We attended a pair of Fan Faire panels to get all the details on EverQuest's Veil of Alaris expansion and other upcoming features.

During my time at SOE Fan Faire, I attended two separate panels that answered the question, “What's coming next for EverQuest?” Both panels focused heavily on the Veil of Alaris expansion that's scheduled to launch in November, as well as some of the other features you can expect to see in-game throughout the year.

While the panels were held on separate days, they basically covered the same content. Keep reading after the jump for an overview of everything we learned at Fan Faire!

The Lore Behind the Expansion

Alan VanCouvering kicked things off with a summary of the lore surrounding the Veil of Alaris expansion. “We definitely plan to give you a bunch of the lore up front, but you'll be able to fill out the details by doing additional quests,” he said. “We have every intention of making sure all of the story gets into the game.”

Alaris is a planet on another plane. The natives are mortals who create their gods. While Norrathian gods are essences of the planes of power, gods on Alaris are Alaran citizens that have ascended to their new role. They started off as heroes and legends, and their fame ultimately gave them to power to turn them into gods and influence the people who worship them.

One day, the Discordians arrived and tried to wipe the Alarans out. Most of the planet was destroyed because the Alaran gods couldn't fight back, so the remaining gods decided to work together to escape. Some of the gods sacrificed themselves to hold back the Discordians, while others sacrificed themselves to open a portal to Norrath.

The remaining Alaran god arrived in Norrath's Age of Scale, also known as the time of the dragons. Once the dragons noticed the god's presence, the god sacrificed its power to bring up a veil and hide the continent so the dragons couldn't find it. The Alaran gods have been dead for awhile, but with enough worship they will regain their strength.

Also, just to clear up any confusion, VanCouvering explained that the Alarans are both genders and have their own pronoun. During the panels, he made sure to correct himself and say “it” whenever he was discussing the gods.

Veil of Alaris Zones

Following the lore discussion, VanCouvering showed the audience a lengthy video tour of some of the new zones that are coming in the expansion.

• Argath, Bastion of Illdaera is where you'll be entering the expansion.
• Beasts' Domain is a Norrathian zone filled with alien foliage.
• The Resplendent Temple is dedicated to the Alaran god of splendor.
• Sarith, City of Tides is built in the image of the Alaran god who arrived in Norrath.
• Rubak Oseka is a temple of the sea built in the shape of a giant conch shell.
• The Pillars of Alrah are dedicated to the god of magic. Alarans have four types of magic: light, dark, pure and nature. This zone has a temple for each one.
• The Sepulcher of Order is a zone for all the gods. It's full of temples that act as resting places for the fallen gods.

More upcoming features outlined on Page 2.