That night still haunts me. The burning skies... the blood of my comrades. Eitrivanen was under siege. We had barely survived attacks from the North and East. When the Vikings and the Samurai joined their forces, we were doomed.
They crushed us from all sides. We prayed to the gods for help. Their answer was true darkness. Fear itself. A piercing shriek tore through the night.
Vortiger, the Black Prior! Rising from the shadows to slaughter anyone who crossed their path. It was a massacre... Victory at any cost.
They hung soldiers on the walls, like bloody dolls. And claimed Eitrivanen as their new home. That night, our worst nightmare came true: a new age of darkness and doom. The rise of the Black Priors!
After the Black Priors have come out of hiding, a new story is told of what had happened at Eitrivanen. During the first season of the year of the Harbinger, join the mid-season event that let's you relive the counterattack by the Knights against the Samurai and Vikings. Participate in a battle of attrition, where Attackers have to conquer zones and Defenders have to kill enemies in order to win the day at the Harbor. The siege on the port won't be eternal, ending with darkness taking back the Harbor on March 28th, 2019.
Overview[]
Unlike previous events where the theme is based on some fictional events, events during the Year of the Harbinger are player-inspired, basing themselves in the Faction War that has been going on for past few years. A show that the actions of the player truly shape the world of For Honor...
As recorded in the Journals of Heathmoor, Black Prior's Riposte recounts the events of Season 5, Campaign 3, battles 26-27 of the Faction War, where the Knights' territory of Eitrivanen became flanked by the Vikings and Samurai. To these two other factions, gaining Eitrivanen only required to keep their flank against the Knights... yet, at the end of the battle, Eitrivanen not only stood, but had also taken away the flanking territories from the Vikings and Samurai.
The truth to this comeback? It was once shrouded in darkness... until now, as it is foretold Vortiger of the Black Priors came to the Knight's aide, slaughtering the invaders until victory was at hand...
Siege of Eitrivatnen[]
The Vikings of Jarl Jafnhar came to besiege Eitrivatnen, but Vortiger appeared to save the day after more than a decade of silence. Then the Samurai led their own assault on Eitrivatnen, but Vortiger gathered his Black Priors to save the harbor once more.
Finally, as the Knights tried to reconquer the territories surrounding Eitrivatnen, the Black Priors revealed a gruesome method to crush the enemy’s morale. After so many victories, Vortiger and his Black Priors became the new rulers of Eitrivatnen.
The Knights won decisive battles against all, but at what cost?
Battle of Attrition[]
"Be a part of a decisive battle in the Harbor! Conquer zones as Attackers or defeat enemies as Defenders to gain points in Battle of Attrition!"
As the title signifies, the Battle of Attrition game mode tests each side their endurance in battle, as Defenders fight to whittle down the invaders and Attackers assault to gain ground on the Capture Points.
The game mode plays like a game of Dominion on the Harbor map, with a good number of changes. Soldiers will now also funnel into the side lanes of A and C, although less so than the central lane B. While Point B operates as normal, capturing point A and C for the Attackers are a longer quest. Just like Capture Zones in Breach, Attackers will slowly capture the zones when they are on the point. If a Defender enters, capturing progress is halted. Even if the Defender takes back the zone, the Attacker's capture progress will not be lost. All zones also reward 500 points.
Attackers can only gain points by taking over any of the Capture Points. Therefore, Attackers can choose to take one of the side lanes and zone B for a risky win that may flip if zone B is lost, or permanently Break the Defenders by capturing both zone A and C. Killing units do not grant Attackers any points.
Defenders will not gain points from holding zones A or C, but will receive temporal points from zone B. Instead, Defenders need to gain points by killing Soldiers and Heroes.
Healing Buffs are available around the map, with a total of four in all: one near each of the side zones, and one at each end of the boat that holds Zone B.
