How Zarhold keeps growing: the biggest updates to a browser card MMORPG

A new MMORPG usually gets judged on two questions: what’s in it right now, and how fast it’s growing. Zarhold, a card MMORPG you play in your browser, does well on the second one: the game is in an open beta with no wipe, and updates land literally every day. Here’s a roundup of the biggest recent additions — from a new interface look to a capital city, heroes’ own rooms and fight logs — plus where to follow what comes next.

How often Zarhold is updated

Every build of the game is logged in the Updates section — with the date, the release time (Moscow time) and a plain list of changes. Since June it has gathered more than five hundred entries, and between 1 and 15 October alone there were almost three hundred builds.

There’s nothing to download: Zarhold runs in your browser, and the new version arrives on its own. If a combat-rules update comes out while the game is open on the previous version, a window with a Refresh button appears — and your progress is kept.

And the key decision everyone in a beta cares about: there will be no wipe — the current world lives on with its heroes, items and gold. More in “Zarhold beta: no wipe” and the news about the worldwide launch.

A new look: the Banner interface

The most visible change is the new Banner look for the interface: windows, buttons, tabs and tooltips now share one style, the item window is a tidy grid, and nothing overlaps or jumps. It came with the Hero Banner frame: a portrait in an arch, title, class and talent branch, guild, money in coins and experience — all on one plate. Tap the portrait to open the hero card.

The capital of Zarhold — a city for level 60 heroes

A floating city has risen over the Middle Lake — the capital for level 60 heroes. You can only get there from level 60: by flight from the world map or with the “⟲ To Zarhold” button. The city has eleven quarters — from the Great Hall and the Tourney Grounds to the Crafters’ Quarter and the Tavern — and each has a steward who greets your hero by voice.

What else the capital has:

• the Hall of Fame — 31 statues: the first hero on the server to reach 60 and the first three of every class;
• the Wishing Well — the whole world’s goal in gold: when it’s full, every hero gets an hour of +10% crafting materials and gold from enemies;
• the goblin’s Night Market — at night, Moscow time, by the Market Row: one card back a night, in limited numbers;
• the Portal of Memories, the Bell Tower, the Weekly Annals and the Gryphon Courier, who delivers a joke gift to a friend;
• day, evening and night on Moscow time — the city changes with the clock.

The full reference for the city is in the knowledge base: “The capital of Zarhold”.

Hero Chambers — a room for every hero

Every hero now has their Chambers — a room of their own in the Great Hall. It furnishes itself: your armor on the mannequin, weapons on the rack, craft tools on the craftsman’s shelf, arena season pennants on the wall. You can rearrange the furniture, visit friends and “honor” their rooms. The Chambers open at any level and don’t affect combat. Everything about them is in “Player housing in a browser MMORPG: Hero Chambers”.

That’s also where living pets live: a companion sits by your hero’s portrait in combat and cheers your wins, and in the Chambers it plays by day and sleeps in its bed at night. Pets are sold in the Shop and, like everything in the Shop, are cosmetic only.

Errands and mini-events

The game now has a daily rhythm. Errands for the day, week and month are taken straight from the world map, and at level 60 from the Errand Board in the capital. Mini-events follow a calendar: every day — Lucky Hour, Trial of the Day and the Battle of the Day puzzle; every week — a hunt for the wanted foe, the Order of the Week and a Tavern Spread game in the tavern; once a month — the Invasion with its world tally, and the Fair. Rewards are looks, titles and Marks of Distinction — events give no power. The whole calendar is in “MMORPG events and daily errands”.

Battle Chronicles and battle summaries

Every fight now comes with numbers. After any fight — on an expedition, in the arena, on a battleground — every participant gets a “📊 Battle summary” window: damage, healing and damage taken for both sides, world residents and opponents included.

The website gained [Battle Chronicles](/hroniki) — fight logs like the ones big MMORPGs have: fight reports, boss rankings with a 0–100 score, PvP win rates by class, branch and race, guild progress and a chronicle for every hero. Each boss has leaderboards of the best damage dealers, tanks and healers.

And right in combat there’s an “i” button by every enemy and ally portrait — inspect: Health, Power for this fight, defence, shield, talent branch and gear. Before an arena fight you can inspect your opponent and compare them with yourself.

