mounts
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Warlords of Draenor: Mount Tab description updates
The latest Warlords of Draenor beta build expanded the descriptions listed in the re-designed mount tab. Nearly every mount in the game now has an entry with a little piece of trivia. There are actually some interesting little flavor bits of lore contained in the new entries, including slightly more in-depth information as to the mount's origins, interesting quotes or beliefs about the creatures, and of course where it can be built or obtained. At the moment, not every mount has a listing for where you can find it -- but given that there are already entries that do mention things in detail, it seems like we'll see that added in a later beta build. Of course, it's the humorous entries that really stick out in the new listing. How can you seriously describe a giant rooster? You can't. Check out the gallery below for some of the best selections from the newly added flavor text.
Final Fantasy XIV previews chocobo training
Your chocobo is your lifelong companion in Final Fantasy XIV, but is he really getting all he can out of life? Does he have the options necessary for a robust avian lifestyle? Is he stuck sitting outside in the cold while you go in and have a few drinks? Are you one of the relentless achievers who has reached max level with the bird and wants to advance past rank 10? Then patch 2.3's chocobo raising system is for you! Once your free company builds a chocobo stable on its housing plot, you can stable your bird there, allowing him to earn experience and train skills on an hourly basis. Training requires treats, with a special treat allowing your companion to exceed rank 10 (although you're still limited to rank 20 as a maximum). Players will not be able to summon their companion whilst he's stabled. Read the full preview for more details, and get ready to start intimately tending to the needs of your feathered friend.
Albion Online's mounts are for riding, not fighting
A new dev diary regarding Albion Online's mounts reveals that the beasts will be strictly for transportation only. "The player is unable to fight, gather or interact with any buildings while on horseback. Mounts will provide a number of buffs to the character, which are effective immediately when they mount, and deactivate when they dismount," the team posted. While mounts won't be trampling over enemy's corpses, they will come in armored versions that can shrug off more damage if a player is attacked. Mounts are not only represented by horses, but oxen as well, with the latter being more suited to transporting goods over long distances. You can see a quick video of Albion's mounts in action after the break! [Thanks to Dengar for the tip!]
Warforged Nightmare mount now available
A new mount has appeared in the Blizzard Store on live servers. The Warforged Nightmare is available for $30 on US accounts. The Warforged Nightmare is a single player ground and flying mount, a fiery warhorse covered in spikes and chains. However, the smiths that crafted the mount have a surprise in store for you -- not only do you receive the mount, you also receive the Nightmarish Hitching Post with your order. Make a group with your friends, because clicking on this item will give any party member their own 20 minute version of the Warforged Nightmare for themselves. It's a mount and a toy, and both can be yours via the Blizzard Store. For more information and footage of the steed in action, check out Blizzard's official announcement video.
Warlords of Draenor: New mount tab and favorites function
The Warlords of Draenor alpha has plenty of content, but it's the little things that are standing out at the moment -- subtle UI tweaks and additions that are marked improvements to existing features. One of these in-progress changes is the mounts tab, a feature that has been pretty bare-bones since it was introduced. Although it isn't complete just yet, there are some nice changes -- mounts that you cannot use are clearly outlined in red, and mousing over their icons will tell you what riding skill you need in order to ride them. Mounts from both factions are now shown on the tab. However, Horde and Alliance icons clearly note which mounts are faction-specific, and which faction you need to be in order to ride them. In addition, some mounts now have flavor text in the mount window that includes a little information about the mount, and where it is obtained -- whether it be via quest or vendor.
Azeroth Choppers Episode 7, voting opens today
With the arrival of Azeroth Choppers episode 7, we'll finally have the chance to do the thing that the entire webseries was leading up to, namely to vote on a new mount favoring either the Horde or the Alliance. Which will you choose, that monstrosity with tank treads the other faction got, or the awesome bike with tank treads your faction got? Well, whichever you pick, the time to do so is now. Are you excited for any of the bikes? Or just swept away by faction pride? Or are you like Anne, and you're literally insane to watch people build stuff? Personally I find the building aspect of the show to be absolutely riveting. Hah. Riveting. I made a joke. Personally I'm hoping that the next webseries that Blizzard does is with the awesome Man at Arms people. Seriously, how cool would that be? Blizz can break up into teams again and design badass new Horde and Alliance specific weapons and have a real life version forged by Tony Swatton and his team. They've made the Buster Sword, they could probably handle Ashkandi. Ooh. Forget the competition. Just make Ashkandi. And then deliver it to my house. Get ready to go vote for your favorite bike over on the official site.
