Blood and Madness

October 15, 2013

A grim specter lurks in the shadows of the Mad King’s past.
The Bloody Prince is coming to Tyria!

Video

Events

  • The Bloody Prince Emerges

    Halloween is drawing near, and Magister Tassi’s instruments are picking up some unusual energy readings. The Mad King isn’t the only one breaking through the barrier between realms—prepare to face the son of Oswald Thorn, Bloody Prince Edrick!

  • Mad Realm Doors

    Haunted doors are appearing all over Kryta, where brave travelers can dare to
    trick-or-treat!

  • Mad King’s Labyrinth

    The Bloody Prince has taken over part of the Mad King’s Labyrinth! He’s controlling the undead armies in the Mad King’s Realm, while his father retains command of the plastic spiders, candy corn elementals, and other festive frights. The Skeletal Lich, Grand High Viscount of Candy Corn, and the Labyrinthine Horror await interlopers.

  • Mad King’s Clocktower

    Race against the rising madness in the Mad King’s Clocktower, Tyria’s most maddening jumping puzzle! Can you make it to the top in time?

  • Lunatic Inquisition

    Join in player vs. player madness and mayhem with the Lunatic Inquisition, where you’ll play as either a Villager, desperate to survive, or a maniacal Lunatic Courtier. Discover survival tools and hidden secrets within the Labyrinth, and try to survive the night!

  • Developer Livestream – October 14

    Take a spooky sneak peek at the Blood and Madness release with ArenaNet devs during the preview livestream on our Twitch channel on Monday, October 14 at 12PM PDT.

Rewards

  • Sweet Rewards

    Get yourself some sweet rewards by participating in Blood and Madness content! Complete the Blood and Madness meta achievement to receive a Mini Candy Corn Elemental , and follow the storyline for a Candy Corn node for your home instance!

  • Candy Cornucopia

    You can trade Candy Corn for new Halloween items like a Mini Bloody Prince, a 20-slot Halloween Pail, and special crafting items needed for Halloween weapons!

  • Mask of the Night

    Participate in rounds of Mad King Says to prove your ability to obey the maniacal monarch’s whimsies and earn yourself a
    Mask of the Night!

  • World vs. World Rewards Update!

    Rank up chests in WvW have been updated to provide additional rewards for WvW players! Each time you gain a rank, you will now receive additional silver from each chest as well as an additional roll for a Masterwork or better item, effectively doubling your chances of getting cool loot every time you gain a rank!

Features

  • Combat Quality of Life Fixes

    With new ground targeting options, improvements to targeting, and a new, optional way to display condition damage numbers, we’re bringing in some great improvements to the way our combat works!

  • Trait and Skill Tooltips

    We have improved the tooltip system for traits and skills. Traits now display numbers, and skill tooltips will show how skills are affected by equipped traits.

  • Balance Updates

    We’ve made a balance pass on existing skills and traits with a focus on improving support builds in all parts of the game for all professions.

  • Introducing the First World vs. World Season

    Starting on October 18 and running through December 5, we’ll be hosting the first WvW season! We’ll be splitting up worlds into leagues, and each world within a league will compete against every other world over the course of the season. Not only will you be rewarded for your team’s season-long performance, but you’ll also be rewarded each week that you participate!

New Gem Store Items

  • Halloween Weapon Skins

    Stop by a Black Lion Weapons Specialist today to pick up one of five brand-new Halloween weapon skins at the special introductory price of just one Black Lion Claim Ticket! Find Claim Tickets in the Black Lion Chest, and you can visit a Black Lion Weapons Specialist to preview these special new skins!

  • Costumed Mini 3-Pack

    Everyone’s favorite trick-or-treating Ghost, Assassin, and Aviator are available as a set of three spooky minis! The minis in this 3-pack can be combined with a Candy Corn Cob in the Mystic Forge to create a Miniature Ghost Carlotta, a well-loved spider from another age
    in Tyria!

  • Mad King and Bloody Prince Outfits

    Pick a side in the family feud between the lunatic Mad King and the newly-risen Bloody Prince! Each has everything you need to resemble your favorite Thorn, as well as a weapon. Inflict pain with the Bloody Prince’s staff, or regale your friends with some of the Mad King’s
    best jokes!

  • Witch and Executioner Outfits

    Participate in the spooky and ghoulish spirit of Halloween all year ‘round! With a full costume and toy weapon for Costume Brawl, you’ll not only be at the pinnacle of fashion, you’ll be able to ride about on an enchanted broom or punish your costume brawl foes with a fearsome axe.

A Guide to Blood and Madness

Want to know how to get started? Check out our spoiler-free mini-guide to this release!

Release Notes for Blood and Madness

Read detailed notes from our developers about
what’s new in this release.

Screenshots