Throne & Liberty's Biggest Expansion Yet: Everything Coming in Nix and My Thoughts So Far
Get a complete breakdown of Throne & Liberty's upcoming **The Frozen Divide: Nix** expansion. From the new region, bosses, and dungeons to major gear progression changes, here's everything coming on June 25th along with my thoughts as a launch-day player.
For the past month, NCSoft have been showcasing different features coming with The Frozen Divide: Nix, Throne & Liberty's largest expansion yet, launching on June 25th. Today, June 17th, the developers released an in-depth video covering everything included in the update.
As someone who has played since launch and is currently sitting at around 8,000 Gear Score, I wanted to break down everything we know so far about Nix, along with some speculation and my personal thoughts on the expansion.
Before we begin, I want to make it clear that I want Throne & Liberty to succeed. I've stuck with the game through its highs and lows, and while it hasn't always been easy to support, I'm still hopeful about its future.
Because of that, I want to approach this expansion with an open mind while also being willing to criticize areas that I think need improvement. My hope is that the developers continue listening to player feedback and use it to make the game even better moving forward.
For those of you who are as invested in Throne & Liberty as I am, let's hope The Frozen Divide: Nix delivers. Without further ado, let's dive into everything coming with the expansion.
A New Region: Exploring Nix
Nix is located northeast of Talandre and offers a completely different environment from Laslan, Stonegard, and Talandre. The new zone is a frozen wasteland described by the developers as an "extreme environment with relentless blizzards." Because of these harsh conditions, neither the Arkeum Legion nor the Resistance has been able to establish control over the region.
The zone features two strongholds, Aetherion and Frontier Hold, along with five hunting grounds: Frozen Nightlands, Scars of Sacrifice, Entropic Tundra, Tumgir Hollow, and Stillreach.
Players will first encounter Aetherion, a massive aerial vessel created by DaVinci that hovers above Nix. Meanwhile, Frontier Hold is located entirely underground and introduces Frozen Scrolls, unique items that provide various offensive, defensive, and support effects.
Beyond the strongholds, each hunting ground offers its own terrain, enemies, and challenges, with exploration playing a major role in experiencing everything Nix has to offer.
Level Cap Increase and Character Progression
Alongside the new region, players will also gain access to a new chapter in the story. Adventure Codex Part 3: Driftmoor will consist of six acts and continue the narrative following the events of Talandre.
Through this storyline, we'll learn more about why Clay and Iska departed for Nix after answering Janice's call at the end of the Talandre story. For players invested in Throne & Liberty's lore, this should help further expand the mysteries surrounding the frozen region and its inhabitants.
The expansion also raises the character level cap to 60, allowing players to continue progressing their characters. Alongside the level increase, several progression systems are being expanded as well. Skill Specialization Points will increase from 100 to 110, while Mastery Points will increase from 200 to 220, giving players additional opportunities to refine and strengthen their builds.
The New Weapon: Gauntlets
I'll be honest, the new Gauntlets weapon isn't the feature I'm most excited about in Nix. That said, I know plenty of players have been looking forward to another weapon being added to the game.
Gauntlets will be the third weapon added since launch, following the Spear and Orb. Unlike most existing weapons, they are built entirely around close-range combat and aggressive playstyles.
The weapon is designed to fill two roles. In its normal state, it acts as a frontline fighter. However, activating Eclipse of Blood shifts it into a much more offensive playstyle, increasing mobility and allowing players to quickly pressure enemy backlines.
According to the developers, Gauntlets are all about chaining abilities together and maintaining a smooth combat flow. While they should be easy to pick up, mastering them will come down to learning combos and making the most of Eclipse of Blood.
Personally, this isn't the feature I'm most excited about, but I can definitely see the appeal for players who enjoy fast-paced melee combat.
New Gear and Itemization Changes
The Item System overhaul will have what the developers describe as "the biggest impact on your gameplay." One of the biggest changes is the removal of the gear tier system that has been a core part of Throne & Liberty since launch.
As the game has continued to grow, it has become increasingly difficult for newer players to catch up to those of us who have been playing since the beginning. Because of that, the developers have decided to completely restructure how gear progression works in an effort to make the system easier to understand and help close the gap between new and veteran players.
