Jorvik Star Issue 12: March

 ★Jorvik Star★

Issue 12 ★ March

A Note From the Editor...

Welcome to the March issue of the Jorvik Star! We've got everything you need to know about March's updates, from Magical Horses to more fun in Wild Woods!

I'm hoping to introduce a fashion finds section for certain seasons, checking out the shops of Jorvik to find perfect clothes, accessories and tack for the season! For now, here's what's new, and Happy Spring everyone!

-Ruby Skywalker ♥

New Magical Horses and My Review

Gary Goldtooth returned to Jorvik this month with two new Magical Horses, Erinys and Petra. These two new types of Magical Horses were introduced to Jorvik from ancient runestones being imbued with life, transforming the runestones and producing Magical Horses. However these two have their differences, but have one thing in common - they're both drawn to the Wild Woods, where Jorvik's primal magical energies are the strongest.

Here's some fun facts about Petra and Erinys

★Petra's hoofsteps can make the ground tremble, but since they're a gentle soul, they don't want you to see the world destroyed by their thundering hooves. Because of this, you'll likely find them standing still as a statue among nature, allowing vines and flowers to grow on their back. This relaxed attitude makes the Petra an easy-going riding partner, happy to meander trails and stop to munch on moss.

★Sometimes dark forces can corrupt the sacred runestones, causing them to crumble. It is from these that the Erinys was born. The Erinys' fierce and tireless nature makes them a dedicated riding partner, always eager to push their limits and become stronger and faster. Born in shadow, Erinys hopes to one day be welcomed back into the earth from which it sprung. Perhaps by bonding with this tragic steed, you can help it come a few steps closer to redemption.

These two Magical Horses were found by Jasper's old farm and cost 750 SC. They are also cold-resistant breeds.

You could also get a matching Magical Bunny friend to accompany you and your new horse - either a Happy-go-lucky Bunny to accompany Petra or a Bunny of Darkness to accompany Erinys - for 400 SC each.

These left Jorvik on the 24th, but I'll do a small review anyway in case they make a comeback someday. 

I ended up getting Erinys and the Bunny of Darkness to go with it. I liked the looks of it better than the other one, plus it's a very mysterious looking horse. 

Magical Coat Update

Recently SSO added the ability to toggle between the normal and magical coat of Magical horses. I love this new feature and think it will be great for roleplayers and movie makers, taking pics, or even simply if you only like one coat. You are however not able to switch during a race. To switch, open your horse info sheet where you find your horse's mood and stats and click on the button in the top left. Your horse's coat will go back to normal when you log out.

Pistachio's New Race

A new race was added in TailTop Village in North Wild Woods. Once you've unlocked North Wild Woods and completed the quests, talk to Pistachio the squirrel to help them gather flowers and mushrooms for the marketplace in a orienteering style race. You'll be able to do it daily - so be sure to add it to your training route if you head that way.

Fun Quiz from SSO: What Wild Woods Herd are you?

Star Stable recently put out a quiz to find out if your a Warrior, Mystic or Forester. Despite leaning towards the Mystics, the quiz said I'm a Forester! Try the quiz out yourself ★HERE★ and find out which herd you should choose!

Gary Goldtooth's New Look & Quest

Gary Goldtooth got a newly updated look, and with it came a new quest. You'll get to learn more about Gary through the quest. and go on a little adventure.

To start this quest you must be a Star Rider, unlocked the new area of Wild Woods, and have completed the quest where you meet the herds. 

Another race with Pistachio

Another race was added involving catching butterflies. The race gives you reputation with the Foresters. 

New Mane and Tail Feathers

Some pretty new feathers for your horse's mane and tail were added to all three of the shops in Tailtop Village.

Horses Moving

SSO recently moved some of the horses to buy to new locations. Here's a quick summary.

 ★Previously in Dundull and Paddock Island, the Connemara Ponies have been moved to Birk's Grange in Mistfall, with the exception of one in Fort Pinta.

★Previously in both Dundull and Paddock Island, the Clydesdales are now just in Dundull, except the one in Fort Pinta and one on the Horses app.

★On Paddock Island, the Shire horses have been moved to the lower stable on the island behind Dorith's house, except the one at the Horse Market and one in New Hillcrest.

★Previously in Valedale and Firgrove, the North Swedish Horses are now found in Dundull, except for one in Fort Pinta and one on the Horses App.

★Previously in both Valedale and Dundull, the Fjord horses are now only in Valedale, except the one in Fort Pinta.

★Previously in Dundull and Marley's farm, all Mustangs are found in Birk's Grange, except the three on the Horses App. 

★Previously in Dundull, the  Hanoverian and two Jorvik Warmbloods are now at Steve's Farm. 

