Masquerade 2026!

Who is ready to dance?

Things are a little different this year. Before we get to the details, just know that the Masquerade will last until July 15.

Dance Floor

On the ballroom floor, you will notice some changes!

💃 The dance rooms are back on the Masquerade Forums! Join a dance room where you can step onto the floor and the Auto Dancing Machine will pair you with another dancer every few minutes. Each pairing will earn you 2-5 trinkets (lounge or steelworks) with up to 80 per day across ALL dancing booths. You will always have a partner, whether it is another user or one of the gossips!

💃 You can only be in 3 dance rooms at a time.

💃 At the bottom of the page, you'll see active Masquerade achievements to help you keep track of things! There are a few new achievements for you to work towards.

💃 Don't forget, you can also use the Mystery Dance feature!

Foods and Drinks!

🍸 You'll see a 'Sidelines' section below the floor where you can bring a Libertine Lounge food or drink to various NPCs. They will cycle out throughout the holiday. There are a few NPCs that will not accept drinks and at least one that will not accept food.

🍸 Why should I feed or provide drinks to NPCs? You will be rewarded for your help! Instead of new items to the Steamworks Menagerie, we've added the small pool of items to the various NPCs on the floor. If you provide 3 items to an NPC, you will get to pick your prize out of that NPC's pool.

🍸 This is an excellent year to catch up on past Steamworks Menagerie and Libertine Lounge items. There are 17 years worth of items, after all!

Olivette's Shop

To dance on the floor, you will need to be wearing an item with the word 'mask' in the name.

🎭 Olivette is in the ballroom this year building masks instead of opening Migrating Masks. She has a higher chance to create a new mask for you but you could potentially get an old mask too! These older masks include masks that once restocked in the Holiday Shop, like the Mardi Gras Face Mask, or from other holidays like the Orange Wreathed Red Rreign Mask. Make sure you CLICK/Select each item when crafting for a mask for the 'craft' button to work.

Note: We've moved everything back to legacy this year (dance rooms were on kumos!), so there may be a bug or two. You can report any you come across here. Thanks everyone!

Note : This is just the first day, there will be more to come! Perhaps a robot or two may challenge you.

July 6, 2026, 2:52 am by Drathir
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I haven't gotten a single duel this entire time....

July 1, 2026, 1:27 pm by LizardLady
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I spoke too soon. I misunderstood what I need to do. It is a bit inconvenient, but not nearly as bad as I thought

July 1, 2026, 1:18 pm by LizardLady
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I just bought everything from the 2025 tab thinking it was new items for 2026.. I do not like having to jump through hoops for the new items either. Will likely just buy it later and sell tokens

June 30, 2026, 8:02 pm by Snowflake
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i don't like new way of getting items. especially the masks. i wish we had alternatives. i tend to vend during events. might not get all but at least get some.

June 30, 2026, 6:21 pm by StarShadow
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I answered DimDim via smail.

June 30, 2026, 5:22 pm by DimDim
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, is NPc a Pet and how can i feed that ? Sorry if i ask, but the Translator no help. Thank you for your Help.

June 30, 2026, 4:35 am by Seussviller
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There's a guide on the forums that Hitchcock made all about materials and the masks that is super helpful<3

June 30, 2026, 12:43 am by stars_water
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One of the things that keeps going through my head.... is why are my halos always being removed during dances? YuY I get it but also darn it! Be it older halos or these brand new ones, I love them and I want them on the dance floor with me lol

June 29, 2026, 11:33 pm by bonecrivain
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Not loving the new method for 2026 shop items. I just want to buy things without going through a whole set of hurdles to be allowed to make a purchase....

June 29, 2026, 9:21 pm by StarShadow
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I had the same problem so when I found 1 thing that did work I just bought a bunch of those. Good luck.

June 29, 2026, 8:39 pm by Delphi
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what counts as craft supplies for Olivette? cause i bought a bunch of stuff from thimble n co and wasn't able to turn in any of it

June 29, 2026, 6:05 pm by StarShadow
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There are no tabs in the shops for 2026 because you can get the items by feeding the NPCs. Each time you feed 1 NPC food/drink 3 times you get a list of prizes to choose from including the new items.

June 29, 2026, 4:54 pm by DimDim
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Did we get new Items in the both Shops from 2026 ? There are only from 2025 !?

June 29, 2026, 4:44 pm by capper09
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sorry to ask, but what means NPC, duel and did we get cash from mystery dance like last events..? thx for ur' cool job and this, till now, no error event.. 😉

June 29, 2026, 3:32 pm by DarkPrince
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On the information above you have said steelworks instead of steamworks.

June 29, 2026, 1:20 pm by StarShadow
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If the NPCs are changed to ask for things other than lounge food I hope that wouldn't sky rocket in price whatever they want.

June 29, 2026, 1:18 pm by StarShadow
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Wow I must have the worst luck then. 2 mornings in a row I logged on to dozens of dances and still not a single duel. Sad. :(

June 29, 2026, 12:46 pm by brokensafety
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I've gotten two duels. That's not a lot, but they are happening to some degree.

