ArcheAge WAR Revamps Ancient Forest, Adds Baadran

Published on October 22, 2026 12:00 UTC · Updated on October 22, 2026 18:16 UTC

Kakao Games' October 21 update reworks the Ancient Forest dungeon, rebalances hunting zones and adds the Primordial-grade Baadran weapon to ArcheAge WAR.

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ArcheAge WAR Revamps Ancient Forest, Adds Baadran — · Photo: Courtesy of Kakao Games

Kakao Games released on October 21 an update for the MMORPG ArcheAge WAR that revamps the Ancient Forest dungeon, rebalances hunting zones and adds the Primordial-grade Baadran weapon at the top of the equipment progression. The package also changes the placement and stats of world bosses and opens a slate of celebration events on the Gdelon and Varua servers, with rewards handed out through November 4. The South Korean publisher is betting on a bi-weekly content rotation and a new gear ceiling to reignite the endgame and reshuffle the fight over altars and bosses.

The most structurally significant change is in the Ancient Forest, a dungeon that now alternates every two weeks with Seasons of Illusions, which was revamped in September. In practice, players lose a fixed progression calendar and must plan the week around whichever dungeon is active — a move likely to spread the population across instances and reduce farming concentration in a single spot.

Ancient Forest: slower altars and a bi-weekly rotation

The patch's most sensitive tweak is altar capture time. Previously completed in 3 seconds, a capture now takes 8 seconds, nearly triple the old window. Altar retention was also extended, from 3 hours to 6 hours. Together, the changes make taking a position more expensive and stretch the defense window, which should favor organized groups and punish lone or last-minute pushes.

On top of that, altars no longer spawn at fixed locations. They now appear randomly across three possible sites, forcing guilds to split scouting duties and compete for information before the capture. Players who memorized old routes will have to relearn the map and build new positioning strategies.

"In the 'Ancient Forest', the time required to capture altars has been increased from 3 seconds to 8 seconds, and the capture retention time has been extended from 3 hours to 6 hours. The altars, which previously appeared at fixed locations, now spawn randomly across three potential sites."
— Excerpt from Kakao Games' update announcement

The bi-weekly rotation also answers the natural wear of content. By alternating Ancient Forest and Seasons of Illusions, developer XL Games keeps a single dungeon from becoming mandatory for months and preserves both instances as relevant for players chasing gear and evolution materials.

Hunting zones: levels, rewards and new creatures

Open areas received a broad revision. Monster levels and defeat rewards were fully rebalanced, new creatures were added, and chaotic zones — where PvP is enabled — were expanded alongside areas with dense spawns. The stated goal is to offer farming alternatives outside dungeons and create more predictable flashpoints.

In practice, the wider chaotic zones are an invitation to large-scale PvP. Areas with heavy monster density and relevant drops become natural contested ground, and coexistence between farmers and combat groups will depend on how each region is designed. For newer players, the level rebalance may open progression paths previously blocked by poorly calibrated difficulty bands.

Baadran: a new gear ceiling above Ayanad

The headline progression addition is Baadran, Primordial-grade equipment positioned above Ayanad weapons. To obtain it, players must evolve a weapon of the same type as the matching Ayanad at the Evolution Anvil. In other words, it is not an item that drops ready-made from a boss: it is the result of an upgrade chain built through earlier stages of the game.

That design preserves the value of investment made in Ayanad and keeps the new grade from making all prior effort obsolete. At the same time, it creates a race for evolution materials and pressures the market for intermediates — ores, catalysts and components used in the chain. It is the kind of change that tends to move the in-game economy for weeks.

Official ArcheAge WAR update art showing the Ancient Forest revamp and the arrival of the Baadran weapon — Promotional art for ArcheAge WAR's October update, which revamps the Ancient Forest and introduces the Primordial-grade Baadran weapon. (Photo: Courtesy of Kakao Games)

Bosses: Gert moves abyss and Garom becomes cheaper

The boss adjustments target a chronic friction between hunters and raid organizers. Berserk Gert of Despair, who previously appeared in Eternal Abyss, was moved to Fiend's Abyss. The same change applies to Gert of Despair on the Gdelon server. The official rationale is to reduce unnecessary conflicts between general hunting players and boss raid participants.

In Rookborne Basin, Gale Wing Garom was weakened: HP and skill damage were lowered. In addition, the number of Groa Summon Ticket Shards required to craft Berserk Garom dropped from 200 to 50 — a 75% cut that makes the boss far more viable for smaller groups.

Item	Before	After
Altar capture (Ancient Forest)	3 seconds	8 seconds
Altar retention	3 hours	6 hours
Altar spawn	Fixed location	Random, 3 sites
Shards for Berserk Garom	200	50
Top weapon grade	Ayanad	Baadran (Primordial)

Celebration events by server and for everyone

Through November 4, both servers host their own celebration events. On Gdelon, Lucky Key Season 10 offers items such as Legendary Crafting Blueprints and Ayanad Ink (Legendary). On Varua, Lucky Draw Season 5 hands out rewards including the Ayanad Equipment Selection Box and the Noble Izi Armor Selection Box.

There are also community-wide activities. Recorder's Check-In runs until November 18 and delivers the Garden Leaf Lucky Box and the Radiant 11x Summon Ticket Selection Box. Agent's Mission, due November 4, rewards completed daily tasks with the Star Treasure Box and the Heroic Summon Ticket Selection Box.

Quick calendar

October 21 — patch and celebration events begin;
November 4 — server events (Lucky Key 10 and Lucky Draw 5) and Agent's Mission end;
November 18 — Recorder's Check-In closes;
Every two weeks — Ancient Forest and Seasons of Illusions alternate.

What it changes for players

This is not just a dungeon overhaul: it touches three pillars at once — gear progression, material economy and territorial dispute. Baadran redefines the long-term goal; the bi-weekly rotation organizes the weekly calendar; and slower, randomized altars turn captures into a coordination exercise rather than a reflex test.

For casual players, the most immediate gains are the events through November 4 and the Groa Shard cut, which lowers the cost of reaching Garom. For guilds and elite groups, the challenge is to adapt altar routes, split scouting across three spawn points and speed up Ayanad weapon evolution toward the new Primordial grade.

It is worth following the next steps: Kakao Games says further details on the update and events are available on the official website and community channels. Readers who want to see how the studio is handling the franchise can also check our story on the free ArcheAge Chronicles demo at Steam Next Fest, and follow every release in our games section.

Original source: Inven Global. Official information: Kakao Games.