Critical Changes Explained

Posted on December 15, 2020December 25, 2020 by Morgan_Shade

The New Critcal System Explained

Hello Wizards, Nathan Shadowbringer, and Scot Moonshade here! We’re going to explain the recent changes to Critical and Block. Today’s article will revisit the previous age’s Critical and delve into the new system. We will examine the formulas to calculate your Critical Chance and damage multiplier. Critical has undergone a lot of change in recent years, and this update brings a new era of Critical! Critical and Block were once a percentage-point based system. Now it’s changed to a dynamic framework involving both Critical and Block.

Disclaimer!

Before we begin, we need to make a quick disclaimer. According to Ratbeard’s Karamelle PvP Update #2, Critical in PvP is not calculated the same as in PvE. The formulas we used do not work for calculating Critical or Block in PVP. All the information below applies to PVE only. With that said, let’s get started!

Old Versus New

Before the 2020 Fall Update, Critical was well… more critical. There was a chance to critical and a chance to block—the Critical stat based itself on how high your rating was in the respective category. Landing a Critical would ensure that your attack would do twice the damage (or 1.33 times damage in PvP). The problem with the old system was that achieving a high Critical Rating was easier than Block. It was making Block obsolete compared to Critical. With the new changes, it’s more balanced.

The following variables represent the corresponding data sets:

c = Critical rating

b = Block rating

l = Level / 100, where l ≤ 1.

The changes to Critical involve two new formulas. Both equations depend on the attacker’s Critical and the defender’s Block. The first formula determines your Critical chance. Note that Critical chance and Block chance must always add to 100%. For example, if you have a Critical chance of 90%, your opponent would still have a 10% chance to Block.

If your attack doesn’t Critical, or if the enemy blocks, the calculation ends there. In this scenario, the second formula isn’t necessary. But, if you do land a Critical hit, then the second equation runs. This determines the Critical Multiplier. This formula relies on the attacker’s Critical and the defender’s Block. Further examples are available in KI Developer Ratbeard’s Dev Diary.

Critical heals also use the Critical Chance formula. But they’re based on your Critical Rating and the Block of the person you are healing. The only difference is, they cannot Block a heal but instead can “resist.” The higher your Block, the less you’ll get from a critical heal. Fortunately, the schools that have more Block also tend to lean towards a tank-type playstyle. Tank builds have more Health and Resistance, so they can afford to lose some of that incoming healing from the Critical. Regardless, the amount of extra healing uses the same critical multiplier formula. Remember, it’s still impossible to block a critical heal!

Spell Alterations

Another important note to these changes is the way Vengeance and Conviction work. Vengeance is an Astral spell that increases your Critical chance by 20% for four rounds. This bonus only affects your chance to Critical. It doesn’t affect the enemy’s Block or your damage multiplier. Conviction increases your stun resistance by 90% and Block chance by 20% for four rounds. This 20% increase only affects the possibility to block a Critical. It doesn’t affect the enemy’s chance to critical, nor does it lower the multiplier.

Charts and Calculations

There are a few basic formulas that can roughly estimate Critical and Block ratings. These formulas are interchangeable, and most involve moving numbers and variables around. The following equation presented removes the need for complex fractions. Here are two general procedures for determining Critical chance:

Much like the Critical percentage formula, the damage ratio also follows a function. In this case, the damage multiplier is equal to 2 – 3 * Block / (Critical + 3 * Block). See the formula below.

Here is an estimate of your Critical Chance against mobs with ninety block (blue) and two hundred-forty block (red). The green line at the top represents the Critical Chance soft cap at ninety-five percent.

Using these formulas, you can now find optimal Critical numbers for mobs and bosses. Karamelle mobs have around 90 Block while Karamelle bosses have at most 240 Block. Except for the final boss, it would seem.

What Does this Mean?

It’s important to remember that everything we’ve shown you is subject to change. Critical and Block in PvP are calculated differently than PvE.

Using these numbers, you can find your optimal amount of Critical; 570 Critical will get you up to 95% Critical against most mobs. Using the formula for Critical Multiplier, we suggest 630 Critical as a good general goal. This way, against monsters with 90 Block, you’ll Critical 95% of the time and get a 1.7 multiplier against them.

As we enter the “Third-Age” of Critical, there’s potential for more diverse character builds. An example of this could be full-damage pets as opposed to pets that have Critical and damage. These changes also give new life to the may-cast Vengeance talent. This update creates better balance and a more dynamic flow between Critical and Block, allowing players to customize stats to their unique play-style. Thanks for reading; we hope this helps you understand the changes and how they affect your Wizard. If you have questions, you can always find us around the community. That’s all for now, until next time, we’ll see you in the Spiral.

-Nathan Shadowbringer & Scot Moonshade

Pip Wizardry 2020

Posted on July 22, 2020November 4, 2020 by Ravenwood Community Guest Author

Pip Wizardry 2020!

Hello Wizards, this is Nathan Shadowbringer here to help you calculate the actual damage of spells per pip!

This article will be updated if spell changes happen down the line. Eventually, I plan for this list to include even Loremaster and crafted spells.

We will start with the highest Pip spells, and works our way down to the lowest ones. You will notice some of the spells are not a whole number. Why is that, you ask? Currently, Shadow-enhanced spells that use Shadow and standard Pips – have been changing. In the summer 2020 Test Realm, KI has confirmed that one Shadow Pip now equals 3.6 pips. This number is subject to change.

Before the 2020 Summer Update, Shadow enhanced spells had severe damage compared to non-shadow-enhanced spells. These spells went through changes to balance them. Shadow Pips previously never had an absolute value, but now they do thanks to the new spell changes! They are still powerful, but now within reason to normal spells of a similar rank.

Calculating Damage Per Pip

First, if the spell has a damage range, we must find the average damage. For example, let’s take the spell Storm Owl. Storm Owl is a ten Pip spell, that can do anywhere between 1330 – 1470 damage. Which, on average, is about 1400. I would divide 1400 by 10 to get the spell’s loss per Pip or DPP. Storm Owl would come out to be 140 DPP.

This can be represented by the formula: (damage)/(x-y).

Here you would take the spell’s average damage (based upon the values on the card), and divide it by the difference of its Pip cost (represented by the letter x) and its utility Pip cost (represented by the letter y) which we’ll get to in a moment.

So the math for Storm Owl would look like this:

(damage)/(x-y)

(1400)/(10-0)

1400/10

= 140

It seems simple, right? Not always. To get a spell’s true DPP, we have to factor in Pip reductions, and damage multipliers.

What Are Pip Reductions?

A Pip reduction is something factored into a spell’s DPP calculation. These reductions happen when a spell has an added effect or utility attached to it. When calculating DPP, some Pips may get subtracted.

For example, one type of Pip reduction is the scion condition. Scion spells cost 11 pips, and do x2 damage if a particular condition is met depending on the spell. Because Scion spells can do x2 damage, reducing their initial damage. Their base damage is around the damage of a ten Pip spell. See where I’m going with this?

The Scion Condition results in -1 Pip when calculating damage per pip. Yet, the Scion condition is not the only Pip reduction. There are, in fact, many more.

Types of Pip Reduction

The following list contains the types of Pip reductions along with how many Pips they reduce.

Special: 10% Pierce blade: -0 Pips
Rusulka’s Wrath blade/weakness: -0.5 Pips
800 Absorb: -1 Pip
Disarm: -1 Pip
Guiding Light: -1 Pip
Infection: -1 Pip
Pierce: -1 Pip
Remove 2 pips: -1 Pip
Scion Condition: -1 Pip
Steal 1 pip: -1 Pip
Stun: -1 Pip
Summon minion: -1 Pip
Trap: -1 Pip
Tower shield: -1 Pip

Bubble change: -2 Pips
Double Disarm: -2 Pips
Double stun: -2 Pips
Gain 1 pip: -2 Pips
Plague: -2 Pips
Pierce before hit: -2 Pips
Smokescreen (40% accuracy debuff to all enemies): -2 Pips
Spirit Shield + Elemental Shield: -2 Pips
Stun all: -2 Pips
45% Weakness: -2 Pips
AOE 45% Weakness -3 Pips

What This Means

These Pip reductions may NOT all be accurate, because determining the number of Pips a utility takes away is tricky. KI developer Mattnetic has said some utilities may cost less and others more. The issue is finding out which ones. Most pip reductions appear to be -1 one Pip, with AOE utilities such as Plague counting as -2. One for the utility, and one for the AOE effect. However, that still leave some loose ends, so allow me to to tie those up right now.

