Site News

🌱 Spring Equinox is here! The days are finally getting longer, sunshine is returning, and soon new plants will begin to poke through the melting snow...

🌷 What better way to celebrate the shift of the seasons but with a new Free Raffle Xero? ✨

🌱 That’s right! This adorable Jungle Xero is a raffle for FIRST TIME OWNERS! Meaning those who have never owned a Xero before! What a way to wander into our community!

🌷 To enter, please join our Discord and add your username to our Thread in #Announcements! We will be adding you all to a raffle bot on the site! 

🌱 We will be rolling this Xero 24 hours from now, March 21st @ 3:00 PM EST!

🌷 Good luck all first time owners, and to our Xero Owners, please tell your friends and spread the word!

"New" Traits!

Expanding tail mutation variety! Stack traits for more customization!

The Bearded Cap allows a Xero to have a Canis Tail! These tails are fluffy and tapered with a pointed tip. They can range from scruffy dog-like tails to long poofy fox tails.

The Affocato allows a Xero to have a Felis Tail; a long noodle-shaped tail! These round-tipped tails aren't tapered and are roughly the same width all the way around.

You may recognize these mushrooms from our 2022 Twilight Carnival! Since these mushrooms were originally found by foraging, we've decided to keep these trait items exclusive to it as our first forage-only trait! Thanks to our Carnival event, there are over 200 of each item in circulation currently, so trade with other members or forage for your own if you need one!

Worried about being able to get one for your next Xero design? You can grab one of each for free in the Greenhouse!

All existing Xeros that have these traits will have them applied, no item necessary! Any pending MYOs or redesigns using these traits at the time of this post will also not require the item.

Monthly Prompts

Finally, as always, we still have our monthly repeating prompts, XOTM & ARC Survey!

Monthly Prompts

Finally, as always, we still have our monthly repeating prompts, XOTM & ARC Survey!

This month, we have a small update regarding the deadlines for these monthly prompts. From now on, XOTM & ARC Survey will end on the 26th of each month, rather than the very last day. This allows the same amount of time to complete the prompts every month, regardless of how many days that month has. It also gives us Staff a much-needed breather at the end of the month to get these prompts updated and the monthly newsletter made without rushing! This update only effects XOTM & ARC Survey, all other prompts are unaffected by this change. Thank you for understanding!

Monthly Prompts

Thank you all for giving Aristotle some love and getting him out of his shell last month; our next XOTM is… Snugleaf 's Tapioca! (They/She)

Our next ARC Survey is up as well, be sure to check it out, as it includes a bit of lore about one of the other species found in AREZ!

Wish Shards

Finally, have you all been collecting Wish Shards?
They've been appearing all over Owai-6 after the Meteor Shower that occurs during the Longest Night. We don’t know how many have dropped but they hold a very interesting property…

Here is a report from one of our premier ARC scientists on the properties of these shards:

The Twilight Shower has been studied rather thoroughly so we did not think there were many, if any, surprises left to find. The crystals are not so much a surprise, we have chemically detected them many times but until now, no physical studies have been conducted, and there is where it gets interesting. Testing reveals that this copper-oxalate compound has a very peculiar lattice structure enabling a strong antiferromagnetic effect on its long range ordering. This effect is not unique to just these crystals, but the accessibility of them will enable the scale production of high-temperature superconducting materials that may advance our computing efficiency exponentially. In short, this discovery marks what may be the most important step to a leap in material science and computing; their value to scientific research cannot be overstated.
Dr. Koobal
Physics Chair
Oasis University of Applied Sciences

ARC Lab is asking all of those willing to participate in furthering scientific research to please donate your shards to the lab for further testing and speed up our current technologies! What that means for all of you is: Collect 1000 Wish Shards to trade in for a MYO Slot!

This will replace the second 300 Prestige MYO slot, more details on this change below! ARC also understands that collecting so many shards is not easy to come by, and as such, they will be giving you an extra reward from the ARC Lab as a “thank you!” for furthering scientific development!

Wish Shards in their purest form are unable to be traded unlike other currencies, however, Comet Clusters, the larger rocks filled with veins of Wish Shards, have been found to be tradable! Some can give more shards than others, however! So get hunting! And who knows? Maybe they will have more purposes as ARC learns more about them! Only one way to find out!

Wish shards and Comet Clusters can currently only be found by Foraging! Get those hands dirty!

Changes to Standard MYO Orbs

Since Project Xero's launch in 2021, free Xeros and Standard MYO orbs have had a base value of $50. Going forward, Xeros or MYO Orbs earned with Prestige/in-game currency or free raffles will have a base value of $0, since no money was paid for them.

