RTS-Sanctuary is a community site open to everyone who enjoys playing Real-Time Strategy games including Ensemble Studios' "Age of" series, Relic's "Dawn of War" series and Blizzard's StarCraft series. The focus of this site is on providing an excellent collection of expert and general game replays as well as a friendly place to discuss game strategy. The main elements of the site can be viewed by everyone but you will need to register to be able to download replays or post. Registration is free so come in and join us today.
Posted by Zutazuta - Aug 31 2010, 09:31 AM - 21 comments
As RTS-Sanctuary continues to expand into the StarCraft 2 scene, we have come to the need for a Game of the Week Reviewer. We're looking for a skilled player (not necessarily expert, just skilled enough to recognize what makes a good game, good) who watches a lot of replays to take on the job. If you're interested in the position, send a personal message with the following application to myself by Sunday, September 5th.
The biggest change is the rolling events calendar. Mentors Tarik Torgaddon Ph3lan and OlBloodNGutz will be hosting regular events at scheduled times every week.
Ph3lan's Schedule- 7pm-10pm GMT, Mondays and Wednesdays, Space Marine, Chaos, and Eldar training.
Tarik's Schedule- 12am-2am GMT, Tuesdays and Thursdays, Eldar, Ork, and Space Marine training.
The biggest change is the rolling events calendar. Mentors Tarik Torgaddon Ph3lan and OlBloodNGutz will be hosting regular events at scheduled times every week.
Ph3lan's Schedule- 7pm-10pm GMT, Mondays and Wednesdays, Space Marine, Chaos, and Eldar training.
Tarik's Schedule- 12am-2am GMT, Tuesdays and Thursdays, Eldar, Ork, and Space Marine training.
For more information please check out the steam group events section here .
New L2P 1v1 Ladder!
Project L2P are also hosting a 1v1 ladder open to all players. Ranking will be determined by a point tracking system based on wins, and win loss ratio, that rewards lower ranked players for defeating higher level players and applies similarly in the reverse situation. In this way, the ladder rewards players for challenging more difficult opponents and therefore learning more in their games.
Posted by Robo - Aug 24 2010, 09:26 PM - 31 comments
Yesterday some users of the forum thought it would be funny to post real-life information about the person who manages the domain names for the sanctuary network. In doing so they crossed a line between internet and real-life that I thought I would never see happen here and threatened the continued operation of the site. If members of staff feel that the work they do here can spill over into their personal life we have entered an area that I don't want to occur. Many of you would have seen what happened with the posting of personal information relating to one of the Blizzard moderators during the debate over the use of Real IDs on those forums and I absolutely will not tolerate any situation like that here.
The site rules have been updated to include:
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6. Respect the Privacy of Others. This site respects your privacy and will not release your personal information unless required in accordance with our Privacy Policy and we require you to do the same. Do not post or otherwise provide any real-life information, or details about where or how to obtain such real-life information, about other users of the forum or members of the site staff/admin groups. Breach of this rule is grounds for banning with no requirement for warnings.
Please note that the punishment for breach of this rule is immediate banning with no warning required.
The site rules have also been updated to include:
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7. Don't post about locked or deleted threads. Posts get locked or deleted for a reason and we don't want the forums to turn into a discussion of the validity of, or reasons for, that moderation. It's up to you to read the Site Rules to determine what you did wrong and then post next time without breaking any rules. If you have a question with moderation it can be raised by sending a Personal Message to a staff member.
Breach of this rule is currently a minor offence and will attract 1 Warning Point.
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Posted by Robo - Aug 23 2010, 08:37 PM - 40 comments
Those of you who frequent AgeCommunity.com may have seen the recent news that Microsoft Games Studios had announced two new community appointments in regards to the launch of Age of Empires Online. BatsyBatsy is the Community Manager for Age of Empires Online and CosyGOODkNIGHT is the Age of Empires Online Moderator.
I'm pleased that both of them have accepted an invitation to create accounts here at RTS-Sanctuary so that they can establish connections with the community here. We have a long history of developers and publishers being represented on the forums and over time have had representatives from Ensemble Studios, Relic, THQ, Iron Lore and Robot Entertainment active on the forums so I'm glad we can continue the tradition with Microsoft Games Studios.