Because all King Artorius spells to get a 10% Pierce charm, the Pierce charm is not counted as a utility. Thus, every King Artorius spell gets it for free.

Rusalka’s Wrath gives either a 30% storm blade or a 30% Storm Weakness to the caster. Considering it has a chance to positively and negatively affect the caster, it was given 0.5 pips instead of 1.

Because the typical bubble would cost two pips, the Pip reduction is counted as two Pips.

Calculating the Pip reduction for an 800 Absorb was difficult. The actual Absorb spell is three pips for a 400 Absorb; therefore, wouldn’t it be counted as six Pips for an 800 Absorb? If so, then the DPP of Hungry Caterpillar would be extremely high. But that wouldn’t be, right? Would it? These things can be quite challenging.

What Are Damage Multipliers?

You factor in a damage multiplier after you calculate a Pip reduction. For example, a standard damage multiplier is an AOE, or area of effect. An AOE spell is when a spell hits all enemies. Let’s take the spell, Glowbug Squall. This spell is an AOE, and it does 940 damage to all enemies. It costs five regular Pips and one shadow Pip. A Shadow Pip currently equals 3.6 Pips; therefore, Glowbug Squall would be 8.6 Pips in total.

AOE spells have their damage multiplied by 0.75, or 3/4. To account for this spell being an AOE, we get the inverse of 3/4 and multiply by 4/3. Instead of dividing 940 by 8.6, we would multiply 940 by 4/3 first to get 1253.3. Now, we divide by 8.6. Finally, this makes the DPP of the spell Glowbug Squall 145.7.

Calculating Drain DPP

Calculating the damage multiplier for drains was difficult. Thanks to the new spell, Ship of Fools, we can now figure it. Ship of Fools has two routes you can go and upgrade using spellements. One is damage, and the other is a drain.

We can now accurately compare drain damage to typical damage. For example, the final tier of Ship of Fools. We found drains to suffer a 0.88% damage dropoff compared to pure damage. The final drain tier for Ship of Fools deals 330 damage. The final pure damage tier for ship of fools deals 375 damage. 330/375 is 22/25, 0.88, or 88%.

This rate stays consistent for each upgrade of Ship of Fools. Therefore, before we calculate a drain spell’s DPP, we have to multiply its damage by the inverse of 22/25, which would be 25/22, to find the true DPP.

Calculating DOT DPP

One more type of damage multiplier is “damage over time” or DOT. These spells have initial damage, and then the damage dealt over three rounds. Because this damage takes longer to deal, the damage is 25% higher than the average spell—DOT’s damage multiplies by 1.25. So, to find DPP of spells with DOT’s divide by 1.25 to get the final DPP value.

X rank spells like Tempest and Snowball Barrage are not affected by the AOE multiplier. Because they already have their damage per Pip value listed on the card.

What do the Devs say?

The first chart here is from Ratbeard’s Dev Dairy, it shows the individual base DPP for each school of magic. In addition to the new and old DPP for each school’s Shadow-enhanced spells.

With the damage per pip chart below, you will start to notice things with some spells above rank 7. The damage per pip curve caps off at eight Pips. It does not increase further. To account for this, rank eight spells and above get utility for cheaper then what a rank seven or lower would. They get these utilities at a 50% discount, compared to a rank seven or below spell.

There is one utility that does not get this discount, the Scion Condition, which remains at -1 Pip, not -0.5. The discounted utilities are bolded on the chart.

Another thing to note is rank seven spells DO NOT get penalized for being an AOE. They are purposefully over the damage curve. None of the things mentioned above apply to Shadow enhanced spells.

Formulas: (x = number of Pips and y = utility Pip cost)

AOE: [(damage)(4/3)] / (x – y)

DOT: [(damage)(0.8)] / (x – y)

Drain: [(damage)(25/22)] / (x – y)

If you’re interested in learning more about DPP you can check out Ratbeard’s Dev Dairy on the subject with this link! https://www.wizard101.com/game/dev-diary/spell-balance-audit

Final Notes

Moving forward the it’s important to keep this information in mind:

One Shadow Pip equals 3.6 pips
Storm base DPP is 125
Fire base DPP is 100
Myth base DPP is 90
Death and Balance base DPP is 85
Life and Ice base DPP is 83
DOTs have a damage multiplier of 1.25
Rank 7 spells are intentionally above the curve in DPP (no x4/3 AOE multiplier when calculating DPP)
DPP scales slowly as spells start to cost more Pips
Shadow enhanced spells have a higher DPP compared to regular spells.

We hope this article helps you to understand the logic behind the recent changes to the game and how they will help balance things going forward. Personally, I am excited to see what new spells will be possible now.

Thanks For Reading!

Special thanks to Shawn Fire and Dustin from the Ravenwood Community Discord for assisting me in the many calculations throughout this article. I would also like to thank KI developer Ratbeard for responding to my questions about DPP so quickly, he was extremely helpful! And, thank all of you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this article as much as I did writing it. If you did, please check out the other guides and information Ravenwood Academy has to offer. Let us know what you think and what your calculations find in the comments below, or at the Ravenwood Community!!

The Forgotten Lore of Celestia

Posted on June 15, 2020June 15, 2020 by Morgan_Shade

Warning Spoilers Ahead!

“Long ago, the Astral Wizards of Celestia created powerful magic using the energy of the Stars, the Moon, and the Sun.

The sorceress Morganthe, a Queen of the Shadow Web, wanted the secrets of Celestian magic at all costs. The Celestians refused her, so she raised a Dark Army and sent it against them. After decades of battle, the Astral Wizards realized their world would fall. They summoned the Storm Titan to defeat Morganthe’s legions and to bring their world safety.

The Storm Titan betrayed the Celestians by sinking their world beneath the Waves together with Morganthe’s invading forces. Realizing they were doomed, the Celestians raised mighty Domes to protect their treasured city from the waves, though it was too late. They perished along with Morganthe’s invading army. Celestia was lost to the Spiral, its Spiral Door closed forever.”

-KingsIsle Entertainment

From Fire to Water

Salutations once again Wizards and Pirates! Welcome to another installment of Forgotten Lore. We’ll be diving deep into the secrets you might have missed in your travels. Last time I told you the lost history of the fiery realm of Dragonspyre. Today I will tell you the secrets of Celestia. Let’s dive in!

Celestia was the first world of Wizard101’s second story arc launching in the summer of 2010. The new world introduced the three Astral schools to the game. This world inspires thoughts of the lost city of Atlantis.

There are secrets hidden throughout Celestia, written upon the walls. Hidden in plain sight lie interesting niches of its ancient society and culture. Celestia, much like Dragonspyre, is an ancient world that also fell victim to destruction by titanic forces. But the possible reality behind the reason for the summoning of the titan may surprise you. So sit back, relax and let me tell you a story…

Celestia and its People

They say that the Celestians were an incredibly advanced magical society. Many say they were ahead of their time. Its people were both powerful and wise. Peaceful, intelligent beings. They were devout in the pursuit of knowledge across a wide array of subjects not only astral magic. A culture of Wizards and inventors creating magical contrivances. Items to aid in their everyday lives. They were a culture of people who looked closely at the effects of their choices. Not only upon themselves but the Spiral as well.

The Origins of the Spheres

However, the story of Celestia’s beginning starts with Bartelby and Raven. They say in the “Light of the Spiral” that Bartelby and Raven set two shinning spheres within the darkness. Bartelby’s was golden and illuminated the sky around it. Raven’s was silver and cold and unable to push back the darkness around it. From there the “Tome of the Sun” recounts the arrival of the sun avatar, Mithraya, and her command to build a great hall. It would later become the Trial of the Spheres. We know this as fact as Mithraya still resides in her Solar Sanctum to this day.

