Shotbow

Hello everyone!
Today is January 22nd, 2021, 8 whole years after the initial public release of SMASH. To celebrate this momentous occasion, we have prepared a celebration which will last a few weeks. During this throwback celebration game mechanics will return to how they previously functioned among other things. Unlike the 6th Year Anniversary this celebration will be divided into 2 separate parts. Read onward to see what we have in store for everyone!

Part 1
Cosmetic Game Changes
The bulk of Part 1 will be Cosmetic changes to fit how old SMASH used to look. We have not changed any game mechanics or systems besides the removal of Christmas 2020 festivities. Things like bowfly and other old features like that will not become available either. Here are the following changes we have made:

• The old 1.7 Lobby has returned in all of its glory. We had some trouble finding a functional version of this build, however using player input, old screenshots, and knocking our heads together, we've added all the secret signs, sayings, and redstone systems back. In addition, there are a few new secrets to find.
• We've reverted to the old KO messages, which contain ELO values of players. Unlike the 6th Year Anniversary, this change is here to stay! Note: There is a space between the ELO and players' name, this is intended
• Players' ears can rest no longer, as the DING sound that plays when an item spawns has returned, as loud as ever...

New Cosmetics
You may have heard some KO sounds that were only accessible to certain players and staff, these will now be accessible to everyone for purchase via the XP Store as of now! The sounds are as follows: Wololo, Approving Grunt, Elder Guardian Death, Shulker Death, Shulker Taunt - Deep, Sizzle, Wither Scream, Boss Spawn, and Bat Death. In addition, a new trail has been added, "Tornado", which is available for use across the network.

Limited Time Cosmetic
Lastly for Part 1, we will be holding events throughout today, at peak times for the Americas, Europe, and Japan. Simply finishing a match in the event will allow you to obtain the glyph, and it should be available for usage a little while after. Events will be broadcast on the twitter and in-game, however we have 3 times planned as of now.

• US: 11 AM EST / 5 PM CET / 1 AM JST (23rd)
• EU: 1 PM EST / 7 PM CET / 3 AM JST (23rd)
• JP: 8 AM EST / 12 PM CET / 10 PM JST

Part 2
Map Changes
We know that many players have been waiting for new maps, especially those from the Map Building Contest way back in September. However, due to lots of back-end changes happening over the course of the past few months, we have been unable to add these maps. Miner Problems and now Slaughter both run on an updated Arena system, which we are currently working on updating. So, instead of delaying the Anniversary, we will have the 2nd part of the Anniversary be dedicated to map changes among other things. We will be adding the following maps within the month of February at the bare minimum:

• Abandoned Bridge
• Corrupted
• Dark Castle
• The Ship
• White Chapel
• The Cube
• Olympian Heights
• Freezeflame Cavern
• Endgame
• Collide
• Aftermath*
• Big Kahuna*

* = Media Map
In addition, players can look forward to some map balance changes. Depending on what we feel is fair, spawn points for items and players may be altered across all maps.

Social System Update
This is more of a back-end change, however parties will now operate on the new social system which was introduced a while back. You'll be able to send messages with /drm (message) and see who's playing what from the Smash lobby from Part 2 onward.

Closing
We'd really like to thank the community for sticking with us for 8 years, its been a wild journey together. Even if you've just come on for a few matches to kill time, or if you've been with us since the start, thank you. It means the world to us when we see people talking about, playing, and enjoying the game. It's what I personally love here the most, just chatting with all of you guys, and a lot of the time your feedback is amazing to listen to. With the new Arena system on the way, we'd love to accept more maps for testing at a faster pace, so you guys have more content to chew on.
As always, thanks for flying Shotbow, and here's to 9! -The SMASH Team

Hello again!



Changelog

• Fully updated to 1.16.2
• Lobby:
  • No more signs! Now features an entirely new matchmaking browser for easily setting up a game or joining others.
  • Maps now display their builder.
• Gameplay:
  • Waves are now randomized and endless. Mobs are still introduced in the same waves they were previously, but now each wave has slightly randomized amounts of each mob. The mob count per wave scales with the player count. Additionally, the game no longer randomly cuts off at wave 23. If you can get to wave 100, I'll be impressed...
  • Mob relocation now happens passively in the background. If a mob is too far away from any players, it will automatically be teleported to a closer spawn point. No more waiting 10 minutes to find that last spider or chicken!
  • Axes now function similarly to the Smasher from SMASH. They will break after a single use, but deal massive AOE damage.
  • Buying potions no longer completely breaks the game.
  • The hotbar gold indicator now displays up to 99.
  • Dropping gold is now much easier.
  • Fletched Arrows are now bought four at a time.
  • Shiny Metal Armor has been removed. All Shiny Metal Armor shops have been replaced with Gleaming Armor shops.
  • Lowered the price of Gleaming Armor to match Shiny Metal Armor prices.
  • Otherworldly Armor has been replaced. I wonder what it could be...
• Mobs:
  • Chickens are fast again.
  • Zombies now can spawn with randomized gear.
  • Skeletons now drop Fletched Arrows.
  • Spiders no longer get stuck on ceilings.
  • Creepers now drop gold on explosion.
• And many small adjustments!