One of the biggest changes coming with Nix is a complete overhaul of the equipment progression system. I'll be honest, some of the details are a bit confusing, but the overall goal seems pretty clear: make gearing simpler and less frustrating.
Instead of focusing so heavily on gear tiers, enchantments, transfers, and several different upgrade systems, equipment will now have an Item Level that more clearly represents its power. In simple terms, higher item level means stronger gear.
From what I understand, the developers want to reduce a lot of the stress and expense that came with upgrading equipment. Rather than spending large amounts of time and resources pushing gear through multiple enhancement systems, new equipment should be much more usable right away when you obtain it.
Progression also appears to be tied more closely to your character's overall growth. As you continue playing and acquire stronger gear, the level of future equipment drops will naturally increase as well. Rare and highly valuable items, such as Archboss weapons, will still stand out by dropping at appropriately high item levels.
The trait system is also receiving major changes. Currently, obtaining specific traits can be a frustrating process that often requires sacrificing other pieces of gear. With Nix, players will instead be able to directly choose and unlock the traits they want as long as they have the required materials. This should make build customization much more straightforward and reduce a lot of the randomness and inventory clutter that currently exists.
Perhaps most importantly, the developers have stated that existing player investments will not be lost. Current gear progression will be converted into the new system, and equipment that players have spent months upgrading should carry its value forward into Nix. They're also introducing a new inheritance system that is designed to make transferring progress between pieces of equipment much easier, allowing players to experiment with different builds without feeling like they're starting over every time.
Overall, my impression is that the developers are trying to remove a lot of the complicated systems that have built up over time and replace them with something easier to understand. Whether that works in practice remains to be seen, but on paper it sounds like a positive change, especially for newer and more casual players.
Skill Cores
Another system being introduced with Nix is Armor and Accessory Skill Cores. Unlike the current skill core system, these can be engraved onto Heroic Armor and Accessories in addition to weapons.
These cores are earned through exploring Nix and participating in various activities throughout the expansion. According to the developers, their effects can be quite powerful, with some even altering how existing weapon skills function.
There will be dozens of options available, ranging from stat boosts to unique passive effects. Depending on how impactful they are in practice, they could open up a lot of new build possibilities for players to experiment with.
Remnants of Nix
Since I don't participate in PvP very often, I'm going to keep this section fairly brief.
The Remnants of Nix has been described by the developers as "the true battlefield for the strongest." This new inter-server PvP area is similar to Nebula but comes with its own progression system and rules.
The mode operates on a session-based system, with players able to enter freely at the start. However, after a certain amount of time, no additional players can join. Unlike Nebula, this area is designed for small groups of one to four players rather than entire guilds.
Monsters also do not respawn. Once defeated and looted, they are gone for the remainder of the session, creating competition over limited resources. Players can use Frozen Scrolls, hide in bushes to avoid detection, and take advantage of the Auroral Path as the session progresses.
After five minutes, players can attempt to escape with their rewards using one of the available escape ports. Be careful, though. If you die or leave without securing your loot, you'll lose everything you've gathered.
One of the main rewards found here is Redfrost Items. These drop in an Unappraised state and must be purified before they can be used. If you die while carrying one, you risk losing it, making them some of the most valuable and risky rewards available in Nix.
New Co-Op Dungeons
Nix will also introduce two new Co-op Dungeons: Stone Grave Cradle and Frostbreath Cave.
According to the developers, Stone Grave Cradle was inspired by the idea of a giant mechanical cat named Fellinex. The dungeon takes place within an ancient frozen facility where machinery continues operating long after the region was buried beneath ice and snow. The team also mentioned that many of Fellinex's animations and behaviors were inspired by real cats, so players may notice some familiar feline traits during the encounter.
Meanwhile, Frostbreath Cave is designed to showcase the harsh, frozen environment of Nix. Filled with icy blue landscapes and creatures adapted to survive the extreme cold, the dungeon aims to make players feel the full force of the region's unforgiving climate.
Each dungeon features its own unique boss. Stone Grave Cradle's boss, Fellinex, focuses on recognizable cat-like behaviors and mechanics, while Frostbreath Cave introduces Vulcanus, a terrifying creature that combines elements of a beast and an Ironclad Beetle. From what the developers have shown, both encounters look visually distinct and should offer very different experiences for dungeon groups.
