s instead of 3s on hit.

BUG FIXES & MINOR SYSTEM IMPROVEMENTS

• When players receive an EAC offline error, the game client will no longer close. Players will be directed to the server selection screen instead.
• Fixed an issue where first time completion reward for Argos was not received when the player was above a certain Item Level.
• Fixed an issue where all monsters were killed in certain phases of the "The Brewery's Uninvited Guests" quest, but quest progress could stay at 98%.
• Fixed an issue where all monsters were killed during certain phases inside the "Secret Laboratory" on Eternity Isle, but the quest goal was occasionally not updated.
• Updated the “Soulstone” object to immediately disappear when destroyed during the 24th floor of Shadespire.
• Fixed an issue where the increase in distance provided by the "Leap" tripod level on the Berserker's “Hell Blade” skill was not applied.
• Fixed an issue where Berserker HP in the Party UI would change later than when switching to and from the Berserker 'Burst' state.
• Fixed an issue that could occur while trying to change the guild name to a guild name that exists on a different server, where the change failed, but the player was not properly notified.
• Moved fences in the Stronghold Farm to prevent characters from getting stuck.
• Improved the Rapport gift delivery UI to display the item tool tip when hovering over any area for a rapport item as opposed to just the icon.
• Improved support for automatic completion when typing on a virtual keyboard while using a controller.
• The HUD size can now be changed freely in the Room of Growth.
• Added a "Batch Move" button to move items to the Roster Storage in bulk.
• Improved the ability to immediately sell, dismantle, trade, destroy and/or fuse items previously registered in a preset instead of blocking players.
• Gear, Skin, and Gem presets will now be saved immediately when equipping and unlocking items.
• Added a note to the help text in the Gem Fuse window that gems registered as presets will not be selected as part of the auto-fuse process.
• The time display in the map symbol tooltip for Co-op Quests now automatically updates.
• Loot Auction Mail has been changed from Standard to Express so it be claimed immediately instead of using a pet or the Mail NPC.
• Fixed an issue where the Guardian Soul Harvest count was reset at 10:00 UTC, but was not immediately updated in the Integrated Dungeon and Content Status menus.
• Fixed an issue that caused the continent to move abnormally when hovering over the border of Rohendel on the world map.
• Fixed an issue where the "Bonus Rewards" button could occaisionally not be used after reconnecting to a Raid or Dungeon.
• Some missions have been removed from the Training Room for specific Classes.
• Fixed an issue where a Skill Rune other than the selected one would be equipped when right-clicking on a Skill Rune while hovering the mouse over it in the Book of Coordination UI.
• Fixed an issue where floor graphics at certain locations in “Fesnar Highland” in North Vern were distorted.
• Fixed a few staircases in the Northern part of "Port Krona" that would appear black while using certain graphics options.
• The Striker's "Lightning Kick" skill will no longer go through boss enemies.
• The “Crisis Avoidance” engraving will no longer be triggered when hit by a skill that leaves 1 HP.
• Fixed an issue where the Overcharge casting bar would occasionally not disappear after using the Destroyer's "Earth Eater" skill while the "Earthen Rage" tripod was active.
• Fixed an issue where the “Final Strike” tripod effect was not shown in the tool tip for Sorceress' “Frost's Call” Skill when both the “Rule Enhancement” and “Final Strike” tripods were active.
• Fixed an issue where presets were not changed when entering Chaos Dungeons while a skill was on cooldown.
• Fixed a rare issue where characters would die while in a safe zone during certain mechanics in Phase 3 of the Argos Abyss Raid.
• Fixed an issue where a character is displayed incorrectly in the Character Profile menu when viewing an offline character from the Global Chat menu.
• Fixed an issue where the slider to set the number of items to be crafted was occasionally not displayed when attempting to craft items in succession within the Stronghold.
• Fixed an issue where characters would sit on the floor instead of a bench when placed on low terrain in the Stronghold.
• Fixed an issue where some Epic Rapport items were not sorted based on how much Rapport XP they granted for Rapport NPCs.
• Fixed an issue where the location of the expanded mini-map would change when reconnecting or changing zones after moving it to the left side of the screen.
• Fixed an issue where the red dot notification icon would occasionally be shown in the widget menu after changing zones.
• Fixed an issue where tool tips were incorrectly displayed when the mouse was quickly moved out of the game screen while in windowed mode.
• Fixed an issue where the number of Abyss Dungeon entries was occasionally displayed incorrectly in the Integrated Dungeon menu.
• Fixed an issue causing the Paladin’s "Sacred Executioner" skill effect to occasionally not disappear while the "Judgement" engraving was active.
• Fixed an issue where VO couldn’t be heard when using the Gunslinger's "Bullet Rain" skill with the "Rapid Fire" tripod while certain voice types were used.
• Fixed an issue causing the visual effects for the Sorceress' "Blaze" skill to be shown for longer than the effect was active while the "Undying Flame" tripod was active.
