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Flat Stat Jewels101

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The Misconception

Flat jewels are a misinterpreted stat for Wizard101. They have been since the beginning of the Spiral’s time. In fact, most players get rid of these jewels thinking they have no value. But it’s not true! I’ve used them since their introduction into the game. Many of my solo runs are successful because of these resist jewels.

How they work

Flat stat jewels come in two main categories: offensive and defensive. The offensive stats boost your damage while the defensive absorb incoming damage. These stats are static, meaning that pierce does not affect flat resistance. Likewise, flat damage is not hindered by resistance in its final value!
 

Being careful with calculations

Many online sources that mention flat stat jewels are incorrect. Here are the stats for my testing. Let’s use it as an example to see the calculations.
 

Example: (From my solo run of Grandfather Spider – lvl 120)

Mathematical functions for calculating stats

1.) For your attacks:
[(your spell X (1 + damage%) + flat damage] X buffs (1+/-Blades)

2.) For resisting incoming attacks:
[(incoming damage – flat resist) X (1 – resist%)]X buffs (1+/-Traps)

The concept of flat jewels is the same for flat damage and flat resistance!

Simplifying the math

Let’s assume you’re about to take an attack dealing 1000 base damage. Flat resist works like an absorb. In this example it will remove 50 damage points from every school and 158 from Shadow School, before regular resist takes damage.
 
So, what if the situation changed where the attack does 4000 damage?
 
The jewels would still absorb 50 damage points from every school and 158 from Shadow School attacks. Then our percent resistance would reduce the rest of the remaining damage.
 
For X damage, we will absorb 50 from every school and 158 from Shadow School.
 
 
Adding the flat jewels to our percent resistance:

Resistance for X incoming damage:
Storm: 71% + 50
Ice: 72% + 50 
Fire: 51% + 50
Myth: 29% + 50
Life: 29% + 50 
Death: 29% + 50
Shadow: 29% + 158

Using Brace (-20% to incoming attacks) stacks to the player’s resistance:

Storm: 71+ 20 = 96%+50
Ice: 72 + 20 = 92%+50
Fire: 51 + 20 = 76%+50
Myth: 29 + 20 = 49%+50
Life: 29 + 20 = 49%+50
Death: 29 + 20 = 49%+50
Shadow: 29 + 20 = 49%+158

Grandfather Spider’s Stats

Grandfather Spider has a universal 120% damage boost, 7% universal pierce, and 20% fire resistance. His attacks are not only of the school of storm, but also of the Shadow School. He also has Balance Mastery and uses 3 Balance spells.
 
His natural attacks deal 330 X 14 = 4620 base shadow damage if he has max power pips!
 
[(spell’s max damage X (1 + damage%) + total flat damage] X buffs
 
If buffs = 0
total flat damage = 0
 
[(4620 X ( 1 + 120%)] X buffs = (4620 X 2.2) = 10,164!
 
So , we should prepare for Storm and Shadow hits.
 
An average 6 pip natural Shadow attack of his would deal:
 
6 X 330 = 1980 X 2.2 = 4356 damage, and that number will double if he lands a critical!
 
The spell “Rusalka’s Wrath (Shadow)” without any blades or traps deals:
 
[(spell base damage X (1 + damage%) + total flat damage] X buffs= [1445 X (1 + 120%)] = 3179 damage!
 
Let’s compare possible damage taken with or without some of these  stats:
 
If I hadn’t put brace on myself, it would be:
My Shadow resist: 29 – 7 (pierce) = 22 (incoming damage – total flat resist) X (1-resist%) =  3179 X (1 – 22%) = 3179 X 0.78= 2480!
 
My Shadow resist: 49 – 7% (due to pierce) = 42% base resistance. Now continue with the rest of the equation:
(incoming damage – total flat resist) X (1 – resist%) = (3179 – 158) X (1 – 42%) = 3021 X 0,58  = 1752
 
If I wasn’t wearing gear equipped with jewels, the resulting damage would be:
(incoming damage – total flat resist) X (1 – resist%) = (3179 – 0) X (1 – 42%) = 3179 X 0.58 = 1844
 
The difference between 1844 damage and 1752 is due to the flat stat jewels!
 
The differences might seem minor, but if you combine jewels in different pieces of gear, you will notice that they make a big difference.
 

Flat damage jewels work the same way

Here’s a hypothetical example in this specific fight
My damage is 104

When I cast the spell Fire From Above on Grandfather Spider, he receives damage according to our 1st mathematical function: With a nice Backdraft = 210% 
[[(your spell X (1 + damage%) + total flat jewels damage] X buffs(blades)] = [[1400 X ( 1 + 104%)]  = (1400 X 2.04) = 2856
 
*Attention! Not include all the decimals results in two formulas, rounds down after each calculation.
The exception for that rule, is only in the pets damage or resistance! We need exactly the percent of the pets to calculated correctly!
 
My spell with traps deals to Grandfather Spider:
Flat resist=0
Buffs=210
Grandfather resist on fire (due to pierce) = 20-22= 0 
 
[(incoming damage – flat resist) X (1 – resist%)]X buffs(traps)=
(2856 X 1) Χ (1+210%= 2856 Χ (1+210%) =  Χ 3,1 = 8853   
 
But if I had two flat damage jewels (fire), let’s say 50 points worth: [[(your spell X (1 + damage%) + total flat  damage] X buffs] =  [1400 X (1 + 104%)+ 50] = [(1400 X 2.04) + 50] = 2856 + 50 = 2906
 
[(incoming damage – flat resist) X (1 – resist%)]X buffs(traps)=
(2906 X 1) Χ (1+210%)= 2906 Χ 3,1 = 9008   
 
Don’t forget that since Grandfather Spider has shields, the actual number would be less. This was just a quick example with math!
 
As you can see, flat stat jewels can help our fights in their own way.
 
I hope this makes you think twice before tossing those flat stat jewels away! I have shown my stats below for convenience. Thank you as always, and best of luck questing!
 