PvE: heroic mode, Tier 1, Heat of Battle and How to beat guides

• Heroic mode for every raid and world boss: tougher enemies, boss epics at item level 232.
• Tier 1 — eight-piece class sets reforged at the Regalia Forge. Everything about them is in “Tier sets in an MMORPG”.
• Heat of Battle: from their own 10th turn everyone in a fight draws two cards instead of one — on expeditions and in PvP.
• Fair bosses: nobody at full Health falls during one enemy turn, a heavy blow leaves a Window to Heal, and a boss’s control and big hit never share a turn.
• How to beat guides for every level 60 boss: hits by turn, “up to N per hit”, tactics and what helps.
• All legendaries are item level 280, and legendary forging got a weekly reagent and a bound legendary.

How it all plays out in a fight is covered in “World bosses and heroic raids”.

PvP: live opponents, duels and rating

In the team arena and on battlegrounds the game looks for live players first — both opponents and teammates. Solo players and groups share one queue, and after 50 seconds world residents fill any free slots; for 5v5 arena and battlegrounds, 50 new level 60 residents arrived with their own honor sets. You can minimise the search window and chat or browse other screens in the meantime — when a fight is found, it pops back up on its own.

Duels with stakes, the Honor Circle and the seasonal arena rating are covered in “Duels in an MMORPG” and “Arena rating and the Hall of Fame”.

Together: groups, guilds and chat

• Group finder right in chat: the “📣” button in World or Guild chat posts a card with slots by role, a timer and applications that the leader accepts or declines.
• Roles without surprises: “tank” and “healer” are checked against your talent branch, so you see right away if the branch doesn’t fit.
• Who’s online: your guild and friends lists show who’s in the game right now and when they were last seen.
• “@” mentions and items in chat: any item, card, achievement or talent can be shared as a link.

More in “Guilds in an MMORPG” and “Co-op MMORPG”.

Quality of life: small things that save time and nerves

• Item lock — a locked item can’t be sold, disenchanted, deleted or traded by accident.
• Deleted items — deleted gear by mistake? You can restore it within a day, with enchants and sharpening intact.
• Key bindings — any action, End Turn included, can go on any key or on the side mouse buttons.
• The Quest Log is sorted by what matters: Turn in now, In progress, Available — and every land’s elder keeps a Quest Board.
• A new talent screen: points are tried out first and only saved when you press Apply.
• Back into the fight: dropped out of a fight on an expedition? Come back within 5 minutes, even from another device.
• Faster start: the game downloads almost a third less before the title screen.

What doesn’t change: fair rules

The game changes fast, but a few rules stay put:

• No pay-to-win. Gameplay advantage isn’t for sale: the Shop sells looks only.
• “What’s written is what works.” Whole releases are devoted to making card, set and consumable descriptions match what actually happens in combat.
• World residents help — they don’t replace you. They fill empty party slots, but they never play for a live player.
• The server decides. Event rewards, loot and wins are counted by the server, not the browser.

Where Zarhold goes next

What’s done, what’s in progress and what lies ahead is on the Roadmap page — which deliberately makes no promises in numbers, only the order of steps. The worldwide launch and the new shared world are covered in the launch news. Player suggestions are read on the forum: many entries in Updates grew straight out of them.

The easiest way to miss nothing:

• Updates — every build by date;
• News — the big events;
• Blog — mechanics breakdowns and guides;
• Knowledge base — a searchable reference for the whole game.

Zarhold updates FAQ

How often is Zarhold updated?

Very often: builds come out almost every day, sometimes several a day. Since June the Updates section has gathered more than five hundred entries.

Where can I see the list of changes?

In the Updates section on the website and in the game: every build with its date, release time (Moscow time) and a plain-language list of changes.

Do I need to download anything to update the game?

No. Zarhold runs in your browser, and the new version arrives on its own. If the combat rules change, the game offers a Refresh button, and your progress is kept.

Will there be a wipe after updates or the beta?

No. The current world stays and lives on — heroes, items and gold are kept. Details are in the news about the worldwide launch.

Can you buy power in Zarhold?

No. Gameplay advantage isn’t for sale: the Shop sells looks only — frames, avatars, pets, Chambers styles and the like.

The bottom line

Zarhold is growing fast and with purpose: the new Banner look, the capital and Hero Chambers, Battle Chronicles, fair bosses and Heat of Battle, events for every day, duels, guilds and dozens of small things that save you time. All of it with no download, no wipe and no power for sale. The whole game is covered in the “Zarhold review”, and the best way to see the changes is to open Zarhold yourself.