You will be able to identify them by their "Microsoft Games" member tags and their purple names in the online list.
Posted by Robo - Aug 17 2010, 07:29 AM - 208 comments
Robot Entertainment and Microsoft Game Studios have announced the next Age of Empires, Age of Empires Online. GamePlay Trailer
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On the eve of gamescom 2010, the world’s largest consumer-oriented games showcase, Microsoft Corp. unveiled the newest addition to the famed “Age of Empires” franchise, “Age of Empires Online.” Microsoft also announced the development of “Microsoft Flight,” a new entry inspired by the best-selling “Microsoft Flight Simulator” franchise. Published by Microsoft Game Studios, these new titles, along with the previously announced “Fable III,” fully integrate the free* Games for Windows – LIVE online service to deliver compelling socially connected gameplay experiences.
“Today, we’re bringing powerful, inventive gaming experiences to the Windows-based PC,” said Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios. “Over the years, our PC heritage captured the hearts and minds of millions of players. Reinventing these iconic franchises with social, shared experiences at their core marks the beginning of our return to PC gaming in bold new ways.”
“Age of Empires” for a New Era
With more than 20 million copies sold worldwide, the “Age of Empires” series redefined real-time strategy games for Windows-based PC players. Now, the timeless franchise once again invites players to experience its rich storyline in new ways. Developed by Robot Entertainment, “Age of Empires Online” will invite players to create a living, growing online world, shared with friends and friendly rivals around the globe. Begin the journey with your own Greek civilization, and watch as it progresses from a village to an empire. Embark on quests along the way, alone or with friends, and immerse yourself in epic tales, quirky characters, adventure, history and strategy. Together with the Games for Windows – LIVE service, “Age of Empires Online” delivers a rich, social experience that lets you play however you want — anywhere, anytime.
Marrying fresh features with iconic gameplay, “Age of Empires Online” offers something for long-time fans, newcomers and everyone in between. “Age of Empires Online” will feature:
• A persistent online capital city that lives and grows even when you’re offline
• Cooperative multiplayer quests, trading and a level-based system that lets you progress at your own pace
• Fun, approachable style and storylines
• Free-to-play experiences via Games for Windows – LIVE
Posted by Robo - Aug 6 2010, 07:49 PM - 63 comments
I'm very pleased to announce that Zutazuta has agreed to join the Admin Staff group here at RTS-Sanctuary. Since joining the Staff group back in September last year Zuta has been a very active member of the community. He was a driver of the Fan 1.2 Patch project for TAD and has already been very active in supporting our new StarCraft II actvities.
Congratulations Zuta!
ps: ... he knows the job comes with a 500% pay rise
It would be hard not to have heard about it ... StarCraft II has started to go live around the world. The Southeast Asian and Asian servers had the privilige of going live first about 12 hours ago and the European server has now gone live as well. Players using the North American Server still have a bit longer to wait but they can console themselves by watching Day[9]'s Countdown which is being streamed live around the world.
It will be interesting to see how the initial sales go - there has certainly been a lot of hype leading up to this day (and a lot of delays as well since the initial announcement of the game so many years ago). Until now the people playing the game would probably fall into the category of 'enthusiasts' but now we will start to see a much broader audience giving the game a go.
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The second phase of the StarCraft II Beta is kicking into action ... thousand of players around the world have rushed to download the latest patch and are now staring vainly at their screens trying to login only to be told that the servers are down for maintenance.
The launch of StarCraft II is less than 3 weeks away (it is released on July 27th with many stores opening at midnight to get the first sales in. To help you keep abreast of what is happening with StarCraft II while you are still playing your current game we have set the StarCraft II forums to be visible on all portals. This means the posts will show up in your Latest Posts view on the portal home page and you will see all the forums when you browse that section but it won't affect the News or Replays shown on your portal page.
We'll probably leave it like this until a few weeks after the offical release so you can share the excitement with all the Terran, Protoss and Zerg fans as they get back into killing each other Close Post
Posted by Mask - Aug 18 2010, 01:39 PM - 0 comments
THQ have announced the second stand-alone expansion for its genre redefining real time strategy game, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II, is scheduled for release in the first quarter of 2011 (March according to the trailer)
The expansion is called Retribution and features a new campaign in which multiple races are playable. As well as the single player campaign, RetributionTM will feature new multiplayer units, maps and an entire new playable faction when it ships.