Don't worry: Any Standard MYO Orbs earned before January 1st, 2023 and existing, completed MYO Xeros will retain their previous $50 value. We aren't going to take away value from something that previously had it, but going forward from here anything that is free will have that reflected in its sale value. This is a change that has been discussed for a while, and as such we will not be dialing back this decision.

 

• All paid MYO slots will continue to have the value they are paid for. 
• The ability to add on commissioned work for monetary value will stay the same, regardless of the Xero's starting base value.
• Users are still able to resell their Xeros using our X1.8 modifier rule, if desired.

 

We are also changing how Standard Xero Orbs work. Free Orbs able to be earned with in-game currency will now be known as Basic Xero Orbs (with a new color!) to separate them from the Standard Xero Orbs worth $50 USD on-site. Basic Orbs are essentially the same as a Standard Orb in terms of what they can make; the only difference is the sale value. Standard Xero Orbs can still be purchased from staff MYO sales!  

 

Basic Xero Orbs can be earned a few ways: 

 1 x  per year earned with Prestige

 1 x per year earned with Wish Shards

  Rare drop from opening Mysterious Orbs

🎫 Free raffles and giveaways

❓ More to come in the future!

 

At Project Xero's beginning in 2021, users were only able to earn one free Standard Xero Orb in total. This was eventually changed to be two Standard Xero Orbs total, with the second being twice as expensive, and then again changed to two total at the same price, and then again changed to two per year. The point is, things have changed a lot and we've always adjusted! Things might change more in the future as we continue to add to our game. Please note that all prices of our in-game items are subject to change at any time as we work on balancing our economy with the available activities, but we promise to always have free options available to members.

 

With the introduction of Wish Shards, users are now able to purchase 1 x Basic Xero Orb with 300 Prestige  (mainly earned from doing prompts) and 1 x Basic Xero Orb with Wish Shards (mainly earned from foraging / logging in daily). These two options are still completely free and provide a variety of options for users to earn MYOs, one that allows members to earn at their own pace by participating in activities, selling in-game items, or taking commissions within the community, and one that rewards users for site activity and foraging over time.

 

Wish Shards are intended to be each member's own personal journey to earn their MYO, and as such Wish Shards cannot be transferred to other users or grinded for- it's meant to encourage long-term activity! As foraging continues to be expanded and improved, Wish Shards (and Comet Clusters) will become a frequent drop in varying amounts to reward activity on our website. Wish Shards will likely have other future uses as well.

 

We understand that it may be difficult to participate in a species without spending money, and we do not want anyone to feel that we are gatekeeping or being elitist. This decision continues to allow users to earn MYOs and participate in community activities without spending anything other than time in our game. If anything, this change may help open further options to those who can't participate in our prompts for one reason or another.

 

We ask for your patience and understanding regarding this change! 

The 12 Days Of Xeros is upon us! Which means, every day starting TOMORROW, there will be a new Xero design posted either for sale or for free until Dec 23rd! Every one of these will be done via a raffle here on the site, which gives everyone an equal chance to go after a Xero they love! Get into the groove with us each day anticipating which Xero will pop out next!

 A new Xero will be revealed each day at 8:00 AM PST / 11:00 AM EST every day and every raffle will be open until 8:00 PM PST / 11:00 PM EST! That gives you 12 hours to enter each day! Each design will be posted on our Sale Tab, so be sure to check it out!

  Aaaand… wink wink nudge nudge if you want to see each design a day early, consider joining our Project Xero Kofi! If you are Unusual Orb or up, you get previews of each design a day early! And also this month, one of the designs will be Kofi Exclusive for Notable Orb members! Wow!

We’ll see you all tomorrow bright an early for our first design!!!!

Seasonal TRAITS!

We also have one new and one returning Seasonal Fruit!

The Tato Fruit allows a Xero to have Patterned Skin! This can include markings of any shape on their ears, paw pads, tongue, or hairless sections if combined with that trait. These markings can only be darker or lighter than their normal skin color, unless combined with the Split trait.

And the returning Astera Thistle! This plant allows a Xero to have Fur Pads, giving a Xero extra fluffy feet that covers their paw pads, like a rabbit or fennec fox! This adaptation can help protect their paws against extremely hot or cold conditions.

The Tato Fruit can be obtained from the Winter 2022 DTE or Secret Santa 2022, and the Astera Thistle can be purchased from the ARC Lab. Both can also be foraged! Be sure to stock up before they go out of season!