Get started collecting mounts in WoW
It's a slow time in World of Warcraft right now, without new raids, dungeons, or anything else. But this is the perfect time to focus your attention on collecting in-game items. This is a time-consuming hobby that doesn't provide the kinds of rewards you might get from running a dungeon or winning a PvP match, but it can be fun -- assuming you've got that "gotta catch 'em all" personality that drives you to collect in the first place. We've talked about collecting in-game titles, and now we're moving on to another collection favorite: mounts. The World of Warcraft is packed with different in-game mounts that can compliment your transmog or just look awesome. Though even the most casual player has probably collected quite a few mounts by the time they've hit level 90, there are always more to pick up. Typically, special mounts require either grinding up to exalted reputation with a particular faction or getting a lucky drop in a dungeon or raid -- but many can be acquired completely solo, so long as you're patient. And best of all, as you collect more mounts, you unlock even more mounts with rewards for achievements when you've collected 50, 100, 150, and 200 mounts. If you're just getting started, expect it to take some time to get all the way to 200, but whether you're looking for quantity or quality, we've got you covered with a bunch of ways to build your mount collection.
Warlords of Draenor: New mount
Yesterday evening the Warcraft twitter feed posted a sneak-peak of what appears to be a new mount in Warlords of Draenor. It looks an awful lot like the old ravagers from The Burning Crusade, so that's my bet -- it's a ravager mount from the homeland of the ravagers themselves, just spruced up a bit. However, for the moment Blizzard seems devoid of any comment on the mount beside this particular image, so the question of how it will be obtained remains a mystery. Is it available to both factions? Is it a PvE reward? PvP reward? It looks like a ground mount from the picture, perhaps it's some kind of reward for being unable to fly in early Warlords? I guess we'll just have to wait and find out!
Landmark updates testing blueprint
EverQuest Franchise Lead Dave Georgeson critted Landmark testers with a wall of text late last night, updating the community on the plans for the game's features rollout over the next four months. To sum up the huge list: Early May: The addition of oceans, cave networks, Player Studio, and some quick fixes to help new players catch up such as a progression path diagram and the placement of basic crafting tables at the Hub. Late May: The team will add customer service tools, "crafting 2.0," treasure chests (and loot!), voice chat, underwater effects, map improvements, a minimap, and lots more music from Jeremy Soule. June: June will see a personal interface for Player Studio put in, the advent of glass and water as a building material, a revamp to the claim system, improved character creation, resource swapping, a death system, shields, recipe books, achievements, "chat 2.0," the fog of war on the map, and a "surprise feature." July: By the middle of summer, Landmark will introduce ensemble outfit pieces, the combat system, pathing, craftable abilities, physics, monsters, SOEmote, and bodies of water other than oceans. August: The last month on the blueprint will contain (for now) building tool refinements, mounts, and dynamic water.
This is how mounted combat looks in Black Desert
Pearl Abyss released a new Black Desert gameplay vid this morning that focuses on the fantasy sandbox's mounted combat. MMO Culture reports that not all character skills can be used while mounted, but "a couple of new ones are granted." Click past the cut to view the footage.
Here are a couple of Black Desert beta reviews
Steparu and MMO Culture are both playing Black Desert's second Korean closed beta, and both sites have published recaps of their various adventures. Steparu details the fantasy sandbox's combat and skill system as well as the process of catching a mount with a lasso! MMO Culture focuses on the melee brawler Giant class. Both sites have uploaded gameplay videos, which you can sample after the cut.
World of Warcraft kicks off Azeroth Choppers
Are you ready to ride through Azeroth and Draenor in style? Because that's the goal of the new web series fusing American Chopper and World of Warcraft. The first episode is out now, and you can guess the heart of it just from the premise. Two bikes will be designed -- one for the Horde, one for the Alliance -- and fans will vote on which bike winds up in the game as a mount. The first episode, of course, is very much the proof of concept; it features a very early glance at the starting point for both bikes as well as a discussion of Horde and Alliance aesthetics. You can watch the whole episode just past the cut. It's going to be running at least through the end of May, so you'll get a front-row seat to see both choppers brought from concept into execution.
Warlords of Draenor: New mount and NPC models discovered
AdriaCraft are at it again, digging through the data and powering up the Model Viewer to bring us images of some of the new NPC and mount models in Warlords of Draenor's Alpha. There's a couple of mounts like the Raven Lord that we've seen already, but a few that are new, like the Clefthoof, who also comes in various different colors. There's also a Giant Boar mount, also in red, and a Draenor Wolf, who also comes in three other color schemes. Apart from the mounts, there are various NPC models apart from Thrall, some of which have surfaced already, some of which haven't. Velen, Grommash, Durotan and Blackhand are all there. There's several varieties of Iron Horde machinery that have been found, as well as some pale orcs, new Talbuks and Sporebats which we heard about following the recent press event, and Elekk, Goren and Hippos. All of these come in a variety of colors, so do check out the original post for more info. But my favorite new model by far is the Draenor Ancient. Like all the models, he's in a variety of colors, but look at his grumpy face! What has you excited from this recent datamine?