Click "view more" for more information including the announcement trailer screenshots and an interview with the lead designer Jeff Lydell
About Retribution: It is ten years since the events of Chaos Rising and Sub-Sector Aurelia has been in a constant state of warfare with the Imperium struggling to retain control. The apparent betrayal of the chapter by Gabriel Angelos and his Space Marines has shaken the Blood Ravens and now the Imperial forces are beset on all sides by hostile aliens. Retribution allows the player to select the race of their choosing in a battle to determine the very survival or destruction of the entire sector.
Posted by Lor - Aug 16 2010, 06:48 PM - 5 comments
Well, I have been getting these e-mail from an individual named Captain Bluddflagg for a week or two now containing teaser pictures. I didn't think much more of it until my sweet ork "Jolly Roger" flag arrived from Fed-Ex this morning.
What it means I don't know, but going by last time I got random pictures e-mailed to me like these, I would keep my ears open for expansion news in the not too distant future....
Click on read more to view the latest image
Picture of my sweet pirate flag to follow.
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An announcement was posted by Thunder on the Community forums here confirming the update has gone live. A complete changelog is available here and a Q&A with TASK3R about the patch can be viewed here that is well worth a read.
Also, for any modders out there, here is a post from Thunder with some information about the modding improvements they have made in this update.
Enough reading, gogo and start pwning people!
Close Post
Posted by Lor - Jul 25 2010, 09:47 AM - 4 comments
A brief description of the upcoming patch can be found here as posted by Thunder on the Community Forums with more information about the FFA Mode that has been introduced, the pack preference feature and more details about improments to loading custom game mods.
For the patch changelog, please click on "View More" or "Add a Comment" and view the spoiler tag below.
* Free for All and Team Free for All are now available game modes in Find a Game o The Player Stats screen has been updated to show FFA and Team FFA stats o Find a Game FFA and Team FFA matches will give rank points * New map added for both FFA and Team FFA: (FFA) The White Walls of Calderis * Mods are now automatically loaded out of the mods folder o Users need to create Mods folder in their “\GameAssets” folder o Command line is no longer required * Map Preference Selection o Users can now select a number of maps they prefer in Find a Game o Matchmaking will attempt to match users with similar map preferences but if searching takes too long, user will be matched regardless of their map preferences * Added a reverb setting to the audio options that is defaulted to off. Enabling this will improve sound quality, but may have a dramatic impact on performance with low to mid-range CPUs.
Balance Changes
General
* Garrison & transport changes o Units should enter and exit buildings more quickly o When giving orders to a squad that is exiting a building, they will now execute that last order given once they are done unloading. o Units should now load into transports, webway gates & Ravener Alpha burrow tunnels in a more efficient manner o Units should unload from transports, webway gates & Ravener Alpha burrow tunnels in a more efficient manner o There is no longer a period of time where a unit is invulnerable when entering or exiting a building * Stun effects will now disable all abilities until the stun wears off
Chaos
Global
* Improved the visibility of the Noxious Cloud effect * Units killed by Noxious Cloud will now grant favour
Plague Champion
* Shrines of Nurgle no longer can resurrect unconscious commanders * Icon of Nurgle now requires tier 2 instead of tier 3 * Plague Bolter scatter radius reduced from 20 to 3
Sorcerer
* Consume radius increased from 5 to 8m * Dark flames will now telegraph when being cast * Dark flames initial delay increased from 0.1 to 2.1 * Curse of Tzeentch knockback increased from 10 to 15m * Curse of Tzeentch area reduced from 10 to 7m
Heretics
* Sword damage increased from 20 to 24 * Aspiring Champion upgrade reduced in cost from 100/25 to 80/25
