Years ago, desperate to expand his legion, Lord Kerafyrm, the awakened prismatic dragon, prophesied to be the destroyer of Norrath, came to possess a draconic arcane item of magnificent power. Although its use did not result in what he had intended, it had opened a portal to another thread of reality – a Norrath shaped by different events and results. Here he found the army of Dyn'leth, a mighty force of dragon and Elddar mixed lineage, known commonly as aerakyn. He slew Dyn'leth, their mighty leader, and bound the army to his every command. Kerafyrm returned with aerakyn in tow, cutting them off from their home. Following his defeat at Ages End they were left to their own devices, strangers in a foreign land.

Some aerakyn found stability and familiarity within their own enclaves in Freeport, while others found understanding and acceptance amongst the people of Qeynos, but a yearning to return home, a yearning to be back where they were raised, with loved ones and purpose, has remained a common feeling, no matter where they chose to settle. And settling is how it has felt for so many of them.

Something has happened recently, pulling these feelings to the surface, and adding a sense of urgency to their cause. Whatever it was and whatever it means for Norrath we must now venture there together and brave the Secrets of the Sands!

Report to Silrena in the city of Freeport or Faezoth in Qeynos Capitol District to begin your adventure!

The above forum announcement heralded the start of the 2022 expansion prelude event on the Test server. This content will hit the live servers on September 15, 2022 and will run until the release of the next expansion. (Launch date not yet announced.)

The player must first complete a quest from the above-mentioned Silrena (Freeport) or Faezoth (Qeynos). After that quest has been completed, including a solo dungeon completion (that scales to your level), you may then return to the Sinking Sands and complete an adventuring solo mission daily and three crafting quests (with no limits) for additional faction with Nomads of Ro. This faction is used to unlock a variety of items on Baniti, the Nomads of Ro Merchant in the Sinking Sands. There is 1 new collection, with a single shiny towards that collection showing up in each adventuring instance.

Players start at the base of indifferent (-10,000) faction and gain 3500 faction for the introductory quest, 3500 for the adventuring daily, and 1000 for each of the crafting quests. Since this event should run for a solid amount of time, there will be plenty of time to finish faction on any alt(s) that you desire.

New Buyables

Items below will list how much faction is needed before you can purchase the item as well as how much the item will then cost in gold. All items are fully tradeable with the exception of the heirloom flight wings. (The block sets may confuse people as the crated versions are no-trade, but they unpack into the tradeable block items on purchase.)

Ahket Aken Canopic Jar 40K faction, 25g	Ahket Aken Urn 40K faction, 25g	Ancient Takish Jar 40K faction, 10g
Ancient Takish Scroll 40K faction, 10g	Anuk'Sul Shaman Illusion 50K faction, 50g	Arched Door Frame of Turquoise Mosaic 50K faction, 50g (Quantity 8 in bundle) See group shot below
Block of Turquoise Mosaic 40K faction, 50g (Quantity 15 in bundle)	Crag Stinger Plushie 20K faction, 50g	Desert Brass Lantern 20K faction, 20g
Desert Brass Stool 50K faction, 25g	Desert Palace Rug 20K faction, 20g	Desert Slitherer 10K faction, 10g
Glyph Marker Adla 50K faction, 10g	Glyph Marker Herk 50K faction, 10g	Glyph Marker Kom 50K faction, 10g
Glyph Marker Seht 50K faction, 10g	Half Block of Turquoise Mosaic 40K faction, 50g (Quantity 15 in bundle) See group shot below	Hanging Desert Brass Lantern 40K faction, 25g
Hanging Maj'Dul Lantern 40K faction, 25g	Horizontal Window Frame in Tall Divider of Turquoise Mosaic 50K faction, 50g (Quantity 8 in bundle) See group shot below	Large Hanging Incense Burner 50K faction, 25g
Latched Desert Nomad Chest 10K faction, 5g	Latched Desert Nomad Crate 10K faction, 5g	Maj'Dul Hanging Sign 20K faction, 20g
Maj'Dul Street Torch 40K faction, 10g	Narrow Divider of Turquoise Mosaic 50K faction, 50g (Quantity 15 in bundle) See group shot below	Ornate Desert Cane Bench 30K faction, 25g
Ornate Quilted Rug 30K faction, 25g	Palatial Extended Incense Burner 50K faction, 25g	Palatial Hanging Incense Burner 40K faction, 25g
Panel of Turquoise Mosaic 20K faction, 50g (Quantity 15 in bundle)	Petamorph Wand: Black Monkey 40K faction, 50g	Petamorph Wand: Deepwater Caiman 10K faction, 50g
Pewter Candle Plate 20K faction, 10g	Platinum Display Stand 30K faction, 25g	Platinum Palace Table 30K faction, 25g
Railing of Turquoise Mosaic 30K faction, 50g (Quantity 15 in bundle) See group shot below	Rectangular Door Frame of Turquoise Mosaic 50K faction, 50g (Quantity 8 in bundle) See group shot below	Ro Dromedary (housepet) 30K faction, 50g
Ro Pack Camel Plushie 30K faction, 10g	Rounded Tile of Turquoise Mosaic 30K faction, 50g (Quantity 15 in bundle) See group shot below	Rujarkian Grunt Plushie 10K faction, 10g
Scarlet Crag Cobra (housepet) 20K faction, 25g	Shallow Reed Basket 10K faction, 5g	Shallow Reed Bowl 10K faction, 5g
Shallow Reed Bowl Stack 20K faction, 10g	Short Column of Turquoise Mosaic 30K faction, 50g (Quantity 15 in bundle) See group shot below	Simple Desert Cane Bench 10K faction, 10g
Simple Desert Nomad Vase 10K faction, 5g	Square Window Frame in Narrow Divider of Turquoise Mosaic 50K faction, 50g (Quantity 8 in bundle) See group shot below	Square Window Frame in Tall Divider of Turquoise Mosaic 50K faction, 50g (Quantity 8 in bundle) See group shot below
Stack of Maj'Dul Rugs 20K faction, 20g	Stair of Turquoise Mosaic 40K faction, 50g (Quantity 15 in bundle) See group shot below	Tall Column of Turquoise Mosaic 40K faction, 50g (Quantity 15 in bundle) See group shot below
Tall Divider of Turquoise Mosaic 50K faction, 50g (Quantity 15 in bundle) See group shot below	Tall Window Frame in Narrow Divider of Turquoise Mosaic 50K faction, 50g (Quantity 8 in bundle) See group shot below	Tall Window Frame in Tall Divider of Turquoise Mosaic 50K faction, 50g (Quantity 8 in bundle) See group shot below
Triangle Tile of Turquoise Mosaic 40K faction, 50g (Quantity 15 in bundle) See group shot below	Vertical Window Frame in Tall Divider of Turquoise Mosaic 50K faction, 50g (Quantity 8 in bundle) See group shot below	Vibrant Maj'Dul Bazaar Basket 20K faction, 10g
Waters of Fyr'Un Yoke 30K faction, 25g	Weathered Scroll on Pewter Umbilicus 10K faction, 25g	White Monkey Plushie 40K faction, 10g
Wings of Atathus (level 85 appearance mount) 50K faction, 5p

Complete Teal Block Set

Notes:

• Glyph Marker items are light sources, as well as the Maj'Dul Street Torch. All other burners, lanterns and the like are NOT light sources.
• Maj'Dul hanging sign is a standard sign upon which you can write a message.

Rewards

Djinn Dust Wisp (fluff pet) Initial quest reward

Scroll of Ancient Knowledge Collection quest reward