Year 6: Lost Horizons Season 1

## Golden Age

> *"Long before the Cataclysm, before Heathmoor ever bore its name, a brave Warden vowed to bring peace to his people. By doing the unthinkable, he ventured out where no one had ever dared, in a forest lay a beast no one could tame. But the Warden's will did not waver, sealing a blood pact to end all wars."*
>
>

> *"The hero and the beast brought forth... the Golden age of Heathmoor!"*
>
>

**Lost Horizon Season 1**, named "Golden Age," is the twenty-first season of the ongoing Faction War. Long ago, the first Warden to ever exist, Lord Ramiel, sealed a blood pact with a legendary beast. His brave act was intended to end all wars, originating from the very ancient chalice used to seal this deal: the Chalice of Immortality. See for yourself how this mythic hero came to be, and how he established the Wardens.

## Overview

> A brave Warden seals a blood pact to end all wars. The hero and the untamable beast bring forth a golden age to Heathmoor in the start of a gripping new year of For Honor.
>
>

The lost reliquary of Wyverndale has been unearthed by travelers from faraway lands. Among these treasures lies the Chalice of Immortality, an artifact that sheds light on the ancient past of Heathmoor. Long before the Cataclysm, Knights, Wu Lin, Samurai, and Vikings all lived in harmony in the ancient citadel of Wyverndale, which stood as a monument to peace and prosperity. This era of wonder was achieved thanks to the unprecedented efforts of Lord Ramiel, a heroic Knight who would become known as the First Warden.

In a time of terrible war, Lord Ramiel sought to bring an end to the bloodshed by making a pact with the Great Wyvern – a mythical, fire-breathing creature. The Wyvern helped the Knight defeat his enemies and, together, they watched over Heathmoor for generations.

## Features

### Oath of Wyverndale

During an era known as the Golden Age, the First Warden, Lord Ramiel, protected Wyverndale against all manner of evil. Only the bravest and the most valiant joined his legion to become fellow defenders of peace and prosperity. But to join Ramiel’s side, warriors had to prove their worth to the First Warden – in a trial of blood and fire.

From March 17th to April 7th, partake in the season's launch event. The Wyverndale gamemode is a Dominion-variation on a map that is usually locked out of the Dominion loop: the Cathedral. On this map, you will fight Lord Ramiel within the steeples, instead of having a typical midlane filled with minions. Side points will have buffs around them that will help players to fight against Ramiel, with Wyverns raining flames onto the battlefield. Once a team has entered breaking though, Lord Ramiel will leave the church to hunt down any Hero that is in his way.

For more details on the event and gamemode, check out the dedicated Oath of Wyverndale article page.

### Hero Skins

> The pious Knight made a sacrifice to bring peace and protect his people. Through a sacred ritual, he bound his fate to a Wyvern and drank its blood in the Chalice of Immortality. As long as the Knight lived, so would the powerful creature. They vowed to protect the legendary citatel of Wyverndale together.
>
>

> When the First Warden drank the wyvern's blood, he was blessed with tremendous powers, but also lost a part of himself. He lost his humanity, his ability to feel pain for himself and others. That is why modern Wardens and Warmongers have different interpretations of that same tale, claiming Ramiel's sacrifice as a symbolic story driving their beliefs.
>
>

As the first season to feature the newly implemented Hero Skin customization option, Warden receives the first skin, attaining the visuals of the legendary Lord Ramiel.

### Testing Grounds

Dominion changes will come to the live game. Below is a list of the changes made to Dominion as a result of the previous Testing Grounds:

* Renown gain is now Standardized across all Heroes instead of being different per Class. Assassins should no more receive the short end of the stick when it comes to performing non-assailant duty.
	+ Hero Kills: 20
	+ Minion Kill: 2
	+ Kill Assists: 10
	+ Capture Zones: 10
	+ Contest/Boosting Zones: *See below.*
	+ Revive: 20
	+ Rally: 30
* Boosting and Contest Zones now operate a bit differently. Boosting a Zone offers 42 Renown/min, while Contesting a neutral or opposing Zone offers 30 Renown/min. However, Contesting an allied Zone now offers a bit more Renown, at 36 Renown/min. This hopefully should replace the Defender Renown bonus that was removed.
* Special Renown Bonuses, particularly Kill Modifiers and the Defend Zone Bonuses, have been removed. An exception is given to Kill Streaks, Comeback, Revenge and Streak Breaker:
	+ Kill Streaks: 8 - 20
	+ Comeback: 25
	+ Revenge: 17
	+ Streak Breaker: 25
* Feat Unlock Threshold has been rebalanced in recognition of the new Renown gain model:
	+ Tier 1: 58 -> 50
	+ Tier 2: 155 -> 120
	+ Tier 3: 265 -> 210
	+ Tier 4: 335 -> 320
* Renown is now differentiated from Team "Renown" as the latter is now called "Points." This is most apparent with the integration of the Renown Widget, which will show you how much Renown you have earned just above your Renown bar, while Team Points earned remain within the text feed.
* Zone Point generation has been rebalanced, and should hopefully discourage sitting on a Zone aimlessly.
	+ Captured Zone: 0.74 Points/s -> 0.9 Points/s
	+ Boosted Zone: 1.85 Points/s -> 1.5 Points/s
	+ Captured Minion Lane: 1.35 Points/s -> 1.5 Points/s
* Zone Capture Speed remains the same, compared to the unified Capture Speed present in the Testing Grounds. Capturing a Zone with one Hero remains at 5.5 seconds, while more Heroes present on the point will hasten the process.