Chaos Space Marines
* Bolter scatter radius reduced from 20 to 3
Havoc
* Heavy bolter setup time reduced from 4s to 3s
Chaos Dreadnought
* Added tracer fire to the Dreadnought’s torso guns * Can now melee garrisoned buildings while in a Blood Rage
Plague Marines
* Plague Bolter scatter radius reduced from 20 to 3
Chaos Predator Tank
* Weapon type changed from autocannon_pvp to autocannon_tank_pvp * Rotation rate increased from 75 to 100
Great Unclean One
* Cost reduced from 1400/250 to 900/220 * Health reduced from 8750 to 6125 * Level increases multiply health by 10% instead of 15% * Plague sword damage decreased from 440 to 160 * Special attack damage reduced from 175 to 120 * Upkeep increased from 0.0765 to 0.0956 * XP points granted lowered from 2500 to 1000 * Population cost increased from 18 to 21 o Consume Range increased to 15 from 8 o Swarm of Flies Cost increased from 50 to 80 o Vomit Cost increased from 50 to 70
Space Marines
Orbital Bombardment
* Outer ring damage of Orbital bombardment has been increased from 150 to 185
Force Commander
* Fixed an issue that allowed the Force Commander to have 2 melee weapons equipped
Apothecary
* Fixed an issue that caused the Apothecary to sometimes stop shooting after using Full Auto * Master-Crafted Bolter scatter radius reduced from 20 to 3
Techmarine
* Bolter scatter radius reduced from 20 to 3 * Master crafted bolter scatter radius reduced from 20 to 3 * Concsecrated bolter scatter radius reduced from 20 to 3
Scout Marines
* Bolter scatter radius reduced from 20 to 3
Tactical Marines
* Bolter scatter radius reduced from 20 to 3
Heavy Bolter Devastators
* Will now reset their weapons to a set-up state after upgrading to a lascannon
Assault Marines
* Energy cost for jump lowered from 70 to 50 * Jump now has a minimum range of 15m * Incoming ranged damage will be reduced by 90% while jumping * Now are immune to suppression for the full duration of a jump
Razorback
* Rotation rate increased from 75 to 100
Librarian
* Attacks from the power sword will no longer grant energy to the Apothecary * Now heals at the HQ at the same rate as a commander
Predator Tank
* Rotation rate increased from 75 to 100
Terminators
* Terminators and Assault Terminators now share the same cooldown timer * Terminators cost changed from 650/350z to 650/100/350z
Assault Terminators
* Equipping lightning claws will now reduce the health of assault terminators by 300 per entity * Assault Terminators cost changed from 650/350z to 650/100/350z * Fixed an issue that caused the maximum health of the squad to drop when an individual Assault Terminator was killed
Venerable Dreadnought
* Damage increased from 150 to 175 * Health increased from 1600 to 1750 * Cost decreased from 700/400z to 600/300z * New passive ability: Stoicism o When the Venerable Dreadnought has been dealt his killing blow he continues to fight on for 10 seconds. While Stoicism is active the Venerable Dreadnought cannot be slowed or disabled and will continuously inspire allies around him. After Stoicism expires the Dreadnought is destroyed.
Eldar
Global
* Fleet of Foot will no longer refund energy and cooldown when retreat is used while it is active * Garrisoned Farseer webway gates are now correctly revealed by enemy detector units
Farseer
* Levitation no longer effects units that are retreating
Warlock
* Improved the Providence ability visual effects
Falcon
* Rotation rate increased from 75 to 100
Fire Prism
* Pass_type changed from medium_crusher to heavy_crusher * Acceleration increased from 6 to 7 * Rotation rate increased from 75 to 100
Avatar
* Cost decreased from 1000/230 to 800/180 * Health decreased from 7000 to 5600 * Sword damage reduced from 340 to 205 * Avatar no long randomly knocks back units on attack * XP points granted lowered from 2200 to 1000 * Upkeep increased from 0.04 to 0.0956 * Population cost increased from 18 to 21
Orks
Warboss
* Now I’m Angry ability changed. o This ability no longer requires the Warboss to take damage o Now has a cooldown of 40s and requires 50 energy o Increases the damage and speed of the Warboss. The Warboss will also periodically stomp the ground while running, creating a crater of light cover.