The Celestians would rise around it. Mastering the powers of astral magic and fiercely guarding its secrets. The people of Celestia would go on to become one of the most advanced societies in all the Spiral. Expanding their knowledge of the universe, creating a myriad of magical wonders. Always exploring into unknown. A Celestian, Phaeton, would oversee the construction of the Solarium, Lunarium, and Stellarium. These would serve as hallowed ground for the Celestians. Standing as houses of learning, and symbols of Celestian knowledge.

A Gap In Time

This is where the early history of Celestia ends. Anything between this period and the war against Morganthe vanished. As a result of Celestia sinking beneath the waves, everything disappeared. What might have been is generally unknown. Events that might have transpired? The marvels of the Celestian’s contrivances? The Celestians advances in the realms of magic, science, and society all disappeared. This is until new information emerges. Until then one thing is certain. Most of Celestia’s history lies not in its murky beginning, but rather in its unfortunate demise.

The Beginning of the End

Morganthe’s arrival spurred the beginning of the end for the Celestians. When she arrived, she demanded the secrets of astral magic from the Celestians. They were quick to deny her. Infuriated, Morganthe resolved to achieve mastery of the astral schools at any cost. So she amassed an army to take such knowledge by force. Thus, it was the beginning of the war between Celestia and the forces of the Shadow Web.

The siege of Celestia dragged on. Casualties began to pile on either side, and the Celestian’s strength began to wane. Morganthe’s forces had weakened them significantly. They were uncertain of how much longer they could hold off the enemy. So the Celestians turned to a fickle and unreliable ally, the Storm Titan.

Summoning a Titan is a risky business! No mortal beings have ever been successful in commanding one and lived to tell the tale. And the Celestians knew this. So, they created massive obelisks, visible around the District of Stars. Created to emit a magical barrier protecting some of their grand city from the Titan’s wrath. The Celestians beseeched the Titan to save their world and take them to a place of safety. Instead, the Titan betrayed them and dragged Celestia beneath the ocean. Wiping out the remaining Celestians and Morganthe invaders.

The Crustacean Empire

Time dragged on and slowly the submerged ruins of the once-great city came to be inhabited once more. A new Empire that would make quick allies of the barbaric Piscean and Lophian tribes. They built the center of their empire around the lost places of the ancient Celestian’s power. By doing so, the Empire would bring some level of peace to the sunken ruins. Supported by Piscean and Lophian mercenaries, Crustaceans maintained their power over the seas. Despite their best attempts, they were not particularly proficient in the art of building empires. The Crustacean Empire would go on to lose its strength, as its allies grew weary.

Some would still come in search of the now-lost city. As did the Queen Calypso, laden with treasure. Whether passing through or seeking to add to their haul, the ship and her crew crashed. Forever vanishing beneath the waves. Its treasures, seized by the Crustaceans, who used it to threaten the crew into submission.

The Rediscovery

Once again, time would move on and the location of Celestia became lost to the Spiral. That is, until a certain Thurston Plunkett rediscovered the world. With the support of the Spiral Geographical Society, Plunkett secured a ship and crew. He then led an archeological expedition to Celestia. They were hoping to learn it’s secrets. Plunkett thought they might even determine exactly what caused its disappearance.

The Skyship Explorer would be shot down upon arrival. Crashlanding on the Floating Land, the crew and expedition became lost and separated. Despite this setback, Plunkett and most of the remaining expedition would carry on. They began the construction of several exploratory underwater domes. Once completed and drained the archeological exploration of Celestia would begin. Unbeknownst to the expedition, in rediscovering Celestia they had angered the Crustacean Empire. They also opened the door once more to Morganthe and her forces. The Crustaceans and Shadow Web would come, to put a stop to the exploration. They would raid the uncovered ruins, splitting up the remaining Marleybonians. A distress call would go out across the Spiral and only a certain Wizard in Wizard City would hear it.

What Happened to the Celestians?

That would end the story of Celestia. But too many questions remain. What was the ancient city of Celestia like? What do the inscriptions all over Celestia mean? Why summon the Storm Titan if it was going to sink the city anyway?

Having gone to great lengths to find answers to these questions. I cannot so easily keep these thoughts confined to my mind so allow me to elaborate.

Keep in mind that what follows is strictly theory and may or may not be the actual in-game case.

Not as Dead as We Think...

I find it strange how little actual information we have on the Celestians themselves. Where is their history, their culture, their people? We have bits and pieces but very few full works. Being a society devoted heavily to the pursuit of knowledge and magic the amount of concrete information we have is shockingly small. On top of this, I find it strange that the Celestians would try to save their knowledge. While at the same time trying to keep it from Morganthe.

Celestia was under heavy siege by Morgantine forces who would stop at nothing to claim Celestia’s secrets. The Celestians allegedly realized they were doomed, so why try to save their knowledge? Why not spite Morganthe and ensure she would never have Celestia’s magic by destroying it all? Where is Celestia’s history? Why is the distress signal we receive from Plunket’s expedition written in Celestian? The answer to these questions is simple: the Celestians have or had plans to return.

Alaric Moonsunder, a Celestian ghost, stated that the Storm Titan was an unreliable ally, or was it? I would argue that the fate of Celestia was not so much an accident as it was a calculated decision. They were facing certain doom, with Morganthe’s forces threatening to take the secrets of Astral Magic by force. For the good of the Spiral, it would’ve made more sense for the Celestians to destroy everything. If only to keep it from Morganthe. The only logical reason, in the face of certain doom, anyone might try to save critical pieces of their society is if they intended to flee and come back for it later. According to KingsIlse the sinking of Celestia killed the Celestians along with Morganthe’s army.

The more I think about it the more I wonder, did the Celestians try to escape?

Gone but Not Forgotten

It would make logical sense to move everyone who could not fight to safety. Knowing their love of wisdom, the Celestians could (and likely did) take a large part of their expertise with them. The statue of Phaeton in the Solarium calls our style of magic primitive and crude but effective. Perhaps to imply our current understanding of astral magic is but the tip of the iceberg and that more advanced techniques exist beyond our knowledge.

Given how advanced the Celestians were with magic and knowing that their chart of the Grand Spiral allegedly contains worlds that are beyond our knowledge, they could have moved the more vulnerable population alongside their most sensitive secrets to a different world. One that was, and may still be, completely unknown to rest of the Spiral. In-game we don’t encounter any civilian ghosts. The Celestian spirits we come to interact with are soldiers or their constructs.

On top of this there’s the matter of Qyburn Stellargaze in the Arcanum. He remarked in his Bio back in February of 2017 that he hasn’t been home to Celestia in at least a millennium or two. Provided Qyburn is being serious with that remark, that would mean the Celestians are not only an ancient people but also long-lived ones as well. This adds an interesting layer to the entire situation, allow me to paint the entire picture.

morganthes invasion

Morganthe invades after being denied Astral magic. As the siege drags on, the Celestians move their civilians to the safety of another world. A world known only to the Celestians (likely one from their Grand Spiral chart). Being so long-lived they could simply wait out the Morgantine invasion if things didn’t go as planned. In the process the Celestians also take any of their knowledge that isn’t nailed down. Taking the most important and portable objects: books, tomes, scrolls, and etc., things which likely pertained to history, magic, and culture. While leaving behind the less critical things. Writings on less important and less sensitive subjects and things that couldn’t be easily relocated. Such as the Astral Archivist, obelisks, monoliths, carvings, pedestals, frescos, and so on. This would explain why we don’t encounter any civilian ghosts. It also explains why we don’t have a lot of information on Celestia’s history before Morganthe’s invasion.

If the Celestians won the war they likely planned to send some form of transmission. Letting their remaining people know that it was safe to return. That might explain why the Expedition’s distress signal appeared in Celestian characters. In case Morganthe or any other unsavory characters were listening they arranged to send a message only their people could read.

