Risia Ice Games/Instance swapping

	History
	This event was retired in 2020. It has been replaced by the Snowpeaks Festival.
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Winter Festival mini-games

Risia Ice Games - Harbor Jump tips / Bogwater Half Pipe tips / Instance hopping

Midwinter Ice Races (since 2013) - Score and Rewards

Instance Hopping

You can switch instances mid-coin to get more than one coin per jump at any of the locations above. You can get one coin from 2 instances: the one you start at and the one you switch to. After you switch there is a 5-second timer before you can switch instance again.

Also, you need to stay out of an instance for 40 seconds for the coins you collected there to reset (if you stay in the instance, it takes 3 minutes for them to reset after you collect them). So, if there are only 2 instances you are switching between:

1. Collect a coin in instance A
2. Swap mid-coin to instance B to get the same coin there
3. Wait 40 seconds
4. Switch back to instance A
5. Wait 40 seconds
6. Repeat

You can grab other coins and get back into position during the waiting periods. If you have 3 or more instances to switch between, you probably don't need to wait at all.

New instances of a public area are created according to the number of players in that area. If there is no one in an area for about 5 minutes, the instance for that area will be deleted (which clears Pawn Brokers, etc.). 1 to about 35(?) players in an area will have a single instance only. More than about 35(?) players in an area will create a second instance, and so on.

To switch instances, you need to left-click on the area name on the minimap to expand the drop-down box, then left-click the instance you wish to switch to. There is no in-game keyboard shortcut to switch instances.

It may help to move your minimap near the center of the screen for easier access.

The drop-down box on the minimap will stay dropped-down if you: turn on Mouse Look Mode (T key by default), left-click the area name to expand the drop-down box and then keep your mouse over the area name at the top of the menu, turn off and back on Mouse Look Mode (T twice). You can then position your mouse over the instance you will want to switch to, turn off Mouse Look Mode (T again), and then when you hit the coin quickly press T and then left-click.

You can also switch instances by lining up with Mouse Look Mode, then turning off Mouse Look Mode and driving completely with the keyboard so that the mouse is available to click the menu when ready. This used to work well when using the Bogwater Bracelet of Friends jumping method (which has been completely disabled in 2013, since the top of the pillar in the Bogwater Tavern is no-longer accessible).

While there is no in-game keyboard shortcut to switch instances, a simple AutoHotkey script can switch you to the next instance with a keystroke (but only once per jump since Turbine has implemented a 5-second delay between instance swapping):

1. Install the free, open-source AutoHotkey scripting utility.
2. Save this script file: Risia Ice Games/Swap Instance Script (copy and paste the code into a text editor such as Notepad and save the file as swapinstance.ahk)
3. Edit the script file for how many instances are available currently. The script defaults to 5 instances: if you have less than that, remove the ";" from the start of line 28, 38, or 48 as needed (instructions are in the file).
4. Run the swapinstance.ahk script you just saved. It will appear as a green A in the System Tray (near the clock). You can pause/restart/close the script from there as needed.
5. In-game, turn off Mouse Look Mode if on (via T) and place the mouse pointer at the center of the area name on the minimap, then press 4. The script will record this location as the place to click to drop-down the instance list menu.
6. Turn Mouse Look Mode back on via T and press 4 again. The script should switch you to instance 1, and show you a count of how many seconds since it switched instance for you.
7. Jump for coins, with Mouse Look Mode on.
8. Just as you first touch the purple coin (putting on a Feather Fall item just before you come down onto the coin helps), press 4 and the script will press t, click the menu, click the next instance, and then press t again.
9. Go jump again! Always use 4 to switch instances, so the script stays in-sync with which instance you are in. Note you need to stay out of an instance for 40 seconds for the coins in that instance to reset, so don't jump back until you have spent that long in other instances.