The Daily Grind: Do you keep MMO accounts on for veteran rewards?
I've got a guildie who's a bit insane. He is notorious for staying subscribed to MMOs he's not playing, sinking tons and tons of money into these games but not logging in. Is he doing it to support developers? Nope. He does it for the veteran rewards. Seriously. He once told me he stayed subbed to City of Heroes because he really, really wanted a veteran minipet. When I consider what that minipet must have cost him in subscription fees, all I can do is think how many brand-new games he could have picked up on Steam for all that dough! And yet here I am looking at my Ultima Online account the same way. The account is 16.5 years old with nine years of vet rewards on it. I left it on a few extra months last year to get to the ridable ethereal polar bear mount reward because hello, ridable ethereal polar bear mount, right? What about you -- do you leave your subscription MMO accounts on to collect vet rewards? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Latest Heroes of the Storm blog post details heroes, mounts, and more
Want more information on Blizzard's upcoming MOBA Heroes of the Storm while waiting for your technical alpha invite? The latest blog post dishes details on the availability of heroes, a try-before-you-buy feature, leveling, earning in-game currency, acquiring new skins, and mounts. Every player starts with a basic horse mount. For the free-to-play crowd, five heroes will be available to play each week, with the list rotating every Tuesday. Players can buy other heroes at any time using cash or with in-game gold that is earned after reaching level 5. Various skins with tint slots can also be bought. For more info or to apply for alpha, check out the official site. We've got the video first look of the alpha after the break.
RIFT gives the new Steppes of Infinity Conquest map a spin
This past weekend, RIFT players and devs alike jumped into the new Steppes of Infinity Conquest to try out the PvP map on the test server. On the forums, a dev gave players an idea of what to expect from the map, saying that teams will be ferrying stones between upgradable forts for points. However, once 1,750 player deaths occur, players have a five-minute timer to score as much as possible followed by loot for the winners. The devs followed up the playtest with a peek at some of the upcoming goodies for the game, including an Umbral Budgie mount, a mech mount, and a new powerful focus.
RIFT announces account-wide premium mounts
Mount aficionados of Telara have reason to celebrate, as Trion Worlds has announced that RIFT's premium mounts are available account-wide. Now, all of a player's premium mounts will be available to every character on his account, regardless of which character acquired the mount in the first place. Trion has also announced that all premium mounts will be 25 percent off in the game's shop from today, February 21st, until February 23rd. For the full list of account-wide mounts, plus some notes on other features introduced in the game's latest patch, check out the full post on RIFT's official site.
A look at WildStar's customization options
How much do you like character customization? If you shrug and click the nearest "random" button when making a new character you probably don't care much. But if you like to carefully examine customization options before creating a character, and then even more carefully examine customization options after creating a character... well, WildStar's developers understand the way you work. They'd like to help, insofar as giving you a whole bunch more customization options could count as "helping." Customizing your character doesn't end at creation -- it extends to how you play your character, how your character's outfit looks, and even how your mount looks. Not to mention, of course, that there's the housing system. The game's latest DevSpeak video about customization is just past the cut, and we got a chance to talk a little more with the fine folks at Carbine Studios about tuning your character just right.
The Repopulation details transportation options
How do you like to move it, move it? The Repopulation is offering a variety of transportation methods for traversing its vast world to fit most any style and circumstance. Players can always hoof it to their destination, either by walking or running indefinitely, or sprinting until their endurance is depleted. If that seems too slow, there will also be pets for mounts and customizable vehicles. An even quicker method will involve underground stations that will let players take a subway train to specific locations; even large enough player cities can develop a connection to this system. If all that is still just too slow for your liking, there's the instant travel option that lets players teleport back to their faction's capital city once every 30 minutes. Some players might even opt for the death express: Players can bind themselves to different cloning facilities and respawn at one after a death.
Iron Skyreaver now available on Battle.net store
The Iron Skyreaver mount that was released last week was available in the in-game store only. Unfortunately, this meant meant that players looking to give the mount as a gift to friends were unable to do so. Good news for those with giving spirits -- the mount has now been added to the Battle.net store, which means you can indulge your close friends with the latest ridiculously cool mount for their collections. Purchasing mounts through the Battle.net store will give you an option to either use the mount on your own account, or give the gift to a friend. Selecting the gift option will generate a code, which you can then toss at the recipient to use at their leisure. All they have to do is log into their Battle.net account and redeem the code by going to the Games & Codes dropdown and selecting Code Redemption. While it's nice to see the Skyreaver added to the Battle.net shop, it does make one wonder if the in-game store will see gift-giving functionality eventually added. With how easy it is to use the shop interface, it would be nice if it generated codes as well. Hopefully we'll see that at some point in the future.