As the Celestian soldiers continued to fight off Morganthe’s forces, they began to realize they might not outlast her onslaught. To cut off enemy reinforcements the Celestians formulated a plan to summon the Storm Titan. Knowing the possible risks involved they constructed obelisks that would emit a protective magical barrier around the most important locations in their world, like the District of the Stars (which houses the Stellarium and Astral Archives).

If the Titan fought with them as planned Morganthe’s army wouldn’t stand a chance. But, if something went wrong the Celestian’s could retreat to the safety of their magical domes and let the Titan wreak havoc on Morganthe’s army. When the Titan betrayed the Celestians unexpectedly, there wasn’t time for the retreat. Both sides perished as a result, which might explain why we don’t see any Celestian spirits or Shadow Web spirits inside the District of the Stars.

The Last Nail

Because there was no one left, no message was sent and so Celestia faded into obscurity until the Marleybonians arrived. Perhaps we weren’t the only ones to receive Thurston Plunkett’s SOS. If any Celestians were listening, the mere mention of the Shadow Queen’s return, it would be more than enough to keep them where they are. If this theory is true there could be a remote population of Celestians in some hidden corner of the Spiral. Waiting, patiently, for the day they can finally return home.

Reading the Celestian's Writing

It is fascinating to note, that the various inscriptions found on walls, obelisks, and other objects throughout Celestia are not gibberish. These symbols are a monoalphabetic substation cipher, meaning for every letter of our alphabet there is a corresponding character that never changes. So, while the individual symbols are different any message or word written in the cipher will always directly correspond to the other set of characters, for example, the word “loom” is written and spelled with the same corresponding characters in either script. If you know all the characters or have the translation key to the cipher cracking the code is a cinch, and the inscriptions on the Stone of Mazzaroth give us just that.

The Stone of Mazzaroth

While there are multiple scripts on the stone of Mazzaroth, the sentences are all the same “Sphinx of black quartz judge my vow”. These words weren’t chosen because they make an awesome mysterious message. They were chosen so that every letter of the alphabet would be used. This gives us an effective key to decode the messages hidden throughout Celestia and Grizzlehiem. We will look at Grizzleheim another day.

Our first major exposure to Celestian symbols is the SOS transmission from Sir Thurston Plunkett. At first, it might seem like a jigsaw of what appears to be meaningless characters. But the message we see before acquiring the stone does perfectly decode to its English version with or without the stone. Provided you’re particularly gifted in the ways of code-cracking. The message regardless of storyline progression says this:

“Mayday mayday this is Thurston Plunkett representing the Spiral Geographic Society seeking assistance our survey expedition is stranded on Celestia”.

“We are under attack”

“Send help immediately the Umbra Queen has returned it is the work of Mor…”

This message comes to us as a bit of a freebie, or rather proof the code works. Beyond that, we barely have any more direct contact or use for these symbols.

More Messages

Thurston’s SOS is not the only Celestian text you’ll ever lay eyes on in your journey. If you have a sharp eye you can find all sorts of things written throughout Celestia.

I should mention that the process of decoding these messages can be very tedious. The process often involved the use of weird camera positioning and photomancy. So we could get as close as physically possible to the writings.

Furthermore, some of these decoded messages have been corrected to make more sense. While translating the code, one will find situations where there’s a noticeable absence of a word that should be present. It is almost always the word “The”. There might also be areas where two words merge or are stuck together. For example, the words void and star written together as Voidstar. Which in context to surrounding words causes the sentence to break and stop making sense. Besides that, there is also a distinct lack of punctuation and missing spaces in most of these messages.

These issues aren’t necessarily glitches, oversights, or bad grammar. They are likely problems the game designers had. Trying to stretch, shape, fit, and render the characters onto objects with limited space. That said, here are all the messages I have found thus far and their respective locations so you can see them for yourselves.

The Celestian Base Camp

There are two major legible messages that you can find in the Celestian Base Camp. The first one is around the edges of the Grand Astrolabe which says:

*The sun is a hearth to warm against the cold*

*The stars are the birthplace of imagination*

*The moon is a signal of hope in the night*

The second message is around all of the Astral School Trainer obelisks. Base Camp, Stellarium, Lunarium, and Solarium. They say the following:

*The ending pillar*

The District of the Stars

The District of the stars contains a multitude of inscriptions on various objects. In the Chantry, there is a model of the Spiral surrounded by a ring of tablets with names of each world carved into them. Wizard City, Krokotopia, Mooshu, Dragonspyre, Grizzleheim, and Celestia. Inside the Astral Archives, you can observe a series of twelve paintings each labeled with their respective titles. The Warden, The Chariot, The Loom, The Messenger, and so forth. Finally, in the main area where you first arrive there’s a large obelisk in the center of the roaming Piscean mobs. Don’t worry you can this object can be safely approached from the left and right sides. When repaired, through the progression of the storyline, it reads as follows:

*Stars guide us through the void*

*Our passage written in the stars*

*We will never falter on the path*

Stormriven Hall

The last major location to find Celestian messages lies in Stormriven Hall. In the areas beneath the Pylon Bosses, you can find a pair of tunnels on opposite ends of the area. One collapsed while the other is completely open and tranversable. The writing found within translates to the following:

*The suns flame dispels doubt*

*The moon’s light inspires us*

*Our passage is in the stars*

*We swear to seek the truth*

*We must not fear the unknown*

*We will never falter on the path*

*In the dark the moon grants us hope*

*Stars guide through the void*

*In the sun we find purity*

Bonus Piece!

Across the entirety of Celestia, on the trims of many floors, walls, and ceilings, you can find the words “Moon Sun Stars” written repeatedly in that order.

As a nice final touch, the message written beneath the name of the world in this image says:

*Beneath the waves the stars still shine*

While I may have searched Celestia from top to bottom for these messages, its very possible I may have missed some. If you have found any more messages in your adventures please share them below, I do enjoy these sorts of things.

Thanks for Reading!

That is all I have on the world of Celestia for the moment.

I would like to give a shout out to Brad Baker who suggested we visit Celestia in the last article. I would also like to offer a special thanks to those here at Ravenwood Academy. They help edit, create images, and make this article possible.

I implore you to read some of our other articles and share them with other Wizard101 fans! There’s also a Ravenwood Academy page on Facebook and Twitter. Like and follow them to stay up to date on the latest guides and articles. We also have a wonderful Ravenwood Community Discord server, just search Wizard101 in your Discord App.

I hope you enjoyed this article and if you did please comment down below as I enjoy reading what others have to say. I do believe our next stop in this series will take us to a favorite world of mine, Grizzleheim.

Until next time, stay tuned, see you in the Spiral!

~Shade

Forgotten Lore of Dragonspyre

Posted on December 18, 2019November 18, 2020 by Morgan_Shade

Warning! Spoilers Lie Ahead!

“Dragonspyre is an ancient, haunted world in which renegade professor Malistaire has recently been spotted!

Once an advanced militant society, Dragonspyre had an esteemed Academy rivaling that of the Ravenwood School of Magical Arts in Wizard City. The inhabitants once held a special interest in Fire Magic.

Legend has it that in the summoning of a great Dragon, the world was destroyed and changed forever. Its great buildings and stone columns crumbled before the coming of the Dragon Titan.

Now, it has become a land of fire, lava, and ghosts.“

-KingsIsle Entertainment

Welcome!

Greetings and Salutations Wizards and Pirates of the Spiral! I am Shade, allow me to welcome you to the first installment of “Forgotten Lore.” In this new series, we will explore the lore of the Spiral, and uncover secrets you might have missed. Let’s begin!

Dragonspyre was the first new world added to Wizard101. Unveiled in early 2009, it came only four months after the game’s initial release. Looking at Dragonspyre through a real-world lens, its inspiration seems to come from ancient Rome. Its architecture has distinct Roman elements, such as columns and archways. Many of Dragonspyres areas use Roman words like Basilica, Forum, Athenaeum, and Necropolis. Meanwhile, its NPC’s take influence from the Russian Military.

It seems clear that the developers meant for Dragonspyre to be very different from the worlds that came before it. So, they opted for a fiery and foreboding dark fantasy theme. The destroyed state of the world might make one think of Pompeii. Which, as we know, was buried beneath volcanic ash when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 C.E.