Hello Survivors!

The Purpose of PTR

Rigorous testing is a critical development component of any new product. It ensures that the product is not faulty and can be redistributed to the consumers. If a faulty product is distributed, there are always repercussions, some of which are very hard to recover from. The Bank has to work near-perfectly before being released to the live servers. We simply cannot afford to release a version that risks some of the worst-case scenarios occurring (e.g, item duplication or item loss glitches). The occurrence of a worst-case scenario would ultimately undermine the integrity of the Bank system and immensely hurt the game as a whole.

With that said, there is only so much the development team can test on our own. We can simulate how a player might use the Bank (or how they might break it) for days, but in the end there are no better testers than those who will use the feature in-game.

Risk vs. Reward

As obvious as it may seem to have a public test, there are many pros and cons that the team considered before making a final decision. One of those factors was player interaction. For as many players that will test, provide feedback, report bugs, and overall help make the Bank a quality product for everyone, there are many that will look for ways to exploit the Bank for themselves.

Considering the importance of being near-perfect upon live release, we have decided that we will be offering some rewards for helping test and reporting bugs. Each bug reported that has not already been reported, and verified by a dev as a bug, will receive a prize for their contribution. A list of known bugs with the PTR can be found in the first comment of this thread; please DO NOT make a report for anything explicitly specified on the list, it will not be eligible for a reward and we are already aware of the issue. If you don't want to fill out a report for a reward, please still submit any and all feedback! Also, please note that the developer team holds the right to decide what reward each reported bug deserves, the outline below is a guide for your convenience and is not absolute. However, rest assured reporting all the bugs you find will be worth your time. The general reward thresholds and the requirements to receive rewards are outlined below.

Reward

Reward Thresholds

• Major Bug
  • Bugs that significantly affect overall function and could harm the game; e.g, duping, data loss, rollbacks, etc.
  • A very special reward. More details will be provided to the player at the time of reward distribution.
  • Possible rewards: A special in-game item, a large XP reward (~20,000), a free in-game cosmetic effect

• Medium Bug
  • Bugs that affect overall functionality, but are not as significant as major bugs; e.g, abnormal inventory interactions, the bank pages cannot be opened, etc.
  • Possible rewards: A medium XP reward (~5,000)

• Minor Bug
  • Bugs that do not affect the overall function but should still be fixed; items dropping randomly, not stacking correctly, etc.
  • Possible rewards: A small XP reward (~1,000)

Reward Requirements

In order for your bug report to be eligible for a reward, the following format and information must be included in your report:

• Player Name:
  • The in-game name you were using when the bug occurred.

• Date and Time:
  • The approximate date and time of when the bug occurred (be sure to include a timezone!).

• Description of the Issue:
  • A short description of what the issue is and what the expected behavior should be.

• Evidence of Issue:
  • Only ONE form of evidence outlined below is required, however as much information as you can provide is very appreciated
    • A video clearly showing the bug, including approximately 30 seconds before and after the bug's occurrence. A text list of recreation steps should be included to supplement the video.
    • OR A series of screenshots clearly showing the bug (as much as possible) uploaded to an imgur album (or similar service) with a DETAILED text list of re-creation steps. It is important that these steps can be easily followed so we can reproduce the issue!

• Additional Information:
  • Any other useful information or comments. Please only include if applicable, stating "none" is not necessary.

EXAMPLE REPORT:

• Player Name:
  • ShadowLAX

• Date and Time:
  • January 17th, 2021, at 12 PM CST

• Description of the Issue:
  • Issue: When I open a bank page, the bank page features are missing. The inventory title and toolbar options are incorrect/missing.
  • Expected: The bank navigator toolbar should be visible at the bottom of the page and the title should read "Main Bank Page x/max".

