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SWTOR's Assassin, Shadow discipline changes detailed
Star Wars: The Old Republic fans, I'm sure you know the drill by now. The Shadow of Revan expansion is introducing major class changes and basically revamping talent trees in favor of a new discipline system. BioWare has been putting out a dev diary every couple of days to outline the tweaks to each of the game's classes. Today's installment focuses on the Jedi Shadow and the Sith Assassin.
SWTOR's Shadow of Revan expansion arrives December 9th, nukes skill trees
After a brief delay and much speculation, BioWare has officially revealed Star Wars: The Old Republic's next digital expansion, and it will indeed be called Shadow of Revan. A tweet from the official account names the title and promises a new level cap of 60 and a launch just in time for Christmas on December 9th. BioWare's press release previews two new planets (Rishi and Yavin 4), four hard mode flashpoints, two "role-neutral" flashpoints, two level 60 operations, and a mission storyline that will unite Republic and Empire to fight Revan's army. Players who pre-order the expansion (19.99 USD) receive a limited time leveling boost, early access to SoR, and free access to TOR's first expansion, Rise of the Hutt Cartel, which was granted to all subscribers last year. Most intriguing is the addition of disciplines, a hefty class overhaul that will delete skill trees from the game. "No longer are you forced to purchase skills that are, in essence, necessary for your character to function; you simply get them automatically as you level up and progress down what we call the Discipline Path," says a new dev blog covering the 3.0 overhaul. "Much like the old Skill Trees, each path is made up of active abilities, passive abilities, and a new type of progression concept called a utility selection." We've included the announcement trailer below, complete with the requisite ominous Star Wars music.
Choose My Adventure: Guild Wars 2 disciplines and WvWvW
This week in our Guild Wars 2 edition of Choose My Adventure, level 26 Mesmer Pippy Peat donned his two-handed staff (with his two-handed greatsword as backup) and headed for the brutally fun battlegrounds in world vs. world vs. world. I tried my hand at utilizing my new skills, Radiation Field and Feedback, with marginal success. Some tasty burgers to up my Radiation Field's condition duration helped, though. I had a blast with tailoring but maybe a little more with cooking. I discovered some interesting ways to go about crafting to level up faster. I lingered in Brisban Wildlands before moving on to WvWvW because I had to catch some more video and screenshots to add to the gallery and wanted to make a snazzy new video. Read on for more eye-popping screenshots, a recounting of my trials, and another round of voting.%Gallery-170307%
More information on crafting in Final Fantasy XIV
Final Fantasy XIV's crafting system is rich with detail, requiring a fair bit of knowledge from players in order to successfully craft items. Not everything is explained in the game from the start, however, giving players the chance to experiment and learn what works best for themselves. There was a prior developer dispatch regarding the crafting system, but the team at Square-Enix has just released a new FAQ detailing some of the more subtle variants of crafting. While it's not full of formulae to let players make the optimal crafting build, it certainly does shed a great deal of light on the previous unknowns for the system. Most players had noticed sparks produced from their synthesis on more than one occasion, but up until now it wasn't clear what the sparks represented. Apparently, the aetherial sparks (as they are referred to in the dispatch) come from straining the materials, either by trying to work too fast or attempting to craft something outside of your skill range. The FAQ also covers elemental destabilization and the effects of various craft-related attributes, such as Control helping to avoid both destabilization and sparking. Final Fantasy XIV's burgeoning crafter population should take a look at the news, as it might mean the difference between a fresh suit of armor and a fresh set of botched crafts.
Final Fantasy XIV gets a version update and another developer dispatch
The bad news about the most recent version update for Final Fantasy XIV is that, despite player hopes, it does not yet contain the heavily awaited first revision to the market wards. That's planned for next week, according to the patch notes themselves. The good news is that it does contain a number of bugfixes and helps clean up several chat oddities. Accompanying the notes on the main page is another dispatch from the developers about how the game works, this one on the topic of character creation and disciplines, and while the developers give some vague answers, they also offer some useful, concrete information. For example, while there are no game differences at the moment based upon a character's birthday or guardian deity, both are in the works -- and if the benefits that are ultimately awarded for your chosen deity disappoint you, Square-Enix will be giving players the chance to change their guardians. The new dispatch also provides a full listing of where to get tools and weapons for every discipline at the start, allowing players from any nation to change class right from the beginning. Final Fantasy XIV players are encouraged to check both the patch notes and the latest update and to keep their eyes peeled for what promises to be a large update next week.