*You can see the stats which I used for the above calculations as well as my gear, in the following pictures.
Also, you can see the battle that I describe above from my solo video at Europeans servers when I was 120 lvl, one year before.
Have fun!
 

Wizard City Housing Vendors

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Tired of never finding the housing item you want at the Bazaar?  Well search no longer! There are many things available throughout all the worlds from a variety of vendors. Even items that are no auction and can never be found at the Bazaar! We will be visiting each world in this series and will show you who to go to for that perfect housing item. 

Wizard City Housing Vendors

There are four housing vendors in Wizard City, They have many housing items available. There are also six recipe vendors for craftable items. From Castles to Pet Bread Crumbs, we have them all listed here.

Aubert Quickhammer

Aubert is the furniture shop keeper in Wizard City. You’ll find him in the Shopping District by Eliks Edge, at the Wizard City Furniture & Castle Shop. He has everything from plants to wallpapers and floors. Tell him Sarai sent you!

Here’s a sample of what you will find.

Party Banner
Plaques for all schools
Fancy Lamppost
Small Yellow Tent
Small Blue Trim Rug
Tic-Tac-Toe pieces and Gameboard
Balloons
Music Player
Party Cake

Buxley Turleton

Buckley shares a shop with Aubert Quickhammer. He’s the best real esate agent in Wizard City!

Castles available:
Wooded Cottage 8,000 gold
Royal Playhouse 15,000 gold

Farley

Farley is the head gardener for Wizard City. You can find him in Golem Court.

Here’s a sample of what you can find:

Wizard City styled pots
Seeds
Tropical Garden Gnome

Roland Silverheart

You can find Roland on Unicorn Way outside of the PVP Arena. All of his items are non-auction and are purchased with Arena tickets. If you don’t PVP you can get tickets from doing your daily quests.

 
Here’s a sample of what you can find:
 
Wood Housing Blocks 
Bobbleheads 
Statues 
Ninja Sword Rack 
Market Tent Pavilion

Derrick Blaze

You can find Derrick next to the Bazaar. He sells the recipe for the Team Up Kiosk. In order to purchase this recipe you have to earn your Team Player badge.

Team Up Kiosk Price: 100 gold

Wizard City Recipe Vendors

Eudora Tangletree

You can find Eudora by the pond near the Bazaar in Olde Town. A lovely lady with great recipes! She has recipes for many different aquariums and seventeen different tapestries.

Here’s a sample of her other recipes:
Garden Lot
Directional Arrows
Moon Banner
Red Foodcart
Stack of Paper
Water Bucket

Lloyd Fallingwater

 

You can find Lloyd in the Shopping District near Eliks Edge. He has all the Stone Housing Block recipes. Who needs the Bazaar, just make them yourself!

Dr. Purreau

You can find Dr. Purreau in the Hatchery. He has recipes for a Pet Hatching Kiosk and a tapestry to the Hatchery. These recipes need Hatch Peppers. You can get this reagent by placing pets in the kiosk or in the chest from daily quest rewards.
 
Hatching Kiosk Recipe Price: 2,500 gold Tapestry Recipe Price: 2,500 gold

Harker

You can find Harker in Darkmoor to the left, near the small building. He has the recipe for the Castle Darkmoor tapestry. 

Recipe Price: 5,000 gold

Jackie Whisperflame

You’ll find Jackie in the snack shop at the Pet Pavilion. She sells the recipe for Pet Bread Crumbs. Bread Crumbs are an awesome way of controlling the movements of pets and mounts when they are placed in your Castle!

Recipe Price: 5,000 gold

This concludes the list of Housing Vendors for Wizard City. Whew, that was an all day shopping spree! Hope it helps you find that perfect item for your castle. Let us know in the comments below about your most surprising find shopping in Wizard City. Stay tuned for Krokotopia and many more worlds to come!

Fishing: Code Wands

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After the Zafarian fish were updated, chests containing precious code wands that don’t exist anymore as drops from bosses. The code wands are found in various lakes in Zafaria, but let’s focus on a single area in Zafaria that is well known as Elephant Graveyard.

Location

Zafaria In order:

Baobab Market / Stone Town / Waterfront / Drum Jungle / Elephant Graveyard

The Wands

1.Amaranthine Staff

2. Staff of the Querent

3. Fog Staff

4. Staff of Imperator

5. Warpwood Wand

6. Blue Raptor

7. Dragonclaw Blade

8. Viridian Scepter

9. Galvanic Hammer

10. Goldenbeak

 11. Umbra Blade

How Do Get Them

There are many methods one can use to catch these wands, but we must first mention that the chests are in all ranks, schools, and categories like the common, rare and epic fishes. So the best method is to go there and catch what you see. However, doing so will waste a lot of time and energy to a more efficient method would be, having in mind that the right pond has more chests from the left, and in the second phase, that most fish are a school of death, we use a middle bait of this school, mostly.

  1. Reveal Fish School: See if a death fish appears and cast bait Lesser Repose Lure or Minor Repose Lure and catch what you can from what you have in front of you or all, even sentinel fish.
  2. Winnow Death Fish / Banish Sentinels 1: Use after Lesser Repose Lure or Minor Repose Lure grab you can first on the right side of the lake and then on the left after you repeat the Banish Sentinels 1 spell again.
  3. Use Minor Repose Lure and catch all sentinel fishes. These fish contain chests like all fish and all categories. But they differ in how to catch them. Do not wait to pull the lure into the water to hit the space bar, but once they touch the lure, press the spacebar right away.
    Note: If 15 minutes have passed, repeat with Summon Fish and re-do Method 1, 2 or 3.
  4. If you have the Buoy Chests 1 spell, you don’t need to use the Summon Fish spell because it resets along with a 50% greater chance of returning to chests. So then you have two options:
  • Make Winnow Death Fish / Banish Sentinels 1 by using Minor Repose Lure and catch what’s left.
  • Make Winnow Death Fish and catch all the sentinel fish and then what is left of the school of death.

Do not forget that there are no fishing spells that scare aware the sentinel fishes whatever their school, except Banish Sentinels 1.