Dragonspyre’s civilization is ancient, predating both Wizard City and Merle Ambrose. It was also home to Dragonspyre Academy. A rival of the Ravenwood School of Magical Arts during its time. This world is also the home-world of some key players. Cyrus, Malistaire, and Sylvia Drake (born Sylvia Spitfire) are all from Dragonspyre. It is also the home of the infamous Loremaster and houses the grand finale of Wizard101’s first story arc.

But how did Dragonspyre become what it is today? Why did these things happen?

Given Dragonspyre’s current state of disarray, its lore has required some effort to reassemble. After investigating countless sources, I have re-constructed the most probable sequence of events.

So, without further ado, sit back, relax, and let me tell you the story….

Dragonspyre and Century War

In the beginning, Dragons and Humans lived side by side, but humanity lived in constant fear. One-night, King Mene met in secret with the Queen of the Drakes, Gavarena. They allied Man and Drake. Together they would overcome the Dragons and drive them out. A new kingdom would be born. In light of their victory, they named this Kingdom Dragonspyre.

The Kingdom continued to grow after Mene’s passing. Later, King Jurgen expanded Dragonspyre’s borders. Man and Drake worked together to protect the realm. It was an age of peace but it was not to last. King Jurgen passed away suddenly, with no children. Without an heir to the throne, Dragonspyre fell into a civil war that lasted 100 years. This would be forever known as the Century War.

Kylgore and the Golden Age

The war came to an end by the efforts of Kylgore the Magnificent and a Drake, named Leneth the Great. They worked together to defeat a mighty black dragon in Dragonspyre’s outer ring. Exactly how Kylgore achieved this victory remains a mystery. After his triumph, Kylgore claimed the throne and put an end to the war. An age of peace finally descended on Dragonspyre.

Kylgore’s rule brought many changes to Dragonspyre. Significant advancements in culture were made, and explorations of the sciences began. New magical advancements, including the creation of Knowledge Crystals, began in Kylgores reign.

Kylgore and His Descendants

King Kylgore forged a friendship with Aurelius Ambrosius, leader of the Druidic Treeminders. As a gift, Aurelius gave Kylgore seven saplings from Ravenwood. The King planted the magical trees throughout Dragonspyre. They would later become the trees of Dragonspyre Academy. To commemorate their friendship, Kylgore ordered the construction of a statue of Aurelius.

The Beginning of the Academy

Generations passed, and the Kingdoms’ knowledge remained locked away, seen only by royalty. King Kylgore descendants, King Betrin and Prince Viggor, clung to that tradition. They hoped to keep their secrets from falling into unworthy hands. But then, Rydall the Conqueror infected his people with an alchemical plague. Mobs of the afflicted revolted in the city streets. Something had to change if Dragonspyre was to survive.

Duke Sebastian came forward and fought with the monarchy for the right to search the knowledge crystals for a cure. He sent a champion, Iona Pyrelance, to do battle against King Betrin. Iona won the battle! Duke Sebastian’s bravery caused the laws to be overturned. Knowledge would become accessible to the masses, and Dragonspyre Academy was born. All who qualified were welcome within its walls. The people, armed with this new knowledge, overcame Rydall’s Plague, and the rebellion finally ceased.

The Tragedy of Viggor's Legion

Some embrace change, while others fear it. While Rydall’s Plague ravaged his homeland, Prince Viggor set out in the hopes of building Dragonspyre’s Empire anew. With his Drake and General Greyflame at his side, they would lead an army of soldiers on a perilous journey. Their plan? To conquer the magical realms of the Ravenwood and the Treeminders who lived there. Viggor’s mission would start a war with the Treeminders. Turning a once peaceful people into a society as evil as the invaders they sought to drive out.

There were massive casualties in the conflict between the Dragonspyrians and the Treeminders. Destroyed were the Ravenwood, its magical trees (except for Bartelby), and Viggor’s army. A man named Gregor would be the final soldier to fall. The remains of the deceased forces would never return to Dragonspyre.

The Aftermath

The few surviving Treeminders remained to plant new magic trees. They buried their dead in catacombs deep beneath Wizard City. When it was over, the survivors fled to the worlds of Albion and Avalon. The lost Knowledge Crystals buried within the catacombs contain a record of those events.

Soon after, Dragonspyre Academy became the center for knowledge in the Kingdom. Much of their curriculum devoted to the study of war, combat, and pyromancy. Dragonspyre’s dislike of Wizard City could have come from the anger over Viggor’s tragic failure.

Aldared the Usurper

Like fire, knowledge can be dangerous when placed in the wrong hands. A graduate of Dragonspyre Academy by the name of Aldared proved this. He used his advanced knowledge to unseat the King of Dragonspyre and became known as Aldared the Usurper. His rule was as cruel as it was brutal, and the people despised him.

Founding of the Great Council

The people of Dragonspyre suffered under Aldared’s tyranny until a group of Wizards and Warriors laid siege to the Usurper’s palace. Katia Firewinter, Eliena (the legendary Drake), and Drannik the Shrouded Wizard were among them. Aldared was, at long last, cast down and his soul safely trapped within a Knowledge Crystal. Drannik attempted to seize control of the throne but was cut down by Katia. With the threat gone, she began working with her fellow mages and warriors to create a new government. The Great Council, also known as the Council of Wizards, Warriors, and King, would come from her efforts.

The Council of Wizards and Warriors

While Aldared may have died, his influence remained. Kildare, a Wizard of the Great Council, became corrupted by Aldared’s crystal. Valerik Brightsword discovered this treachery and defeated Kildare swiftly. While Kildare’s defeat came before he could do much harm, the damage was done. Fear and paranoia began to settle in among the members of the Great Council.

As time passed, the power of the King diminished, and members of the Council began to bicker for control. People were fearful of the Wizards, their magic, and their crystals. They spurred a great Warrior named Lyon to action. He led a group of fellow Warriors to demand control of all the spells in Dragonspyre.

Whether the reasons for Lyon’s actions were justifiable or out of a desire for power, no one knows. Regardless, the matter came to the attention of the Council. When the Council denied Lyon, he betrayed them in broad daylight.

Lyon challenged the leader of the Wizards, Rurik Flamesoul, to a fight. After a vicious battle, Rurik proved victorious. He would become the only Wizard to best a Warrior in open combat. His victory would secure the Wizard’s control over the magic of Dragonspyre.

The Fall of Dragonspyre

Time went on, and the Wizards began to fear those who challenged their power. Vladimir Darkflame, Dean of Admissions at Dragonspyre Academy, decided to take matters into his own hands. He gathered a group of conspirators, Andor Bristleback, Devora Shadowcrown, and Zora Steelwielder. Together, they orchestrated the coup of the century. They kidnapped the Academy’s Professors, and summoned the Dragon Titan. The traitors were apprehended and detained within the Labyrinth. But, the summoning of the ancient Fire Titan could not be undone.

The Titan rose from its slumber, and the razing of Dragonspyre began. The Dragon Titan summoned its army within the city walls, taking the defenders by surprise. Boris Blackrock, the Obsidian Golem, did battle against the Dragon Titan. Using the knowledge his mage creators left him, Boris faced the Titan in single combat. But, the Obsidian Golem fell, as would many others in the wake of the Titan’s chaos. To commemorate his sacrifice, Boris became the last great hero to be buried within the Necropolis.

The Final Assault

Dragonspyre’s defenders retreated to the Academy as the Titan’s army advanced. When the Fire Titan led its final assault upon the Academy, everything was laid to waste. All that survived was the Fire Tree, Ashley, and the Fire School, whether this was out of mercy or respect no one knows.

When and how the Titan’s onslaught came to an end is a mystery. What is certain is that the Dragon Titan has become a colossal stone statue coiled around the volcano. Its armies remain, waiting in vain for someone or something worthy of leading them. Dragonspyre is forever changed, and whether it will ever recover from its fate remains to be seen.

Endgame Arc One

Spoiler Warning!