June 29, 2026, 12:37 pm by StarShadow
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3rd day of dancing and not 1 single duel. What happened to them?

June 29, 2026, 12:23 pm by brokensafety
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It looks like the main ballroom flushes users out now after 2 hours, so that's good.

June 29, 2026, 10:00 am by Andrea
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Er, forgot to add: heck yeah @ maybe adding consumables 👀! I think the general vibe of the masquerade would lend to some really neat weapon mods (glowing neon colors vs. sore feet, drunken nap, excited stat boost etc. I'm here for it). Iirc there was talk of wanting people to switch up mods more, so hey!

I'd never turn down boosters either. Or, since it fits the vibe of food and drinks... consumables that reduce a pet's hunger or happiness to 0? I'd use a lot of those when I have a backlog or starting a new theme.

June 29, 2026, 9:47 am by Andrea
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I did not go to the forums nor join a room 🙃... I assumed it was a free for all/rng thing. I'll try and figure that out later after work, thank you for the heads up I do

June 29, 2026, 9:27 am by antheraea
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Ah, any particular reason why my argon cyber face mask doesn't count as a mask this year?

June 29, 2026, 9:09 am by antheraea
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I never stop being wowed by how elaborate the stuff you add is these days. It's almost overwhelming! 😆 Happy masquerade!

June 29, 2026, 7:44 am by GhostInaShell
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Whhhyyyy can we give those rich a*s NPCs bag of steamworks trinkets?? I just gave a Gold Bag of Steamworks Trinkets by mistake T-T Sadness..

BTW, thank you for all you work!

June 29, 2026, 7:40 am by Ambition
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It got fixed - thanks. <3

June 29, 2026, 5:57 am by BoaConstrictor
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Thank you for adding all the links to the sidebar and upgrading/adding a ton of functions that fast!!!

June 29, 2026, 5:13 am by Alferia
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I just wanted to say I am really enjoying the way this is structured. The new quicker way to buy from the lounge is fantastic as well. And I am super grateful there are not that many new items this year to give me a chance to catch up of getting some of previous years stuff. In the past I usually missed the Masquerade often so it's great to get a chance to get caught up. :) Thank you! Really enjoying it so far! ❤

June 28, 2026, 11:12 pm by BoaConstrictor
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This! We are supposed to dance on the The Grand Ballroom as well, but the "Step onto the Ballroom floor" does nothing and it says "That dance floor is full."

I hadn't even noticed, that we need to be there in order to be able to dance with all NPCs until someone pointed it out here. There is no mention of this in the guide.

June 28, 2026, 10:45 pm by brokensafety
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Unfortunately, Abigail and Anthony were not added to the forum dance rooms. It's been mentioned a few times, but we're still limited to just Georgiana, Cassandra and Boudewijn. We can see Anthony and Abigail on the main ballroom floor, but that's limited to only 60 users and most of us can't join. Hopefully Abigail and Anthony will be added to the forum dance floors soon.

June 28, 2026, 9:46 pm by Balloon
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I definitely think there needs to be a way to get in a queue to enter the main ballroom, if two of the gossipers can only be danced with there and especially if dancers have to manually "step off the floor" to leave. With a cap of 60 and 400+ players online at a given time, most of us who weren't online at the start stand no chance of getting in and getting those achievements, unless there's some kind of system to move people off the floor and move new people in. And the new people need to be able to queue up ahead of time, or else people will sit on the page and get back on the floor as soon as they get moved off.

June 28, 2026, 9:39 pm by Keith
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There is a "how it works" on most of these pages, that hopefully explains how it works :)

on the ballroom: image

June 28, 2026, 8:39 pm by Saturnine
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Honestly I am greatly enjoying this, minor nav issues aside. especially the change to one click buying, and reading the NPC stuff when you give them snacks!

It's been the same for almost 20 years! this is fun!

June 28, 2026, 7:46 pm by StarShadow
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Since I had hundreds of trinkets left from last year and nothing to use them on now (because I've already bought the food/drink I need for the NPCs), the only reason I have to dance is for a duel. Except after 2 days of dancing I haven't had a single duel. How often do the NPCs change? Been waiting on a new one for a while.

June 28, 2026, 5:08 pm by StarShadow
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A big THANK YOU to whoever changed the lounge so I can just click on what I want multiple times and not have to keep going back and forth to the shop. That's great and appreciated.

June 28, 2026, 5:08 pm by hannahharmin
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Thank you for bringing back the dance card. <3

June 28, 2026, 4:56 pm by BoaConstrictor
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P.S. "they are in the main ballroom" Is this something we need to join extra, nothing to do with booths or mystery or dance with the user above? Where is this explained, I thought I had understood everything, that was going on this year... :-(

June 28, 2026, 4:51 pm by BoaConstrictor
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Are those stupid Gossipers actually doing anything besides eating and drinking at our costs - like, for example dance with users?

I know there was lots of interaction with them in the booths on the Kumos holiday plots...