The whole collection together:

Thank you for reading, please don’t forget to let me know if this article helped you by leaving a comment below! 

Good Luck!

Legendary Storm PvP

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Hello, and welcome to Legendary Storm PvP. I know, shocking. Why Legendary Storm PvP you may ask? When I was playing Wizard101, back when PvP was popular among my friends, we all liked Legendary PvP. The not so high stats, the no use of shadow pips, the little grind we did to get House of Scales or Waterworks gear was all fun. As a Legendary Storm, it was definitely a journey. Why Storm and why not Balance though? Good question. I liked that nobody ever really chose this school to solo, nor do I need to be just like everyone else and make one. I liked Storm for its high damage and pierce and the way it handles itself.

PvP as a Legendary nowadays is easy, fun, and sometimes unpredictable. I can guarantee I don’t win every one of my matches, but most. To those reading, you have to either farm Loremaster for some spells, craft or buy packs, depending on your preference. As some spells are wanted in PvP. For example, my storm has Queen Calypso, a card I use to bring out the utility of my spells, and the Damage Per Second it provides. I suggest crafting to those who don’t want to farm or buy packs, as it is one of the fastest ways to get the spells, believe it or not.

Gear and Stats​

My Storm specializes in quick attacks, ending the rounds easily, and has high damage and pierce at 65. For a Storm, I would suggest going for high damage and pierce over critical, because of the critical nerf.

The gear that would be a good set up for Damage and Pierce would be:

  • Robe: House of Scales – Lower Zigazag Vestment
  • Hat: House of Scales – Lower Zigazag Headdress
  • Boots: Professor’s Hoard Pack – Halston’s Stormy Slippers
  • Wand: Immortal’s Lore Pack – Aquilan Velite Lance
  • Ring: Vendor: Brandon Mistborn – Duelist’s Daredevil Ring
  • Athame: Vendor: Brandon Mistborn – Duelist’s Fatal Razor
  • Amulet: Lower Zigazag – Condemned Soldier’s Charm
  • Mount: Avalon Outlaw’s Bundle – Vulpine Avenger Mount for pierce OR
  • Mount: Ghulture’s Hoard Pack – Storm Ghulture for damage
  • Pet: Any pet with all 5 talents being damage for maximum damage output, and socketing a Spell Proof Jewel

Pierce Jewels are needed on your Ring and Athame.

  • Circle Jewel: Plain Piercing Amethyst +3% pierce
  • Tear Jewel: Plain Health Opal +65 health
  • Triangle Jewel: Plain Pip Opal +6% power pip chance
  • Square Jewel: Plain Defense Opal +16 universal resist
  • Triange Jewel: Plain Accurate Amethyst +7 storm accuracy

With all the gear and jewels equipped your storm should have 125 Damage, 32 resist, 27% accuracy, 54% critical chance, 20% pierce and 79% power pip chance. We will also be using Infallible before we hit which gives an additional 15% accuracy and pierce over 4 rounds.

Spells Trained through Training Points​

  • Ice School  – Tower Shield
  • Sun School – Gargantuan
  • (Prepare for the weird one) Fire School – Phoenix, Infection, and Stun Block.

Main Deck Set Up​

  • 6 Queen Calypso’s
  • Max Damage enchants, thus being Gargantuan
  • 3 Lightning Bats
  • 5 Wild Bolts
  • 4 Tower Shields
  • 3 Volcanic Shields
  • 3 Glacial Shields
  • 3 Pixies
  • 3 Darkwinds
  • 2 Storm Dispells
  • 3 Storm Shark
  • 2 Insane Bolts
  • 3 Storm Lord
  • 2 Storm Snakes
  • 4 Storm Blades

Side Deck Set Up​

Now, for that phoenix spell I mentioned earlier – you are going to want to enchant a lot of them from the Mutate Phoenix spell.

The Spell Thunderbird has such high utility, as it gives you x3 +30% traps universally, pack 3 of them.

  • 2 Storm Lord
  • 4 Tower Shields
  • 5 Infallible
  • 3 Kraken
  • 5 side Queen Calypso
  • 3 Triton
  • 2 Storm Shark
  • 3 Triage
  • 2 Gargantuan

Strategy​

The goal is to hit as fast as possible, preferably trying to pull an infallible first round to get that maximum amount of Pierce through the first couple of hits. If you can get infallible up, you can then hit with multiple Queen Calypsos and small hits, dealing good damage, and keeping them on the defensive.

If your opponent hasn’t stun shielded, that’s where Storm Lord comes in play. Switch back from playing offensively and defensively as you will need to make sure you can be able to out damage per second them and survive. Don’t just hit randomly, as we’re built on strategy. Make combined hits that make sense.

For example, you have the pips needed for the 5 pipped Thunderbird. You cast that into a Queen Calypso, giving you a +30% and a +20% traps on your opponent, making use of that utility you have.

Avoid spamming cards like a wild bolt or insane bolt as you are wasting pips. Use a Wild bolt to get off a shield, or start off with a hit, or need to get rid of a card.
Infection is for your heal spammers, and with all the pierce you have, it’s fine to hit through shields. All your other hits, use in situations where you know your opponent is open, and you can do mass damage. All spells and all battles aren’t all the same. Different situations occur, just have to be patient and committed to learn and understand what to do in different situations.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the guide. If you got any questions, my Discord is 𝕴𝖓𝖋𝖊𝖗𝖓𝖆𝕲𝖆𝖒𝖎𝖓𝖌 #1999, and I will gladly answer all questions related to storm Legendary PvP.

Skull Island’s Tavern Band

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Somewhere in the Spiral, there’s a refuge for young pirates, orphaned when young who have turned to a life of crime. Marked by skull-shaped mountain, there is danger and treasure lurking all throughout the island region. Whether it’s hoodoo, dueling, brawling, treason, or smuggling, pirates ally with Captain Avery for their own safety and a large cut in the treasure of Captain Gold.