A new iteration of Conqueror, along with Shaolin changes, will be present in a new round of Testing Grounds on March 31st to April 7th.

* While some changes made to Conqueror were appreciated in the last Testing Grounds, there were a number of elements that were not as well received. This second iteration should help deal with what did not go well in the last Testing Ground while still maintaining the goals for the Conqueror revamp, such as increasing 1v1 viability and pushing the Hero to being more proactive than reactive. The following changes are additional to what changes were made in the previous Testing Ground:
	+ Can't Charge Heavy attacks in-chain anymore. Chain Heavies are not undodgeable anymore.
	+ No longer has infinite Lights, as Lights in-chain are now Finishers.
	+ Flail Uppercut is no longer Uninterruptible or Unblockable. It also now possesses a stance, thus can be Parried when the victim can act during Hitstun Stacking/3rd Hitstun rule.
	+ Cannot dodge out of Full Block anymore, and recovery to leaving FBS increased by 100ms.
	+ Chain Bash can now be performed after any non-Bash attack, but has reduced range.
	+ Zone Attack now costs less Stamina.
* Shaolin, despite being one of the more complex heroes, doesn't quite work as intended; the kit feels limited in what it can do, and while there are a lot of available options they do not pan out as expected due to multiple issues. We're looking to improve those issues and give Shaolin more flexibility and better flow to access these options in better, more effective ways. The following are the changes:
	+ Side Dodge Attack is now a chain opener, along with being able to enter Qi Stance.
	+ Neutral Top Light is now Enhanced.
	+ Zone Attack changed so that the follow-up two strikes are slower, but have better trajectory and damage along. Each hit is now target swappable, and Stamina costs are no longer paid upfront.
	+ Sprint Attack should be able to transition into attacks to properly guarantee damage if successful.
	+ Qi Stance Lights are all now 500ms and Enhanced; Top Qi Light does not Stun anymore. Qi Stance Heavies are all now 800ms in speed; Top Qi Heavy is now Undodgeable instead of Unblockable.
	+ Qi Stance Kick now does not follow-up into a Heavy or the Sweep.
	+ Qi Stance Lights and Heavies, together with Sun Kick Strike, now can chain into the Sweep with the Guardbreak input. The Sweep is feintable and has a guaranteed Heavy follow-up when the Sweep is successful. The Heavy follow-up is a chain opener and can enter Qi Stance.
	+ Qi Stance can be canceled with a Dodge.

Details about the specific changes made during the Testing Grounds can be observed in this patch notes page.

### April Fools

April Fools comes once more this year, and with it a small celebrate of mischief with the special Toon Filter. View the battlefield with a Cell Shaded look to it! Together with this look, the Hypnotic Eye effect makes a return, along with a few new content pieces such as the humorous Magician's Trick where you reveal a mini-me from a magic hat and the Dutiful Concision Execution.

### Hero Fest

A new mini-event will be held known as the "Hero Event." Aside from giving a spotlight to the particular Hero by making them free-to-use for that weak, they will be cheaper to purchase by 33%, have two Symbols and one Emblem sticker assigned to them that will be obtained upon log in, and finally a unique Execution for them.

Hero Fests will occur twice per title update, which results in four Heroes receiving a Fest per season, resulting in sixteen Hero fests occurring per year.

The first Hero to receive this Fest was Aramusha on April 7th to 14th, receiving the Shizuo's Sentence execution.

The second Hero was Jormungandr from April 21st to the 28th, receiving the High Striker execution.

The third Hero Fest was for Black Prior from May 26 to June 2, recieving the Vortiger's Regards execution.

The fourth and final Fest featured Jiang Jun fron June 9 to June 16, recieving the Close Call execution.

### Battle Pass

> Another battlepass is here. Through the hundred tiers, get access to the new collections of items that you'll be able to unlock as you progress through the free or premium pass. Battle Pass and season content will be themed around autumn colours and glistening metal aesthetics that harkens back to the Golden Age of Heathmoor.
>
>

New visitors from far away have unveiled the lost reliquary of Wyverndale. Now, treasures long forgotten have been made available to warriors once more. From the ancient past of Heathmoor comes old weapons that once again glisten in the light of day. Arm yourself with the blades of Heathmoor’s original warriors, and fight like the forebears of old.

Bring your customization to a whole new level with some mythic flair for your character's look through the 100 Tiers of rewards available for all heroes, all worth over a million Steel! For the premium tier, there is included a special Signature used to sign the Wyvern's Pact, along with an execution for the First Warden that is said to have been used on his nemesis: Ramiel's Ascendency. As this pass is seasonal, progression through the Pass will reset at the end of the season.