Other Changes[]
Dark Riposte Aesthetic[]
Dark fog cast in crimson light before a field of fallen swords is the new aesthetic of the main menu and lobby during the event. Ancient glyphs appear in the red light, but serving only as symbols, their meanings are lost to time.
The Harbor map for the Battle of Attrition game mode has also been redesigned a bit to give into the eerie atmosphere of the Black Priors. The sky is blood red and a storm rages. All banners have been replaced with those of the Black Priors, as their symbol also mark some of the walls. And around the map, dead corpses of the Knights are either piled up or hung against walls.
Soldiers[]
Soldiers have been changed to look like "darker" variants of their respective faction:
- Knights look similar to how they usually look, except their clothes are painted in black, with the sign of the Black Priors on their chest and back. And instead of helmets, they wear hoods and golden masks.
- The Vikings are dressed like heathen-fanatics, wearing bone trinkets instead of a shirt, together with skulls around their waist. Instead of a helmet, they wear a wooden mask made of branches that mimics the look of a skull.
- Samurai soldiers maintain their bracers and greaves but their entire body, including the face, is covered by a ghostly white cloth with a dark cloth cuirass over their chest. A coloured rope hachimaki headband rest atop their head.
During the time span of the event, while all factions can feature as an Attacker or Defender, Knights will appear more likely appear as Defenders while Vikings and Samurai are more likely to appear as Attackers, reflecting the nature of the event.
Event Rewards[]
Outside the Event Order, players who participate in the event can loot exclusive in-game rewards, including new Black Prior themed weapons, outfits, ornaments, effects and emotes. While the weapons looted are limited to the Hero played during the match or who they are salvaged from, all other items are not hero specific (ie. you can attain a Raider's ornament even when playing as the Warden).
Players can also opt to purchase the special items that are exclusive to the event, collectively known as the Black Prior's Riposte bundle. In this bundle, there is an Illustrious set with Effects featuring an iconic bird depending on the faction: an eagle for the Knights, a raven for the Vikings, a snow owl for the Samurai, and a vermilion for the Wu Lin. There is also a special emote that lets the Hero get onto their knees as they hold up an orb of Darkness before it decimates into oblivion. This bundle will continue to be available for purchase after the event, until April 1st.
Unique Orders[]
During the Black Prior's Riposte event, the daily orders and the Event Order will be tailored with unique names that references the siege of Eitrivanen.
Daily Orders[]
- Warrior: Soldier on the Field (Daily Guaranteed Order)
- "The Knights were weak, but they refused to give up. Their tenacity was admirable."
- "I made stew every other night to soothe our weary soldiers."
- "The Knights raided our camps at night for supplies."
- "On calmer nights, we sang songs by the campfire."
- "The guard rotations were brutal. We barely slept."
- Complete 2 matches of any game mode.
- Storied
- Miyabi: "Miyabi's elegance and fighting prowess weas a sight to behold."
- Watatsumi: "This sword is said to harness the strength of the seas."
- Reach a Renown Score of 250 or more by the end of a match.
- Slayer
- Refugees: "Trade routes were destroyed to prevent the Knights from getting supplies."
- Perform 10 Takedowns in any game mode.
- Executioner
- Vortiger: "Aguri the Merchant met Vortiger. She said he was fear itself."
- Execute 3 Heroes in any game mode.
- Adaptable Warrior
- The Hawks: "The hawks were a bad sign. A terrible omen."
- Complete 2 Matches with 2 different Heroes.
Event Orders[]
- Mala Ultro Adsunt - Black Prior's Riposte Order - March 14 - 28
"Daimon the Scavenger believed he'd win, but Vortiger was unexpected."
Be the faction with the most Takedowns performed.
Trivia[]
- This is the first event that is based on past actions made by the player base, in this case being inspired by the outcomes made during the Faction War.
- With the introduction of the Anima outfits, "Mask Outfits" were renamed into "Illustrious Outfits" as the Anima outfits did not attempt to feature a distinct mask, instead relegating to "pets."
Gallery[]