Main Theme

The pace is set immediately with a waltz-like rhythm with the percussion and quacking trumpets. The mood gives us the feeling that something is off, there is a mystery at hand and we’re just the pirate to look into it. This vibe continues as it moves into a 12/8 section 00:12 seconds into the piece, which means there’s three notes per beat. We are given one of the main arpeggios used throughout the soundtrack of Skull Island.

The arpeggio sets up our next section 00:20 seconds in, as the brass features the melody. We also carry over crescendoing chords sustained in the horns from the previous section. The harp twinkles down as the melody passes onto the low reeds, giving a dark and damp feeling, reminiscent of the sewer-like passages within the Skull Mountain.

The climax of the piece comes in at 00:52 seconds. We are no longer in a mysterious minor key, but now an adventurous major key. The violins stir the excitement on their high strings as the oboe plays the melody. The low voices crescendo as the piano strikes along on the downbeat. The resolution drives us forward with a feeling of hope in our adventures as a pirate.

We move on to a clambering call and response from the ensemble before a joyous celebration, alluding to Celestia’s crab march with the castanets and xylophone. 

City Theme

The mood of this piece is serious. Unlike the spookiness, joy, and film-like nature of the other pieces, we begin with a fife- like military march with flutes and drums. After the strings play the main melody, we move into a major key at 00:39 seconds. The strings play rolling hills of arpeggios as other strings instruments accent the first note of each bar.

As the violins descend their quick sixteenth notes, the dynamic of the piece raises and adds in with more instruments. Percussion notably accents the first beat of each bar along with the strings section. After a cymbal roll, we begin a waltz with the brass. The low brass and plucked strings keep the time as the horns play the melody, eventually passing to the accordion.

We enter a new, flourishing section at 1:17 as the brass sustains the chords as the quick violins play speedy figures. The fife adds in to the violins to accent their melody. We end the phrase in a dissonant cluster that seems to be magically cleared by the flute’s ascending glissando.

Skyway Theme

The Skull Island Skyway Theme is a stark contrast to the other pieces. It is bright and joyous and begins with a fanfare, compared to the damp textures the other pieces convey. There is a certain kind of silliness to the piece, like a young child earning their sea legs.

The melody gets passed around from instrument to instrument, taking turns with the texture. Along with that, there is notable hemiola. A hemiola is a complex rhythmic figure where two groupings of three notes can be played as three groupings of two notes, which gives the piece syncopation. A famous hemiola is “America” from West Side Story.

Haunted Theme

The mood of the piece is established right away with the bass end of the piano, swaying back and forth between the notes. Notice how on the harp part, it develops the main arpeggio I pointed out earlier. Also take note of the how the horn pitch bends downward, also like the Main Theme.

This change of mood and instrumentation is what enhances a story. By developing the music along with the story, the music becomes more complex by giving itself a narrative to follow.

 Vaguely like Stravinsky’s The Firebird, we hear the piano and horns play an aggressive melody before the tension breaks with a hauntingly beautiful waltz. The music fits well with the original story of Lasko, Manny, Mo, and Jack who were Ratbeard’s poisoned crew mates, murdered by Ratbeard himself. Lasko wanted his crewmates to have their final wishes before being released to the afterlife and one of them wanted to return a locket to their lost love.

Jungle Theme

The very first bit we hear in the music is the brass pitch bending upward rather than downward, developing a motive we’ve heard in previous pieces. As the brass starts the chord progression, the harp comes in with the arpeggio motif at 00:09 seconds in. This pattern continues as the bassoon comes in with a new idea 00:36 seconds into the piece.

The musical content is layered into the texture while the harp plays a new idea as an ostinato or repetitive figure. The percussion bangs away on the drums, representing the idea of danger in the jungle. This leads to the eventual arrival of the horn taking away the melody. The low strings heavily approach a new ostinato, replacing the melody. The harp and voices add-in, trading off the strings for the brass to lead the orchestra back to the beginning.

Thank you, Starlights, for venturing through the music of Skull Island with me. Have a wonderful night.

Click here for our selection of Music Guides

Disclaimer

Please note: I transcribed the music from the original/classic mode music scrolls. Not all of my transcriptions are 100% accurate, but they are close and the rhythm is properly notated

The Dragon Titan Army Band

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Intended for Musician and Non-Musician Alike

"Things started turning darker. Kingsisle were talking about dark and epic Mordor Wagner 'Flight of The Valkyries' in The Ring Cycle. I am looking at concept art and the NPC characters had Russian military influence; All the architecture was darker - more foreboding."
- Nelson Everhart in "Musical Tour Of The Spiral 6: Dragonspyre"

“Main Theme”

Just as mentioned in Everhart’s video linked above, we begin our adventure in Dragonspyre with a world-stopping minor-Major seventh chord, which flourishes throughout the ensemble as the harp and woodwinds flutter downward, providing emotional dissonance. We typically associate the word “dissonant” with something that sounds bad, but in this piece, it provides an unsettling air. 

The ninth of the chord is added to the melody bringing even more color and lending an elegant dissonance to the third tone. The third tone of the chord gives the emotion, so this dissonance that rubs against it creates a feeling of tension and suspension.

The intrada stops 00:10 seconds into the piece, bringing us a chord progression that starts in a minor key, then becomes uplifting and progresses back to the same chord with a picardy third. A picardy third is when a minor chord changes the third tone to become a Major chord. This progression carries along, developing the arpeggiating figures and changing the chords before it reaches a climax into a new section at 00:30 seconds. The strings play the main melody as the brass plays a counterline beneath, eventually joining together into a dismal setting at 00:40 seconds. The trumpet enters, bringing a sliver of hope before it fades away into the darker minor chords and ends.

The next section frolics dastardly within the woodwinds and harp, quickly arpeggiating, presenting the feeling of sneaking and slyness. The strings caress the melody beneath this texture, giving support to the voices above and conveying a kind of dark magic brewing within.

Picking up into timestamp 1:26, we transition into the brass as the bridge takes us into the next section, with heavy Lydian chord dissonances in the bass. The music is ascending into this one epic moment. At timestamp 1:45 we are given the antithesis to the main Wizard101 theme, an operatic technique. The same descending arpeggios and textures are used as the brass plays the ascending melody in a minor key. This reflects the darkness of the world and the danger the Wizard is in.