Jorvik Star Issue 13: April

 ★Jorvik Star★

Issue 13 ★ April

A Note From the Editor...

Welcome to the April issue of the Jorvik Star. We've got the details on April's updates, from new horses to new tack! I also have my honest opinions on some topics going around the SSO community, which I'll be adding in here first. Happy Spring everyone! 

-Ruby Skywalker ♥

No April Fools Day? My honest thoughts on this on more.

March and April have been months where the SSO community has started talking about some pretty important topics. 

Firstly, there was no April Fools day joke this year. I logged on on April first this year expecting to come on to something crazy and to my disappointment there was nothing. Nothing had changed. After some talk in global, I was told that SSO had mentioned about this on their social media. I don't use social media myself so I didn't know, but I did go to their Facebook long enough to see where it was mentioned. 

Apparently, SSO decided not to do April Fools day this year because it's too much work for an update that lasts one day. 

They also no longer do Easter, Valentine's/Galentine's day, St Patrick's aka Fortuna, and Christmas is basically called the Winter Holiday or something. Apparently they are switching to doing Jorvik holidays.

Being someone who's played SSO a while, I'd begun to look forward to crazy updates for April Fools day, golden egg hunting, Valentine's races with friends, and even the Leprechaun with the gold event from last year. Now we get no spring holiday celebration at all. I get that not everyone celebrates every holiday, but people would still enjoy the events, especially people who've played a while and become used to the yearly events. I am hoping this means more fun events will come to Jorvik soon, but it definitely won't be the same. 

Welcome the Finnhorses.

A few weeks ago Star Stable welcomed the Finnhorses to Jorvik! Here's what we know about them!

★The Finnhorse has a very special history intertwined with the history of Finnland. In order to adapt to the changing lives and needs of the Finnish people, the Finnhorse had to develop unique skills that are now categorized into four disciplines: Riding, Draught, Trotter and Pony Type.

★The Finnhorse is suitable for many forms of riding, from Cross Country to Hacking to Everyday riding and use in Riding Schools.

★The Finnhorses are so appreciated by the Finns that they even have their own race, the Summer Trotting Championship " Kuninkuusravit".

Where you'll find them: They're sold in Firgrove except for one that will be in Fort Pinta for a limited time then moved to Firgrove with the rest!

Pricing: 850 SC

What Level: Everyone can get the one in Fort Pinta, the rest you'll need to reach level 6.

Colors:: Flaxen Chestnut, Liver Chestnut, Red Chestnut, Light Chestnut, Palomino, Dapple Grey and Black.

 *The Finnhorse has two mane styles available: a long mane and a Roached mane. The Finnhorse will also lie down when you press the spacebar while standing still.*

New Colors of the Show Jumping Clothes & Tack

SSO added some six new color options of the Show Jumping clothes and tack set in the Global Store.

A New Race in Greendale.

A new race called the Gentle Greendale Race was added, mainly to make earning Goldspur Reputation a little bit faster. It's still a fun race I'll be adding to my training route!

Turning Trash Into Treasure... 

SSO added a fun new gathering questline involving turning recyclables into clothes, tack, and, wait a second, a cat?!? The new stuff is very Steampunk themed, which fits the idea of a questline with Big Bonny and her newest invention the H.O.R.S.E aka the Household Object Reimagining Service Extraordinaire. You'll unlock five new lore books all about Big Bonny, and let me tell ya: there's some interesting stuff in the books!

You'll find the recyclables in towns and GED Worksites. Some locations I know so far are:

Moorland: Mrs. Holdsworth's, Near the Stables, the Blacksmith and the GED Worksite up on the mountain.

Fort Pinta: Around the town and by the beach and the docks.

Silverglade: Around the Village, Northlink Worksite, Marley's, the Manor and the Oil Mining Field.

Just look around towns and "busy" areas and worksites.

Small Changes That Also Need Mentioning...

★SSO made minor changes to some of the props in the Goldenleaf Gauntlet. It's just to make the race look a bit fancier and won't affect gameplay.

★The Gen 1&2 Arabians and Gen 2 Pintabians have been moved from Goldspur Farm to Paddock Island and have been given a price reduction. The Gen 1 Arabians are now 250 SC and the Gen 2 Arabians & Pintabians are 485 SC.

★For anyone in Australia: You can now download the Star Stable Online Mobile App from the Apple App Store! 

Bonus thing I need to mention: If you're a writer or looking to getting into writing, be sure to check out SSO's MasterClass videos posted on their YouTube channel! They are less than 5 minutes long each and so far there's four episodes released. In them, the author of the Soul Riders books Helena Dahlgren talks about everything you'll need to know to get into writing your own stories - from talking about building your characters to writer's block. 

That's all for this month's recap. 

-Ruby Skywalker ♥