Carbine Studios has released an in-depth look at WildStar’s upcoming Primal Matrix.
The Primal Matrix will allow heroes on Nexus to receive additional advancement at level 50. Players will increase their power through Primal Essence, which allows them to customize and unlock new their newfound potential, including class abilities.
In the Primal Matrix, six color-coded nodes form each hexagonal node cluster. Violet nodes bridge those clusters, with the clusters themselves being arranged in tiers. The central cluster is tier 1, the three clusters connecting to center are tier 2, and the outer ring makes up tier 3. The further a player works their way from the center of the Primal Matrix, the more costly it will become to unlock nodes, with players gaining more power from doing so. All players will begin on the central node cluster. After the first node is unlocked, players choose the path that they want to take, based upon the stats and abilities that they find more appealing.
The color of each node corresponds to the type of Essence that is needed to unlock it. There will be three Common Essence types (Crimson, Cobalt, and Viridian), as well as one Rare Essence (Violet). Common Essence will be spent to unlock nodes within a cluster, while Rare Essence will be used to unlock the nodes that bridge clusters. Spending Common Essence will boost stats, while each Violet node will grant players AMP Points, Ability Points, or one of two new abilities for the player’s class, as well as boosts for those abilities.
Primal Essence can be found in a number of ways, including instanced PvE, PvP, Daily Quests, Contracts, and throughout the world. The best way to obtain Primal Essence is to use the Content Finder and complete the objectives found in the new Bonus Rewards tab. There players will find content that offers Primal Essence with reward multipliers, which means that they will receive extra Essence of that given type for completing the content. These bonuses will be on a steady rotation, with a refresh timer that will let gamers know when they will change. Signature members will also gain a bonus to their Essence gains.
If players need a particular type of Essence in WildStar, there will be an Exchange button in the Primal Matrix that will allow gamers to exchange Essence types for a Service Token fee. Players will also see an assigned Heroism Rating value. Unlocking the node will grant players that value, with their cumulative Heroism Rating being reflected in the interface. This stat will be important, as it is a reflection of the hero’s power derived from the Primal Matrix. When gamers attempt to complete Prime Dungeons and Expeditions with scaling difficulty settings, they will first want to reach the recommended Heroism Rating.
WildStar is available now on PC. The Primal Matrix will be released the game’s next major content update, and is currently available for testing on the PTR.