“Theme 1”

Calling back to the previous piece, we begin with the hard percussion, horns, and masculine choir. Through borrowed chords (chords that are similar to the key, but not the same) and chromatic mediants (chords that have slight or no relation to the key), we get a dark and enchanting texture. Also calling back to the previous piece, we have these four-note motifs played in the horns that bring us through the chord progression. The texture thickens with the addition of the woodwinds, but it 

Concept art of the fire wizard from the original Wizard101 loading screen

harkens forth, like a great army coming from the distance, closer and closer.

This brings us into the next section at 00:50 seconds which uses a repetitive eighth note figure in the horns as the rest of the orchestra brings forward tutti stabs, transitioning us into action. The same texture is still present, but now the melody in the brass and the high strings add-in, playing the chord progression while the trumpets sing in the higher register.

Next, the strings section glissandos in unbreaking unison as the flutes play descending Danny Elfman triplets. In film-scoring or in this case, game-scoring, notes in pairs of threes that have the same note on the first and third beat are considered “Danny Elfman triplets”  because it is characteristic of his work in pieces such as his Batman Theme or Alice’s Theme. The triplets develop, changing notes along the chord progression, giving the piece sass.

As the texture from before returns, the arpeggio transforms from being a Danny Elfman triplet, to playing the entire arpeggio. The notes rock up and down, leading us to a flourish that counterpoints between the sections. The piece calms down and recapitulates the music before returning to the beginning. 

“Theme 2”

A military march kicks the piece off, setting the texture and pace with some aggressive snare and bass drums. The dark minor tonality in the low brass gives us the feeling that something powerful is coming, and it is nearby. The choir joins in as the pauses in this motif get closer and closer until an ostinato in the strings takes off with the chimes adding further texture.

The solo trumpet comes in like before, continuing the style of the piece. The low brass and choir responds to the trumpet’s call. This idea repeats, leading to the addition of the strings. At 00:50 seconds, we introduce new musical content. The higher voices of the ensemble play ascending arpeggios, developing the arpeggiating ideas from the other pieces and giving the impression the single idea has split into two. While this is happening, the arpeggio splits among the other instruments, trading between them when they play, creating a more complex texture. Then, we return to the original arpeggio in the woodwinds as the rest of the ensemble sustains onto the chords. This idea trades off between the other instruments in the ensembles, growing in volume. 

At timestamp 1:15, the woodwinds move onto a new idea. Great swooping arpeggios that feel like dragon wings fly over the melody that is being played by the strong brass. This texture is prominent in the next track as it comes to its climax as well. This presents the idea as something we can ground our emotions onto, so we will remember this section when it is recontextualized.

Then the ostinato kicks in as a power drive to the end. The brass plays familiar motifs from the previous melodies to latch on to our memories of the ever-dangerous Dragonspyre.

“Theme 3”

 In the beginning, the drums set the tone of the piece with a stately march, keeping tempo for the horn’s repetitive melody. The lower brass joins the bass drum, thickening and supporting the texture as the woodwinds play the eighth note motif that the horns played in the melody.

The motion stops as the bass instruments play introducing the   

orchestra which joins in with a similar motif. The idea develops through a different articulation by stabbing at the notes rather than playing them legato, or smoothly. Next, we are greeted by a familiar idea in the woodwinds, rocking back and forth between two notes before completing the rest of the arpeggio. This idea can be found in the other tracks and provides texture as the brass harmonizes. Finally, the choir joins in bringing the rest of the brass section, the strings, and additional percussive flourishes, such as crash cymbals.

The excitement halts as the orchestra becomes homophonic, playing in a similar fashion, but harmonizing together. Afterward, the trumpets lead us into a climactic section that develops the two-note repetition idea by playing the first two notes in the woodwinds only, while the strings and brass take the melody. A familiar idea, but now re-imagined in a flourishing major key before becoming tense and heroic to reflect our now deathly situation.

In the end, we come full circle to a military feeling before engaging in an anthem. Very patriotic in style, it presents the strength of Dragonspyre as a force to be reckoned with. This dissipates into the bras and chimes, leading us back to the beginning.

“Theme 4”

Once again, we are greeted by a familiar symphonic texture, giving Dragonspyre continuity in its musical identity. After establishing the mood, the piece drifts to become sad and wistful in the next section. The strings lull us as the harp gently caresses the arpeggios. The flutes join in, embellishing the texture.
The brass crescendos quickly as the rest of the orchestra comes in

referencing the homophonic texture from before. This leads us to a climactic point in which the repetitive arpeggio from before creates tension as the brass sustains the chords. The next section contrasts this texture with stabs. Ideas from the previous tracks peep throughout this piece, greeting us like an old friend for this finale.

At 00:51 seconds in, we hear a theme being carried from instrument to instrument. The theme goes deeper and deeper, much like our wizard coming closer and closer to Malistaire in the story. This theme is played in The Crown of Fire, during the time that our wizard is carried by the young Battle Drake to our final confrontation with Malistaire.  

In the final section, the orchestra splits beats with the ensemble, creating syncopation before joining together. This thrilling moment dies down as the choir begins to solemnly sing. The flute and strings join in, introducing a new melody at timestamp 01:24. We enter a new key. It’s a major key, bright and happy. The future is looking bright and we are uplifted. Although the story is not over yet! Magic and mystery shroud us, and we can never be too sure whether those enemies we have conquered in the past may come back to haunt us.

Thank you, Starlights, for venturing through the music of Dragonspyre with me. Have a wonderful night.

Click here for our selection of Music Guides

Disclaimer

Please note: I transcribed the music from the original/classic mode music scrolls. Not all of my transcriptions are 100% accurate, but they are close and the rhythm is properly notated. The example in “Theme 1” comes from Nelson Everhart’s video, as linked.