Monthly Prompts

Finally, as always, we still have our monthly repeating prompts, XOTM & ARC Survey!

The cargo ship began to decelerate as it approached the waystation. At this reduced speed, the name painted on its ventral side was visible: INGE-339.

As far as ships go, the INGE was rather unassuming, its paint faded from countless flights to far-off stars. But the ship’s pilots treated this wear and tear as badges of honor: after all, each of these flights had been for missions of utmost importance, expeditions that helped catalog and map the sector. Although the INGE was small, it often carried valuable cargo. This journey was no exception—inside one of its isolation chambers was something that emanated a dull blue-green glow.

“Okay, okay, should I go for a sweetsap foam first? Isn’t it around the time of year when they do a harvest? Oh wait, what about a jewel berry slushie? Those are great. Have you had one before? I actually haven’t. I’ve just heard they’re great—”

“Ecci,” Finjin said firmly, with a clack of his mandibles for extra emphasis. 'I know you're excited to see the Carnival for the first time, but if you don’t focus and help us finish the handshake procedure...”

“Oh! Oh, right. Sorry…” her feathers ruffled in embarrassment, Ecci concentrated once again on the console. Her short talons clacked rhythmically across the keyboards and control panels. “Annnnnd—yes! We’re locked into the Owai system station. Translocation in 30 seconds standard.”

Finjin checked his own console. “Confirmed. Good work as always.”

“You really think so?” Ecci puffed out her chest in pride. “Thanks, Fin.”

She's a good kid, Finjin mused to himself. And an absolute prodigy of a pilot. If she could learn to stay focused, she would receive solo certification in no time.

Ecci, meanwhile, was quietly brimming with joy. It was like what they said back home: an Avian belongs in the sky…well, she thought. Space certainly counts.

There was a slight shudder through the hull of the INGE as it passed into the station’s superluminal field. Ecci glanced at her monitor. “Confirming connection with Owai station. Autopilot locked-in," she reported. “Looks like we’ll be there in about four hours standard. Wow, these new Lorentzian stations are amazing! I can’t believe they finally finished building them. Once I read an article about—”

Finjin had been on far too many flights to share in her starry-eyed excitement, and was privately looking forward to a quiet trip home and some time off for the Carnival. He considered reminding her again not to get distracted, then decided against it. Ecci had done extremely well, all things considered, and they were in the last leg of their journey. Let her chat if she wanted to—at this point, there was very little that could go wrong.

Vas'an usually was difficult to read, but today everyone could tell that they were in a dark mood. Kellworth could practically feel the concern radiating off them as they stood by their office window, staring out at the darkened sky. Their usual focus was completely absent: even the piles of overdue survey reports couldn’t draw their attention.

Kellworth didn’t blame them. They knew Vas’an wasn’t alone in feeling some sort of strain at the news—a strain that could only be lifted upon the safe return of the INGE’s crew. After all, these are people we all know, he thought. Although he tried to stay positive for himself and for the others, at the end of the day it was oddly freeing to succumb to his concerns and watch the skies with Vas’an, waiting for the cargo ship to return.

“Look,” Vas’an said suddenly, breaking the silence. “Do you see that?”

Kellworth squinted: there were three shapes in the distance, descending through the sky. “Yes! I think that’s them. Let’s meet them at the landing pad, I’m sure the ground crew could use a hand—”

But Vas’an had already started for the door. Kellworth grabbed his bag and followed.

As the crafts descended, two of them broke off and veered back towards orbit—likely escorts meant to ensure the Igne would land safely in Harbor. Members of the ground crew were scurrying about, preparing for the landing—and to aid the INGE’s crew, if necessary. But thankfully, as the ship approached, Kellworth could see that the damage to the hull damage seemed largely superficial, aside from a rather large blast mark near the engines.

Vas’an had noticed it too. “Looks like they tried to kill the power to the engines,” they said darkly, their tail swishing. “By the looks of it, these poachers knew what they were doing. Fortunately for the crew, Survey ships are built with plenty of backups to avoid getting stranded in the middle of uncharted space.”

As they had been instructed, the porter drones took the cargo down to the ARC labs; Kellworth followed close behind. Different sections of the ARC flashed by as they hurried past: the greenhouses, the genetics lab, and of course, the Xero Wing that housed the classrooms, playrooms and computer labs where young Xeros learned.

Kellworth glanced through one of the classroom windows and made eye contact with a serious-looking baby Xero. He smiled. They gave him an evaluating look, then very solemnly waved. Briefly distracted by this, Kellworth walked through a doorway and nearly ran into a figure in a white lab coat.