Open World Activities and Exploration
One new feature coming to the open world is Field Events. These will replace Dominion Events in Nix and, unlike the current system, won't follow a fixed schedule. Instead, players can participate whenever they choose.
There will be 25 different Field Events throughout Nix, each with its own story and progression. Completing them can reward players with Redfrost Items. This sounds like a positive change. One of the biggest frustrations with scheduled content is feeling forced to log in at specific times, so giving players more freedom is something I'm happy to see.
The developers are also reworking Field Elite Enemies. Elite monsters will now appear in both PvE and PvP versions. Existing elites from Laslan, Stonegard, and Talandre are being updated, while Nix will introduce five entirely new elite enemies. PvP elites will appear very rarely and always be level 60, while PvE elites will spawn more regularly and scale to their region.
Here's another feature I'm a bit unsure about. Nix will not feature the traditional party-based Abyssal Dungeons we've seen in previous regions. Instead, players will enter solo dungeons by consuming specific items. These dungeons are intended to provide progression-focused content that players can tackle whenever they want.
As someone who usually plays MMOs solo, I can definitely see the appeal. However, I know many players, myself included, enjoyed running Abyssal Dungeons with guildmates. Some of my favorite memories in Throne & Liberty came from spending hours farming those dungeons together. Because of that, I'm very curious to see how the community reacts to this change and whether the benefits of solo accessibility outweigh the loss of that group experience.
New Traversal Systems
From what the developers have shown, Nix will not use the traditional waypoint travel system players are used to. Instead, the expansion introduces two new ways to get around the region: the Aethersuit and the Auroral Path.
The Aethersuit is used to descend from the floating stronghold of Aetherion to the surface below, while the Auroral Path acts as a transportation network connecting different parts of Nix.
Based on what we've seen so far, traditional teleport points will only be available within the main strongholds. I'll admit I'm a little skeptical about that decision. While both traversal systems look great and fit the theme of Nix, I can't help but wonder if players will eventually ask for more fast travel options.
That said, I'm trying to keep an open mind. If these systems make traveling around Nix quick and convenient, then it may not be an issue at all. We'll just have to see how it feels once the expansion launches.
New Bosses and Endgame Encounters
Nix will introduce two new field bosses: Porfos and White-Shoulder Thuban. In addition, Talandre's existing field bosses will receive new Ascended versions for players to challenge.
The expansion also introduces a new Archboss, Ramux, who fights alongside her dragon-like mount, Atirat. Players will first need to deal with Atirat before taking on an even more dangerous version of Ramux. According to the developers, the encounter is designed to place a greater emphasis on individual decision-making while still encouraging players to make use of the environment, crowd control effects, and battlefield weapons.
Another major addition is Vegamor, a massive Colossus that roams the frozen landscape. Standing roughly 200 meters tall, Vegamor is more of a moving battlefield than a traditional boss fight. Players will need to destroy different parts of its body while using environmental tools and coordinating movement across the giant creature itself.
Rewards are earned throughout multiple phases of the encounter, with additional loot available for players who help complete the final objective. From everything shown so far, Vegamor looks like one of the most ambitious boss encounters coming with Nix.
Nix Roadmap
The dev's have very kindly included a roadmap for June-September giving us a good idea of what to expect.
Final Thoughts
Overall, The Frozen Divide: Nix looks like a very ambitious expansion for Throne & Liberty. Between the new region, progression overhaul, bosses, dungeons, PvP content, and quality-of-life improvements, there is no shortage of things for players to explore.
Not every change is one that I'm completely sold on. I'm still a bit skeptical about the lack of traditional fast travel options and the move away from party-based Abyssal Dungeons. However, many of the other changes, particularly the gear progression overhaul, seem aimed at addressing long-standing player concerns.
At the end of the day, the success of Nix will come down to execution. On paper, a lot of these features sound promising. Now it's up to the developers to deliver an experience that keeps both new and veteran players engaged.
As someone who has been playing since launch, I'm cautiously optimistic. Hopefully, Nix is the expansion that helps Throne & Liberty take a meaningful step forward.
Image Credit: Most images used in this article were captured from official Throne & Liberty developer presentations and promotional materials. All related artwork, screenshots, and game assets are the property of NCSoft and Amazon Games.
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