A Yuletide Carol

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Intended for Musician and Non-Musician Alike

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, everywhere in the spiral. We sit by the glowing embers, drinking our hot chocolate, cuddling with our fuzzy kitten, when ho! – there’s Christmas music in the Bazaar! You run by the great tree near The Commons pool, through The Shopping District and take a peek into the yuletide scrolls, and in a wild frenzy, you decide to buy them all. ‘Tis the season, am I right? So now, the music is playing in your home, perfectly seasonal and festive.

Let’s take a look into these heart-warming music scrolls and see how well they rival Mariah Carey and examine the musical craftsmanship the composers at Kingisisle took arranging these holiday favorites.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u92UQSI4NvM

“Jingle Bells” and “Yuletide Jingle”

Like snowflakes twinkling on the new-fallen snow, we begin with a glockenspiel and sleigh bells that set the festive tone. The piano glissandos, adding a new texture, heralding the melody, joyous and free. At 00:16 seconds in, the big band comes in. Heaven and nature sing as the trumpets and trombone begin to swing. The sax and percussion add such vibrant color, it really brings out a new Christmas wonder.

By 00:36 seconds, the first idea we heard with the twinkling and the melody being played on the piano develops, adding a new jazz band texture. It’s also worth noting the vibraphone playing a countermelody against the main jingle bells theme. This line arpeggiates the chord progression while the rest of the band plays.

With a strong, tutti finish, we enter a new section. The piano plays an impressive solo as the brass of the band stabs at some of the syncopated notes, adding emphasis. The saxophones take over the melody as the brass continues while the piano flourishes the piece with arpeggios. We are brought back to the first section we heard before a ritardando to the end.

Overall, our form was AABA, or in other words, we played our first section twice, played a new section, then went back to the original. In our culture, it’s very common to have Christmas songs played in a jazz style, even if we don’t know that it is. White Christmas and All I Want For Christmas is You are good examples with their jazz chords and interpretation.

Above is a simple arrangement of the piece “Jingle Bells.” The capital letters beneath each note match the pitch on your computer keyboard related to the Grand Playable Piano and Playable Toy Piano items found in the crown shop.

Notice the points of the music where it has the number 1 and number 2. In music, we typically call these “first” and “second endings.” The idea behind this is that you will go back to the beginning of the section, indicated by colon called “the repeat sign,” and play the same thing that you have just done before, but now with a variation on the ending. The first ending is called the “antecedent” phrase, because it does not resolve, setting up the theme’s repeat. The second phrase is the “consequent” phrase since it contains the resolution.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tIwlRqPx60

“Deck The Halls”

In a rather upbeat manner, we start off with a line of eighth notes with some sixteenth note syncopation played by the piano as the harp glissandos along. A wind instrument calmy takes the melody. The flutes play along, strengthening the fa-la-la-la-la-ing of the chorus. This pattern continues until the reeds join in to resolve the phrase.

Next, at 00:39 seconds in, the melody is handed to the bassoon. This personally reminds me of older family members like grandparents that have a deeprooted joy for Christmas. The wood blocks add emphasis to the articulation the bassoon displays, developing the melody. The clarinets rock back and forth between their notes, like little youngsters playing with their elders.

The strings delightfully swoon through, gaining the household’s attention. The bassoon adds ascending arpeggios and it appears like the family is talking to one another. The family seems pleased with each other, all ending in the same melody.

We have a ritardando that leads us into the next section. The Commons theme begins to play, proclaiming that Christmas shall be brought to Wizard City with great fanfare. The Commons theme replaces the Deck The Halls theme seamlessly, because of the melody’s similar contour and rhythm, as some of the original melody still shines through.

 

In this simple arrangement of “Deck The Halls,” we play with the idea of different voices having different parts of the melody. At first, the treble staff rings out the melody as the bass staff holds the primary note of the chord, known as the “tonic” and also the “root of the chord.” We seamlessly switch the melody to the bass, giving emphasis on “fa-la-la-la-la,” but immediately switch back to the treble to complete the resolution.

The words at the end of the music, “D.S. al fine” means to go back to the sign and stop where it says “fine,” meaning “finish.” Unlike “Jingle Bells,” the resolution is built into the music. This is what we call “ternary form,” where we end with the section we started with, having a contrasting section between them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zymp2tyEbc

“Carol of The Bells”

Dramatically, the piano and sleigh bells set the tone, as though we see a dim candle lit in midst of a storm. Short and plucky, the bass line comes in, descending down a major tetrachord. Scales are composed of two tetrachords, which are four note patterns. Echoing the line, the strings harmonize going down the next four notes. When notes move towards a descending motion like this, we typically feel calmed. This is also why the resolution of a piece relies on the tonic note when the rest of the scale ascends above it.

A rhythmic motif is added, emphasized by the piano and strings. A motif is a short, recognizable phrase that can be developed throughout a piece by using different notes or adding variation to the rhythm. This introduction is hinted at when we come to a cascading figure built upon a melodic minor scale.

This brings us to a new section at 00:20 seconds that reminds me of children playing beneath the tree on Christmas day. This melodic figure develops by changing the pitches whilst maintaining the rhythm for continuity. This is followed by the same cascading scale we heard before. This repeats, as the strings add-in again, leading to a climax.

Next, at 00:45 seconds, the brass come in. Their dark tone adding to the quality of the minor chords they play. This develops the line the piano has played previously, giving the notable ostinato new context with this texture and reharmonization.

This leads us into 00:53 seconds, where it feels truly magical with the sustained chords in the strings, the arpeggiated solo in the piano, and of course, the wind chimes. The horns come into the texture, introducing the trumpets, playing chords. The progression goes from the minor tonic i, to the relative major III, to the dominant V. In music analysis, we typically label chords with Roman numerals and capitalize the numeral based on major or minor tonality. This progression is the climax of the piece, using the chromatic voices to cause linear dissonance which then leads to the chords that point us to where the tension can be resolved.

We end the piece in a recapitulation of the melodic content that occurred at the beginning of the piece. We end in the very way we started, like that dim lit in the storm, fading away to nothing. This piece contrasts compared to the others. Neither in a jazz style, nor a Major key, we have a dramatic orchestral style set in a minor key, which evokes the sense of Christmas past, similar to other pieces like God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.

