The team at Ashes of Creation recently hosted their August Development Update live on Twitch, where they highlighted a handful of updates. These updates included a few reminders on what to expect as a tester of Ashes of Creation, and quick review of the launch of Phase Three, and overview of the new Anvils starting area, and also, a closer look at the roadmap to the future.
Most importantly, this roadmap to the future included a quick preview on the “upcoming harbinger milestone”, as well as a few new pieces of content that the development team is focusing on.
Below is the replay of the full development stream, as well as some additional details below.
The Launch of Alpha Two Phase Three
The launch of Alpha Two Phase Three was on August 26, 2025, and was viewed as overall a success! The servers started up with only a one-hour delay, where hundreds of players seemed to flood in instantly to both of the starting zones (Riverlands and the Anvils). It seemed like most experienced players tended to run through the familiar Riverlands area, as the Anvils is an all-new starting zone, which seems to still be working out the kinks with some of the introductory quests in the area.
The launch of Phase Three also introduced two separate realms (one for NA, one for EU), which slightly splits the player base from the previous testing period (where everyone was funneled into a single realm). Regardless though, as a player you will quickly see that the world of Verra feels very much populated, especially in certain points of interest!
If you’re just catching up with the many changes that came with this new wave, check out our overview of all the changes in Ashes of Creations’ Phase Three.
The Future of Ashes of Creation
During this month’s development update, the team shared a closer look at what their next big milestone of updates will include (pictured below). The team plans on initially taking some time to react to the experience of players with the Phase Three launch, and then quickly shift their efforts back to further development starting on September 2, 2025.
They included a quick mention as well that there will be ongoing updates on Tuesdays, where there will be some minor downtime with new updates coming to the game. Most interestingly, the team covered a major update coming to the game, known as the “Harbinger” system.
This update includes more representation of “The Ancients”, which are essentially the main antagonists within Verra. The team has essentially doubled their internal narrative team to help deliver this powerful new story and shared that they plan on releasing this update around November 18, 2025.
The core vision of the “Harbinger” system includes all-new PvE and PvP objectives, the idea that “Failure” actually matters and will impact the realm you’re living in, and to offer an enjoyable, repayable and varied form of content. At this stage, it looks like it may be a similar format to what Invasions are in New World: Aeternum, but time will tell on how exactly this system will look and feel.
Additionally, this update will include some other new features to the game, such as open sea fishing, the Summoner archetype, new world bosses, an ocean expansion, the Ren’Kai race, and more!
To learn more about this update, take a closer look at the picture below, and consider bookmarking our news page to stay up-to-date with everything Ashes of Creation!
How to Play Ashes of Creation
If you are interested in joining in on the fun and playing Ashes of Creation, then create an account here and visit the “shop” section of the Ashes of Creation website to purchase your key. Upon purchase, you will receive access to play the rest of Alpha Two, along with a key for Beta 1 and Beta 2. Additionally, you will receive your one month of gameplay for Ashes of Creation upon launch, and $15 worth of embers (in-game marketplace credits).
We hope to see you soon in Verra!
