Lost Ark celebrates its first anniversary in the west.

The February Anniversary Update will be in full swing starting February 8, allowing players to stay up-to-date with news about Lost Ark. The celebration is ushering in special events for the ARPG’s first anniversary, including a new continent and an open-world faction PvP.

Lost Ark became a massive hit in Korea when it was released in 2019. Fast forward to 2023, the game’s western debut was helmed by Amazon Games in 2022, and it was greeted by droves of players, leading to Lost Ark getting record-breaking numbers on Steam. Since the western version lags several years behind the OG Korean version, most of Lost Ark’s first year consisted of updates that slowly eased players into “new” encounters, classes, and features already available to Korean players. Now, we’re getting more new content that we can use to farm Lost Ark gold, thanks to the anniversary update.

Introducing Rowen

The main focus of Lost Ark’s anniversary update is Rowen, a continent rich with rare minerals you can sell for Lost Ark currency. Located west of Shushire, the Sylmael-filled land is valuable to everyone in Arkesia. Two factions hotly contest the land: Preigelli and Liebertane.

According to Lost Ark’s blog post about the February update, Preigelli is a faction formed under the belief that Chaos was brought to Rowen because of the people’s indulgences. Because of that, they must bring strict rules and order to the continent. Preigelli was made by a group of mercenaries who excelled at utilizing machines.

On the other hand, Liebertane was formed under the belief that Rowen was brought to ruin because of restrictions and overly strict rules. The folks who banded together to create Liebertane, consisting of mages and pirates, values passion and freedom above all else.

If you have an item level of 1445 or higher, you can begin the world quest on Rowen, ultimately culminating in your decision to join one of the two factions.

PvP Between the Two Factions

Once you’ve chosen the faction of your choice after fulfilling the “Cataclysmic Eliyabeck” quest, you’ll be able to enter a PvP mode against the opposing faction. This leads to the open-world PvP system, where you and other players from the competing factions can rise through the ranks by participating. Faction ranks are divided into 15 tiers, and you can earn them by doing daily, weekly, and co-op quests.

The war between Preigelli and Liebertane will begin once the February update goes live. Still, the competition heats up even further in March—precisely when the Tulubik Battlefield goes full swing. For those that haven’t heard of it, the Tulubik Battlefield is a large-scale, 48v48 extravaganza that pits players into a large arena.

 Twitch Drops for the Avid Viewers

Besides the introduction of the Rowen continent and PvP factions, you can expect several events that will offer valuable rewards: Twitch Drops. Twitch Drops are a typical “event” for most online games, and it gives developers a chance to give back to their community in exchange for a few hours of watch time. The drops tend to reward people with costumes and other cosmetic items.

There’s no news yet about the Twitch Drops for Lost Ark, but we’re sure it’ll be exclusive to it. Who knows? The rewards may come in handy when the March update is released.

Players Can Expect the Artist to Come Early

If you’re one of the many players excited for the western release of the Artist, we’ve good news for you! Previously announced as the first Specialist Advanced Class in Lost Ark, the Artist was slated to arrive in the western version of the ARPG in April 2023. But now, Amazon Games and Smilegate have shared that their development work for the class will finish ahead of schedule. Now, the Artist will have a March 2023 release!

The Artist will release with the Powerpass and a progression event in tow. The progression event is similar to the past Express Events they’ve had. This should help the soon-to-be Artists (or those trying another class) to prepare quickly for the Hanumatan Guardian Raid and the Brelshaza Hard Legion Raid.

A Lot to Look Forward To

Players with Lost Ark accounts still have a lot to look forward to, as there’s still content that hasn’t been announced. Now’s the best time if you haven’t tried Lost Ark yet. The game recently made headlines for issuing bans to many players, but the developers quickly rectified the situation.

This article was provided by Daisy M. Mariño