Take note of how the second staff is now also a treble clef. This means we play the second one with our left hand, but now we are playing in a higher register than before. Looking through the piece you will see that when we have the majestic ascending scales, the left hand will cross above the right hand in order to give the needed harmony while working with the restrictions of the in-game instruments.

Thank you, Starlight, for venturing through my Yuletide edition analysis. You have truly made this Yuletide bright. I bid you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Disclaimer:

Please note: The above sheet are not transcriptions from the music scrolls, as they would be in previous articles. These are simple arrangements I’ve made to accommodate the simple nature of the in-game playable Wizard101 instruments.

Empyrea P2: Live Realm!

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Introduction

We’ve finally reached our last chapter in this amazing series! The third and final chapter, Live Realm. We will look and see how the community feels about this world!

Let’s tackle this insane world once and for all and see just what we all think about it!

Questing

The story line and questing difficulty are locked. What we have is what we’re getting. Kingsisle noticed that the majority wanted it to be challenging, we’re lucky we don’t have to relive the Mirage release.

What’s great about this is that the story is engaging. If you take away the visuals, fight mechanics and mini-games, it’s a well-written and enjoyable story!

Did you enjoy questing?

Over two-thirds of the players I asked enjoyed questing throughout Empyrea Part Two. That’s an amazing figure, as only 19% didn’t enjoy it! There are many people in the game who don’t play it for the story or questing, so this makes sense and is a lot better than it seems! 

Personally, I believe this is one of, if not the most important factor, to a world’s memory in hindsight. Looking back on Khrysalis, while it’s a beautiful and story-driven world, it’s only remembered for being insanely long!

It wasn’t just the story that stood out for Empyrea. The difficulty was almost perfectly tuned with the quest line and made us feel immersed within the world!

Did you enjoy the bosses and mobs?

The majority enjoyed the fights within the world! It wasn’t just us battling our way brainlessly, we had fun killing things! Again, this will contribute a lot to our long-term perception of this world. We’ll look back and say yeah, I enjoyed it. Things like these keep our hopes up for the game and its story!

Did you enjoy the challenge?

The difficulty was perfect and I’m happy Kingsisle didn’t nerf Part 2! We needed a challenge and we got one! There are also some debatable topics flying around the community. The biggest being the Titan’s Trident fight. 

Do you think the Trident fight needs to be nerfed?

The community was split on this topic. We want a challenge! It’s too hard! There’s cause for both arguments.

The cheats are unfair and gaining shadows while raised in the air and untouchable means the boss is super hard to beat. If you’re coordinated and playing with a knowledgeable team, it doesn’t take too long.

The problem lies within the team requirements. The demand for Balance and Death wizards for blades and Bad Juju is insane! You need both if you don’t want the fight to take over an hour. This debate will keep raging on and there’s nothing we can do to resolve it!

Overall World

I asked for a lot of information from you guys to get the best overall feel for this world and how you felt about it. It’s safe to say, the chart reveals all!

Did you enjoy the World overall?

All the positive results combined take up more than half the data. Another fifth considers it cool, another considers it okay, and a small majority didn’t enjoy it.

This is a good thing. It shows us that Kingsisle isn’t messing around with world releases. We’ve got a lot to look forward to!

Did you enjoy the ‘Nothing’ teaser?

The community is split three ways on this. I think partially due to concern. It’s been a long time since we started a new story arc, let’s hope that Kingsisle will nail it like they did this one.

This had led to some wild speculation about what we will face, let’s hope it meets our expectations!

Was what we got enough?

An overwhelming majority think we got enough new content to keep us going for a while. However, there is a cause for concern we won’t get new content soon enough, and the game will die down.

Recently, I’ve noticed a lot more people in the game, with a few realms appearing full which used to be empty at peak play time. I think the number one priority for Kingsisle should be to keep this hype train going!

To those who said it wasn’t enough, I’d encourage you to keep going. It may just be the initial grind that burns you out. Give WhirlyBurly, the side quests, and farming a chance. Maybe your opinion will change!

Opinions

I did something different with this questionnaire and asked for individual opinions. I also asked about one of my favorite new games, Whirlyburly!

Have your opinions on WhirlyBurly changed?

Sadly, I seem to be in the minority. I think the main reason for the overall view and perception of Whirlyburly is that there isn’t enough to work for, cause, and there aren’t any shorter game modes. 

That’s a different topic and we can be reasonably sure this isn’t all we’ve seen from Whirlyburly.

I then asked for just your thoughts on anything Part Two related. I got a lot of calls for nerfs but not to over-nerf. There were other great ideas and opinions such as:

  • A request for PvP gear and PvE gear to be entirely separate.
  • It’s the best world ever.
  • A Life school AOE spell needs to be created.

Conclusion

We’ve tackled Empyrea Part Two while breaking down each part to see how we all feel and overall, I think this world has been great. A 8.5/10 at least. There’s little room to complain, a lot to enjoy and shows promise for what’s coming! I am happy and eager to see the game’s future.

A final shout out to the entire community for taking part and helping with these articles! You guys have been amazing and I think it’s participation and approaches like this that will keep this game going for years to come! Thank you all!

Whirlyburly! The Basics

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Introduction

So, how about Whirlyburly? Whirlyburly is that oddly-placed mini-game within our Velo City storyline. It’s kind of like chess, but three player… and hexagonal… with only three pieces…  Okay, so it’s nothing like chess, but it is a tactical board game with a lot of inner complexities that make it surprisingly fun.

The game can be complicated and confusing for a new player, and only through experience does one learn the ropes, but that’s what this is here for! So, let’s see what we can teach you!

The Cards

The random selection of 5 cards you get at the start of each round are what allow you to make specific plays. Ideally, you want big movement pattern cards, but often small, strategic plays can win you a match!

It’s important that you can discard any card you don’t want. A simple right click will allow you to find a better one for the next turn!

You can also gain a lot of tiles at once by matching the letter of your card to your piece. So, S for Scrapper, and when he finishes he takes with him a large area that surrounds him!

