Yep! You heard me- a brand spankin' new $39 bundle! We haven't gotten one since the Cutthroat Bundle about a year ago.
This one is called the Empire Bundle, and it's Aquila-themed. Yay, Eagles! You can get this legendary bundle from any GameStop location in the USA.
Now I know those of you who are also Wizards will nervously remember the Olympian Bundle that was released a while ago on Wizard101. Fret not, for I was nervous about this, too: I was worried that we would just be getting some hand-me-down or cheap knockoff stuff from Wizard101. Luckily, this is far from true. While this bundle doesn't include a mount, pet or weapon, you should still be quite satisfied with what you get...
This one is called the Empire Bundle, and it's Aquila-themed. Yay, Eagles! You can get this legendary bundle from any GameStop location in the USA.
Now I know those of you who are also Wizards will nervously remember the Olympian Bundle that was released a while ago on Wizard101. Fret not, for I was nervous about this, too: I was worried that we would just be getting some hand-me-down or cheap knockoff stuff from Wizard101. Luckily, this is far from true. While this bundle doesn't include a mount, pet or weapon, you should still be quite satisfied with what you get...
The contents are as follows:
- Lady Centaur Companion
- Imperator Standard
- Imperial Galleon
- Gladiator Outfit
- Emperor's Villa
- 1 month membership or 5000 Crowns
The Companion
If you've quested through Aquila, you might remember having to save the wife of the the centaur tribe leader. Well now you can have a lady centaur, known in ancient Greek lore as a Centaurides, for yourself. I was thrilled to learn about this because 1: who doesn't like centaurs and 2: Girl power!
This is the first Pirate101 bundle to feature a female companion, which is really cool. One small step (hoofbeat?) for Centaurides, one giant leap for womankind! Huzzah!
Her stats show that she is a Musketeer, and she starts out with a couple really nice powers: a brand-new power called Centaur's Charge, which lets her move up to the enemy and attack it, and Point Blank Shot, which allows her to move close to the enemy and shoot them point-blank for a guaranteed critical.
This is the first Pirate101 bundle to feature a female companion, which is really cool. One small step (hoofbeat?) for Centaurides, one giant leap for womankind! Huzzah!
Her stats show that she is a Musketeer, and she starts out with a couple really nice powers: a brand-new power called Centaur's Charge, which lets her move up to the enemy and attack it, and Point Blank Shot, which allows her to move close to the enemy and shoot them point-blank for a guaranteed critical.
The Battle Standard
In my opinion, the Imperator Standard is the true selling point of this bundle- especially because this item isn't available anywhere else (yet?).
Here's how it works: The Battle Standard is, indeed, an item, but it is also a little like a power you may train for battle. But beware: having it sitting in your backpack won't let you use it! You must equip it in your Tokens slot; so be prepared to take off your beloved Black Rain Shades if you want to use this item. ;)
Its icon will show up in your powers tray during combat at the bottom of the screen. It's pretty easy to spot from all your other powers. When you select the icon, you'll have a choice to set the Standard in any of the squares next to you (including diagonally). Once you set the Standard down, you cannot move it.
Here's how it works: The Battle Standard is, indeed, an item, but it is also a little like a power you may train for battle. But beware: having it sitting in your backpack won't let you use it! You must equip it in your Tokens slot; so be prepared to take off your beloved Black Rain Shades if you want to use this item. ;)
Its icon will show up in your powers tray during combat at the bottom of the screen. It's pretty easy to spot from all your other powers. When you select the icon, you'll have a choice to set the Standard in any of the squares next to you (including diagonally). Once you set the Standard down, you cannot move it.
Here's where it gets interesting, and might require a little practice getting used to. Let's walk through the Standard's Power Card together.
Take a look at the tiny green square in the lower right-hand corner of the card's picture. Notice the even tinier 2 next to it? This means that your companions will be under the influence of the Standard as long as they are, at maximum, 2 spaces away from the Standard.
How can you tell if your companions are still under its influence? Look for a big white glowing circle around their feet. For all you Wizards out there, it's a little like an Aura spell.
Now let's read the card's description: "Fair Weather +50% [accuracy] for Birds; [+]Fowl Winds +50% [damage] for Birds"
Phew, that's really weird, isn't it? Time to take it apart and understand it inside and out.
"Fair Weather +50% [accuracy] for Birds" means that as long as your companion is a bird (like Rooster Cogburn or Nikeeta) AND is within 2 spaces of the Standard, they'll get a 50% boost in their accuracy. Yay! Once they move out of the Standard's range, they will no longer receive these special bonuses.
"[+]Fowl Winds +50% [damage] for Birds" is a very interesting addition. The [+] symbol denotes a power that you get if you can manage to plant the Standard in enemy territory. For example: you're slaying yet more Black Storm Raiders for your endless Cool Ranch quests (Ugh! Will those guys ever give up?!). You decide to go over to their ship and plant your Standard. Since that's their ship, it's enemy territory. Now, if you have companions that are birds AND are within two spaces of the Standard AND the Standard is in enemy territory, your eligible companions will get a 50% boost to their accuracy AND an additional 50% attack damage increase! Sweet.