It would be many years before Malistaire Drake returned to Dragonspyre. When he did he held in his hands the stolen Krokonomicon, and in his heart the vain hope of waking the Titan and restoring his beloved wife, Sylvia to life. Pulled toward the Crown of Fire, at the volcano’s summit, Malistaire began his ritual.

His twin brother Cyrus traveled alongside the Savior of Wizard City, to Dragonspyre. Cyrus attempted to reason with his brother, summoning the spirit of Sylvia to assist him. Unfortunately, this only angered Malistaire further and the necromancer banished his brother. The Savior of Wizard City would be forced to duel him for the fate of the Spiral.

After a perilous battle, the young Wizard triumphed (as predicted). Malistaire ultimately perished and was finally reunited with his lost love! Hand in hand, Malistaire, and Sylvia departed together for the Other Side. At least until Morganthe woke him up, and the whole Darkmoor incident, but that’s a story for another time.

Thanks for reading!

Well, that’s all on the world of Dragonspyre. For now, at least.

I’d like to give a special thanks to the team here at Ravenwood Academy who helped make this possible (as ghosts can be tricky things to photomance)!

Since this is the first article in this series, I’d like to know: would you like to hear more about the lore of the Spiral? If so, what would you like to see next? I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions in the comments below.

In the meantime, please feel free to explore the wealth of information Ravenwood Academy has to offer! If you want to stay up to date on our latest content, follow us on Facebook and Twitter. You can also join our Ravenwood Community Discord to meet fellow Wizard101 fans and enthusiasts!

See you in the Spiral!

-Morgan Shade

Wizard101 Theory: The Coven Conspiracy

Posted on November 13, 2019November 13, 2019 by Fable Finder

Hello, I’m Fable Finder! Join me as we ponder the depths of a conspiracy. We’ll gaze into the shadows, exposing the hidden secrets. The secrets that ripple throughout the Spiral, leaving only questions in their wake. I present to you, Wizard101 Theory: The Coven Conspiracy.

Our wizard is first sent to Grizzleheim at Level 20. Merle Ambrose wishes to establish an alliance with their King. When we arrive, we must prove our worth by helping Bjorn Ironclaws. He sends us to his friend, Hagen Shieldbreaker, who gives us many quests towards this end. We learn about a mysterious group, the Coven, who seek to unleash the Everwinter. Later on in Wintertusk, the Coven works to unleash the Everwinter by awakening Ymir. When you think about it, this effort doesn’t make sense. Why would the Coven want to unleash the Everwinter?

In the quest “A Wolf Among Bears”, Osric Grimbold tells us about Wulfric Foesbane. Wulfric is a wolf who has allied themselves with the bears. When we go to speak with Wulfric, this is what he tells us:

Notice how Wulfric remarked that it is foolish to trust a raven. This remark is important in revealing cultural distrust to the Ravens. This also suggests that Ravens have a history of trickery in this world. Why else would a lack of trust exist? Wulfric’s skepticism proves to be correct in the quest “All is Revealed”. Munin, a member of the Ravens, confesses the following when the Dust of Discovery is cast upon him:

Yet, in Wintertusk, it is none other than a raven, Grandmother Raven, who is helping us put a stop to the Coven. Could Grandmother Raven be the one who is behind the Coven? In the quest, “Fishes & Loaves”, Grandmother Raven directs us to Henrek Graincutter. Henrek’s role in the story is to help our wizard find Vestri’s Golden Seal. When we go to speak with Henrek, this is what he tells us:

This may not seem like much, but remember that all lines of dialogue in the game are important to the story. KingsIsle added that dialog for a reason: it is a hint. Why would Grandmother Raven be behind the Coven though? Even if she was, how would this explain why the Coven wanted to unleash the Everwinter? To answer these questions, we must examine the nature of Grandmother Raven’s powers. In the quest “A Potion for Bartleby”, Merle Ambrose explains the following:

This tells us that Grandmother Raven has the power to create objects that can show the past and future. If she has this power, why would she only give Bartleby this ability? We can assume that she gave herself this ability as well. Grandfather Spider, equal in power to Grandmother Raven, most likely did the same. But, how exactly do the past-viewing and future-revealing powers work?

The power to see into the past does not appear to have any constraints in the game. This is not the case for the power to reveal the future; it has its vagueness. Let’s assume for a moment that the power to reveal the future has no constraints whatsoever. Bartleby would foresee the fight between Raven and Spider that takes place in the Third Arc. Why didn’t he try to stop it? In the First Arc, Bartleby could stop Malistare Drake from awakening the Dragon Titan. Why didn’t he try to stop that, either?

If we assume the power to reveal the future has no constraints, there would be no story. Thus, logic dictates that the power to reveal the future has a constraint. First, the future is indeterminate. This power does not reveal one defined future, but only possible futures. Second, this power cannot see endlessly into the future. It must have some sort of time-frame. Thus, the farther into the future, the vaguer the outcome becomes. This would also explain why prophecies are as vague as they are.

So how is this relevant to Grandmother Raven and the Coven? Well, the first time we meet Grandmother Raven in person, in the quest “That’s So Raven”, we find her trapped in a cage.

When Grandmother Raven is finally freed in the quest “Root of the Loom”, she remarks about her time spent in the cage.

In the quest “Norn Time”, the Norns explain that only an outsider can free Grandmother Raven.

Grandmother Raven would not sit dormant through free will. Most people, when imprisoned, would search for ways to escape. So, what escape attempt did Grandmother Raven make?

Grandmother Raven used her future-revealing power to assess all her possible futures. Her best chance relied on an outsider to free her from imprisonment. She pondered about how to actualize this possible future. In the quest “That’s So Raven”, Grandmother Raven tells us this:

So, Grandmother Raven knew about us and our heroism. By creating a world crisis in Grizzleheim, she could attract an outsider to come and free her. With this in mind, Grandmother Raven created the Ravens of the Coven to act in her stead. She made the Ravens seek to unleash the Everwinter, as well as made them hate her to throw the trail off. I doubt the Coven is aware that they are being used by Grandmother Raven. When we defeated the Coven the first time, we did not end up freeing Grandmother Raven. So later on, she let loose the Coven on Wintertusk, so we would end up freeing her. Then, with her main goal achieved, she helped us put a stop to the threat she created.

There is one hole in this theory, and you may have noticed it. As I showed earlier in this post, when we meet Grandmother Raven in person for the first time, she is in a cage. Yet, she claims that the Coven trapped her in the cage. If this is true, it would contradict the theory. But this story is implausible. How could the Coven, a group of ordinary sorcerers, trap Grandmother Raven, who is a divine being, in a cage? It’s likely that Grandfather Spider, the Rat, or the Scorpion trapped Grandmother Raven. It’s more likely that she lied about who trapped her to make us doubt the possibility that she created the Coven. The Rat and the Scorpion are candidates because they are the offspring of deity. We’ve also learned, through the story, that lower-divine beings can challenge greater ones.

In conclusion, the Coven is a false flag operation perpetrated by Grandmother Raven. Her motivation for it was to free her from imprisonment. Now that is a scheme within a scheme, as Henrek Graincutter put it.

More Theories

Wizard101 Theory

Have you ever wondered if Sylvia Drake actually died of a cold? Why did the Coven want to unleash the Everwinter on Grizzleheim? Does being the Scion of Bartleby actually mean anything, or is it just a replay of the Chosen One trope?…

A Tale of Three Scions

In the middle of Empyrea, the game reveals that the main hero of our story is the Scion of Bartleby. What does this mean? On the surface, it appears that this is simply a replay of the Chosen One trope. This is true, but it’s not the entire story. When you critically examine all the facts that we have been given, we are left with more questions than answers….

The Absence of Being

The Third Arc is about a conflict between Grandmother Raven and Grandfather Spider. Both of them posed a threat to the Spiral during this time. They are finally reconciled at the end of Empyrea, and lock themselves in the Primordial Forest. After this, our Wizard returns to the Arcanum to bring everyone up to speed. When we arrive, we receive a cryptic prophecy from Sybil, the Tree of Knowledge in the Arcanum….