You can also change what piece has which card before the selection phase ends by simply clicking them and a new card!

The Pieces

Contrary to the name, the Charger isn’t specifically designed to charge at the opponent and take chests. Each piece functions in the exact same way, but with different prey and counters.

The best you can do is watch where the enemy sends their pieces. If both of their hunters are near a single place, send your Charger in while keeping your Scrapper away. Those 3 point kills make a massive difference. This smart positioning often allows you to take chests without much hassle or competition!

But be wary of overextending! If you send your Hunter in to take a chest, make sure their Scrappers aren’t on your borders ready to pounce!

Remember that you can also knock pieces off the map! If a piece is near the outline, use a Hunter or Charger to knock them off of the edge, sending them back to spawn!

The Points

The points system is pretty easy to understand but can be a lot more complex when you are left with decisions that could drastically affect your score at the end of the game.

The 10 point chest is almost always a good idea, but on your way, you may be killed and leave uncontested tiles for your enemies to take! Tiles build up points faster than you think, so leaving a ton of them on the other side of the board free to be retaken is not a good idea.

Capturing is also a solid method of gaining points. If you can repeatedly take out their pieces and contest tiles you’ll quickly score into first place!

The last round! This is super important and can make or break your entire game. Taking tiles should be your absolute priority. Don’t leave yourself at risk in the round before, otherwise, you’ll just take the tiles you already have. Save some of those Area Capturing tiles for last and boost your score as much as possible!

Conclusion

Whirlyburly is actually quite fun, endearing and a unique game once you start to understand it. It can quickly take up a lot of your time and you’ll end up spending too much time in Velo City, or you’re like me and have created an entire gear set just to wear into games!

Hopefully, this allows you guys to better experience our new mini-game and earn some cool shirts!

The WizardCity Orchestra

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Intended for Musician and Non-Musician Alike

Wizard City, founded by Merle Ambrose, composed by Nelson Everhart, has an unexplainable joy located in the centre of the world that is uniquely magical. As we cross the line from magic to music, we will analyze through this guide the music that aids the story of the first world we step in. This is unique kind of guide- guided listening!

Music typically aids a story. A leitmotif is a form of musical aid when music is played to represent a specific character or theme. Famously used in Richard Wagner’s 15 hour Opera, The Ring Cycle (home of “The Ride of The Valkyries”). Leitmotifs often relate to each other in a musical way to present continuity in the aesthetic of what it represents.

“Main Theme”

One of the most iconic themes presented in Wizard City is located within The Commons. Throughout this article, a theme is defined as the main melody within a piece of music. I stress this, because we typically think of a theme as the piece as a whole.

This melody, notated above, is a descending major scale with some notes fluttering down faster than others in what is called sixteenth notes. We also have notes going back and forth between each other- a common characteristic in most of the Wizard City melodies. What is a major scale? It is commonly referred to as a collection of notes played in a specific order (Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do, if you are familiar with Solfege and/or The Sound of Music) that comes off as “happy” in tone.

We begin the melody on the English Horn, a relative to the oboe before being taken from the light and airy flute. Pizzicato strings snap along, giving a bouncy vibe. Please note, I only transcribed the underlying bassline and not the complete strings section. For simplicity’s sake, the example is written in concert pitch.

As we drive away from the complex aspects of music theory and orchestration, how does this make us feel? It makes us feel happy and relaxed. “The Commons” is for gathering with the community, and with the few instruments playing at any given time, it feels intimate and easy-going. The light atmosphere is perfect for a passing place to collect quests, or to simply walk on by.

“Theme 1”

Next, we have the original Ravenwood theme. The horn begins by ascending a dissonant Lydian arpeggio coming to a resolution within the next measure. After that, we repeat that same idea, but go down a whole tone scale, similar to how we went down a scale in The Commons theme. The music of Ravenwood is meant to be glorious and bestilling; to be standing before an ancient being as grand as Bartleby and to feel his serene vibe.

The strings respond to the horn, going back and forth between two notes in nearly the same rhythm the horn did, stating the theme as it develops. The Commons theme too, went back and forth between two notes in its melody, connecting these two melodies in a very subtle way.

“Theme 2”

We continue to explore Wizard City with Olde Town. The selection I picked from here begins at 00:27 seconds into the third track. This is the point we truly see the themes come together. The horn begins with a melodic shape that will develop into Theme 3’s main melody, then using that with a descending scale, similar to the whole tone scale used in Theme 1. There is then a key change that develops the first statement into A major, continuing onto a fragment similar to the main Commons theme.

After that climax, the strings (or clarinet in the rendition above) relax with a rhythmically slowed-down version of the Commons theme, developing its character. This is where our Wizard accepts the three streets questline and ventures forth, representing how they are becoming more at home with the world they magically were summoned to.

“Theme 3″

The orchestra ventures to Unicorn Way, the starting point of all trauma our wizards suffer. The clarinet soothingly hums out a happy, twinkling theme. 

It goes to and fro between thirds with passing tones in between, similar to the starting melody of Theme 2. But this specific melody develops until it begins to ascend. This is the first time we have purposely shaped the melody to ascend. This is the largest the melody has ascended, even from the beginning ascension of the Ravenwood Theme.

We go through a key change as the horn reaches the climax of the piece. The horn reaches a high Eb, the highest note used in the melody so far. Both of these show a deeper meaning that our Wizards will reach great lengths in their future. The future of our Wizard’s life is hinted that we will be expected to do great things during our time in Ravenwood, and the music encompasses that idea. 

After an instrumental interlude, we return to the classic Commons melody, but the ending has developed. Before it was five notes, now it is seven.

Thank you, Starlights, for venturing through my tour of The Wizard City Orchestra. Have a wonderful night.

Disclaimer:

Please note: I transcribed the music from the original/classic mode music scrolls. Not all of my transcriptions are 100% accurate, but they are close and the rhythm is properly notated. The Golem Tower, Wizard City Combat, and Wizard City Dreamworld Themes did not fit in with the above, so I have not included them in this presentation.