• Evidence of Issue:
  • Video: Link
  • Screenshots: https://imgur.com/a/YfnMCGw
  • Step 1: Open the bank menu normally by right-clicking
  • Step 2: Open the main bank page selector
  • Step 3: Open any page
  • Step 4: The toolbar is not visible, and the inventory title is incorrect

After you have filled out your report, you can submit it by sending a DM to ShadowLAX either on the forums or by filling out this Google form. Do NOTpost reports in any publicly-viewed forum; doing so will result in that report becoming ineligible for a reward. You will be contacted through the same medium if the development team has any additional questions and for coordination of your reward, so be sure to check the conversation occasionally. These rewards will last until well after the live release, but please be sure to send in bugs as you find them!

Risk

We want to make it clear that you will not get in trouble for finding bugs and experimenting with them on PTR. The fine line between a ban (or potential blacklist) and a reward is simply reporting it. There will be a ZERO TOLERANCE POLICY for not reporting bugs that have the potential for exploitation (most notably, duping). If we find out that a similar-typed bug has not been reported, and we know that the player plans to exploit said bug when the Bank is released to live, YOU WILL BE PERMANENTLY BANNED. This will be the only warning you receive. And to be extra safe, we have added multiple security measures with the Bank. No matter how sly you may think you are, the odds of getting away with anything is not in your favor.

The Banking System

Accessing the Bank

Currently, the Bank has been placed at each major spawn town (Geuten, Carmi, Romero, Portsmouth, Pravus, Grimdale, and Kaocho). In each of these towns, a structure similar to the image below contains an ender chest. Right-click this ender chest to open your Bank.



The Bank Structure

The Bank is a per-player item storage system, meaning only you have access to your items while they are stored in the Bank. It is composed to two separate "banks", the "main bank" and the "legacy bank." The difference between the
banks will be discussed in the next section, however the overall structure is the same. From the main menu (pictured below), left-click one of the bank options to open the page selector.



The page selector displays all your pages available to be used for storage. Left-click one of the pages to open that page.
Generally, a "page" consists of a 4x9 chest inventory that you can put items in (pictured below).



Once a page (pictured below) is opened, you can place your items into the page, similar as you would for any other chest. When finished, you can close the inventory to exit, the items would be saved automatically and available the next time you open the bank. The bottom row contains options to navigate to the next and previous pages (if available) and to return to the page selector. No items can be placed in the bottom row.



The Main Bank vs. The Legacy Bank

As mentioned in the section above, the Bank is composed of the "main bank" and the "legacy bank." The main difference between the two bank types is the items that you can store and the total number of storage spaces available.

The main bank allows you to store ALMOST ANY item you have or may find in the world. This includes, but is not limited to, armor, weapons, potions, food, legendaries, cosmetics, and rares. If it's in your inventory, or it can generally be found in the world, it can likely be stored in the main bank. There are a few exceptions that will be explicitly stated later in this section. Main bank storage is limited.

The legacy bank allows you to store any item that is CURRENTLY NOT OBTAINABLE in the game. This includes cosmetics, legacy items, and rare items. If it can be found through normal means in the game (including, but not limited to, loot chests, mobs, and dungeons), it CANNOT be placed in the legacy bank. In general, the function of this bank is to store cosmetics and legacy items. Like the main bank, there are a few exceptions that are explained below. Legacy bank storage is also limited.

Both banks have some special case items that are either not storable or are limited. These exceptions are stated below. Please note that this list is not exhaustive and is subject to change.

• Bags
  • Bags are limited to ONE OF EACH COLOR in the ENTIRE bank.
  • Bags must be completely empty in order to be stored in the bank.
  • Normal storage filtering applies (e.g, if it is currently obtainable in-game, it can only be placed in the main-bank).

• Soulbound Items
  • Soulbound items CANNOT be placed in EITHER bank.

Bank Storage

For THIS PTR ONLY, everyone will be given FOUR pages in both the main and legacy bank. This is to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to test the pagination. This number is subject to change, but if it does, it will only increase. That being said, these numbers ARE NOT the live-release storage defaults; they will be announced at the time that the Bank is released to live. Additionally, while not released with this PTR, there will be ways to expand bank storage in the future.

Closing

We recognize that this system may not be what some players might have been expecting, but we are committed to making the Bank as fair and useful to everyone, from the veterans to the new guys. We believe that this system is the best compromise in regards to giving players a place to store their special items while maintaining one of the core principles of MineZ.

Even though time is running out before Mojang starts locking accounts, we will not be releasing the Bank until it is ready to be released. It will remain in PTR indefinitely until such time. The time at which Bank is fully released is entirely up to you, the players; the more testing that is done, and the more bug reports that are submitted, the faster the Bank will be released. That being said, it is important to note that nothing is absolutely final and everything is subject to change over the testing period.

We thank you in advance for helping test and providing any and all feedback while Bank is in this public testing phase!

As always, and until next time,


Thanks for flying Shotbow!