So there are my thoughts on the Conspiracy of the Cabal, and links to my other theories. I hope you enjoyed our walk into the shadows. Let me know in the comments what your thoughts are!

The Absence of Being

Posted on July 18, 2019November 7, 2019 by Fable Finder

Hello, I’m Fable Finder.

[…]

This is an essential scene that must be understood when trying to predict what the Fourth Arc will be about. Since all lines of dialogue in the game have been choreographed, they were all put there for a reason. Thus, interpretations of this scene will be assessed based on how well they abide by the following rules:

Rule One

The threat we will face in the Fourth Arc relates to the “Nothing” Sybil spoke of, so understanding what that means is paramount.

Rule Two

Observe what Ione said in response to Sybil. This is a hint that the threat of the Fourth Arc will arise as a result of thwarting Raven and Spider.

Rule Three

Ione’s response was also a hint saying that the threat of the Fourth Arc will be much, much worse than the threat of the Third Arc.

Rule Four

Sam Johnson, KingsIsle’s Lead Creative Designer, stated in an interview that he wanted the Fourth Arc to be “fundamentally different” from the other arcs in structure.

Apocalyptic Interpretation

This interpretation is the simplest and takes what Sybil said at face value. If the Spiral got destroyed, it would be replaced by “Nothing”. Thus, the “Nothing” Sybil warned us about is the aftermath of the Spiral’s destruction.

How well does this interpretation abide by the rules? While this interpretation could potentially fulfill Rule Two, it violates Rule Three. The threat of the Third Arc was the destruction of the Spiral, so facing the threat again would be nothing new. For the same reason, it also violates Rule Four.

False Security Interpretation

I came up with this interpretation. What if the “Nothing” Sybil warned us about is the appearance of nothing? When the Fourth Arc begins, it will seem like there is nothing to be afraid of. We will have a false sense of security. However, there will be a traitor in the midst plotting something sinister, and we won’t find out until later.

How well does this interpretation abide by the rules? Well, this interpretation is yet to be complete.

First, how will the threat of the Fourth Arc arise as a result of thwarting Raven and Spider? Raven and Spider were thwarted when they reconciled and locked themselves in the Primordial Forest. Therefore, the threat of the Fourth Arc will arise either as a result of Raven and Spider reconciling, as a result of Raven and Spider locking themselves in the Primordial Forest, or both.

We must remember that the Cabal is still in play. We have yet to enter the “Cabal Room” in the Arcanum. KingsIsle would not have put that there unless we were going to explore it.

Second, while some members of the Cabal may have given up after the reconciliation of Raven and Spider, it’s entirely plausible that some of them would stay loyal to the cause. In fact, wouldn’t you think that the reconciliation of Raven and Spider would anger the Cabal, and make them even more determined to achieve their goal?

The first possibility is that as a result of Raven and Spider reconciling, the Cabal is angered and becomes more determined. Whoever the traitor is, most likely an important character from Ravenwood or the Arcanum, they will be in league with the Cabal. Either they were in league all along, or the Cabal turns them to their side. The Cabal will use the traitor to try and achieve their ends. How well does this possibility abide by the rules? Well, it violates Rule Three and Rule Four.

The second possibility is that Bartleby is the traitor. Bartleby being the traitor doesn’t violate Rule Three since Bartleby wouldn’t be challenged by anyone of equal divinity like was the case with Raven and Spider, however, it does violate Rule Four. Plus, Bartleby has no motive to betray us.

Nihilism Interpretation

I’ve been thinking about philosophy a lot recently. One day I thought of an interpretation of Sybil’s prophecy that makes the most sense. Nihilism comes from the Latin word “nihil”, meaning “nothing”.

So what if the “Nothing” Sybil warned us about is referring to nihilism? Well, what even is nihilism?

“That there is no truth, that there is no absolute state of affairs—no thing-in-itself. This alone is nihilism, and of the most extreme kind.”
–Friedrich Nietzsche

Nihilism asserts that there is nothing beyond our direct experience: no truth, no God, no meaning, no morality, no consciousness, and so on. However, this interpretation is incomplete, and it needs something to build on top of it.

Neverending Story Interpretation

Sarai Willowbreeze proposed this interpretation. The Neverending Story is both a book and a film, and it follows a mystical world which is under a threat from a dark force called the “Nothing” that is threatening to engulf it. KingsIsle obviously likes to make references, so the Fourth Arc taking inspiration from The Neverending Story makes sense.

AwesomeTheSauce pointed out in a video that the Third Arc takes inspiration from the Earthsea Cycle book series. One comment on that video pointed out that Mirage takes inspiration from the book Dune. Lastly, it is evident that Empyrea takes inspiration from Star Trek.

This interpretation successfully builds onto the Nihilism Interpretation. In fact, the Nothing in The Neverending Story is a metaphor for nihilism. Here is a quote from the Wikipedia page of The Neverending Story:

We’re making progress, but this interpretation is also incomplete. We have yet to know how it fulfills Rule Two and Rule Three.

The Theory

Meaning is incredibly important. Meaning is what gives us a reason to live. Meaning is how we derive our happiness. This is why nihilism is so destructive. The nihilist has no reason to live, and no way to derive happiness. Doesn’t that sound like torture? If you were experiencing nihilism, would you not prefer destruction? Clearly, the threat of nihilism is worse than the threat of the Spiral being destroyed.

How can The Neverending Story Interpretation fulfill Rule Two?

To answer this, we must recall the events of Briskbreeze Tower. The story began when Sergeant Muldoon asked for our help in finding Lieutenant Culpepper, who had gone missing. Our search lead us to Kirby Longspear, who said that Culpepper was investigating the presence of Undead in Colossus Boulevard. Kirby then told us that Culpepper went into Briskbreeze Tower after hearing there was Undead in there. AwesomeTheSauce can take it from here.

All the threats we have faced so far have come from inside the Spiral. However, the Nothing, by necessity, must come from outside the Spiral. We don’t see any traces of it inside the Spiral anyway. AwesomeTheSauce mentioned in another video that he thinks Sybil’s prophecy and Orrick’s prophecy are connected, and I agree.

Furthermore, in the Briskbreeze Tower video, AwesomeTheSauce points out that the Arcanum is outside the Spiral and brings to our attention the black hole that we see from the Arcanum.

What else could this black hole be besides the Nothing from the Neverending Story?

So again, how can the Neverending Story Interpretation fulfill Rule Two?

Well, as I said earlier, the Cabal will undoubtedly be involved in the Fourth Arc. I suspect that as a result of Raven and Spider reconciling, the Cabal will be angered and become more determined to achieve their ends. Because of this, the Cabal will somehow be responsible for unleashing the Nothing onto the Spiral.

If this is the case, it would suggest that Orrick Nightglider is a member of the Cabal. If Sybil’s prophecy and Orrick’s prophecy are connected, then Orrick has been planning to unleash the Nothing onto the Spiral for ages, either because he wants vengeance for something, or he is experiencing nihilism and wants the whole Spiral to suffer as he does.

This means he probably would have infiltrated the Cabal in hopes of eventually influencing them to help him unleash the Nothing. If this is the case, it’s possible that the bone key he drops in Briskbreeze Tower will be the key we use to unlock the Cabal Room in the Arcanum.

Additionally, there is a book called the Lathe of Heaven. A side quest in Empyrea suggests that the Fourth Arc will also draw inspiration from this book. The plot of the book is about someone who can dream things into reality, so it’s easy to see how this could be integrated with The Neverending Story.

AwesomeTheSauce was the one who brought this to my attention in the following video:

In conclusion, my prediction is that the threat we will face in the Fourth Arc is the Nothing from The Neverending Story. Orrick Nightglider will manipulate the Cabal into helping him unleash the Nothing upon the Spiral. As a result of the Nothing being unleashed, the residents of the Spiral will slowly lose their sense of meaning, and this will torture them.

What do you think? Does my theory make sense to you? Why or why not? Let us know in the comments below.