!!ONE LAST VERY IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT STANDARDS!!
In PvE (fighting against bosses and enemies for quests or for fun), your enemies will ignore the standard, meaning they don't get any of the benefits and they don't do anything to it.
In PvP (fighting against other players in real time), your enemies can destroy your Standard! When it's destroyed, you'll lose whatever benefits you got as well as getting a penalty! The Power card for the Standard won't describe the penalty, but it will be pretty obvious. So keep your Standard safe during PvP!
Take a look at the tiny green square in the lower right-hand corner of the card's picture. Notice the even tinier 2 next to it? This means that your companions will be under the influence of the Standard as long as they are, at maximum, 2 spaces away from the Standard.
How can you tell if your companions are still under its influence? Look for a big white glowing circle around their feet. For all you Wizards out there, it's a little like an Aura spell.
Now let's read the card's description: "Fair Weather +50% [accuracy] for Birds; [+]Fowl Winds +50% [damage] for Birds"
Phew, that's really weird, isn't it? Time to take it apart and understand it inside and out.
"Fair Weather +50% [accuracy] for Birds" means that as long as your companion is a bird (like Rooster Cogburn or Nikeeta) AND is within 2 spaces of the Standard, they'll get a 50% boost in their accuracy. Yay! Once they move out of the Standard's range, they will no longer receive these special bonuses.
"[+]Fowl Winds +50% [damage] for Birds" is a very interesting addition. The [+] symbol denotes a power that you get if you can manage to plant the Standard in enemy territory. For example: you're slaying yet more Black Storm Raiders for your endless Cool Ranch quests (Ugh! Will those guys ever give up?!). You decide to go over to their ship and plant your Standard. Since that's their ship, it's enemy territory. Now, if you have companions that are birds AND are within two spaces of the Standard AND the Standard is in enemy territory, your eligible companions will get a 50% boost to their accuracy AND an additional 50% attack damage increase! Sweet.
!!ONE LAST VERY IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT STANDARDS!!
In PvE (fighting against bosses and enemies for quests or for fun), your enemies will ignore the standard, meaning they don't get any of the benefits and they don't do anything to it.
In PvP (fighting against other players in real time), your enemies can destroy your Standard! When it's destroyed, you'll lose whatever benefits you got as well as getting a penalty! The Power card for the Standard won't describe the penalty, but it will be pretty obvious. So keep your Standard safe during PvP!
The Ship
Awesome! Another Eagle Galleon for us to proudly fly through the skyways. This baby has some excellent stats, as you can see below...
It would have been cool if the ship was a new design from what we've already seen, esecially since we already have an Eagle Galleon in the crown shop, but I see that we get cool sails and a new figurehead there in the back!
It would have been cool if the ship was a new design from what we've already seen, esecially since we already have an Eagle Galleon in the crown shop, but I see that we get cool sails and a new figurehead there in the back!
The Gear
You'll get to sport only the most stylish of gladiator armor that any Aquilan could get their talons on. And you'll have great stats to go with those dashing good looks of yours.
You'll get a helmet, an outfit and boots, all of which are very cool and unique. The girls' variant of the helmet has the brush going from one side of the head to the other, while the boys' variant goes from back to front. Other than that, the two gender variants are very similar.
You'll get a helmet, an outfit and boots, all of which are very cool and unique. The girls' variant of the helmet has the brush going from one side of the head to the other, while the boys' variant goes from back to front. Other than that, the two gender variants are very similar.
The House
The house is definitely nothing like its wizard counterpart. This house is slightly smaller and, in my opinion, easier to decorate!
But don't let the relative size fool you- This house may not have its own Oracle, but its beauty is difficult to surpass. Check out the video below of my friend and fellow blogger Swordroll's tour of the Emperor's Villa.
All credit goes to Swordroll for that video, so go leave a nice comment on the video's youtube page to let him know you appreciate his efforts. :)
But don't let the relative size fool you- This house may not have its own Oracle, but its beauty is difficult to surpass. Check out the video below of my friend and fellow blogger Swordroll's tour of the Emperor's Villa.
All credit goes to Swordroll for that video, so go leave a nice comment on the video's youtube page to let him know you appreciate his efforts. :)
The Swashbuckler's Verdict
Overall, I'm impressed with the effort that went into this bundle. I almost would have liked to see a Marleybone or Mooshu bundle, since those worlds haven't had themed bundles, but I'm not complaining about an Aquilan bundle. It's cool to see that Pirates have gotten another bundle, and I will be looking forward to seeing more in the coming months and years.
So what do you think of the new bundle? Will you be picking it up or putting it on your Holiday wishlist? Was it worth the wait? Is there anything you'd like to see changed or improved? Start a discussion here or with your fellow Pirates.
Happy Hunting, Pirates!
So what do you think of the new bundle? Will you be picking it up or putting it on your Holiday wishlist? Was it worth the wait? Is there anything you'd like to see changed or improved? Start a discussion here or with your fellow Pirates.
Happy Hunting, Pirates!
Thank you SorceressMiklai for the gear and ship stat images (original page), and thank you to Swordroll for making an awesome video tour of the house (check out his blog here!).