All NA shards will come offline at 8am PST on Wednesday, March 7, 2012 for 1.7 Hotfix #8. Additional backend server maintenance will occur at the same time, extending the estimated downtime to 2 hours. Here are the patch notes:

RIFT 1.7 Hotfix #8 - 8:00am PST 3/7/12 [NA] - 2:00am GMT 8/3/12 [EU]

GENERAL
* Characters below level 48 are no longer able to pick Ember Isle porticulums if they have them, since they're unable to travel to the Isle.
* PvP: Gaining Prismatic Glory will no longer break stealth.
* Scarlet Gorge: The Crucible zone event should occur more frequently.
* Rift: Visions of Death: Addressed difficulty issues with this Rift.

WORLD EVENT
* You can no longer sell Pyrite Dubloons to NPCs.
* Adjusted the prize payout from Carnival games for first and repeat plays. Don't worry, jumping parties are still valid, but there ARE other games available!
* Carnival balloons now have a more realistic and pronounced breeze-swaying motion for added cuteness!