Fable Finder

A Tale of Three Scions

Posted on June 14, 2019July 15, 2019 by Fable Finder

Hello, I’m Fable Finder. In the middle of Empyrea, the game reveals that the main hero of our story is the Scion of Bartleby. What does this mean? On the surface, it appears that this is simply a replay of the Chosen One trope. This is true, but it’s not the entire story. When you critically examine all the facts that we have been given, we are left with more questions than answers. Let’s start with what we know.

Main Hero’s Backstory

In the video “Making of Wizard101 ~ Part 4” published on KingsIsle’s channel in 2010, the person who was the Creative Director at the time, Jeffrey Todd Coleman said: “When I was a kid, all I wanted to do was climb under my bed or in the back of my closet and find a portal to a magical world. I think that’s pretty much what every kid wants, and it’s effectively what we’ve created.”

It’s clear that Coleman’s idea was implemented into the game. For example, during character creation, Merle Ambrose says the main hero is from a different realm. More recently, during the quest “Only Mostly Dead”, Zander says the main hero is from Earth.

We can infer from this, that the main hero started off as a normal kid on Earth. Merle Ambrose was obviously casting some sort of realm-searching spell to find someone of great potential. For some reason, Merle’s spell chose the main hero, and created a portal somewhere in their house. Then the events of the game began.

This leaves us with some questions. Why did Merle’s spell choose the main hero? Why didn’t the spell choose someone who was already a Wizard, and even better a powerful one? Why did Merle Ambrose even need to find a Wizard? There’s tons of experienced Wizards all around the Spiral, couldn’t Merle Ambrose have gathered some together and chased down Malistaire?

Scion of Bartleby Lore

Let’s see what Merle Ambrose has to say about the Scion of Bartleby.

If a test is required, that means nobody knows who the Scion of Bartleby is, not even Bartleby himself. So what determines who is the Scion of Bartleby? Bartleby couldn’t have chosen his Scion, because then he wouldn’t have needed a test. But, why would the Scion be some random kid from Earth? There is undoubtedly more to this story that we don’t know.

The Answer

What does Scion even mean, anyway? Let’s take a look at Merriam Webster.

We can tell from this definition that this word was chosen by KingsIsle with careful thought. After all, it’s plant terminology, and Bartleby is a tree, so this definition certainly applies here. And that sounds a lot like what Mellori is, doesn’t it? Mellori was born when Raven broke off her love for Spider. This would make Mellori a detached, living portion of Raven, or in other words, the Scion of Raven.

If you are a child of an entity, you were simply born of them. Scions, being a detached, living portion of an entity, are also born of that entity. So not only is the main hero the Scion of Bartleby, they are also the child of Bartleby. Mellori is the same way, but for Raven. This answers all the questions we had asked previously, but there is one more. Mellori is the Scion of Raven because she is Raven’s love for Spider. So what makes the main hero the Scion of Bartleby? This is where we enter the territory of speculation, but I would speculate that the main hero is Bartleby’s hope. When the titans broke up the First World, he probably lost hope. And Bartleby was pretty melancholy during the first and second arcs. He only started being more positive when he found out that the main hero is his Scion.

What about Zander saying the main hero is from Earth? About that, it seems odd to me that Spiral beings would be unable to enter the Astral plane, but for some reason Earthly beings, who are non-magical, would be able to. Zander clearly has special knowledge somehow, so he probably knows the main hero’s true origin story. I suspect the real reason that the main hero was able to enter the Astral plane is because they are the Scion of Bartleby, and Zander made up a fake reason because he wanted to keep the knowledge of the main hero’s true origin story from the rest of the scholars. However, we can tell from the tutorial that the main hero did start off in another realm. The main hero’s being could have simply manifested on Earth when they detached from Bartleby.

What about Spider, does he have a Scion? Let’s ask him.

Pay attention to the wording. Spider said Bat was his only dream. A dream is a happy thing, and Spider’s only dream ever created Bat. Based on this, it’s reasonable to assume that Bat is the Scion of Spider, specifically Spider’s happiness.

It is unlikely that Rat and Scorpion are Scions. When a Scion is created, the entity loses something. Raven lost her love for Spider when Mellori was created. Nothing about the personalities of Rat and Scorpion suggest that Spider lost anything from their creation. Rat and Scorpion are bitter and hateful, and so was Spider. Second, Rat and Scorpion were created in Spider’s nightmares, and Spider having nightmares was not a unique occurrence. Again I stress that Bat is unique because he was born of Spider’s only dream.

In conclusion, there are three Scions. The main hero is the child and Scion of Bartleby, Mellori is the child and Scion of Raven, and Bat is the child and Scion of Spider. This also explains how they were able to combine all their essences to create that overpowered Divine Paradox transformation that the main hero transformed into to defeat the Aethyr Titan. The Divine Paradox transformation is the unification of all three Scions.

What do you think? Is Bat really the Scion of Spider? What does determine who becomes the Scion of Bartleby? We want to hear your theories in the comments below!

Shoutout to Saffron Life for helping me synthesize this theory.

Fable Finder

Wizard101 Theory

Posted on May 24, 2019February 10, 2021 by Fable Finder

Hello, I’m Fable Finder. Have you ever wondered if Sylvia Drake actually died of a cold? Why did the Coven want to unleash the Everwinter on Grizzleheim? Does being the Scion of Bartleby actually mean anything, or is it just a replay of the Chosen One trope?

All stories each have their own unexplained mysteries. Something I have always enjoyed on YouTube is the theorizing genre, where people try to explain these mysteries with theories. Theories have been made for a vast array of movies, TV shows, and video games, but the theorizing genre has barely been touched in Wizard101. It’s time to change that.

I introduce to you Wizard101 Theory. The goal of this series is to come up with theories that explain the mysteries of Wizard101. It will maintain a reasonable standard of evidence, and where evidence lacks, logic will be used. There are already posts in the making on all the questions I brought up in the first paragraph. But first, I must explain a theory that builds the foundation of all the other theories to be made: Who created the Wizard101 universe?

We could reasonably assume, using Occam’s Razor (1), that Grandmother Raven created the Wizard101 universe. The problem is that Bartleby said it was another entity. In a Wizard City side quest called “Old Men”, Boris Tallstaff asks you to interview Gamma, Ambrose, and Bartleby. When you go to talk to Bartleby, the first thing he says is this:

Did you catch that? Bartleby mentioned an entity called “The Creator”, independent of both himself and Grandmother Raven. What if the Creator is Grandfather Spider, though? After all, he wasn’t mentioned in that sentence. There are a few problems with this, however. First, I don’t think KingsIsle had even created Grandfather Spider’s character yet. Second, Grandfather Spider clearly has equal power to Grandmother Raven, which wouldn’t be the case if he had created both her and Bartleby. Finally, Bartleby clearly states that both him and Grandmother Raven were created. Since Grandfather Spider didn’t create them, he must have been created too. So someone must have created them all.

That still leaves one question unanswered, however. How did the Creator come into existence? Well, an entity that exists outside of time and space would not need an explanation for their existence. After all, things can only begin within time and space. We can assume the Creator would be outside of time and space using Occam’s Razor (1). If the Creator was not outside of time and space, we would have an Infinite Regress problem (2). If things within time and space need an explanation for their existence, then Grandmother Raven, Grandfather Spider, and Bartleby need an explanation for their existence. All three of them clearly exist within time, based on how they act throughout the story. Combining that with the fact that Bartleby told us that a separate Creator exists, we can conclude it was this Creator that created the Wizard101 universe, as well as Grandmother Raven, Grandfather Spider, and Bartleby.

So, there you have it. From this foundation we can begin to answer all the unexplained mysteries of Wizard101. The topic of the next installment will address what it means to be the Scion of Bartleby.

(1) Occam’s Razor is a problem-solving tool used in logic that says the explanation with the least assumptions is more likely to be true.

(2) An Infinite Regress is when someone tries to explain an event with another event that would also need a cause, then tries to explain that event the same way, and so on. For example, if you ask me where I got my robot, an Infinite Regress would be me saying that the robot was created by another robot, and that robot was created by a robot, and so on.

Guest Author Fable Finder