Neverwinter: Strongholds is whipping guilds into shape

With just a hint of Draenor

Dang, Cryptic and Perfect World sure are pumping out the expansions for Their pretty awesome MMO Neverwinter pretty fast. Hot on the heels of Elemental Evil and the Xbox One release of the game, Cryptic has announced their seventh expansion is Neverwinter: Strongholds.

The expansion is pulling a bit of a Warlords of Draenor on us, focusing on guild-run strongholds you can fight for and against. Speaking about the expansion, Cryptic said:

Guilds have been a cornerstone of Neverwinter since its inception, which provided players the opportunity to unite under a single name, socialize with like-minded adventurers and aid each other in times of need. It is only fitting that the walls of a mighty stronghold would house the very members of your guild, or fall to crush them. 

Reminiscent of early Dungeons & Dragons lore, Neverwinter: Strongholds empowers guilds to reclaim a keep and its surrounding areas that have been overrun by the wild. As the lands are cleared, guilds will build defenses both in and around their strongholds using structures like barracks and additional troops armed to protect the keep. Once the keep has been secured, guilds will have to battle against the environment as well as other players to ensure they maintain control of their lands. 

Turns out Cryptic sneakily put out the announcement when no one was looking back at the end of May, but in their Steam Community update posted on June 9 they reaffirm that we will hear more information on it in the next few weeks.

Honestly, guilds have been dying a slow death in Neverwinter. I’ve never been able to find one I’d be interested in joining, so hopefully Strongholds really kicks that back into gear and gives the game some much-needed endgame content. I’m pretty excited.