Final Fantasy XIV confirms launch classes
Final Fantasy XIV's class system is one of the defining elements of the game, as it was in Final Fantasy XI. The game has revealed 18 different classes, or disciplines in the game's parlance, spread across four categories -- war (weapon-using fighters), magic (casters), hand (crafters), and land (gatherers). As it turns out, it's been revealed via Famitsu that the game will launch with 18 playable classes, meaning that we know all of the options for play already. Of course, 18 classes that can share abilities isn't exactly an anemic offering to begin with. For some players, this might be a bit disappointing, as it means only two casting classes will be available at launch, the thaumaturge and the conjurer. Disciples of the hand are the most numerous, with armourers, blacksmiths, weavers, goldsmiths, carpenters, culinarians, leatherworkers, and alchemists. Miners, botanists, and fishermen round out the disciples of the land, and lancers, archers, gladiators, marauders, and pugilists fill out the disciples of war. While there will be additional classes after launch, it looks like this is what will be in the game to start -- useful information for a Final Fantasy XIV hopeful to chew on.
More information on Final Fantasy XIV's crafters and harvesters
With the beta testing in full swing and the release date just around the corner, you might think that Final Fantasy XIV fans would have all the information that they need. Of course, anyone highly anticipating the game would be quick to point out the exact opposite, eagerly looking for any more details about the game, especially with so much left to know about the various Disciplines. A recent article on Famitsu (translated by the helpful team at FFXIVCore) sheds new light on some of the less flashy disciplines -- not those of War or Magic, but the Hand and the Land, gathering and crafting. The new article gives more details on Harvesters (which may be dubbed Botanists in the official translation), Goldsmiths, Armourers (possibly due to lose the British spelling), Woodworkers, and Fishermen. Each class has a small writeup explaining their tasks and talents, such as the rapport that Harvesters enjoy with plants or the equipment-enhancing talents of Goldsmiths. Take a look at the article for a clearer picture of the plethora of non-combat activities that come along with Final Fantasy XIV -- even if many of the noncombatants will be well served by having a few combat-ready escorts.
The Mog Log: Assembling the gestalt of Final Fantasy XIV
We've been treated to a veritable onslaught of new information about Final Fantasy XIV of late, and when I say "treated" I mean precisely that. After all, Square-Enix's information comes at a glacial pace, to the point where they're still releasing information about Final Fantasy VII to this day. (Or squeezing blood out of that stone for all it's worth, reader's choice. I think my way is funnier.) Of course, the problem is that the information is released without a great deal of context. My hat goes off to the brave folks in the testing, scurrying about and trying to reveal as much as possible, but I know from experience what happens when your goal is "find things out" rather than "assemble a coherent picture." We know a lot of facts about Final Fantasy XIV, but we don't have a real idea of the scope of the game. For some people, that's second nature. For others, it's a challenge. And for some people, they haven't seen the piece or two that would make everything fall into place. So today, The Mog Log is taking a tour back through what we've learned and trying to put it all into some sort of overarching framework.
Staying in control with Final Fantasy XIV
We're likely nearing the end of useful information that can be gleaned from the current wave of testing in Final Fantasy XIV, leaked or otherwise, but what a fruitful time it has been. The game's picture has solidified so much in our minds compared to a scant few weeks ago that we can look at much of the information-heavy translated article from 4Gamer.net and see things we're already aware of. Still, there are tidbits like the nuances of the control scheme that had been largely unmentioned before now, and another set of eyes confirming some of the cooler features is certainly welcome. While it's no great surprise that the game should work well with a controller, the change to a standard WASD setup for movement should please any number of fans. Unfortunately, keybinds for individual menu windows like character status seem currently inaccessible, though that's likely to change. We also learn a little more about the ability system -- it seems that abilities are somewhat weaker on other disciplines, although they're still usable. Combine that with a number of gorgeous screenshots, and Final Fantasy XIV fans can enjoy the most recent course of information. (Oh, and yes, another mention of the underwear thing.)
Final Fantasy XIV details two new classes and weapons
Those of us looking forward to Final Fantasy XIV have a bit more to look forward to now, with a new update to the official site. Continuing the slow reveal that the recent updates have included, this update contains two classes who have been previously named but not discussed in detail, the Gladiator and Pugilist. In addition, the update offers some details regarding the weaponry used by these classes -- which, as we've reported earlier, are the central element for each class in the multifaceted world of the game. Gladiators are what their pictures would tend to indicate, heavily-armored sword wielders with a penchant for close melee combat. They're also slated to be masters of throwing knives, and will have the option of using a shield or eschewing it for more offensive combat. Among their weapons are a number of swords and shields, including the blade-encrusted Lantern Shield that offers simultaneous offense and defense. Pugilists, by contrast, are lightly-armored melee fighters that use a variety of hand-to-hand attacks -- shades of the classic Monk. Their weapons are a bit less novel, but any player familiar with Final Fantasy XI will feel some nostalgia at the sight of baghnakhs and cesti. Take a look at the official site for more information, including the galleries of weapons and multiple images of the new classes.