#### Free & Premium Pass

The Season Pass has two ranks: the Free Pass and the Premium Pass. All players will have access to the Free Pass, earning rewards which include embossings, ornaments, an emblem outline, color swatches, paint patterns and more. Rewards are earned every few tiers.

The Premium Pass on the other hand offers the bulk of rewards, such as new signatures, new weapons, new executions, new effects, and more. Premium Pass owners will still receive rewards from the Free Pass. The Premium Pass also offers +10% Battle Points, the points necessary to progress through the Battle Pass tiers.

As both Pass' progression are shared, a player is able to upgrade to a Premium Pass and receive all rewards they would have gotten if they had purchased the Premium Pass from the start.

#### Notes

Take note that the purpose of the Battle Pass is to guarantee rewards for players, compared to how all rewards were based around random drops post-match or scavenger crates. The Battle Pass however will not replace any current system of cosmetics and loot gain, such as the above mentioned random drops, any event loot or the content of the week.

Content of the Battle Pass, even for the Premium Pass, will only be character customization items and consumables, preventing a pay-to-win model. All tiers are also visible to Free Pass owners, so there are no hidden rewards. However, the exclusive rewards in the Premium Pass may become unobtainable at the end of the season.

Progression through the tiers of either Passes can be hastened with Steel, skipping either 1, 5 or 20 tiers at once. The price for hastening progress is static through the tiers and between both ranks of Battle Passes.

### Other Changes

Both Citadel Gate and Cathedral are customized with an autumn feel, with Wyverns flying up above. In both cases, some of the architecture has become much more refined with vintage glass panes and smooth bricks.

## Midseason Changes

During the midseason change on April 28th, couple of improvements were initiated. Find more information about this midseason change here.

### Event Throwback: For the Creed

Starting off the season is the return of an event from the Marching Fire update: For the Creed. Once again, Abstergo Industries invite you to synch with the past and unleash your inner warrior. However, with the Animus corrupted and mysterious figures of the past coming to Heathmoor, help Abstergo recorrect this error by fighting these strangers.

This throwback event will be available for three weeks until May 19th. The event will bring back mythical rewards from the original event. However, Abstergo brings to you during the first week new rewards from other Assassin's Creed universes, both present for purchase through Steel or through the Battlepass which was not available when the event first started.

For more details, please check out the Throwback section of the event's article here.

### Customization

>  *"Before the Cataclysm, heroes from all factions lived in harmony in the great citadel of Wyverndale. Now, from the past of Heathmoor comes ornaments and armors forgotten to time. Warriors now have access to armors worn long ago by their ancestor, bearing the effigies of old myths and powerful, winged creatures who, once upon a time, roamed the lands of Heathmoor."*
>
>

With the launch of a title update comes a new set of armor variations. These new armor visuals offers pristine look for each Hero, with special white cloth, silver metal and intriguing gold markings.

### Hero Fest

The Hero Fest returns, offering a mini-event to a Hero for a week. Aside from giving a spotlight to the particular Hero by making them free-to-use for that weak, they will be cheaper to purchase by 33%, have two Symbols and one Emblem sticker assigned to them that will be obtained upon log in, and finally a unique Execution for them.

Hero Fests will occur twice per title update, which results in four Heroes receiving a Fest per season, resulting in sixteen Hero fests occurring per year.

The third Hero to receive this Fest will be Black Prior on May 26th to June 2nd, receiving the Vortiger's Regard Execution

The fourth Hero to receive this Fest will be Jiang Jun on June 9th to 16th, receiving the Close Call Execution.

### Other Changes

Below is a list of additions changes made as part of the midseason update. More details can be seen here.

* The Breaking UI will now block less of the screen space.
* For Nobushi, fixed an issue with her heavy sprint attack having animation stutters when switching stances for a chain attack, along with fixing Zone Attack from Hidden Stance instead performing a Light or Heavy attack.
* Fixed an issue where Shaman would perform a Guard Break instead of Predator's Mercy (bite pounce) if performed on the last Bleed tick.
* Fixed an issue with Zhanhu's bash incorrectly applying a damage reduction on hit reaction.
* Fixed an issue with Kyoshin's Fujin Force having inconsistent forward movement when inputting a directional movement during the move.
* Fixed Pirate's left hand flickering and twisting when moving around in left guard when locked onto an opponent.
* Fixed a hole that allowed Players to see the backside of the map structure in Qiang Pass.
* Fixed an issue with the Renown Widget inaccurately displaying renown values when contesting a zone.
* And more...

## Gallery

### Video

For Honor- Year 6 Season 1 - Golden Age Launch Trailer - Ubisoft -NA-
## Trivia

* The name "Ramiel" comes from the Archangel of the same name who is an Archangel of God, but also a fallen Watcher. Known for being the Archangel of hope.
* The "Ramiel's Ascendency" Execution is likely an homage to a scene in the first movie of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. During the scene, after a strenuous fight with one strong Uruk-hai, Commander Lurtz, Aragon stabs the Uruk-hai through the abdomen. Lurtz attempts to intimidate Aragon by pulling in the blade more into his abdomen, before Aragon removes the blade to behead Lurtz.
	+ The specific clip that the Execution takes from can be watched here.