June 28, 2026, 4:45 pm by Saturnine
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Thank you ! I was thinking "I want to give the NPCs the Lounge items but it's a lot of backtracking"

and ooh potential new steampunk items

June 28, 2026, 4:23 pm by brokensafety
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Eek, you said you haven't seen them. At any rate, they are in the main ballroom, so you should be able to see them soon. The forum dance rooms only have three NPCs. I think Abigail and Anthony need to be added to them.

June 28, 2026, 4:22 pm by kuzi
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ah yes I've seen them in the feed section too, but not on the dance floor to dance with - I just opened every dance floor on the first page of the masq forum, but the only NPCs that show up in ball rooms made by players are Gossip Cassandra, Gossip Georgiana and Gossip Boudewijn, never Abigal or Anthony! was just wondering if that's a bug, or lack of patience ;)

June 28, 2026, 4:22 pm by brokensafety
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Abigail and Anthony are in the main ballroom only, of which you are a dancing member (you're listed in that room.) That's why you've been seeing them. The rest of us in forum dance rooms do not have access to them. That's the issue. If Abigail and Anthony could be added as NPCs to the forum dance rooms as well, that would fix the issue.

June 28, 2026, 4:18 pm by Amber
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nevermind! I believe Keith is getting (or has gotten) that back!!

June 28, 2026, 4:17 pm by Amber
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That is one of the reasons we went this route for the NPC interaction. We wanted y'all to have to do something for the new items/retired stuff, but also wanted to get y'all to use those pesky lounge trinkets more. I am also guilty of just buying stuff from the clothing/book/etc shop. The restocking of masks sucked because there isn't a lot there for getting items. So things would go very fast unfortunately! I'm still going to mess with the odds some to help users get some of those newer ones. :)

June 28, 2026, 4:13 pm by Amber
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They show up in dance rooms, so you should eventually come across them. I haven't danced much, so I haven't seen them but they have popped up to be fed for me. As far as letting people know how many - it also helps to know when you'll next be able to choose a prize (every 3rd time). On my list! That and the news side bar - the way we do that has changed a bit and I just need Keith to move it back to legacy from Kumos haha. Thanks for the feedback! The chatting with her is an interesting point. As far as dancing, you can still use dance=USERNAME with people to dance like you have in previous times. Or the mystery dance. It should still take you to the right places? If it doesn't, please let me know. As far as them all being rave/food, I understand it's a bummer. 👀 I'm talking with artists about doing some other mass-themed items in other places (like garden!) that will def have some steampunk influence. As far as items being added to the store, no. These will just be through the NPC interactions this year. There won't be a wave two of new items to the NPCs. I will likely (i'll do a news post if/when I do) add more retired items but nothing new. I am talking with an artist right now about a few items in other places though! And I'm stressing steampunk love ;) I'm not familiar with that! Can you expend a bit more? 👀 If it's possible we missed something I'm glad to talk to about getting it back! This year, there will be no items added to either shop. It's purely "catch up". That's not to say next year we won't have new shop items! I love the idea of them asking for other consumables. We could introduce that a bit later in the holiday. <3 As for the dance floor, I think it's just based on what room you are a part of? Have you joined any through the forums? like previous year dancing with one? Or this? I'll talk about the wishlist bit with Keith!

For everyone asking for links on the homepage sidebar - yes it will happen soon! The way we used to do it was on Kumos so I'm just waiting on Keith to move the panel back to legacy. :)

if you haven't gotten any tokens and there isn't a bug thread about it, could you make one? Easier to keep track.

Oh, that was actually meant for Boudewijn (nice catch ). Let me add it to him.

June 28, 2026, 4:07 pm by norfie
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This is a fun change to the event! As someone who only really collects clothing, I've never had a use for the Lounge trinkets. To me, the ability to now use those trinkets to buy food for the NPCs in exchange for an item I am more likely to enjoy is much more fun than just transforming my Lounge trinkets into Steamwork trinkets.

I also like the change to the mask shop. In years past, I never really saw much stocked in that shop because I don't take the time to constantly check it. Now I have the opportunity to get the new masks without having to buy them from user shops at inflated prices. It's much more accessible to the average user, so I appreciate that. Thanks for giving us these new features!

June 28, 2026, 3:59 pm by brokensafety
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I think the Red Neon Halo was overlooked. Hopefully sees this and throws it in the pool. Boudewijn could use another new item (currently only giving one new item.)

June 28, 2026, 3:52 pm by Seussviller
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I've gone through all the NPCs so far and no red halo yet...also checked the forums/the Masquerade 2026 NPC Forum and no mention of which NPC has it. I'm guessing it's one that will be released in the future. Can't wait for that one though! <3

June 28, 2026, 3:46 pm by Kyuubi
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Do we know where [item2=Red Neon Halo] is? I don't think any NPC is giving it out; the Item Directory says there's none anywhere.

June 28, 2026, 3:39 pm by GhostInaShell
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The drink and food finally have a purpose! nice! xD This is interesting, let's see how it goes. And I like seeing the NPCs attending and saying a few lines.

BTW, how about letting us choose a ball room or a rave dance floor? :D

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