Kommando Nob
* Health granted by Extra Equipment lowered from 200 to 100 * Explosive shot knockback has been changed from ability to weapon, making it ineffective against retreating units * Shoota scatter radius reduced from 20 to 5
Mek
* Shoota scatter radius reduced from 20 to 5
Sluggas
* Slugga Nob leader weapon type changed from pvp_melee to melee_heavy * Nob leader upkeep lowered from 0.02125 to 0.01275
Shootas
* Nob leader upkeep lowered from 0.02125 to 0.01275 * Shoota scatter radius reduced from 20 to 8 * Shoota Nob shoota scatter radius reduced from 20 to 8
Lootas
* Population cost decreased from 5 to 4 * Upkeep reduced from 0.02125 to 0.017
Stormboys
* Stormboy Nob leader weapon type changed from pvp_melee to melee_heavy * Incoming ranged damage will be reduced by 90% while jumping * Now are immune to suppression for the full duration of a jump * Jump cooldown decreased from 60s to 15s * Jump now has a minimum range of 15m * Nob leader upkeep lowered from 0.02125 to 0.01275 * Stormboys equipped with a Nob leader will now briefly stun enemies when jumped on
Wartrukk
* Rotation rate increased from 75 to 100 * Health decreased from 500 to 350 * Cost reduced from 300/40 to 180/20 * Damage lowered from 45 to 20 * Upkeep lowered from 0.0425 to 0.02125
Weirdboy
* Now heals at the HQ at the same rate as a commander * Fixed an issue that would cause Zzap to persist longer than intended
Kommandos
* Kommando Nob leader has upgraded his hammer to a rokkit launcha * Kommando Nob leader upgrade now requires tier 3
Nobs
* Huge Choppa weapon type changed from sword_pvp to melee_heavy * Size_override set to 1, allowing Nobs to path around each other easier * XP granted reduced from 250 to 200 * Hammers no longer have a probability of knocking back units on a regular attack * Hammers damage increased from 100 to 110 * Hammers now increase the Nobs damage output by 8% every time they attack stacking up to 4 times * Hammers cost increased from 50/50 to 100/70
Looted Tank
* Rotation rate increased from 75 to 100
Tyranids
Lictor Alpha
* Flesh hook damage reduced from 180 to 140 * Flesh hook flight distance lowered from 30m to 20m
Ravener Alpha
* Devourer scatter radius reduced from 20 to 8
Raveners
* Devourer scatter radius reduced from 20 to 8
Genestealers
* Removed the unused energy bar from Genestealer broods
Lictor
* Now heals at the HQ at the same rate as a commander * Scything Talons damage type changed from power_melee to melee_heavy * Lowered cost from 500/50 to 350/50
Tyrant Guard
* Now affected by Lascannon snare effect * Now affected by haywire grenades * Added a visual effect when the haywire grenade hits a Tyrant Guard
Zoanthrope
* Focused Warp Blast energy cost reduced from 65 to 30
Carnifex
* Added a visual effect when the haywire grenade hits a Carnifex
Bug Fixes
* Added all retailer exclusive wargear to the wargear drop tables in single player * Fixed an issue that would sometimes make squads unable to fire after being suppressed * Fixed an issue that caused setup weapon squads to chase a unit after being given an attack order * Fixed an issue that caused single members of a squad to pursue a target after being given an attack command * Stances are no longer reset to their defaults when upgrading a unit * Fixed an issue that was causing Khorne shrines to spawn bloodletters faster than normal when attacked by certain units * Fixed an issue that caused extra bloodletters to spawn when heretics stopped worshipping at a Khorne shrine. * Fixed an issue that caused infantry to automatically change stances from melee to ranged when garrisoning a building * Fixed an issue that prevented Heroes from cancelling a wargear upgrade while retreating another upgrading unit * Squad selection hotkeys will now always be assigned to the first available hotkey when a squad is created * Fixed a targeting priority issue that affected setup weapon squads and other weapons, extending their range beyond their maximum * Fixed an issue that would cause the cursor to become stuck as the directional indicator when issuing a right click facing order over a decorator * Fixed an issue that would cause the cursor to become stuck as the attack icon when rapidly building power generators * Fixed an issue that caused the health of the Chaos Sorcerer to be improperly displayed when the Sorcerer unlocked the Narcissistic trait in The Last Stand * Fixed an issue that caused users to only have randomized starting location on one map side * Fixed an issue that caused the output language to be incorrect when using a non-english keyboard * Added an on/off toggle for convolution reverb to the audio options * Fixed an issue that was preventing the sound effect for mini map pings * Added a sound effect when a chat message is received * We now require a certain amount of gameplay to occur before awarding rank points to a user to prevent user’s who were constantly conceding in order to rank up * Fixed a number of missing audio effects