• Fixed an issue where characters would occasionally not be able to move when arriving at the “Ancient Waterfall” Triport in the Candaria Territory.
• Fixed an issue that prevented characters from traversing certain areas of Shushire's Frozen Sea.
• Fixed an issue where pet features could occasionally not be used in the Raid area after completing Phase 3 of the Argos Abyss Raid.
• Fixed an issue where the MVP UI was occasionally not displayed after defeating Argos.
• Fixed an issue where Roster XP was not earned when clearing certain Tower levels for the first time.
• Keyboard input to accept/decline various popups has been disabled to prevent accidental interactions including: admission confirmations, quit confirmations, restart confirmations, and re-entry confirmations.
• Fixed an issue where some skills would still cause the camera to shake despite the “Skill Screen Shake” setting being disabled.
• Fixed an issue where alarms would occasionally be shown despite already receiving all rewards for the reset period and having the "Block notifications after receiving rewards" toggle enabled in the Alarm Settings menu.
• Confirmation prompts are no longer shown when using Card XP items.
• The Una Task "Bleak Night Fog" can now be completed in the same week after having already claimed rewards from a Ghost Ship.
• Improved the ability to interact with surfboards near the Surfing Instructor in Punika to aid those attempting to complete various Una's Tasks that use them.
• During the Guardian Investigator quest “[Investigation] Lava Chromanium”, a notice has been added to the “Deliver a surprise gift to Luna” step to more clearly note that tradable items are required for the quest.
• The “Archaeological Senses” buff will no longer be earned when interacting with reward chests in Excavating Secret Dungeons.
• Fixed an issue where relevant information would occasionally not be displayed when checking achievement information linked by another person in the chat window.
• Fixed an issue where chat content deleted with the "Clear Chat" option was restored after changing chat tab settings.
• Fixed an issue where the chat tab list was not immediately updated in Chat Tab Settings after removing a chat tab.
• Fixed an issue where some Mokoko seeds hidden in Totopia were floating in the air.
• Fixed an issue where emotes intermittently continued after interacting with NPCs when using emotes just before interacting with them.
• Fixed an issue where the core would not be charged in certain situations when using the "Gravity Inversion" tripod on the Destroyer's "Jumping Smash" skill.
• Fixed an issue where the “Enforce Execution” skill's upper kick attack would occasionally be applied in the wrong direction after passing through the enemy.
• Fixed a rare issue where characters would move under the terrain at certain locations in "Port Krona" in North Vern.
• Fixed an issue that caused characters to fall below the terrain at certain locations in "Lake Eternity" on Shushire.
• Fixed an issue where the map symbol would occasionally appear active as if the island appeared even though it was not yet time for the Island to appear.
• Fixed an issue that caused character shadows to appear awkwardly in certain locations on “Eternity Isle”.
• Fixed an issue where an "unknown error" message was occasionally displayed when crafting “Oreha Fusion Material” in the Stronghold Crafting Workshop.
• Fixed an issue where the Codex menu was occasionally not opened when clicking the "See Info" button from the item menu when linked in chat.
• Fixed an issue where all of the conditions for entering the Secret Space in “Gesbroy” were met, but it was intermittently impossible to enter under certain circumstances.
• Fixed an issue that caused tooltips to display a negative critical hit rate value or greater than 100%.
• Fixed an issue where presets would change according to what Integrated Preset was used for entering a normal dungeons when moving to Trixion.
• Fixed a rare issue where not enough enemies would spawn during certain phases in the "Gray Hammer Mine" dungeon in Bilbrin Forest.
• Fixed an issue where some NPCs were placed incorrectly in the “People are Pushed to the End of the Cliff” cinematic if watched from the Memory Chamber.
• Fixed an issue where Secret Maps on Shushire would occasionally display unintended elements.
• When using the Stronghold Sailor Application item outside of the Stronghold territory, the related achievement will now progress even if you do not enter the Stronghold.
• Reduced the difficulty on various T1 and T2 Tower levels.
• When using the Gunslinger's “Sharpshooter” tripods “Omnidirectional Fire” and “Guardian's Breath” at the same time, the hit effect of the “Omnidirectional Fire” tripod has been improved so that its hit effect is output first.
• When applying the “Raid Captain” engraving, decimal values applied to movement speed are now taken into account.
• Equipped Gems in the Gems tab in the Character Profile window cannot be selected or unequipped when the Dismantle or Fuse menus are displayed.
• Improved the display of component quantities for some boxed items.
• In the Proving Grounds, spectator background music has been improved to output consistently regardless of the character's position or spectator time.
• Fixed and removed awkward terrain features outside the arena on some Proving Grounds maps.
• Flotsam that appears in the Sea of Gienah have been updated to appear more frequently.
• Slightly moved the position of the Raid Commander Chat UI in the center of the screen to the top.
• When you have multiple Gems with the same effect in your inventory, the Gem item icon will now display the rising mark correctly.