“Oh! Oops, I—hey, Doctor,” he greeted. Dr. Ero M’Taw had come out to meet him, seemingly in a hurry: another young Xero was clinging onto their tail, peeking out at Kellworth. “Sorry, didn’t see you there. Where’d you want us to put the samples?”

“Lab #3, Kellworth—please and thank you. I had it cleared out this morning in preparation for the delivery,” they said, relaxing at Kellworth’s easy smile. “Now it’s time for you to get to your classroom, small one,” they said firmly to the young Xero, who reluctantly released their grip and walked off.

“Are you teaching the kids this afternoon?”

“Not today. I found this one hiding under a desk,” Dr. M’Taw said. “They remained quite silent on how they'd gotten there, but I believe they sneaked out of the dormitories. I gave t hem a snack and an explanation on lab safety.” They shook their head disapprovingly, although there was a fond glint in their many eyes. “Have you had lunch yet? I recently heard of this wonderful little place that I think you’d—“

They were cut off mid-sentence by two things: the first was the shrill sound of an alarm.

ALERT. UNKNOWN CONTAMINANT REPORTED. REMAIN IN YOUR CURRENT LOCATION AND AWAIT FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS. THIS IS NOT A TEST.

The second was the cheerful jingle of Kellworth’s ringtone. He pulled out his pad and answered the call. “H-hello? Yes, I can hear you—uhh, yeah. Uh, what!? Hold on, Dr. M’Taw’s here, let me put you on speaker—“

Vas’an’s voice, urgent and controlled, came out through the pad’s speaker. “Yes, this is Vas'an. Preliminary medical exams revealed that the INGE’s crew came back covered in spores. Apparently there was a leak somewhere in the isolation chamber that they didn’t detect.”

“A leak!?” Kellworth said, taking in Dr. M’Taw’s startled expression. “Is the crew okay—“

“We’re tentatively classifying this as a Class 1A risk,” Vas’an said. “But we’re starting a lockdown to isolate any possible exposure, we can’t have any spores spreading to Harbor. Sit tight.”

Vas’an hung up. Kellworth pocketed his pad again, trying to collect his thoughts. “There must have been some micro-shrapnel damage or something from the attack,” he said out loud. “That could have broken through the isolation chamber…at least know we know how to track the spores.” But Dr. M’Taw still looked troubled. Kellworth’s heart sank a little.

“What is a Class 1A risk, anyways?” he asked. “I haven’t heard that classification before.”

Dr. M’Taw took a few seconds to answer, speaking very slowly and precisely. “It’s not common. The “1” indicates a low risk to the general population, even accounting for the spores’ dispersal through air. But an “A” indicates high risk of infection in immuno-compromised individuals. That includes the sick, the elderly…or the very young.”

With a vague feeling of dread, Kellworth followed Dr. M’Taw’s gaze to the doorway that the Xero had just walked through, to the wing of the ARC where the other young Xeros lived.

Calling all volunteers!

As I'm sure you have heard by now, there has been an outbreak of non-native fungal spores in Harbor and the timing could not be worse. To help contain the outbreak, we're recruiting individuals with with previous experience or interest in the following fields: foraging, fungus identification, or mycology.

While the initial contamination has been contained, the existing fruits must be collected before they are allowed to produce more spores and succeed our containment capacities. Please report to the address below and await further instructions.

Thank you for your interest and assistance. Together we can ensure that this outbreak does not become a full-fledged spread of an invasive species!

And hopefully, Kellworth thought as he finished typing up the notice and posted it to the Social Services board. The collected samples would provide enough data for that poor Xero's treatment as well...

“After reviewing the provided samples,” the Curator announced, “I do believe there is a solution to our conundrum.”

Even after talking with the Curator for some time, Kellworth still found it difficult to understand them through whatever hacked-together encryption filtered their voice. But thankfully, there was no ambiguity in what they had just said. He perked up.

“Oh! How wonderful to hear! We haven’t been making much progress on our end other than just slowing the progression—well, and we prevented a weird fungus invasion, I suppose that certainly accounts for something. Even if—anyways! What was your solution?”

The Curator blinked slowly. “Ah, hmm. ARC’s inability to remove the fungal infection does not surprise me, as the fungi cannot be safely removed.”

“What?” Kellworth blurted out. He had not jumped through all of these hoops—locating the Curator’s ship, sneaking the young Xero out of containment, going behind Vas’an’s back—just for this, for nothing. “I thought you—you just said there was a solution! Don’t you get it!? This isn’t a game or a fun little experiment—“